Return to Transcripts main page

CNN Newsroom

UK Mourners Remember MP Jo Cox; Fallujah's City Center Retaken from ISIS; Russian Track and Field Athletes Banned from Olympics; Orlando Attack Investigation Continues. Aired 12-12:30a ET

Aired June 18, 2016 - 00:00   ET

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

[00:00:13] NATALIE ALLEN, CNN ANCHOR: Mourners across U.K. pay tributes to MP Jo Cox as police charge the arrested suspect with her murder.

A turning point in Fallujah, Iraq's Prime Minister says the city center has been retaken from ISIS.

And Russian track and field athletes face missing the Olympics after an extension of a competition ban.

We'll have more about it here on "CNN NEWSROOM." We're live in Atlanta. Thank you for joining us. I'm Natalie Allen.

Our top story, the man charged in the brutal killing of British politician Jo Cox is due to appear in Westminster Magistrates' Court later Saturday. Police say Thomas Mair faces charges of murder, grievous bodily harm and other counts. He is accused of stabbing and shooting the 41-year-old mother of two. Police are looking into reports he had ties to right wing Extremism. Frederick Pleitgen has more now on the suspect in Cox's shocking death.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

FREDERIK PLEITGEN, SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Britain remains in a state of shock and outrage after the violent murder of Parliamentarian Jo Cox. And now details about the suspect have emerged. 52-year-old Thomas Mair is in custody. British media reports, he lives alone in this house near Leeds. His neighbor shocked at the news.

DIANA PETERS, SUSPECT'S NEIGHBOR: This is totally unexpected. He was very mild mannered, kept himself to himself and would never, I would have thought, I've even thought have been of doing that never mind actually doing it.

PLEITGEN: Labour MP Jo Cox devoted a lot of energy, fighting to help refugees and people affected by conflicts around the world. Leading to the question, could racism have been a possible motive in her killing.

Thomas Mair appears to have showed interest in white supremacy in the past, purchasing material from the American white supremacist group, the "National Alliance" as late as 2013 according to the Southern Poverty Law Center, and also subscribing to a South-African pro apartheid groups magazine in the 1980's.

There are also question about Mair's mental health. His brother Scott Mair reportedly telling, "The Sun" newspaper that he had, "A history of mental illness, but has had help. And further, we are struggling to believe what has happened. My brother is not a violent man and is not that political."

According to English media reports, Mair received treatment at this mental health clinic outside Leeds. The clinic staff would not confirm the reports. Mair also volunteered as a gardener at this park.

Local staff here have confirmed to us that Thomas Mair volunteered here as a gardener looking in 2010 and in 2011. They describe him presence here as sporadic. Now, in a local newspaper, he was quoted as saying that volunteering as a gardener here had done a lot to help with his apparent mental issues.

As this complex investigation into the murder of Jo Cox and the possible motives for the killing continue to captivate a nation in disbelief and mourning. Fred Pleitgen, CNN, Leeds, England.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ALLEN: Vigils continue across the U.K. for Miss Cox. British Prime Minister David Cameron and opposition Labour Leader Jeremy Corbyn attended the memorial in Cox's home district at Birstall on Friday as a somber crowd looked on. They laid flowers and paid tribute to the young Member of Parliament, wife and mother.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DAVID CAMERON, BRITISH PRIME MINISTER: If we want to honor Jo, then what we should do is recognize that her values, service, community, tolerance, the values she lived by and worked by, those are the values that we need to redouble in our national life in the months and in the years to come.

