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E.U. Leaders Offer The U.K. Two Options And Now It's Back To Prime Minister Theresa May; A Witness Tells CNN The Human Toll Of Cyclone Idai Is Even Worse Than Thought; New Zealand Prime Minister, Jacinda Ardern Unites Mourners One Week On From The Christchurch Attacks. Aired: 8-9a ET

Aired March 22, 2019 - 08:00   ET

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

ANNA COREN, INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT, CNN: Hello. I'm Anna Coren in Hong Kong. Welcome to "News Stream." Brexit delay, but for how long?

E.U. leaders offer the U.K. two options and now it's back to Prime Minister Theresa May. Bodies lining the roads, a witness tells CNN the human toll

of Cyclone Idai is even worse than thought. We have more from Mozambique.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JACINDA ARDERN, PRIME MINISTER, NEW ZEALAND: New Zealand mourns with you. We are one.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COREN: And New Zealand Prime Minister, Jacinda Ardern unites mourners one week on from the Christchurch attacks.

We begin with Brexit after Theresa May gets a delay with strings attached. The European Union agreeing late Thursday that the Brexit process can be

delayed, but on the condition that the U.K. Parliament approvals a withdrawal deal at the third time of asking. Well, that meaningful vote on

a deal that must be different to those that have come before, is due to take place next week.

If lawmakers reject it again, the U.K. will leave the European Union on April 12th. If Parliament backs it, Britain's departure from the E.U. will

take place on May 22nd ahead of European Parliamentary elections.

Well, the President of the European Council, Donald Tusk, spelled out what this means.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TUSK, EUROPEAN COUNCIL PRESIDENT: What this means in practice is that until that date, all options will remain open and the cliff edge date

will be delayed. The U.K. government will still have a choice of a deal, our deal, a long extension or revoking Article 50.

THERESA MAY, BRITISH PRIME MINISTER: While the decision today underlines is the importance of the House of Commons passing a Brexit deal next week,

so that we can bring an end to the uncertainty and leave in a smooth and orderly manner.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COREN: Well, our correspondents are covering this story across Europe. CNN's international diplomatic editor, Nic Robertson is outside 10 Downing

Street in London and our Melissa Bell is live from Brussels. Melissa, let's begin with you. We were due to hear from the leaders of the European

Union at a press conference. Has that started as yet and what are we expected to hear?

MELISSA BELL, CORRESPONDENT, CNN: Well, we had expected a certain amount of delays because, of course, the bulk of the time yesterday, so many

hours, eight hours in all, Anna, were taken up just on this question of Brexit and on how to allow the United Kingdom the delay that it was asking

for and not quite going that far.

But in any case, allowing it some more time to try and come up with a definitive plan of how it intends to deal with its exiting from the

European Union. There are many other things on the agenda. This is a meeting of the 27 heads of the E.U., and remember who have other things to

discuss, in particular, China which never made it on the agenda yesterday at all.

So we always expected this morning to last slightly longer than it was meant to. Back to yesterday afternoon, what we saw, and we heard this from

Emmanuel Macron, the French President has left, Anna, was this sense that - - and these were his words -- the United Kingdom, this was a British political crisis. The E.U. was doing all it could to try and give it the

breathing space that it needed to figure things out. What the latest plan which was the work of the Europeans, remember, Theresa May had come in with

her own request. That was turned out and sort of in frustration with the fact that she seemed to have no reply to the question of what happened if

on a third attempt, her deal did not get through Parliament, then the European leaders took things into their own hands, setting their timetable.

And you're right, the question of the European elections is crucial. They wanted the U.K. out of the E.U. if it is to leave before those elections

started or to commit to staying in longer in order that their participation might count. And what the latest plan really quite cleverly does is put

the ball back in Westminster's court, not just short term, not just until or if this third attempt at getting the Theresa May deal through fails, but

beyond that. Because it stays in their court until now, the 12th of April.

COREN: Nic, and if I can ask you, obviously, the E.U. is giving the U.K. a little more time to get their act together, but considering how divided

British parliament is at present, is that even possible?

NIC ROBERTSON, INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: Well, I think probably the first hurdle for the Prime Minister is to find out if the Speaker is going

to allow her to put the withdrawal agreement forward again for voting on.

