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Overpass in Mexico Collapsed Leaving 20 People Dead; India's Healthcare System Crushing; China and Russia on Top of G7 Summit; 20 Killed, Dozens Hurt In Mexico City Metro Disaster; Inside The Dangerous World Of Human Smuggling; New Book Compiles Testimony Of Children From United States-Mexico Border; White House Raises Refugee Ceiling To 62,500; Benjamin Netanyahu Looks To Make A Deal; Bill And Melinda Gates File For Divorce. John Defterios' End Of An Era. Aired 3-4a ET

Aired May 04, 2021 - 03:00   ET

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

[03:00:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ROSEMARY CHURCH, CNN ANCHOR (on camera): Hello and welcome to our viewers joining us from all around the world. I'm Rosemary Church.

Just ahead here on CNN Newsroom, rescue efforts are underway in Mexico City. An overpass carrying a subway collapsed killing at least 20 people. We will have a live report on that breaking news.

India reports another deadly week of COVID-19 infections. Now the calls for aid and medical assistance are growing even louder.

And after nearly three decades together, Bill and Melinda Gates announce they are going their separate ways.

UNKNOWN: This is CNN breaking news.

CHURCH: And we are following this breaking news, the death toll from the Mexico City subway disaster is now up to 20, with many others hurt and nearly 50 people hospitalized. The city's mayor says some of the victims are minors.

And we now have surveillance video that shows the moment part of that overpass collapsed. Now, it's only eight seconds long but you can see the train cars coming crashing down with bursts of fire, and then a big cloud of dust and debris. It is horrifying. This accident happens on the city's newest train line called the Golden line.

Emergency crews have been searching for survivors in the wreckage, and we are hearing there are no more people trapped.

So, let's bring our Matt Rivers who is being heading to the scene in Mexico City. He's on the line with us now. So Matt, what more are you learning about this breaking news, and efforts to find survivors? MATT RIVERS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Rosemary. Well, we just heard

from the mayor of Mexico City, Claudia Sheinbaum, within the last hour or half hour or so, this obviously remains a very active scene, with dozens of rescue personnel on site. But it appears that no more people were trapped in this wreckage, which obviously is very good news because when we spoke, when we did our -- I mean, they gave that information last hour, that was still the main concern.

How many people could be inside those collapsed cars? And getting to those people would of course be very difficult given the tenuous, the precarious nature of where those two train cars ended up.

We are on our way to the scene right now, we're not quite at the scene yet, but even just a few blocks away from where we are now you can see there are a ton of emergency vehicles, and still very much an active scene at this point.

Now in terms of the numbers, as you said, 20 people killed so far as a result of this accident. We know that 49 people have been transferred to local hospitals, some 70 people reported injured. But as with so many different types of emergencies like this we do expect those numbers to perhaps go up.

People who are in the hospital injured could end up still losing their lives. Still very much an evolving situation. Then of course, Rosemary, the questions will immediately turn to how and why did this to happen?

I want to show our viewers one more time the video, the surveillance video of when this accident took place. And you can see just show swiftly and dramatically this overpass collapse. And that is going to prompt a lot of questions here in Mexico City about how this infrastructure in a subway line built relatively recently, within the last decade or so, could collapse so spectacularly.

This is a city which unfortunately has a tragic history with collapses like this. This is a place where earthquakes happen quite frequently, and so people are highly sensitive to infrastructure being, you know, not up to par in certain situations. There are already questions floating around on social media right now about how this could have happened.

Those questions will be answered for another day though. For now, the questions -- the focus remains on those people who are injured and killed as a result of this. And we're going to continue to follow the situation in our early morning hours here in Mexico City.

CHURCH: Yes, most definitely the emphasis on those people who survived, those in hospital, those who died in this. But of course, as you say, the big question here is how does the collapse of this magnitude, how is that possible? What sort of level of checks and balances are there for structures like this in Mexico City?

RIVERS: Yes. I mean, it really depends on who you ask in terms of the level of confidence people have in governmental checks and balances and people who, you know, are in charge of monitoring these things. [03:05:00]

You know, there are -- there have been funny situations especially during past earthquake, for example, where buildings that were thought to be up to (Inaudible), for example, ended up collapsing (Inaudible) their lives. There are plenty of examples unfortunately here in Mexico City have cutting corners. I certainly have no idea if that's what happened here, it's far too early to speculate on a possible cause. But those are the questions that people are naturally going to ask because of what we have seen happen in the city before, Rosemary. Those are going to be the questions in people's mind moving forward.

CHURCH: Yes. And they need some answers with this. Matt Rivers joining us on the line near Mexico City near the scene of that accident. We will of course bring you more details on this breaking news as they come i to us.

