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ISIS under Pressure in Iraq and Syria; Two Journalists Killed in Afghanistan Attack; America's Choice 2016; Muhammad Ali's Memorial Set for Friday; Devastating Effects of Zika-Linked Birth Defects; Prosecutor Could File Charges in Gorilla's Death. Aired 10-11a ET
Aired June 06, 2016 - 10:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[10:00:00]
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LYNDA KINKADE, CNN HOST (voice-over): Ahead at the INTERNATIONAL DESK: as the Iraqi army pushes towards Fallujah, ISIS is killing civilians who try
to flee.
An uncertain future for parents in Brazil, struggling to raise children affected by the Zika virus.
A prosecutor set to decide whether to charge the parents of a child who fell into a gorilla enclosure.
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KINKADE: Hello and welcome. I'm Lynda Kinkade.
We begin in Iraq and Syria, where multiple offensives are underway on the roads streaming into cities held by ISIS. It's an effort to cut off their
supply lines and to eventually drive the terror group out.
We have Frederik Pleitgen in Greece. He's tracking efforts to right ISIS from the skies.
But first, let's go to Ben Wedeman who's in Baghdad, not too far from one offensive in the Iraqi city of Fallujah.
Ben, some civilians who are trying to flee Fallujah have come under fire by ISIS. You've managed to speak to some who have managed to get out alive.
What are they telling you?
BEN WEDEMAN, CNN SR. INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, what they're telling us is that life under ISIS, which was -- has been in control of
Fallujah for two and a half years, was hellish and that the flight out of Fallujah was equally difficult.
Some of them sleeping for days in the swamps, the marshes around Fallujah, before they could finally get out. But a warning before this report, some
of the images for some people may be disturbing.
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WEDEMAN (voice-over): These children made it out of Fallujah; what they saw, though, stays with them.
Around 350 families from villages around the ISIS stronghold have found safety but not much else in this dusty camp in Abu Ghraib on the outskirts
of Baghdad. They managed to escape from ISIS, barely.
Sel Marali (ph) knew the militants were rounding up civilians, so he and his family hid in their home, left the door open.
"When ISIS came," he says, "they thought the house was empty. Other families didn't do that. ISIS took them away or killed them in their
homes."
As the battle approached his village, Talev Ferhan (ph) recalls ISIS told everyone to move to the center of Fallujah to act as human shields.
"It was an order," he says. "If you refused, they would shoot you on the spot."
His family and three others managed to hide in the marshes for four days until ISIS retreated.
Mumhaled (ph) -- she's afraid to give her real name -- escaped the town of Saqlawiya, until this weekend under ISIS' control. But her husband and two
sons, like most men and teenage boys from the area around Fallujah, are being held by Iraqi intelligence for interrogation under suspicion of ISIS
sympathies.
Ten-year-old Mohammad al-Ned (ph) lies awake in a tent, almost motionless, his chest and abdomen a mass of festering, bleeding, third-degree burns
caused by an accidental kerosene fire before his family fled their home.
He couldn't be treated during the fighting. And here, his father, Medjem (ph), doesn't have the money to take him to hospital in Baghdad for the
treatment Mohammad (ph) so desperately needs.
The people here have lost their homes, their livelihoods, all their worldly possessions, a fate all too common in this desolated land.
WEDEMAN: The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees estimates that around 12,000 people have fled Fallujah and the area around it. But when
you look at the big picture in Iraq, that's just a drop in the bucket. The U.N. estimates that 3.3 million people have been displaced in Iraq.
WEDEMAN (voice-over): Stuck in limbo, they wait for the battle to end, to someday go back to their homes -- or what's left of them.
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WEDEMAN: And, in fact, we've seen some of the those homes in the villages and towns around Fallujah. The fighting has been extensive, the damage
extensive. So it may be quite some time before they're able to go back to those homes -- Lynda.
