Return to Transcripts main page

CNN Newsroom

U.K. Police Designate Fatal Stabbing Of MP A Terrorist Incident; U.S. To Open Borders to Vaccinated Travelers; Lebanon In Crisis; Chinese Astronauts Dock With Nation's Orbiting Station. Aired 3-3:30a ET

Aired October 16, 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]

(MUSIC PLAYING)

PAULA NEWTON, CNN ANCHOR AND CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Hello and welcome to CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Paula Newton.

Coming up, an act of terrorism, that's what police in the U.K. are calling the stabbing death of a member of Parliament. Details and a live report from the community he represented.

And protests in Italy against a vaccine mandate for all workers, why some say it's a form of discrimination.

Plus Lebanon on edge. Arrests and funerals following the worst street violence in more than a decade. We are live in Beirut with the latest.

(MUSIC PLAYING)

NEWTON: And we begin this hour in the U.K., where police are calling this fatal stabbing of a member of Parliament on Friday an act of terrorism. They say that a preliminary investigation has found links to Islamist extremism and that could be a possible motive.

Longtime Conservative MP Sir David Amess was killed as he met with constituents in the coastal town of Leigh-on-Sea. He is the second member of Parliament to be killed in just five years.

Police quickly arrested the 25-year-old man on suspicion of murder, believed to be British national of Somali heritage. Police later said they were searching two addresses in the London area, as part of their investigation. CNN's Phil Black has the latest reaction from Downing Street.

We want to begin with our coverage in the town of Leigh-on-Sea and that's where we have to find Nada Bashir.

Nada, police made it clear within an hour now that this is a terrorism investigation, more unsettling news for a community already so rattled by such a gruesome attack.

NADA BASHIR, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right, Paula, we had the announcement late last night from the Metropolitan Police that counter-terrorism police had confirmed that this will now be treated as a terrorist incident.

It took place around midday yesterday behind the church, just a few meters way. He was holding an open forum with his constituents. He died at the scene and a 25-year-old man was arrested on suspicion.

The shocking detail that this incident is being treated as a terrorist incidents, it has rocked many in the town, in the country. What we do know from the police is that the early evidence from the investigation does suggest that it could've been linked to Islamist extremist ideology, which is, of course, particularly worrying, not only for this community but for the government.

We do know from the police say they don't expect any other individuals acting along this 25-year-old man will be arrested and they aren't concerned about any other suspects at this stage.

They are, however appealing for more information from these residents, any CCTV or dashcam footage that might be of use to the police. But in terms of the community response, the people in this neighborhood are completely shocked with the loss of Sir David Amess.

He has been talked about as a much valued member of this community, throughout the day yesterday and today. We've seen local residents, even people traveling as far as from London, to lay flowers at the police cordon behind me in his memory.

Many speaking to us about their experiences and interaction with him. It's someone they say they really cared about this community and, of course, it has really, really rattled, this small seaside town and also across the country, his colleagues in Parliament.

He had more than 30 years as a parliamentarian. So this is a real loss for this community.

NEWTON: Absolutely, certainly he'd reached out to so many people of so many political persuasions.

Phil, to you, a sobering day in the U.K. of course. The unity among the parties was extraordinary, really. But the look on Boris Johnson's face said it all.

How do they go forward now after such a gruesome attack?

PHIL BLACK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Paula, it's notable that closely following all the expressions of grief, despair, tributes to the man, David, his colleagues have also been expressing their concern, even their despair over what this means for British democracy, because a politician has been killed while doing his job.

And not the first, the second in about 5 years. Back in 2010, another MP was stabbed but survived in circumstances that seem very similar to this case.

[03:05:00]

BLACK: And it is not just these extreme violent events that people are concerned by; it is the general mood and atmosphere, the mood of political discourse in this country, where politicians regularly must now deal with abuse, harassment, a sense of not being secure online but also in person, in their regular lives as well.

So that daily reality is now clearly in tension with the way politics have been done in this country for a very long time. The job of the MP is not just voting on laws and giving speeches in Parliament, is perhaps even more defined by spending time in their constituencies, meeting with people, hearing their concerns, no matter how small, no matter how local and feeding that mood back into the conversations that take place in Parliament, the laws that are made there.

