Return to Transcripts main page
CNN Newsroom
U.N.: More than 4.5 Million People Have Fled Ukraine; Life Under Lockdown in Shanghai; Putin Hosts Belarusian Leader Lukashenko in E. Russia; Ukrainian Academy in U.S. Teaches Young Children about War. Aired 4:30-5a ET
Aired April 12, 2022 - 04:30 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[04:30:00]
PEDRAM JAVAHERI, CNN METEOROLOGIST: The area of coverage potentially gets close to 100 million Americans at risk here for severe weather including Indianapolis, St. Louis, Nashville, Little Rock, yet again, as far south as Jackson, Mississippi. So, pretty broad coverage here of severe weather. And a potential there -- of a decent chance there for significant tornadoes as well.
Now when you take a look at parts of Louisiana, we know some of what's happened here is going to be beneficial when it comes to the wet weather. The state had 83 percent of it experiencing drought right now. And much of that in the southern tier of the state. So again, heavy rainfall across this region is going to provide some drought relief. But notice the stark contrast of what's happening on the other side of the United States where it's cold enough to support wintry weather. In fact, Portland, Oregon in the past 24 hours taking up its latest snowfall on record. It has never snowed on record in the month of April in Portland, Oregon -- 1.6 inches or so occurred in the past 24 hours. And still see snow showers across the higher elevations for the Western U.S. -- Max.
MAX FOSTER, CNN ANCHOR: Keeping you busy, Pedram. Thank you very much, indeed.
Still to come, a live update from the Polish/Ukrainian border where thousands of refugees are continuing to cross every single day.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
FOSTER: Welcome back to CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Max Foster.
The U.N. is warning humanitarian response to the horrific violence in Ukraine must be gender sensitive. An official with U.N. women says increased reports of rape and sexual violence against women and children must be independently investigated to ensure accountability. Mass displacement, the presence of mercenaries and the brutality against civilians are already flags.
[04:35:02]
The U.N. also says nearly 2/3 of Ukrainian children have been displaced since the war began. UNICEF adds about 1.6 million of them still inside the country may not have enough food.
Now that kind of grief and despair surely being felt by many across Ukraine. The deputy minister says on Monday alone more than 4,300 people were evacuated from southern cities under fire -- which include Melitopol and Berdyansk.
Now meanwhile, the U.N. says the number of people fleeing the country has now risen to more than 4.5 million. CNN's Salma Abdelaziz is following all of this live from the Polish/Ukrainian border -- Salma.
SALMA ABDELAZIZ, CNN REPORTER: Yes. So, I'm at a train station here, Max, and I'm sure you can hear the sounds of women and children. I can't show them to you, but we're basically in a room here in the train station, a safe haven that's been put up for these women and children fleeing Ukraine. And what I can do though is speak to one of the volunteers who's been here for three weeks. Denise, give me a sense of why this space is so important for the families here.
DENISE SMITH, VOLUNTEER: This space is dedicated solely to mothers and children. And it provides a safe place for them to come, to unwind, to relax after a long journey. It gives a great place for the kids to just destress. They can play with the toys. We have stuffed animals. We have Legos. We have all sorts of toys for them to play with.
ABDELAZIZ: And I see you have a station set up here. Let me know what you're offering here to these families.
SMITH: So, what we have are drinks. We try to give them water, fruit juices, any kind of drinks. We offer the parents coffee, tea, hot chocolate for the kids. We also have baby food. We really try to think of everything. So, we have baby food for the moms. We have pampers. We have toothbrushes, toothpaste, even for the kiddies we have, you know, their own sets and, you know, they're welcome to take anything. We have every size of pampers. We have every, you know, age of baby food for them to take.
ABDELAZIZ: And I'm sure at this point you've seen hundreds of families coming through. Tell me, what are their needs when they arrive? What is the emotional state oftentimes that they are in? How do you cope and how do you offer that kind of support?
SMITH: Well, we do the best that we can. Again, just by staying here. We see that sometimes the kids arrive, you know, after a long journey. They are a little stressed and by being able to play ball in our back room, being able to run up and down, they forget about what's going on with the war and they can just be little kids.
ABDELAZIZ: Thank you so much, Denise. Thank you for your help. The need here is, of course, enormous, Max. You can only imagine. I'm
just looking around again. We're giving these families their privacy but fighting men -- men of fighting age rather -- are not allowed to leave Ukraine. That means many of these kids have been separated from their dads, forced out of their homes, they come here and their journey is only just beginning -- Max.
FOSTER: Yes, that figure, 2/3 of children displaced, is really shocking, isn't it. Thank you very much, Salma, for bringing the story from there at the Poland/Ukrainian border
If you would like to help any of the people in Ukraine who may need this shelter, food, water, go to CNN.com/impact, you'll find several ways to help.