KINKADE: Yes, certainly will be a really tough time. Ben Wedeman, thank you.
Well, the U.S. is ramping up its offensive in Northern Syria. One of its aircraft carriers is edging closer to ISIS territory, putting its warplanes
--
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KINKADE: -- in a better position to hit ISIS targets. Frederick Pleitgen is on the Greek island of Crete with the details there.
You have had incredible access from onboard the aircraft carrier watching this operation in action.
FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, you're absolutely right, Lynda. This is the U.S.S. Harry Truman. And that
aircraft carrier was operating from the Persian Gulf until only about a week ago and then made the transition to here in the Mediterranean Sea.
And one of the reasons for that is that it really is only a few minutes' flight time from the Med into the areas of operation, for instance, in
Syria and then also further into Iraq.
Now when we were on that carrier, we saw very intense aerial operations going on. Here's what we witnessed.
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PLEITGEN (voice-over): High intensity operations on the U.S.S. Harry Truman. Jets taking off every few minutes to hit ISIS, now from a better
position than before.
The Truman just moved from the Persian Gulf to the Mediterranean Sea, much closer to Syria. We spoke to f-18 pilots flying one of the first strike
missions.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It was a close air support mission, so we don't know the targets prior to taking off and there did happen to be a few targets.
We struck those targets.
PLEITGEN (voice-over): The U.S. says its airstrikes are having a major effect, as allied forces on the ground continue to win back territory from
the extremists in places like Fallujah in Iraq and in Northern Syria, American jets, not only hitting ISIS positions on the front lines but also
supply lines and cache warehouses.
The U.S. has drastically stepped up its bombing of ISIS targets both in Iraq and Syria and the Harry Truman plays an important role in that
stepped-up campaign. Now that it's here in the Mediterranean, its jets are even closer to many of the targets they need to hit.
The increased operational tempo and the move from the Gulf to the Mediterranean put a strain on the Truman's crew, the carrier's tour
extended by a full month. But the admiral tells me his men and women are still going strong.
REAR ADM. BRET BATCHELDER, COMMANDER, CARRIER STRIKE GROUP II: It's a graphic illustration of the flexibility that's inherent with the Naval
forces. We can operate anywhere we want to in the world; as it happens, on this deployment, our priority has been the support of Operation Inherent
Resolve in Iraq and Syria.
PLEITGEN (voice-over): U.S. commanders believe the coming weeks will be critical in the fight against ISIS, now that the group seems to be losing
its grip on some of its major strongholds, gains the Truman's pilots helped pave the way for.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We have definitely degraded them and we've destroyed them in many different places all throughout Iraq and Syria. So I feel
like we've made a large impact.
PLEITGEN (voice-over): ISIS may be weakened but some of the most intense fighting against the group probably still lies ahead and so do many more
combat missions for this carrier's jets.
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PLEITGEN: But, of course, Lynda, when you have a stepped-up military campaign and an aerial campaign like the one that we witnessed there,
flying out of the U.S.S. Harry Truman, of course, the threat of civilian casualties is something that increases considerably as well.
Now we talked to the U.S. pilots about that. We talked to the commanders on the aircraft carrier about that as well and they say they're doing what
they can to try and minimize civilian casualties, both by the way that they choose their targets but also with the ammunition that they use, using
mostly 500-pound bombs that are a lot smaller than some of the 1,000-pound munitions that are sometimes used to take out bigger ISIS targets.
But of course they are under no illusion that it's very, very difficult to precisely target ISIS, especially when you get into a situation of urban
combat like the one that seems to be unfolding in Fallujah right now -- Lynda.
KINKADE: Yes. Certainly a challenge for them there.
Frederick Pleitgen on the Greek island of Crete and Ben Wedeman in Baghdad, thank you very much for covering multiple offensives against ISIS.
Well, officials in Jordan say an attack on refugee camp of Palestinians was an act of terror. It happened in the early morning hours. A lone gunman
entered a government office and killed five people working there. Authorities are searching for the attacker.
