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Russians Mourn as Flight 9268 Bodies Arrive in St. Petersburg; Yazidi Soldiers Ready to Fight ISIS; Tropical Cycle Chapala Threatens Yemen, Oman; Lawsuits from "El Faro" Owner, Crewmen's Families; Russia Mourns Flight 9268 Victims; Al Shabaab Attacks Mogadishu Hotel; Boehner: Tough Convincing Ryan to Run for Speakership; Myanmar Prepares for National Election; Box Office Weekend a U.K. Success, Bombs in U.S. Aired 2-3a ET
Aired November 02, 2015 - 02:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[02:00:09] ROSEMARY CHURCH, CNN ANCHOR: Russia mourns the crash victims of flight 9268 as the first bodies arrive back in St. Petersburg.
Plus, hundreds of Yazidi soldiers ready to fight. We have an exclusive look at how they're getting ready for their next big battle with ISIS.
Later --
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
(CHEERING)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHURCH: -- Kansas City fans go wild after their baseball team clinches its first world championship in 30 years.
Hello, and welcome to our viewers here in the United States and all around the world. I'm Rosemary Church. Thank you for joining us. This is CNN NEWSROOM.
Their return from a holiday in the Egyptian resort town was not supposed to be so grim. The bodies of 144 people who died when their plane crashed in the Sinai Peninsula have just arrived in St. Petersburg. The Russian city was supposed to be the final destination of Metro Jet flight 9268 when it went down Saturday. Investigators are still trying to figure out just what went wrong on the Russian airliner. Officials now believe the plane broke apart in midair but they don't know why.
For the latest, we want to turn to CNN International diplomatic editor, Nic Robertson, in St. Petersburg.
Nic, 25 children lost on this flight as well as parents on vacation without their children. It is a tragedy that has touched the whole nation. What more are we learning about the loved ones on board? NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: The youngest was
just 10 months old, on holiday with her parents. An iconic image of her taken on vacation at an airport window looking out onto the tarmac where there is a plane on the runway. Really becomes, if you like, symbolic now for so many Russians about the loss of so many children, 25 on board. Of course, we are told there were a lot of parents on board. Many had gone off leaving younger children with relatives, gone off for a holiday in the sun. The feeling here is there are now a lot of orphans here in St. Petersburg and Russia where people came from.
At the moment, however, it is the beginning of the very, very grim, difficult task for the families here. They are being taken from a hotel near the airport where they have been two days. Government officials are taking them to the crematorium, which is where the 144 bodies are being transported to right now. There they will begin to identify their loved ones.
Also, in just the last hour or so, a press conference by emergency ministry here. Nothing specific on the investigation so far. But they do say in the early hours of Tuesday morning, they're expecting another plane to arrive back here from Egypt bringing more bodies on board. Also, personal effects of the passengers. So, today is going to be for, for the families a very, very tough day. As we are watching here. People coming to leave flowers, coming to leave toys at this memorial. Also finding very difficult a lot of tears right here this morning, Rosemary, as well.
CHURCH: It is a heartbreaking situation and difficult to understand how the loved ones are coping at this time.
As we mentioned, officials now believe the plane broke apart midair. They don't know why. But Russian authorities doubt that terrorism is behind this. How can they be so sure at this early stage?
ROBERTSON: At the moment, they're pointing to what is being said by Egyptian authorities. Egyptians have the lead on the investigation. President Sisi has promised President Putin the widest possible engagement for Russian investigators alongside Egyptians. The emergency minister, the transport minister, the head of the newly appointed special commission to investigate this air tragedy as well as the aviation minister, all have been to Egypt. The transport minister and emergencies minister are on the way back now. You had high-level senior Russian delegation in see Egypt working with their counterparts there. This seems to be why the Russians are willing to believe at this stage, without a full investigation so far, that they can put faith in what the Egyptian authorities are saying. That the plane, yes, did disintegrate. An assessment made by the sort of the area on the ground over which the wreckage has been scattered. But at the moment, the word from Egyptians is that they don't believe it was shot down. And for the Russian authorities, that seems to be enough. Although, they're cautioning, obviously, until we get into the investigation, it can not be said definitively what happened -- Rosemary?
[02:05:12] CHURCH: Of course. Nic, it is a nation in shock right now. What sort of support is being
given to the loved ones of those who were lost on this plane?
