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U.S. And Canada Believe Iran Shot Down Ukrainian Plane; Iranian Military Threatens Big Operation; Lawmakers Clash With Trump Over U.S. Airstrike; Thousands Set to March Against PM's Fire Response; Wildlife Devastated by Harsh Conditions; Harry and Meghan "Step Back". Aired 1- 2a ET

Aired January 10, 2020 - 01:00   ET

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

[01:00:00]

JOHN VAUSE, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: Action on climate change. And the royal road, Prince Harry defies his grandmother, who's also her Majesty, the Queen, and went public with Meghan's announcement that they wanted to get out of the gilded cage of royal life.

The U.S. and multiple governments say evidence is mounting which indicates Iran shut down a Ukrainian airliner near Tehran this week. Video sent to CNN appears to show the moment in question. As you see, a flash of light moves towards the sky before apparently collides with an object.

We cannot verify the video's authenticity but the buildings there are similar to those in the area where the plane went down. According to a U.S. source, Iran shot down the jet using two Russian-made missiles. Multiple U.S. officials also tell CNN the U.S. believes it happened by mistake. CNN's Alex Marquardt has more now reporting from Washington.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ALEX MARQUARDT, CNN SENIOR U.S. CORRESPONDENT: In the wake of the Ukrainian plane crash in Iran, the U.S. and allied officials tell CNN Iran is believed to have shot it down with Russian made surface to air missiles, killing all 176 people on board. Most of the victims were from Iran, Ukraine, and Canada.

JUSTIN TRUDEAU, PRIME MINISTER, CANADA: We have intelligence from multiple sources, including our allies and our own intelligence, the evidence indicates that the plane was shot down by an Iranian surface to air missile. This may well have been unintentional.

MARQUARDT: Wednesday's crash came just hours after the Iranian regime launched over a dozen missiles at U.S. forces inside Iraq. And multiple U.S. officials believe that Iran possibly shut the plane down by mistake. This new video allegedly showing the moment the plane was struck.

CNN has not verified the authenticity of the video. President Trump today agree it was unlikely that the Boeing 737 was brought down due to a mechanical failure. DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: It was flying at a pretty rough neighborhood and somebody could have made a mistake. Some people say it was mechanical, I personally don't think that's even a question.

MARQUARDT: Eye witness video shows a fireball believed to be the plane going down, a huge blast as it hits the ground. A U.S. official familiar with the intelligence told CNN, the U.S. saw Iranian radar signals lock onto the plane before it was shot down. Iranian officials deny the flight was shot down saying minutes after taking off early Wednesday morning, the plane had turned back to the Tehran airport but never made it. So far, Iran has refused to hand over the planes, black boxes.

COL. CEDRIC LEIGHTON (RET.), CNN MILITARY ANALYST: This kind of thing can happen even with the most sophisticated air defense systems. But the Iranians are not at the same level as the U.S.

MARQUARDT: Today, mourners gathered at the airport in Ukraine's capital where the plane was due to land, a row of portraits of the dead and a flood of tears.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translator): The Ukrainian mother of a pilot crying. She was my only son. Now I'm all by myself.

MARQUARDT: Ukraine has now sent a team to Tehran to carry out investigation. They've also asked the British and Canadians to help them, and thank to the Iranians for access and for their cooperation. Now, as for the black boxes, the head of Iran's Civil Aviation Authority says that they have been damaged but that the Ukrainians will be given access to them to decode the data. Alex Marquardt, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

VAUSE: CNN's Senior International Correspondent Matthew Chance is live for us this hour in Moscow. So, Matthew, U.S. sources say the missiles were Russia made. Russia has lend Tehran with sophisticated weapons for years. The intelligence also suggests that this was a mistake by Iran, but it is familiar ground for Russia.

Just back in 2015 Russian backed separatist forces downed that Malaysian Airlines flight over eastern Ukraine killing everyone on board. So you know, given the similarities here, is any response coming out so far at least from Moscow? And if there isn't anything, do you expect anything?

MATTHEW CHANCE, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: I don't really expect the response on that issue. I mean, obviously, the Russian officials from the Kremlin have offered their condolences to Iran and to the other countries involved in this tragedy. But I think they're unlikely to comment on the use of a Russian made anti-aircraft system, you know, simply because, you know, Russia is one of the biggest arms suppliers in the world. It supplies weapons like this to lots of different countries and other kinds of weapons as well, including Iran, which has been the main arms supplier to them since the revolution in 1979.

