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Danish Lawmakers Approve Measure to Confiscate Valuables From Migrants; Donald Trump to Skip Thursday's Fox News Debate; John Kerry in China to Negotiate North Korean Sanctions; $200,000 Award Offered in Manhunt for Escaped Prisoners; Mourning Acotr Abe Vigoda; Apple Sales Growing at Slowest Rate Ever; El Nino in California. Aired 3-4a ET

Aired January 27, 2016 - 03:00   ET

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

[03:00:01]

ERROL BARNETT, CNN HOST: Iowa surprise. Donald Trump pulls out of the last Republican debate just days before the Iowa caucuses.

Migrant controversy, Denmark's prime minister plays defense after lawmakers approve a measure that allows the confiscation of valuables from migrants.

And going sour? Apple's forecast, its first sales decline in more than a decade.

Good morning to our viewers from the U.S. and all around the world. I am Errol Barnett. Thanks for joining as we kick off our second hour of CNN NEWSROOM.

Who could have predicted this? The race for the White House is getting uglier. Republican frontrunner Donald Trump says he won't show up for the next Presidential debate on Thursday. He refuses to face Fox News' host Megyn Kelly, who he claims treated him unfairly in an earlier debate.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I am not a fan of Megyn Kelly. I think she's a third-rate reporter. I think she, frankly, is not good at what she does. And I think they could do a lot better than Megyn Kelly, where they sent out the wise guy press releases, done by some P.R. person, along with Roger Ailes. I said, bye-bye, ok?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BARNETT: Wow. CNN Senior Media Correspondent Brian Stelter has more on this latest dust-up and test history behind Donald Trump and Fox News' Megyn Kelly.

BRIAN STELTER, CNN SENIOR MEDIA CORRESPONDENT: Hey there. Once again, Donald Trump defying all the political campaign rules, making up new rules as he goes along. This time it's about the last debate before the Iowa caucuses. It is scheduled for Thursday night in Iowa, airing on the Fox News Channel. Trump was supposed to be center stage. In fact, at 6:00 p.m., Fox announced the lineup, but by 6:30, Trump said he was skipping the debate.

This is about months basically of conflict between Fox and Trump that's all come to a head in the past few hours. He believes one of the moderators, Megyn Kelly, is biased, unfair to him, and should not be a moderator. Fox is sticking up for her, saying there's no way they will remove her from this debate. She believes Trump is trying to control the media, something she and Fox cannot allow. This all stems from the debate back in August when Megyn Kelly asked Trump some very tough questions on stage in front of 25 million people.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MEGYN KELLY, FOX NEWS HOST: Your twitter account has several disparaging comments about women's looks. You once told a contestant on Celebrity Apprentice it would be pretty to see her on her knees. Does that sound to you like the temperament of a man we should elect as President?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

STELTER: Trump has been frustrated with Megyn Kelly ever since. He created a video on Tuesday afternoon where he has critical of her, where he was saying she was unfair. Fox mocking Trump, telling him to grow up, so Trump responded by saying, go on, have your debate without me. It's as if these two powerful figures are at odds, at loggerheads, seeing if either side will blink. On the one side, you got Donald Trump, the GOP front-runner, who has used television very effectively, who has grown up as a reality TV star and billionaire businessman and knows how to command the media.

On the other side, you have Fox News, Chairman Roger Ailes, one of the most powerful men in both politics and in media. He is standing by Megyn Kelly. He is refusing to play by Donald Trump's rules. Of course, now the debate is less than two days away. There's curiosity about some of this might be bluster from Trump, whether he might show up after all. Right now, there's no indication of that. He says he'll have his own event, his own special event on Thursday evening and he's inviting other networks to broadcast it, back to you.

BARNETT: Thanks for that, Brian.

Now, two new polls show where Donald Trump stands in the Republican race, he dominates the field in a new national survey. You see it there with 41 percent support among Republican voters in the latest CNN/ORC poll. Obviously, more than double the support for Ted Cruz. Meanwhile in Iowa, Trump leads Cruz by just two points in a Quinnipiac University poll. That's well within the margin of error.

