Return to Transcripts main page

CNN Newsroom

COVID Vaccine Dose Guidance From WHO; Lava Sparks Fire, Triggers Lockdown; Taliban Display Dead Bodies Of Alleged Kidnappers. Aired 2-3a ET

Aired October 12, 2021 - 02:00:00   ET

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

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ROSEMARY CHURCH, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: Hello and welcome to our viewers joining us from all around the world. You are watching CNN NEWSROOM. And Rosemary Church. Just ahead live under Taliban rule. The religious police instructed to be more moderate but others are carrying out swift and brutal so called justice. Why the World Health Organization is recommending additional doses of COVID vaccine.

Plus, the lava from the erupting volcano in the Canary Islands triggers a lockdown after sparking a fire.

ANNOUNCER: Live from CNN Center. This is CNN NEWSROOM with Rosemary Church.

CHURCH: Good to have you with us. Well, we start this out with Afghanistan where the Taliban are trying to strike a balance between legitimacy on the world stage and their version of Sharia law at home. Their leaders chance comes in the day ahead as government officials will meet with us and European diplomats in Qatar. Italy's Prime Minister will also chair a virtual summit seeking badly needed humanitarian aid for the country.

U.N. Secretary General Antonio Guterres says he's alarmed that the Taliban are breaking their promises to women and girls. He says the country will never recover without their participation, and he's urging the world to help save the failing economy.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ANTONIO GUTERRES, SECRETARY-GENERAL OF THE UNITED NATIONS: With assets frozen and development aid paused the economy is breaking down. Banks are closing and essential services such as a health care have been suspended in many places. We need to find ways to make the economy breathe again. I urge the world to take action and inject liquidity into the Afghan economy to avoid collapse.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: The Taliban insists their approach to governing is gentler and less oppressive than in the past, but stories persist of vulnerable Afghans tortured and shamed with medieval techniques. Our report from CNN chief international correspondent Clarissa Ward contains graphic images. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CLARISSA WARD, CNN CHIEF INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): This is the image the Taliban want to project. Friendly and pious, bringing peace and security. On the streets of Ghazni city, Taliban official Maulvi Mansour Afghan goes from shop to shop. Talking to the owners.

He asks how the security situation is with the Taliban in charge. The situation is good. Praise be to God, the man says. It may well be a performance for our cameras, but it is telling. The Taliban wants to show they have changed.

When you're talking to the men and some of them don't have long beards. Are you saying anything to them about their beards or does it matter right now?

We tell the people that this is the Prophet Muhammad Sunnah and make them aware he says but we don't want to force the people to do this.

In another part of the market, the newly resurrected much feared religious police are also keen to show they are taking a lighter touch. They gather the shopkeepers to introduce themselves and warn them about the importance of following the Sharia.

Make sure your women cover themselves one Talib tells the crowd. They should not travel without a close male relative. A man stands nearby casually smoking a cigarette. A punishable offense under the previous Taliban regime. But no one says a thing. Back at their headquarters at the Ministry for the Propagation of virtue and Prevention Advice, the men are still settling in.

Up until recently, this was the ministry for women. The man now in charge seems leery of my presence and refuses to meet my eye. He says their mission is to help Afghans embrace Islamic rule.

And what do you do if they're not following your interpretation of Sharia law?

MAWLAVI ABDULLAH MOHAMMED, TALIBAN MINISTRY OF PROPAGATION OF VIRTUE AND PREVENTION OF VICE (through translator): We act with accordance to Sharia law.

[02:05:00]

MOHHAMED: Firstly, we inform people about good deeds. We preach to them and deliver the message to them in a nice way. The second time we repeat it to them again. And the third time we speak to them slightly harshly.

WARD: If his word sound like talking points, that's because they are. As we leave, he hands us a newly issued Taliban booklet outlining the group's gentler approach.

So he says that this book contains the rules for how they should carry out their work. But Old habits die hard and back in Kabul, it's clear not everyone is following the new guidelines.

It's badly bruised.

In a secure location where he shows us the ugly marks left behind. After he says he was whipped by Taliban fighters. We've changed his name for his protection. He tells us three fighters stopped him at a busy traffic circle for wearing western style clothing. They took him into a guard hot and demanded to see his cell phone.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): I had photos in my phone related to gays. Also the clothes I was wearing were a gay style. They took me and covered my mouth. Two of them held each of my hands and the third hid me first with a whip and then with a stick.