JEREMY CORBYN, OPPOSITION LEADER: Jo was an exceptional, wonderful, very talented woman taken from us in her early 40s when she had so much to give and so much of her life ahead of her. It's a tragedy beyond tragedy what has happened yesterday. In her memory, we will not allow those people that spread hatred and poison to divide our society. We will strengthen our democracy, strengthen our Frisbee. She was a truly wonderful woman.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ALLEN: An impromptu has vigil propped up in front of the U.K. parliament Building. Our Will Ripley is there.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

WILL RIPLEY, CORRESPONDENT: Throughout the day, people have been gathering here at the palace of Westminster, one of London's most iconic landmarks. There were tourists, there were Londoners stopping by and seeing this beautiful seat of the British Government but also seeing this, a spontaneous memorial that continues to grow as people come to express and share this feeling of disbelief, this feeling of sadness and a feeling of what this country has lost.

[00:05:04]A divided nation, united in grief. The fierce debate over Britain's future on hold. Now is not the time for politics.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Tragic. The young woman who fought with better words.

RIPLEY: Crowds gathered in Parliament Square to honor the life of Jo Cox.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Just tragedy for somebody who seeps to have come into politics for the right reasons to die like this.

RIPLEY: The married mother of two only 41, served in the House of Commons just 13 months. Long enough for former Labour Party leader Ed Miliband to say she already made an impact.

ED MILIBAND, LABOUR PARTY MP: She was clearly in it for the right reasons. She was an aide worker. She was somebody who devotes herself to humanitarian causes. Somebody who'd work around the world and she came to parliament to further those causes.

RIPLEY: Like most in her opposition party, Cox was working hard to convince voters that Britain should stay in the European Union. She was also a champion for the migrant community. Remarkably bitter debate, even in this country where more than half of MP say they have been stalked or harassed.

Despite the threats Cox continued the British tradition of meeting her constituents face to face which allowed her suspected killer to get close to her.

MILIBAND: I think it's a moment of reflection for all of us on the tone of our politics. And I think in a way we should be inspired by Jo's life.

RIPLEY: Even Nigel Farge, one of the loudest voices supporting the Brexit was here to pay his respects. Joining so many others beneath the majestic palace of Westminster, MPs from both sides of the U.K. debate have been recalled and are expected to gather here Monday to honor a life and career brutally cut short.

The most powerful moment of the evening, a two-minute moment of silence when big ben struck 8:00. And even though there were easily more than a 1000 people standing here in Parliament Square, you could not hear anybody speaking. People were simply here in disbelief and sadness and hope that perhaps this tragedy will help the country move forward with a greater sense of mutual respect and unity.

Will Ripley, CNN, London.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ALLEN: It's hard for people to believe in London. It's hard for people to believe in Cox's home district in Birstall that's still reeling from her death. Our Richard Quest spoke with some of the many people there.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The whole community here in Birstall was shocked by what has happened. Jo Cox was a very, very well respected MP. She supported our local community in Birstall battling them. She was just such a lovely person.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think she was far more worldly wise and cared a lot more about her local people, which is why she was MP in her Hometown.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: She spoke to my mother when she was out campaigning last year. And she spent time listening and talking to her. And she, she gave my mother a big hug. And that really connected with me.

RICHARD QUEST, CNN CORRESPONDENT: And your mother never forgot?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: My mother never forgot. My mother was out here yesterday. We came to the vigil that was here last night.

QUEST: How was that vigil last night?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Well, we had members from whole -- everywhere from the community, from every member of the community. We had Muslim people, we had Christians from -- we had everyone. And it was really good in the way that we all had a chance to reflect about Jo. And we all had a chance to think about her. It was quite emotional.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ALLEN: U.S. President Barack Obama phoned Cox's husband to offer his condolences on behalf of the United States.