Now, Trump's closest rival, Republican Ted Cruz, pounced on the front- runner for pulling out of the debate. He made seven stops on -- in Iowa on Tuesday. Cruz warned supporters that if Trump wins the Iowa caucuses, he'll likely win the Republican nomination. Then Cruz threw down a challenge. [03:05:01]

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. TED CRUZ (R-TX), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I think anyone running for President of the United States owes it to the people of Iowa to have the humility to come in front of you, to make the case, to answer the hard questions, to look you in the eyes. This is a job interview. The President of the United States works for each and every one of you. If he's unwilling to stand on the debate stage with the other candidates, then I would like to invite Donald right now to engage in a one-on-one debate with me any time between now and the Iowa caucuses.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BARNETT: So things are definitely heating up. Joining me now are two CNN political commentators, Jeffrey Lord on the far right is a former Reagan White House Political Director and a Trump supporter. He's in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, alongside Peter Beinart, who is also a Contributor for the Atlantic, joining us from New York. Welcome to you both. Jeffrey, let's start with you. Donald Trump says he will not attend Thursday's GOP debate because Fox is unfair and host Megyn Kelly is biased. Do you agree and how is this not being thin-skinned?

JEFFREY LORD, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: You know I have to say, I was really amazed at the Fox statement. The whole deal with Putin and Ayatollah, whatever it is they said. It seemed to be anti-Trump, if you will, taking a side. I was sort of surprised they would do that. Number two, I think this is going to appear to people as the media in the larger sense, Fox and the specific sense going after Donald Trump and Donald Trump standing up to them.

This is a pretty bold thing to do. It reminded me -- I said earlier today when I learned of this to Ronald Reagan firing the air traffic controllers or walking out of the summit with Gorbachev. These are things that Presidents are not supposed to do. Our candidates are not supposed to do. And so when they do them and sort of draw a line in the sand and say, this far and no further, and they mean it, they get an enormous public reaction to it, which is generally favorable.

BARNETT: Peter, what do you think about that, because even without Trump at the debate, he'll still be the main focus, and I can't believe I am saying this, might he gain support with this unconventional move, because he has in the past?

PETER BEINART, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: I find the analogy between what Trump has done and what Reagan has done with air traffic controllers utterly absurd. There were issues of principle at stake, whether you agreed with Reagan or not, having to do with nuclear disarmament, having to do with labor unions. This is pure personal peak. Trump has had a thing about Megyn Kelly ever since she asked him a hard question at that first debate, and he's clearly not over it and mad Fox made fun of him.

There's no larger issue here. It's pure ego. It may work out well for him, but to suggest there's any larger issue of principle here beyond the astronomical ego of this man, I think, is laughable.

BARNETT: Now, Senator -- I just want to get to this point because Senator Ted Cruz is now hitting Trump hard. He's following him by far in the polls. He's challenging now to a one-on-one debate. In a new campaign ad, again, saying Trump has New York values. Watch this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: It's a little different than if I lived in Iowa.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: They are different. Like on abortion.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Would President Trump ban partial birth abortion?

TRUMP: I am pro-choice in that respect.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: What does Trump think about Iowa?

TRUMP: How stupid are the people of Iowa?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Donald Trump, New York values, not ours.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BARNETT: All right. Peter, I know you live in New York. Not sure how you feel about that ad. But do you think talking tough now will work for Cruz?

BEINART: I don't know. I think the Republican Party, had it gone hard after Trump on some of these issues, on, first of all, on his flip-flopping. Second of all, on the effect that he's had on workers in certain circumstances, doing what Barack Obama did to Mitt Romney, maybe that would have had an effect. It may be too late at this point, given that the Republican candidates are really focused on one another.

BARNETT: Jeffrey, what do you make of the Cruz line of attack?

LORD: You know, the ad, frankly, I don't think is going to go very far there. The line there about Iowans being stupid got an enormous amount of publicity in the day, and it's quite clearly taken out of context. Anyone watching television in Iowa would know that. I think that kind of thing can backfire. The business about -- you know asking for a one-on-one debate, I have to say, having been around my share of campaigns, this is fairly typical for a campaign that wants to get a debate and Senator Cruz is doing what's typical, which I find unusual for him.

