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Votes in Italy and Austria Crucial to Europe; Nine Die in California Warehouse Fire; Cuba Set to Inter Fidel Castro; Beijing Complains about Trump Call to Taiwan; U.S. Senators in Russia's Role in Election; Italy's Referendum Risky to Banks; Far Right Candidate Could Win Austria's Election; Civilians Caught in Aleppo Crossfire; Chapecoense Fans Honor Fallen Players; Japan Tests New Pizza Delivery System. Aired 5-6a ET

Aired December 04, 2016 - 05:00   ET

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

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NATALIE ALLEN, CNN ANCHOR (voice-over): Crucial elections are under way in Austria and Italy and many are wondering if they will push Europe farther to the right.

And in a couple of hours, Fidel Castro's ashes will be buried and what the former dictator's brother had to say in the memorial to the people.

Plus: survivors of a deadly warehouse fire in California talk about their narrow escape and of the friends who did not.

It's all here on CNN NEWSROOM. We're live in Atlanta and welcome to our viewers in the United States and around the world. I'm Natalie Allen.

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ALLEN: Two crucial votes going on right now could have major political and economic implications for Europe.

Austria could elect Norbert Hofer as president. He would be the first far right head of state in the European Union.

And in Italy, the future of Prime Minister Matteo Renzi now depends on a referendum. Both votes will test the rise of populism across Europe and could help candidates who are anti-immigration and skeptical of European integration.

CNN is covering the story from all angles. CNNMoney Europe editor Nina dos Santos joins us live from Milan, Italy, and senior international correspondent Atika Shubert joins us live from Vienna, Austria.

Thank you both for joining us on this critical weekend.

Let's start with you, Atika, there in Austria. This is a re-run of the election from May but it could have a different outcome.

What could Mr. Hofer bring to Austria?

ATIKA SHUBERT, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, it could have a different outcome. But we don't know yet. It's simply too close to call. Polls opened at 7:00 am, 6:00 am in some places, and we won't get any indication until 5:00 pm tonight. That's when the first exit polls will be coming out.

But they'll be very careful in the counting this time because, in the previous election, it was won by a very slim margin by Alexander Van der Bellen. He is the Left candidate. And he won by a margin of just 30,000 votes, which is why, when Hofer's party, the Freedom Party, FPO, demanded a recount of one actually district, they decided that they had to do it all over again because they were -- there -- the votes were mishandled.

So as a result, we're now at this point where we're doing another election; turnout so far is good. We're waiting for the candidates, Van der Bellen and Hofer, to vote.

But if Norbert Hofer wins, as you point out, he will be the first far right leader in Western Europe since World War II and what he's campaigned very strongly for is stopping immigration a lot and stopping what he describes as Islamization. He's very much against the migration of Muslim immigrants in particular to Austria.

And so there are a lot of fears that then this could see more of a far right nationalist agenda. But having said all that, the presidency is a very ceremonial role here in Austria. There isn't a lot of power to it. There is some power but mostly it would be a symbolic victory if he wins.

ALLEN: I see, but what about the fact that their neighbor, Germany, has a very different stance on migration and refugees?

SHUBERT: No, absolutely. In fact, Germany and Austria found themselves on opposing ends on this. Austria has actually put a cap on the number of refugees coming in and the number of asylum applications that they'll process every day. They say they'll only take 37,000 refugees here every year.

Meanwhile, Germany's chancellor, Angela Merkel, has refused to put a cap on it, saying, in principle, the country must be willing to accept refugees when they are in need. So, yes, we do see a division there and, remember, Germany has elections later next year as well. So they'll be watching the results here very closely.

ALLEN: Yes and, as you say, six more hours of voting. All right, we'll talk to you in a moment, Atika.

Let's go to Nina dos Santos there in Milan, Italy.

A referendum is what people will be voting there and it could very much determine the future of Matteo Renzi. NINA DOS SANTOS, CNNMONEY EUROPE EDITOR: Yes, if you take a look at

what happened in summer with the Brexit vote, Natalie, we all know that referenda can certainly throw up some big surprise decisions. And this is one of the big concerns here about what's happening in Italy.