WARD: What reason did they give for doing this to you?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: When they were beating that, they kept saying I was a gay, I should be killed. They had very scary faces. They were enjoying beating me.

WARD: That lurid brutality was on full display weeks earlier in the western city of Herat. When the bloodied bodies of four men were hung in public for all to see. The Taliban said they were kidnappers killed during a raid. On one man's chest a grim warning, abductors will be punished like this. Remarkably many in the crowd seem to approve of the Taliban's medieval display.

People are really happy about this decision, this man said, because people believe that by doing this kidnapping can be removed from this province. In another grotesque display, two alleged criminals, their faces painted were humiliated before a jeering crowd. Punishment the Taliban favors for petty thieves. After the corruption of the former government, the group has seized on a frenzy desire for swift justice.

But they are savvy enough to know how it looks to the rest of the world. Back in Ghazni, our attempts to see the justice system in action are repeatedly stonewalled. We're told that the Sharia High Court is closed despite the people waiting outside. As we try to persuade the Taliban to let us in, we see two men head into the court. Our Taliban minder relents and lets us follow them.

But in the courtroom, the judge makes it clear we are not welcome. Tell them to stop, he says. We are quickly ushered out.

We've been trying all day to get into the Sharia court. They're not letting us but they also won't give us a reason.

It may be that what happens behind closed doors here doesn't fit the Taliban's new carefully cultivated image. And that the movement born in conflict is still brutal at its core. Clarissa Ward, CNN Ghazni.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHURCH: Vaccine advisors with the World Health Organization and now recommending an additional COVID vaccine dose for people with compromised immune systems. They say a third dose is needed to ensure those people are fully protected. The advisors were careful to distinguish their recommendation as an extra dose, not a booster shot. That WHO has opposed offering boosters until more of the world can be vaccinated. For more we're joined now by CNN's David McKenzie in Johannesburg. Good to see you, David. So tell us more about this guidance from the WHO panel and what it all means.

DAVID MCKENZIE, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, it might seem to some people, Rosemary, that it's kind of academic. This difference between an additional shot and a booster shot but in fact, it's not really because this is really a -- advisory group that has suggested that people who have compromised immune system say people with HIV AIDS or type one diabetes should get a third shot of any of the seven WHO recommended vaccines to help the immune system develop that long- term immune response.

[02:10:11]

MCKENZIE: You know, no one really knows how long these vaccines will protect you from COVID-19 because this is such a new disease. But this does, you know, create some level of complication for the who for weeks have been messaging that extra shots, extra booster shots should not be given up. Rosemary?

CHURCH: And David, how will poor nations achieved this given many don't even have enough supplies to give out the first dose? So which was of course the reason why the WHO initially held back on this recommendation of an extra dose?

MCKENZIE: Well, that's right. I mean, you need the first shot before you can get a second or even a third shot. There are many immune compromised people across the world, particularly an African continent that don't even have the availability to get those initial shots. So it does, again, point out to the lack of vaccine equity. So, those countries that have vaccines and have a robust program to get the vaccines out, we'll possibly be able to follow this guidance.

But some people just do in some countries, many of them, in fact, just need to get out of the gate. Less than 10 percent. A lot less than 10 percent of Africans have been vaccinated with the full vaccine component. Here is one of the leaders of a WHO speaking about why booster shots shouldn't be allowed at this time.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DR. KATE O'BRIEN, WHO IMMUNIZATION DIRECTOR: This time and as the Director General has called for a moratorium on booster doses for the general population because giving those booster doses to individuals who already have had the benefit of a primary response is -- as has been explained before, like putting two life jackets on somebody and leaving other people without any lifejacket.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MCKENZIE: Well, booster shots are now being given out in the U.S., Israel parts of the E.U., again against the WHO recommendations. But those countries believe that particularly those over 60 who might have waning immunity should get the opportunity for those booster shots. But again, it's that glaring inequality that has lasted for many, many months that we've been talking to -- talking about for nearly a year now, Rosemary, that continues to persist.

CHURCH: Most definitely does. David McKenzie, many thanks for bringing us up to date on all of those developments. Appreciate it.

Well, the U.S. could soon have a new tool in its fight against COVID- 19. The drug maker Merck has asked for emergency use authorization for an antiviral pill to treat COVID. The company says early trial data shows the pill cut the risk of hospitalization or death by half. Now if approved, it would be the first oral treatment for COVID that people could take at home. Dr. Shoshana Ungerleider is an internal medicine physician at the California Pacific Medical Center. She joins us now from San Francisco. Thank you, doctor for all that you do.