ROBERTSON: Psychologists have been appointed and they're in the hotel with the families. We are told 65 psychologists are with the families. We met one over the weekend. She was describing how difficult it was for her, a trained, professional, dealing with such difficult emotions, loss, grief, the lack of information, the psychologist dealing with that. We are told over the weekend that at least 100 of the families, people from the families had availed themselves of the psychological help. Medical professionals are on hand for the families on the Saturday night into Sunday. This sort of first full night of realization for the families they weren't going to see their loved ones once again. Ambulances, 24 ambulances called to the hospital to give medical help to the families. We see them inside the hotel where they're staying. It's clearly -- common sense tells us, clearly, when you see the families, how grief struck they are and how deep in desperate situation they find them selves in the moment -- Rosemary?
CHURCH: Sadly, we have watched this play out a number of times just in recent months, in fact.
Nic Robertson reporting there live from St. Petersburg. Many thanks to you.
We do want to go to Ian Lee now in Cairo, outside the morgue there.
This is a grim and tragic situation to cover, for sure. But, Ian, talk to us about the latest on the search-and-recovery effort and word there, even though it is very early at this point, on the investigation.
IAN LEE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Rosemary, outside of the morgue here in central Cairo. 144 bodies have gone to Russia. There are still some left here at this morgue. 187 bodies have been recovered, which means that -- over 30 bodies are still out there in the desert. They have yet to be recovered. That is a process that is going -- ongoing right now, looking for that, looking for the remains. Also, looking for any clues that could lead to why this plane crashed. There's a lot of debris out there. It's over an area of 20 square kilometers. You have the Russians out there with the Egyptians. A team from Airbus is also in Egypt. Later today, an Irish team will also be on the ground helping the Egyptians. The black boxes are in Cairo. We heard from Richard Quest who said that, he was unsure that Egypt would have the technical ability to decipher the black boxes. This could be why the Irish have been brought in. We don't know exactly what their role is going to be. But they're going to try to figure out that moment, right before the plane crashed, or the plane disappeared from radar, and what happened afterwards. We heard from the Russians that the plane had broken apart in midflight. There was talk that there was a problem with the plane before it took off. We heard this from the co- pilot's ex-wife. Take a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) UNIDENTIFIED EX-WIFE OF CO-PILOT (through translation): I had a chat with him just before the flight. He complained before the flight that one could wish for better technical condition of the plane.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEE: Rosemary, this plane had its routine check up right before it took off. The pilot didn't complain of anything. So there are a lot of questions. And we need to stress that we do not know what caused this plane to crash.
CHURCH: We do not know. But of course, the area in which this plane passed over, let's talk about that. You mention the difficulty in gathering the debris and really working towards the investigation here. But also, talk to us about the dangers flying over this area, the Sinai.
LEE: Well, ISIS claimed responsibility for bring down the plane. In the past, they have also come out with other details to back out their claims. We haven't seen any of this. Only that ISIS in the Sinai Peninsula saying they brought down this plane. How they would do that is also being raised. They technically do not have the fire power to launch a missile or the ability to do it to bring down a plane traveling over 30,000 feet. People are thinking this is just ISIS trying to be opportunistic. There are other ways they could have done it. These are things that investigators will be looking into. Potentially, there was a bomb onboard. We just don't know. And these are things that investigators, like I said, will be looking into. But this part of Sinai, the north central part, we have seen ISIS in that area. They have -- when they were sending rescue crews there, that was something that they would be looking and thinking about. Right now, a huge security area, military every where. It is a safe area right now for the rescue teams.
[02:10:48] CHURCH: Our Ian Lee reporting there from Cairo, outside the morgue there. Many thanks to you.
Well, al Qaeda's leader is calling on Muslim supporters to unite against the West and Russia in Syria and Iraq. It's not the first time he has pushed for unity between al Qaeda and ISIS. In an audio recording released online and reported by Reuters, Ayman al Zawahiri says a unified front is crucial to fight against what he calls the satanic alliance that is aggressing against Islam.
(BEGIN AUDIO FEED)
AYMAN AL ZAWAHIRI, AL QAEDA LEADER (through translation): The Americans, Russians, Iranians, Alawites and Hezbollah are coordinating their war against us. Are we not capable of stopping the fighting amongst ourselves so we can direct our efforts against them?
