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Syrian Refugees Stuck Between Closed Borders; GOP Presidential Field Narrowing; North Korea Executes Military Leader; Zika Virus Spreads Further Around World; Will Zika Change Catholic Church Stance on Pregnancy; Syrian Refugees Resettling in Canada; U.S. Justice Department Sues Ferguson, Missouri; India Stops Facebook's Basics Program. Aired 2-3a ET
Aired February 11, 2016 - 02:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
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[02:00:37] ROSEMARY CHURCH, CNN ANCHOR: Hello and welcome, everyone. I'm Rosemary Church.
ERROL BARNETT, CNN ANCHOR: I'm Errol Barnett. Great to have you with us. Our two-hour block starts now. This is CNN NEWSROOM.
Pressure is building on Russia to end its aerial bombardment of Syria.
CHURCH: The U.S., Saudi Arabia, Iran, Russia and other powers will meet in Munich Thursday with a focus on a cease-fire. The Russian- backed assault on the rebel stronghold of Aleppo scuttled peace talks earlier this month. The U.S. secretary of state is pushing for an agreement to revive them.
BARNETT: A diplomatic source says Russia has proposed a cease-fire for all sides to begin March 1st. But it's unclear if rebel groups would agree to that. The opposition says it will attend peace talks.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, we will go. And we were there to really make it a success. But we don't have a serious partner. You know, when you are going for a political solution, I believe that you should show something on the ground. If you stop -- they stop killing of Syrians, I believe the solution is there.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHURCH: Now, the International Committee for the Red Cross says the assault on Aleppo has displaced 50,000 civilians. And those who remain are cut off from supplies of food, water and shelter, in freezing temperatures. The two main hospitals say there's no access to life-saving assistance, either.
The commander of a contingent in the rebel group says his men face the facts on three front but they will fight back.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) UNIDENTIFIED COMMANDER (through translation): Aleppo is besieged on three fronts. Forces are attacking on three fronts. The Western roads are still open. We are planning to enter Aleppo from the West soon.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translation): These groups are big and huge. They are well-financed and armed with new weapons. That's why this battle is not easy. But there will be a day when all Aleppo will return. Whether the suburbs or the occupied part of the city, all these will return to the government's control.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHURCH: The fighting near Aleppo is sending thousands of Syrians fleeing for their safety. The refugees hoping to cross into Turkey find themselves stuck between a closed border and air strikes.
BARNETT: Arwa Damon has our story.
We have to give you a warning here, it contains graphic video.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
(EXPLOSION)
ARWA DAMON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Air strikes are relentless. This is happening just a 15-minute drive from Turkey's border as Russia jets soften targets for regime forces and their allies to move in on the ground.
In this graphic video, posted to YouTube by activists, it shows what they say the air strikes left behind.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE)
DAMON: People tried to coax this little girl to talk. Her name is Mesa (ph). The voice on the video sarcastically thanks the leaders of Turkey and Saudi Arabia, supposed allies of the Syrian opposition. But that friendship, like that of the U.S., is described as a farce.
Colonel Mohammad al Ahmed (ph), spokesman for the al Shamia Front (ph) says, they are preparing for the worst.
COL. MOHAMMAD AL AHMED (ph), SPOKESMAN, AL SHAMIA FRONT (ph) (through translation): The support was very limited to begin with. We always calculate that it's going to end. We compare the support. The regime gets from its friends and what we get from our friends. And it's a massive stark contrast.
DAMON: The regime's friends go from Russian air power to a bolstered ground force.
AHMED (ph) (through translation): Iraqi militia are a high number. There are Iranian commanders and their fighters, some Afghan militia, Lebanese Hezbollah. Each militia has areas of operations. But it's Iranian command and Russian air power. DAMON: All of which has allowed the regime to take control of the
land it has not stepped foot in two years, splitting opposition- controlled territory to the north of Aleppo in two, cutting off a vital supply line, and is now expanding to besiege the city.
AHMED (ph) (through translation): The danger is not a possibility. It's imminent because the regime is advancing towards the South to get the last route in.
[02:05:15] DAMON: Tens of thousands from the Aleppo countryside have already fled. Hundreds of thousands of civilians are potentially in danger.
(on camera): Turkey's open-door policy, as you can see, still remains closed. The strikes in the last 24 hours were so close that one man we spoke to on the other side said that he counted at least 16. And that is absolutely terrifying for the masses that just want to reach safety because they are only fully aware of how vulnerable they continue to be to the violence.
(voice-over): But no one seems to be listening to the pleas for help, whether it's military support for the rebels or mercy for those who are trying to flee.