Journalists put their lives on the line to bring you stories from places like the Middle East and over the weekend, two of them were killed.
A veteran photographer and his translator were on assignment in Afghanistan when shellfire hit their vehicle. Our Andrew Stevens has more.
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ANDREW STEVENS, CNN ASIA PACIFIC EDITOR (voice-over): Fifteen years after 9/11, the Afghan War is still claiming the lives of journalists. David
Gilkey and Zabihullah Tamanna were with the Afghan army special forces in Southern Afghanistan when their vehicle was struck by shellfire, according
to their employer, the American radio network, NPR.
Gilkey had won multiple awards for his moving photographs of conflict zones and --
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STEVENS (voice-over): -- natural disasters. Colleagues describe a profound commitment to Iraq and Afghanistan. He returned again and again
to follow the stories of civilians and soldiers there.
In an NPR segment after the Haiti earthquake, he described his personal struggle working in such environments.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DAVID GILKEY, AWARD-WINNING PHOTOJOURNALIST, NPR: When you're taking pictures, it's easier. And that doesn't make it OK. It's not like you put
the camera to your face and, therefore, it makes what you're seeing OK.
But certainly you can put yourself in the zone. It's, "I am doing this."
And what I'm doing is not pleasant but you just -- you march through it.
I mean, it's hard. But you can't get caught up in it and become part of it. You still need to maintain your state of mind that you are helping
tell this story.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
STEVENS (voice-over): Tamanna was traveling with Gilkey as a translator but he was a photojournalist in his own right. He also freelanced with
international media outlets.
A friend described him to CNN as a brave, committed journalist who had substantial combat experience but never lost his sense of humor.
Twenty-seven journalists have now died in the conflict in Afghanistan, according to the Committee to Protect Journalists. This is the first time
NPR has lost an employee on assignment in its 46-year history -- Andrew Stevens, CNN.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KINKADE: There's a sobering example today of the security risks facing the Euro 2016 football tournament in France. Ukraine has announced the arrest
of a terror suspect after a month's long undercover sting operation. CNN's Jim Bittermann is following this story and joins us now live from Paris.
Jim, this suspect was under surveillance since December.
What have you found out about him?
JIM BITTERMANN, CNN SR. INTL. CORRESPONDENT: Well, the fact is we know very little about him. The French authorities have not even confirmed the
fact that he is under arrest.
But the Ukrainian authorities, through their secret service website have confirmed they have this young man under arrest, he's thought to be a 25-
year-old Frenchman from the eastern part of France, near the town of Nancy. And he was caught with a number of very high-powered weapons. He had five
Kalashnikov rifles with more than 1,000 rounds of ammunition for each one of them.
He had an RBG rocket launchers, two of them, with rounds of ammunition for them and several hundred pounds of weapons grade explosives.
He told -- apparently told the Ukrainians that he had some targets in mind during the European Cup, the Euro 2016, that's going to begin here at the
end of the week; however, French authorities have not confirmed that.
And one of the things that is a little bit odd about this is that they have assigned this case to the local Nancy prosecutor, not to the main terrorism
prosecutor here in Paris. And that suggests maybe that this may not be a case of terrorism but rather of arms smuggling that was going on.
In any case, those weapons could have been sold to terrorists at some point down the line -- Lynda.
KINKADE: That's right. Still major concerns there. Euro 2016 is due to get underway this Friday.
What are intelligence services doing about security and what can we expect?
BITTERMANN: Well, they're constantly doing things here to reassure the public. We've heard everything from the president -- heard from the
president on down confirming the fact that they are doing all they can to maintain security during the month-long Euro Cup, where there are going to
be millions of sports fans here.
We heard from the top police official here in Paris, the prefet of the Paris police today. And he says that they're adding yet another ring of
security to the stadiums and fan zones. Here's what he had to say.