DR. SHOSHANA UNGERLEIDER, INTERNAL MEDICINE PHYSICIAN, CALIFORNIA PACIFIC MEDICAL CENTER: Thank you for having me.

CHURCH: So, Dr. Anthony Fauci says the Merck antiviral pill will ultimately be a game changer, but shouldn't be a substitute for getting vaccinated. How much do you worry that people who are now refusing to get the shot will rely on this antiviral pill once it's available instead of getting vaccinated? And how do you stop that from happening?

UNGERLEIDER: Well, these are really important questions. You know, as we know, on Monday, Merck requested this emergency use authorization from the FDA for this pill. It is quite a breakthrough. This medicine is taken by mouth, which is convenient. It's relatively inexpensive, and as you said, appears to markedly reduce hospitalization and death if it's taken early on in the course of COVID-19.

You know, at this point, the company said that they're seeking authorization for the pill to be given only to high risk adults, so people over 60 or younger people with underlying medical issues and it's not clear if it's going to be even available for people who are vaccinated. I would say that this is certainly exciting news. I do want to point out that vaccination remains our most important tool to control this pandemic because it prevents you or it can prevent you from getting sick in the first place.

And preventing infection should always be our top priority. You know, we're moving toward a future where vaccines most importantly, are non- pharmaceutical interventions, and then advances like this and other antivirals are -- that are in the pipeline can allow us to return to a more normal life. But I have to say vaccination is really the key to all of this.

[02:15:02]

CHURCH: Yes. We just can't emphasize that enough, can we? And Doctor, the WHO is now recommending an additional third COVID dose for those with compromised immune systems, but they are avoiding the term booster because of course, sir, just a few weeks ago, they were telling the U.S. and other wealthy nations not to give booster shots until poor nations have access to vaccines.

What changed their minds do you think and how much is politics playing a role here and this refusal to refer to this as a booster shot?

UNGERLEIDER: Well, it's a little different, right? So this advisory group to the World Health Organization met for four days. They concluded that people who have weaker immune systems should receive an additional dose of an approved COVID-19 vaccine. And this is because we know people who are immunocompromised are less likely to have adequate protection following the initial vaccine series.

And then we also know that they're at higher risk of severe illness or death from COVID-19. So the WHO really carefully pointed out that this recommendation is different than the extra doses for people who have an adequate primary response to vaccination. This is that booster which have been reviewed and implemented in the U.S. and Israel and some other European countries.

You know, WHO plans to review this issue of boosters coming up during a session on November 11th. But really, to date have been very focused and importantly, on getting the limited supply of the world's vaccines to countries where fewer people have been vaccinated. So we'll see what they have to say come November.

CHURCH: Yes. So many countries not even having access to that first dose, of course. And Doctor, meantime, we are seeing vaccination rates rise in many countries and in the United States COVID infections, hospitalizations and deaths are trending down. But we have seen this before. So how cautious Do we need to be at this time? And what advice would you give those viewers of ours heading into cooler temperatures with winter on the horizon?

UNGERLEIDER: Well, that's right. New COVID cases are down about 40 percent in the U.S. compared to last month. This is good news as we head into fall and winter. But sadly, we really are still at relatively high levels of deaths. If we look at the states with the highest infection rates here, they're in the areas where the weather is turning colder, people are spending more time indoors.

None of these places have high enough levels of vaccination to help curb community transmission. And I suspect this will be quite problematic because we know this virus spreads most quickly when unvaccinated people spend time unmasked indoors. I think we do need to look back at the recent history in the U.S. and around the world. And notice that COVID tends to have about a two-month cycle where we often see a 60-day surge followed by a drop, and then another search.

And we actually don't know why this is. What we do know is that this virus and the Delta variant in particular is going to exploit any gaps in immune protection. We saw that this summer in the more unvaccinated regions of this country. So I think as we look ahead to the colder months, the holidays, which are about two months from now, no one can say for sure what's coming. But until we have many more people fully vaccinated, including our young children, we need to remain very cautious. And if we learned anything this summer, it's that we can't declare victory prematurely.

CHURCH: Yes. Very sound advice there. Dr. Shoshana Ungerleider, thank you so very much.

UNGERLEIDER: Thank you.