Arwa Damon, CNN, on the Turkey/Syria border.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BARNETT: The U.S. Republican presidential field is narrowing. Chris Christie has suspended his campaign after a sixth-place finish in New Hampshire.
And Carly Fiorina is cancelling her bid. She finished seventh in New Hampshire.
BARNETT: As the candidates exit the race, Donald Trump is holding on to his status as the Republican front-runner.
CHURCH: But the remaining contenders are gearing up for an intense battle for the party nomination.
CNN's Jim Acosta reports.
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SEN. TED CRUZ, (R), TEXAS & PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Good bless the great state of South Carolina.
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JIM ACOSTA, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): In South Carolina, a state well known for its cut-throat politics, the knives are out for Donald Trump.
CRUZ: The only way to beat Donald Trump is to highlight the simple truth of his record. It is not conservative.
ACOSTA: And it's not just Ted Cruz and Jeb Bush with Trump in their sites.
JEB BUSH, (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE & FORMER FLORIDA GOVERNOR: We need someone that is bouncing back and forth saying, I'm the strong man, I'll take care of it. He has no clue.
ACOSTA: Every candidate in the party's accomplishment lane is in hot pursuit of the GOP front-runner, including a newly aggressive Marco Rubio.
SEN. MARCO RUBIO, (R), FLORIDA & PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: The pressure will be on him to say OK, here's how I'm going to deal with ISIS, this is what we're going to do about bringing jobs back, here's how we'd handle the trade imbalance. I don't think you can keep saying, trust me, I have a plan for it.
(CHEERING)
ACOSTA: That sense of urgency is due in part to the winnowing field of candidates, as Chris Christie and Carly Fiorina dropped out of the race.
(CHEERING)
ACOSTA: And there's a new threat to Trump in John Kasich who declared he wouldn't be dragged into a dog fight with his rivals.
JOHN KASICH, (R), OHIO GOVERNOR & PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I'm not going to be a pin cushion or a marshmallow. But I'm also not going to spend my time trying to trash other people. I'll tell you why. Because if this message works, it's fantastic.
ACOSTA: Trump is gearing up for a South Carolina brawl, unleashing a new attack ad on Cruz.
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ANNOUNCER: He runs a campaign accused of dirty tricks that tried to sabotage Ben Carson.
ACOSTA: Cruz is firing back in an ad that mocks Trump as an action- figure toy.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ANNOUNCER: I'm going to take your house with eminent domain.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ACOSTA: Trump is also facing tougher questions on his releasing his tax record.
TRUMP: I fight like hell not to pay taxes. I hate the way the government spends my money. ACOSTA: And the New York tabloids that aren't letting up.
TRUMP: While the owner of "The Daily News," which is a totally failing paper -- in fact, I think it's out of business.
ACOSTA (on camera): Even though Trump has been attacked by his rivals nearly all day long, the real estate tycoon rarely talked about his GOP opponents at this event in South Carolina, just a couple of lines on Jeb Bush. That's it. But he did spend some time sounding like a general election candidate, hitting Hillary Clinton as somebody who, he said, can't even beat Bernie Sanders.
Jim Acosta, CNN, Pendleton, South Carolina.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CHURCH: As the Democratic candidates look towards South Carolina, a major part of winning the state is getting African-American votes. And Bernie Sanders and Hillary Clinton got a boost on Wednesday. Clinton scored an endorsement from the Congressional Black Caucus' political arm. But some African-American lawmakers say Clinton is not doing enough to court young voters.
BARNETT: Meanwhile, Sanders met with civil rights activist, Al Sharpton, in New York City. Sharpton wouldn't make an endorsement, saying he's more about agendas than candidates at the moment.
Ben Jealous, the former head of the NAACP, spoke with Anderson Cooper about Sanders' long-time fight for racial justice.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BEN JEALOUS, FORMER DIRECTOR, NAACP: Here's a man who, in the early 1960s, as a young man, went to jail for racial equality, fighting to desegregate housing in Chicago, one of the most violent places as far as resisting the desegregation of housing. What very few white men did. My dad, black leaders, my white father was one of the few white men that went to jail back then. I know how few did. In 1988, he supports the Jesse Jackson campaign. One of the few leaders in Vermont to endorse Jesse Jackson. And today, he has the -- he's the only presidential candidate with a racial justice platform. You look, you know, throughout his career, this is a guy that's talked courageously for the need for racial justice consistently and doesn't have the painful contradictions that we see with Clinton.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
[02:10:31] BARNETT: Let's take a look at this. In an NBC/"Wall Street Journal"/Maris poll from late January, Clinton crushes Sanders in South Carolina when it comes to the African-American vote. You see, 74 percent to Sander's 17 percent.
