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CNN International: Israel: 600+ Arrested, 140 Killed In Al- Shifa Operation; Thousands Flee Israeli Operations Around Al-Shifa Hospital; Massive Russian Attack Targets Ukraine's Energy System. Aired 8-9a ET
Aired March 22, 2024 - 08:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
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JOHN BERMAN, HOST, "CNN NEWS CENTRAL": Great to see both of you this morning. Thank you very, very much. A new house of "CNN News Central" starts right now.
KATE BOLDUAN, HOST, "CNN NEWS CENTRAL": Donald Trump has just three days to find nearly half a billion dollars. He is raising about it on social media while you were sleeping. And could that social media platform now become his last-minute Hail Mary?
FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, HOST, "CNN NEWSROOM": Hello, and welcome to our viewers all around the world. I'm Fredricka Whitfield, and this is CNN Newsroom.
Straight ahead, the top U.S. diplomat has returned to Israel hoping to blaze a trail towards a ceasefire while negotiations resume in Qatar. We'll give you a live update. All right. Then, Russian missile strikes damaged energy facilities across Ukraine, leaving several regions in the dark. Plus, chaotic scenes at the U.S.-Mexico border, as hundreds of migrants come to America by force. We'll take you there.
America's top diplomat is in Tel Aviv at this hour, where he is making an intense diplomatic push for a ceasefire in Gaza and trying to deter an Israeli offensive into Rafah. Earlier, Antony Blinken met with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, and afterwards with the country's war cabinet. CIA Director Bill Burns, meanwhile, is in Doha, where he is expected to join hostage talks and meet with his regional counterparts. It all comes ahead of a scheduled vote at the UN Security Council next hour on a U.S.-sponsored resolution calling for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza.
CNN's Paula Hancocks is live for us in Doha. But first, let's start with Jennifer Hansler, who joins me now from the U.S. State Department. Jennifer, you first. I mean, this is Blinken's sixth round of shuttle diplomacy to the Middle East since the October 7 Hamas attacks, and during that time, relations between the Biden administration and the Israeli government have become increasingly strained. So, what does Blinken realistically hope to accomplish now that he hasn't been able to do up until now?
JENNIFER HANSLER, CNN STATE DEPARTMENT REPORTER: Well, Fredricka, one thing we've heard throughout the course of this conflict from U.S. officials is that it really takes this in-person face-to-face diplomacy to get the Israeli government to move on any of these U.S. requests or demands. So, today, for example, we expect Blinken to really push the Israeli government on the need to open up more access points for humanitarian assistance into Gaza. This is something that has been a perennial ask in almost all of his meetings throughout the five and a half months that this conflict has been going on. Yesterday, Blinken said that Israel needs to do more, that it is not enough to have only this handful of access points getting to the people in need in Gaza.
Another thing we expect him to raise is this deterrence of an invasion into Rafah. This is something that the U.S. has said it would not support. Blinken said yesterday it would be a humanitarian disaster. So, he is expected to start these conversations that we expect to continue next week in Washington between Israeli and U.S. officials. At the same time, it's important to note that Blinken's trip is not just to Israel. He was also in Saudi Arabia two days ago. He was in Cairo yesterday, meeting with both bilateral leaders and this sort of Arab Contact Group to discuss what can happen next.
So, a lot of this is laying the diplomatic groundwork for when the conflict ends, who will be in control of Gaza, what governance looks like there, what security looks like there, and also pushing for the Saudi-Israel normalization that had been in the works for a while even before October 7, and Blinken said that there is progress there. So, we're not necessarily expecting a lot of concrete results out of his trip. But, it's a lot of laying this groundwork for what comes next, Fred.
WHITFIELD: OK. And Paula, Netanyahu has made it perfectly clear that he intends to go into Rafah. Why does Blinken feel that there is an opening for ceasefire talks?
PAULA HANCOCKS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Fred, he has been very clear in the fact that the Biden administration does not support this offensive. He said it would be a mistake. And I think the fact that after that phone call between the U.S. President Joe Biden and Benjamin Netanyahu a few days ago, where the Israeli Prime Minister agreed to send a military delegation to Washington to hear alternatives to their plan of a massive offensive -- ground offensive in Rafah would give hope that they were potentially open to other ideas. The fact is, there has not been a single leader around the world who has supported the idea of this major ground offensive in Rafah. In fact, many have been extremely vocal about how devastating it would be to well over a million people who are currently sheltering in that particular area.
And this also comes, of course, at the time when we are expecting these talks to kick up gear here.