BARNETT: CNN Commentators Peter Beinart and Jeffrey Lord, thanks for your time.

LORD: Thanks a lot.

BEINART: Thank you.

[03:10:01] BARNETT: And in the Democratic Presidential race, Bernie Sanders will meet with U.S. President Barack Obama on Wednesday. The White House is calling this meeting informal. However, it does come days after Mr. Obama heaped praise on Sanders' rival, Hillary Clinton. Sanders' campaign manager tells the New York Times he won't attend a proposed debate in New Hampshire, scheduled five days before the state's primary, but not sanctioned by the Democratic National Committee.

You can find much more on the race for the White House on our website. The main page is CNN.com/politics.

The FBI has arrested several protesters in the U.S. who have occupied a federal wildlife refuge in Oregon for weeks now. Ammon Bundy and several of his followers are facing felony charges related to that occupation. Another protest, Lavoy Finicum was killed as law enforcement confronted the group during a traffic stop on Tuesday. A law enforcement official says shots were fired during the arrest, but it's not clear who fired first. The group has been protesting U.S. federal land policies which they claim are illegal.

The debate over Europe's migrant crisis is escalating as E.U. states struggle to cope with the steady influx. Denmark is defending controversial measures that would allow the seizure of migrants' assets and the delay of family reunification. The ruling liberal party says the intent here is to ensure asylum seekers pay into the country's welfare system.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The issue is that our government needs to take care of Denmark until we get a European solution, until we get a worldwide solution. And Denmark is more attractive than countries around us. And we need to balance this so that we can accept the people who are in deed of help, but so that we also protect our country.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BARNETT: Let's break this down for you. The measure would allow Danish authorities to confiscate migrants' valuables, including anything worth more than $1400, it would also delay family reunifications from one to three years. And already strict residency requirements will get even tougher. Protests against Denmark's new policies are expected to continue.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We don't accept this. We condemn it. We are -- we protest it today and we are going to keep protesting against this new law.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think the general sense of hopelessness -- because of many refugees have fled to Denmark and the west because they believe in human rights and democracy. And they believe that they will find it here.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BARNETT: Amnesty International called Denmark's legislation a dismal race to the bottom. A spokesman for the U.N.'s high commissioner for refugees echoed that concern. Listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The decision to give Danish police the authority to search and confiscate valuables from asylum seekers sends damaging messages in our view, runs the risk of fueling sentiments fear and discrimination, rather than promoting solidarity with people in need of protection.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BARNETT: Take a look at this. More than 47,000 refugees have entered Europe in just the first few weeks of 2016. More than a million entered last year. The vast majority, more than 45,000 have landed in Greece.

Now, winter weather hasn't stopped the flow of migrants, but it is making their lives even harder. We visited Jordan's refugee camp and we're joined from Amman with more on what she found. The wintry weather conditions, a major concern for folks living in that camp. How is everyone holding up?

JOMANA KARADSHEH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Errol, this week we've seen temperatures here drop to blow freezing levels. You had snow in some parts of the country and heavy rain in other parts of the country, so we traveled north of Amman to the refugee camp, the country's largest refugee camp to see how people were dealing with winter and life in general.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KARADSHEH: It's cold, it's grim and unforgiving. This is winter in Jordan's refugee camp. This family has lived through three winters here.

For them, the season means time for traditions from home. They sing this song for Syria.

[03:15:01]

Syria, don't forget us, we will return. Hope is still alive, they sing. But these are just words. They don't think they'll ever see Syria again. This 18-year-old would like to go to Europe or Canada. Living here is not a life. It's an existence, she says. They say they won't risk their children's lives to reach Europe. Instead, they'll wait to be resettled by the United Nations.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The Syrians don't necessarily want to go to Europe. They to want return back to the villages, their towns, their homes. Europe is an alien concept for them. They're scared. For them to put their lives at risk, to put their children's lives at risk to make this journey, wouldn't it be far better to provide the support to countries like Jordan, Lebanon and Turkey to help these countries do what they want to do, which is provide the protection?