And of course, they've got no control, in this case, over how and when those missiles are used. I mean, it differs significantly to the last time a Russian made air defense system was used to bring down a civilian airliner, because as you mentioned, that was in 2015 in Ukraine with MH-17, the Malaysian airliner that was brought down by another kind of Russian-made aircraft system. But of course, the allegation there was that it was Russian forces that were inside Ukraine operating that system, and you know, and stuck that civilian aircraft. That's not the allegation or the implication from everything we've heard so far in this latest tragedy, John.

[01:05:31]

VAUSE: Okay, Matthew, we appreciate that. Thank you, Matthew Chance live for us in Moscow. Thank you. To our Washington bureau now and CNN Aviation Analyst Peter Goelz who served as the Managing Director of the National Transportation Safety Board here in the U.S. Peter, good to see you.

PETER GOELZ, CNN AVIATION ANALYST: Good seeing you.

VAUSE: OK. So apart from the witness accounts of something that appeared to be like a missile hitting the plane before it came down, apart from the reports that U.S. satellites detected you know, the launch of two surface to air missiles shortly before the plane crashed, there's the images of a guidance section of an SA 15 surface to air missile which landed in someone's garden near the crash zone. And then there's that actual video itself of a missile hitting the airliner, and then it crashes moments after that. I guess, you know, for the Iranians, apart from all that, what, it's just sheer speculation that one of their missiles could have shut down this plane?

GOELZ: Yes, exactly. Where's the evidence? Well, the evidence is all there. And you know that that part of the world, John, as you know, there's a lot of eyes watching what's going on. There was no question that had a missile taken it down, which I speculated about two days ago, that we were going to find out about it and we have. It was a missile.

VAUSE: You know, the head of Iran's Civil Aviation Authority did actually raise an interesting point. Here's a quote. "If a rocket or missile hits a plane, it will free-fall. How can a plane be hit by a rocket or missile and then try to turn back to the airport?" And the video which shows the missile hitting the plane and then sort of nothing?

And you know, we'll know from television and movies that you know, the plane should burst into flames and explode on impact. So firstly, why did that happen? And is it possible that the flight crew was, in fact, trying to turn back? And if they weren't, why was the plane turning at all?

GOELZ: Well, first of all, these kinds of missiles don't actually strike the aircraft. They explode in proximity to it. And they pepper the aircraft with shrapnel. Go back to the Malaysia flight 17. Look at the reconstruction of the nose of that plane, and you'll see the kind of damage these missiles do first. And then when a plane is in contact with this kind of explosion, it can change its heading. It can be blown out of the sky.

And I mean, that remark is just uninformed. And I think you'll see that this plane, if it took two hits, was really rocketed by the impact of the shrapnel from these missiles.

VAUSE: What would it have been like on board that flight for the passengers and crew the minute that, you know, that the surface to air missiles exploded nearby?

GOELZ: Well, I mean, they -- it would have been horrifying if you weren't taken out in the first seconds after impact. You know, in the MH 17, the pilots, the co-pilot, and the pilot, their bodies were peppered with shrapnel. And in this case, the plane was not very high. I'm afraid it was a horrifying few seconds for many of the passengers.

VAUSE: You know, investigations like this one, they take as long as they take. But there's also an added complication of so many different countries, so many different nationalities among the dead. I want you to listen to Ukraine's deputy foreign minister.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SERGIY KYSLYTSYA, DEPUTY FOREIGN MINISTER, UKRAINE: It is now up to the experts to investigate it and to find answers to the questions of what caused the crash. To do so, our experts must receive unconditional support for their investigation into the incident.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE: The leaders of Britain and Canada made similar calls when it looked like Iran was taking a sort of non-cooperation approach of withholding the flight data and voice cockpit recorders. And you know, that's sort of gone away now it appears because the Iranians have invited the NTSB to play a role in the investigation. But can that be taken seriously. Is that just lip service? Will the NTSB have a meaningful role here or we just have to wait how it plays out?