But moving on now in India's healthcare system is on the verge of collapse under the weight of the worsening COVID crisis there. The country has now topped 20 million infections, second in the world behind the United States. And today is the 13th consecutive day with more than 300,000 new cases. And the death toll has top 3,000 every day for the past week.

The director of UNICEF is calling on other cases to send more medical aid and to lift restrictions on vaccines. And Pfizer is discussing expedited approval of its vaccine in India. The government has postponed exams for medical and nursing students. They are being sent to overwhelmed hospitals to help care for patients there.

And the capital of New Delhi is running out of crematoriums as ambulances line up to drop off bodies. Well, the Indian state to Uttar Pradesh is extending its curfew through May 6.

CNN's Clarissa Ward visited a government-run hospital there and found scenes of profound suffering. And I want to warn our viewers that this material is disturbing, but it's important to note that the families CNN spoke with in this report want you to see the realities of the tragedy this country is confronting.

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CLARISSA WARD, CNN CHIEF INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice over): Anand whales in anguish but no one is listening. His cry just one of many this hospital in Uttar Pradesh state. "My child," he says, "my God, my baby."

Inside the entrance, his son Deepak is fighting for his life. Gasping for air, his body convulsing. There are no doctors attending to him, the handful of medical staff working in this ward are stretched thin to breaking point.

WARD (on camera): This hospital is completely overwhelmed. The doctors say that they have about 55 beds and currently they are treating more than 100 patients. And you can see people are literally just lying on the floor, desperately hoping to get some medical attention.

Thirty-two-year-old Kavita (Ph) says she's been here for four days, begging for oxygen that has not come. "I'm getting anxious," she says, "no one is listening to me here."

WARD: Are you struggling to breathe?

"I'm unable to breathe freely," she tells us. "No one is taking care of me."

In the next room, more than 20 patients are packed in tightly. This is what now passes for the intensive care unit. Family members have taken on the role of primary carer, where medical staff are simply unavailable.

This man complaints, no one will change his wife's soiled bedding. Suddenly, there is a commotion. "Will someone please call the doctor," this man shouts. His mother, 55-year-old Ras Voula (Ph) appears to be slipping away. Her son's work furiously to revive her, a doctor comes in and tells them to stop crowding her. But the family is inconsolable.

"We've been here for six days and only today we got the ventilator for my mother," he tells us, "the oxygen is out we had to bring an oxygen cylinder."

It's a story we here again and again. One man approaches us pleading. His wife can't get a bed, "no one is listening to me, I've tried everything," he says. "Please help me or she will die."

[03:10:09]

I'm not a doctor. I'm so sorry I can't help you. Another man tells us his wife is struggling to breathe outside. They won't let her in. We spot the hospital administrator and ask him what's going on. This man says his wife is dying outside and needs oxygen.

UNKNOWN: No, there is a central line of oxygen.

WARD: He insist that oxygen isn't the problem, but says they are desperately short of staff. Those who do work here risk becoming patients themselves. These men tell us they move a dozen bodies a day.

Have you ever seen anything like this before? Are you not worried to be working here and you're not wearing protective gear?

"We should be wearing proper PPE," they say, "but even the doctors don't have it, so, how can we?" We hear screams coming from the ICU. Ras Voula (Ph) has flatlined again. Her son desperately pumps her chest. A doctor comes in. He takes her pulse, but it's too late.

This time, there is no point in trying to resuscitate. The agony of her sons is shared by so many in this country. Failed by a healthcare system on the brink of collapse and the government accused of mismanaging this crisis. Just a few hundred yards away, the same hospital complex, it's a very

different picture. Orderly lines of people patiently wait to be vaccinated. Following the prime minister's announcement that anyone over 18 can be inoculated.

A state lawmaker is among 600 people getting their vaccine. The hospital administrator and local journalists eagerly standby to capture the moment.

We were just in the hospital over there.

SOMENDRA TOMAR, MEMBER, UTTAR PRADESH LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY: Yes.

WARD: It was shocking to see.

TOMAR: Why?

WARD: It was shocking.

TOMAR: Why?

WARD: Because the conditions are so bad here. Why do you think India has been hit so badly?

The hospital administrator interrupts and warns him that we have been asking too many questions.

Sir, you don't need to coach him on what to say. He's telling him what to say.

TOMAR: ma'am, we are trying to best, and some problems are here, but we are trying. Now condition is better.

WARD: Do you accept that the government has failed its people --

(CROSSTALK)

TOMAR: No, no, no.

WARD: -- in the handling of this crisis?

TOMAR: No, ma'am.

WARD: Because I've been talking to a lot of people and I have to tell you, people are angry. People feel that this didn't need to be so ugly.

"The situation is not only bad here, we're trying to find solutions," he says. We are increasing the number of beds and we are working tirelessly around the clock."

