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Macron: Aid To Lebanon Will Have "Full Transparency"; International Offers Of Aid Pouring Into Lebanon; White House Advisers Urge The Public To Wear Masks; New Model: U.S. Death Toll Could Reach 300,000 By December; Moment of Blast Captured on Church Camera; Anger Growing over Reports of Ignored Warnings; Trump Signs Order Banning TikTok, WeChat in 45 Days; India Surpasses Two Million COVID-19 Cases; Germany Adopts Massive Testing Plan for Tourists; Message of Hope. Aired 1-2a ET
Aired August 07, 2020 - 01:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
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[01:00:18]
ROBYN CURNOW, CNN ANCHOR: Hi, everyone. Good to have you along. I'm Robyn Curnow. You're watching CNN live from CNN's World News headquarters here in Atlanta.
So ahead this hour, tensions rise in Beirut following that deadly blast. Protesters demand answers to what caused the explosion. And a new warning for parts of the U.S. that could bet some states could be on the brink of yet another surge of coronavirus cases. Plus, TikTok live to see another day, but President Trump's latest executive order could certainly complicate things for Americans. There is a deadline.
So as Beirut begins the daunting task of cleaning up its shattered city, the Lebanese government is promising a transparent investigation into the blast but there are growing calls for an independent international investigation. According to the Lebanese National News Agency, at least 16 port employees have been detained. Lebanon Central Bank has ordered a freeze on the accounts of the heads of the Beirut port and Lebanese customs. So far, at least 137 people are dead, 5,000 injured and hundreds sadly are reported missing.
The French President Emmanuel Macron actually toured the devastated city on Thursday. As you can see from these images, he also promised international aid. He called on the government to crack down on corruption.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
EMMANUEL MACRON, FRENCH PRESIDENT (through translation): The requirement of a friend in times of need is to rush to the scene when times are hard. But not to hand out blank checks to a system that is not trusted by the people.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CURNOW: Anti-government protesters have taken to the streets as many say government negligence led to the explosion.
Well Jomana Karadsheh joins me now. And Jomana, hi. As we speak, I know we're going to bring up some live pictures from the blast scene there. That is the scene in Beirut at the moment, staggering destruction. And this anger over what we see here is certainly going to try and propel people over the next few days and months.
JOMANA KARADSHEH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I mean, the question here, Robyn is that so many Lebanese are asking is how much more can this population take? I mean, this is the latest, most devastating incident, of course, but it's the latest in what they see as their governments, consecutive governments, their political -- politicians, ruling elites and competence inability to govern this country to provide them with the life that they deserve. I mean, anger is really building amongst the Lebanese right now, because they just cannot believe, Robyn, that this happen.
This was preventable. And they blame this, at this point, on government, on the negligence from authorities, from officials. And, you know, if you look at what has been going on in the country, you can understand how angry they are right now with their political elite. You know, we saw these demonstrations at Lebanon start in October of last year, that popular uprising, you know, the country is on the brink of bankruptcy and that has impacted the lives of almost everyone in that country.
You saw the Lebanese pound, the Lira, losing much of its value. Basically, people's life-savings became, you know -- they've lost their life-savings that they could not access anymore because of capital controls. You've got the price of basic goods, food skyrocketed. People are going hungry because of the inflation in the country. And they blame all of this on these decades, years of economic mismanagement, corruption that is endemic in the country.
And you know, they have been calling for a complete change in overall of the political system and that has not happened. So the question is now, is anything going to come out of this? Is this the final straw? We have to wait and see.
But, you know, one thing, one demand that we are hearing over and over right now is they want accountability. They want to have a real transparent, independent investigation because anything that comes from the Lebanese authorities is not something that this population is going to accept or believe. And they want an independent body to investigate what happened and to try and give them the answers.
[01:05:07]
They are looking for, Robyn, of why did this happen. How was it allowed to happen and who is responsible for this?
CURNOW: Jomana Karadsheh there, thanks so much.
So the aftermath of the explosion is being felt across the city. Streets filled with shattered glass and debris the blast impacted nearly every home and business. And yet CNN's Ben Wedeman shows us how many in the community are wasting no time jumping into action, determined to rebuild, even amidst all of this anger and trauma.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BEN WEDEMAN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): For Beirut residents, life is now divided between what came before and what came after. A staff member of the Barbell House gym captured these images on his phone. He was unharmed. Shiva Karout is a trainer in the gym.
SHIVA KAROUT, TRAINER, BARBELL HOUSE GYM: As soon as I saw that nothing happened to me, I went out, run to the gym, try to start helping people out. A lot of people were wounded. A lot of people were on the floor, disoriented. We just picked them up and put them outside, took them to the hospital.
WEDEMAN (voice-over): Less than two days later, with blood still on the weights, gym members are doing the heavy lifting to restore a semblance of routine. In the Mar Maroun Maronite Church, the priest conducts a live streamed mass, cut short by the tremor, and then the crash of shattering glass.