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In Doha, you have the Mossad director. You have the CIA director expected to start these talks here in Doha. And the fact that the Mossad director is coming back just a few days after he left here shows that potentially they do have something concrete to talk about. Now, we heard from the Secretary of State, he said that the gaps are narrowing between Hamas and Israel when it comes to what both sides would want from these negotiations. But, these gaps do still remain, but saying he is hopeful that there could be some kind of resolution. So, the talks we're expecting here in Doha would be between the intelligence chiefs of Israel, of the United States, of Egypt, also Qatari Prime Minister, and potentially pushing the situation forward, as we do know that Hamas did come back with that counterproposal just last week. Fredricka.
WHITFIELD: All right. Paula Hancocks, Jennifer Hansler, we'll leave it there for now. Thank you so much.
All right. While diplomats talk in Tel Aviv and Doha, the humanitarian crisis in Gaza continues to spiral dramatically. An Israeli raid on Al-Shifa Hospital in the northern part of the besieged enclave is now in its fifth day. The Israeli military says it's continuing to conduct "precise operations" and has eliminated more than 140 of what it calls terrorists.
As CNN's Jeremy Diamond reports, thousands of civilians are trapped on the premises.
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JEREMY DIAMOND, CNN CORRESPONDENT voice-over): A crowded stairwell at Al-Shifa Hospital, dozens of women and children await Israeli military instructions. For four days, thousands of civilians have been trapped here as the Israeli military raids the hospital, targeting Palestinian militants allegedly operating inside the medical complex. Soldiers are everywhere, the voice on the loudspeaker warns. If you leave the premises, the soldiers will shoot you. We have warned you. We have come here in order to get the Israeli hostages, then we will let you go. Soon, word of evacuations begins to spread. Now, they're forcing out
the women, the voice behind the camera says. We don't know where they're going to take us.
The Israeli military says they have killed more than 140 militants in and around the hospital, and detained these five men described as senior terror operatives, among more than 600 suspects the Israeli military says they've detained. Eyewitnesses say medical personnel and other civilians have also been rounded up. Outside the hospital, the fighting continues, as seen through the lens of Hamas militants who have been targeting Israeli tanks and troops around the hospital complex.
Israeli airstrikes reducing parts of the surrounding al-Rimal neighborhood to rubble, sending thousands fleeing south. It's a journey marked by the sights and smells of death. We walked over the martyrs who are dead in the street. People are reduced to body parts, this woman cries. Where is the humanity? The newly displaced arrive on foot in central Gaza, carrying only backpacks and plastic bags, children clutching dolls and stuffed animals. Others like this mother and her triplets arrive with nothing at all. The tanks and artillery were firing at the buildings around Al-Shifa and forcing people to leave the building, she says. They make them leave with nothing on them, nothing, no pillow, no blanket, not even water.
Nussah (ph) isn't just fleeing the fighting, but the starvation that has left her eight-month-old babies thin and frail. You can see them, she says. Each of them is not even two kilos, eight-months-old and not even two kilos. Anyone who sees them would think they're only two- months-old, and they're eight months. It's a catastrophe, no water, no food and siege and gunfire. But, her journey is not over yet. She is heading further south in search of food and shelter, no longer taken for granted in Gaza.
Jeremy Diamond, CNN, Jerusalem.
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WHITFIELD: And more than a million people in Ukraine were without power Friday morning after a massive Russian missile strike targeted energy infrastructure sites across the country. Ukraine's energy executive says it is likely the largest attack ever on the power system. Among the major targets was Ukraine's largest hydroelectric power complex along the Dnipro River in the Zaporizhzhia region.
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The site operator says it's not clear if the plants would ever be able to resume operations after suffering massive damage. Friday's attack came 24 hours after Kyiv was also struck with a missile barrage.
Meanwhile, European leaders are in Brussels for day two of the summit, where a key topic is getting more support for Ukraine.
Let's bring in Fred Pleitgen with more on this. Fred, good morning to you. So, Ukraine's Energy Minister has said that this was possibly the largest attack ever on the country's system. What more are you learning about the scale of the attack?
FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, the scale is absolutely massive. And if we just look at the numbers, they certainly are quite imposing. The Ukrainians are saying that the Russians fired around 155 missiles and drones towards Ukrainian territory. Now, the Ukrainians say that their air defense has actually worked quite well. They managed to take down about 92 of those. But that, of course, means, Fredricka, that a lot of the missiles that were fired by the Russians towards Ukraine actually did hit their targets, or at least hit in the vicinity of the target set that they wanted to hit.
And if we look at where are the major damage took place, you mentioned one of those places, which is the hydroelectric power plant near the city of Zaporizhzhia. Anybody who has ever been there knows just how massive that complex is. It also has a big dam as part of it as well. Now, the Ukrainians are saying, luckily, so far, they don't believe that that dam is in danger of collapsing or of breaking. They did say that they had to let some of the water out of that dam in order to secure it. But, as you say, the Ukrainians are saying they're not sure whether or not they're going to be able to get power out of that power plant in the future. And they have similar issues around the country, more than a million people currently without energy. And the strikes really happened in the west of Ukraine, in the south of Ukraine, and also, of course, in those Eastern and Southeastern places like Zaporizhzhia, and like Kharkiv.