But back in the COVID ward the impact of those efforts is not yet being felt. Ras Voula's (Ph) body is left for nearly an hour before it is finally moved.

India's leaders may promise that everything is being done to end this crisis, but for now, there is no light at the end of the tunnel.

Clarissa Ward, CNN, Meerut, India.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: Shocking scenes there. And joining me now from New Delhi Astha Rajvanshi, is a fellow at the Institute of Current World Affairs, and joins me now. Thank you for talking with us.

ASTHA RAJVANSHI, FELLOW, INSTITUTE OF CURRENT WORLD AFFAIRS: Thanks for having me, Rosemary.

CHURCH: You wrote a truly heartbreaking article for slate about your families battle with COVID-19 in Lucknow, India where your aunt struggled to breathe without sufficient access to medical oxygen, eventually succumbing to the virus. I'm so sorry for your loss. How are you and your family dealing with this tragedy?

[03:14:57]

RAJVANSHI: Yes. I think like many families in India we're very devastated by the loss, and there's also a feeling of frustration and anger because a lot of us feel like we were so helpless and in the end it's a situation that almost identical to so many lives that are now lost to this COVID crisis.

And despite our best efforts, despite being from India's middle class, which is generally more privilege than the poor parts of the country, we were still weren't able to save my aunt. So, I think there is a lot of devastation.

CHURCH: Just horrible. And I want to ask you this, because everyone is asking. People across India. What went wrong in the country? It was completely unprepared for any of this? Not enough oxygen, medical supplies, PPE. How could this happen when the government clearly saw what was going on in other parts of the world? It had a heads up more than any other nation.

RAJVANSHI: That's right. And I've been in India since the pandemic began, and it was almost unbelievable to see the level of ill preparation for the second wave. Experts had been warning us about the effects of the virus in the second wave since February. And in March, we started to see an uptick of cases.

But I think there was a lot of pandemic fatigue and complacency. And because we were seeing a lower number of cases in February the government over declared that we have seen the end of the virus. And we saw across the country mass rallies being held, religious festivals being held, and cricket matches.

I think the general sense of complacency and ill preparation by the government at a time when experts were warning us that we were going to see a rise in cases has now led us to the situation where we're seeing an unprecedented amount of cases and deaths.

CHURCH: And you wrote in your article that India's healthcare system is now fully exposed on social media. But instead of addressing that the government is shutting down criticism. Twitter already complying with official requests to remove any tweets criticizing the government's handling of the pandemic. What should the ramifications be for a government clearly negligent and ill-prepared for a virus that's wreaking havoc across the country?

RAJVANSHI: Yes. It's something that a lot of people are asking in the country. I think people feel a lot of anger and frustration at least in my aunt's case in the city of Lucknow in the state of Uttar Pradesh, the government all but denied that there was even any oxygen shortages at the same time that the hospital was telling us that that was the case.

So, the ratifications are huge because people are losing their lives and it's a situation that could have been entirely prevented. The government had many, many months to prepare. It had even invested millions of dollars in setting up oxygen plants that actually never ended up being set up in the end.

And that's why resulting in such an acute shortage of oxygen supply across the country now. I think we will continue to see this devastation in the next couple of weeks. We haven't even hit up peak yet according to experts.

CHURCH: That is just horrifying. And what about vaccinations. India was exporting those vaccinations, rather than vaccinating its own population. What are the people across India are saying about that?

RAJVANSHI: There is a lot of anger and disbelief again. I mean, India is -- the prime minister touted India as the pharmacy of the world and has been exporting, as you rightly said, vaccines to lots of countries. In February the government started a slow rollout of the vaccine, and my aunt was one of the people who got her first dose and yet she ended up getting sick.

Now we are seeing that the vaccination drive is opened up to all ages over the age of 18 but there is not enough vaccines in hospitals to be administered. So, people are just sitting here and waiting essentially to be vaccinated.

CHURCH: It is such a shocking situation, and again, I'm so very sorry for you and your family for your loss. It is just -- it's all horrifying. Astha Rajvanshi, thank you so much for talking with us.

RAJVANSHI: Thank you for having me.

CHURCH: Absolutely. And there are ways you can try to keep people in India cope with this tragedy. Go to cnn.com/impact to find out how.

Foreign ministers from the group of seven nations are now gearing up to meet face-to-face in London. The latest on the meeting and the key issues on the agenda.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ANTONY BLINKEN, U.S. SECRETARY OF STATE: I hope that North Korea will take the opportunity to engage diplomatically and to see if there are ways to move forward towards the objective of complete denuclearization of the Korean peninsula.