GOELZ: Well, I think it depends on how it plays out. Certainly, the NTSB has a right to play a role by treaty, as does the Ukrainians and the Canadians have a right as well. And there's couple of the things to understand, John. One is you cannot cover this up if it was caused by a missile. The physical evidence is going to be there and if investigators get on the ground, they will see it.

Secondly, when the data recorder and the voice recorder are examined, it will give you some real clear hints of what happened. This was a catastrophic end of a flight. When combined with the wreckage, and with an accurate radar track, there'll be no debate about what brought this plane down.

[01:10:19] VAUSE: Well, just to circle back to where we started the conversation. If the flight was brought down by a surface to a missile and certainly it appears that was, the working presumption right now as it was a mistake. So, you know, it was unintentional, but what if it was negligent or deliberate?

GOELZ: Well, those are two questions. You know, again, this is an area of the world which is monitored very carefully. I don't -- I don't know whether any of our spy agencies or military agencies were monitoring the communications between the air, defense folks in the air command of Iran, but I think you got to work under the assumption that no one would intentionally shoot down a non-involved aircraft. No one would do that intentionally.

VAUSE: You know, these days, Peter -- you know, we'll leave it at that. Good to see you. Thank you.

GOELZ: Good seeing you.

VAUSE: And the U.S. President continues to try and justify his decision to order an airstrike which killed the Iranian general Qassem Soleimani last week. The President said Soleimani was plotting to blow up a U.S. Embassy. But many lawmakers are growing increasingly angry over lack of evidence which indicates any imminent threat. At a campaign rally on Thursday, the President went one step further.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: Soleimani was actively planning new attacks, and he was looking very seriously at our embassies, and not just the embassy in Baghdad, but we stopped him and we stopped him quickly and we stopped him cold.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE: Meantime, Iranian military leaders warned of hostile revenge for the U.S. for Soleimani's death. The commander Iran's Aerospace Forces says its missile strikes in Iraq are not meant to kill U.S. troops but rather to hit America's military machine. CNN Correspondent Jomana Karadsheh is live again for us in Baghdad. So let's just switch gears here, Jomana, what do you know about the Iraqi investigation which is ongoing into the death of Soleimani?

JOMANA KARADSHEH, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, what we understand, John, from two sources with knowledge of this investigation, they say that the Iraqis have launched an investigation that they are pursuing what they believe is a spy network that provided leaked information and details of Soleimani's movement to the Americans.

Now, they believe that this information was key to the operation that led to the killing of Soleimani and Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis. Now, according to these sources, the focus of this investigation is Baghdad International Airport. That is where that strike took place.

This investigative committee is questioning employees of the Baghdad airport, especially security personnel, those with access to CCTV security cameras. They've been questioning those who are working, who are monitoring those cameras on the day of the killing of Soleimani and also questioning those who were absent from work on that day.

Now, you know, we understand that this is a committee that is headed by Falih Al-Fayyad. He is the National Security Advisor for Iraq, and he's also the head of the Popular Mobilization Units that Iranian backed umbrella groups of Shia paramilitary groups. And we understand a number of intelligence officials and others are involved in this investigation, John. So far were told no arrests have been made, but that this investigation is ongoing.

VAUSE: And just on the issue of the news we've heard from Tehran that the Iranian military leaders warning that they will be harsher action yet to come, and it will be primarily aimed at, you know, the United States military. Does that then mean that Iraq will again be in the firing line of more sort of attacks like we saw this week?

KARADSHEH: Well, you know, this has been the concern here, John. And it's not just about Iran and the United States facing off in any sort of military confrontation, it's also the fact that you have so many paramilitary groups that are operating here, proxies that are backed by Iran that the U.S. worries that they will be the ones going after U.S. targets also on the ground. They have blamed them in the past for rocket attacks on bases, on the green zone here, for example.

And we've heard from these groups, they are vowing revenge. They say that while the Iranians have retaliated for the attack that killed Soleimani, they say that they have yet to carry out their own retaliation for the killing of one of their leaders, Abu Mahdi al- Muhandis, and they're promising that that will be coming soon, John.

