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Germany Restricting Entry from U.K.; Experts Warn Omicron Could Overwhelm Hospitals; Taiwanese Voters Reject Plan to Ban U.S. Pork; U.N. Warns of "Avalanche" of Hunger in Afghanistan; K-pop Band Stops Traffic. Aired 12-12:30a ET
Aired December 19, 2021 - 00:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
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MICHAEL HOLMES, CNN ANCHOR AND CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Hello and welcome to CNN NEWSROOM, everyone, I am Michael Holmes, appreciate your company.
It's beginning to look like last Christmas, as a COVID surge force strict measures around the world.
Chile is getting ready to vote between two polar opposite candidates.
And as Afghans face their first winter under Taliban control, they may face the worst humanitarian crisis in the world.
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UNIDENTIFIED MALE (voice-over): Live from CNN Center, this is CNN NEWSROOM with Michael Holmes.
HOLMES: Welcome, everyone.
A stark warning on the growing threat of the Omicron variant. The WHO says cases are doubling every 1.5-3 days. The U.K. reporting more than 90,000 new COVID cases for the second day in a row.
Now Germany taking tough action, adding the United Kingdom to its list of areas of variant concerned. Only German citizens or residents will be allowed to enter Germany from the U.K. CNN's Scott McLean with more from London.
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SCOTT MCLEAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: London mayor Sadiq Khan declaring COVID-19 a major incident Saturday.
SADIQ KHAN, MAYOR OF LONDON: Over the last 24 hours, we've had the largest number of new cases since this pandemic began, more than 26,000. Hospital admissions are going up but also staff absences are going up by massive levels.
MCLEAN (voice-over): With cases rapidly increasing, there's a push to get more people tested and vaccinated. The U.K. vaccine minister helping distribute COVID tests at a sorting center Saturday.
The government aiming to get 900,000 a day shipped directly to homes across the U.K. And long lineups at a booster clinic northeast of London, many hoping to avoid another possible lockdown by getting a shot.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Another lockdown to me does seem a bit extreme. I think everyone just needs to be careful, go where you need to go and then go home.
MCLEAN (voice-over): Some vaccine clinics opening 24-hour jab-a- thons. In northern England, one pharmacy opened for 36 hours straight.
Worldwide, there's a push to get young people vaccinated. Santa Claus and his helpers visiting kids in Portugal. Germany and France also giving shots to 5- to 11-year-olds Saturday.
COVID putting a damper on holiday shopping. But some still hit the stores from Europe to Asia on the last weekend before Christmas.
Sporting events also taking a hit. English fans disappointed, as the Premier League match between Aston Villa and Burnley became the 10th Premier League fixture to get postponed this weekend due to COVID.
Later Saturday, anti-vaxers marched in London, France, Germany and Italy. The Netherlands announcing a strict new lockdown starting Sunday, also met by protests. As the World Health Organization announces Omicron cases doubling every 1.5-3 days in countries with transmissions, the battle against COVID rages on -- Scott McLean, CNN, London.
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HOLMES: In China, the increase in COVID cases is upending the country's biggest holiday for a third year. As part of its zero COVID policy, China's national health commission is urging people from any city with confirmed cases against travel during the upcoming Lunar New Year.
And people from medium or high risk areas are prohibited from traveling. For now, the country's doors are still open to foreign athletes for the Winter Olympics, though, starting in February in Beijing.
In the U.S., the Omicron variant threatens to send an already dangerous surge into overdrive. The country is already seeing spikes in cases, hospitalizations and deaths. But experts say it's the Delta variant, not Omicron, that's driving the current surge.
The situation is especially bad in New York, where cases hit a record high for the second day in a row on Saturday. And that is prompting a new round of cancellations and disruptions.
"Saturday Night Live" cancelled its live studio audience this weekend, along with the musical guests. The Radio City Rockettes have called off the rest of their holiday performances. Broadway and professional sports also seeing cancellations and delays.
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HOLMES: And several schools have shifted classes and exams online. All of this and Omicron still has not arrived fully in the U.S. It's expected to become the dominant strain in the coming weeks.
With U.S. hospitals already stretched thin, experts are warning Omicron could push the health care system to a breaking point.
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DR. JONATHAN REINER, CNN MEDICAL ANALYST: The sheer number of patients that it will still generate for hospitals will overwhelm our hospitals and our hospitals will no longer be able to care for the things we do every day, like taking care of heart attacks or strokes or people with appendicitis. So we need to protect our health care system and that's why every American needs to mask up and vax up right now because our health care infrastructure is at stake right now.
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HOLMES: U.S. President Joe Biden will address public concerns about the Omicron variant in a speech on Tuesday. And the White House is clarifying remarks made by Vice President Kamala Harris about mutations like the Omicron and Delta variants. CNN's Joe Johns reports.
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JOE JOHNS, CNN SENIOR WASHINGTON CORRESPONDENT: In a departure from a continuing message from the White House on COVID, Vice President Kamala Harris conceding in a wide ranging interview with the "Los Angeles Times," that the administration did not anticipate the Omicron and Delta variants.