KARADSHEH: Around 80,000 Syrians live here in this refugee camp. Over the past three years, it has evolved into a city of sorts with markets, restaurants and schools. There are weddings that take place here daily and 50 to 60 babies are born here every week. This camp is the only home this nine-month-old has ever known. When her father and his family fled, they thought it would be for a few months. That was in 2012.

Of course, we expect to return, even if this baby is 60, we will continue to hope, he says. With no end in sight to the conflict back home, people old and young can only wonder how many more winters like this they'll have to endure.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KARADSHEH: And Errol, this country of very little resources is hosting about 1.4 million Syrian refugees. And the majority of them are not living in camps, they are urban refugees. They live in cities and towns across the country. These are the ones, they are the most concerned about, the most vulnerable, the especially at times like this, wintertime, Errol.

BARNETT: All right, Jomana Karadsheh, with that eye-opening report live for us this morning in Amman, Jordan. Thank you.

Turkey is threatening to boycott U.N.-sponsored peace talks on Syria if the Kurdish opposition Democratic Union Party is invited. Turkey's foreign minister says he believes that group is a terrorist organization and they don't want them at the negotiation table when peace talks begin Friday in Geneva, Switzerland. At this point, it's not clear whether or not the Kurdish party was invited since the list of attendees has not been made public.

The Zika Virus has spread to a new continent. Coming up next for you, the newest developments in this dangerous disease and what health officials are trying to do to stop it.

Plus, a scholarship program in South Africa is under fire. We'll look at why students must take a virginity test to keep their funding.

Also ahead, Apple says the era of unprecedented sales growth may be coming to an end. We'll tell you what else the tech company is predicting. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[03:24:01]

BARNETT: As we told you, for the first time last hour, Denmark is now reporting Europe's first case of the Zika Virus. According to Reuters' news agency, it's a tourist in central and South America. Meanwhile, U.S. President Barack Obama met with advisers on Tuesday to call for more research on Zika as it spreads around the world. At this moment, the CDC wants pregnant women to avoid 25 countries so they can avoid getting this mosquito-borne virus. The CDC says cases of the Zika Virus have been identified in about two dozen countries and territories around the world.

A health alert was issued after a case was confirmed in Brazil last May. Since then, outbreaks have spread through much of the Americas with Puerto Rico reporting its first confirmed case in December. Health officials in several countries, including Brazil, which is considered really ground zero for the outbreak, are warning women to not get pregnant. Zika has been linked to a neurological birth disorder. Shasta Darlington has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SHASTA DARLINGTON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: We're here in state of (Inaudible) considered ground zero in Brazil's health crisis, really in a swarm of mosquitoes. This is where the Zika Virus was first detected, it's also where doctors first discovered the link between the virus and a huge surge in birth defects. What we're talking about is nearly 4,000 babies who have been born with microcephaly since Zika was detected last year.

Just to give you an idea, in a normal year about 140 -- 150 babies are born with microcephaly -- this neurological disorder which leads through serious developmental issues through their life and possibly even early death. To the point we're getting doctors and health officials warning women not to get pregnant, to put off pregnancy if they can. There are no vaccines. There is no cure. The health ministry in Brazil is really focusing on combating the mosquito that transmits the virus that's all around us right now.

This is the health ministry says they're dedicating 200,000 troops to going door to door, to looking for the stagnant pools of water where the mosquito breeds and to hand out repellant to pregnant women. This of course, comes at a terrible time when you think about the Olympic Games six months away in Rio de Janeiro. Officials there say they'll minimize risks ahead of the games and during the games, they'll be inspecting the venues every day to make sure they aren't building up mosquitoes.

They're also betting on the weather since the games come in the month of August, the dryer, cooler month of August, they're hoping weather will help blow away some of those mosquitoes. Shasta Darlington, CNN.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BARNETT: Joining me now from Dallas is CNN Medical Analyst Dr. Seema Yasmin, Doctor, thanks for joining us and speaking with us about this today. You know all of a sudden it seems this Zika Virus started spreading rapidly. The CDC now saying it causes microcephaly in newborns, which for this virus is new. Explain why that is.