Father Marwan Mouawad was sitting in the pews and immediately assumed it was a political assassination in the streets outside.
MARWAN MOUAWAD, PRIEST (through translation): We thought God save us. God save us, he recalls. We wanted to get out of here with the least possible damage.
WEDEMAN (voice-over): Glass shards tore into the pews mostly empty Tuesday evening because of coronavirus restrictions. Two stained glass panels were spared. One depicting Jesus, the other Mar Charbel, a Lebanese saint renowned for miracles. Not a miracle but perhaps a glimmer of hope that Lebanon spirit is far from broken is on vivid display in the crowded streets of Mar Mikhael, the neighborhood next to the port.
Social distancing has been sacrificed in the effort to cling to a spirit of community. In a land where the very system of government is based upon divisions between the countries, 18 officially recognized religious sex. Their work done for the day and ad hoc volunteer crew heads home, singing a popular song with the refrain, Lebanon will come back.
The city is bruised, bleeding and battered, but unbowed.
Ben Wedeman, CNN, Beirut.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CURNOW: Thanks, Ben, for that.
So Office of -- International Office of Aid for Lebanon are pouring in. We know that France, Turkey, the U.K., the U.S., the UAE and Israel are all helping and some nongovernmental agencies are on the ground right now. We know the need is urgent as you've heard from our guests and widespread. Many people had already lost their jobs and their savings.
Plus, operations at the port are now paralyzed because of the explosion. And that's the main route for food imports. Here's Isa Soares.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ISA SOARES, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Amidst the rubble, an expression of sympathy and the promise of support.
MACRON (through translation): In the coming days, we will organize more support in France and on a European level. I would like to organize European cooperation and more widely international cooperation.
SOARES (voice-over): The French President is the first world leader to visit the blast site, is offer of help, though, came with a warning.
MACRON (through translation): For months and years now, France has been demanding indispensable reforms in certain sectors, energy, government procurement, and the fight against corruption. If these reforms are not carried out, Lebanon will continue to sync. ' SOARES (voice-over): With each passing hour, the scale of the devastation becomes clearer. So, too, does the immense need for global response to the crisis. The European Union has already pledged almost $14 million. Italy has already dispatched plane loads of medical aid and rescue workers, Turkey, too, has sent humanitarian aid along with teams to scour the rubble for survivors.
From the United Kingdom, a message of condolence from the royal family, along with a government pledged of nearly $7 million and humanitarian assistance.
DOMINIC RAAB, BRITISH FOREIGN SECRETARY: We are going to stand by the Lebanese people in their time of need.
SOARES (voice-over): Many other countries including Kuwait, Jordan, Saudi Arabia and Iran have made contributions. The U.S. says it will send aid too.
[01:10:00]
MIKE POMPEO, U.S. SECRETARY OF STATE: We stand ready to assist the government of Lebanon and it's -- as it grapples with this horrible tragedy,
SOARES (voice-over): But even before the blast, Lebanon's economy was in freefall. With anti-government protests, skyrocketing unemployment, and a plummeting currency. Then came the coronavirus pandemic. And now this.
For a country that had slowly pulled itself out of the ruin of a civil war, the events of this week are a catastrophic setback. And once again, Lebanon finds itself dependent on foreign aid to try to rebuild.
Isa Soares, CNN.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CURNOW: A Lebanese American filmmaker has started our own fundraising efforts to help people rebuild their homes. Her name is Jude Chehab, and she joins us now from Beirut to tell us what she's doing. Jude, good to see you. You're in Beirut. How are you going to try and raise money in the midst of all of this?
JUDE CHEHAB, LEBANESE-AMERICAN FILMMAKER: I mean, we've been working on the ground daily in the neighborhoods that have been most affected. We're trying to help people evacuated a lot of migrant workers, aiding them, giving them places to stay. Over 300,000 people are homeless right now. And so just kind of evacuating them and giving them the means to carry on at least for the time being.
CURNOW: And what are people saying to 300,000 people homeless, and this is across demographics and, you know, and income, because if you were close, if your apartment or your hotel or whatever was close to that blast, you are now homeless. Where are people going? How are they finding shelter? How are they managing get through the night?
CHEHAB: I mean, a lot of people have opened up their homes, it really is the Lebanese way. Everyone's come together. Everyone has to say outside of Beirut, that's what a lot of people are having to do. And just people opening up their doors for the people that don't have houses saved for the night.
CURNOW: And what have people told you?
CHEHAB: They're hopeless. I mean, everyone is tired. Lebanese people are tired. They've had enough, from the revolution in October to the pandemic, to the forest fire, to the economic crisis. Our Lebanese pound has no value. To our government giving us two hours of electricity a day. And then this, I mean, it really is the last straw.
Everyone, just enough is enough. You know, we're sick of the government that does not feel like it's our government. They've done enough damage. And I think everyone just feels incredibly hopeless at this point.