Here's a quote, "We didn't see Delta coming and I think most scientists did not, upon whose advice and direction we have relied, didn't see Delta coming. We didn't see Omicron coming. And that's the nature of what this awful virus has been, which, as it turns out, has mutations and variants."
A White House official also clarifying to CNN that the administration was aware of variants in general and that's the reason for masking as well as encouraging the public to get vaccinated.
On Saturday, the White House press secretary announced on Twitter that President Biden will give a COVID speech on Tuesday that will include a stark warning to Americans who have not gotten vaccinated -- Joe Johns, CNN, at the White House.
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HOLMES: In the coming hours, voters in Chile face a stark choice between far-right conservative Jose Antonio Kast and leftist Gabriel Boric in a presidential runoff election. The winner will replace the outgoing president, Sebastian Pinera, who is set to leave office in March.
Sunday's election comes amid social unrest and as the elected assembly drafts a new constitution, meant to replace the one inherited from the dictator Pinochet's era. CNN's Rafael Romo is joining me live from Santiago.
Good to see you, there, Rafael. Several candidates in the first round; Chilean voters chose the extremes so there is no center.
What's behind the polarization?
RAFAEL ROMO, CNN SR. LATIN AFFAIRS EDITOR: Oh, Michael, that's a very good point. It has to do with several factors. You probably remember the extremely violent protests that rocked Chile in the fall of 2019.
People were demanding economic equality and better social services. Some of those demands haven't been met. That's something that leftist candidate Gabriel Boric is capitalizing on.
At the same time of the chaos and acts of vandalism scared many people around the country. That's why the law and order message of Boric's rival, conservative Jose Antonio Kast, is resonating with many voters.
For the first time since Chile's return to democracy in 1990, neither candidate who advanced to the second round comes from the traditional parties.
And polls within two weeks of the election can't be published due to Arturo laws. But the last one indicated that one out of every four Chileans was undecided in early December. Add to that the fact that the candidates are neck and neck and you have a recipe for an election that is generating a lot of interest -- Michael.
HOLMES: Sure is, and the disappearance of the center in Chilean politics.
How early will we get to know the next president?
ROMO: Very early. Chilean voters will only have the two names on the ballot to choose from. Polls open at 8:00 in the morning and close at 6:00. The night of the first round we will learn within a couple of hours who the winners. This time around, it's expected to be even sooner.
The winner will replace the current president at the presidential palace in March. HOLMES: All right, Rafael Romo, appreciate it there.
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HOLMES: Voters in Taiwan rejected a plan that would effectively ban the import of U.S. pork. President Tsai Ing-wen was among those who voted in Saturday's referendum. The votes saw low turn-out but could have a bigger impact for the ruling party. It lifted a ban on pork that contained an additive found in U.S. meat earlier this year.
It's seen as an effort by the president to get a new trade deal with the U.S. Now as freezing weather in Afghanistan, the Taliban wants country to
free up frozen aid. Coming up, I speak with the International Crisis Group asking if donors feel safe investigating in Afghanistan.
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HOLMES: Welcome back.
The Taliban say they are ready to start issuing passports again, raising hopes for Afghans desperate to leave their country. Crowds gathered outside the passport office in Kabul as the news spread.
The Islamist rulers stopped issuing passports after taking power in mid-August. They tried to restart the process in October but closed days later, when their biometric machines stopped working.
All this says the country faces a dire humanitarian and economic crisis that looks to get worse as winter weather sets in, forcing horrific decisions on already desperate families. Here is a look at why leaving Afghanistan means life and death for so many people.
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HOLMES (voice-over): Kabul's first snowfall. For these children throwing snowballs at each other, it's a fun day. But for many Afghans facing their first winter back under the Taliban control, the cold conditions are a sign of difficult times ahead.
This man says, "When there's snowfall, it's a day of happiness and celebration for rich people," but adds, "for the normal people of Afghanistan, who are poor and helpless, it's like poison."
The country's economy already shaky after decades of war has been pushed to the brink of collapse since the Taliban's takeover in August, billions of dollars in international aid, which Afghanistan relied upon for humanitarian assistance and to fund the government, has been cut off, with another $9.5 billion in assets at the central bank of Afghanistan, frozen by the U.S.
Millions are without work and the cost of food and fuel has shot up, making many basic necessities too expensive for Afghans to buy. The U.N.'s World Food Programme warns that a harsh winter could bring, quote, "an avalanche of hunger and destitution" to the country.
The aid group says an estimated 98 percent of Afghans aren't eating enough, up 17 percent since the Taliban's takeover.
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THOMSON PHIRI, WORLD FOOD PROGRAMME SPOKESPERSON: Families are resorting to desperate measures as the bitter winter sets in. Nine in every 10 families are now buying less expensive food, which tends to be less nutritious. Eight in 10 are eating less and seven in 10 are borrowing food in order to get by.