Just ahead --
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DAVID CULVER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Getting a late evening now request to go get a COVID test.
My neighbors and I line up ready for health workers to scan our QR codes which link the results to our I.D. late or night. The testing is constant.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
FOSTER: CNN the only Western news organization on ground in Shanghai right now. We'll show you what life is like during a government run COVID lockdown in a city of 25 million people.
[04:40:00]
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
FOSTER: A big jump in COVID cases is prompting Philadelphia to reinstate its indoor mask mandate starting next Monday. It is the first major U.S. city to bring back the requirement. The public health commissioner says Monday's cases were more than 50 percent higher than ten days ago.
Meanwhile, the Centers for Disease Control is expected to decide in the next few days whether to extend mask mandates for public transportation including air travel. New infections are up in 26 states compared to last week.
Up to two weeks of lockdown to try to contain the coronavirus in Shanghai, there are signs of life beginning to emerge from some neighborhoods. Restrictions are now being eased in areas with lower case counts. As you can see in this video, shot by a resident showing his wife celebrating in an empty street. But some are still frustrated and angry over the government's tough control measures which they say have led to food and medicine shortages.
CNN's David Culver is living through the lockdown with Shanghai's 25 million residents. Here is his report.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DAVID CULVER, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): You'd never expect to see people in Shanghai, China's most affluent and cosmopolitan city screaming for food. We are starving, we are starving, they yell. But after weeks long COVID lockdown, with no promised end, desperation.
One community volunteer recording the home of an elderly woman. She says neighbors heard the 90-year-old shouting help for three days. Pleading for food. Her fridge, empty. Volunteers were finally able to get her a meal.
China's central government now in charge of managing Shanghai's COVID outbreak. In a month's time the daily case count went from double digits to more than 26,000. A Shanghai city leader choked up at a news conference over the weekend apologizing to Shanghai's more than 25 million residents for failing to meet expectations and promising improvement. Those of us living here kept to our homes.
CNN the only U.S. TV network with a team living through the lockdown. In my community, we're only allowed out when summoned by workers using a megaphone and when dark out, a flashlight.
CULVER: Getting a late evening now request to go get a COVID test.
CULVER (voice-over): My neighbors and I line up. Ready for health workers to scan our QR codes which link the results to our I.D. night or day the testing is constant.
CULVER: Someone in the community tested positive. So, they'll test now each of us once again.
CULVER (voice-over): We can also leave the house to line up for government distributions or to get approved deliveries. Usually the most exciting part of the day.
CULVER: A vacuum sealed pork and then several boxes of traditional Chinese medicine. A bunch more of face masks. A box that has a bunch of fresh fruit. On top they have some frozen meat and then two antigen kits.
[04:45:00]
CULVER: Food deliveries this plentiful are rare. So, most of us spend our morning trying to order groceries online. But orders sell out quickly. Not enough delivery drivers to get through the lockdown barriers. Communities like mine resorting to group buys. We come together in chat groups and try to source food directly from suppliers in bulk. Neighbors helping neighbors is a common theme across the city. We found a safe drop spot to trade. Cheese for oranges.
Our community volunteers help us source food where they can. Though they too are exhausted and hungry. From above you see this metropolis. Quiet, eerily empty but on the ground, there are tragedies shared daily online.
This man recording his father who says he's unable to get admitted to a hospital in the strained system. His dad later died, he says. In this video a neighbor capturing the wailing of a heartbroken woman crying out that her loved one had died because of the lockdown.
And this video sparked outrage on Chinese social media. It shows a worker in a hazmat suit brutally killing a pet corgi because local officials worry that it might have carried the virus. The owner was in government quarantine. All of this as a result of China's zero COVID policy. A directive from the top.
President Xi Jinping on Friday praising China's zero COVID approach. State media echoing a glowing narrative. Showing an orderly mobilization in Shanghai with an abundant food supply and rapid construction of more than 100 makeshift hospitals with capacity to treat 160,000 people infected.
But patients taken to those government quarantine centers sharing a very different reality online. Posting videos of unsanitary conditions and people using isolation facilities still under construction. Some seem frantically running at distribution sites. Scrambling for food and blankets.
The uncertainty leading this man broken. Doing the unthinkable. Questioning the leadership allowed. Asking, where is the Communist Party?
David Culver, CNN, Shanghai.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
FOSTER: Coming up, CNN visits a U.S. school where children are getting a sobering lesson on war and peace in Ukraine. What young Ukrainian Americans think of Vladimir Putin and the Russian people.
[04:50:00]
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
FOSTER: Disturbing images out of eastern Russia earlier. Where Russian President Vladimir Putin has been meeting with his Belarusian counterpart Alexander Lukashenko at the cosmodrome. And Mr. Lukashenko has been an ally of Mr. Putin throughout Russia's war in Ukraine and allowing Russian troops to attack their neighbor via Belarus.