The Ukrainians are saying that they need more air defense. It was quite interesting because the President of the country, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, he posted on his social media this warning, seemingly taking a swipe at the Europeans and the United States, of course, with that aid from the U.S. still delayed by House Republican leadership, saying the Russians clearly face no delays as far as getting their missiles, and also they said the Shahed drones which are some of the ones that the Russians fire at Ukrainian territory clearly don't have the same indecision as some of Ukraine's partners.
So, you can see the Ukrainian President clearly quite frustrated right now with some of the aid delays that have been going on, and certainly the Ukrainians are saying that those delays are measured in lives and of course also in energy for their people, and a lot of them are without it today. And some people actually in Kharkiv, which is in the east of the country, without water as well, Fredricka.
WHITFIELD: Incredible. All right. Fred Pleitgen, thank you so much.
All right. Allegations of corruption and the arrest of an Indian opposition politician gave rise to protests in New Delhi.
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One of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's fiercest critics was taken into custody, and members of Arvind Kejriwal's party are incensed. The arrest comes just ahead of the Indian elections. So, tensions are high.
CNN's Vedika Sud is joining us right now from New Delhi. Vedika, what are the allegations leveled against this opposition politician to the point where he is arrested?
VEDIKA SUD, CNN REPORTER: Well, serious charges indeed by the Enforcement Directorate, which is the federal financial crime investigations agency here in India. Ironically, it does come under the Modi government, the Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government, and that is the criticism that the incumbent government in India is facing right now, that in the run up to the elections, the national elections, which commence on the 19th of next month, a lot of political parties are facing the heat from investigative agencies that come under the Modi government. There has been a clamp down. There has been a crackdown, and this is the latest in the series of crackdowns that we are seeing.
Now, Arvind Kejriwal is the sitting Chief Minister of Delhi. The serious charges against him are that of corruption, along with him some people from his party, which is called the "Aam Aadmi Party" here in India, and the Enforcement Directorate says that they have allegedly taken kickbacks from an alcohol licensing policy. These claims have been denied by Kejriwal and his party. But, there have been protests like you referenced right at the top of our conversation. There have been angry protesters on the roads in Delhi. They're demanding that Kejriwal be freed and he shouldn't be arrested in the first place. The court hearing just ended, and a decision on a stay on his arrest has been reserved. We'll get to more on that once we hear from the court.
But, the bigger picture here is, of course, the general elections, and how this could impact the prospects of the Aam Aadmi Party and Arvind Kejriwal in the general elections.
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Kejriwal's party are one of the few parties in India ever since 2014, that's when the Narendra Modi government came to power, to have some political significance. A lot of political parties, regional and national, have lost political relevance in the last 10 years ever since Modi has come to power. But, Kejriwal has not only managed to successfully be the Chief Minister of Delhi for two consecutive terms, he has also won the state of Punjab recently in the state elections. So, his growth has been on the rise. And according to analysts, this could be a reason why he is seen as one of the main challenges to the incumbent Modi government in India.
Now, a lot of political parties, opposition parties, have been rallying behind Arvind Kejriwal ever since his arrest last night, on Thursday. Amid high drama, he was taken away by ED officials. And one of the prominent leaders from the opposition parties, Rahul Gandhi, alluding to the Prime Minister Narendra Modi, has said on X in a post the following, and I'm going to quote him here, "A scared dictator wants to create a dead democracy."
So, a lot of these political opponents now coming together and slamming the Modi government for what they say is an orchestrated and political move by the Modi government ahead of the elections. We are still waiting to see how this plays out. In the court, there has been a marathon hearing in a local court here in Delhi. And like I said, the order has been reserved for now. But, the political future of Kejriwal obviously will be determined by what happens in court today, and over the next few weeks. Back to you.
WHITFIELD: All right. Vedika Sud, thank you so much.
All right.
Back in the U.S., the clock is ticking, and there is no indication how Donald Trump plans to pay the nearly half a billion dollar bond that is due Monday from his New York civil fraud case. In a legal filing, the New York Attorney General Letitia James has indicated that she could seize his golf course and Seven Springs estate in New York's posh Westchester County. She could also move to take some of his properties in Manhattan. Sources close to Trump say he has ruled out a bankruptcy filing as a way to hold off the seizures.