[03:20:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CHURCH (on camera): Foreign ministers from the G7 will gather next hour for their first photo together in two years as the group prepares to sit down in London for face to face in-person meetings. On Monday, the British foreign secretary met with U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and discussed a range of issues. Among them, relations with China.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BLINKEN: It is not our purpose to try to contain China or to hold China down. What we are trying to do is to uphold the international rules-based order. That our countries have invested so much in over so many decades. To the benefit, I would argue, not just of our own citizens but of people around the world, including, by the way, China.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH (on camera): CNN's international diplomatic editor Nic Robertson joins me now live from London. Good to see you, Nic. So, what's expected in the hours ahead at the G7 summit and what's been achieved so far?

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: Well, China is definitely the first big item on the agenda but it's going to range through Myanmar, through Syria, through Libya, to Afghanistan, and Russia, as well. And when we saw Dominic Raab and Antony Blinken speaking yesterday when they spoke on China, they were in lockstep. Antony Blinken praising the British government for the work they had done setting up this G7 with what Antony Blinken described as a robust agenda.

And really, the position that they are taking here is that the G7 is about protecting the global, international, rules-based order that benefits so many countries around the world. Democracies as well. The G7, United States, Canada, Japan, the U.K., France, Germany, Italy, all there.

Because also invited because China is such a big issue, Australia, India, South Korea, also presidents and representatives from the European Union and from ASEAN, the Association of Southeastern Asian nations.

But when speaking of Russia, which will get an hour and a half on the agenda today, when speaking about Russia yesterday, Antony Blinken, Dominic Raab, really, you can see how close they are in agreement on how they view what needs to happen in relations with Russia.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) BLINKEN: President Biden has been very clear for a long time including before he was president, that if Russia chooses to act recklessly or aggressively, we'll respond.

DOMINIC RAAB, BRITISH FOREIGN SECRETARY: What has to change is Russia's behavior against as a P5 member of the Security Council, against the basic norms of international law, whether it's the brinkmanship and the saber rattling on the border with Ukraine. Whether it's the cyber-attacks and the misinformation, or, indeed, the poisoning of Alexei Navalny.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROBERTSON: So, I think one caveat to think about here is that this language is tough and strong, but this is the foreign ministers. And what they are really doing here is setting up, for the leaders to meet in about a months' time.

[03:25:06]

So, we'll hear the agenda, we'll hear some of the talking points, we may even hear some of the conclusions. But I think look to the actual leaders G7 summit to get those hard, firm, international agreements that the United States, the U.K., and others are all looking for here.

CHURCH: Yes, indeed. Nic Robertson, joining us live from London, many thanks.

So, let's talk about this with CNN political analyst and Washington Post columnist, Josh Rogin. Good have you with us.

JOSH ROGIN, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: Great to be with you.

CHURCH: S it was the first face-to-face meeting of the world's leading economies in about two years. And at the top of the agenda was China and the threat it poses to the world. How do they plan to deal with Beijing?

ROGIN: Well, I don't think we can say that the western leading economies have a plan to deal with Beijing. But at least they're, for the first time in two years reading off the same sheet of paper. Antony Blinken, the secretary of state, gave an interview just before leaving for London where he said that the goal should be to defend the rules based international order from increasing Chinese aggression, expansion, and internal repression.

And that's a boiler plate statement but one at least that all of the western countries can agree on. But that doesn't actually lead you to any specific solutions in all of these countries. They often have different interests and different relationships with China. And the debate over how to deal with China is just beginning.

But we couldn't even have that debate amongst the G7 countries over the course of the Trump administration. Donald Trump didn't like the G7 because he treated that grouping with a mix up of disdain and neglect. So at least they're talking about it, but that's just the first step. The next step is to actually come up with some solutions that would address the shared problem.

CHURCH: Right. And how difficult will that be?

ROGIN: It will be the challenge of our generation. We are dealing with a Chinese Communist Party that is increasingly military, economically, technologically, ideologically expansionist and interfering in free and societies -- free and open societies all over the world.

And the coronavirus pandemic has brought that to the fore and a lot of democratic countries who are now dealing with their relationship with China in a new light because of population Z. What happens when they have a Chinese government that uses vaccines or PPE or masks or information to exert its pressure and its power over the societies.

Now that's a very complex problem. I think the basic notion is that no country can stand up to the rising Chinese government aggression on its own. So, it will require countries with the values and interest that are overlapping to join together.

CHURCH: And of course, Russia is another perceived threat. How will the G7 nations keep Moscow in line?

ROGIN: Right. Well, this was sort of the original problem for the G7, which of course, hadn't Russia in it until 2014 when Russia invaded Ukraine and this entire conference comes on the heels of increased Russian aggression opposite to Ukraine and told like we'll travel to Ukraine to express U.S. solidarity after he leaves London with the government of Ukraine.