You can see behind me the spires of the Milan's mighty Duomo church. And for the people who are voting here, the polls have been open since 7:00 am. Many of them having to make time between going to church and of course their favorite football match, AC Milan, this afternoon, to go to the polls. Some 51 million Italians are eligible to vote in this referendum. Turnout will be crucial here --

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DOS SANTOS: -- and a lot of people saying that this is not just about the central question here. Matteo Renzi, the prime minister, has asked them whether they will support, to vote yes, or not support, vote no, to planned constitutional changes but he needs those structural changes.

The economy has been in status in the last two decades. What he wants to do is cut the power of the senate, give bonus seats to any party that manages to get more votes in the parliament so that it has a majority and it isn't prone to the weak coalition government cycle claim, 65 governments across this country since the end of World War II.

But there's a lot more that people are putting inside this vote. I've been speaking to people over the last few days here in Milan, who've been -- and, of course, the rest across the rest of Italy who've been saying I'm going to vote yes or no based on a whole myriad of other factors.

That's the real concern here, that this could be used as a populist message, as a populist voice and it's not just about the central question.

That brings me to the future of Matteo Renzi's career. This is where it's so important for the economic financial heart of Italy. Matteo Renzi has staked his entire political career on managing to get people to vote yes in this referendum, to get these new measures that he needs to empower his party past parliament.

He said that if people do vote no and that triumphs, he may well have to step down. Even if he doesn't, the fear here across cities like this and the rest of Italy is that he could see his power base eroded by populist movements like the Five Star Movement and it will just throw Italy back into another state of turmoil that it's so used to.

ALLEN: And as you talk, Nina, we are seeing a live video of Mr. Renzi right here, looking to be at a polling place in Florence, Italy. So we're watching that as we speak with you.

And, Nina, you're our financial expert, so what could a no vote mean to the economy there? Italy has not been able to get it going and the banks are very much in jeopardy, one in particular.

DOS SANTOS: Yes, and I'm glad you mentioned the banks, Natalie, because, on the face of things, what Matteo Renzi's put on the table here in terms of the actual central questions that the Italians are going to be voting on in this referendum, the base of things has nothing to do with the banks.

But the real fear here is that this is a nation that has 137 percent debt-to-GDP. So the second highest debt load in the Eurozone after Greece.

And the problem is that if its debt becomes more risky, because yet again it's thrown into this cycle of weak government and lack of reform, that will make it harder for its already struggling banking system to continue to finance itself.

Up and down across this country from the north to the south, we've heard a number of local banks -- remember it's got a very fragmented banking system, where many local entrepreneurs are already invested and doubly exposed inside those banks with loans and also big share holdings. Those banks have been coming under huge financial pressure.

Some of them have failed and the government's had to backstop them. The real fear this weekend is that one of the biggest -- and, by the way, the oldest in the world -- Monte dei Paschi, could face a bailout if the vote goes towards the no and Italy's risk profile spirals out of control.

ALLEN: Well, his family right now is making their vote for the referendum as we speak, live in Florence, Italy. And we certainly know how they are voting.

Yes, you mentioned that bank, it was founded in 1472. And, as you can see, he is voting right at this moment. So we're going to leave it there with Nina dos Santos and Atika Shubert. Thank you both, we'll be speaking with you again and it's nice to be able to see Mr. Renzi making his vote for his plans for sure.

Thank you both. We'll speak with you again as this day pushes on. Thanks.

Let's take a look at how populist parties across Europe fared in recent elections. The U.K. Independence Party won more than 12 percent of the popular vote in 2015.

In the Netherlands, the Party for Freedom or PVV won more than 10 percent of the vote in 2012. Italy's Five Star Movement, which Nina mentioned, took 17 percent of the vote in 2013.