And while the Clinton and Sanders' campaign prepare for the next contest, the candidates are ready to go head-to-head against each other. CHURCH: We will bring you the PBS News Hour Democratic presidential
debate on Friday at 8:00 p.m. in Hong Kong, 9:00 p.m. in Tokyo, right here on CNN.
We want to go back to the crisis in Syria.
I want to bring in Rafiula Koreschi (ph), the spokesman for the International Committee of the Red Cross in Damascus, Syria. And he joins us live via Skype.
Thank you, sir, for joining with us.
He is on the phone, I understand. We're having trouble with Skype.
Thank you for talking with us.
RAFIULA KORESCHI (ph), SPOKESMAN, INTERNATIONAL COMMITTEE OF THE RED CROSS (voice-over): Thank you.
CHURCH: We've seen the shocking images on the ground there. What is your organization doing at this time to try to alleviate some of the suffering?
KORESCHI (ph): Aleppo city as well as has people in the North of Aleppo city have been affected by this scale of fighting. Working along, has been able to have food for about 10,000 families. In addition, we provided water tanks to an area where another 10,000 displaced people have assembled, while regular work of maintaining Aleppo city's water supply is cut, so the water supply has got people of the city, are dependent on over 100 water points, which have been established in about three years through the ICRC and ICRC Red Crescent. So we are maintaining the water points to ensure people have some amount of water available to them. Similarly, when and wherever possible, depending on the security situation, depending on the exits to the access to those areas, our teams are on the ground and trying to deliver aid and assistance in form of medical items, in terms of food as well as strengthening water facilities.
CHURCH: Now, of course, we've mentioned these talks that will be under way, Thursday between world powers. Talk to us about how urgent a cease-fire is so that more help can come to these displaced people.
KORESCHI (ph): I think for humanitarian actors, the ICRC, we need to have access to people in affected areas. Now, this can be through a cease-fire, or this can be that if people that have assembled in an area close to a village, if those areas can be spared from hostilities by all warring parties, so humanitarian efforts can reach them. Our ultimate aim is to help people who are displaced but out in the open in the freezing temperatures, particularly vulnerable children and women who need all kind of assistance to survive this predicament.
CHURCH: Rafiula Koreschi (ph), thank you so much for speaking with us. We appreciate it.
KORESCHI (ph): Thank you. Thank you. BARNETT: Much more of the day's news coming up. CNN right now is
learning that a senior North Korean military leader has been executed. We'll have more on the crimes he's accused of, coming up.
CHURCH: Plus, Zika's global reach is growing. Up next, where it's striking now. And what an infectious disease specialist has to say about the latest outbreak.
We're back in a moment.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
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[02:17:10] BARNETT: Welcome back. The U.S. Senate had just approved new sanctions against North Korea. It's a move meant to punish Pyongyang for its missile tests and other activities, including human rights abuses.
CHURCH: The legislation now moves to the U.S. House before it's sent to President Barack Obama for consideration.
While the U.S. tries to punish the North, we are learning from a South Korean source that a North Korean military leader was executed for, quote, "misuse of authority and corruption."
CNN's Paula Hancocks joins us from Seoul, South Korea, with more on this.
Paula, what do we know about this general, and what he apparently did?
PAULA HANCOCKS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Rosemary, this is a man called Ri Yong-gil. He was the military chief. He was appointed in 2013, according to South Korean officials, as a general. And the same month, appointed at the joint chief of staff. He had a powerful position. We saw him with the North Korea leader, Kim Jong-Un, attending military drills.
And the last we heard of him was the start of January. According to this government source, we understand that he has been purged, executed. Of course, I have to caution we have no way of independently confirming this. But what they said, the reason was, factionalism, misuse authority and corruption.
It's interesting. Just last week, we had a big meeting. We saw from Kim Jong-Un, there was a Workers Party meeting with the military. And within that, they had a discussion, where they publicized how they were trying to root out corruption, root out misuse of power. Whether or not this is justified, what had just happened, we don't know. But certainly, in the past, we have seen previous individuals, very high- profile, very powerful, being purged. And often, the misuse of power is quoted as a reason -- Rosemary?
CHURCH: And, Paula, explain to us, what does this tell us about the leadership of Kim Jong-Un, this purging of people within his own leadership.
HANCOCKS: It depends on who you speak to. Some experts will say it shows that he is weak. He is still trying to consolidate his power, that he is trying to move individuals out that may threaten his grip on power. But then, other people say it shows that he is strong. He is able to purge and execute one of the top military personnel. Just last year, back in May, the report came out that the defense minister, we understand, was executed, as well. Of course, again, we cannot independently confirm that. It is such a secretive nation. So it depends on who you speak to, whether it is seen as a sign of how he has an iron grip on power or how he is struggling to try to keep control -- Rosemary?