(END AUDIO FEED)
CHURCH: Now we don't know exactly when that recording was made. But the references to Russia suggests it was made after Moscow began air raids in Syria in late September. ISIS forces have seized a key town in Syria's southwestern Homs
Province. That is according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. The group says some 50 regime fighters were killed or wounded. The takeover means the militants are just 20 kilometers or about 13 miles from the highway connecting the capital, Damascus, with other main cities, including Homs. Syrian state media have not reported the attack.
Some Syrian rebels are being accused of putting captives in metal cages and using them as human shields to stop government air raids. A video posted online by an opposition media outlet appears to show these people in cages being driven on the back of pickup trucks. Reuters News Agency obtained the video but hasn't been able to verify the footage. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights says residents told them the human shields were military officers and their families.
U.S. forces are intensifying air strikes against the ISIS stronghold of Sinjar in Iraq ahead of a planned ground offensive to retake the town. When militants took over a year ago, they killed hundreds of the Yazidi religious minority and forced thousand more to flee. Now, Yazidi men are part of a group hoping to drive ISIS out.
Our Nima Elbagir met some of those men and has this exclusive report.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
NIMA ELBAGIR, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The Yazidis fight against ISIS. Volunteers, former soldiers and a handful of trained officers, look out over the ISIS front line.
(on camera): He's pointing out that, all along here, you can see the defensive ditches that have been dug. They come as close as that valley there. They mortar. They fire on us. They eventually retreat. It's pretty never ending.
(voice-over): This vantage point itself was, in the not too distant past, ISIS held.
(on camera): "Just there," he said, "you can see what they did to the Yazidis." The houses are completely destroyed. They slaughter all the families inside it. It really drives home how -- how visceral this was.
(voice-over): Deputy Commander Machal Kazidu (ph) is 66, a retired soldier, one of the few here with fighting experience.
(on camera): This is a fragment of skull that they found. This whole patch of ground is mass graves. They found 150 bodies, from children as young as 1-year-old all the way up to 80. It is, they say, just a reminder to them of what it is they're fighting for. They're fighting for their very survival.
(voice-over): The massacre of thousands of Yazidi men, women and children by ISIS last year resonated around the world. Here in the foothills of the Sinjar Mountain, thousands of Yazidi volunteers are joining up to fight. (SHOUTING)
[02:15:07] ELBAGIR: Sinjar City and the mountain that looms over it is at the heart of the homeland of the Yazidi minority. It falls along a crucial supply route, linking ISIS crucial strongholds in Iraq and Syria.
When ISIS took the city in August last year, their intent was to drive the Yazidis to extinction. Those who managed to escape the ensuing massacre now shelter in tents on barren slopes overlooking their former homes. These are the families of the fighters standing guard down below. This is what they're fighting for.
(SHOUTING)
ELBAGIR: At the front, a poem is being recited. It speaks of lost honor, slaughtered wives and sisters, empty homes.
(SHOUTING)
ELBAGIR: It is meant to remind the soldiers of what's at stake. They tell us they know only too well this is a battle for their very existence.
Nima Elbagir, CNN, Mount Sinjar.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CHURCH: We'll take a very short break here. But still to come, a stunning outcome in Turkey's snap elections as the country's president and his party mounted a strong and unexpected come back.
Plus, a new lawsuit has been filed over the missing cargo ship, "El Faro," but it isn't from the families of the missing crew. Find out who went to court and why.
We're back in a moment.
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(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
PATRICK SNELL, CNN WORLD SPORT ANCHOR: Hi, there. I'm Patrick Snell, with your CNN "World Sport" headlines.
Nicko Roper (ph) took his first victory for more than four months and beat Louis Hamilton in the Mexican Grand Pre on Sunday. There German was on poll controlling the race from start to finish with the newly crowned world champion Hamilton only a couple seconds behind but unable to get near enough to make a challenge. There's also now the potential for further team controversy with Hamilton disagreeing with their request for him to make a second pit stop. That's his fourth victory of the season moving him back in the championship behind someone who crashed out.
The English Premier League on Sunday, the season going from bad to worst. One off the table for Sunderland. A fine individual performance by the Everton. The Streaker's first hat trick. Sunderland were heavily beaten, 6-2.
