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Connect the World
World Health Organization: Southeast Asia & Western Pacific See Large Rise In New Cases; EMA: AstraZeneca Can Cause Blood Clots In Rare Study; Study: One Third of COVID-19 Patients Diagnosed With Psychological or Neurological Condition Within Six Months; Inside Iraq's Crystal Meth Crisis; Iraq's Crystal Meth Epidemic Worsens Amid COVID-19 Pandemic. Aired 10-10:25a ET
Aired April 07, 2021 - 10:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
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TEDROS ADHANOM, DIRECTOR-GENERAL, WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION: It is a travesty that in some countries health workers and those at risk groups
remain completely unvaccinated.
BECKY ANDERSON, CNN HOST, CONNECT THE WORLD: Well, global COVID cases skyrocket around the globe as we discover problems with vaccination
rollouts. Once again, connecting you to two of the hardest hit regions, then--
CNN takes you inside Iraq's crystal meth epidemic, how drug networks there are targeting women and children. Plus--
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's unique. It's new to the UAE and I wanted to be part of this new project.
ANDERSON: Combating the climate crisis with nuclear energy we take you inside the UAE's most unique power plant.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ANNOUNCER: Live from CNN Abu Dhabi. This is "Connect the World" with Becky Anderson.
ANDERSON: I am Becky Anderson in Abu Dhabi. Hello and welcome to "Connect the World". It is the eighth day of testimony in the trial of Derek Chauvin
for the death of George Floyd. We are awaiting that testimony to begin today. And we will take you to that trial just as soon as that happens.
First up, though, worrying news on the COVID-19 from the W.H.O. says more than 4 million new cases have been reported around the world over the past
week. Southeast Asia and in particular, India, as long as - as well as the Western Pacific had the largest increases Brazil, the U.S., Turkey and
France follow India in the highest number of new cases.
And critically, three of those countries had the most deaths. Globally over 71,000 people died from COVID-19 during the last week, up more than 10
percent from the week previously. Well, we are connecting you this hour to Europe and Latin America two regions behind that surge in global cases.
Melissa Bell is in Paris and Matt Rivers is in Mexico City. Well, let's zone in on Europe facing an increasing cases further restrictions and now a
missed vaccine target. Only five of the 27 EU nations have met a goal to vaccinate 80 percent of the elderly and frontline health care workers by
the end of March.
Also, happening this out the European drugs regulator holding a briefing on the Oxford AstraZeneca vaccine Melissa Bell following developments for us
from Paris. And Melissa ahead of that EMA press conference the regulator has released a statement. What does it say?
MELISSA BELL, CNN PARIS CORRESPONDENT: Since the announcing, what we were waiting for Becky that is the conclusion of its investigation into these
incidents of blood clots in some patients who've been inoculated with the AstraZeneca vaccine.
What the European Medicines Agency did is it looked into 86 cases of people who went on to develop blood clot conditions. 18 of those resulted in
fatalities. Its conclusion, Becky is that there is a possible link to the AstraZeneca vaccine.
It recommends in fact that these very rare events, these very rare conditions of unusual blood counts should be listed as a very rare side
effect of the vaccine but no specifying of what age groups that should be delivered to.
As you know, this has been a long and thorny saga in Europe, first of all, many European countries announcing that they were limiting the AstraZeneca
vaccine to younger people, then a number of them suspending it altogether and then changing the advice so that it should only be administered to
older people.
That's how chaotic it's been. Now European Health Ministers will meet up just after the European Medicines Agency meeting to discuss the vaccine
rollout and how it can be approved Becky?
ANDERSON: France one of the key countries behind what has been this rise in global case counts that we are reporting on this hour. What's the situation
there right now?
BELL: Well, here in Paris here in all of France Becky, we're entering the first full week of our third partial lockdown with people really encouraged
to stay at home. Many businesses shot most businesses shot and this for the next month as they wait to see whether they can bring those COVID-19
figures down.
To give you an idea of how bad they are though Becky, the number of COVID- 19 patients in ICU now add more than 5600. We hadn't seen that numbers since nearly a year ago. That's how bad this third wave has been and
particularly that fastest spreading variant which has really been a game changer here for the time being the ICU is continue to fill up.
The restrictions will take some time to slow down the number of new cases that continue to rise at warning levels Becky.
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ANDERSON: Melissa Bell is in Paris looking at the story in Europe. Well I want to zone in now, thank you, Melissa. On Chile, where the Brazilian
variant or the variant that was originally seen in Brazil is leading to new cases remember, Chile once jumped out ahead with immunizations, but now
it's been plunged back into a lockdown forcing the country to postpone elections.
Well, there really is no way in Latin America in worse shape than Brazil. Hospitals overwhelmed and the death toll for one day surpassed 4000 on
Tuesday, making it Brazil's deadliest day of the pandemic so far. A Brazilian doctor based in America, called situation in his homeland, a
biological Fukushima.