CURNOW: We've spoken about anger, about protests, where does that go? Particularly in the midst of this sort of crumbling of the city, you know, how do you channel that if you're angry?
CHEHAB: It's hard to do that. I mean, we saw what happened in the revolution. We saw what came out of that and they really just put new people in that have different names, but they still work the same work, and so it's hard to stay hopeful. The government is stubborn and no -- they have no political will, whatsoever or a form of resignation. And so, they aren't talking to the people. I mean, when the French President came yesterday and when he went down to the affected areas, and he started hugging people and even forgot for a second about COVID, you know, people felt hopeful for a minute because we have no one from our government doing the same thing.
CURNOW: You're young and you're a filmmaker. How does perhaps telling stories make a difference here?
CHEHAB: I mean, it always makes a difference. This is our story. And these are images and it's so important to get our voice out. And I think that that's what we need right now, is to get our voice out so we can demand the justice that we've been demanding for decades.
CURNOW: So what next? What do you -- it's early morning there. What's your day going to look like?
CHEHAB: We're meeting up in about 30 minutes to go to Karantina, one of the mostly affected areas. We're picking up the rebel. We're getting a group of women that are dedicated to do this. We're spending full days -- last night we were there until 10:00 p.m.
The work really doesn't stop, we're waking up early. We're just -- we're helping the best ways we can. We're also just -- we're civilians. You know what I mean? We're not organizations. We're not big corporations. And so, we're just trying to help each other out.
CURNOW: What's the most powerful story you've heard?
CHEHAB: Yesterday we helped a group of five migrant workers that have been in Lebanon for over 18 years. Their face is completely damaged from the explosion, and they've been in Lebanon for over 20 years and no one came to help them. And so, you know, yesterday we just -- we'd try to get them to a place of safety and evacuate all of their means and it was painful to watch. They have to leave Lebanon in a month. There's no more hope for the country. There's no point of staying here.
CURNOW: Well, thank you for talking to us. Continue your good work. Fight the good fight. Thank you very much. Jude Chehab, thank you.
CHEHAB: Thank you.
CURNOW: So if you'd like to help the victims of Tuesday's blast in Beirut, we've made it easy. And like Jude is doing, people just need to clean up.
[01:15:04]
So you can log on to impact the world website at cnn.com/impact. Some groups are still assessing their needs. Some civilians like Jude are doing what they can. And hopefully, you can connect with the right people. So again, the address is cnn.com/impact.
Well coronavirus is stealing the lives of thousands of Americans each day. Researchers say it's going to get exponentially worse, but they say there's a guaranteed way to slow those numbers. It's an easy one. That's next.
Plus, another view of the horrifying Beirut explosion as a nanny uses her body to shield the children in her care. That's next too.
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CURNOW: New numbers from Johns Hopkins, more than 160,000 people in the U.S. have now died from the coronavirus. And some researchers say that number could nearly double by the end of the year. The Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation is predicting nearly 300,000 U.S. deaths by December, but they say tens of thousands of lives could be saved if 95 percent of Americans consistently wear masks.
Now, the CDC is urging people to avoid masks with volts or vents like these. Take a look at this because many of you might be wearing these in good faith. That's because the point is actually to stop respiratory droplets from spreading in the air and these vents don't help. Meanwhile, the U.S. President says he's hopeful about a vaccine.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You said that a vaccine could be ready around November 3rd. Are you optimistic that that will happen? And will that give you a boost in the election?
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: On the vaccine?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.
TRUMP: I am. I'm optimistic that it'll be probably around that date. I believe we'll have the vaccine before the end of the year, certainly. But around that date, yes, I think so.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CURNOW: The top U.S. infectious disease doctor says it's time for the country to get serious in order to lower infection rates by November. Martin Savidge has this report. Martin.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DR. ANTHONY FAUCI, DIRECTOR, NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF ALLERGY & INFECTIOUS DISEASES: This is a predictor of trouble ahead.
MARTIN SAVIDGE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Experts worry about the percentage of positive test results in the country, on the rise in 33 states. In a private call with state and local officials, White House Coronavirus Task Force Coordinator Dr. Deborah Birx outlining areas in danger.
DR. DEBORAH BIRX, WHITE HOUSE CORONAVIRUS TASK FORCE RESPONSE COORDINATOR: We are concerned that both Baltimore and Atlanta remain at a very high level. Kansas City, Portland, Omaha, and of course what we talked about in the Central Valley.
SAVIDGE (voice-over): The nation's top infectious disease expert Dr. Anthony Fauci warning even a small uptick, a fraction of a percent is a problem.
FAUCI: It's a clear indication that you are getting an uptick in cases which inevitably, as we've seen in the southern states, leads to surges and then you get hospitalizations, and then you get deaths.
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SAVIDGE (voice-over): Louisiana and Mississippi topped the list of states with the highest per capita rate. Dr. Fauci says it's still possible to get coronavirus down to manageable levels by the November election if people do the right things like wear masks.