And Simone Biles has become the first female gymnast to win 10 world titles with two more world championship goals. The 18-year-old tramping on Beman Floor (ph) on Sunday's final day of competition in Glasgow with a winning score of 15.800 while becoming the most medaled female gymnast in history. The teen also won team gold, a record third successive individual all around title, and bronze in the vault as well.
Thank you so much for joining us. You're bang up to date. That's a look at your CNN "World Sport" headlines. I'm Patrick Snell.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
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[02:20:37] CHURCH: Welcome back, everyone. We turn to Turkey where it was a surprise come back for President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his Justice and Development party as they won an outright majority in snap elections Sunday. The party lost that majority in June. But now the country's prime minister is urging Turkey's political parties to work together. The win will likely help Erdogan tighten his grip on power, saying the vote was a victory for stability in the wake of last month's suicide bombing that killed more than 100 in Ankara.
Tropical Cyclone Chapala is threatening Yemen and Oman with rare strong wind and heavy rainfall. It is expected to make landfall Tuesday and could bring devastating floods to Yemen. The country may see more than a year's worth of rainfall in just a couple of days. Chapala could hit in the heart of al Qaeda territory, an area wrecked by civil war.
We want to get the latest on this usually powerful storm. Meteorologist Allison Chinchar joins us to explain how bad this could be.
ALLISON CHINCHAR, AMS METEOROLOGIST: The worst is going to be along the coast. More specifically in Yemen than Oman because of the track it will take. It will veer towards Yemen. That's where it will make landfall. But we cannot emphasize enough how strong the storm is. Second strongest cyclone in the Arabian Sea. The strongest was Gonu in June of 2007. Take a look. Maximum winds 270 kilometers per an hour. Compare that to this at 250. There really aren't that much differences between the two. The main difference is where they impact it. Gona was more Oman, UAE and Iran. This one will focus on Yemen and slightly on Oman where they're starting to see a few outer bands begin to push in. Again, here you can see the current satellite radar. Wind up around 195 kilometers per hour, gusting up to 240 kilometers per hour. Again, it is basically going to make landfall to the west and again, likely Monday night into early hours on Tuesday local time.
Here is a look at the track. Notice again as it begins to slide up it very quickly going -- or weakens very quickly, from 140 kilometers per hour down to 55 in less than 24 hours. The reason for that is going to be the incredibly dry air. So here is the moisture. Notice it really doesn't make much into Saudi Arabia. Most of the moisture stays in Yemen. Dry air pushed down in the area, that dry desert. Also, the elevation. There is very high mountainous ranges right there along the coast of Yemen that will help break the storm apart.
This particular storm could become the strongest storm on record in the Arabian Sea, certainly the strongest off to hit Yemen. The strongest storm was previously Gonu in 2006. Coastal Yemen will see an incredible amount of rain. They average about 80 to 100 millimeters a year. They're going to pick up 200 to 250 millimeters from this storm in the first 24 hours. Rosemary, we're talking two to three years worth of rain in just 24 hours. So, tremendous, the impacts from flooding, possibly even mudslides in the higher terrains is going to be a possibility.
CHURCH: The need to absorb that moisture just is not possible really in that amount of time of.
All right. Allison Chinchar, many thanks. We'll talk soon.
CHINCHAR: Thanks.
CHURCH: The U.S. National Transportation Safety Board will try to recover bodies from the wreckage believed to be the "El Faro" cargo ship. There was a plan to send a deep-ocean vehicle to the wreckage Sunday, but the NTSB says it doesn't intend to recover the ship. The "El Faro" went missing October 1st near the Bahamas during Hurricane Joaquin.
The company that owns the ship has filed a lawsuit to keep families of the crew members from suing. Four families have already filed suits claiming the company has a history of poor maintenance.
Well, the mother of one crew member says she's not sure what to feel about the wreckage being found.
Jared Pelletier, from CNN affiliate, WGME, spoke to her and filed this report from the U.S. state of Maine.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
[02:25:07] JARED PELLETIER, REPORTER, WGME (voice-over): Mixed emotions for the mother of "El Faro" crew member, Michael Holland, a day after the NTSB says the Navy found what appears to be the ship's wreckage.