CNN's Kara Scannell is tracking the latest developments for us. So, Kara, good morning to you. So, Trump is not just sitting there sending out social media rants. Do we know what he is trying to do to make this payment and potentially hold on to his properties as well? KARA SCANNELL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yeah. Good morning, Fred. I mean, Donald Trump has said that he has tried to get someone at an insurance company to underwrite this half a billion dollar bond. His team has said that they've approached 30 different insurance companies. None of them are willing to do it because none of them want to take any property as collateral. So, he has got a real cash crunch problem because he doesn't have enough money to even give to these bond companies that they would be comfortable putting up. So, he has told the judge that he wants to put up a smaller amount. He has asked to not have to put up any amount until this appeal court is over.
He has also argued that if he was forced to sell some of his properties now, it would be at a fire sale, and if he ultimately prevailed, that he would not be able to recover the properties that he was forced to sell. So, he is asking for leniency from the appeals court. They have not ruled on this yet. The New York Attorney General's Office has opposed this. And as you said, they're already kind of getting their ducks in a row in order to begin the process of enforcing this judgment, which could mean seizing assets, and that could be some of these properties, the Seven Springs home just north of New York City, a golf course also located in Westchester County, as well as his penthouse apartment at the top of Trump Tower, Trump Tower, 40 Wall Street. There is different apartment buildings that the company owns.
And so, they could not even necessarily try to take custody of it. But, they could put liens on some of these companies, collect some of the rent payments that they've received. They could also go after his bank accounts or airplanes. All of this is still a lot of a moving target. Trump has several days to come up with the money, if there is a donor out there who is going to give him the money, is all still unclear. But, the clock is ticking, and we're coming to a head with either Trump is going to post this money, the appeals court is going to step in, or the Attorney General's Office is going to begin to try to enforce these judgments. Whatever happens, though, it's not going to be a quick process, and is likely to be fought by Trump every step of the way. Fred.
WHITFIELD: It's a lot to do in a little bit of time. Kara Scannell, thanks so much, in New York.
All right. U.S. lawmakers are on the clock, racing to pass a government spending bill by the end of today. They've unveiled a $1.2 trillion package to keep the government funded through the end of the fiscal year. But, it remains to be seen whether they can get it passed in time.
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Among the operations that need to be funded by the midnight deadline, the Defense Department tops the list with more than $824 billion in funding. The measure also includes $90 billion for the Department of Homeland Security and border control and enforcement. The State Department would get $58 billion, more than $3 billion less than the previous fiscal year. All right. Still to come, this picture is a reminder of happier time
for baseball superstar Shohei Ohtani, his former friend and interpreter standing accused of stealing, but the story is not 100 percent clear. We'll get more details from Tokyo.
And we're watching for a major vote coming up in the UN Security Council. What it might mean for Gaza?
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WHITFIELD: Welcome back. Shohei Ohtani is a superstar in the world of baseball and used to being in the headlines but not this way. Who is behind the gambling money? In the last 48 hours, the Los Angeles Dodgers fired Ohtani's longtime interpreter. The player's lawyers accuse Ippei Mizuhara of stealing from the Japanese star to cover gambling debts, but some of the initial admissions are causing some confusion.
Hanako Montgomery is in Tokyo with more details.
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HANAKO MONTGOMERY, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Japan's dynamic duo broken overnight. Ippei Mizuhara, the longtime interpreter and friend of baseball legend Shohei Ohtani, fired suddenly amid allegations by the athlete's lawyers that he stole millions from the star to cover gambling debts, ESPN reports.
In Japan, he is a living legend. But now, fans must grapple with the news that their favorite athlete has been plunged headfirst into a murky scandal.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (Interpreted): It's unfortunate. I personally want them to be a team again. So, I'm really disappointed.
MONTGOMERY (voice-over): Ohtani, a national hero at home --
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (Interpreted): It makes me proud to be Japanese. I'm the same age as him and he inspires me to work harder. He is like the son.
MONTGOMERY (voice-over): -- and a celebrated legend around the world. He is the first two-time unanimous MVP of Major League Baseball, but he is in a league of his own, recognized as the first two-way player in our lifetime. But, Ohtani didn't get here on his own. Mizuhara, his loyal interpreter and friend, has worked with him since 2013. The pair moved to Los Angeles six years ago when Ohtani first made the move to Major League Baseball. The two hardly ever spotted without each other, but their shared future now uncertain.
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MONTGOMERY: In an interview with ESPN on Tuesday, Mizuhara said he didn't know his gambling was illegal, and said Ohtani agreed to pay his gambling debts, bills that swelled to at least $4.5 million. But, just a day after that interview, Mizuhara walked back much of those revelations, saying instead that Ohtani didn't know about the gambling activities or the debts, and said Ohtani didn't make the payments.
MONTGOMERY (voice-over): Best friends one day, and out the next. But, Ohtani's fans still unwaveringly faithful to the star.
Hanako Montgomery, CNN, Tokyo.