[01:15:08]

VAUSE: OK, Jomana, we appreciate the update as well as the analysis. Jomana Karadsheh live for us in Baghdad. We'll take a short break. When we come back, the U.S. Congress moves to check the President's authority to order military action but will it even make a difference for Donald Trump?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

DEREK VAN DAM, CNN INTERNATIONAL METEOROLOGIST: A multi-day severe weather setup is taking shape across the central and southern United States. Here's a look at the broader picture. It's tapping into Gulf of Mexico moisture. Anywhere you see that shading of red, that's where we have the potential for strong to severe storms later today, and that will shift eastward through the course of the weekend as well as our cold front marches eastward. You can see the line of storms developing late throughout the course of the day today.

This is a very complex storm system because there's the potential for a significant ice storm on the cold side of this low pressure and the potential for over a foot of snow for some locations as well. First, our severe weather threat. Storm Prediction Center has a moderate risk of severe storms across eastern Texas portions of Northwest Louisiana and southern Arkansas, damaging winds tornadoes and large hail. Double-check your flight plans from Dallas to Houston today as well as Shreveport. That chance of severe weather shifts eastward as we head into Saturday and early Sunday morning. You can see Jackson, Mississippi to Birmingham, even the Atlanta Metro region has a good chance of stronger storms as line of thunderstorms starts to develop.

Now, lots of rain associated with the system, flooding potential high across the southern Great Lakes. You can see the flood watches that are in effect. We also have winter storm watches in effect for The Great Lakes stretching across the plains. Let's talk temperatures. We're expecting a daytime high of eight for Chicago, nine for the Big Apple.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

VAUSE: For more than a week now, Democrats in the U.S. Congress have been on a slow and steady boil over a president who they say refuses to recognize any limits on his authority to order military action. Donald Trump did not consult congressional leaders before ordering a drone strike which killed Iran's Qassem Soleimani.

Earlier this week, two key Republican senators went on the record with their outrage over White House classified briefing which was meant to make the administration's case that Soleimani was an imminent threat. By many accounts, the briefing was less than convincing. And on Thursday, Donald Trump said if he had to do it all over again, he probably do it the same way.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: It would all depend on the circumstance. I don't have to and you should have to be able because you have to make split-second decisions sometimes. Sometimes you have to move very, very quickly, John. But in certain cases, I wouldn't even mind doing it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[01:20:11]

VAUSE: The resolve of Democrat outrage is the first serious attempt Congress has made in recent years to check the powers of the executive branch. The Democrat-controlled lower House passed a resolution which limits Trump's authority to use the military in this current conflict with Iran, and repeats what is already in the Constitution about presidents not declaring war, that being the sole responsibility of Congress.

For the most part, the resolution pass along party lines. Notably, three Republicans broke ranks and on the flip side, nine Democrats cross the floor to support President Trump. We head to the West Coast now in the United States, and Jessica Levinson a professor of law and governance at the Loyola Law School standing by in Los Angeles this hour. So Jessica, it's been a while but thanks for coming in.

JESSICA LEVINSON, PROFESSOR OF LAW, LOYOLA LAW SCHOOL: Great to be here. VAUSE: OK. This is a non-binding resolution. And while easily pass the House, a similar measure will not make it through the Mitch McConnell Republican-controlled Senate. You know, it seems like the Democrats are turning up to a knife fight with a covered dish here, right? You know, for the first time, you know, Republicans in the lower House broke with the president, which is a plus, but at the end of the day, what does this do?

LEVINSON: At the end of the day, what it does is largely symbolic. But symbols matter. And so since 1973, since the War Powers Act, Congress has essentially seated its authority in this very important area of saying it's our right to declare war. The President doesn't get to do that. That's constitutionally confirmed to us.

And so, Congress taking any action, taking this stand to say, you can't usurp our authority, you can't take away our control here is not totally insignificant. I mean, does it change the playing field? Does it change the atmosphere? No, not that much. The fact that a few Republicans broke ranks is noteworthy.

But think about how I think short side of this actually is because everybody who votes against this resolution, the next president who could be a Democrat, will now have this essentially unfettered authority to declare war to commit our military overseas.

VAUSE: But Congress has been implicit in this just as much as the -- as the executive. They've given up this authority, because they didn't like the political implications that come with making a tough choice whether to go to war or not. And so for years, they've doctored, especially during the George W. Bush years. But explain why the Founders of the country wanted this system so that the most consequential decisions this country would make would be left to the people.

LEVINSON: Yes, such a good question. So the Founders, if you read the Federalist Papers, spent a lot of time thinking about how strong should the chief executive be. And they essentially decided that the chief executive did need to be the commander in chief, that we wouldn't have time for instance, for kind of lower-level military action to go through a process of deliberation and consensus building.