Germany's right-wing AFD party won less than 5 percent that same year and in France, the National Front won 15 percent of votes in regional elections last year. We'll continue to follow the developments in both Italy and Austria on this day. We want to turn to a tragedy now in Oakland, California. At least

nine people are dead after a horrific warehouse fire in Oakland. It happened as dozens of people were arriving for a music event. And --

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ALLEN: -- authorities warn the death toll could rise.

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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We have recovered nine victims at this point. Those victims have been transported from the scene to our coroner's bureau. The identification process has begun with those victims. We are rushing their fingerprints to identify them and then notify family members as we get those identifications.

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ALLEN: The warehouse contained artists' studios but officials say it did not have permits for people to live there. Here's how one survivor described how he lost a friend.

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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I just ran outside and I just watched this warehouse burn.

ALLEN (voice-over): Officials say the building's owners were notified last month of violations for hazardous trash and debris. Oakland's mayor called the fire an immense tragedy and pledged to get a full accounting of what happened as soon as possible.

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ALLEN: Cuban icon Fidel Castro will be buried in about two hours. Hundreds of thousands of people said their goodbyes Saturday night in Santiago, Cuba, where Castro's revolution began. President Raul Castro thanked them for being there.

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RAUL CASTRO, PRESIDENT OF CUBA (through translator): Once again, through the impressive action of the Cuban people and young people, who affirm their willingness to be faithful successors of the ideals of the revolution's leader, in the name of our people, of the party, the state, the government and the families, I reiterate my deepest appreciation for the innumerable displays of affection and respect to Fidel, his ideas and his work.

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ALLEN: CNN's Patrick Oppmann has been following these developments, these tributes all week. He joins us now from Santiago, Cuba.

And this, of course, Patrick, the culmination of a very emotional week for so many Cubans. PATRICK OPPMANN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: And a combination really of the

era of Fidel Castro, (INAUDIBLE) Natalie, that for most people on this island, the majority of the island was born after the Cuban revolution, this is the leader they've known for most of their lives.

He has always been on the radio, TV and the newspaper. So for his supporters -- and there are still many of them -- that has been perhaps the greatest surprise this week that after years of seeming that the revolution, there was not as much enthusiasm for the revolution in the Cuba, the (INAUDIBLE) Cuba with the economic problems they face, with the exodus of people leaving.

But we've seen this outpouring which is a throwback of the 1960s, when Fidel Castro took power, this outpouring of hope and faith in the revolution and people swearing allegiance to Fidel Castro.

He really did receive a sendoff I think few would have expected, as hundreds of thousands packed the roads and plazas like the one here behind me to say goodbye to somebody who, for so many decades, had a central role in Cubans' lives. But, of course, after he's buried today, Cubans will be looking to an uncertain future -- Natalie.

ALLEN: Yes, they will be and wondering what that future will be. There are a lot of Castro members of that family who could have sway. But let's talk about the service. It's not open to the public.

Who's invited and how much was Fidel Castro involved in how the country would recognize him after his death?

OPPMANN: Very much so, apparently, Raul Castro said last night that in Fidel Castro's final moments, as always, he was directing how he would be remembered. And one of those, one of those elements of how he would be remembered is that he has mandated that there be no parks or monuments or streets named after him, of course, very different from how other strong men in the region and around the world have wanted to be remembered, with massive memorials in their honor.

And Fidel Castro has always cultivated a slightly different personality, Natalie. He wanted people to know his speeches, his school of thought, to know details about his life; even though he was the central figure here, you do not see statues in his honor, you do not see posters or billboards with his face on it, at least not very many of them.

So apparently even in death, that is how he wants to be remembered. And this morning we will see or not see a very private service that we expect will only be attended by family and close friends -- Natalie.

ALLEN: All right, Patrick Oppmann for us there in Cuba, thank you, Patrick.

Still ahead, new details about coming out about the controversial phone call between the U.S. president-elect Donald Trump and the leader of Taiwan.

Plus: Donald Trump goes to a villains and heroes costume party dressed as himself.