DR. SEEMA YASMIN, CNN MEDICAL ANALYST: Errol, we have to be very clear that the link between Zika Virus and microcephaly hasn't been proven by scientific studies. So Brazilian authorities are saying, look, there could be a link. They've seen it in Brazil since last May and a large number of babies born with abnormally small heads and brains. We still need to prove that connection. Right now it's suspected. It's concerning enough to health authorities in the U.S. and other parts of the world to say that women should not travel to a list of 20 countries and is that list keeps growing, where there's an outbreak of Zika Virus, because of the potential harm it could do to the fetus.

BARNETT: Why is this relatively new virus spreading rapidly now?

YASMIN: Probably a few reasons. One is that we are probably better at doing surveillance. It could have been causing sickness before and we weren't seeing it. Another reason this might be the first time we're seeing it in such large numbers is because it can be really hard to control these types of mosquitoes. Because we haven't seen this outbreak before, it's like a catch-22 situation where the general population doesn't have immunity so more people are becoming sick. It's a combination of these factors causing these really big outbreaks in a growing number of countries.

BEINART: Toronto researchers estimate 63 percent of Americans live in places where Zika may spread when the seasons change and things warm up. The scariest part seems to be the fact that 80 percent of people with the virus show no symptoms. So what can we do to make sure we don't get it?

YASMIN: It really comes down to avoid getting bitten by a mosquito in the first place. Sadly, you know we saw this is with Ebola where we were ten steps behind the virus. The situation is the same here. We don't have a Zika Virus vaccine in development. We don't have medicines that can treat it. What you have to do is make sure you don't get infected in the first place. That really comes down to basic mosquito control, sounds a lot more straightforward than it is because these bugs really get around.

As you have to make sure that your home area outside the home doesn't have any standing water, doesn't have places where the mosquitoes can breed. They bite during the daytime. So during daylight hours, even when it's hot outside, it's really important to cover up, wear long sleeves, wear insect repellant. And I have even more bad news about these Zika Virus mosquitoes. They like to come indoors with us as well. So if you can, crank up the air conditioning, make sure your window screens are intact without any tears in them.

BARNETT: It's always good to have someone as calm as you talk about things as frightening as this. Dr. Seema Yasmin, our CNN Medical Analyst, thanks for your time -- joining us from Dallas.

YASMIN: Thank you.

[03:29:01]

BARNETT: Some college students who won a scholarship in South Africa must meet an unusual requirement. They have to be virgins. We'll look at this controversial program and the reasoning behind it.

Plus, low oil prices aren't stopping Iran from expanding its biggest gas field. We'll take a tour through the sprawling complex. More details on that after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BARNETT: Welcome back to viewers watching in the state and all around the world. This is CNN NEWSROOM. I am Errol Barnett. This is my last half hour with you today, so let's check our headlines.

Donald Trump says he'll skip Thursday's Fox News Presidential debate. It's just the latest in the long-running feud between the Republican front-runner and Fox News host Megyn Kelly. Trump insists Kelly, who will moderate the debate, is biased against him.

[03:34:01]

Denmark is defending its controversial new policies on migrants. Authorities will be allowed to confiscate migrants' valuable, and family reunification could be delayed up to three years. More protests against the measures are expected.

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry is in China at moment. Earlier, he held a news conference with Chinese foreign minister. Kerry said North Korea's nuclear ambitions topped their talks and they agree life could be different for North Koreans if Pyongyang abandoned its weapons programs.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOHN KERRY, U.S. SECRETARY OF STATE: If Pyongyang will instead choose a different path, it can open the door to sanctions relief, economic cooperation, energy and food aid, more direct humanitarian assistance, and a whole range of other possibilities.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BARNETT: Now to South Africa where a scholarship program has sparked outrage over its required virginity testing. CNN Correspondent David McKenzie joins us from Johannesburg with details on this. And David, I guess we should explain part of this is cultural. The fact a student scholarship could be based on something so personal has fired up many critics there.