Well, CNN's Matt Rivers is in country and he has more. Matt a doctor in Brazil or certainly in the states calling this a biological Fukushima just
explains where things stand?
MATT RIVERS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I mean, they never been worse Becky. And we were talking to you from Brazil just a few weeks ago. And we kept saying,
then it's going to get worse, it's going to get worse, it's going to get worse and look at where we are right now.
Yesterday, there was the single highest - single day record for deaths since this pandemic began. But the scariest part, Becky, is that that
number is almost assuredly going to continue to rise. I've spoken to several epidemiologists recently who say that as soon as next week, they
think that Brazil could be recording more than 5000 deaths in a single day.
It could top the single day record globally that was set in the United States. That's the single day record. Also, multiple scientists are
predicting that Brazil's seven day moving average of deaths could beat the record that the United States set back in January during its worst days of
the pandemic.
And that is staggering when you consider the fact that Brazil only has about two thirds of the population that the United States has. We've seen
record numbers of cases. You mentioned the ICU hospital occupancy rates across the country in nearly every state at 80 percent or higher. That
means that more deaths are going to come unfortunately, it's a horrific situation there right now.
And yet what we're hearing from Jair Bolsonaro is - the president he's turning himself into the victim yesterday, he said "They called me
homophobic, racist fascist, a torture and now someone who kills a lot of people genocidal?"
Well, those critics that are calling Brazil's President genocidal, they're basically doing that because the Brazilian President continues to
prioritize, but not instituting lockdowns, not putting in any sort of federal pandemic response, coordinating the response state to state.
He's essentially left this response and trying to slow the spread of cases to each individual state, Becky, and so that's why his critics are saying,
well, you are genocidal because you're not doing anything in the wake of the worst days of this pandemic so far.
And one quick note, Becky, in terms of vaccinations being rolled out in Brazil, less than 3 percent of Brazil's population has been fully
vaccinated, that number is not going to rise, unfortunately, very quickly, anytime soon.
ANDERSON: Yes, that is absolutely shocking. Matt, thank you, Matt Rivers, who was very recently in Brazil, not the first time during this pandemic,
by any stretch of the imagination Matt's been traveling in and out and as he suggested, it was as bad as he has seen it on his last trip there.
Well, while we are very much still in the midst of fighting the virus itself, we are beginning to learn about its after effects. A new study
shows over a third of COVID-19 patients who have recovered, have been diagnosed with a neurological or psychological condition within six months
of infection.
Now, this is the largest study of its kind so far. Senior Medical Correspondent Elizabeth Cohen joining me now, with the details. I mean, the
study stating that the results indicate the brain diseases and psychiatric disorders are more common after COVID-19 than after flu or other
respiratory infections, just how significant and consequential is this?
ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN SENIOR MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: This is quite significant. Becky, there are two things that are at play here. One, there
seem to be these sort of lingering long haul effects of this virus, much more so than other viruses.
People who recover from the flu - seem to recover from the flu, they don't continue having horrible symptoms, you know, typically for months and
months and months, but that's what's happening to many people who had COVID, especially people who had severe COVID.
They're having physical effects. And they're also as we can see from this news today, having psychiatric effects. This study in "The Lancet" talks
for example, about mood disorders, talks about anxiety, and other psychiatric other neurological diagnoses that people are getting
afterwards.
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Now part of the issue here is that COVID-19 is known to be - it is said to be path - the path pathogenic neurologically that it seems to be having
this pathogenic effect on the brain. While people have COVID they can get encephalitis, they can get all sorts of problems with the brain. And that
seems to linger even after they've recovered from the acute infection.
ANDERSON: What are the other common COVID long haul symptoms as they are now known?
COHEN: So for example, muscle aches can be quite common and incredible fatigue. I mean, I've talked to folks with long haul COVID, and they are
just exhausted, they're able to do only a fraction of what they used to do. And also just brain fog.
People say that they can't think the way that they used to. They can't think as fast as they used to. So those are things that I know people who
haven't been able to go back to work months and months, even a year later, because of those issues.
Some people have gastrointestinal issues so in the same way that COVID-19 in the acute phase gave off all this sort of array of various symptoms.
It's the same - the same is true for long haul COVID.
ANDERSON: Yes, fascinating and worrying. And always a pleasure, Elizabeth, thank you. We're going to connect you now to a dramatic rescue operation in
the North Sea, the Dutch cargo ship, abandoned by its crew off Norway's Coast Monday night after it lost power during a strong storm.
Well, officials say all of the crew members were hoisted to safety by a helicopter. Rescue operators say their plan now is to tow the vessel to
safety but there is a concern that if it capsizes it could cause environmental damage. The rescuers want to move the ship to calmer waters
and anchor it there. The vessel has hundreds of tons of oil and diesel in its tanks.