I mean, he said earlier in the week that unless it was changed, then there was a historic precedent that it couldn't be put forward again.

[08:05:03]

ROBERTSON: I think what we heard from Theresa May last night in Brussels at the beginning of her brief speech to the press gave the clear indication

where she thinks she has that change to offer and she said she -- you know, in her speech there, she thanked the European Council for making note of

the legality of the letter that was sent from Donald Tusk, the European Counsel President and Jean-Claude Juncker, the European Commission

President sent to her in January, but now given legal force, now by the European Counsel leaders, given recognition, but the fact is that before

Theresa May's vote earlier on that was made clear that that letter did have legal standing.

So you know, you could even argue that actually, even on that point, nothing particularly has changed. But in the way the things can get worded

here, you know, and obviously, her need to get a vote through, perhaps that's what will allow the Speaker to let this pass.

So then you get the floor, then you get to look at the 149 MPs who last time voted against the withdrawal agreement, she doesn't have anything

really substantially to offer them that is going to make their opinions change. Possibly, you can say that some of the hard liners now feel that

they can sort of time this out to the April 12th deadline, and just continue to say - to vote against the agreement and, therefore, to do what

they've been saying more and more strongly recently, which is the legal default option is to leave and if it's not going to be now on the 29th of

March, then they would plan and hope that that would be perhaps on April the 12th.

It's very difficult to see where the Prime Minister is going to find the leverage to win over more votes. There was a hint in her comments to the

press yesterday that she would be willing to reach across the political divide here that could take a long time, that she hasn't done in a

substantial way yet and that in itself seems very unlikely at this moment.

COREN: Well, Nic, she doesn't have time. Tell me, what happens if May's plan is rejected for a third time next week? Where does that leave the

Brexit process, but where does it leave Theresa May? Is her position still tenable?

ROBERTSON: Her political position in leading the party seems, you know, incredibly weakened by the day. In essence, the position that she would be

at on the 12th of April is pretty much the position she was expected to be in at the end of next week. What has really changed here is that the

European Union has been able to sort of move the furniture around a little bit to better suit them rather than having Theresa May turn up in Brussels

towards the end of next week and say, "Oh, my goodness, calamity, calamity, I failed to get the withdrawal agreement through. Now you really need to

help me out with a couple of days to go." They bought themselves some more time. They have made it clear to her what she needs to do.

So it seems very difficult to see what her options are going to be different, how she has laid them out previously. Donald Tusk says, "Look,

no deal is still on the table, a deal is still on the table. A long extension, meaning potentially, a couple of years is on the table even

revoking Article 50, you know, the Brexit package in itself could be revoked. Theresa May has removed that. She has rejected that. She has

rejected the idea of letting things linger beyond April the 12th on a no- deal basis because she says that would involve British people voting in European elections, they voted to leave the European Union, so why would

they vote in European elections.

So we're back to her deal or no deal, in essence. I think, the answer to your question is, it just hasn't changed the playing field in that regard

and we're going to be very much in this position, very much asking ourselves, I think, the same questions a couple of weeks from now, again.

COREN: Nic Robertson, as always, good to see you. Melissa Bell, we certainly appreciate your input, as well. Thank you very much.

Well, Donald Trump has handed the Israeli Prime Minister a foreign policy victory less than three weeks before voters in Israel head to the polls.

The U.S. President overturned decades of U.S. policy by saying it's time to recognize Israel's, quote, "sovereignty over the Golan Heights." His tweet

followed repeated pressure by Benjamin Netanyahu beginning more than two years ago.

Standing alongside the U.S. Secretary of State, Mr. Netanyahu thanked Mr. Trump.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BENJAMIN NETANYAHU, PRIME MINISTER OF ISRAEL: President Trump has just made history. I called him. I thanked him on behalf of the people of

Israel. He did it again.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COREN: The Golan Heights is a rocky plateau that lies on Israel's northeastern border. The UN Security Council continues to regard it as a

part of Syria. In 1967, Israeli forces seized parts of the territory in the Six-Day War. Syria tried to retake it in the 1973 Yom Kippur War.