HOLMES (voice-over): Officials say that food insecurity will push people deeper into poverty, which could result in families turning into ever-more desperate measures to survive, including child labor, early marriage and even the sale of children.
On Saturday, senior Taliban leaders asked countries to release the blocked aid, saying it hurt the common people and would force more families to migrate. Hard choices ahead for the international community but mainly for the people of Afghanistan, who once again are left out in the cold.
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HOLMES: Let's talk now with Laurel Miller, the director of the International Crisis Group's Asia program.
Good to see you, Laurel. The International Rescue Committee have Afghanistan at the top of their watch list of countries expected to deteriorate most in the coming year. The International Crisis Group which you represent says quote, quote, the state is collapsing and a humanitarian disaster is looming.
How desperate is the situation?
LAUREL MILLER, DIRECTOR, ASIA PROGRAM, INTERNATIONAL CRISIS GROUP: The situation is very dire in Afghanistan. According to the U.N. and other authoritative sources, we're headed toward seeing the worst humanitarian crisis in the world in Afghanistan.
There are projections that, next year, more than two-thirds of the population will be dependent on emergency food aide. We may see almost entire population be below the poverty line by the middle of the next year. It's really an unprecedented economic collapse and humanitarian disaster, in terms of the speed with which it's unfolding.
HOLMES: There's food shortages, verging on famine. The health care system is near collapse. And that's right now.
How much worse can it get if nothing is done to support the state and systems? MILLER: It could get worse in many respects, including, if the state's not able to function in even a minimum respect, providing public services, like health and education, power, then we're going to see a situation of repeated humanitarian crises and protracted humanitarian crisis because people won't be able to have jobs, work in agriculture or feed families to dig themselves out the hole.
HOLMES: How can Afghanistan be best helped at a grassroots level so improvements are sustainable and not fleeting?
MILLER: Well, sustainability is a big issue here. One of the reasons we're seeing this tremendous collapse of the system in Afghanistan is because the state structures that's been set up over the last 20 years by Western countries, the support of Western countries were not sustainable.
They were fragile and when the prior government collapsed, the state structures collapsed with it. We have a situation where we have kind of a perfect storm of factors that have contributed to the current situation.
There has been a drought in Afghanistan, repeated droughts in recent years. So there was a pre-existing humanitarian crisis that was unfolding; the consequences of war, with people displaced from their homes.
But there's also sanctions imposed by the U.S. and by other countries in the world that were sanctions on the Taliban, that have now translated into sanctions on the entire country and economy.
And the government was supported by foreign donors to the tune of about three-fourths of public spending. That's all been cut off. And so this is why the country has tipped so quickly over an economic cliff.
HOLMES: I'm curious your thoughts on this, too.
What does a collapsing Afghanistan mean regionally and for the rest of the world in terms of geopolitical instability?
It's in everyone's interest to act because failure will have far reaching consequences.
MILLER: That's right. A failed Afghanistan is in nobody's interest. The Afghans suffer first and foremost. But the consequences are externalized, too.
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MILLER: We're already seeing illicit drug production going up in Afghanistan. It's the world's largest producer of opium poppy for heroin. That is going up already because people are desperate for income.
We're also seeing increase numbers of people trying to flee the country. That's likely to increase. And there could also be security ramifications of this collapse as well, felt first and foremost by the region but it could extend broader.
HOLMES: We're running out of time but I wanted to ask you this because it's important, given the country's entrenched government or corruption, the systemic engrained corruption, the lack of ability to have direct oversight, is it understandable many in the West are wary of investment and, of course, the trust issues with the Taliban?
MILLER: The trust issues are huge. There are many reasons to be wary and I don't think anyone's going to turn back the clock and I'm not proposing that, to the scale and scope of aid provided to the last government.
But there needs to be a glide path down. This abrupt cutoff for all aid, except for strictly humanitarian relief, is what has precipitated this disaster. And there needs to be more of a cushion.
HOLMES: Yes, a very important story and far-reaching ramifications. Laurel Miller, we're going to leave it there. Thank you so much.
MILLER: Thanks for having me.
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HOLMES: Tiger Woods is back. We'll have details for you after the break.
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HOLMES: The famous K-pop group, BTS, performed in what is likely their most chaotic venue yet and it literally stopped traffic.
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HOLMES (voice-over): The South Korean band performing their hit song "Butter" in a busy intersection in Los Angeles. It's all part of the "Crosswalk Concert" segment of the U.S. TV show, "The Late Late Show With James Corden."
The host directing the spectacle and some of the traffic. Some of the drivers appeared a little bemused but they get a free concert. The band also performed snippets of other popular songs, "Permission to Dance" and "Dynamite."
It's one of the band's last performances before BTS takes what their record label says is an extended period of rest at the start of 2022.
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HOLMES: Thanks for spending part your day with me. I'm Michael Holmes. Do stay with us. "QUEST'S WORLD OF WONDER" starts after a short break. I will see you a little later.