[02:20:10] CHURCH: Our Paula Hancocks reporting from Seoul, South Korea. Many thanks to you.
BARNETT: The Zika Virus is spreading further around the world. China has confirmed its first patient. Australia is reporting a new case. In the U.S., California has announced another case of the virus there.
CHURCH: Meanwhile, The director of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control testified before a congressional subcommittee on Wednesday. Dr. Tom Frieden says science is on its way to proving Zika can harm babies.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DR. TOM FRIEDEN, U.S. CENTERS FOR DISEASE CONTROL & PREVENTION: With our Brazilian colleagues, the CDC laboratory is able to identify the genetic material of the Zika Virus in the brain tissue of the two infants who died with Microcephaly. This is the strongest evidence to date that Zika is the cause of Microcephaly but it's still not definitive. We still need to understand the clinical and epidemiological patterns to make that link definitive.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BARNETT: We're fortunate today because Celine Gounder is spending some time with us. She is an infectious disease and public health specialist, and joining us from New York.
Celine, we have people watching from all around the world who are so concerned about the Zika Virus. Where are we on the link with Zika and Microcephaly, the disorder with newborns?
DR. CELINE GOUNDER, INFECTIOUS DISEASE & PUBLIC HEALTH SPECIALIST: In mid-January, the scientists had reported a connection of the brain of two babies born with Microcephaly that died and had detected Zika Virus in the placentas to two women who miscarried with babies with Microcephaly. And this was published in CDC's internal journal, "The MMWR" today. And we had another report in the "New England Journal of Medicine" today about a woman who traveled to Brazil, returned to her home country of Slovenia, and had Zika Virus that was detected in the placenta and brain of her baby. So we have what looks like a very strong association and link, but we haven't yet proven that Zika Virus definitively causes Microcephaly. BARNETT: And for the most part, this is the most frightening aspect
about the virus. 80 percent, the people who have it don't realize. They don't show symptoms. This is the worst possible outcome. It takes about a decade to develop vaccines. The WHO, remembering the Ebola outbreaks, has sounded out the alarm about this. How soon could it be developed considering how serious it is?
GOUNDER: In the case of Ebola, we were starting with some vaccine candidates already on the shelf in labs. We hadn't taken them out to the field to test them among humans. With Zika, we started close to scratch. We have some vaccine candidates with related viruses, Dengue virus, for example. We have to start from the beginning. And to develop a vaccine, even if you put it on fast forward, you are talking at least five to 10 years, hundreds of millions of dollars in investment. And you have an added challenge here which is that the target population is pregnant women. And the safety studies you need to do for that vaccine would take that much longer.
BARNETT: There is a suggestion by some in the U.S. Congress to reallocate unused Ebola funds towards Zika efforts. What do you make of that option?
GOUNDER: I think it's premature. We've had some cases of Ebola reemerge after both Sierra Leone and Liberia declared their epidemic over. And if we reallocate funding now, we are letting our guard down at a critical time. If we had more cases reemerge, we would have a lot more transmission if we weren't doing active monitoring and things could spread out of control again.
BARNETT: We appreciate your insight. Celine Gounder, an infectious disease and public health specialist, joining us from New York today.
GOUNDER: My pleasure.
CHURCH: The suggestion that women in Zika hot spots avoid getting pregnant goes against the rules of the Catholic Church. But given the scope of this virus, could Catholic leaders in Brazil change their stance?
Nick Paton Walsh is in Rio de Janeiro to find out.
NICK PATON WALSH, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): In Brazil's modern city-scape, the Catholic Church has been the most influential voice.
(SINGING)
PATON WALSH: But now, on Ash Wednesday, as the Zika outbreak continues and spreads with its panics, could you catch it from sex, does it give your baby Microcephaly, the church's rules remain set in stones, no condoms, contraception or abortion. Just Rio's top cardinals tell us, just keep mosquitoes away.
(on camera): But you would still at this time tell people not to use contraception to prevent people being born with this awful deformity? UNIDENTIFIED BRAZILIAN CATHOLIC LEADER (through translation): The
church doesn't address this with the congregation. The church believes that people should be responsible. If they have this or any disease, they should be responsible and not transmit it to other people.
[02:25:27] PATON WALSH: There's been comparison of this virus to HIV. There was criticism at the time of HIV that the response of the world was not fast enough to inspire safe sex. Have they learned their lesson? Should they be pushing people in this time only, to use contraception or condoms just to remove that risk?
UNIDENTIFIED BRAZILIAN CATHOLIC LEADER (through translation): There's a possibility. It has to be proven. And the church recommends that people take care of the environment that they don't allow the mosquito to proliferate. And take care of their house.