It is a core dynamic, a long standing tradition within British politics. And, there is a real sense now that it has perhaps reached a tipping point, where that accessibility is no longer appropriate. It is no longer -- that it is perhaps outdated, that it is no longer safe.

So once, again questions are being asked about the security of MPs have, about whether or not the country is doing its duty of care and keeping these MPs safe. And it seems very likely that these questions are now going to lead to changes in the way the politics is being conducted here for a very long time.

NEWTON: We'll wait to see where that goes, the home secretary Priti Patel basically tweeted that it was time to have a reassessment about what that security should look like. Phil Black at Downing Street and Nada Bashir for us in Leigh-on-Sea.

Now flags at Parliament have been lowered to half staff as the U.K. enters a period of mourning.

The Speaker the House of Commons tweeted this out, paying tribute to his slain colleague. And Lindsay Hoyle isn't alone. Westminster appears united, as we were saying, in grief over Sir David's killing.

Former prime minister Theresa May says it was a tragic day for democracy, my thoughts and prayers are with David's family.

The foreign secretary Liz Truss says she's devastated, calling him a lovely man and a superb parliamentarian.

And tributes crossed party lines. Labour opposition leader Keir Starmer said, "Let us come together in response to these horrendous events. We will show once more that violence and intimidation and threats to our democracy will never prevail over the tireless commitment of public servants simply doing their jobs."

And, of course, the tributes didn't end there. Here is what we are hearing from other British politicians.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DAVID GARSTON, COUNCILLOR, SOUTHEND-ON-SEA: David was a very difficult figure to miss, if I can put it that way. When he walked in the room, you knew he was there. He knew most people anyway. But he always had so much to tell, so much or talk about. He was

really interested in the welfare of people as well. And walking out with him very regularly, you didn't get very far, because he knew so many people, what organizations they were involved with, very often what their troubles were that he'd been able to deal with for them.

And he had such a tremendous memory, but he really just loved people.

TOM TUGENDHAT, BRITISH CONSERVATIVE MP: For many of us representing their community as their person in Parliament it's a huge honor. It's about championing a place and people that you think are great, otherwise you wouldn't do it.

And for David it was about making sure that the people in his community got the best representation, the best arguments, the best case made for them and what they needed every time he got the chance to do so. And you only need to look at his speeches in Parliament to see that he made use of every second that he had. And he championed, very, very strongly his community.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

NEWTON: All right, for some perspective on this, I want to bring in Peter Neumann. He is a professor of security studies at King's College London. Good to see you again, I wish was under different circumstances.

What's your take away from the fact that police very quickly determined this was a terrorism investigation?

What evidence do you believe they've already uncovered?

PETER NEUMANN, INTL. CENTRE FOR THE STUDY OF RADICALISATION AND POLITICAL VIOLENCE: I think the reason they did that was because they discovered the name of the suspects in a prior investigation.

They probably came across him or he was reported into the sort of Prevent scheme, the preventing radicalization program of the British government. He must have come up somewhere.

[03:10:00]

NEUMANN: And what they are doing now is probably they are going through all of his possessions, especially through his laptop, his mobile phone, to see who else he is connected to, to make sure that this was really an act on its own rather than part of a campaign.

Whether he received instructions from other people, whether there were other people involved in preparing this act of terror or something else, that's what they are busy with right now.

NEWTON: It does seem that so far they don't believe they're searching for another suspect. The history of the U.K.'s battle against extremism runs deep, right?

And police, while they might be heartened by the fact that he acted alone, you've been covering this for the better part of 15 years, you mention that prevent strategy. That's the U.K.'s counterterrorism strategy. You yourself have spoken that, even that strategy, as comprehensive as it can be, can only go so far.

What elements do you think have still been so difficult to grasp for the U.K. and law enforcement?

NEUMANN: Well, we've seen over the past 15 years, when we had 2005, the terrorist attacks in London, 7/7, that was a coordinated attack. They were talking about groups that were organizing it in a hierarchical fashion. That isn't so easy anymore. That doesn't happen anymore in U.K.

What we're seen now are lone attackers, that are part of a sort of jihadist or extremist milieus; they are hovering around, there's plenty of them.

But it's often not quite sure to what extent they are connected, to what extent they are actually ready to do it. And for the police to have several thousand people like that, it's impossible to monitor them all the time.

So you always have the risk of one of them basically doing something on their own in a place like Essex, where you have not necessarily a lot of police on the ground. It's a very different sort of structure and dynamic than 15 or 20 years ago.