Across the country, states, cities even sports are cracking down on people doing the wrong things. The governor of Rhode Island is asking residents to report people gathering in large numbers not wearing masks. And in Los Angeles County were infections among young people 18 to 29 have nearly quadrupled since June. The mayor of Los Angeles, he's authorizing the city to shut up water and power to properties where big parties are held.
Health officials are appealing to young people to be the solution, not the problem.
FAUCI: Don't be the weak link in the chain. Be a very strong part of the chain of ultimately getting us down.
SAVIDGE (voice-over): Major League Baseball also cracking down after COVID outbreaks on two teams. New rules threaten players with suspension for failing to wear a mask at all times when not on the field and requires that surgical or N95 masks be worn while players are on buses and airplanes. Cloth masks are not allowed. When on the road, players and coaches also have to get permission before leaving the hotel. And college football could face its own challenges.
MARK EMMERT, PRESIDENT, NATIONAL COLLEGIATE ATHLETIC ASSOCIATION: I think it's going to be very dependent upon what we do as Americans. You know, the trend lines right now of course are very challenging. In some parts of the country, they're awful.
SAVIDGE (voice-over): Martin Savidge, CNN, Atlanta.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CURNOW: Dr. Jorge Rodriguez is an internal medicine and viral specialist, joins me now from Los Angeles. Dr. Rodriguez, good to see you again. So what do you make of this latest projection that up to 300,000 people could die by December here in the U.S.? It's mind- boggling.
DR. JORGE RODRIGUEZ, INTERNAL MEDICINE AND VIRAL SPECIALIST: It is mind-boggling. And it's, at least, accurate, if not a little bit under what may happen. Listen, we've been having at least 1,000 cases over the past week, and that continues for the next 120, 150 days, which takes us to December, we will easily unfortunately hit 300,000.
My concern is that we are starting then to go into the winter months and all projections are that it could be worse during that time. So the time to make a difference was actually yesterday. But today is second best to really start wearing your mask and making, you know, a dent in this upkeep that we have in cases.
CURNOW: Yes. It is just an uptick on those graphs. It's daunting to look at. I want to talk about, you know -- there's studies coming out of everywhere at the moment and it's difficult to figure out which ones you really want to pay attention to. We're hearing one coming out of Hong Kong, which says the coronavirus infection appears to suppress the function of these important immune system cells. I mean, do we know that already that this is preventing the body from fighting off infection? And what do you -- what new are you learning from that particular study?
RODRIGUEZ: Well, what we're learning is that a specific type of white blood cell called the T lymphocyte. Now, there are many, it's very complicated. There are many different types of white blood cells. This is the type of cell that makes antibodies, this is the type of cells that sometimes remembers that you've had an infection and keeps it as a memory and helps fight it.
If someone has weakened T-cells, which by the way, is what the HIV virus attacks, then maybe they cannot mount a response. So we're getting a lot of information fast and furious. We're seeing -- we're appearing to know where the virus is attacking and what responsive causes and we shouldn't right now in too much on this because it is just one step in a huge ladder that's going to eventually tell us how the virus attacks, who would attacks the most. And if we know that, we can then maybe find out what population might be at greater risk. So this is just one piece of a puzzle that is quickly becoming evidence.
CURNOW: And also importantly how to treat it.
RODRIGUEZ: Yes.
CURNOW: I know we just heard our reporter talk about school closures and that sort of thing. I know this is a question that's been felt across the world. A British official, you know, I heard said that school should be the last to close and the first to open. Parents are agonizing about the school reopenings particularly here in the U.S.
But I find it interesting that, you know, a place like Georgia, tattoo parlors, beauty salons, bowling alleys are all open. So you can take your kids to a concert at Billy Bob's Texas Honky Tonk. I kid you not with 1,000 people, you know, all gathering watching a concert, but you can't take your kids to school. And there seems to be a disconnect between what is important. Shouldn't clubs and pubs be closed and schools be open?
RODRIGUEZ: Actually, right now, I think that right now they should all be closed, to be honest.
CURNOW: Everything?
[01:25:04] RODRIGUEZ: Yes, I do. Because we don't really know enough but I think you absolutely hit on a very important point. There is a disconnect. And part of the disconnect is that some people's freedom, quote unquote, they defined it as being able to do what they want and have fun. And children are sacred, obviously. And we don't want them to be at risk.
But this is the problem here in the U.S. We need to be consistent with our policies across the board. Closed spaces, not good, great number of people, not good, whether that's in a school or in a bar. We need to be consistent. You hit it right on the head.
CURNOW: OK. Dr. Rodriguez, always good to speak to you. Thanks for your expertise and all the work you're doing as well. Appreciate it.
RODRIGUEZ: Thank you.
CURNOW: So just ahead, we will go back to Beirut for more on the blast and its aftermath. And we'll get the story behind this video from a Greek Orthodox Church. Stay with us for that.