PATON WALSH: Even if it's scientifically 100 percent sure that Zika can be sexually transmitted, there will be no change in the church's policy about contraception?
UNIDENTIFIED BRAZILIAN CATHOLIC LEADER (through translation): People are using this Zika issue to try to use abortion to challenge the church.
(SINGING)
PATON WALSH (voice-over): Lent is around the corner, Jesus' sacrifice, personal piety. But also around the corner, the Brazilian carnival goes on.
(SINGING)
(MUSIC)
PATON WALSH (on camera): Just meters away, the party goes on. And this is where Zika could be spreading. In the face of this unprecedented outbreak, the church's position, as it has been for decades, continues unchanged.
Nick Paton Walsh, CNN, Rio de Janeiro.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BARNETT: Still to come this hour on CNN NEWROOM, we follow a Syrian family who escaped their country to seek a better life in Canada. See how they're coping in their new country.
CHURCH: Plus, a U.S. city is sued by the federal government over claims of long-standing racial bias by police. Why the Justice Department is taking this rap. That's next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHURCH: And a warm welcome back to you all. This is CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Rosemary Church. [02:29:42] BARNETT: I'm Errol Barnett. We're half an hour into our
two-hour block. Let's update you on our top stories.
CHURCH: Millions of Syrians have sought refuge in other countries. The majority are in Turkey, Lebanon, Jordan and Iraq. More than four million Syrians are in those four countries. Six million others are displaced inside Syria. Nearly 900,000 Syrians are seeking asylum in Europe.
BARNETT: Much further away, Canada is resettling 25,000 Syrians.
Drew Griffin traveled to Calgary to see what the refugees face when they arrive in their new country.
DREW GRIFFIN, CNN INVESTIGATIVE CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It's quite but Zaid (ph) can barely contain the joy inside. This is Calgary's Margaret Chisholm Resettlement House, and it's dinner time.
(CROSSTALK)
GRIFFIN: Huge families, huge smiles, cries, laughter. And everywhere, children. They are all Syrians, refugees plucked from uncertain futures in Jordan and Lebanon selected under the Canadian Refugee Resettlement Program to be accepted as newly landed immigrants.
Amush Newman (ph) helps run this center. "In three years," she says, "everyone you see will be able to become a Canadian."
(on camera): They really have nowhere else to go.
AMUSH NEWMAN (ph), CALGARY'S MARGARET CHISHOLM RESETTLEMENT HOUSE: No, they can't, because the surrounding countries such as where they were, they don't give them citizenship. So they'll remain as refugees for the rest of their lives.
GRIFFIN (voice-over): Zaid Andowi (ph) arrived just 10 days ago. He and his wife and children fled Aleppo, Syria.
NEWMAN (ph): They left because they were worried. Many times they came very close to death. So that's when they decided to leave before it gets worse. He took his family and left and now they're settled as refugees.
GRIFFIN (voice-over): Do you miss Syria?
NEWMAN (ph): (SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE)
ZAID ANDOWI (ph), SYRIAN REFUGEE: (SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE)
NEWMAN (ph): Of course, of course. From my heart. We're very, very happy and very, very relaxed.
GRIFFIN (voice-over): For the first time in years, he feels his family is safe. But there's a long way to go. They speak almost no English. They are new to just about every Canadian custom. You shake hands with men and boys but not with the women.
AWAFOR BERSHANI (ph), DIRECTOR, CALGARY'S MARGARET CHISHOLM RESETTLEMENT HOUSE: And we do a lot of parenting skills.
GRIFFIN: Awafor Bershani (ph), the director here, says that, too, will change, and soon.
BESHANI (ph): In three months, if you talk to these children, you won't even recognize them as a refugee. 10 days ago, they didn't even know they were coming to Canada. Now they're here obviously. So we realize they have a lot of fears and a lot of hopes.
GRIFFIN: Most arrive in families. There are only a few single Syrian men.
And just as in the U.S., the program has raised concerns about safety and terrorism.
(on camera): I've got to ask you, they don't look dangerous to me.
BERSHANI (ph): No, they are fantastic people. They've gone through hell.
GRIFFIN: While in the United States, there is still deliberation over how many or even if Syrian refugees should be brought into the country. By the end of February, Canada will have reached its goal of bringing 25,000 Syrian refugees onto its soil, confident that its screening process can tell the bad guys from the good.
IAN HOLLOWAY, DEAN, UNIVERSITY OF CALGARY LAW SCHOOL: Most Canadians are not that worried about the security issue for these -- for the people we have selected.
[02:35:06] GRIFFIN: Ian Holloway, the dean of the University of Calgary Law School also works with the Canadian government reviewing security intelligence operations. He says the refugees Canada brings in are screened and, quite frankly, he sees them as no threat at all.