And again, that's all well and good. The first thing you have to do is get on the same page in terms of messaging. But we haven't found the secret that convinces Vladimir Putin to actually withdraw Russian troops from eastern Ukraine and to deal with that country on a fair basis to establish a lasting peace and end the aggression.

We don't have the leverage, we don't have the plans, we don't have the operations that are really convincing Putin to make that happen.

CHURCH: Let's talk about that. Because more formal face-to-face meetings are planned in the coming hours. But so far, how has U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken gone on with his effort to foster a message of multilaterals after relations did turn very sour under Donald Trump.

ROGIN: Yes, the top message of the Biden administration is that America is back, that America will resume its role in leading the world's democracies and the freedom in societies to stand up for the things that we believe in. Rule of law, human rights, and all of the rest. You know, the problem is that, the Biden administration inherits a very different world in 2021 than the one the Obama administration left in 2016. And American power influences diminished and a lot of countries have gone their own ways and the strength of these international and multilateral organizations has also diminished because a lot of them have felt may needed reform. So, you know, no longer, long gone are the days where of the U.S.

secretary of state could just arrive in London and say, hey, American is back, everything is going to be OK. That credibility is lost and that power and influences diminished, and you know, we are going to need to see some more creative solutions and some more investments and some more actions from the Biden administration.

CHURCH: Josh Rogin, many thanks. I appreciate it.

ROGIN: Any time.

CHURCH: And just ahead here on CNN Newsroom, migrants pay human smugglers thousands of dollars and risk their lives to cross the border into the United States.

[03:30:08]

It's a CNN exclusive that you won't see anywhere else.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CHURCH: An update on our breaking news out of Mexico City the mayor says at least 20 people are now confirmed dead after a subway overpass collapsed with train cars crashing down on to the street below. Some of the victims are minors and dozens of people are hospitalized. Emergency crews had been searching for survivors in the wreckage, but we are told there are no more people trapped.

Well, the latest numbers from the U.S. show arrests have fallen dramatically on the border with Mexico, down 60 percent according to the Nonpartisan Migration Policy Institute. But the number of legal crossings has sharply increased to levels not seen in decades. And while those numbers are staggering, what they don't reveal is why so many are willing to risk almost everything and pay thousands of dollars to professional smugglers to enter the United States.

CNN correspondent, Matt Rivers, met with and followed human smugglers capturing the moment when two migrants were smuggled into the U.S. It is video rarely seen from the migrant's point of view. Matt Rivers filed this support from Juarez City in a city in Mexico just across the border from El Paso, Texas.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MATT RIVERS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): As long as there has been a border wall people have tried to climb it. Up from Mexico down to the U.S. hoping for something better on the other side. Today, one such attempt starts here in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico. We watched from afar as two men carry a makeshift ladder toward a car lashing it to the side. These are (inaudible) or human smugglers who help cross migrants who pay them to get into the United States.

Today the smugglers had told us to be in this neighborhood at a certain time. If they had migrants to cross they told us we can follow them. But would not tell us exactly when or where this would take place. After we were arrived though were told they would indeed try to cross two migrants currently in the back seat of that car.

And so the car takes off driving just a stone's throw from the border wall in El Paso Texas on the other side. Further up the road the car slows. And a minute later the trio heads towards the wall as we followed behind. This smuggler has never allowed cameras to trail him before.

[03:35:03]

After months of repeated requests he agreed to have only myself and a local producer following. Only recording on our cellphones knowing our presence could increase his chances of getting caught. Trying to cross the wall here is extremely dangerous.

So right now they are just making their way slowly towards the wall. They are crawling, clearly trying to avoid being seen by anyone who might be on the border. Dragging the thing they're going to use to go up and over the wall. This is a difficult trick here. No question.

Its slow progress on their hands and knees. And a bit further on they catch their breath. So, we had about 30 seconds to talk with the migrants. They allowed CNN to record them only if we hid their identities. A young men and women 18 and 20 years old. Originally from Ecuador they said they paid various smugglers thousands of dollars each to bring them to this point. They told us they're hoping to eventually find work in south Texas.

This is the last step of a journey tens of thousands of people make every year. Risking their lives and their freedom migrating to the U.S. with the help of smugglers. Smugglers who are often accused of everything from sexual abuse to extortion. Some taking terrible advantage of the vulnerable migrants that they purport to help.

And some of those migrants are children as record numbers of unaccompanied minors have been headed north recently. Many from Central America. Some make it to the U.S. and others get caught by Mexican officials and end up in government run shelters like this one. Either way it is likely their families paid smugglers to bring them here. Officials of these shelters say about three quarters of the kids here were smuggled, a horrifically dangerous trip.