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CURNOW: Thanks for joining me. I'm Robyn Curnow. You're watching CNN. We want to show you some of this very powerful video. Now, take a look at this. It's the moment of the explosion in Beirut. It's captured on a security camera inside a Greek Orthodox Church.
The church is little more than six kilometers from downtown Beirut. Thankfully, no one was there when the blast went off. On the video though, it looks like everything in the church was impacted except the altar.
Well, Father Youil Nassif serves at the church and he's on the line now from Beirut. Father Nassif, thank you for speaking to us. That video from --
FATHER YOUIL NASSIF, BEIRUT, LEBANON: Thank you very much.
CURNOW: That video from inside your sacred place, what does it make you feel when you see it?
NASSIF: Honestly, I think you saw the video, the explosion in the church, and at the same time the altar it remained intact. You know, in times of crisis, we search for a light and the darkness or a sign or anything. I felt it was like a sign that God was -- will not leave us and I sent it up to share this with my parishioners.
That's why I made the post on Facebook to show that the altar remains intact. You can see the Holy lamp (ph), you can see the Holy Chalice, the Chalice of the Holy Bible, it didn't move. So I don't know what to tell you, rebuilding or repairing or restoring now, the church. The parish is helping us.
We have thousands and hundreds of people coming every day to tell us what do we need, how can we help, et cetera. So we feel God will not leave us. Maybe our government did, but God will not.
[01:29:53]
So we will rebuild. It's not the first time we rebuilt this church. We will build it another time.
ROBYN CURNOW, CNN ANCHOR: That is a very powerful statement. You feel like God won't abandon you but the government did. And it is also so interesting and so powerful that the icons and the religious paintings and the altar, as you say, managed to be intact.
You also seemed grateful that nobody was in the church at that time. Nobody seems to be injured.
FATHER NASSIF: In general, we do our services at 6:00 p.m. That day, we decided to pray at 4:00 p.m. because the doors were shot, you know, due to corona, et cetera -- COVID-19.
So I don't know why we chose to start at 4:00. We left at 5:00. I left 6:00, exactly. The explosion occurred at 6:08. So I believe it was a miracle. If we were in the church, maybe, I guess we would have many deaths.
And at the same time, as you saw, the icons, they were still at place. All the materials, the instruments and the altar, they remained at place.
As I said, I thought it was like a sign like God telling us, I will be by your side. You can call me naive, but at least that is what I said, and that is what I am saying now.
So that is what happened. I think we should not talk about this disaster. We should talk about a disaster that didn't happen. What happened very, very small -- very little compared to what could have happened. So thank God we're living.
CURNOW: You have faith. You're not naive. I think you made very powerful statements there. What are your parishioners saying to you? And how are you giving them comfort?
FATHER NASSIF: Sorry, I couldn't hear you.
CURNOW: What are your parishioners saying to you?
FATHER NASSIF: Where were my parishioners.
CURNOW: Yes. What are the people who worship with you and in that church -- what are they telling you. And obviously they were very affected by this as well.
FATHER NASSIF: You know, every person in my parish can tell you a miracle that happened. Many left the explosion minutes before and many could take shelter under something, et cetera, et cetera.
Everyone can tell a small miracle. That's why I say we can talking about a disaster that didn't happen, not a disaster that happened. What happened was nothing compared to what would have happened.
So we are rebuilding. What can say other than that. We have heavy damage in the church. We have two centers here. It's not just about the church. We have two centers for elderly people and there was no one. We have another center for children who come and take afternoon classes. And no one was there at the same time.
So, we just had like 20 or 30 persons. They were injured but small, small casualties. So it's ok. As I said we are living, no one is dead. Thank God, we can say that's a miracle.
CURNOW: You feel blessed. What does it feel like though looking at Beirut beyond your church? The destruction you see at the port and, you know, the fact that every building seems to have been damaged. How does that make you feel?
FATHER NASSIF: You know, I don't know how we will rebuild Beirut. You know our economy is still a crisis. We are passing by (ph) right now. We know -- you know about our government. No one is -- by us, no one helping us. I don't know how we will rebuild Beirut.
Beirut, we need two, three, four, five, ten years to be rebuilt. We need hundreds of billions of dollars to rebuild Beirut. And right that we have nothing. So I don't know that we will do.
We will do our best. We will work. I don't know. We really don't know. The people are confused here. We have faith in God. We have faith God has never left us. He will not leave us.
But at the same time, I don't know how to express it, but no one is, next to us, at least nothing here inside Lebanon. Our government is our problem. It is not a solution. The government should be the solution.
So we are facing many problems. The biggest problem is our government. So I don't know what to say more than that.
CURNOW: But you are a man of faith. And thank you for sharing your story. God bless you as well. And I am so glad that so many of you got out safely.
FATHER NASSIF: Thank you very much.
CURNOW: Appreciate it. Father Nassif, thank you for joining us. Good luck.
FATHER NASSIF: Thank you. Thank you.