DAVID MCKENZIE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right. Traditional culture in South Africa is always a touchy subject. Some are very for -- some are often against it here in South Africa. This is a scholarship for poor, young, rural women trying to get to university. It's contingent that they are virgins. We went to the town in question and spoke to the mayor behind the plan.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MCKENZIE: These are some of his final days at home, spending time with her granny and young sister before she heads to the city for college. An accomplished student, she won a government scholarship. One of the main requirements, that she remain a virgin.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We're keeping ours from boys.

MCKENZIE: To stay with the program, she must submit to virginity tests during her college vacation. If she fails the test, she loses her funding.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I am 18 years old. I must study hard to change the world.

MCKENZIE: She's known as a maiden in Zulu culture, where virginity testing is common practice. Here in rural (Inaudible), tradition rules. But activists we called say the scholarship is invasive and sexist. You say it's discriminating because it's based on someone being a virgin.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I just need to support them.

MCKENZIE: The mayor thought up the virgin-only scholarships. She was a teen mother herself.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We have tried many ways to tamp down this teenage pregnancy and infection of HIV and AIDS.

MCKENZIE: And nothing is working?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Nothing is working.

MCKENZIE: In this part of South Africa, the odds are stacked against student's finishing school, especially girls. So-called sugar daddies prey on young girls, exchanging money for sex. When girls get pregnant, they drop out.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Young girls are vulnerable. They can't refuse to have sex with an older person. They cannot even instruct an old man to wear a condom.

MCKENZIE: South Africa's main opposition party has launched a complaint against the program with the country's human rights commission.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I tell them, it's no worry. It's my choice.

MCKENZIE: She says the virgin scholarship is her choice, her only chance to get into college.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MCKENZIE: The mayor says around 16 young girls have gotten the scholarship this year to go to university in just the coming days, but they want to expand that into hundreds in the next years. Their argument is in South Africa, if you have a child, if you are impoverished, you get a government grant, but there's no incentive from the government if you maintain your studies without getting pregnant.

Now, this might be offensive to many, many people, but they say that in South Africa, particularly in this district, around half of pregnant women have HIV/AIDS and they've been grasping at straws to find solutions. Many say this is not the solution, but that's what they came up with, Errol? BARNETT: David, as I have read some coverage on this, it seems people

agree with the motivation for why they want to do something like this, but the uncomfortable truth here is that there is no way, despite what tradition says, to determine if a girl or a woman is a virgin. I mean, regular, nonsexual activity can change a girl's body in a way that may make it seem that she's not a virgin. Has anyone raised that point?

[03:39:01]

MCKENZIE: Well, they do raise that point. We asked them that. Certainly, this is a long-standing tradition cultural tradition, particularly amongst Zulu South Africans, that part of the world, but it isn't scientific and it is, according to many human rights activists, incredibly invasive against the girl's privacy. But the girl told us she, in fact, chose to be in this program. She says it's a matter of pride for her to be part of this culture, and now it's enabled her to go to college.

But she wouldn't have gone to college was it not for this setup and, should she lose her virginity, to put it bluntly, or in their mind lose her virginity, she will lose that funding. It's a deeply complex issue outside of the initial shock or surprise people might have, looking at social media on this story. There are deep issues in rural South Africa that are not being sorted out. This mayor, as many people say, is coming from the right place. Whether this is the solution, many people say it isn't, but what is the solution?

BARNETT: That's a great point to highlight. Despite the outrage, folks have to understand, these girls are deciding to do this, and it's intertwined in their culture, feeling it will make a difference for them. David McKenzie live in Johannesburg, thank you.

U.S. federal officials say they thwarted a massacre at a temple in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The FBI has charged 23-year-old Sami Mohammad Hamza with illegally possessing guns. He was arrested Monday after buying two machine guns and a silencer from undercover agents. A criminal complaint says Hamza plotted an attack at a Masonic temple, hoping to kill at least 30 people. He allegedly said he was defending Islam.

In California, the reward is now up to $200,000 for information leading to the arrest of these three fugitive inmates. Authorities have also added more officers to the search. They say the inmates broke out Friday after cutting through metal, crawling through tunnels and rappelling out of the county jail, just incredible. The men are considered extremely dangerous.