The shelter's psychologist says they can be raped, they can be robbed, they can be extorted, they can die on the journey. This 14-year-old girl says she was smuggled from Guatemala and that along the journey passed from smuggler to smuggler. The threat of rape was always there. At times crowded into a van with many others, she felt like she couldn't get enough air. We couldn't make any noise she says, they would only open up these little windows for a bit. And then they would close them. It felt like you are choking.

Human smuggling like this is often run by loosely organized groups. But sometimes and especially in Mexico, experts say, there is a big role played by organized crime.

The Cartels that operates so freely here, smugglers bringing people north either work directly for those Cartels or they work independently, but they have to pay the Cartels for the right to move through certain territories.

VICTOR MANJARREZ, FORMER BORDER PATROL EL PASO SECTOR CHIEF: Human smuggling is a multi million dollar industry. I would venture to guess that it's approaching a billion dollar industry.

RIVERS: Former border patrol El Paso sector chief, Victor Manjarrez says, some Cartels have used that money to create wide reaching sophisticated smuggling networks.

MANJARREZ: And it's almost like a Fortune 500 company dealing with the supply chain.

RIVERS: And at the very end of that chain smugglers like these the men that we would later follow to the wall. They say they worked for La Lina an armed wing of the Juarez Cartel. Each migrant they cross pays the cartel roughly $2,000. A staggering sum for most migrants that often leaves them penniless.

The smugglers say the Cartel gives them a small cut for performing what they call, a service.

We tried to help them he says. People come and ask for help, kids, women, men and we support them. But this isn't some selfless act. They get paid for this. And they are part of a system where rape, extortion, kidnapping and even murder are rampant. We don't do that he says. We are all humans, they want to arrive safely. We don't harm them. We give them food and water and help them cross. Other people may hurt them, but we don't.

We, of course have no way to know if he's telling the truth. But he says for him this is a family affair. He works with his brother and even his 14-year-old nephew. They all smuggle people. The 14-year-old shows me one of the ladders they use.

Though when he crosses kids over the wall, some his own age or even younger he does it another way. He says I tie a thick rope around their bellies and lower them down, so they don't fall.

His uncle says without them, two migrants like the ones that we followed through the desert, who want to get to the U.S. wouldn't be able to. We watch as they hook their ladder over the border wall fence. The young man goes first. Once he is down he runs. And the young woman then follows. Once up and over, she hits the ground and races off as well. We can't watch where she goes because the smuggler tells us we have to go.

[03:40:02]

We have to run back from the fence obviously because the smuggler was still afraid of getting caught. But for him it was a successful mission.

But for the two people that just cross, their journey is far from over. It is mainly desert on that side of the wall and they didn't really seem to have a plan. The smugglers told us, he had no idea what happened to them after they went over. Those two migrants managed to get in. But for many that is not the case. A few days later we were filming something else on the border when we noticed something.

More people desperate to cross. A woman and three young children making a break for the wall. Here the actual border is just the Rio Grande. More of a stream really. One by one holding hands they make their way and once they cross they are in the U.S. But then comes the wall. A towering steal presents between them and where they want to be. Border patrol detained them, a few minutes later.

Matt Rivers, CNN, Ciudad Juarez, Mexico.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHURCH: Well, the White House says it is raising the number of refugees the U.S. will accept into the country this fiscal year to more than 62,000. Now this comes as the U.S. sees huge numbers of unaccompanied minors crossing the Mexican border. Here is a look at some of the recent numbers. As of last week there were 954 children in Customs and Border Control Facilities. More than 22,000 in the care of the Department of Health and Human Services. And in March the U.S. Border Patrol apprehended more than 18,000 unaccompanied minors at the U.S. Mexico border.

Warren Binford, is an internationally recognized Children's Rights Scholar and law professor. She teamed up with Project Amplify to compile firsthand testimonies of migrant children detained at the Southern Border of the United States. The book hear my voice is a collection of those testimonies. Thank you so much for talking with us.

WARREN BINFORD, LAW PROFESSOR, WILLAMETTE UNIVERSITY: Thank you, Rosemary.

CHURCH: Now your children's book is written in both English and Spanish. And you use these children testimonies to make their stories very personal and very real. Do you think that is why your book has resonated with so many readers and is that exactly what you are trying to do?

BINFORD: That's right, Rosemary. What I found is that these children and the families were being politicized. And people didn't really have an opportunity to get to know these children why they are coming to the United States and what their experiences have been once they arrive. And so we wanted to put the children's voices front and center.

CHURCH: And would you say overall that was really your goal when you started writing this book?

BINFORD: Absolutely. That is why we started Project Amplify. One of the things that's important for you to understand is I didn't write this book. This book is taken entirely from the children sworn testimonies in their own words. So this is the children's book. This is their own words. This are their stories. This are their voices that we want the public to hear.

CHURCH: So, tell us about one particular story of a child that stands out to you that you can share with our viewers.