CHURCH: Well, members of Britain's parliament is slamming the U.K. Government over its handling of the COVID crisis. In a damning new report. They blame the government for waiting too long to impose a lockdown and the early days of the pandemic resulting in unnecessary deaths. They say decisions on lockdowns and social distancing and the advice that led to them rank is one of the most important public health failures the United Kingdom has ever experienced.

This happened despite the U.K. counting on some of the best expertise available anywhere in the world. The U.K. must learn what lessons it can, why this happened if we are to ensure it's not repeated. The U.K. is one of the hardest hit countries in Europe in this pandemic with more than 138,000 COVID deaths.

Well, still to come. Lava leads to a lockdown on Spain's La Palma Island. Why thousands of people are being forced to shelter from a volcano that's been erupting for weeks.

And in the midst of a corruption scandal, Austria names a new chancellor but here why critics say his predecessor will still be running things. We'll explain.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[02:22:05]

CHURCH: Well as many as 3000 people on Spain's La Palma Island are under lockdown after love a spark of fire at a cement factory on Monday. And these are live images of the ongoing disaster. Authorities say the lockdown is to protect people from the potentially toxic fumes and smoke. The volcano on La Palma has been erupting nonstop for more than three weeks. The lava has destroyed more than thousand buildings and hundreds of hectares of crops like bananas, avocados and vineyards.

Journalist Al Goodman joins me now from Madrid. Good to see you, Al. So what is the latest you're hearing on the situation on La Palma?

AL GOODMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Rosemary. Those approximately 3000 people who live nearest to that cement factory, which is in an industrial park, which is ablaze, have been locked down since Monday afternoon by authorities as a precautionary measure. Remember, so far in these nearly in all of the time that the volcano has been erupted. No -- there have been no reported deaths or serious injuries.

The authorities are taking pride in that. And so they are continuing to lock down these people, the -- their chance maybe to change that will come here in the coming hours. If the air quality is right. Now the -- there are three flows of lava coming from this volcano. And it's the northern flow that hits that cement factory, that industrial park which is affecting other businesses, and that's the one that's most concerning to the authorities because it's more of a fluid lava and it's really flowing. It may reach the Atlantic Ocean.

You may recall that a Nether part of the lava flow, the middle part already reached the Atlantic Ocean. Nearly two weeks ago those spectacular images of the lava coming down off this high cliff coming into the Atlantic Ocean and not just seeking below the surface but actually creating a new part of the coastline. A kind of a triangle thing shaped coastline. They think that may also happen if this second flow of lava reaches.

At its widest point these three flows evolve altogether. 1-1/2 kilometers wide. About a mile wide and it taking out crops, the banana crops. This small island of La Palma in Spain's Canary Islands archipelago. Very small island, very wet island with a lot of rain produces one-third of all the bananas. There 300 million pounds of bananas in 2020 according to the Growers Association which goes up here to the Spanish mainland and then on into Europe.

So it's a huge cash crop. And now you see these other businesses. Authorities besides the spectacular images that we've been seeing here, day on day, night and night, this red hot lava for so many people on the island. 80,000 people living there, some 6000 have been evacuated. Now some nearly 3000 locked down. It's really been kind of a nightmare. Rosemary?

CHURCH: Yes, understandably. So, Al Goodman bringing the very latest there. Appreciate it. Well Shia cleric, Muqtada al-Sadr's political bloc has won the most seats in Iraq's parliamentary elections, while Iran's favorite candidates came up short.

[02:25:10]

CHURCH: That is, according to initial results from Iraq's Electoral Commission. The U.S. and Iran have tried to influence Iraq's political trajectory ever since Sunni leader Saddam Hussein was toppled in 2003. But in a speech Monday, al-Sadr reminded the world that his powerful political movement opposes foreign interference, and that, "Iraq is only for Iraqis." He said all embassies are welcome in Iraq as long as they don't interfere with the country's affairs.

Austria has a new chancellor after Sebastian Kurz resigned amid corruption allegations. Kurz stepped down days after prosecutors raided his office. He and members of his team are under investigation for allegedly using government money to pay for positive media coverage. Kurz denies it and is still the leader of the center right Austrian People's Party. His replacement, Alexander Schallenberg is a close ally of Kurz and remains loyal to him.

ALEXANDER SCHALLENBERG, AUSTRIAN CHANCELLOR (through translator): I will of course work very closely with Sebastian Kurz, the chairman of the New People's Party. The largest party in Parliament, under whom the People's Party successfully won two national elections. Anything else would be absurd in terms of Democratic politics. Moreover, I consider the accusation circulating to be false. And I am convinced that in the end, it will turn out that there was no truth in them.