DEB ROBERTS, MOTHER OF "EL FARO" CREW MEMBER MICHAEL HOLLAND: I equate it to a tug-of-war between my head and heart. My head wants answers but my heart kind of likes not having answers. I can fill it with hope.
PELLETIER: Deb Roberts has held on to hope since contact with the ship was lost a month ago. To her, "El Faro" isn't just a ship.
ROBERTS: 33 souls of our loved ones and it's their final resting place.
PELLETIER: About 15,000 feet under the sea according to the NTSB. Robert says the discovery isn't surprising.
ROBERTS: I felt all along that they had a really good idea where the ship was.
PELLETIER: But she didn't expect this flood of emotions.
ROBERTS: Very upset, very emotional. Like, I said, it felt like, hearing it for the first time, it felt like losing Michael all over again.
PELLETIER (on camera): Deb Roberts says one thing that's really helping her and her family right now are signs of support like this that are still scattered throughout the area.
(voice-over): Whether it's one like this or yellow ribbons lined along her road up to her driveway.
ROBERTS: So comforting when I see that.
PELLETIER: This is leaving a permanent mark on Holland's family and others. As investigators get closer to finding answers, Roberts says the answers may trigger pain but may help solve the mystery at sea.
ROBERTS: To have answers about what happened that may prevent it from ever happening to anybody else's loved one or ship, I think is the most important thing.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CHURCH: That was Jared Pelletier, from affiliate, WGME, reporting from Maine.
Well, the bodies of victims from Saturday's airliner crash are returning home to Russia. Ahead, the sorrow, confusion, and calls for answers from families who have lost loved ones.
U.S. Republican presidential candidates are making new demands for future debates after last week's event. We will tell you what they want. That's next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[02:30:29] CHURCH: A warm welcome back to viewers here in the United States and, of course, around the world. I'm Rosemary Church. I do want to update you on the main stories we have been watching this hour.
U.S. forces are intensifying air strikes on the ISIS stronghold of Sinjar in Iraq ahead of a ground offensive to retake the town. When militants took over a year ago, hundreds from the Yazidi religious minority were killed and thousand of others were forced to run for their lives. Now Yazidi men have joined the battle to drive ISIS out. In a stunning electoral come back, the Turkish president's Justice and
Development Party is claiming victory in snap parliamentary elections held Sunday. The country's prime minister calls the result a victory for democracy. It is Turkey's second vote in five months.
Investigators are trying to figure out what caused an airliner with 224 on board to crash in the Sinai Peninsula. They now believe the plane broke apart before hitting the ground. Metro Jet flight 9268 was flying from the resort town Sham al Sheikh to St. Petersburg in Russia Saturday. A short time ago, a plane carrying 144 bodies arrived in St. Petersburg. Another plane will arrive later in the day.
Right now, of course, people who lost friend and family in that crash are expressing sorrow and frustration. The impromptu memorial at St. Petersburg Airport continues to grow.
International diplomatic editor, Nic Robertson, has more on the anguish in Russia.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ROBERTSON (voice-over): A mother arrives, lays flowers, bares her heart.
"I've just arrived from Siberia," she says. "My daughter was on the plane."
She almost collapses before being helped away.
In her grief, she is not alone. Sunday, declared a day of national mourning. Flower upon flower piling up outside the terminal where Metro Jet flight 2968 was due to land.
Yevgeny lays his flowers, crosses himself. His friend was aboard. He tells us his friend had been waiting five years to make the trip. He had gone with his wife and 6-month-old child. Yevgeny is shocked and devastated.
At a hotel near the airport, families wait for news. Government officials on hand for information and help.
VYACHESLAV MAKAROV, CHAIRMAN, ST. PETERSBURG LEGISLATIVE AUTHORITY: The investigators are currently conducting genetic tests and questioning the relatives of the victims. Tests aside, every individual is being offered medical and psychological support.
ROBERTSON: In St. Petersburg Cathedral --
(SINGING)
ROBERTSON: -- a service to remember the victims. The outpouring of sympathy and support, a measure of how deeply the pain is being felt here.
And back outside the airport, the steady stream of support becomes a flood. The tributes grow. Among the flowers and toys, heartfelt messages and photos of victims.