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ALLEN: Welcome back. We are learning more now about the bizarre break of diplomatic protocol when U.S. president-elect Donald Trump spoke directly with the leader of Taiwan. Friday's phone call was the first one-on-one contact since 1979 between the leaders of these Taiwan and United States.

Trump says Taiwan's president called him. Taiwan says that both sides had already agreed to the call beforehand. In any case, Beijing was not amused.

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UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): It was a shenanigan by the Taiwan side. It won't at all change the One China structure that the international community has agreed upon. I don't think it will change the One China policy that U.S. administrations have adhered to over the years.

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ALLEN: CNN's Alexandra Field joins us now from Beijing. She's been following developments there.

And what more do we know, Alexandra, about the circumstances with this phone call?

ALEXANDRA FIELD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Natalie, we still really don't know what precipitated the phone call but we are hearing from a spokesperson for Taiwan's president that it was a prearranged call and that would indicate that the Trump transition team and President-Elect Donald Trump were not taken by surprise by the phone call, even if the rest of the world seemingly was.

You know, Mr. Trump was quick to get on Twitter and come to his own defense, saying that Taiwan's president had called him and offered congratulations, similar to the tone of other conversations that he has had with other world leaders.

Of course, this was a phone call that is unlike the conversations he's had with other world leaders, because it flies in the face of so many decades of tradition in upholding the protocol between the U.S. and China by which we have this One China policy, Washington, D.C., has an official diplomatic relationship with Beijing.

Beijing considers Taiwan to be a renegade province. The U.S. acknowledges China's stance and, therefore, maintains only an unofficial relationship with Taiwan. So the fact that Trump would take this call from Taiwan's president certainly shocked a lot of people.

The only thing, perhaps, that has not been surprising about all this has been the reaction from Beijing, which was, in fact, swift. You point out that officials here call these "shenanigans," quote-unquote on the part of Taiwan. There is also a state-run news agency that called this a petty gesture on the part of Taiwan, to which they say Trump responded. And it has certainly raised concern. You have Xinhua --

[05:20:00]

FIELD: -- which is one of the state-run news agencies. And they point out that Trump's rhetoric on the campaign trail had caused worries about the future of China-U.S. relations. Those worries were perhaps somewhat allayed in a phone call after the election last month when President-Elect Trump assured the Chinese leader, Xi Jinping, that the U.S.-China relationship would carry forward.

But this phone call has created a great deal of uncertainty because of the breach in protocol. And it has led to some frankly pretty scathing words in an editorial that was also run by state news in the "Global Times."

You had an op-ed that says that the -- that there's a need to really uphold this One China policy and that a failure to do that could overturn the international order, something that the "Global Times" surmises Mr. Trump does not want.

Natalie, right now it is just a phone call but the question on everyone's mind continues to be, what happens next?

ALLEN: Right, what could one phone call do to this very intriguing and integral and involved relationship between the United States and China?

That could be the question.

Is there any kind of dialogue in the region about that from any other countries?

FIELD: Look, the focus right now has really been on China's reaction. Certainly, there is an effort to understand Taiwan's inclination to make this call.

Taiwan's president did do a quick readout, described this as a 10- minute call during which policy was discussed. The only other details we know about the call itself came from Trump again on Twitter.

And he pointed out, he said it was interesting that people would suggest that he shouldn't take a call from Taiwan's president when the U.S. sells billions of dollars of defense equipment to Taiwan.

So while the U.S. and Taiwan don't have an official diplomatic relationship, President-Elect Trump clearly underscoring the fact that there are preexisting close ties between the U.S. and Taiwan, both when it comes to defense and economic relationships there -- Natalie. ALLEN: All right, Alexandra Field for us, we'll continue to see how

this plays out, thank you.

The Green Party has halted an effort to get a state-wide vote recount in Pennsylvania because of the high cost. Green Party presidential candidate Jill Stein says a state requirement to put up a $1 million bond was too costly for voters to pursue.

Instead, Stein says she'll go now to federal court on Monday to try to force a state recount on constitutional grounds.