[08:10:07]

COREN: Eight years later, in December 1981, Israel announced it was annexing the land it seized in 1967. But the international community

considers the area Syrian territory on the Israeli occupation.

Well, CNN's Oren Liebermann is in the disputed Golan Heights and joins us now. Oren, Netanyahu is obviously fighting for his political survival with

elections just weeks away, is this seen as a life raft for him and will this save his job?

OREN LIEBERMANN, CORRESPONDENT, CNN: Anna, I think it's seen as much more than a life raft, it appears to be President Donald Trump building

essentially a luxury ocean liner for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the cruise to victory in the upcoming elections.

There was no pressing need for Trump to make this announcement, even if the international community condemned Israel's occupation of the Golan Heights,

it essentially was accustomed to it, and even many of the Arab states had come to realize that Israel was retaining this territory for at least the

immediate, and perhaps even the medium range future and the long term future.

So there was no need for this, except for the upcoming election where Netanyahu was fighting a very difficult election battle. And make no

mistake, this is seen as a massive political victory, a diplomatic victory for Netanyahu because of Trump, not only because of a tweet and the way it

was announced, also because Secretary of State Mike Pompeo was here and it wasn't just this announcement.

Pompeo visited the Western Wall in the Old City of Jerusalem with Netanyahu and that until now was unheard of. Trump visited by himself, Vice

President Mike Pence visited by himself, out of a respect for the sensitivity of the Old City between Israelis and Palestinians. No more.

Now, it seems the Trump administration has no problem blatantly appearing to campaign for Netanyahu. And out of the question becomes how far will

this go? Netanyahu goes to Washington in a couple of days for the APAC conference, the American-Israeli lobby conference, he will meet with Trump

and that will effectively be a campaign stop for Netanyahu with just a couple of weeks ago here.

COREN: Oren, we know the UN has rejected Israel's occupation of the Golan Heights since the 1967 Arab-Israeli War, we obviously know that Trump

doesn't care what the UN thinks, but surely he knows that this will undermine his much anticipated peace proposal for Israel and the

Palestinians.

LIEBERMANN: I would say he probably doesn't care about that either, and perhaps he felt that it wouldn't impact it all that much. But you're

absolutely right. The percentage of a chance of success for Trump's peace plan which is supposed to come out after the April 9th election, dependent

on support from the Arab states, specifically the Sunni Arab states, the Egyptians, perhaps the Jordanians, definitely Saudi Arabia and the Emiratis

us as well.

Now, because of this announcement, they are forced to come out effectively obligated on behalf of their people to condemn Trump's announcement and

that makes it more difficult to maneuver. It gives them less wiggle room if they want to support in some way Trump's peace plan, not only

politically and diplomatically but also financially and economically, putting forward money for the economic and infrastructure projects that are

part of that peace play. All of that becomes more difficult with Trump's announcement now and it reduces even more the chance that Trump's peace

plan will get any sort of traction when it's put forward.

CARLSON: Oren Liebermann joining us from the Golan Heights. Many thanks for your reporting. Well, Iran and Russia are condemning Mr. Trump's

endorsement saying is he is in violation of multiple United Nations resolutions. Turkey's President is also condemning the decision saying it

is the brink of a new crisis.

Well, Matthew Chance is joining us now from Moscow with much more. Matthew, Trump's announcements obviously has reverberated throughout the

Middle East and beyond to where you are in Moscow, tell us about the international reaction?

MATTHEW CHANCE, SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT, CNN: Well, certainly from the Russian point of view, there's been some condemnation, as you

might expect from the Russian authorities, the Russian Foreign Ministry, saying basically this is a violation of various United Nations Security

Council resolutions that this territory, which it regards is being part of Syria, should be recognized by the Trump administration in this way.

The Kremlin of course has also voiced its concern about this, saying that this recognition would significantly destabilize an area, which is already

a tense situation -- in a middle of a tense situation in the Middle East. But I mean, that criticism has been somewhat muted, probably for a couple

of reasons.