HOLLOWAY: We feel that we have been able to take reasonable measures to not guaranty -- you can never guaranty -- but to do everything we can to satisfy ourselves the people we have taken in are not likely to be bad guys.
GRIFFIN: To make sure Canada follows the progress of its newly arrived immigrants for two years all the children will go to school. Families will be helped to find work, housing, and their ultimate goal, a permanent home in their new country, Canada.
Drew Griffin, CNN, Calgary.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CHURCH: The U.S. Justice Department is suing Ferguson, Missouri, to force reform of its police department. The lawsuit claims a long pattern of officer misconduct.
BARNETT: It says the city continues to violate the rights of African- Americans, even after the death of Michael Brown, which, as you know, led to months of protests.
Mary Maloney explains.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
LORETTA LYNCH, U.S. ATTORNEY GENERAL: We intend to prosecute this case. And we intend to prevail.
MARY MALONEY, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The attorney general says the city of Ferguson targets African-Americans.
LYNCH: The residents of Ferguson have suffered violation of their constitutional rights, the rights guaranteed to all Americans for decades. They have waited decades for justice. They should not be forced to wait any longer.
MALONEY: Federal investigators say some police officers would stop people and arrest them without cause and use unreasonable force to generate city revenue.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (INAUDIBLE)
MALONEY: The DOJ spent seven months negotiating with the city to reform the police department and court system. But when the deal was submitted Tuesday night, they changed the terms by adding seven amendments that, among other things, modify dead lines, fees, and watered down staffing requirements.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There's no reason to enter into an agreement that we can't live up to, or is financially impossible to live up to? And it serves no one's purpose for us to fail.
MALONEY: The Justice Department wasted little time and responded with a court filing. But the action highlights a period of racial tension many in the city want to move on from.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's time to stop all of the Fergusons going under.
MALONEY: I'm Mary Maloney, reporting.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CHURCH: We'll take a break right here. But still to come, Facebook's founder is speaking out after one of its board members made some controversial comments about India. More on that after the break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(WEATHER REPORT)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK) [02:40:01] CHURCH: Hong Kong stocks plunge more than 4 percent. It's close to that, just under that 4 percent mark, but down, nonetheless. And you can see there, the Seoul Kospi lost nearly 3 percent. Australia bucking the trend, adding 1 percent. Shanghai and Tokyo markets are closed for holidays.
BARNETT: Apparently, many of you are not getting your friends on Twitter. Or perhaps you're not using the platform yourself. Shares of Twitter dropped in after-hours trading on Wednesday after the social media company says it is failing to attract new users.
CHURCH: Twitter lost two million users in the last three months of 2015. But the company did report cord sales for the fourth quarter at $710 million. Twitter has about 305 million active users.
BARNETT: U.S. Republican presidential candidate, John Kasich, is riding some momentum after a strong second-place finish in the New Hampshire primary. But he told CNN he does not expect a victory in South Carolina.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOHN KASICH, (R), OHIO GOVERNOR & PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: This is not -- this is not the end of it for us, here in South Carolina. We'll be moving through South Carolina to other places.
JAMIE GANGEL, CNN SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT: So you don't expect to win here?
KASICH: Oh, no, no, no.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHURCH: On the flipside, Marco Rubio has high expectations heading into South Carolina. He shrugged off his New Hampshire loss and reiterated his commitment to the Republican Party.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. MARCO RUBIO, (R), FLORIDA & PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: It's a conservative state with a conservative closed Republican primary. I'm as conservative as anyone in this field. But I'm the conservative that can win, the conservative that can unite the Republican Party, grow the conservative movement, and the one that Hillary Clinton doesn't want to run. That's why she attacks me more than any other Republican.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHURCH: Want to check the weather. Severe floods are battering parts of Indonesia this week.
Want to check the details with our Meteorologist Pedram Javaheri, who just joined us.
Pedram, what's the situation? PEDRAM JAVAHERI, AMS METEOROLOGIST: This is an area, guys, where
recently, a lot of fires in western Sumatra. And taking trees down and setting fires to set the ground for further farming practices. It doesn't take much rainfall, and very little soil and little vegetation to cause flooding. That's the issue across this region.
We have video to share with you. Spectacular video, as well. It really puts in perspective the amount of damage that's taken place across portions of Indonesia. The thunderstorm activity has been prevalent across Sumatra. In particular, the area of interest is where the flooding has been very much widespread across this region. Closer perspective, thousands you the thunderstorm activity. We know some of the observation points have seen tremendous range. And the video coming in, to share with you, that shows what has transpired, bridges washing away. Four people have lost their lives. And six people have considered missing at this point across this region, with several thousand homes that have been severely damaged across this region of Indonesia, that was so hard-hit in recent months, with what was drought and fires, as well. The drought monitor shows you western portions of Sumatra. It doesn't take much to cause significant flooding. And 300 millimeters have come down across parts of Indonesia.