[01:34:47]
CURNOW: So there are some things that just won't wait, even when everything is falling apart. And babies are one of those things, as we will see in this video. A woman was giving birth in a Beirut hospital when the explosion ripped through the building as if labor isn't enough and isn't difficult enough.
The baby boy is named George. And both he and his mom are fine. The dad's first baby video was quite something.
And here is another view of the moments of the explosion. A nanny and some children were watching the fire at the port from a window when the blast went off and the shockwave hit their building.
They were on the 17th floor. You see the nanny here, shielding two of the children while another stumbles in confusion after the impact. Obviously, a very frightening experience for all of them and their mom, who is now very relieved that they are all safe.
And as we've over and over again anger is growing in Beirut, in Lebanon over reports of these ignored warnings of the storage of highly explosive compounds at the scene of the blast. Now calls for accountability and government reform are growing as well as our Arwa Damon now reports from Beirut.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ARWA DAMON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Could there be anyone left alive? It's a hope dozens of family members of the missing cling to. Knowing that it's unlikely, but not wanting to accept that their loved one could be gone.
Others are laid to rest. Lives utterly shattered in the trail of destruction by Tuesday's explosion in Lebanon's capital city. Those who survived are trying to pick up the pieces.
Glass and debris crunch below the feet of an army of volunteers, stepping in, where the government is not. Attempting to clear the rubble of billions of dollars of damage. They urge each other on, but for others, it is all just too much.
The intensity of the emotional rollercoaster that is being Lebanese has left them hollow shells.
"What should we feel," asks one resident? "You cannot feel anything in Lebanon. There's nothing to be sad about anymore," he says.
As the cleanup continues, a rage grows across the country at how a new disaster could happen. Still, without any clear explanation or apology.
As French president Emmanuel Macron toured the wreckage, the first foreign leader to set foot here, he was surrounded by hundreds of Lebanese calling for a revolution -- urging him, begging him, to do something. He vowed that France would stand with the Lebanese people, but cautioned its leaders.
EMMANUEL MACRON, FRENCH PRESIDENT (through translator): The requirement of a friend in times of need is to rush to the same when times are hard, but not to hand out blank checks to a system not trusted by the people.
DAMON: From outside and inside the country, demands for answers grow louder, as calls emerged for an independent probe into the situation. This is not just about accountability or how the country is going to rebuild emotionally and physically. It's about how it's going to find its soul.
Arwa Damon, CNN -- Beirut.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CURNOW: So coming up, it might not be long before TikTok and WeChat are offline in the U.S. The U.S. President is sticking to his promise to ban the social media apps.
We will talk all about that, next.
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CURNOW: So the U.S. President has officially cracked down on the Chinese owned social media apps TikTok and WeChat. He just signed an executive order banning the apps from operating in the U.S. within 45 days unless they are sold. He says TikTok and WeChat are effectively spyware.
The executive order comes just after the Secretary of State Mike Pompeo announced the expansion of so-called clean network plan which is an attempt to block Chinese technology from the U.S. Internet.
Hadas Gold takes a look now at TikTok and why it is so popular.
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HADAS GOLD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: For many people around the world, TikTok has become a why it is so popular.
For many people around the world, TikTok has become a lifeline of joy.
JAKE SWEET, TIKTOK STAR: People rely on this app for happiness sometimes. I can read hundreds of thousands of comments from my videos online that would say like this video like really made my day. I get messages all the time saying, like you've really help me like during hard times.
GOLD: The app, owned by Chinese company ByteDance changed British 22- year-old Jake Sweet's life after he joined and amassed nearly seven million followers. Not many Chinese owned apps have reached such global success.
But after ByteDance bought the musical.ly app, merged it under TikTok and launched worldwide, it hit one billion downloads by the following February. As it rose in the app charts, controversy followed.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Hi, guys. I want to teach you guys how to --
GOLD: It's been accused of censorship, temporarily suspending the account of a 17-year-old girl last November, who went viral for a video she made criticizing the Chinese government and its Uighur detention centers.
The company said the teen's account had been suspended due to a post on her other countand apologized, blaming the decision on human error.
At the same time, U.S. lawmakers were warning that the app could pose a national security threat, saying it was putting Americans' data in the hands of the Chinese government. A national security review was soon underway.
TikTok said in a statement that it stores all U.S. user data in the United States and backs it up in Singapore, and would never share data with the Chinese government. By December, the Pentagon urged military personnel to delete the app from government issued smartphones and some branches followed up with outright bans.
In June 2020, India went further, completely banning the app in the country, claiming it poses a threat to sovereignty and integrity.
But several cybersecurity experts tell CNN that though TikTok's Chinese ownership is worthy of concern, most of its data just wouldn't be that useful for real espionage.
EVA GALPERIN, DIRECTOR OF CYBER SECURITY, ELECTRONIC FRONTIER FOUNDATION: This is mostly a political move. But It is based around a tiny seed of something, which could be a real concern.