NEWTON: Yes, absolutely, the threat of the posture keeps changing. Peter, you've given your expert opinion here in the United States about what should be done about these lone actors.

But extremism in general, the story has resonated beyond the borders of the U.K. So many local, federal, national politicians, thinking of their own security because they see the extremism every day in their social media feeds.

What can you tell people to try and quell this amplification?

NEUMANN: Well, it's really hard and, you're right, this is been reported all over Western Europe and Northern America, social media has really led to a polarization of the discourse between people and politicians, which is really at the heart of democracy.

If you can't have politicians speak in a normal way to people anymore, then you are really striking at what's democracy is all about. And social media has certainly not made it easy. Politicians have had to leave politics because of the discourse on social media.

I think the only chance is to protect politicians better on the ground. And this is really sad because you want them to interact as freely as possible with their constituents. To put policeman there or to make people register before they're going to an event is all impeding that.

So it's a really sad thing about democracy but, unfortunately, it seems to be necessary. NEWTON: It is the new reality as we continue to deal with, as it

changes every day. Peter, so good to have your perspective on this, we appreciate it.

New Zealand is holding a super Saturday event to get people vaccinated against the coronavirus. The goal is to vaccinate one in 12 residents eligible for the shot in a single day.

Well-known Kiwis, like the prime minister, Jacinda Ardern, are taking part in the vaxathon to help build support. Right now just over 53 percent of New Zealand's population is fully vaccinated.

U.S. vaccine advisers have said yes to a Johnson & Johnson COVID booster shot. The Food and Drug Administration's vaccine advisory committee voted unanimously to recommend the booster dose Friday.

It's authorized for people 18 and older, at least 2 months after they receive the single dose vaccine. The FDA will now consider the advice before it goes to the CDC for deliberation.

Fully vaccinated international travelers will soon be able to visit the United States. The new policy applies to those arriving by air or land November 8 and it replaces a series of bans and restrictions that have been in place since the start of the pandemic.

[03:15:00]

NEWTON: All FDA authorized vaccines as well as those with an emergency use listing from the World Health Organization will be accepted when entering the United States.

Italy's COVID-19 green pass is now mandatory for all workers. The vast majority of Italians are already fully vaccinated but some say government mandates like this have no place in health care. CNN's Barbie Nadeau has the latest from Rome.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BARBIE NADEAU, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Italy has become the first Western democracy to mandate a government-issued health pass on COVID. Starting Friday, everyone who pulls a paycheck in the public and private sector have to pull a green pass to prove they're fully vaccinated or have a recent negative COVID test to go to work.

If they show up without it, they can be fined up to 1,500 euro. Employers who don't demand it face fines of 1,000 euro.

Most Italians are compliant. More than 80 percent of the population is vaccinated but not everyone is happy with the government playing such a role in health care. Some have taken to the streets to protest the mandate, violently smashing a labor union office last weekend and gathering here in Rome's Circus Maximus to make their voices heard -- Barbie Latza Nadeau, CNN, Rome.

(END VIDEOTAPE) NEWTON: Memories of civil war stirred again in Lebanon, after this week's violence, the worst in years. We will take you to the streets of Beirut, where some say the situation is a powder keg.

Again Shia Muslims targeted. What we're learning about Friday's gruesome mosque bombing, that's ahead.

(MUSIC PLAYING)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(MUSIC PLAYING)

NEWTON: Lebanon is hoping for some calm but fear is the worst, following its most horrific street violence in more than a decade. On Friday funerals were held for victims of a Shia rally the day before. That's when someone opened fire on protesters in Beirut, and demanded the dismissal of a judge investigating the blast at the port.

The shooting lead to street battles with at least 7 people killed and more than 30 others injured. It ignited fears, of course, the nation could slide into another civil war. Ben Wedeman joins us live from Beirut.

You know, Ben, you cautioned yesterday that really it was unlikely this would go into full blown civil war. And yet things likely still tense there on the street, right?

BEN WEDEMAN, CNN SR. INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Very, very tense here Paula. At the moment, things are calm. We are now 2 days after the events. But given what happened on Thursday and where it happened, certainly for many people, it's a little too close to the memories of the civil war.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

WEDEMAN (voice-over): They fire round after round into the air, supporters of the Shia Amal movement --

[03:20:00]

WEDEMAN (voice-over): -- after the funerals for those killed in Thursday's violence, the worst the Lebanese capital has seen in more than a dozen years.