First of all, that the recognition of the Golan Heights as being part of Israel doesn't actually change the situation on the ground. Of course,

they've occupied that territory since the Six-Day War 1967. And so the military situation isn't affected by this. But also I think, privately,

probably the Russians are thinking, "Well, you know, if this territory which has been seized by military force can be recognized now by the United

States, why can't the territory we saw, we seized back in 2014 in Crimea also be recognized at some point in the future?" At the very least, it

undermines the U.S. moral authority when it criticizes Russia for that annexation of Crimea in 2014.

So there's criticism there, of course from Moscow, but I don't think we're going to see an escalation of it from here.

[08:15:03]

COREN: Matthew Chance joining us from Moscow. Good to see you. Many thanks for that. In Eastern Syria, U.S.-backed forces launched ground and

air attacks to flush out ISIS's last stronghold on the eastern bank of the Euphrates River.

The Syrian Democratic Forces believe several hundred ISIS militants remain on a small sliver of land there and those fighters are using family members

as human shields. That small enclave, if cleared would mean the end of the terror network in Syria.

Just ahead we are getting grim reports out of Mozambique with possibly hundreds more dead from devastating Cyclone Idaai.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COREN: Welcome back to "New Stream" live from Hong Kong. Well, scenes of devastation are emerging from cut off areas of Southern Africa where

there's a rising human toll from Cyclone Idai. The satellite image from the European Space Agency shows the extent of the flooding from the

overflowed Buzi River. An eyewitness says as many as 300 to 400 bodies washed up on a highway that had been flooded by the powerful storm.

More than a week on, the UN has confirmed 242 dead in Mozambique and more than 300 did in Zimbabwe and Malawi. Thousands are still missing.

The downpour is starting to ease, but the threat of more rain still isn't over. CNN's Farai Sevenzo reports from Mozambique.

(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)

FARAI SEVENZO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Almost a week of the Cyclone Idai hits the coast of Mozambique here in Beira where CNN is at the moment. It was

obvious that a huge clear out and rescue operation was still underway. On the streets of Beira, massive trees that have stood for generations could

be seen uprooted and in to people's houses. We also saw many signs of zinc and tin roof roofing all over the streets hanging by lamp posts, hanging on

people's fences.

And men were at work all over the streets of Beira trying to clear all these debris away a week after the cyclone hit. Over at the beaches, a

young man came and arrived by boat from the very hard hit area of Buzi where 200,000 people are still stuck and trapped because of rising waters.

He told us that when the cyclone hit, he had no idea that there was going to be so much water. He said that everybody knew that the cyclone was on

its way, but they were prepared. They thought that they were prepared.

Soon, the rivers of the River Buzi and its tributaries started to rising and filled up people's homes and knocked down their ram shackles feebly

cemented buildings. And soon, he told CNN, everybody was chest high in water. He said he can't escape what he thought was the possibility of

disease.

[15:20:10]

SEVENZO: Because many people were still stuck there and it was very difficult for rescuers to get to them. And of course at the airport of

Beira itself, many people were arriving to help in the efforts to relieve people.

United Nations, agencies like WFP, choppers from South African government all manner of volunteers were gathered in Beira Airport. But of course the

situation is still very grave for those that have not been rescued or been seen since the week has passed since that cyclone hit. Farai Sevenzo, CNN,

Beira, Mozambique.

(END VIDEO TAPE)

COREN: Well, the European Union is pledging almost $4 million in emergency aid to the countries affected by Cyclone Idai. We are hearing that

millions of people are living without the basic necessities. Well, it is an absolute race to save lives. Gerry Bourke from the World Food Program

joins us by phone. Gerry, describe the situation to us on the ground.

GERRY BOURKE, WORLD FOOD PROGRAM (via phone): Well, it's really very dramatic. The whole dimensions of the disaster are not yet apparent. As

your correspondent was saying, Beira is a disaster area. And there are huge floodplains outside of the city and an unknown number of people caught

in that. Rescue and relief operations is still under underway. Helicopters are out there looking for people, scattered groups of people

off, up the roofs of houses and huts, and patches of elevated land. So still at the rescue, relief and rescue stage. So we've got a long way to

go here.

COREN: Gerry, the death toll it stands in the hundreds, but we heard from Mozambique President earlier this week, he believes it could climb well

over 1,000. We've heard from eyewitnesses who report, you know, 300 to 400 bodies lying on the banks of the river. In your opinion, do you think the

death toll will rise dramatically?