James Mattis, Donald Trump's pick to lead the U.S. Defense Department, is not keen on the Kremlin. If confirmed, he's likely to steer the Trump administration away from talks with Russian president Vladimir Putin.

And Russia is fueling home-grown pressure on the current administration. Jim Sciutto has more now from Washington.

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JIM SCIUTTO, CNN CHIEF U.S. SECURITY CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Democratic senators are pressing the Obama administration to more forthrightly state based in part on new intelligence that Russia's meddling in the U.S. election was intended to help Donald Trump, multiple sources tell CNN.

The Democratic pressure comes as multiple sources with knowledge of the investigation tell CNN that the U.S. intelligence community is increasingly confident that Russian hacking was intended to steer the election toward Trump, rather than simply to undermine the political process.

The sources, however, do not see the new information as significantly changing the intelligence agency's understanding of Russian motives, since the Democratic Party was the principal target of the hacks.

Seven Democrats on the Senate's Intelligence Committee wrote President Obama yesterday, insisting such intelligence should be -- quote -- "declassified and released." The letter did not specify what the new information was. Senator Angus King signed the letter.

SEN. ANGUS KING (I), MAINE: I think the story of Russia's involvement in this election is the biggest story of the decade, frankly. And I think it's going to only grow.

SCIUTTO: Congressman Adam Schiff, who serves on the House Intelligence Committee, also wants to see more information public, specific to Russia's involvement.

REP. ADAM SCHIFF (D), CALIFORNIA: They largely accomplished their mission of sowing discord in the United States and maybe even tipping the balance in part of favor of Mr. Trump and against Secretary Clinton.

SCIUTTO: But Republican lawmakers downplayed the letter, telling CNN, there was no new information to suggest the intelligence community has changed its overall assessment in any way.

One month before the election, the intelligence community publicly declared they were, quote, "confident the Russian government directed compromises of e-mails from U.S. persons and institutions, including from U.S. political organizations," noting document dumps from the Web sites dcleaks.com and WikiLeaks, which targeted the Democratic Party.

However, the intelligence community has not previously publicly indicated that Russia's intention was to help Donald Trump over his Democratic opponent, Hillary Clinton. Just after the election, Director of National Intelligence James --

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SCIUTTO (voice-over): -- Clapper told Congress he expects Russian hacking to continue.

JAMES CLAPPER, NATIONAL INTELLIGENCE DIRECTOR: I don't anticipate a significant change in Russian behavior. The Russians have a very active and aggressive capability to conduct information operations, so-called hybrid warfare.

SCIUTTO (voice-over): In his annual address to parliament, Russian president Vladimir Putin dismissed the claims as myths.

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ALLEN: Jim Sciutto reporting there.

"Saturday Night Live's" ongoing parody of Donald Trump is not sitting well with the U.S. president-elect. In a skit on the television comedy show, actor Alec Baldwin as Trump poked fun at the president- elect's fondness for Twitter.

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ALEC BALDWIN, ACTOR, "DONALD TRUMP": Kellyanne, I just retweeted the best tweet, I mean, wow, what a great, smart tweet.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Mr. Trump, we're in a security briefing.

"TRUMP": I know but this could not wait, it was from a young man named Seth. He's 16. He's in high school. And I really did retweet him, seriously, this is real.

KATE MCKINNON, COMEDIAN, "KELLYANNE CONWAY": He really did do this.

(LAUGHTER)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Well, sir, you're the president-elect so I guess you can do whatever you want. But we'd really like to fill you in on Syria.

"TRUMP": God, Seth seems so cool.

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ALLEN: Trump must have been watching. He usually does because he responded immediately on Twitter, "Just tried watching 'Saturday Night Live,' unwatchable, totally biased, not funny. And the Baldwin impersonation just can't get any worse. Sad."

Mr. Trump has shown that he is not fond of being parodied.

Baldwin, though, fired back, tongue in cheek, that he'd stop impersonating Trump if Trump released his tax returns.