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WHITFIELD: All right. Still to come, this is Donald Trump's gorgeous estate in Westchester County, New York. How likely is the New York Attorney General to seize it from the former President? And one of the most dangerous journeys in the world, CNN goes into the streets of Haiti's capital as law and order break down.
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WHITFIELD: All right. All eyes are on the UN Security Council next hour and a potentially key vote on Gaza. The U.S. is gearing up to bring a resolution before the Security Council, calling for a "immediate and sustained ceasefire" in connection with the release of all remaining hostages. This diplomatic effort is set against the backdrop of a dire humanitarian crisis in the besieged enclave. America's top diplomat said this week, "100 percent of the population in Gaza is at severe levels of acute food insecurity." We'll bring you that vote live when it happens.
All right. Taking a closer look now at one of our other top stories, the ticking clock that Donald Trump is facing as he attempts to pay a nearly half billion dollar fine. Trump has until Monday to make the $464 million payment, or the New York Attorney General could begin to seize his properties. She has already made a filing that could allow her to foreclose on Trump's Westchester golf course and "Seven Springs" estate. Trump is asking a New York appeals court to either give him more time or allow him to pay a smaller fine while he appeals the entire case.
Let's get some legal analysis of all of this. Joining me right now this morning is Trial Attorney Misty Marris. Great to see you this morning, Misty.
MISTY MARRIS, DEFENSE ATTORNEY: Good morning, Fred.
WHITFIELD: All right. So, help us understand what happens Monday if Trump does not post the bond and if we don't hear from an appellate court or anywhere else that there has been given some leniency?
MARRIS: Yeah. The chickens are really coming to roost now come Monday.
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So, basically what's happening at this time is that the attorney general has filed a judgment. Now, what is that judgment? The judgment is a court order that says Trump is now liable for 400 plus million dollars. That's the first step in actually moving forward with the seizure of assets to satisfy that judgment. So, she has filed that in both NYC and Westchester counties. That means those properties could be at risk. So, the first steps would be to move forward with potential seizures of assets. Now, it's been known that Letitia James has a detailed roadmap of Trump's assets. So, she knows where they exist.
But, the next steps become very, very legally complicated, because all of these properties are in a complex corporate structure. They're owned by LLCs. They're part of Trump's trust. There is all sorts of legal red tape that would actually come into play once that process actually went underway. So, it's not a simple process, but it could potentially begin on Monday.
WHITFIELD: OK. So, let's begin with that filing of the judgment then, when we talk about things could get underway to put a lien on any number of those properties, even though I know you said it's very complex because of the whole corporate structure, LLC. But, when you file this judgment, does that mean it is five days out? It is 10 days out past the deadline of when a sign of a lien on a property goes up? Is that how it would work? Would there be a lien sign? I mean, public like that, or is it in some other form?
MARRIS: Well, Fred, believe it or not, this is what could happen. So, what people don't understand is that when the court actually issued an order that says you owe X amount of money in a case, the court doesn't actually help you collect on that. So, what the first step would be, the judgment is filed, what would happen is that they would go to the police station. You would get a warrant, and then you would go and begin that process of putting liens on those properties. So, to your point, Fred, that can happen very, very quickly. Within weeks there could be liens. There could be signs on the door in big red that this is going to be seized.
However, that's when the legal maneuvering comes in after that point with respect to possibly complicating the actual seizure of the property, because what would happen is, the properties would be seized. They'd be put up to auction. The money received with bank and court would satisfy the judgment. That's the long process. But, to your point, Fred, the beginnings of that process where you see the signs at the door --
WHITFIELD: Oh my Gosh.
MARRIS: -- where the sheriff is (inaudible) cashier's check for a bank account could happen very, very quickly.
WHITFIELD: Oh, my God. That is humiliating. That's like what you might see in an eviction. Tight? Marshals come in and property owner or something is standing outside, saying, wait a minute. Can we work something out? OK. So, what if in that duration, within the weeks where you say the police would come, seize, etcetera, put up signs, what if Donald Trump then is able to come up with the money, say a week later, a week past the deadline? Can he -- by virtue of that, does that process stop? Is it suspended? Is there leniency there?
MARRIS: Yeah. So, that's where all of the timing issues come into play. So, this is all part of the appellate bond process. And here is what's playing out. So, this case is in the appellate stages. If he were to be successful on appeal, he might not owe that amount of money. So, it's protecting his rights to hold back on posting some of this bond. That's the argument. Now, on the other hand, if he is not successful on appeal, that judgment needs to be paid within 10 days of that appellate decision. So, it's also protecting those who are owed the money to keep this money under bonds.