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MICHEL CADOT, PREFET, PARIS POLICE (through translator): We are creating a perimeter of close security, which is an additional security perimeter for
prefiltration, where the first checks are conducted, allowing the security of the first zone a sort of security bubble located before the checkpoints
situated as you enter the stadium and fan zones areas.
So we have the security zone that we call a security and hospitality zone, with visual controls, bag checks, quick tickets checks for stadiums or
regular frisking for the fan zones.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BITTERMANN: So 90,000 French police security forces mobilized across the country. It sounds like a lot, Lynda, but when you spread those out among
the 10 different sites where the matches will be played as well as the fan zones, as well as the team hotels and the practice grounds, it probably is
going to be something that will keep officials nervous all the way through, whether or not they've got the security under control properly -- Lynda.
KINKADE: That's right. Certainly keep them very busy. Jim Bittermann for us, live from Paris, thank you very much.
Still to come, Donald Trump is not backing down from his statements about a judge and now his own party's pushing back.
Will that be enough to force Trump to tone down the rhetoric?
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KINKADE: And new details surfacing about the funeral for legendary boxer Mohammad Ali. We'll bring them to you live after this short break.
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KINKADE: Welcome back. Just 29 delegates now stand between Hillary Clinton and the Democratic presidential nomination and she can thank Puerto
Rico for the latest bump. She won that primary on Sunday.
But the race chugs on and a split in her party appears to be widening. Our Chris Frates reports.
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CHRIS FRATES, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Hillary Clinton's win in Puerto Rico over the weekend but puts her on the cusp of an historic
nomination.
HILLARY CLINTON, FORMER SECRETARY OF STATE, PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I want to finish strong here in California. It means the world to me.
FRATES (voice-over): Now just a few delegates shy of hitting that magic number and becoming the first-ever female presidential nominee, Clinton's
looking to Tuesday's final round of Democratic primaries to seal the deal.
CLINTON: On Tuesday, I will have decisively won the popular vote and I will have decisively won the pledged delegate majority. You can't get much
more than that out of a primary season.
FRATES (voice-over): Clinton telling CNN's Jake Tapper that, after Tuesday's contest, she's pushing for party unity.
CLINTON: I expect Senator Sanders to do the same and that we will come together and be prepared to go to the convention in a unified way.
FRATES (voice-over): But Clinton's rival, Bernie Sanders, argues that Clinton's super delegates shouldn't be counted just yet.
SEN. BERNIE SANDERS (I), VT., PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Hillary Clinton will not have the requisite number of pledged delegates to win the Democratic
nomination at the end of the nominating process. The Democratic National Convention will be a contested convention.
FRATES (voice-over): Vowing to take his campaign all the way to the convention, he's banking on delegate-rich California to give him momentum,
Sanders even elevating his attacks on Clinton Sunday, saying the foreign government donations to The Clinton Foundation are a conflict of interest.
SANDERS: If you ask me about The Clinton Foundation, do I have a problem when a sitting secretary of state and a foundation run by her husband
collects many millions of dollars from foreign governments, governments which are dictatorships, do I have a problem with that?
Yes, I do.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You think it creates an appearance of conflict of interest?
SANDERS: I do. I do.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KINKADE: Well, on the Republican side, Donald Trump is not backing away from statements he made about the effect a judge's ethnicity has on his
ability to do his job. Trump's comments are again angering those within his own party. Our Phil Mattingly explains.
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PHIL MATTINGLY, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Donald Trump now musing that a hypothetical Muslim judge might not remain neutral if presiding over
the case against Trump University.
JOHN DICKERSON, CBS NEWS HOST: Before a Muslim judge, would you also feel like --
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-- they wouldn't be able to treat you fairly because of that policy of yours?
DONALD TRUMP, REPUBLICAN PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: It's possible, yes. Yes, that would be possible.