Nic Robertson, CNN, St. Petersburg, Russia.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CHURCH: Gunmen from the militant group al Shabaab stormed a Mogadishu hotel Sunday. At last 15 people were killed, which began with a suicide car bombing.
Robyn Kriel has the details.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ROBYN KRIEL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: The attack began at dawn Sunday when an al Shabaab suicide bomber drove a car rigged with explosives into Mogadishu's Sahafi Hotel. Gunmen following killed indiscriminately. When first responders arrived to help, a second explosive device was triggered injuring and killing more. Among the dead, a former commander of the Somali National Army, the owner of the hotel, a freelance journalist, and a well-known member of the parliament.
Somali's U.S. trained national intelligence agency special forces entered the hotel after the attack began. Between them and the African Union forces, six al Shabaab attackers were killed. Another three died in the explosion.
Al Shabaab were driven from Mogadishu in 2011 by Somali government forces and African Union forces. However, they're still able to launch bloody attacks within the city on almost a monthly basis.
Robyn Kriel, CNN, in neighboring Kenya.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
[02:35:11] CHURCH: In the United States, there is a revolt under way among the Republican candidates for president, and it is a revolt against their own party. Representatives from all of the campaigns huddled in Washington Sunday night to decide on new rules for future presidential candidate debates. And they shut out leaders from the Republican National Committee. The contenders are especially angry over last week's debate hosted by CNBC. They say it lacked substance and was filled with gotcha questions. Key changes agreed to by candidates campaigns are two-hour debates where each candidate gets 30 second or opening and closing statements and equal speaking time for all candidates. But they failed to agree on having all candidates on the main debate stage or splitting into random groupings. They plan to send their demands to networks this week without input from the Republican National Committee. We'll keep an eye on that.
U.S. Republican Paul Ryan is getting set to tackle the challenges that will come with his new job as speaker of the House. The man who held that position until Friday, John Boehner, announced he was quitting after seeing the party become more and more fractured.
He told CNN's Dana Bash it took some convincing to get Ryan to run for speaker. (BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DANA BASH, CNN CHIEF POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: Let's talk about Paul Ryan. You successfully tried to convince him to run. How did you do it?
REP. JOHN BOEHNER, (R-OH), FORMER SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE: Well, first, I laid every ounce of Catholic guilt I could on him. And --
(CROSSTALK)
BASH: How does that go? Lay some Catholic guilt on me. I want to know what that feels like.
BOEHNER: You have no choice. This isn't about what you want to do. This is about what God wants us to do.
(LAUGHTER)
And God's told me he wants you to do this.
Bash: Pulled the God card, huh?
BOEHNER: Oh, I pulled it all out.
(LAUGHTER)
Listen, Paul was the right guy at the right time. I know he knew he didn't want to do it. He kept telling me he didn't want to do it. But it was obviously to me that, that he was the right person for the job. And I had to do everything I could to convince him.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CHURCH: To sad news now. Fred Thompson, a former U.S. Senator and an actor, died at age 73. His family says he lost a decade-long battle with lymphoma Sunday. Thompson was a Republican who represented the state of Tennessee for nearly 10 years in the Senate. He also briefly campaigned for president in 2008. Outside of politic thousands, Thompson had a long-running role on the TV series "Law & Order." Some of the U.S. Republican presidential candidates offered their condolences on Twitter. Jeb Bush said, "Fred Thompson lived an amazing life. He will be sorely missed." Rand Paul said, "My thoughts and prayers go to Fred Thompson and his family tonight. Rest in peace."
Leaders from three Asian nations held a summit to discuss and hopefully resolve their differences, some dating as far back as World War II. We'll have the details for you coming up.
Plus, Myanmar is just days away from an historic election. And some voters have waited a generation for the opportunity to cast their ballots. We'll take a look at that and more. Do stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK) [02:41:38] CHURCH: Leaders from China, Japan and South Korea held a trilateral summit in Seoul on Sunday. The leaders worked on a 16- nation, free-trade agreement as well as a separate three-way trade deal among themselves. South Korea and Japan also met for separate talks on Monday and the leaders agreed to resolve the bitter controversy over "Comfort Women," mostly Korean women who were forced into prostitution at Japanese brothels during World War II. South Korea has accused Japanese leaders of failing to properly atone for the war-time atrocities.