Well, that wasn't all Trump was doing Saturday night. He went dressed as himself to a costume party at the home of one of his wealthiest donors. Trump's senior adviser, Kellyanne Conway, seen in that skit just there, dressed as Supergirl and tweeted this picture from the event, the annual Christmas party was themed villains and heroes.

Italy is voting in a constitutional referendum. And there are fears the results plus the country's banks could trigger an economic crisis for that country. More about it here as we continue with CNN NEWSROOM, seen here in the U.S. and around the world.

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ALLEN (voice-over): Welcome back to our viewers here in the U.S. and around the world. You're watching CNN NEWSROOM, live from Atlanta. I'm Natalie Allen. The headlines this hour.

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ALLEN: Two crucial votes in Italy and Austria could have major political and economic implications for Europe. The Italian prime minister is hoping voters approved his constitutional reforms in a referendum. Matteo Renzi says making the senate smaller would improve legislative efficiency.

That's him voting just about 30 minutes ago. And Austria could far right candidate Norbert Hofer could elect him as their next president. He's running against Alexander Van der Bellen, a left-of-center candidate.

And now to the other crucial vote going on right now. Financial markets are afraid economic trouble could follow if voters in Italy don't approve constitutional reforms. The Italian economy has been limping along for some time. And the banking system is struggling. Our Nina dos Santos has more from Italy's Prosecco region.

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NINA DOS SANTOS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): This is Santo Stefano. They make Prosecco here. But these days there's little cause of celebration. The reason, a banking crisis that's left the town swimming in debt and wiped out its people's savings.

Paolo de Bortoli's grandfather was among the first shareholders of Veneto Banca, a memory that is now bittersweet.

PAOLO DE BORTOLI, CO-OWNER, COL VETORAZ (through translator): It was a source of prestige to own shares. Just as in this region we have faith in God, we have faith in our bank.

DOS SANTOS: Over the years he and others poured all they had into the company's stock. And they were given credit, lots of it. In 2014, Veneto Banca got into trouble. Paolo's shares were frozen and he lost everything.

DE BORTOLI (through translator): I lost 1.308 million euros.

DOS SANTOS: To prevent the crisis from spreading, the government bought Veneto Banca and another lender nearby through a special fund, bringing in new management, but little hope of recovering lost investments.

Among those out of pocket, the mayor of nearby town Pidiroba (ph), who says that he was prevented from selling his $50,000 of stock and instead talked into borrowing more cash.

When I asked how many of his people have been affected, he says many, too many to count. They've lost more than 72 million euros or $76 million.

Fabio, a lawyer, says that he had to buy shares in the bank --

[05:35:00]

DOS SANTOS (voice-over): -- just to open a current account. He never received the dividends promised and lost more than $4,000.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): To not be a shareholder or an account holder in the bank, if you are a professional around here was to be missing something. They told me the shares were like cash.

DOS SANTOS: Veneto Banca declined to comment when contacted by CNN.

Things may appear calm and tranquil across this valley, but don't be fooled. The economic scars left on this landscape run deep. The failure of the two largest local mutual banks across this part of northeastern Italy has cost 100,000 retail investors more than $5 billion, losses that serve as a cautionary tale to other parts of Europe's most fragile financial systems -- Nina dos Santos, CNN, Santo Stefano, Italy.

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ALLEN: Now to Austria. Norbert Hofer heads Austria's nationalist freedom party. Supporters say he'll put ordinary people first. Critics charge that he sells pro-gun and anti-immigrant policies with a smile. Hannah Vaughan Jones goes in search of the man behind the politician. (BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

HANNAH VAUGHAN JONES, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A soft-spoken aeronautical engineer turned politician who carries a Glock, Norbert Hofer hopes to become the EU's first far right head of state. Riding the tide of a populist tsunami that could transform Europe's political landscape.

Forty-five-year-old Hofer walks with a cane, the result of a serious hand gliding accident and he carries a .9 millimeter Glock pistol on the campaign trail, signaling his strong advocacy for gun rights.