MATTINGLY (voice-over): And doubling down on his attacks against the Mexican American federal judge he said should be disqualified from the
trial.
JAKE TAPPER, CNN CHIEF WASHINGTON CORRESPONDENT: If you are saying he can't do his job because of his race, is that not the definition of racism?
DONALD TRUMP: He's proud of his heritage, OK.
I'm building a wall. He's a Mexican.
TAPPER: You're invoking his race when talking about whether or not he can do his job.
DONALD TRUMP: Jake, I'm building a wall, OK. I'm building a wall.
MATTINGLY (voice-over): Trump's comments increasingly raising sharp concerns inside the Republican Party.
NEWT GINGRICH, FORMER HOUSE SPEAKER: This is one of the worst mistakes Trump has made and I think it's inexcusable. This judge is not Mexican.
This judge is an American citizen.
MATTINGLY (voice-over): Interviews with a series of top GOP officials, donors, fund-raisers and congressional aides making clear Trump has crossed
a major line.
REP. PAUL RYAN (R), HOUSE SPEAKER: I completely disagree with the thinking behind that.
SEN. BOB CORKER (R), TENN.: I don't condone the comments and we can press on to another topic.
CHUCK TODD, MSNBC HOST: Do you think it's a racist statement to say?
SEN. MITCH MCCONNELL (R), MAJORITY LEADER: I don't agree with what he had to say. This is a man who is born in Indiana.
MATTINGLY (voice-over): It's a line of attack the Republicans fear could endanger their majority in the Senate, with the GOP defending 24 seats this
cycle and threaten the future of the party, something Senator McConnell hinted at in an interview with CNN's Jake Tapper last week.
TAPPER: Do you worry at all that your nominee now, Donald Trump, will do to Latino voters what Barry Goldwater did to African American voters?
MCCONNELL: I do. I do.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KINKADE: That was Phil Mattingly reporting there.
There's a familiar face by Donald Trump's side at many of these rallies and it's not his wife but his daughter.
As our Maggie Lake reports, Ivanka Trump might just be her father's secret weapon.
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MAGGIE LAKE, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): She's an unwavering champion for her father on the campaign trail.
IVANKA TRUMP, DONALD'S DAUGHTER: My father is the opposite of politically correct. He says what he means and he means what he says.
LAKE (voice-over): Her poise and professionalism a counter to Donald Trump's unscripted insults.
MARY JORDAN, NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT, "THE WASHINGTON POST": People have been saying Donald Trump's secret weapon is his daughter. She's everything
he is not. She's not off the cuff. She's choreographed, she's also picture perfect. She is very, very careful about how she looks and what
she says.
LAKE (voice-over): Only 34 years old, Ivanka Trump has literally grown up in the spotlight, starring with her father on reality shows, "The
Apprentice" and "Celebrity Apprentice."
IVANKA TRUMP: James, do you think it shows fundamental lack of judgment?
LAKE (voice-over): Ivanka got the real-life power to hire and fire when she joined the Trump organization as executive vice president. In 2007,
she began expanding her own portfolio, establishing jewelry collections and clothing lines.
IVANKA TRUMP: There's nothing more compelling and powerful.
LAKE (voice-over): And she's the force behind the hashtag #WomenWhoWork, which gives career advice to women. Forbes Media's executive vice
president, Moira Forbes, has known Ivanka for years and says she's blossomed into a potent female role model.
MOIRA FORBES, FORBES MEDIA V.P.: She's someone who could have taken her privilege and taken a step back on the sidelines and not done anything.
But instead, she's done just the opposite.
She entered the family business with a really strong work ethic. She decided to build this incredible lifestyle brand to reflect her
personality, to reflect the needs and wants of a young Millennial woman and has been really successful with that. And people gravitate toward that.
LAKE (voice-over): She may be a rising star in the business world but boardroom etiquette may not be enough in what will surely be a brutal
election.