We turn now to Iraq. Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi says Iraqi forces have taken a significant part of Fallujah back from ISIS. An operation to retake the key city began last month backed by U.S. air support and Shiite Militias. U.S. Defense Secretary Ash Carter said on Friday, Iraqi troops were in control of a portion of the city but not all of it. But in a public address, al-Abadi said, security forces had retaken the mayor's office and city center and only pockets of the terror group remain.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

HAIDER AL-ABADI, IRAQ PRIME MINISTER: (Through Translator) We promise to liberate Fallujah. And we took it back. Our brave forces went into Fallujah district and took control of the center of the city. There are still some hot beds that need to be cleared in the next few hours, god willing. I directed the government institutions to mobilize all efforts to help all civilians and provide humanitarian aid to them. And I also I directed our heroic forces that impose control on Fallujah to protect public property and private property in addition to securing the people.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ALLEN: The prime minister of Iraq speaking there. Well, the Olympics are less than 50 days away. And Rio de Janeiro's Governor has declared a state of emergency. This order, it's meant to authorize more funding so Rio can meet its obligations. However, it's not clear who will supply the money. Brazil has been struggling through its worst recession since the 1930s.

[00:10:04] Games officials say this has no impact on the Olympics which will start August 5th.

We want to turn to a major blow to Russian sports. The Russia's track and field athletes are now unlikely to compete at the Rio Olympics. The world's athletic governing body is extending a competition ban due to Russia's insufficient efforts to curb widespread doping. The International Olympic Committee is set to decide on Tuesday whether to uphold the ban.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RUNE ANDERSEN, INSPECTION TEAM HEAD: The head coach of the Russian Athletic Team and many of the athletes on that team appear unwilling to acknowledge the nature and extent of the doping problem in Russian athletics. And certain athletes and coaches appear willing to ignore the doping rules. As strong and effective anti-doping infrastructure capable of detecting and determine doping has still not been created.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ALLEN: Richard Ings is the former head of the Australian Sport Anti- doping Authority and he joins us now via Skype from Canberra Australia to talk about this. Thank you, Richard, for being with us. Was this decision by the IAAF expected?

RICHARD INGS, FORMER ASADA HEAD: Well, this is not an unexpected decision. The issue of state sponsored doping in Russian sport has been prevalent for many years. It's a throw over from the former Soviet Union. It's unfair to international athletes and actually needed to be taken. This is a very strong decision.

ALLEN: So Russia has a systemic problem. What do you think will be the decision of the Olympic committee? Will they compete in Rio?

INGS: Well, it's a very difficult decision for the International Olympic Committee because the internation sporting community has spoken. The IAAF imposed a ban supported by the World Anti-doping Agency. Consortiums of Athletes Association have also come to the floor to say enough is enough. So I find it very difficult that the Russian athletic team will be allowed to compete in Rio in full. Perhaps some individual athletes may be allowed to compete but not the team.

ALLEN: I was going to ask about you that. Because some are speaking out that it's not fair to punish everyone for the sins of a few. And they have been training. We all know how Olympic athletes train and to be shut out has to be difficult. Do you expect some will compete individually and not under the Russian flag?

INGS: Well, you know, the Russian athletes have a right to be very angry but not with the IAAF but have the right to be angry with the Russian track and field. They have a right to be angry with the Russian Anti-doping Agency for failing in their duty of care to put in place a proper, coherent, compliant anti-doping program. Perhaps some athletes will be able to prove that they're getting sufficiently tested and allowed to compete. We'll just have to wait and see.

ALLEN: What's the worst that you heard about Russia trying to go around the doping situation and will they be able to clean this up after such fallout?

INGS: Well, I mean, this is a story that broke in 2014 through media. And I mean investigative media have played a key role in uncovering these issues in Russia. We have had laboratories engaged in fraud. We had bribes and coverups of positive drug test samples. And Russia has been given six months to clean up its act. It was a difficult task to do but they made nowhere near the progress that they should have. And this is a reasonable and proportional decision.

ALLEN: All right. And it looks like they probably will not be in Rio. We'll wait and see what comes after the Olympics. Thank you for joining us, Richard Ings there in Canberra, Australia. Thank you.

INGS: Thanks.