We take you towards parts of Australia, where Perth, hitting some record temperatures. Four-consecutive days. They made it to 4 degrees Celsius. They've exceeded 40 degrees this summer. That's a record. We know the electricity consumption in Perth, is the highest they have had because the temperatures are peaking across Australia. We know the cold front, going to brush by. Colder temperatures slightly over the coming days in this region of Australia, but incredible heat taking place in areas of Australia. And electric consumption reaching the incredible values, as well.
BARNETT: I think this time, last year, Australia had to create a new color on the map because the temperatures were so intense.
JAVAHERI: You're paying attention, Mr. Barnett.
(LAUGHTER)
BARNETT: I do. These are interesting segments.
CHURCH: He pays attention to all of your segments.
BARNETT: And Rosie wants to know everything about Australia. We're a captive audience.
(LAUGHTER)
(CROSSTALK)
BARNETT: We'll keep our eyes on that.
CHURCH: Thank you.
BARNETT: Thank you, Pedram. Appreciate it. JAVAHERI: Thanks, guys.
BARNETT: Facebook founder, Mark Zuckerberg, is not standing by one of his board members. Mark Andreessen took to Twitter Tuesday, upset that regulators in India stopped Facebook's free Basics program that brings Internet to impoverished areas.
CHURCH: One of his tweets said, "Colonialism had been good for the Indian people." People were outraged. He later deleted it.
Zuckerberg made his view clear on Facebook Wednesday. He said, "I found the comments deeply upsetting. And they do not represent the way Facebook or I think at all." Andreessen has apologized for the comments.
[02:45:19] BARNETT: To see what's going on here, CNN's international correspondent, Sumnima Udas, joins us live from new Delhi to discuss the topic.
Sumnima, free Basics is a way for people in developing countries to access a stripped-down version of Facebook on their mobile phones without the data charges. It's also offered all over the African continent. What's the problem with it in India?
SUMNIMA UDAS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: The problem that critics have is that it goes against the tenets of democracy in the world's biggest democracy and its belief in net neutrality. On Monday, the telecom regulator here said, "It is dangerous for any one company, like Facebook, to be able to decide what the poor of this country should be able to access and not access online." And the campaigners of net neutrality have said that free Basics is basically a modern version of imperialism and colonialism.
Facebook doesn't see it this way. They had been campaigning very actively, a very expensive and aggressive campaign they launched about a year ago. Mark Zuckerberg has been here twice in 2015. He's been writing editorials here in the local media. Basically saying, "This is an opportunity to uplift millions of Indians, on who could be against something like this?" That is what he wrote in a newspaper here. But India ruled against it on Monday. And that's why we saw Mark Andreessen reacting quite aggressively. There's a lot of tweets there, saying colonialism was a good thing for India, referring to that almost 200-year-old history when the British ruled history. That's a part of history that many Indians want to forget.
We're seeing criticism online. One person tweeting, "Facebook clearly sees themselves as colonial saviors to poor, brown India." Another saying "India, better off with the British. Have I time traveled back to 1850? Does the word genocide sound familiar?"
And Andreessen has deleted the tweets and also apologized -- Errol?
BARNETT: And the irony, Facebook getting into trouble for what one of its board member said on Twitter and the backlash there. A lot of people leaving that platform because when there's a backlash, there's really no safety net. You mentioned the expensive and aggressive campaign. Mark Zuckerberg has been on a campaign to get access to this market. It is huge, more than one billion people. What's next with this hurdle? Is there another plan?
UDAS: After the Indian government killed the idea of allowing free Basics in this country, Facebook said it was disappointed and said it would continue to try to connect more and more Indians to the Internet. But they haven't revealed what they're going to do next.
But as you say, this is a huge market for Facebook, some 130 million Facebook users. There are 375 million people who use the Internet here. But another 800 million people who don't have access to Internet. That's the market that Facebook was trying to capture with free Basics -- Errol?
BARNETT: We know they will regroup and try something else. This is not a team that doesn't know how to stop. They want more access to more people.
Sumnima Udas joining us live from New Delhi. Thank you.
CHURCH: The race to be president in the United States just took another comedic turn. An accidental slip of the tongue has turned into a very viral nickname for one of the Democratic candidates.
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(WEATHER REPORT)
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[02:52:35] CHURCH: A neighborhood in India is cleaning up after a wild elephant went on a rampage. Check out the video. And the elephant went through the streets, pushing down small shacks and tramping motorcycles.