CHURCH: And comments like those are fueling the opposition's claims that Kurz will effectively remain in charge with Schallenberg acting as a figurehead. Well, coming up next. President Joe Biden is facing a tough test as tensions remain high between Taiwan and Beijing. We will have the latest in the live report just ahead. And for Lebanon, the crisis just grows worse. A huge amount of fuel catches fire when supplies were already dangerously low.

We're back in just a moment.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CHURCH: Welcome back, everyone. Well, Kim Jong-un says North Korea's weapons program is not meant to start a war with anyone but to prevent one. According to state media, the North Korean leader cited hostile policies from the U.S. and a military buildup in South Korea. Kim made this video Standing next to a variety of weapons and missiles at the country's defense development exhibition.

[02:30:00]

Analysts say North Korea appears to be pushing ahead with its missile program and has started expanding its main nuclear reactor to make fuel for nuclear bombs.

An increasingly tense relationship between mainland China, and Taiwan is putting the U.S. in a tough position and is quickly becoming a big test for President Joe Biden. In recent weeks, we're seen ramped up rhetoric and heightened tensions as Beijing calls for a peaceful reunification with Taiwan that sends dozens of military aircraft into the islands air defense to identification zone.

And, on Monday, the People's Liberation Army released this video showing military drills in Fujian Province directly across from Taiwan. The exact date they took place is not known. For its part, Taiwan remains defiant with the president saying during a National Day celebrations that the island will not bow to pressure and will defend its democratic way of life.

CNN's Ivan Watson is following these developments and joins us now live from Hong Kong.

Good to see you, Ivan.

So, what is the latest on where all this is going and, of course, the tough position it puts the U.S. president in?

IVAN WATSON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, I think, these images that have been released by the Chinese defense establishment, the People's Liberation Army, of troops carrying out an amphibious assault, you know, cutting through barbed wire, landing on beaches, navigating their way through mock minefields is part of the signaling and the warnings, frankly, that are going on between Beijing, and Taipei and probably, the wider world as well because we're at that -- at least, that is how it is being interpreted in the heavily censored Chinese internet and Weibo accounts and posts and also, in state media.

For example, "The Global Times" published an article stating, not only these military invasion exercises but also the flights of Chinese warplanes into Taiwan's air defense identification zone arguing that, "This demonstrates the People's Liberation Army's overwhelming advantage over the armed forces on the Island of Taiwan," going onto say that, "Resisting reunification by force will only bring doom more quickly to the Taiwan secessionists." That is how the Chinese establishment describes Taiwan 's democratically elected leader, Tsai Ing-wen, who has been elected twice. She's been reelected to office. Her party has -- enjoys a majority in -- among the lawmakers there.

However, And the Chinese president on Saturday insists that the reunification of Taiwan with Mainland China, and Taiwan's been essentially been governing itself since 1949, that this is the will of the Chinese people. And the Taiwanese president responded on Sunday, saying, effectively, Beijing doesn't speak for Taiwan's 23 million people and they're not going to submit to having their democratic freedoms removed by China's one-party rule.

That a Chinese president, Xi Jinping, argued that reunification should happen peacefully and that you should use one-country two systems formula, which was supposed to be used here in Hong Kong, a former British colony. But I think many critics and observers would argue that that was essentially shredded over the last year when Hong Kong's autonomy and many of its freedoms were removed by Beijing and opposition politicians rounded up and arrested, opposition newspaper shut and elections postponed that that formula would not defend or enshrine the democratic freedoms that Taiwan enjoys if it were to, one day, rejoin communist rule to Mainland China. Rosemary.

CHURCH: All right. Ivan Watson bringing us the very latest from Hong Kong. Many thanks.

Well, still to come, fire tears through a fuel storage depot in Lebanon and the timing could not be worse. We'll take a look.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[02:35:00]

When you are on a motorcycle, experiencing such a world in a different light, when you hit the open road, there is nothing about that sunset that you're chasing, and it gives you a sense of what it means to be alive.