BOURKE: What the government is saying 247, clearly, if you have and satellite images show this, if for example, you have a floodplain that is

125 kilometers by 25 kilometers, that is 1,000 square kilometers. And prior to the inundation and inundation is very rapid. You had thriving

communities and villages in that area. A large number of people were surely caught in that. But it will take time to establish hard numbers.

But it looks like the casualty figure will be very significant.

COREN: And groups like yourselves, are you reaching these hard hit areas? As we know, so many places have been cut off by those floodwaters. Are you

getting food, clean water, and medical supplies to these people who so desperately need it?

BOURKE: Well, the World Food Program has been distributing food assistance to displaced people in Beira City. We've also been distributing food to

displaced people in the town of Dondo, which is about 40 kilometer northeast of Beira. We have been airlifting high energy biscuits to folks

who are stranded, isolated in flooded areas.

And we are mobilizing large quantities of food elsewhere in southern Africa, in Malawi, in South Africa, in Zambia, we are bringing that in by

trucks and ships. Other agencies are doing the same. Perhaps it wasn't the quickest of start, the response but it is building now, but as I say,

there is a huge amount across a wide range of areas. But things are accelerating.

COREN: Gerry, this cyclone hits over a week ago. Is there enough assistance? Should the international community be doing more?

BOURKE: Everybody needs to do more. I think the scale of the disaster and certainly unprecedented for this area. Mozambique is struck by six or

seven cyclones a year. Beira has never before taking a direct hit. And then of course you had all that rain for several days right after the

cyclone, you had rivers bursting their banks and flooding these huge areas that I'm talking about. And there is still a danger as you said in your

introduction.

[08:25:06]

BOURKE: If we get more rain, more rivers in Mozambique will swell. Likewise, in neighboring Zimbabwe flow into Mozambique and the risk of them

overflowing is a significant issue. We hear that dams in Malawi and Zimbabwe are filling up and they have to discharge water, so those are

risks as well. So this is not over.

COREN: We can only imagine the challenging conditions that you and your staff are working under. Gerry Bourke from the World Food Program, we

certainly thank you and for joining us and thank you for your very hard work out there. We wish you the very best.

Well, the city of Christchurch, New Zealand buried more than two dozen people on Friday killed in last week's terrorist attacks on two mosques.

We'll hear from an Imam who survived the attack. That's a head on "News Stream."

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COREN: Hello, I'm Anna Coren in Hong Kong. You are watching "News Stream." These are your world headlines. E.U. leaders have agreed to give

the U.K. more time to ratify a Brexit deal. Brussels has offered two options. Brexit will be delayed until May 22nd if Parliament approves

Theresa May's exit deal, but if it fails again, the U.K. has until April 12th to find a path forward.

The White House and President Trump are bracing for the possibility that Special Counsel Robert Mueller's report could come out soon. This highly

anticipated report concludes two years of investigations into alleged Russian interference in the 2016 U.S. presidential elections.

In southern India more than 65 hours after a building that was under construction collapsed, people are still being pulled out alive. A man and

another couple were pulled to safety on Friday. At least 14 people died in the disaster and other 59 have been rescued. But officials believe more

are trapped inside.

"We mourn with you and we are one," that is the message New Zealand's Prime Minister sent to the Muslim community a week after deadly mosque attacks.

The nation came together for a national day of reflection as Ivan Watson reports, thousands of people reinforced the Prime Minister's message.

(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)

IVAN WATSON, SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT, CNN (voice over): One week after the horror, the people of Christchurch and New Zealand joined

together to begin to heal.

[08:30:02]

WATSON (voice over): In bright autumn sunshine, thousands converged on a park opposite one mosque where dozens were killed to join the Muslim

community in prayer.

Among them, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern wearing a headscarf like so many women across New Zealand on this day.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ARDERN: The believers in their mutual kindness, compassion, and sympathy are just like one body. When any part of the body suffers, the whole body

feels pain. New Zealand mourns with you. We are one.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WATSON (voice over): A moment of silence at the exact time that last week's rampage began, followed by the call to prayer.