But when it came to the most solemn thing, the most important the military can do, go to war, they said we need our representatives to weigh in, and we need a check on executive authority. As we talked about, it's been a pretty consistent March since at least 1973 of Congress for the reasons that you said seeding its authority, essentially not wanting to get his hands dirty, not wanting to get involved in these, you know, sometimes really complicated issues of public opinion and public policy. But that's why our Founders decided that there should be divided power in this area.

VAUSE: OK. So let's bring out some of this together. Because on Thursday, it became clear that the Ukrainian airline which crashed on take from Tehran was shut down by Iran surface to air missile. All this just hours after Iran launch what more than a dozen ballistic missiles targeting U.S. troops in Iraq. So, Democrats, some Democrats are putting this together because Trump

decided to trigger this confrontation with Iran over the killing of the general Soleimani. Then they saying the president -- the president is the one who has blood on his hands for the people who died in that airline crash. Listen to this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. JACKIE SPEIER (D-CA): If what is being projected is true, this is yet another example of collateral damage from the actions that have been taken in a provocative way by the president of the United States.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE: Is this a fair point? When you stop going back to try and find fault, because you also argue that, you know, if you want the authority and the power, you have to use it responsibly, right?

LEVINSON: Yes, absolutely. I mean, this is a hard one because, yes, I mean, in a very broad sense, is there indirect causation here, or maybe not that broad, but yes, I think there is. You would not have had that airliner shot down apparently without this set of events being set off by President Trump's actions.

But did he kind of directly lead to this outcome, particularly if it was a mistake? No. So I think the Democrats really do need to focus on I think the more specific issue, which is President Trump not just taking more authority in this important area when it comes to war powers, but that this being a very consistent effort, if you think about immigration policy, if you think about using national emergencies powers, if you think about any sort of executive power, President Trump has used what's a slow creep towards more executive authority and essentially set a bomb off trying create something much closer to a monarchy than anything that the American public is accustomed to.

[01:25:30]

VAUSE: And we'll finish up now with the impeachment of Donald Trump. Speaker Pelosi, she has this tactic that's still in place, delaying the Articles of Impeachment from heading to the Senate which effectively delays Donald Trump's trial, effectively delaying you know, his exoneration, if you like. Clearly, this is becoming a daily question for Pelosi in Washington. Here she is.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. NANCY PELOSI (D-CA): As I said right from the start, we need to see that the arena in which we are sending our managers. Is that too much to ask? At some point, we would hope that we would see from them, but the terms of engagement will be. I'll send them over when I'm ready, and that will probably be soon.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE: It calls a (INAUDIBLE). She's standing -- she had no leverage at the beginning of all of this, but now, at least she's trying to leverage you know what power she had. But what does he actually achieved apart from maybe infuriating Donald Trump?

LEVINSON: Well, that -- I mean, that in and of itself, maybe one of her goals. I think that she's also keeping the public attention on the fact that Mitch McConnell and the Senate Republicans have enormous discretion in terms of how they want to organize this trial. And I think she's really in kind of indirect way, educating the public on the fact that this isn't a real court of law. This isn't going to be a real trial, like we're accustomed to, that Mitch McConnell can set the ground rules in order to determine who's going to win, that he's working in lockstep with the White House.

And so by continuing to say, you're not even telling us what this trial is going to look like, she's really educating all of us to say, this is something where the Senate can set it up so that the outcome is predetermined. And she's also keeping this in the news essentially I think showing Senate Republicans is being somewhat recalcitrant. She's saying just tell me what it's going to look like. That sounds pretty reasonable to most people.

VAUSE: It does. We'll see what happens. Jessica, thank you. Good to see you.

LEVINSON: Good to see you.

VAUSE: Hundreds of thousands of people have just been told to clear out of their homes as weather conditions fan Australia's deadly bushfires. We are live at Sydney as protesters demand more action from the federal government.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[01:30:58]

JOHN VAUSE, CNN ANCHOR: Welcome Back. You're watching CNN NEWSROOM.

I'm John Vause with the headlines this hour.