CHURCH: Just days after Lebanon's electrical grid went dark due to severe shortages, its fuel supply took another hit. This fire that erupted at a major oil storage facility destroyed hundreds of thousands of litters of gasoline. The cause of the fire is not clear but it happened when the fuel was being moved to an army storage tank, and it took 25 firetrucks to put out. As Ben Wedeman explains, it is the latest painful chapter for a country in crisis.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BEN WEDEMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: After Lebanon completely ran out of fuel over the weekend and the country was plunged into total darkness, the lights have now gone back on but only barely. The Lebanese army stepped in and provided just enough fuel to allow the country's two main power plants to operate to produce around two hours of power a day, which has been the state -- the situation in the country going back several months before this weekend's blackout.

The Lebanese government is bankrupt, the economy in a state of collapse, one of the worst the world has seen in the last 150 years according to the World Bank. This collapse, the result of decades of incompetence, mismanagement and corruption that have caused the Lebanese's currency, the lira, to lose around 90 percent of its value has led to massive increases in the price of food and severe shortages of petrol and medicine.

Now, several would be saviors have stepped forward to try to address Lebanon's energy crisis. Iran has sent fuel via Syria and handed it over to Hezbollah. Iraq has sent several shipments of fuel. And the United States is in the process of trying to work out a complicated arrangement whereby Egypt would provide Lebanon with gas, Jordan would provide Lebanon with electricity. But the details of this arrangement could take months to work out. It is not clear who would pay the bill.

And of course, the United States would have to modify its sanctions regime against Syria through which the electricity and gas would have to pass. And to add insult to injury of it all, Saturday, the day that the lights went out in Beirut and other parts of Lebanon, the country's energy minister, Walid Fayad, was spotted relaxing on a Beirut beach. Crisis? What crisis?

I'm Ben Wedeman, CNN, reporting from Rome.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: And Lebanon isn't the only place struggling to keep the power on. The largest province in China's industrial region is facing more shortages. Officials, there, have issued its second highest alert for power shortages for the fifth time in two weeks. The province has been take it hit with widespread power cut since mid-September. The crises is being blamed in part on soaring prices for coal.

[02:40:00]

And coal is at the heart of India's power shortages as well. State leaders have warned that the central government of a coal shortage that's already caused power cuts in several parts of the country. But despite the warnings, the Indian government insists it has enough supplies to meet demand.

The World Bank president admits mistakes were made as scandal threatens to overshadow its meetings this week with the IMF in Washington. In an exclusive interview, David Malpass told CNN's Richard Quest there were certainly mistakes in the bank's handling of the doing business economic report. Last month, an independent law firm found top World Bank officials have put undue pressure on the reports authors to boost the ratings of China and Saudi Arabia.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DAVID MALPASS, WORLD BANK PRESIDENT: There were certainly mistakes in the process of the bank, and the bank needs to find ways to avoid that into the future and I am working on that as hard as I can so that the bank has a good environment to create quality products into the future.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: Kristalina Georgieva was running the World Bank at the time but is now the managing director at the IMF. She says, she disagrees with the findings of the investigation.

The World Health Organization says the biggest health threat to humanity is not the coronavirus, it's climate change. In a new report, the W.H.O. is urging governments to take action on 10 fronts. They include everything from promoting sustainable food production and transportation systems to building climate resilient health systems.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MARIA NEIRA, W.H.O. DIRECTOR OF ENVIRONMENT, CLIMATE CHANGE AND HEALTH DEPARTMENT: Whatever you do to tackle the causes of climate change will have enormous benefit for the health of the people. And those benefits for the health of the people will come essentially from the reduction of air pollution, for improving air quality. And let me put you the figures again on the table, every minute, and this is a horrible figure that I am always hated to put on the table, every minute we have 13 deaths caused by exposure to air pollution.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: And these warnings come just a few weeks ahead of the U.N. Climate Change Summit.

Well, three U.S.-based economists are sharing this year's Nobel Prize for Economic Sciences. The Nobel Foundation awarded half the prize to David Card from the University of California and Berkeley for his contribution to labor economics. The other half goes to MIT's Joshua Angrist and Stanford's Guido Imbens for their methodical contributions to the analysis of causal relationships.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PETER FREDRIKSSON, NOBEL COMMITTEE: The combined contributions of the laureates have completely reshaped empirical work in the economic sciences. And therefore, our ability to answer causal questions of great importance to us all has improved tremendously.

(END VIDEO CLIP) CHURCH: And unlike the other Nobel Prizes which were established in 1895, the Nobel Prize in Economics was founded after Alfred Nobel's death. It was first awarded in 1969 and is funded by Sweden's Central Bank.

Thank you so much for joining us. I'm rosemary Church. I'll be back in 15 minutes. World Sport is up next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)