Hofer's foray into politics began when he joined the Freedom Party of Austria. It's a party with a checkered past. Tracing its roots to just after World War II, it was first led by a Nazi officer.

Ten years ago the party was battling for even 6 percent of the vote. But the last decade has seen a political shift in Austria and Europe, partly fueled by one growing concern.

DIMITRIS AVRAMOPOULOS, COMMISSIONER, MIGRATION AND HUMAN AFFAIRS: The world finds itself facing the worst refugee crisis since the Second World War.

JONES: Amid growing unemployment, staunchly nationalist anti- immigrant campaigns like Hofer's have increasingly won the applause. Hofer promises Austria first, a slogan that sounds similar to one heard recently overseas.

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT-ELECT: America first, remember that. America first.

JONES: Donald Trump's victory in the U.S. seems to be signaling right-wing candidates like Hofer that they're on the right track.

NORBERT HOFER, FREEDOM PARTY OF AUSTRIA (through translator): Whenever the elites distance themselves from voters, those elites will be voted out of office. It is not even a question of political right or left but rather how close the contact is and whether one is ready to implement things to actually alleviate existing concerns.

JONES: Norbert Hofer's harshest critics accuse him of promoting fascism and his opponent is pushing that image.

The Green Party's Alexander Van der Bellen recently posted this video, which has viewed online millions of times. An 89-year-old Holocaust survivor begging Austrians not to elect the far right candidate. But Hofer says there's nothing to fear.

HOFER: You will see, you have to take a look at me when I'm -- in one or two years. I have to work. And then everybody will see that I'm really OK. I'm not a dangerous person.

JONES: The question is whether Hofer's populist momentum will carry him to victory. And that what would mean for nationalist parties across the continent hoping they, too, can emerge from the fringes -- Hannah Vaughn Jones, CNN.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ALLEN: Derek Van Dam is here with me now to talk about the snow in.

DEREK VAN DAM, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Hawaii. You don't normally talk about that. You think pineapples, you think sunsets, you think I'm going to catch some surf and the water. They do a different hang 10. They hang on pineapple powder. That's their equivalent of riding a big wave on the mountains.

You can see that they have had some fresh snow.

ALLEN: That's Hawaii.

VAN DAM: It's amazing. That's coming from the big island. You're looking at Motakiya (ph), it's the northeast facing slope and it received a few inches of snow with more snow on the way for that region.

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[05:40:00]

ALLEN: Coming up here, CNN's Fred Pleitgen goes to government-held territory in Syria to hear from the people caught in the crossfire of Aleppo.

Also, Brazil gives an emotional farewell to footballers killed in a plane crash.

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[05:45:00]

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ALLEN: Syria's government is asking civilians who fled their homes in Northeastern Aleppo to return home. State media says that hundreds of families have already done that, despite reports that regime forces continue to clash with rebels in the area.

CNN's Fred Pleitgen spoke with civilians fleeing the city and has this report from a government-controlled village south of the city.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: As the Syrian government continues to push its offensive in and around the Aleppo area, we've been hearing about the tens of thousands of people who have already been displaced.

And many people wonder, where are these people going? Well, some of them are going right here.

We're inside a former cotton factory that's disused and is now being used as a place for many of these displaced people to go.

Now a lot of these folks here describe harrowing experiences over the past couple of days as they were trapped inside the eastern districts of Aleppo that of course are under siege by the Syrian military and many of them say that in the past couple of days they haven't had very much in the way of food, of water, of course many of them very traumatized and very weak as well.

UNIDENTIFIED CHILD (through translator): We were afraid that we would starve to death. We were also scared because heavy bombs were falling.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): I wanted to leave with my kids 15 days ago, but the rebels shot at me and said, hey, you bastard, do you want to join the regime?

PLEITGEN: Now if you look here you can see how some of these people have been living since they were able to get out of the eastern districts of Aleppo. You can see some of the mattresses there.

We always have to stress that over the past couple of days, of course it's December right now, the weather here has been very, very bad. And so that's something of course that has additionally made life very difficult for some of the folks here.