New video appears to show a missile striking a Ukrainian airliner near Tehran. CNN cannot verify its authenticity but it was recorded in an area where the plane went down this week. Officials from the U.S. and other countries say the jet was most likely shot down by mistake. Iran has questioned the assessment and invited officials from the United States as well as the manufacturer of the plane, Boeing, to investigate.

The U.S. House of Representatives has passed a resolution to limit the President's war powers. It would require congressional approval for military action against Iran, unless the use of force is deemed necessary to prevent an imminent attack. The resolution now goes to the Senate.

Prince Harry and his wife Meghan Markle have left the U.K. and returned to Canada -- Meghan, that is -- where she and the Duke vacationed recently. That's according to the BBC. The move comes after this week's surprise announcement the couple

would step back from royal duties, and split their time between Britain and North America.

We asked on Thursday if climate change is a hoax, U.S. President Donald Trump said no. But activists are accusing him of making the problem a whole lot worse with a new policy.

Mr. Trump announced on Thursday his administration is rolling back decades old environmental regulations to speed up the approval for infrastructure projects. That will make it easier to build highways, open new mines and gas and pipelines.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: These endless delays waste money, keep projects from breaking ground and deny jobs to our nations incredible workers. From day one, my administration has made fixing this regulatory nightmare a top priority.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE: Rolling back the decades old regulations will most likely be contested in court. The director of the Sierra Club tweeted, "Today's action is nothing more than an attempt to write Donald Trump's climate denial into official government policy."

In Australia, they are set to protest the government's inaction on climate change as most of the continent deal with devastating bush fires. Authorities have told nearly a quarter of a million people in the state of Victoria to evacuate their homes.

More hot and dry winds are feeding the monstrous bush fires which have destroyed more than 2,000 homes and killed at least 27 people. The fires are nowhere near done. Australia is only halfway through its summer.

CNN's Will Ripley joins us now from Sydney as the crowds are gathered there.

So Will -- I guess, you know, for the Australians they now look at this problem, they have these horrendous bush fires which are burning and everyone says they are getting worse because -- or made worse because of climate change.

But they have a government which refuses to do anything about climate change and has done nothing about climate change for the past three years.

WILL RIPLEY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: And that is why you see the anger out here. People are angry at the Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison who they feel has really been in denial about climate change.

He famously got a lump of coal into, you know, in the parliament and talked about the fact that coal is so good for Australia's economy. But we have been talking with activists out here who say you can't have an economy with a dead planet. And they say that this current administration (INAUDIBLE).

And you see, all of the signs here. One says here, "Our planet is dying", "stop lying", "how dare you", "this is the last straw", "RIP for the koalas" -- one of the animals -- one of the millions of animals that have died here in Australia as a result of a really unprecedented bushfire season.

Bushfires, they continue to burn and these people here say their anger out here is burning as well -- John. There are rallies here in Sydney, also in Melbourne, in Canberra, in Perth. Across Australia they are expecting hundreds of thousands of people to turn out here to send a very strong message.

But what the government actually does, well that certainly is the open question. These people say what needs to happen is a transition from fossil fuels to fully renewable energy. And you have a lot of the stakeholders, the young people, who have their whole future ahead of them who are out here saying that their lives, their future, and their children's future is at stake.

VAUSE: Will -- yes, we appreciate the update. Check in with you throughout the day. Thank you.

Will Ripley, live for us there in Sydney.

[01:35:00]

VAUSE: Wildlife in Australia -- the unique wildlife in Australia has been devastated by the bush fires. Tens of millions of animals have been killed and the ones which have survived are in dire need of medical help.

And that is leaving vets with a grim choice of which ones to save and which ones have to be put down.

CNN's Anna Coren has details.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ANNA COREN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: A mob of eastern gray kangaroos on the golf course in Mallacoota, Victoria has always been part of the scenery.

But these animals aren't just here for a peek. Their habitat was completely obliterated during the bush fires. And the fairways provide the only grass remaining.

A young joey moves slowly. It's caught the attention of vets Chris Barton and Elaine Ong. This husband and wife team have flown from Melbourne to this coastal town surrounded by national park that remains cut off by the fires as volunteers that brought desperately- needed medical supplies and bags of pellets.

CHRIS BARTON, VETS FOR COMPASSION: This little one is not walking well or hopping well. We are going to dart him and assess what he is going to be like. COREN: They fire a tranquilizer dart and within minutes it takes

effect. Inspecting her paws and hind feet, their worst fears are realized.