IVANKA TRUMP: Over the last several months --
LAKE (voice-over): Ivanka has already been forced to defend her father's treatment of women.
IVANKA TRUMP: He believes in inspiring women and empowering women.
LAKE (voice-over): The power of Ivanka's message may be critical if Trump wants to reverse his negative standing with women.
JORDAN: When I have been at Trump rallies, people say look, his daughter works with him. I mean, he can't be that bad if he turned out a daughter
like her.
FORBES: It's conceivable if and when he does move to Washington, that she will have an even greater role. You have to have a very close inner circle
and with Ivanka having proven herself so capable in business, she is someone that no doubt he will continue to lean on in a more meaningful way.
LAKE (voice-over): In an election year that's been marked by the unexpected, a Trump White House could turn convention on its head with the
first daughter, not the first lady, taking a pivotal role as Oval Office confidante.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KINKADE: CNN will bring you extensive coverage of Tuesday's primaries with five states up for grabs, including California. We'll have the results,
speeches and an in-depth analysis. That's all day Tuesday, right here on CNN.
Well, we are finding out more details this week about the funeral for -- and memorial service for boxing legend Mohammad Ali. Ali died on Friday at
the age of 74 and Ryan Young, who's following the story, is outside --
[10:25:00]
KINKADE: -- Ali's hometown of Louisville, Kentucky.
Ryan, the family of Muhammad Ali did have time to think about what they wanted before he passed away.
What details have you found out?
RYAN YOUNG, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Absolutely. They did have time to think about it and they said the champ himself had input on how his funeral would
happen. There is a big part of this that's all about inclusion. They wanted to make sure that all faiths were represented.
And you can see that throughout the memorial services planned. But there's going to be something here pretty much every single day leading up to
Friday. We know on Wednesday they're going to have service for kids.
On Thursday they're going to have an interfaith memorial service.
On Friday they will bring Muhammad Ali's body through the city before the open ceremony they will have at the arena.
But we wanted to show you this behind us. This is the growing memorial where so many people from this area have been showing up to. Muhammad Ali
was a beloved man in this area. This was his home and people really like that because this is small town America.
The idea that he fought his way not only out of this city but to become a worldwide figure is something they keep close to their heart. And in fact,
when you talk to people in this area, they talk about the greater impact of Muhammad Ali and what he wants his funeral to be for everybody to know how
he thought about inclusion.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BOB GUNNELL, MUHAMMAD ALI SPOKESMAN: Everything that we're doing here was blessed by Muhammad Ali and was requested. So you know, he wanted a
memorial service to reflect his life and how he lived and the fact that, you know, he wanted everyone to be able to attend. He wanted -- he was the
people's champ. And so he wanted that memorial service to reflect that.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
YOUNG: Definitely the people's champ. We know that the Turkish president will be here, the king of Jordan will be here. Bill Clinton will be doing
a eulogy. So will Billy Crystal, the comedian as well as Bryant Gumbel, the journalist, will also be doing a eulogy and we've been told to maybe
expect more surprises from this.
But as you can see, people are really coming out here, taking pictures. We're outside his museum. And when you walk on the inside, you see some of
the relics from his past and those things are that -- where people are gravitating toward.
In fact, the condolence line was out the door yesterday as people were signing their name to show their respects to Muhammad Ali. His body was
brought home just yesterday. And I can tell you we've seen a lot of people shedding tears.
One man drove all night from Toronto to be here, said Muhammad Ali inspired him to become a boxer first and then a martial artist and now he teaches
kids and he's hoping the legacy of Muhammad Ali lives on.
KINKADE: No doubt it will live on. And a few big days coming up there in Louisville, Kentucky. Ryan Young, great to have you with us. Thank you.
YOUNG: Thank you.
KINKADE: Still to come, the uncertain future of babies with birth defects linked to the Zika virus. We'll take you to ground zero for the mosquito-
borne virus.