Now we're waiting to hear the results of appeal hearing for a U.S. marine veteran held in Moscow. In 2020 Trevor Reed was convicted of endangering the life and health of Russian police officers during an altercation and was sentenced to nine years. Reed's family says he's in the hospital with tuberculosis but they don't know if he's receiving any real medical care. They're urging the Biden administration to help bring him home. Another U.S. Marine veteran, Paul Whelan also remains imprisoned by Russia in a separate case.
Well, the private day care and preschool in the United States, many of the children and their parents were born in Ukraine. Because of the conflict they're being taught a lesson about war and peace. CNN's Gary Tuchman reports from Parma Heights, Ohio.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
GARY TUCHMAN, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: It's called the Ukrainian Academy.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Good afternoon, everyone.
CHILDREN: Good afternoon.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: So, today we are going to talk about war and peace.
TUCHMAN (voice-over): In the Cleveland suburb of Parma Heights, Ohio.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Can you raise your hand if you have grandparents in Ukraine?
TUCHMAN (voice-over): Almost all of their parents were born in Ukraine and many of these children were also born there. This is a private preschool, day care as well as an after-school program for children ages 6 months to 12 years.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Are we in a state of peace or are we in a state of war in this country?
CHILDREN: Peace.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Peace. What about Ukraine?
CHILDREN: War.
TUCHMAN (voice-over): The feeling here is although what's happening, Ukraine is frightening, it's important for these children to learn about it and talk about it.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: What can you say about soldiers? How do you feel about them?
CHILD: They're brave.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: They're brave. Right.
CHILD: Soldiers help people to not die.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: If someone comes to your house, start destroying it, taking your stuff, you know, would you be happy about that?
CHILDREN: No.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Do you think this is right?
CHILDREN: No.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: When another country like come into another country and taking stuff and bombing, do you think this is right?
CHILDREN: No.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: No. Who came to Ukraine?
CHILDREN: Russia.
TUCHMAN (voice-over): The teachers ask how the children are feeling about all of this.
CHILD: Worried.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Worried.
CHILD: Scary.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Scared. What other words is war? How can we describe the war?
CHILD: Sadness.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Sadness.
CHILD: My family is -- well, are very scared for my gram, my great grandma, my relatives that are also in war and it's very anxious.
CHILD: I hope Ukrainian win because so much of people are good and saying stop to the other nation who is being bad.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: So, not all the Russian people are bad, right? There are some people who just, you know, just say no war. Please stop it. They're asking the president.
CHILD: Yes. It's not because of the Russian people. It's because of the president. He's greedy and trying to take over the country.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: What is your dream? Just what would you dream about right now if you are thinking about Ukraine?
CHILD: Could we have another president in Russia?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Another president in Russia. OK.
CHILD: Is that every single parent to have peace. We don't want that war had never happened.
[04:55:00]
TUCHMAN (voice-over): Roman and Helena Dutka are the owners of the academy.
TUCHMAN: Do you think your students here are now prouder to be Ukrainian American than even before this war?
ROMAN DUTKA, CO-OWNER, UKRAINIAN ACADEMY: Yes. I think they are proud about their roots, that they are Ukrainians and about Ukrainians standing strong.
HELENA DUTKA, CO-OWNER, UKRAINIAN ACADEMY: Stand together.
TUCHMAN (voice-over): Before we said good-bye with the students, I get to talk with them a bit.
TUCHMAN: If you had superpowers, what would you do if you had superpowers?
CHILD: Save the good people.
TUCHMAN: Save the good people?
CHILD: Yes.
TUCHMAN: That's what you would do as superwoman?
CHILD: Yeah, yeah, and like make the house fly into the air.
TUCHMAN: Make the house fly into the air?
CHILD: Yes.
TUCHMAN: Fly to safety?
CHILD: Yes.
TUCHMAN (voice-over): The laughter of children who have a lot on their minds.
TUCHMAN: The children here are also learning about charitable giving. They and their families have donated huge amounts of food, clothing, medical supplies. The owners of the Academy took the donations, flew to Poland themselves, drove to the border and those supplies are now in Ukraine. But more supplies and donations are coming in, that's why this truck container is here. The donations are inside. As it fills up, the owners will take it out, and again, take a plane to Poland and deliver it to Ukraine.
This is Gary Tuchman, CNN, in Parma Heights, Ohio.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
FOSTER: Thanks for joining me here on CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Max foster in London. Our breaking news coverage of Russia's war in Ukraine continues on "EARLY START," with Christine Romans in New York and Brianna Keilar in Lviv, Ukraine. You're watching CNN.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