Now, movie fans around the world are mourning the loss of actor Abe Vigoda. He died on Tuesday at the age 94. Vigoda was probably best known for his breakout role as Sal in the Godfather films. He was a veteran New York stage actor before getting a call from Francis Ford- Coppola about that part. Vigoda also starred in the hit American TV show Barney Miller, actor Abe Vigoda, dead at the age of 94.

Despite record earnings, Apple says its iPhone sales have slowed down. We'll tell you how investors reacted to the news and what's ahead for the tech company.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[03:45:01]

BARNETT: Sales of Apple's iPhone are growing at the slowest rate ever. Some analysts say it may signal the end of an era. Investors aren't impressed with the report. CNN's Samuel Burke has more.

SAMUEL BURKE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It's really a fascinating story because here, Apple has record-breaking profit of $18.4 billion and the market is frowning. That's because Apple at the end of the day, it's the iPhone company, and even though they sold 75 million iPhone's in the last quarter, that was actually the slowest rate of growth for the iPhone since they debuted in 2007. Imagine going to your boss and saying, I sold four million this quarter and the next quarter eight million, and then you only sell two million, investors aren't happy because they're thinking about the long term.

Another reason that investors aren't quite so happy with this report, Apple is saying for the first time they're seeing economic softening, they called it, in China. And Apple has invested so much money in China. Now, Tim Cook, the CEO of Apple, is sounding upbeat. He says things will look better as the year moves on. Analysts, however, are thinking maybe Apple's days as a high-flying growth stock are coming to an end. I'm Samuel Burke in New York, back to you.

BARNETT: The U.S. Federal Reserve is wrapping up a two-day meeting. The Central Bank is expected to leave interest rates unchanged. There are concerns that lowering interest rates would drag down the U.S. economy. The Fed had predicted U.S. economic growth will accelerate this year and raised rates by a quarter points in December.

Now, oil prices are back above $30 a barrel. That doesn't seem to be appeasing European investors. Stocks fell at the opening of trading on Wednesday. There's a live look at the numbers for you. There's not a lot of movement. Frankfurt is up 0.1., the London FTSE is up a bit, fractionally more than that, and Paris up a third of a percent, while the Zurich SMI is pulling back more than half a percent.

Meanwhile, trading in the Asia Pacific region was mixed. Let's take a look at those numbers. As you see, Hong Kong's Hang Seng up 4 percent, Tokyo's Nikkei up 2.75 percent. The Shanghai Composite is pulling back half a percentage point and Sydney pulling back more than a full percent.

Despite the low oil prices, Iran continues to open new refining facilities in a bid to boost oil production. CNN's Fred Pleitgen has more on the expansion of the country's biggest gas field which is also the biggest in the world.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

FRED PLEITGEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Even from far away, the flames mark the location of Iran's most ambitious gas project. The (Inaudible) complex already has several working refineries, this one was opened two weeks ago. Maintenance workers make sure everything is functioning.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Just a minor problem, not a major problem, for example, changing the gaskets and activities on the pumps.

PLEITGEN: The (Inaudible) complex services the pars south gas field, which lies in the Persian Gulf. Pars south is the biggest with 1,800 trillion cubic feet of reserves. Despite the low international oil and gas prices, Iran is moving ahead with the development of this facility. It won't just be refineries. There will be several ports and Petro chemical companies, making this one of the biggest complexes of its kind in the world.

Construction is in full swing at several other refinery sites in the complex. Sanctions against Iran held the project up but they never stopped the development, says the project director of one facility.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We found a solution for each problem we faced regarding the sanctions, but you can see that in five years, more than five years, we have built this big plant. This is a $4.5 billion project.

[03:50:01]

PLEITGEN: Now that most sanctions have been lifted, those in charge of the mega complex want to accelerate construction. Even though the managing director says they will continue to rely mostly on Iranian suppliers.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We've got even more than 65, more or less about 70 percent of the material, but Iranians -- for the tables, for the vials, for the vessel, for the tank, for the machine.