Well, you're watching "Connect the World" with me Becky Anderson out of our Middle East Broadcasting Hub here in Abu Dhabi. Up next--
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UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The anti drug department prison in Baghdad's Western District is full. Each cell is meant to hold 30. But there are more than 50
men here dealers and addicts.
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ANDERSON: The illicit drug trade in Iraq thriving as more and more people succumbs to the deadly epidemic and COVID-19 has only made this crisis
worse. An exclusive report from Baghdad is up next.
And getting a head start on fighting climate crisis we'll show you how this country the UAE is breaking away from reliance on fossil fuels with this
cleaner nuclear facility.
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ANDERSON: Well, Iraq is being brought to its knees, some say, by two deadly epidemics with one crisis, only exacerbating the other. The first is COVID-
19. The country reported 7300 cases just on Tuesday. That's the highest number of daily infections since this pandemic began.
But the virus has pushed Iraq's crystal meth crisis into the forefront of things and the drug trade has only escalated. Authorities have been
battling the flow of drugs from neighboring countries and now dealers using women to entice the most vulnerable into addiction.
CNN's Arwa Damon interviewed Iraqis at the center of the drug crisis. CNN agreed to protect their identities given the stigma that remains. Have a
look at this.
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ARWA DAMON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice over): The tentacles of a different form of warfare are reaching into Iraqi society.
Far too many are susceptible when joy happiness a vision for the future is blurred away. Official say the drug networks here have grown more complex
over the last few years. And as of late, recruiting more women - her husband and a man she refers to as their friend smuggled, sold and used
crystal meth.
DAMON (on camera): The friend would get it from the Iranian border from the big dealers she says. They used her mostly to smuggle their drug stash
through checkpoints because she would just hide it underneath her clothes. And women here tend not to get searched well, but that's the way she would
have a shot.
DAMON (voice over): They were all captured in a house they were selling out of with around $18,000 worth of crystal meth. Iraq's anti drug unit which
official site is undermanned and underfunded has yet to make what they would consider a significant buzz. Their biggest seizures are in the
country's south close to the border with Iran, the main transit point for crystal meth.
The era of COVID-19 has resulted in a surge in demand - with the anti drug unit tells us. More unemployment, more frustrated youth idling in the
streets, more targets. The drug dealers will give someone a hit or two for free - explains. Once they're hooked, they often start to deal themselves
to finance their own addiction.
The unit has intelligence that dealers are active in this market. They have about five or six people. He chats with people, giving them the hotline
number for tips; they get hundreds a day and try to ease some of the distress that exists between the population and the security forces.
He compares the booming drug trade to another face of terrorism. The era of traditional warfare with two armies facing each other is over he says. The
enemies of Iraq are also using drugs to destroy the core of our society, our youth.
The anti drug department prison in Baghdad's Western District is full. Each cell is meant to hold 30 but there are more than 50 men here dealers and
addicts. I've been told 2016 - says he had steady work as a security contractor. Then it all fell apart. He lost his job spiraling into
depression.
Friends pushed him to try crystal meth. The love of his left him. Khlaid's (ph) cell mate Mahmoud (ph), who agreed to show his face on camera, says he
ended up stealing from his elderly mother to find his crystal meth habit.
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DAMON (voice over): Each appeal coming through on NASA's Facebook page is one more person she hopes she can help recover. One more drug addict she
can keep out of prison. This is a message from a teenager in Basra, he's writes that he's 15 years old that he wants treatment, that he wants to get
better but he doesn't know what to do.
Inas (ph) a middle school biology teacher who realized that some of our students we're using are trying to raise awareness about the options that
exist for addicts. Many users who want to recover are afraid the authorities will just detain them.
What most don't know is that if they willingly go to rehab, there are no legal repercussions under Iraqi law. The beds at this rehab center are
full. The doctors here tell us they have to cycle out patients faster than they would like to. This young man says he used to drive a truck, one of
his passengers offered him crystal meth and that was it. He was hooked.
His parents found him with a gun to his head because he was having hallucinations that people were coming at him and ordering him to kill
himself. Ahmed (ph) was discharged two days ago. But he says he still has cravings. His mother is too afraid to take him back home to Southern Iraq.
She's scared, scared who will use again when high Ahmed at times would beat her, set things on fire. Crystal meth he says made him feel powerful. Like
there was no limit to what he could achieve a tantalizing state of mind in a country that has repeatedly shackled its own youth. And now risk losing
more of it to addiction. Arwa Damon CNN, Baghdad.
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ANDERSON: Well, the eighth day of testimony is beginning in the trial of the former police officer accused of killing George Floyd in Minnesota. I
want to get you to the courtroom now live.
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