So, to your point, Fred, say in these -- during this process of seizure, during this process where the warrants are out there, and the property maybe has liens on it, the money comes to fruition, and he is able to stop the process. This is where it gets into a very, very legally thorny area. It would really depend with respect to each property where it is in that process of seizure, to the extent it has been seized and sold, there'd be no way for him to get it back. But, to the extent it's in that intermediate process, it's likely that all of those process would be stayed pending the outcome of the appeal. So, it's highly complicated. We're in sort of a legal oblivion right now with respect to timing.
WHITFIELD: OK. And real quickly, Misty, reportedly, Trump has been in panic mode. Now that you've painted that picture, is part of panic mode getting into any of those properties, taking out what's valuable to you, just in case you're not able to meet that deadline, and the process gets underway and you know longer have access to those properties?
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MARRIS: Well, actually, at this point, that would be violative of a court order. He can't liquidate any --
WHITFIELD: Oh my Gosh.
MARRIS: -- of those assets or do (inaudible) relating to those businesses without the approval of the monitor who has now been in place, a judge, and grants order that there is a monitor overseeing all the financials of these particular businesses. So, that would be violative of the (inaudible) who can't do that. The best hope for him is that the appellate division does step in the standard, and we heard it in the brilliant reporting that just happened, is what's called irreparable harm. So, that's what the court looks at when making a determination about putting a stay or putting a pause on the payment of this bond or saying that a partial bond could be paid. So, that's his best option.
What I thought was interesting, Fred, is he has discounted the idea of a bankruptcy. That would put a hold on all of this.
WHITFIELD: Everything.
MARRIS: That would stretch it out for years and years and years. But apparently, that's not part of his plan. So, we'll have to see what happens. We could see that warrant being on 40 Wall Street.
WHITFIELD: Oh my God.
MARRIS: It's early in the school's (ph) day. So, it's really a dire situation.
WHITFIELD: That is brutal. But, the word "penalty" doesn't usually mean that it's comfortable. I mean, usually, it means it's causing some kind of pain in this. This sounds pretty painful. All right. Attorney Misty Marris, thank you so much.
All right. CNN has learned that one of the Haitian gang leaders was killed in Port-au-Prince Thursday night. Haiti's National Police says that the gang leader was killed in a gunfight with them three weeks after escaping from prison. And now, residents are fighting back against the gangs, as CNN's David Culver report. And we do want to warn you, the images that you're about to see are very disturbing.
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DAVID CULVER, CNN SENIOR U.S. NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Oh, my god. It's a body just sitting right in the middle of the street there, and people are trying to figure out the best way to get around it.
CULVER (voice-over): Across the street, this family rushes into a truck, shielding their little one's eye, an effort to preserve what innocence is left here in Haiti. The gruesome sights slowing but not stopping the morning rush hour.
CULVER: And you can even see here, look at this, a police car is just going right past and it will continue on. It doesn't even stop.
CULVER (voice-over): A neighbor explains how an overnight gang attack ended in vigilante killings.
CULVER: This is gunfire.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Right. Shooting here.
CULVER (voice-over): This man says he and more than 50 others immediately set out to find those terrorizing their neighborhood. They surrounded a man they didn't recognize.
CULVER: And you believe he was a gang member?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (FOREIGN LANGUAGE).
CULVER (voice-over): Carrying machetes, he tells me, they carried out justice, as he sees it, the only way they know to defend themselves. When they come in shooting all around, trying to scare us to flee, we won't just let them kill us. They have to die, he tells me.
CULVER: The way you see this is kill or be killed?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (FOREIGN LANGUAGE).
CULVER (voice-over): Police don't condone the killings, but they are overwhelmed and overrun, that they don't have time to stop them. There are daily gun battles in the capital as police struggled to push the gangs back. The officers have willpower, but little else. We see that firsthand as we patrol with Haiti's National Police.
CULVER: There are no frontlines in this war. The boundaries are blurred and they're constantly shifting. And these officers know driving around in an armored vehicle like this, well, they expect to be shot at. They're moving targets.
CULVER: (voice-over): They cruise through gang territory, revealing a city in ruins and on fire. At this intersection, we find another gruesome scene. Three bodies have eaten by dogs and still smoldering. People desperate for food and for shelter even if it is in the shell of what was once a government building.
CULVER: I mean, this is just a symbol of state collapse here. More than 1,500 have now occupied this building and made it their home, mostly children from what we see.
CULVER: (Voice-over): And there were those who line up for hours, trying to get visas to go anywhere but here.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There is no security. There is no jobs. And not only there is no jobs, they're running after us wherever we are.
CULVER (voice-over): The gangs now targeting more affluent areas.
CULVER: What's left of an ATM is still in there.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They're trying to show themselves as Robin Hoods or stud, but they're thieves. They're just thieves. They're criminals.
[08:40:00]
CULVER (voice-over): For street vendors like this woman who still have fruits to sell, no customers to buy them.