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KINKADE: Welcome to the INTERNATIONAL DESK. I'm Lynda Kinkade. These are the headlines we're following.
(HEADLINES)
KINKADE: With the Summer Olympics less than two months away, one of the big concerns has been the Zika virus in Brazil. It is linked to a
devastating birth defect known as microcephaly. Our Nick Paton Walsh traveled to the area hardest hit by the virus and shows us the distressing
reality of suffering babies.
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NICK PATON WALSH, CNN SR. INTL. CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Born into a struggle that grows as they age.
This clinic is in Recife, where the disease of Zika has been cruelest in Brazil, leaving with what happens when babies with microcephaly grow and so
do their problems, unable to tell us the pains, agonies they may or may not be feeling or what we can do to help.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translator): It was when he was born and we faced the other people in the hospital, their expressions. Seeing and
accepting the difference, for me, that was the hardest phase.
WALSH: So what works out, exactly how quickly Zika could even spread here at ground zero, there's a whole different set of problems. That's working
out, really, as these babies grow older, quite what the disease means for their development.
WALSH (voice-over): Artur (ph) cannot eat. Doctors say his brain can't switch between swallowing and breathing properly. So he's fed by a drip
and stunted in growth the size of a 3-month old, when he is now 8 months.
They're testing his hearing, seeing if he turns his head to look. A little to the right, to the left -- nothing. This is how it goes here, every
minute discoveries that alter a child's future.
Victoria (ph) was abandoned by her natural mother at birth, adopted by Kelly (ph) a month ago.
KELLY (PH), VICTORIA'S ADOPTED MOM (through translator): When we saw her we fell in love with her. I didn't want to know what she had. That didn't
matter. She's my daughter.
WALSH (voice-over): And today may change her life. She's having her eyes stimulated, being fitted for glasses to find out if she can see at all.
It's hard to tell what she sees, if the bright lights became real shapes.
With Lohandra (ph), it's a little more palpable.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: (Speaking foreign language).
WALSH (voice-over): Her first sight.
But still, her arms stiffen straight, her underdeveloped brain telling them to do so.
We talk here of prejudice, of days spent ferrying children between specialist doctors, for being fired from work because of that, of a lack of
state money to pull them through. This is the world that Zika brings. And here and globally, it is only beginning.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KINKADE: Now Nick Paton Walsh, who filed that report, joins us now from Rio.
Nick, still so little is known about this virus. Even the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has admitted that it's scarier than they
initially thought.
WALSH: I think the problem is that so little is known, as you say, and even in that clinic I think the journey of discovery to work out the kinds
of problems these children will face as they --
[10:35:00]
WALSH: -- grow: hearing, vision, their muscle, their ability for their muscles to be controlled by the brain, that is something they just learn
more about every single week.
Now from the more broad level in terms of how the disease spreads, the WHO just last week warned people if they thought they were in contact with the
Zika virus not to have unprotected sex for at least eight weeks after that moment.
Now it just simply seems that, day by day, scientists are requiring more information, changing the perspective of how they view this disease.
Yes, here in Brazil in the winter months, there is a lesser level of infection but it may, many are concerned, come back at a higher rate. And
as you see there, the actual infection of pregnant women and the birth is the beginning. And it's only that journey as the months continue, where
the child grows, where they begin to learn the full extent of the impact of microcephaly.
KINKADE: Yes, such a tough time for those parents.
But also tourists and athletes that are turning up to Rio, no doubt this is playing on their minds.
WILLIS: Well, they are increasingly hearing from a number of athletes, their concerns.
Pau Gasol, the basketball player, recently, even at the beginning of the outbreak; the American female goalkeeper, soccer, Hope Solo, expressing
their concerns simply I think because there's so little known about Zika.
When it first emerged, there was a lot of understandable fear and worry and I think that has continued as time has gone by. And yet hasn't been a
growing confidence that the scientific community is completely across how it is spread and what it actually does to human beings.