BARTON: You see this.

ELAINE ONG, VETS FOR COMPASSION: Oh no. That feet -- terribly burnt. This is a third degree burn.

BARTON: And this is all cooked up in here.

COREN: The decision has been made to euthanize. There is no other alternative. She is among hundreds of kangaroos and more than a dozen koalas that had to be put out of their misery.

BARTON: I've been a vet for over 40 years and I still don't get used to it. It is heartfelt (INAUDIBLE). It's awful. It still brings tears to my eyes.

COREN: As you can see, so much pristine bushland here in Mallacoota has been wiped out by the bush fires. And the concern is for the wildlife that has survived and injured, the loss of habitat could mean starvation in the coming weeks.

ONG: In a way maybe, the ones that die quickly were lucky. The survivors may not be so lucky.

COREN: Due to the overwhelming number of injured animals that have been found and brought to the makeshift clinic in town, some have been transferred to Melbourne for treatment, while others are recovering in local shelters.

SUE JOHNS, ANIMAL SHELTER: And we have to change this every two days. But she is one of the lucky ones.

COREN: As is Wilbur, the koala.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The (INAUDIBLE) Sanctuary said he is good to go. This happy little fellow is safe.

COREN: He was rescued during the fires but now it was time to send him back to the bush.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Hey, mate -- time to go home. He's been in the cage for I think five days now. So we will let him have a little bit of a walk and find his legs before we send him up a tree.

COREN: Nearby a healthy mother and baby are spotted in a stringybark gum tree.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And a baby.

COREN: A hopeful sign some of Mallacoota's fauna was spared and can help rebuild this natural and incredibly fragile ecosystem.

Anna Coren, CNN-- Mallacoota, Victoria, Australia. (END VIDEOTAPE)

VAUSE: More storms in the House of Windsor. Prince Harry crosses the queen. His wife crosses an ocean. The latest on the royal rift next.

[01:38:19]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

VAUSE: These are dramatic and turbulent times in the House of Windsor. Prince Harry's wife Meghan Markle has reportedly bolted the U.K. for Canada. That is where the Duke and Duchess of Sussex and Baby Archie vacationed over Christmas. All this after the announcement by the royal couple that they plan to step back as senior royals.

Wednesday's stunning announcement sparked a seismic shift at Madame Tussauds, the wax museum in London. Figures of Prince Harry and Meghan have been moved from their regular place, usually next to the Queen, but no more.

CNN's Max Foster takes a look at what could happen next.

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MAX FOSTER, CNN ROYAL CORRESPONDENT: Theirs is a life governed by royal protocol, but with this week's bombshell announcement, Prince Harry and wife Meghan make it clear they want to set their own rules.

The couple defied the queen when they issued a statement on Wednesday saying they will pull back from their duties as senior royals. CNN understands she had asked him not to speak out.

The palace, at first blindsided, today swung into action. Officials acting for the Queen, the Prince of Wales and the Duke of Cambridge are holding crisis talks about what to do. A source telling CNN they wanted quote, "workable solutions" within days.

But the decision by Prince Harry and Meghan, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, raises more questions than answers. The couple make no mention of giving up their royal titles. They say they'll continue to do work for the monarchy, and support their patronages. But they want to become financially independent.

They say they will give up funding from the sovereign grant, money from the British government, and try to earn their own income as many minor members of the family do.

One potential and significant source of income -- the royal brand. They have applied for a trademark for the name "Sussex Royal", which if approved, they could stamp of scores of items and services from books and clothing to educational materials and social care.

But there is a risk of being accused of monetizing the very monarchy from which they are trying to distance themselves. And critics of the couple point out their security will still be funded by the taxpayers.

They also hope to keep their official residence, Frogmore Cottage, in Windsor.

VICTORIA MURPHY, ROYAL COMMENTATOR: Will people accept the premise that they are appearing on the world stage as HRH's working royals, and then also going off and acting autonomously, taking a private income with a private venture?

FOSTER: If the family can't agree on a new role for the couple going forward, the Sussexes may be forced to consider resigning their royal roles altogether.

Max Fosters, CNN -- Buckingham Palace, London.

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VAUSE: Thank you for watching CNN NEWSROOM.

I'm John Vause.

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