CULVER: Because folks can't afford most of these items.
CULVER (voice-over): More troubling for her, the horrors she witnesses on these streets. Many people have died, she tells me. And they have to make trips to pick them up. We see that for ourselves as we head back just before curfew. Medics clearing the remains of that suspected gang member. They hurry not to save a life but to pick up two more bodies on the same street.
Here in Haiti, humanity has disintegrated into a brutal fight for survival.
CULVER: And late Thursday, a Haitian security source confirming to us that police were able to kill a gang leader, one of many gangs here in Port-au-Prince. However, this is a man who recently escaped from prison. They also confirmed to us that several gang members were also killed. However, for police, it's always a question of how long they can hold the line. It's for that reason they're looking for reinforcements.
David Culver, CNN, Port-au-Prince, Haiti.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WHITFIELD: Incredible. And authorities in El Paso, Texas, say the situation is under control after a large group of migrants breached a barricade on the border with Mexico. Take a look at this video.
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So, it's not clear what caused the rush, but officials call it an isolated incident. Between 400 and 600 people were detained for illegally crossing the border between ports of entry.
Joining me right now is Senior National Correspondent Ed Lavandera. Good morning to you, Ed. Extraordinary pictures from that border crossing. What else do we know about what precipitated it, and then what happened?
ED LAVANDERA, CNN SENIOR U.S. NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, from what we've heard from immigration officials here in the El Paso area, there hadn't been any kind of sense of rising tension. Tensions are escalating conflict along those border regions where so many migrants have been on the other side of the border for months, trying to figure out the best way of crossing into the U.S. and in many cases requesting asylum. So, this is why I think officials are saying they believe that this -- particular moment is an isolated incident.
But, it was a dramatic intense as these migrants essentially pushed through the fencing and the razor wire, and several national -- Texas National Guard soldiers. And just to kind of give people a lay of the land, this is just on the northern edge of the Rio Grande which separates Mexico from Texas, and those migrants had already from where they kind of entered into that conflict there with the soldiers were already in U.S. territory. And they moved past them and essentially ran up to the wall where they turned themselves in to Border Patrol agents.
We witnessed as hundreds of these migrants were loaded onto buses and taken away to a Border Patrol facility where they were later processed. We are told that some of them would be requesting asylum and might have those applications approved to continue on with the asylum process. Others might be deported when a group that large it's kind of hard to tell exactly what the ultimate outcome is going to be.
But, very tense moments in that area. And that razor wire that you see in the video there, that's kind of at the heart of the tension that has existed, Fredricka, between Texas authorities and the federal government and immigration. That line of razor wire and fencing is what has been put in place by the state of Texas in recent months. And it's kind of a multi-layered kind of barriers that exist there between the border wall that has been in place for years, and the river, which is the international boundary line in this area of the U.S. southern border. Fredricka.
WHITFIELD: Tense moments. All right. Ed Lavandera in El Paso, thank you so much.
Still to come, it takes about two years before you get permission to visit a tech facility so secret that you can't bring anything emitting a signal. Can you guess where it is? We'll take you there after the break.
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[08:45:00]
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WHITFIELD: All right. Demand for AI-powered technology is booming. One of the tech's biggest players is riding the wave. TSMC, the world's largest chipmaker, is expanding its global operations while managing competitive technological and geopolitical risks along the way.
Will Ripley was granted rare access to the company's headquarters in Taipei.
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WILL RIPLEY, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): This is Taiwan's epicenter of technological revolution, where precision meets innovation, and tiny chips power big dreams. This is TSMC (Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company), commanding more than 50 percent of the global market, producing more than 90 percent of the world's most advanced chips.
RIPLEY: To say it's difficult to gain access to Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company would be the understatement of the year, maybe two years, because that's about how long it's taken my team and I to get permission to come here. Behind these walls, some of the world's most advanced highly secretive technology. It's so secret you have to check your phone, your laptop, anything that emits a signal, just to walk through the door.
RIPLEY (voice-over): As demand for AI-driven technologies soars, TSMC is the go-to global manufacturer, sending stocks skyrocketing. The company's workforce, 77,000 strong and growing, a far cry from its humble beginnings in 1987, says the Senior Vice President of Human Resources, Lora Ho.
RIPLEY: What is it like to run HR for what is arguably the most important company in the world right now?
LORA HO, SENIOR VICE PRESIDENT OF HUMAN RESOURCES, TSMC: I think now HR is very different than HR then, because we are fast expanding our global footprint.
RIPLEY (voice-over): TSMC says it needs to hire thousands of new employees over the next few years to fill chip factories or fabs under construction right now across Taiwan and around the world. Last month, TSMC opened its first fab in Kumamoto, Japan, with the help of billions of dollars in government subsidies. They're also building new fabs in Dresden, Germany, and Phoenix, Arizona.