If you are again, an activist in Hong Kong. If you are a whistleblower on, you know, Chinese government corruption, I would not recommend installing TikTok on your phone. If you are a soldier deployed in north Africa or the Middle East by the United States, I would not recommend installing TikTok on your phone.
But, you know, for example a dancing teenager, probably it's fine.
GOLD: As the app becomes a diplomatic flash point, TikTok's legions of influencers and fans desperately hope this won't be their last dance.
Hadas Gold, CNN -- London.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CURNOW: Ok. We have an update for you. Coronavirus, of course, is continuing its deadly path around the world. And now the World Health Organization says the virus is affecting more young people.
And with the number of teens and young adults getting sick, it is increasing by six-fold. We know that Peru, Columbia, Argentina -- each reported a record number of new cases on Thursday.
And there are now more than a million cases across Africa, more than half in South Africa. That is according to Johns Hopkins University. And Japan recorded nearly 1,500 new cases on Thursday. It's the second highest daily number since the outbreak began.
And India has now become the third nation on earth to surpass two million confirmed coronavirus cases. The health ministry there announced that figure just a short time ago. It is a grim milestone that only the U.S. and Brazil, have reached so far.
So let's bring in CNN's Vedika Sud from New Delhi with the latest on that.
So this certainly is a milestone that India does not want to hit.
[01:44:51]
VEDIKA SUD, CNN PRODUCER: Of course, it doesn't and like you rightly mentioned the third most affected country in the world, the death toll is over 41,500 making us the fifth most affected country as far as the death toll is concerned across the globe.
Now, that the government has also stated is that while we have a population of 1.3 billion people, India being the second most populated country in the world, the active cases stand at just about 32 percent of the total cases which means 68 percent of the cases have already recovered.
So that is something that has been put up as a defense by the government as well as far as official numbers are concerned. What is worrying though is this fact that it took India about six months to get to the one million milestone. It took it another 12 days to add an additional half a million cases, and then then days to get to two million mark.
Another reason for this perhaps could be that India is not testing aggressively. It's tented about 22 million samples until now. But the worry is that given our population, which is huge, this perhaps is not enough is what even experts say.
Another point to be mentioned here is the fact that India being a huge country has so many states and union territories, each state is reaching a peak at a different time. Many haven't reached the peak yet.
And therefore you could see these numbers going up in the coming days, weeks, and unfortunately months, Robyn.
CURNOW: Ok. Thanks for that. The latest there from New Delhi by Vedika Sud. Thank you.
SUD: Thanks.
CURNOW: Germany has announced a new coronavirus testing plan designed to allow tourism while preventing the spread of the disease. Starting this weekend, anyone traveling to Germany is required to take a coronavirus test and the government is actually paying for it.
So here is Fred Pleitgen with that story.
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FRED PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: It's the new normal for anyone arriving at German airports. Get your suitcase and then get the coronavirus test.
Toby Rosen just got back home to Berlin.
TOBY ROSEN, TRAVELER: The line seemed pretty short, probably like 30 minutes or so. And I think we get results in the next 24 hours.
PLEITGEN: Germany is offering all travelers arriving here free coronavirus tests. And starting Saturday, people coming from high-risk areas will be required to get tested on arrival.
The German government says it doesn't want the situation here to deteriorate for instance the way it has in the United States with tens of thousands of new cases every day. That's why they are taking the drastic step of offering everyone who enters the country a coronavirus test.
Germany has the capacity for about 1.2 million tests per week, official data shows. And berlin says the pandemic remains under control here. There has only been one day with more than a thousand new infections in the past three months.
Even as President Trump continues to falsely claim the U.S. Is doing better than countries like Germany.
TRUMP: And if you look at deaths --
JONATHAN SWAN, AXIOS: Yes. It started to go up again.
TRUMP: Well, right here, the United States is the lowest in numerous categories. We are lower than the world.
SWAN: Lower than the world?
TRUMP: Lower than Europe.
SWAN: In what? In what?
TRUMP: Take a look. Right here. Here is case deaths.
SWAN: Oh, you are doing death as a proportion of cases. I am talking about death as a proportion of population. That's where the U.S. is really bad, much worse than South Korea, Germany, et cetera.
PLEITGEN: Johns Hopkins data shows that both South Korea and Germany indeed have a much lower number of coronavirus deaths per 100,000 residents. Today, Germany's health minister said that drastic increase in testing is part of a broad strategy to prevent new lockdowns and to save lives.
"In my view it arises from an obligation for us as a society to look after and protect each other," he says.
And there are other strict measures in place. Travelers from high-risk countries who are not residents of Europe are banned from coming here altogether. The U.S. is considered a high-risk country, with the Trump administration still failing to contain the outbreak.
Fred Pleitgen, CNN -- Berlin.
(END VIDEOTAPE) CURNOW: Lebanon's health minister says COVID-19 infections may increase in the aftermath of this week's devastating blast. Beirut hospitals, as we've been telling you, have been overwhelmed since the explosion on Tuesday. And the minister is worried that in the wake of the disaster, doctors are interacting with the wounded without personal protective equipment.