BARNETT: Goodness. It took four tranquilizer darts to knock this one out. They used a crane and a harness to get it back in the forest. No reports of anyone hurt or killed. This happened three days after a leopard mauled three people at a school in India.
Imagine being that elephant waking up in the forest and thinking what happened? What did I do?
(LAUGHTER)
(CROSSTALK)
BARNETT: Why is everyone so mad at me?
(LAUGHTER)
There you go. No one injured. Not too bad.
Now, just as GOP front-runner, Donald Trump, won the New Hampshire primary, a new mock-umentary about the businessman-turned-politician hit the web.
CHURCH: The 50-minute spoof TV movie, put out by comedy website Funny or Die, is called "The Art of the Deal." It's loosely based on Trump's 1987 best-selling book.
Johnny Depp plays Trump, complete with the blonde comb-over. The story is based in the 1980s when Trump bought the Taj Mahal in Atlantic City, New Jersey.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOHNNY DEPP, ACTOR: That's a hell of a book.
UNIDENTIFIED ACTOR: You read it?
DEPP: Kid, I lived it. And of course, I took credit for writing it.
UNIDENTIFIED ACTOR: Holy cowabunga. You're Donald Trump.
DEPP: That's my name. And you cannot wear it out. Trust me. You must really want this book.
UNIDENTIFIED ACTOR: All of the stores are sold out.
DEPP: Do you know that this is second-best-selling book of all-time after the Bible, which took 12 guys to write.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(LAUGHTER)
BARNETT: The video starts with Ron Howard explaining how the movie was meant to air in the 1980s, but it was preempted by Monday Night Football. Howard explains how he found the long-lost film at a garage sale in Phoenix, Arizona.
CHURCH: A very quick slip-up from a U.S. news anchor has created a firestorm online.
BARNETT: And it also rounds Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders.
CNN's Jeanne Moos has more.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JEANNE MOOS, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It's a pretty easy name to say --
WHOOPI GOLDBERG, CO-HOST, THE VIEW: Bernie Sanders.
MOOS: -- which makes a minor slip of the tongue by MSNBC anchor, Chris Hayes, all the more delicious.
CHRIS HAYES, MSNBC ANCHOR: Railing against pharmaceutical companies and Bernie sandwich's -- Sanders' message from the beginning. MOOS: May I please have a second helping?
HAYES: And Bernie sandwich's --
MOOS: Next thing you know, everyone was making Bernie sandwiches. Bernie and corned beef. Bernie on toast. Bernie between buns. Holding a sandwich aloft. Pulling one out of his pocket.
[02:55:14] #berniesandwiches unleashed tweets like "Feel the heart burn."
And comments like "Bernie Sandwiches, that's his mafia name."
As for Chris Hayes --
HAYES: -- Bernie Sandwich's --
MOOS: He tweeted, "In my defense, I was literally watching people being served dinner when I said 'Bernie sandwiches'."
(on camera): And as if Bernie sandwiches wasn't enough for one election night, another anchor put her foot in her mouth.
(voice-over): Though Megyn Kelly's blooper on FOX News wasn't quite so mouthwatering.
MEGYN KELLY, FOX NEWS ANCHOR: And on the Democratic side, Bernie sandals -- Sanders. Sandals -- it could catch on in the summer months.
MOOS: It's caught on, Megyn.
KELLY: -- Bernie sandals --
MOOS: The Bernie sandwich, likewise already exists. "Food and Wine" magazine made sandwiches to represent various candidates.
Hillary's was a Subway sandwich.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: A little bit of everything and everything anyone could ever want on it, it will agree to put under that bread.
MOOS: While Bernie's was a Vietnamese sandwich, spicy and obscure.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Your hipster friends are going to tell you about it.
MOOS: Even Chelsea Clinton once misspoke while bringing up Bernie.
CHELSEA CLINTON, DAUGHTER OF HILLARY AND BILL CLINTON: If president sander -- excuse me, Senator Sanders, I hope not President Sanders.
MOOS: Yeah, well, how about President Bernie Sandwiches?
(SHOUTING)
MOOS: Jeanne Moos, CNN --
(SHOUTING)
MOOS: -- New York.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BARNETT: Getting hungry, now.
CHURCH: Food for thought there, right?
OK. Remember, you can always follow us on social media, on Twitter, particularly.
BARNETT: That's right.
The next hour of CNN NEWSROOM, we're live in Munich where leaders will meet for an important security meeting.
Please do stay with us, Rosemary Church, and I'm Errol Bagel.
(LAUGHTER)
Back in a moment.
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[02:59:59] (HEADLINES)