ALLEN: And still ahead here, new evidence the Orlando shooter may have started preparing for the attack weeks in advance. We'll have the latest on the investigation as more victims of the mass shooting are buried.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[00:16:19] ALLEN: Mourners are saying their final good-byes to some of the victims of the Orlando massacre. More funerals were held Friday, including this one for 25-year-old Anthony Luis Laureano Disla. 49 people were killed by a gunman who claimed support for ISIS.

Investigators believe his motive may be more complex though and they're digging into his past for clues. In fact, law enforcement officials tell CNN Omar Mateen's behavior in the weeks prior to the massacre suggest premeditated murder. Drew Griffin has more on the investigation.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) DREW GRIFFIN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Law enforcement sources say in the weeks leading up to the attack, the killer made numerous preparations. Including making sure his wife had access to bank accounts and adding her name to important documents like his life insurance policy.

He bought his wife an expensive piece of jewelry and transferred his share of a home where his sister and brother-in-law currently reside for just $10. FBI agents visited the mosque today where the shooter prayed. Mosque officials tell CNN, the agents were looking for anyone who knew him or know anyone he associated with. And the FBI Director visited the crime scene in Orlando for the first time as his investigators continue to examine what Omar Mateen's wife knew about this Attack and when.

CNN has learned the couple communicated during the attack. According to law enforcement sources, Noor Salman called her husband multiple times after news broke of the shooting. At 4:00 a.m., two hours after the shooting began, he texted her asking if she saw the news. At one point she responded telling him she loved him.

Police notified the gunman's family, first knocking on his sister's door at 4:00 a.m. She called her parents, breaking the news to the rest of the family. Sources tell us in the weeks leading up to the attack. The gunman spent a significant amount of money, including money spent on weapons used for the attack. And we are learning more about the gunman's background. According to school records obtained by CNN, Mateen was disciplined 31 times in elementary school. One report from third grade called him "verbally abusive, rude, aggressive" much talk about violence and sex. In high school, he was suspended a total of 48 days. Among the incidents are two that involve, "Fighting with injury."

Meanwhile in Orlando, an officer Omar Delgado was one of the first responders to pulse nightclub and pulled several victims from the club.

OMAR DELGADO, POLICE OFFICER: I had my flashlight. We kind of looked around and somebody yelled out, this person is moving.

GRIFFIN: A co-worker told him one of the victims he pulled to safety was in a press conference at the hospital.

DELGADO: I'm one of the ones that helped you get out of harm's way. I need a big hug from you.

GRIFFIN: The two reunited on Thursday.

DELGADO: My god, it was -- it was amazing. It was a feeling that you just can't describe, you can't put in words knowing that you helped save someone.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ALLEN: Very nice to see that scene there in the hospital room. Flags have been lowered all over the United States to honor the victims in Orlando. But one Alabama County is keeping the flag flying high despite President Barack Obama's order. The Baldwin County Commissioner told CNN, the Orlando massacre does not meet the legal standard to put the U.S. flag at half staff. He says they do it only on Memorial Day or when a government official died and they did not lower flags after the attacks in Paris or San Bernardino either.

Well, Derek Van Dam is here to talk about severe weather hitting Europe and multiple tornadoes in Germany. Is that unusual?

DEREK VAN DAM, AMS METEOROLOGIST: It's not unusual considering that they receive about 30 a year in that particular country.

[00:20:04] Most of Europe receives at least one tornado per year by the way. We know about tornado alley in the United States.

ALLEN: Yeah.

VAN DAM: But tornadoes happen elsewhere as well. Take a look at this. We had eight tornadoes this week across Central Europe. Four of which as Natalie just mentioned were in Germany. Here is a look at the storm reports. 242 in total. That would be some sort of wind damage or tornado sightings.

There were eight tornadoes, again four of them coming out of Central of Germany. And there were also 85 flood reports as well. This is a look at the climatological averages, at least over the course of a year, for Europe. And you can see that the United Kingdom actually has on average about 50 tornadoes per year, 30 in the country of Germany, 12 over Italy and 30 over Spain.