BINFORD: One of the things that really stood out to me is that one of the children during the (inaudible) interviews that we try and conduct was drawing a picture. And the picture was of his family, he's about seven or eight years old and it was a picture of their home back in Guatemala. It was a picture of the yard and green grass and he put hearts all around him and his family. And that really affected me.

Because as we were trying to talk to his family they were in the United States and they were trying to get the child reunified with his family. His heart was still full of love, his heart was full of hope. He had that strong connection to his family and it really exemplifies the importance of keeping these children with their families, and when they do get separated putting them back as soon as possible and reunifying these families.

CHURCH: And that of course is the innocence of these children isn't it? So, talk to us about what happened to some of these children. You mentioned that young boy was reunited with his family, but what about the other children?

BINFORD: Well, the fact is there are approximately 80 to 90 percent of these children have family or other loved ones in the United States, who want to take care of them and are able to take care of them. So there really is no need for them to be in border patrol stations or ICE facilities or DHS facilities for any length of time.

Almost every single child that we call their family when they gave us the number, most of the children do have the telephone number for their parents, or their aunties or their cousin, the brother or sister. They answer. And it is just a matter of getting the children from where they are with us on the border to their family while the children present their legal claims to remain in the United States.

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CHURCH: Right, and its worth saying, President Biden has struggled with this issue of immigration. And will now raise the ceiling on refugee admissions to 62,500. After criticism for initially keeping Trump era caps in place. And we know too that four families are poised to be reunited at this point. What is your reaction to these moves? Will this be enough do you think?

BINFORD: Absolutely it will not be enough. I mean, really what we have seen is that right now the number of people coming to the United States and being apprehended because they don't have documentation is nowhere near the highest numbers that we've seen in history in the last few decades.

And so the numbers are relatively low but what it has changed is that we are seeing many more children and families and we have been seeing this for about 10 years now and none of the administrations, not the Obama ministration, not the Trump administration have really addressed with the changing demographics of who's coming to the United States and why. And President Biden really has an opportunity here to remake boarder policies and procedures so that they are much more centered on the children and families that we are seeing today.

CHURCH: Alright. We will see what he does in the end on this particular issue. Warren Binford, thank you so much for talking with us, we appreciate it.

BINFORD: Thank you, Rosemary.

CHURCH: And ahead on CNN, how Israel's Benjamin Netanyahu is trying to cut a deal to stay in power. And why he has precious little time to do it.

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CHURCH: The clock is ticking for the Israeli Prime Ministers to secure his power and end Israel's political deadlock. Benjamin Netanyahu has just hours to convince potential partners to join him in a new government or risk Israel's president handing the opportunity to a rival. And all of this happening as Mr. Netanyahu stands trial on corruption charges.

For more on this let's bring in CNN's Hadas Gold, she joins us live from Jerusalem. Good to see you, Hadas. So, he is nearly out of time, how likely is it that Benjamin Netanyahu can form a government?

HADAS GOLD, CNN POLITICS, MEDIA AND BUSINESS REPORTER (on camera): Rosemary, the big question is will Netanyahu's political carriage turned into a pumpkin tonight at midnight? That is the question everyone is seeking whether he will be able to pull this off and somehow form a government in these next few hours.

Yesterday in a seemingly last-minute offer, Netanyahu offered the leader of a small right-wing party, Naftali Bennett, he offered him a rotating Prime Ministership for Bennett, if he joined the government with Netanyahu, would be Prime Minister for one year and then Netanyahu would take over for another three years.

But Bennett did not seemingly accept this offer right away. And seems to be -- and didn't accept the offer right away. Now the question will be, what will Netanyahu do in the next few hours? Because even if, Bennett have accepted the offer, even if Bennett does accepts some sort of offer in the next few hours, Netanyahu still does not have enough seats.

[03:50:04]

He would have to convince some other lawmakers from other parties to cross over. Or potentially convince some strange bed fellows of parties on seemingly opposite ends of the spectrum to join together and sit together. So, at midnight tonight, if Netanyahu has not been able to show that he can form a government, the president of Israel has a few options.

He can grant Netanyahu an extension or he can turn around and offer, demanding to form a government to the next biggest party, who won the next number of seats in the election that is led by Yair Lapid. It is a centrist party and Yair Lapid has been spending the last few weeks trying to cobble together a coalition. Across the spectrum of different parties of sort of an anti Netanyahu block.

And Yair Lapid has also offered Naftali Bennett, a sort of rotating Prime Ministership. So really, in all of this Naftali Bennett, the leader of the small seven seat party is really the bell of the ball here and all eyes will be on him to see what he will do and with whom he will sit, Rosemary.

CHURCH: Alright. We will be watching very closely. Hadas Gold, joining us live from Jerusalem, many thanks.