Myanmar is less than a week away from its long-awaited and what will surely be a closely watched election. Opposition leader, Aung San Suu Kyi, drew a massive crowd at a rally in Yangon over the weekend.
Our Ivan Watson was there.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
IVAN WATSON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: This is part of a river of red shirts and flags, supporters of the National League for Democracy, all streaming towards the last big campaign rally before elections, the last big rally, to be held here in Myanmar's largest city, Yangon. The people look like they're in a really good mood right now. It's very festive. A lot of happy faces in the crowds. Because, for these people, it's the first time in a generation that they will get the chance to vote in national elections for their party.
(MUSIC)
WATSON: There literally isn't room to walk here in this crowd that's seated in the heat, patiently waiting for the lady of the lady of the hour --
(SHOUTING)
WATSON: -- Aung Sung Suu Kyi, the leader of the NLD.
(CHEERING)
(APPLAUSE)
AUNG SUNG SUU KYI, MYANMAR OPPOSITION LEADER (through translation): Some people say it is not time for us to achieve real democracy yet. I think it is because they didn't want to give it to us. Everyone deserves democracy.
WATSON: Aung Sung Suu Kyi leads the biggest opposition party in Myanmar. Last time they competed in a national election was in 1990. By all accounts, they won big time. But then the military annulled the results of the vote and placed her and many of her colleagues under arrest for decades.
But the main rival will be the incumbent ruling party, which enjoys the support of the military. And the military is guaranteed to hold on to at least 25 percent of the seats in the next parliament. Meaning, the generals are not going away any time soon.
Ivan Watson, CNN, Yangon.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CHURCH: And to a very different story now. If you just mastered the Gangnam style dance, get ready to learn some new moves. A new dance has people flocking to South Korea.
But as Kathy Novak found out, learning the grooves and the moves to K- pop, well, it isn't easy.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
(SINGING)
KATHY NOVAK, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): If I say K-pop and you are thinking this --
(SINGING)
NOVAK: -- you should know Gangnam style was so three years ago. Now --
(SINGING)
NOVAK: -- it's all about XO.
(SINGING)
NOVAK: If you want to master these moves, come to the place where the stars rehearse --
(SINGING)
[02:45:13] NOVAK: -- and learn from a real K-pop instructor.
(SINGING)
NOVAK: This is serious business, and some people have clearly been practicing.
Me, not so much.
I'm not the only foreigner trying to follow along.
Katya Krichko came all the way from Latvia.
(SINGING)
KATYA KRICHKO, LATVIA RESIDENT: I have been into K-pop like six years. So, finally here, finally, my dream came true.
NOVAK: And Marcus Page is representing the U.S. state of Virginia.
MARCUS PAGE, VIRGINIA RESIDENT: It's really surprising how many people like in my state know who this group is.
(SINGING)
NOVAK: And that is music to the ears of Seoul city government, which partnered with entertainment company, S.M., to offer free classes to foreigners in the hopes it will lure more tourists.
K-pop is a huge cultural export. Along with TV dramas and Korean food like kimchi, they're known as the Korean wave.
(SINGING)
NOVAK: And the city has found 30 percent of foreign tourists are visiting because they want to ride that wave.
"Korean wave tourists tend to stay longer than other visitors," says Kim Jay Jong (ph). "And they return to South Korea more often than other tourists."
Plenty of time then to get this right.
(on camera): I cannot do it. I really can't. It's too hard.
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NOVAK (voice-over): Perhaps it's best left to the experts.
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NOVAK: Kathy Novak, CNN, Seoul.
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CHURCH: Some great moves there.
Well, Halloween weekend is usually a big day at the U.S. box office, but something seemed to scare viewers away from the big screen openings including this new Sandra Bullock film. A full entertainment report coming your way.
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CHINCHAR: I'm Meteorologist Allison Chinchar. You're watching CNN "Weather Watch."
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[02:50:49] CHURCH: Welcome back. The Kansas City Royals are once again World Series champions and kings of the diamond and are once again World Series champions.
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CHURCH: Their fans celebrated back home after the Royals defeated the Mets in New York in game five of the series. It took the Royals' extra innings to get the 7-2 victory. And catcher Salvador Berez was MVP. Sunday night's win is Kansas City's first baseball championship since 1985.