PLEITGEN: Iran is poised to become one of the biggest exporters of oil and gas in the world, now that most of the sanctions against Tehran have been lifted. The pars south gas field and this mega refining complex are key to the country's future hydrocarbon strategy. Fred Pleitgen, CNN, Iran.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BARNETT: Demolition crews are finding more secrets hidden under a mansion that once belonged to drug lord Pablo Escobar. We'll show what you they uncovered after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[03:55:01]

BARNETT: Now, in the state of Wisconsin, folks really love their cheese, but thieves stealing truckloads of it, yeah, that happened, $90,000 worth of parmesan, $90,000 worth of it was swiped from a distribution center earlier this month. A week later, a man stole a truck filled with about $70,000 worth of cheddar and other cheeses, that is. Police cannot figure this out. But they say they will keep looking for the cheese bandits. There's also a mystery at the one-time Miami Beach home of former drug

lord Pablo Escobar. The owners of his old mansion are tearing it down and discovered a second safe. They tell Jessica Holly from CNN affiliate WSVN that they are dying to peek inside.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JESSICA HOLLY, WSVN REPORTER: As the former home of the Colombian cocaine king continues to come crashing down, a mysterious find.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: For us, this is the Holy Grail.

HOLLY: A safe tucked away beneath the concrete.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is what we were looking for all along, to find something, you know, of this nature.

HOLLY: The century 1330 discovered as the important owners demolish the bay-front mansion, once owned by drug lord Pablo Escobar.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: To tell you the truth, I had a feeling we were going to find something.

HOLLY: And he was right. Crew member Miguel Motto said he started screaming when he spotted the safe.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He couldn't hear me because the machine is loud.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: So, I said, what's up, Miguel?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I said, look, there's a safe.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I said, what?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He's like, no way. I am like, yeah, a safe.

HOLLY: The safe was uncovered as one of the last walls was coming down. It was found under what used to be the front steps of the mansion, a documentary crew capturing the whole thing and ready to roll for the big reveal.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We have to figure out how and when and where we're going to open it. That will be the fun part.

HOLLY: A gold mine of mystery for now. And after one safe already disappeared from the property, this one is sealed up and sent away for safekeeping until it's time to take a peek.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We have no idea what's going to be inside. It could be gold, could be diamonds. We could find nothing but its good entertainment, so we're super excited.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BARNETT: I am guessing its stacks of cash. Who knows? You know the recent heavy rains in California enhanced by El Nino are

making some million dollar properties there uninhabitable. Our Meteorologist Pedram Javaheri joins us with details on that, what's happening, Pedram?

PEDRAM JAVAHERI, AMS METEOROLOGIST: You know, Errol, some people being forced to evacuate where literally their properties are teetering on the edge of the Pacific Ocean. Multimillion dollars -- you take a look at where this is. This is in the town of Pacifica, south of San Francisco. Show you the particular property we're about to show a video. There it is right there. This image from March of 2015, you can see several meters before the cliff drop off. .

The cliff drops off. I want to show you video out of the exact same spot. There's the cliff. There's the actual property as it dangles over the edge. People are forced to evacuate. Other video from this region showing you other apartment complexes that have forced some 20- plus residents out of their properties as the waves continue to batter the coastline in the last couple of weeks. Of course, we know El Nino really ramping up as we head into February over the next month or so.

You see, again, can you imagine coming outside and that being your patio? That's what folks are dealing with and now, leaving their properties behind because of the dangers in place there. Here's what it looks like across California with the active weather pattern we've seen come in. One storm after another for much of December, into early January, places like San Francisco, close to the Pacifica town location, last January, zero inches have fell.

This January almost seven inches, the average, about 4 1/2 inches, but as a whole here, California still struggling to get out of the drought situation, about 70 percent of the state in extreme drought, Errol, putting 36 million people in a drought situation across California. But again, gradually going to chip away at this, and unfortunately, comes at the expense of causing some property damage as well.

BARNETT: Yeah. For those folks losing their homes, paradise has its costs.

JAVAHERI: Absolutely does.

BARNETT: Pedram thanks a lot.

And thanks to you all for watching me these past few hours, some of it at least. I am Errol Barnett. Remember, you can connect with me anytime on twitter. Great to see what's up with you these days. "EARLY START" is next for viewers in the States. For everyone else, Max Foster is next with more CNN NEWSROOM. I'll see you tomorrow.

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