All the dead were from the Shia sect, including members of the two main Shia parties, Hezbollah and Amal. Their leaders have accused the Lebanese Forces, a Christian party, of the killings. The Lebanese Forces reject the accusation.

Here in the neighborhood of Shia, the men with guns aim in one direction, at about a 45-degree angle up the street, at the adjacent district, the predominately Christian neighborhood of (INAUDIBLE).

And what goes up must come down. It was on the road that divides the two neighborhoods that the Lebanese civil war began in April 1975 and, for many, there is a fear Lebanon is going full circle.

"Of course we hope this isn't going to lead to a civil war," says Hassan.

WEDEMAN: This may not be the start of what some say is a civil war. But what this does show is that there is no shortage of weapons in this country.

WEDEMAN (voice-over): State authority, however, is in short supply. Soldiers stand guard just a few blocks away but don't intervene, while gunman spray bullets into the sky.

Erez Ibrahim (ph) lives on the other side of the old dividing line.

"Here, the entire neighborhood was reminded of the events of civil war," she tells me.

It's hard to ignore the echoes.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WEDEMAN: And of course, Thursday's events were sparked by the opposition by some political parties to the judge investigating the August 2020 port blast.

And what we're seeing, for instance, overnight, is one of the spokesman for the group that represents the families of the victims of the blast, came out with an odd video, in which he also called for the resignation of the judge investigating the blast.

It does appear that a variety of political forces across the spectrum here are calling for the dismissal of the judge; the motives, however, are suspects.

NEWTON: And that is very curious, given the families of the victims of that blast have before, many of them, called him brave. Ben, thanks. I appreciate. It

An ISIS affiliate says they're behind the mass murder in an Afghan mosque in Kandahar. A warning what you are about to see is quite disturbingly graphic.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

NEWTON (voice-over): Now we can't independently verify the claims but ISIS-K says the carnage you are seeing is its doing the, 2 suicide bombers reportedly killed at least 32 people, from a bomb they detonated in the largest Shia mosque.

The U.N. secretary general Antonio Guterres is among those calling for action, he says the perpetrators must be brought to justice.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

NEWTON: Chinese astronauts are back in orbit. After the break, what's they'll be doing for the next half-year on their space station. (MUSIC PLAYING)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[03:25:00]

(MUSIC PLAYING)

NEWTON: Three Chinese astronauts are right now aboard their nation's space station.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

NEWTON (voice-over): Blastoff from a launch center in the Gobi Desert, Beijing's space agency says this will be the country's longest manned mission, with 6 months in orbit. One crew member is the first woman to board the space station and will soon be the first Chinese woman to take a spacewalk.

The astronauts will do construction work on the space station. China's goal, of course, is to have it completed by the end of next year.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

NEWTON: The international space race kicked off in 1957 when the Soviet Union launched Sputnik, the world's first artificial satellite. A few years later Yuri Gagarin became the first man to travel to outer space.

In 1969, NASA's Apollo 11 put the first man on the moon. It's now been nearly 49 years since the last person landed there. Now the Soviet Union's Salyut 1, was the first space station in 1971. Its 3 man crew became the only people ever to have died in space when the air capsule depressurized on their return journey.

In 1981 NASA launched its first shuttle, Columbia. The program would prove vital in the construction of the International Space Station. Sojourner was the first successful NASA Mars rover, it touched in 1997.

And last year SpaceX made history with the private crewed rocket launch.

This is some good news, not just for Amsterdam but in that city, the music scene is back. Clubs and bars are reopening after the government in the Netherlands lifted COVID restrictions. One enormous event, Amsterdam's dance music festival is through Sunday. The party has been scaled back with COVID precautions including onsite testing.

But still, as you can imagine, business owners are thrilled.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JAN-WILLEM VAN DE VEN, DIRECTOR, ADE MUSIC FESTIVAL: We have been closed for 20 months, so it's good to see how resilient this business is. And how many people are eager to dance and connect. (END VIDEO CLIP)

NEWTON: We can all be behind that, I'm Paula Newton, thanks for your company, "AFRICAN VOICES CHANGEMAKERS" is up next.