The Imam of the Al Noor mosque spoke of how he had witnessed his congregation being gunned down just yards away.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GAMAL FOUDA, IMAM, AL-NOOR MOSQUE: Today, from the same place, I look out and I see the love and compassion in the eyes of thousands of fellow New

Zealanders and the human beings from across the globe.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WATSON (voice over); And he gave thanks for the outpouring of support and sympathy.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

FOUDA: Thank you to the neighbors who opened their doors to save us from the killer. Thank you, to those who pulled over their cars to help us.

Thank you to those who brought us food and healed us when we found it difficult to stand.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WATSON (voice over): It wasn't just in Christchurch; in Auckland and across New Zealand, vigils and prayers, moments of silence, symbols of a

nation standing as one.

Twenty six victims of the attack were laid to rest Friday, among them, a three-year-old boy and a 77-year-old man. Authorities have identified all

of the bodies of the victims, anguished families are now saying their final goodbyes.

WATSON (on camera): The grief of these families will persist for weeks and months, but they have also drawn strength from the way fellow New

Zealanders have come to their aid. And the government has moved swiftly to ban the sort of weapons that can cause such carnage to try to ensure that

never again will this country lose so many to a single act of hate. Ivan Watson, CNN, Christchurch, New Zealand.

(END VIDEO TAPE)

COREN: Meanwhile, Turkey's president is hailing New Zealand's response to the attack speaking to the Organization of Islamic states in Istanbul.

President Tayyip Erdogan said the response should be an example to world leaders. Earlier, he set off a spat with New Zealand partly because he

showed video of the attack at election rallies.

New Zealand's Foreign Minister met Erdogan on Friday, but he didn't bring up the video issue, saying Erdogan stopped showing it.

The death toll in the chemical plant explosion in eastern China has risen dramatically overnight. Forty seven people are now dead and 90 others

severely injured. Government drone footage shows storage tanks turned to twisted metal and charred factory buildings with roofs torn off.

Firefighters are still battling smaller fires after working through the night to put out the main blaze.

And this is just one of a string of industrial accidents in China in recent years. Michael Holmes shows us what happened.

(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)

MICHAEL HOLMES, INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT, CNN (voice over): A powerful blast rips through an industrial park in Eastern China. The deadly

explosion followed a fire at a pesticide factory in Yancheng City in Jiangsu Province. The video posted on Twitter shows the massive fire. The

blast shattered windows in nearby homes and injured more than two dozen people including children. Witnesses also report seeing injured workers

running from the burning factory.

And China's Earthquake Administration reported a 2.2 magnitude quake at the time of the blast. Public anger has grown in China over the lack of safety

standards after a string of deadly industrial incidents in recent years. China's Work Safety Administration reported 13 safety problems at this

pesticide factory after an inspection last year. In November 2018, an explosion near a factory in Northern China killed at least 23 people.

And in August of 2015, a series of explosion rocked the container storage facility in the Port City of Tianjin. The cause of Thursday's disaster

remains under investigation. Michael Holmes, CNN, Atlanta.

[08:35:07]

COREN: Turning to other news, North Korea is withdrawing from its joints liaison office with the South. The office opened just last September and

had been a symbol of improving relations between the two countries. South Korea announced the pullout saying it regrets the North's decision.

Seoul will still keep some of its personnel there and says it hopes representatives from Pyongyang will return soon. The move comes after the

U.S. slapped sanctions on two Chinese firms for doing business with North Korea.

And in South Korea, the careers and reputations of five major K-pop stars are tarnished amid a growing sex scandal that threatens the nation's

multibillion dollar entertainment industry.

Our Paula Hancocks has the latest from Seoul.

(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)

PAULA HANCOCKS, CORRESPONDENT, CNN (voice over): He is one of South Korea's biggest pop idols. Seungri was part of the band BIGBANG, the first

Korean boy band to make it worldwide, before quitting last week last week over a growing sex scandal.