So far, Lebanon has had more than 5,400 positive cases of the virus in the past week, averaging about 150 per day. Deaths have been relatively low. A total of 68 deaths to date. We will keep you posted on that.
Meanwhile on CNN, coming up, surrounded by debris, one Lebanese woman is inspiring other by playing the piano.
Coming up, I speak with the granddaughter about how she is holding on to hope after being knocked down time and time again.
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CURNOW: The video of a Lebanese woman playing her piano, surrounded by debris from the Beirut blast, is certainly striking a chord with people around the world.
May Aboud Melki (ph) returned to her home a day one after the explosion. While the windows were broken and the walls were punctured, her beloved piano was seemingly unscathed. So, she began playing "Auld Lang Syne" while her family and volunteers helped to clean up the debris.
Her granddaughter shared the moment on social media. Take a listen.
(MUSIC)
CURNOW: May-Lee Melki is the granddaughter of Mrs. Melki who was playing in that video. She is the one who posted it on social media and she joins me now from Washington.
You're name is Maye Lee. You are named after your grandmother who is called May. She -- that video that you posted of her playing the piano has touched so many people around the world. Why do you think that is?
MAY-LEE MELKI, POSTED VIDEO OF GRANDMOTHER PLAYING THE PIANO: Honestly, I posted it in a very, very raw moment. I was away from my family. I had just moved to the states a week exactly to the day before the explosion.
And I posted it in a very raw moment, trying to be connected in everything that I was seeing. My heart was wrenched. I really wanted to be there. I wanted to rush. And I knew that their house was destroyed.
My mother sent it to me just to kind of give me a glimpse of just the music still going on. Hey, look at what Grandma is doing, what she loves. And it tore me apart and to tears.
And for me, it was really something to pull me up a bit and to say that the weeks that we spent in the uprising, me and my friends, fighting against corruption, wanting to see a better Lebanon, they thought we were the hope but actually she was the one that was carrying us through even though she has seen so much more tragedy than any of us.
CURNOW: Yes. That generation has seen so much more. She, no doubt has gone through a lot. How has music sustained her?
MELKI: She has played that piano -- that same exact piano that was gifted to her on her wedding day 60 years ago. She's played on it every day since she got it. She found solace in music when she lost her mother at the age of 14. And pushed through the entire civil war raising four kids and maintaining the family together through her music.
And when she walked in for the first time, she rushed to the piano, she dusted, after she said, it's ok. I'm ok. We are going to be ok.
CURNOW: If the piano survived? She just wanted to make sure that was the one thing that made it through in that apartment?
MELKI: Absolutely. And she's says it's the only item.
CURNOW: Was it?
MELKI: Yes. The only item that went unscathed.
(CROSSTALK)
CURNOW: -- in that apartment. I mean are they ever going to be able to go back do you think? Is the piano there now and protected, or has it been removed out of there? Where is she and is she still connected with that piano right now?
[01:54:52]
MELKI: She cannot stay in her apartment obviously because of the devastation. So they are staying away and thankfully our family is able to have another place. And this is something that I do not say lightly. I do not say lightly that she has shelter.
She is able to go somewhere else, her and my grandfather. This is not the case for the hundreds who have lost their loved ones, for the hundreds of souls and for those bodies that they have that are still missing.
And to be honest, it rips our hearts. It's not something that we take lightly. Playing on the piano is a simple gesture fully (ph) strength and pushing through our pain but it is not compared to what is going on.
CURNOW: I want to just play a another clip. Because it moves me, and it moved so many other people over and over again. I just want us to listen to it.
(MUSIC)
CURNOW: There is such a tenderness to the way she is playing. Why did she choose those songs? In particular "Auld Lang Syne"?
MELKI: To be honest, in the 27 years growing up around her, I had never heard her play "Auld Lang Syne" before. I don't know that choice. But what I do know is that in a side conversation I had with her and with my mother, she said it was a way for her to express her sadness in the moment.
She did not know how to express herself. She was not able to speak. And she said that just felt fitting for that moment, and kind of an ode to everything and everyone that was in the desperate, hurting situation right now.
CURNOW: Yes, isn't it -- isn't it strange that a Scottish ballad from the 1700s that talks about, you know, "should old acquaintances be forgot" became so powerful in that moment, you know, in Beirut in 2020. It just spoke across generations and centuries, didn't it?
May-Lee, it also talks about change. That is certainly something the people of Beirut are facing right now. May-Lee thank you so much for joining us. Please send your love to your grandmother and your grandfather and thank them.
MELKI: Will do. Thank you much, Robyn. Thank you.
CURNOW: You've been watching CNN. I'm Robyn Curnow. Thanks so much for the past two hours.
I'm going to hand you over to my colleague Kim Brunhuber who will be here with more on CNN right after this.
Have a lovely day.
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