Calling it quits, billionaire's Bill and Melinda Gates filed for divorce after nearly 30 years of marriage. We will have the latest on their plans to go their separate ways.

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CHURCH: Billionaire philanthropist Bill and Melinda Gates have filed for divorce, after 27 years of marriage. The couple announced there split on Twitter, saying they came to the decision after a great deal of thought. They will continue to lead the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation which has given more than $36 billion in charitable gifts since its launch.

So, let's go straight to Abu Dhabi where CNN's John Defterios is standing by. Good to see you, John. So, how much of a surprise was this announcement to the philanthropic world after appearing together for the last two decades of the U.N. and venues like the World Economic Forum in Davos?

JOHN DEFTERIOS, CNN EMERGING MARKETS EDITOR (on camera): Yes, in fact, Rosemary, that's what struck me first when I saw the announcement overnight. I said, jeez, we've watched them work hand in hand on very worthy projects in Latin America, Africa and Southeast Asia. Eradicating, remember the medical challenges that we face today. And they were almost glued together when it came to policy. And they built scale.

You talked about the $36 billion that has been given up by the Gates Foundation which is an extraordinary number but then another $43 billion worth of assets. And they had to be very candid with their tweets, both put out the same one. Let's take a look at the language here from Bill Gates saying that we've put a lot of work on our relationship, but we di in -- decide to end our marriage.

It was irretrievably broken is what they said in the Seattle courthouse and ask that the judge respect their financial agreement which remains private. They also want to keep the affairs of the three children and apparently all over 18, private as well perhaps. This is the recently broke at this stage.

Bill Gates, the fourth wealthiest man in the world, Rosemary, $124 billion according to Forbes, followed by number one and of course Jeff Bezos of Amazon at over $200 billion, but the link between Gates and Bezos beyond their technology prowess is the fact that with all that wealth created perhaps challenges in the marriage. And this of course did not survive as the Gates decided to proceed with their divorce. [03:55:05]

CHURCH: Yes, I mean, the thing is, you know, it would be interesting to get an idea on what impact the Gates Foundation had in the fight against smallpox, polio and malaria. Or especially in Africa and the wider developing world. Because they both worked very hard.

DEFTERIOS: Yes, for more than two decades, Rosemary. It is interesting. Some would suggests that the Gates Foundation was too big, right. Almost like the bully on the block. But if you look at the results of those diseases that you're talking about, they were game- changer and I think that they also redefined that link between social entrepreneurship and philanthropy, right. They were almost like in tow different categories before and what Bill Gates wanted to do and Melissa Gates kind of pushed forward the policy for him, also gave him a softer touch many would suggest. When you see them in the field.

As they said they took the best of business and applied it to the NGO world to try to make a difference and clearly they have done so. And I think they also redefined the work of other philanthropists. Take Warren Buffett, he became very close with Bill Gates. Warren Buffett is donating $2 billion to the Gates Foundation, but the whole narrative around what you should do with your money and that is to make change as fast as possible with the best practices and I think that is what the foundation did.

CHURCH: Yes. Just incredible. John Defterios, reporting in Abu Dhabi, don't go anywhere. Stick around, because we don't just want to thank you for today. We want to thank you for all the years you have given to CNN. Today is John's last day at the network. He started as an intern in Los Angeles, then moved on to become an anchor and correspondent across the world. And John, we dug into the archives and this is what we found.

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UNKNOWN: This is money week with John Defterios and Terry Keenan.

DEFTERIOS: It is a time of year for winter sports but this week you're more likely to run into a border and executive, rather than a snowboarder.

I was looking back in January 2008 and the referendum. Even then more than three quarters of your population wanted NATO membership. And it still remains about 80 percent. But isn't that provoking Moscow? Doesn't it strained relationships even more?

Isn't it difficult though with this cloud over Jamal Khashoggi to continue pushing ahead with business? People must be asking what is going on behind the scenes. How do you handle this as CEO of ARAMCO?

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHURCH: Alright. Just a little taste of what you've done over all of these years. And John, on behalf of everyone here at CNN, it has been an absolute pleasure. And we wish you the very best going forward. I am going to miss you so much, you have kept me company all through these shows and I'm about to cry now. We'll miss you so much, do take care, John. And good luck with everything as you march onward. Thank you.

DEFTERIOS: Yes, thank you. Rosemary, you surprised me with that with that video. And I don't have the monitor to see it but I could hear the highlights and no complaints. 35 years in the business, two thirds of them with CNN and all over the world. So, thanks a lot for doing that. Big hug, thanks, Rosemary.

CHURCH: Absolutely, your life flashed before your very eyes there. Thank you so much, John, again. Good luck. And thank you for joining us. I'm Rosemary Church. I'll be back in just a moment.

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