RIPLEY: What's the most challenging location where you're trying to build a factory right now? HO: I think Arizona is the most difficult. Regulations and the culture
is different. We'll have to adjust to local culture and different employees.
RIPLEY: Why the decision to do the more advanced technology in Arizona?
HO: (Inaudible) the customer, mostly American companies. So, to serve their need in their home country, that's the objective.
RIPLEY (voice-over): That Arizona fab is facing chronic delays --
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We need some more help.
RIPLEY (voice-over): -- the price tag skyrocketing. Making chips outside of Taiwan and making them profitable will likely require huge government subsidies.
KRISTY HSU, DIRECTOR, TAIWAN ASEAN STUDIES CTR., CHUNG-HUA INST. FOR ECONOMIC RESEARCH: The estimated cost in the U.S. compared with Taiwan is about 40 percent more expensive. But, right now, because of the inflation, all these kinds of issues right now, they think it's roughly two times or three times more expensive.
RIPLEY (voice-over): TSMC's overseas expansion must overcome massive hurdles, and expansion, world leaders say, is necessary to protect the global chip supply chain from potentially disastrous disruptions. We got a taste of that during the pandemic, months-long waits for new phones, laptops and other tech. Any major disruption could mean waiting years for cutting edge tech. Taiwan is a volcanic island prone to earthquakes, typhoons and other natural disasters.
HO: There is earthquake, for example, earthquake. I think all our engineers knows and they need to go back to the company soon.
[08:50:00]
It doesn't matter what time it is. If it is midnight, they will come back.
RIPLEY (voice-over): Perhaps the biggest threat to TSMC's supply chain, also one of its biggest customers, rising tensions with China. The company's stock is surging anyway, as other nations scramble to catch up with Taiwan.
HO: I don't think you would take away the strength because we are still very highly concentrated in Taiwan, and the most leading edge technology would absolutely starting from Taiwan.
RIPLEY (voice-over): Beyond its core semiconductor business, TSMC is exploring new frontiers in advanced packaging, paving the way for enhanced processing power and energy efficiency, pushing the boundaries of what's possible in today's fast moving world of tech.
Will Ripley, CNN, Taichung, Taiwan.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WHITFIELD: All right. Still to come, we call Earth the blue planet. Despite that, a new report shows a lack of access to clean water is threatening peace worldwide.
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WHITFIELD: From space, Earth looks blue, a planet of oceans and lakes, but not every region is water-rich. 2.2 billion people globally do not have access to clean drinking water, according to a new United Nations report, marking World Water Day. This lack of access to clean water is threatening peace worldwide, and more than one third of African countries are considered water insecure. Because of the climate crisis, nearly 1.5 billion people have been affected by droughts between 2002 and 2021. The report concludes, the world is not on track to meet the UN's goal of ensuring everyone has access to safe and clean water by 2030.
And doctors in Boston have transplanted the first genetically modified pig's kidney into a living human being. A 62-year-old man with end- stage kidney disease received the organ in a four-hour surgery that took place last Saturday at Massachusetts General Hospital. Doctors believed the kidney could last for four years, but acknowledge that there are many unknowns with animal to human transplants. One doctor on the team said his patient was excited to take part in this medical milestone.
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DR. WINFRED WILLIAMS, MASSACHUSETTS GENERAL HOSPITAL: He saw this as not only as a way to improve his own personal life, but a way to provide home for the thousands of people who need a transplant to survive.
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WHITFIELD: So, the hospital says the transplant recipient is recovering well, and he is expected to go home soon. Good luck to him.
And finally, at least 60 real life Paddington bears are sparking hope for a species that experts say is vulnerable to extinction. A Bolivian-based conservation program says it has identified dozens of this type of Andean bear, the only one native to South America, and the inspiration behind the beloved fictional bear with an appetite for marmalade. They're in forested areas where they had not been spotted before. Trap cameras installed in 2017, they are so cute, captured various members of the thriving bear community playing or walking among the trees. Good to see that they are thriving.
All right. Straight ahead, trying to find a way to a ceasefire in Gaza and the return of hostages held by Hamas.
[08:55:00]
These are live pictures right now at the United Nations, people are getting in place, getting to the right locations, because in any minute now, the UN Security Council will vote on a U.S. resolution, calling for a "immediate and sustained ceasefire" in connection with the release of all remaining hostages. The vote comes as U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken is in Israel meeting with the Prime Minister and war cabinet. And he is pushing the same message, urging a ceasefire, rather. At the same time, the CIA director is expected in Doha for more talks. CNN will be live at the UN next hour, and we'll bring you that vote in the Security Council, as it happens.
Thank you so much for joining me in the CNN Newsroom. I'm Fredricka Whitfield. Connect the World is up next.
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