And if we look around, we can see just how many children are among those who also have been brought here to this shelter for displaced people. Again, many of them in very bad condition. Many of them, of course, very traumatized. And many of them also weak.

One of the things that they are getting here is a warm meal for the very first time in a long time. You can see here some of the groups here are trying to hand out some bread, also some salad as well, just to make sure that these people are able to subsist over the next couple of days as of course they wait and they hope that maybe they'll be able to return back to their houses as a force.

At this point in time, that government offensive is still very much going on. We have also been hearing a lot of fighting in and around the Aleppo area -- Fred Pleitgen, CNN, Jibrin (ph), Syria.

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ALLEN: Fans of Brazil's Chapecoense football club continue to mourn after 38 team players and staff were killed last Monday in a plane crash in Colombia. "WORLD SPORT's" Don Riddell is in Brazil.

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DON RIDDELL, CNN SPORTS CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): They left as heroes, they returned in coffins. The guard of honor for the Chapecoense football players but the last few yards were the hardest. Reflecting the emotion of the day, dozens and dozens of caskets returned in a torrential downpour, as the visceral sight of so many bodies finally made the nightmare real.

This is a small-town club which had punched well above its weight, capturing the hearts of a nation. The supporters had an intimate relationship with the team, sticking by them through the good times and the bad, but nobody could have ever imagined it would end like this.

There isn't anybody in Chapeco who hasn't been touched by the tragedy, but it's been hardest for the families. Their grief was uncontrollable. But many found solace with the supporters, connecting with them possibly for the last time at this stadium.

For Osmar Machado, the grief is crippling. He's told us that he wanted to commit suicide after learning of his son's death. Defender Filipe died on his father's birthday.

The widow of the beloved goalkeeper, Danilo, emotionally took his picture and placed it in the goalmouth, where he stood for every game.

The club must now draw on the strength of its supporters to rebuild the team. And their rich history will no doubt live on in the future.

[05:50:00]

RIDDELL: Part of that tradition was evident today. The awful weather conditions couldn't have been more appropriate. Everyone knows that Chapecoense played their best football in the rain -- Don Riddell, CNN, Chapeco, Brazil.

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ALLEN: And we'll be right back.

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ALLEN: Well, they're figuring out all kinds of ways to deliver pizza and Domino's in Japan is testing, well, delivery that involves antlers. Here's CNN's Jeanne Moos.

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JEANNE MOOS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Who needs reindeer to deliver presents when they can deliver pizza?

Domino's in Japan says it's training reindeer at a driving school to deliver pizza in one of Japan's coldest, snowiest regions. UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): If a reindeer runs properly it can go as fast as 80 kilometers per hour. It's especially fast on snow. It's always equipped with snow shoes.

MOOS: Yes, well, if reindeer ever delivered pizza at 50 miles an hour, Domino's should expect lawsuits.

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MOOS (voice-over): The trainers seem to be having trouble reining in their pizza delivery reindeer. Would be equipped with GPS devices so customers can check on their progress.

So how do you say publicity stunt in Japanese?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Publicity stunt.

MOOS (voice-over): Domino's no stranger to marketing ploys. Take the edible box Domino's U.K. dreamed up for April Fool's. Just last month, Domino's in New Zealand demonstrated the pizza delivery drone.

It flew to the appointed address and lowered a pizza. Company officials in New Zealand say that in the next couple of years drones could make up 25 percent of deliveries and before the drone,

Domino's in Australia presented the pizza delivery robot with a top speed of about 12 miles per hour. It can't take to the highway, but it can chat with customers and dodge obstacles, from high tech to low tech.

Is that tomato sauce making Rudolph's nose red?

Jeanne Moos, CNN, New York.

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ALLEN: Anything for our pizza.

Thanks for watching. I'm Natalie Allen. For viewers in the U.S., "NEW DAY" is just ahead. For everyone else, "THIS IS LIFE" with Lisa Ling starts in just a moment. You're watching CNN.

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