The distraction is the key issue, Lynda, people coming here should be focusing on sport, should be focusing on the joyous nature of the Olympic
Games and, frankly, such a beautiful place as this.
But it is the concern of quite what could be hidden here with the terms of the Zika disease, whether they are fully aware of the full extent of the
different ways in which it can be spread and what that may mean for athletes who, yes, focus on wanting to compete in what could be the most
important competition for some of them of their lives but also have to bear in mind their future health as well.
KINKADE: And just thinking about the parents in your report, Nick, it's devastating to hear that some have lost jobs while trying to care for
children with microcephaly.
Are they getting much support?
What do they want?
WALSH: They are getting some support there and that clinic is of great assistance to them. I think the continued complaint we heard, though, is
that as the different symptoms of microcephaly become apparent, then these particular children need to see many different doctors, sometimes at the
same time or during the same week.
And that puts a huge burden on the parents; as one of them said to us, she simply, after a period of trying to hold on and not being fired from her
job because of the amount of time she had to devote to looking after her child and, in fact, the father of that child complained of the sheer cost
of petrol, of gas for driving between these appointments was crippling by itself.
So I think the problem is owing to the nature of the different symptoms, the kind of care that has to be provided continually grows and that of
course would be a challenge for many states, especially one perhaps here in Brazil, which has its own political and economic turmoil as well. So a
disease that I think grows in implication month by month -- Lynda.
KINKADE: Absolutely. Nick Paton Walsh, thank you so much for filing that report for us. We appreciate it.
We're going to take a quick break. We will have more after the break.
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KINKADE: Welcome back.
In a few hours we'll find out if a prosecutor will file criminal charges after the killing of a gorilla at Cincinnati Zoo. CNN's Brynn Gingras
joins us now from Cincinnati outside the prosecutor's office.
Brynn, police have completed their investigation last week. They handed it to the prosecutors.
What exactly are they considering?
BRYNN GINGRAS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Lynda, we actually just had a brief conversation with the Hamilton County prosecutor, Joseph Deeters
(ph). And he said among the evidence that he's looked over this weekend included going to the home of the family of this 3-year-old boy who climbed
under that fence and into the gorilla moat.
That's just one piece of the evidence that he's considered. Others include looking at video of that scene at the zoo, also talking to witnesses, who
actually saw this all unfold right before their eyes and, of course, talking to the family.
So he has a lot to consider here. We do know also that he has made a decision. He told us just a few moments ago that he hasn't told the family
yet what his decision is. Of course, he's going to announce it 1 o'clock Eastern Time here in Cincinnati and we will be there, of course -- Lynda.
KINKADE: Excellent. And, of course, the gorilla exhibition has been closed while they've been making alterations there.
What exactly are they changing and when will it reopen?
GINGRAS: Well, really, it's about safeguarding this area now in light of what happened. It's going to reopen tomorrow and those safeguards include
raising that fence 6 more inches. So now the height of that is going to be 42 inches high.
We're also told that they're going to have a netted -- a knotted net underneath it so that really makes it nearly impossible for people to climb
underneath, as this little boy did in Cincinnati. So we will see all these changes happening, unfolding in front of us tomorrow, when the zoo reopens
this exhibit -- Lynda.
KINKADE: OK, Brynn Gingras, great to have you with us. Thank you very much for that update.
Well, we want to lighten things up a little bit now and show you some video that caught our eye of a brazen heist in India. The culprit: a small
monkey.
You can see him pushing his way into a jewelry store after being offered some fruit. The primate headed straight for the register, grabbing a
handful of cash before bolting.
Reuters reports that the monkey made off with about $150. I'm sure it's the last time they will offer any monkeys fruit at that store.
And that does it for us here at the INTERNATIONAL DESK. I'm Lynda Kinkade. I'll be back in just over an hour with more news. But don't go anywhere.
"WORLD SPORT" with Christina Macfarlane is next.
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