Well, earlier Sunday, in New York City, more than 50,000 runners took to the streets for the world's largest marathon. Stanley Bewat (ph) won the men's division of the race finishing in 2:10:34. In her second New York City victory, Mary Catani (ph) hit the finish line in 2:24:25. Another Kenyan, Jeffrey Kamwaral (ph), came in second in the men's division by just 14 second.
Well, James Bond is back and breaking records at the box office. "Spectre," the 24th installment of the series of the world's top secret agent, set a one day record at the U.K. box office, bringing in $9.9 million. That was Tuesday. Since then, the film pulled in nearly $64 million. That's the largest total ever. And it is bigger than the most successful film in the series "Skyfall." "Spectre" opens in the U.S. Friday.
Kim Serafin joins us now to talk about all of this.
Kim, let's start with the weekend box office. Lots of smiles in the U.K. with the new Bond movie, great success. Not so much good news in the U.S. with its worst Halloween box office in 16 years. What went wrong?
KIM SERAFIN, SENIOR EDITOR, IN TOUCH WEEKLY: Yeah, it was a scary Halloween weekend for a lot of reasons at the box office. Really did not do well. The worst weekend of the year. I think the worst Halloween weekend in 16 years, which is really surprising because two of the movies that opened were Sandra Bullock star, "Our Brand is Crisis" and Bradley Cooper in "Burned" both underperformed. Bradley Cooper's film made $2 million less than expected. There might be too many adult-theme movies opening. There were a lot of movies in October. Not some of the big franchises. Yes, "The Martian" is great. That's holding at one. But some of the other movies, just there might be too many movies out there right now. And really not looking good for -- Sandra Bullock, so much publicity for this movie. And Bradley Cooper just came off of "American Sniper." So, really disappointing.
CHURCH: Very strange for the two stars. You mentioned Sandra Bullock, looking to continue this trend of gender swapping. That's what happened with the last movie you talked about. She has plans to take on George Clooney's role in an all-female "Ocean's Eleven" reboot and we're hearing rumors on who may join her in the lineup. What are you hearing?
SERAFIN: It's interesting, because this gender swapping trend is being talked about everywhere. Coming from Sandra Bullock doing "Our Brand is Crisis," the all female "Ghostbusters." There's talk there could be a James Bond who is female. Not so much. "Spectre" is doing too well. But, yeah, Sandra Bullock will take on George Clooney's role in an "Ocean's Eleven" reboot. Everyone is speculating about who could be in the all-star cast. First name is Jennifer Lawrence. Gary Ross is directing. He directed her in "Hunger Games." Best thing, if you think of the wide variety of actors they have to replace, you have people older, younger, you have Matt Damon, Brad Pitt, Carl Reiner, Andy Garcia. There will be some amazing female A-list actresses in this production.
CHURCH: Got to pick the right ones, right?
Let's finish with a look at Halloween. Some of the celebrities, they stepped out in some of their costumes. What were the standouts?
[02:55:00] SERAFIN: Celebrities always do such a great job on Halloween. Heidi Klum as Jessica Rabbit, unrecognizable. She documented how she wore prosthetics to look like Jessica Rabbit. She looked like a cartoon, a living cartoon. Kim Kardashian went as Kim Kardashian, a throwback to her pregnant with her first child. Ellen DeGeneres, continuing the Kardashian trend, went as the long-lost, lesser known Kardashian sister, Karla Kardashian, which is very funny. Neil Patrick Harris took his whole family and they went as "Star Wars." We'll see a lot more "Star Wars" as we get closer to the holidays. And Lebron James went as Prince and performed "Purple Rain." Halloween is great for celebrities, for sure.
CHURCH: It is. They have a lot of fun. We have all packed away our costumes and our decorations until the following year.
Kim Serafin, many thank you. Appreciate it.
SERAFIN: Thank you so much.
CHURCH: Haitians honored and remembered their deceased loved ones Sunday with a Day of the Dead celebration. Dozens gathered at the national cemetery in Port-au-Prince for the tradition. The Day of the Dead is celebrated across Latin America and the Caribbean. In Haiti, there is often a voodoo twist with bones, rum, and a black cross.
There is more CNN NEWSROOM still to come. We will have all of the top stories from around the world after this very short break. Stay with us.
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