So again, not uncommon to see tornadoes but certainly quite a sight especially considering that so many people live across this area. Here is the radar over the past 24 hours.

These are known as convective type thunder storms cells that fired up thanks to a low pressure system that's now starting to exit. They form quickly and packed quite a punch, in fact there was an agency that predicted that this area would have the highest chance of tornadic activity into Poland, parts of the Ukraine. That extended into Germany and France as well.

The severe weather threat now starting to diminish. We're seeing the chance of rainfall move further and further away from the affected areas. There it is moving towards the Adriatic as we head into Sunday, the end of the weekend. That's when we are expecting heavy rainfall across that region.

London's forecasts over the next three days, next chance of rainfall coming in on Monday as a cold front sweeps through the region. You can see thunderstorms continuing just -- really just fire up throughout the course of the afternoon. But we are not anticipating the severe weather like we saw Thursday and Friday of this week. And it's not all bad. We had a great photo taken across a vineyard in France. Well, wouldn't mind transporting myself into this particular location. There to France, a double rainbow spotted there.

I want to end quickly with some dramatic video coming out of Bali. You may have been to this particular part of the world. A very scenic area. This is a tidal wave that Smashed into a popular resort there on the west side of the Island of Bali, Natalie. This is a tidal wave, not a tsunami. Tsunami caused by underwater earth quakes. This has to do with the tides. Moon and sun all forcing gravitational energy on the waves and of course, that was a freakish ...

ALLEN: I know.

VAN DAM: ... size of wave of course. And very scary for someone there in there in (inaudible).

ALLEN: I guess so. All right, sun bathing and not so much.

(CROSSTALK)

ALLEN: All right, Derek, thank you.

VAN DAM: OK.

ALLEN: Well, some world leaders publically criticized Donald Trump. But he seems to have an ally in this man. Ahead, our Fareed Zakaria asked Vladimir Putin about His praise for Trump.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ALLEN: Russian President Vladimir Putin says Moscow will work with any candidate American voters choose as president. Mr. Putin spoke with Fareed Zakaria at the International Economic Forum in St. Petersburg. Here's more of their discussion about presumptive Republican Nominee Donald Trump.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

FAREED ZAKARIA, CNN HOST: Let me ask you, Mr. President about another Democracy that is having a very different kind of drama.

[00:25:02] You made some comments about the American Republican presumptive nominee Donald Trump. You called him brilliant, outstanding, talented. These comments were reported around the world. I was wondering, what in him led you to that judgment? And do you still hold that judgment?

VLADIMIR PUTIN, RUSSIAN PRESIDENT: (Through Translator) You personally are very famous in our country. You are not only famous as a journalist in one of the biggest TV stations but as an intellectual. Why do you always change the meaning of what I said? Because at the moment you speak as a journalist, not as an analyst, why are you juggling with what I said? I only said that he was a bright person. Isn't he bright? He is. I did not say anything else about him. But there's one thing that I paid attention to and that I definitely welcome is that Mr. Trump said he is ready to restore full fledged Russian-American relations. What can they be bad about it? Don't you welcome it? We all welcome it.

ZAKARIA: Just to be clear, Mr. President, I -- the world brilliant was in the inter faxed translation. I realize that other translations might say it's bright but I used official inter faxed translation.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ALLEN: Vladimir Putin and Fareed Zakaria. You can watch the full interview with the Russian President here on CNN on Sunday at noon in London, at 7:00 in the evening in Hong Kong.

That is "CNN NEWSROOM". I'll be right back with our top stories. And then stay with us for "Culinary Journey".

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ALLEN: This is "CNN News Now". Hello, I'm Natalie Allen. Thomas Mair has now been charged with murder and other account in Thursday's (inaudible) slaying of British Politician Jo Cox. He is due to appear in Westminster Magistrates' Court later Saturday. Police are looking into reports he has tied to right wing Extremism. Mair's brother said he had a history of mental illness.