Police say he is being investigated on suspicion of violating the country's prostitution law. He denied the allegations last month. The popstar was

on the board of Burning Sun night club in Seoul. The club faces multiple allegations including securing prostitutes for VIPs, rape, drug trafficking

and drug use, according to police. Police say 40 people face drug-related charges as part of the investigation. Club executives say they are

cooperating with police. Seungri was questioned by police for 16 hours last week.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEUNGRI, FORMER MEMBER OF BIGBANG (Through a translator): I lower my head and offer an apology to the public and the people who are hurt and have

suffered.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HANCOCKS (voice over); Police say he's also one of about ten members of an online group chat that has shared sexually explicit videos of women filmed

without their knowledge or consent. Several high-profile K-pop stars have been implicated.

Jung Joon-young is a singer, songwriter who rose to fame in Korea's version of "American Idol." He has now been arrested following an initial police

investigation. In a statement published in local media last week he said, "I acknowledge all my guilt in relation to the content of the talks about

me. I have filmed women without consent and distributed it over social media and acted without much guilt during those actions."

Jung has been dropped by his management company. Three more K-pop stars have spoken to police as part of this investigation. Shock among fans is

growing as more revelations emerge.

This fan says, "I thought they were men who had a bit of fun. But I am very disappointed they have committed such despicable crimes."

"They are public figures," this woman says. "So they should have been more careful but they weren't. I think it's ridiculous this wasn't discovered

earlier."

Police tell CNN some of their own are also under investigation to see if there were corrupt ties between police and the night club, Burning Sun.

They say four officers are under investigation.

K-pop is a multibillion-dollar industry. With management companies known to keep tight control of the stars deciding how they dress, who they date,

to preserve their squeaky-clean image, an image which is now been shattered.

HANCOCKS (on camera): This growing scandal comes at a time when treatment of women is front and center here in South Korea. The #MeToo movement is

taking hold. There has been an epidemic of spy cam cases, hidden cameras in bathrooms and changing rooms with videos being uploaded online without

the victim even knowing they are filmed. And last year, tens of thousands of women took to the streets of Seoul to demand better treatment. Paula

Hancocks, CNN, Seoul.

(END VIDEO TAPE)

COREN: And so they should. Well, it's becoming an old too familiar headline, Facebook under fire. The company now admits its staff had access

to millions of users' password because it was storing them improperly. That's ahead on "News Stream."

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[08:40:00]

COREN: Welcome back. Well, Facebook is admitting that the passwords of millions of its users were not protected properly. The social media giant

says the passwords were stored as plain text in an internal database making them accessible to employees.

The company says it discovered the issue back in January and launched an investigation. Facebook Vice President said in a post, "There's no

evidence that anyone abused or improperly access the exposed passwords."

Well, there's a way to unplug from Facebook, but deleting your account, well, it's complicated. Our Samuel Burke explains.

(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)

SAMUEL BURKE, BUSINESS AND TECHNOLOGY CORRESPONDENT, CNN (voice over): You know the drill, a Facebook scandal emerges users get worried about their

privacy and #DeleteFacebook starts trending, but ditching your account isn't as helpful or as easy as you think.

Deleting your Facebook account doesn't mean you actually delete Facebook, the company from your life. Facebook still owns Instagram, WhatsApp and

Messenger. You'll have to delete your account on those platforms as well. And you may have even signed into other websites using your Facebook

account.

For example, if you created your Spotify login through Facebook, you'll have to create a completely new account, which means saying goodbye to all

your carefully curated playlists.

Getting rid of your account may prevent Facebook from collecting further data on you. But if you're still searching for things on Google or buying

things on Amazon, for example, big tech is still collecting information about you and using it to sell ads.

Despite that, if you're set on deleting Facebook, here's how it's done. In your account settings, download all your data and information first. At

this point Facebook gives you the option to deactivate your account. This removes most traces of you from the social network, but saves everything in

case you want to restore your account at any time.

But if you're ready to delete your account, go ahead and click that blue button. It's not instant, but after 90 days, Facebook says it will have

cleared out your information and your Facebook account will be officially deleted. And don't cry for Facebook, it still has 2.3 billion other users

to tend to.

(END VIDEO TAPE)

COREN: Samuel Burke with that report. Well that is "New Stream." I'm Anna Coren, thanks so much for your company. Don't go anywhere, "World

Sport" is coming up next.

(SPORTS)

[09:00:00]

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