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Hundreds of Civilians Trapped in Mariupol; Seven People Killed in Lviv's Latest Missile Attack; Airline Companies Getting Rid of Mask Mandate; Dozens of Cities in China Under Lockdown; Mariupol Looks Like Hell. Aired 3-4a ET

Aired April 19, 2022 - 03:00   ET

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

[03:00:00]

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JOHN VAUSE, CNN ANCHOR: Hello, and welcome to our viewers in the United States and around the world. I'm John Vause live in Lviv, Ukraine.

Russian forces have begun an assault on the eastern Donbas region. A surge in fighting reported across the front line which stretches for hundreds of miles.

ROSEMARY CHURCH, CNN ANCHOR: And I'm Rosemary Church, live from CNN world headquarters in Atlanta.

A U.S. Federal judge strikes down a public transit mask mandate, sparking mixed emotions and new concerns for air passengers and employees alike.

VAUSE: For weeks now, Ukrainian, U.S., and NATO officials have warned that the Russians were preparing for a renewed military offensive in the east and that seems the battle for the Donbas region is underway. According to Ukraine's top security official, a 300-mile-long front (AUDIO GAP) came under attack by Russian forces Monday.

And for the most part, that defensive line held, but there are civilians who remain trapped in the conflict zone, hope of a escape is going to fade. The Ukrainian deputy prime minister just announced no humanitarian evacuation corridors will be open today.

The Pentagon now believes 76 Russian battalion tactical groups have been deployed in the south and the east, 11 added in the last few days alone. Each BCG consists of up to 800 troops, which means tens of thousands of Russian soldiers committed to this offensive.

And despite being outnumbered and outgunned, Ukraine's president says his country will not give up without a fight. Meantime, we're also receiving new images from Mariupol, weeks of heavy fighting have decimated the port city. And the Russians are in near total control. One of the last bastions of Ukraine's defense, a sprawling steel factory on the Azov Sea.

A Ukrainian commander in the city says hundreds of civilians have been sheltering there as well alongside those Ukrainian fighters. And he says Russian forces know the civilians are there, and they're firing on that facility regardless.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DENYS PROKOPENKO, COMMANDER, AZOV REGIMENT (through translator): Right now, in Mariupol, at the Azovstal steel factory hundreds of civilians are sheltering. Among them are children of all ages, women, the elderly, and the families of Mariupol defenders. They are sheltering in the basements and bunkers from the Russian world.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE: There is also word that a Russian unit accused of war crimes in Bucha has now been given an honorary title by Russian President Vladimir Putin. In a signed letter on Monday. Putin congratulated the 64th motorized brigade for their, quote, "great heroism and courage."

Earlier this month, mass graves full of hundreds of murdered civilians were discovered in Bucha as well as other areas near the capital of Kyiv. That came after the withdrawal of Russian forces.

The past 24 hours where a flurry of missile strikes across Ukraine, including here in Lviv, in the west, which until now had not been targeted for the most part by the Russian military.

But not now, the video captured one of at least four missiles streaking across the sky early Monday morning. The Russians say military targets were hit. The Ukrainians say that's not true. But regardless, the end result seven people dead, 11 others wounded. More details from Matt Rivers.

MATT RIVERS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Lviv has largely been spared the horrors of this war, which made the black smoke in Monday skies so unusual here. We chased one such plume until we arrived at its source. Flames shooting out of two buildings as firefighters rain water down from above.

Well, Ukrainian officials say at least four missile strikes across Lviv on Monday morning, three of which hit military infrastructure sites, another hitting just across these railroad tracks behind me. Let me show you the impact crater from where Ukrainian officials say that Russian missile struck.

Military and first responders on the scene quickly thereafter. The explosion destroying an auto repair shop and a dozen or so cars lined up outside. The explosion's shockwaves blew out windows, more than 500 feet away. Mariya Holodychuk (Ph) showed us her building's damage.

"I got very scared," she says, "and I was scared that the whole building was going to fall down. I don't know whether I should stay here in this building or if I should move to Poland and flee for my life."

[03:05:01] Overall, the four strikes across the city killed at least seven people and injured about a dozen, including a child. Here, scenes from a hospital treating victims of the strike who survived. Other victims in body bags outside the repair shop where they'd worked.

The owner says they were just getting ready to open up the business for the day when the missile struck. Four of his employees, he says, were killed, and several others were sent to the hospital. And at what appears to be such an obvious non-military target, it begs the question, was this a mistake by the Russian military or was this place targeted on purpose?

The owner told us the only vague connection his shop had to the military was volunteering time to make sure cars being sent to soldiers at the front were in good shape. For him, this is just another example of Russian military brutality.

He says they destroy our infrastructure. They kill people, they want to kill and destroy the Ukrainian nation. Several of those who died have families with young children. So instead of leaving work to go home and see them, their bodies were taken to the morgue. More victims in a needless war.

Matt Rivers, CNN, Lviv, Ukraine.

VAUSE: Volodymyr Omelyan served as Ukraine's minister of infrastructure from 2016 to 2019, he is with us now from southern Ukraine. Volodymyr, thank you so much for taking the time.

I'm just curious, the extent of the Russian destruction caused during this war is stunning and shocking, but is it surprising at the same time? Is it what you expected to see?

VOLODYMYR OMELYAN, FORMER UKRAINIAN INFRASTRUCTURE MINISTER: Hello, it's great pleasure for me to be with you these days. No surprise for me at all. I know history and Russia is doing the same thing through many centuries. They've always been barbarians and they remain to be barbarians.

But, thanks to the support of the west, and resistance of Ukraine this is a real fight of Russia nowadays. There is no push (Inaudible) they are killers, they are maniacs, and they are robbers.

VAUSE: The Ukrainian government believes that about 30 percent of the infrastructure in this country has already been damaged or destroyed during this war and that's before this offensive begins in the east. So how much devastation do you think will happen. I guess it depends on how long this offensive goes on in the east. But do you have any idea of how extensive the damage could be?

OMELYAN: You, know it's difficult to calculate right now exact figures, because there are a lot of cities and villages, thousands of them totally destroyed by Russians. But definitely we believe that more damage will come. We see that Russia doesn't stop. And there is no kind of fast resolution of this war in Europe. And definitely it will take quite a while to calculate our losses. But we cannot calculate or we cannot evaluate the price of killed people and murdered people.

VAUSE: Yes, the loss, the human losses are of course immense and a tragedy. But this country will have to go on. This country will have to rebuild at some point and the question is, who pays for that? And how do you guarantee that money coming in from the west from joining countries will be spent where it's needed, and will not be taken away by corruption?

OMELYAN: I do believe, and I will do my best, it will be a new Ukraine after war after our common victory. And in my opinion, it's very important to establish right away international fund to rebuild Ukraine, rebuild it from ground zero, unfortunately.

And together with our western allies such as United States, European Union, and definitely including Ukrainian authorities, we will be able to make a real difference. The nation is different right now, and I want our politicians to become different as well. I see no place for corruption after so much bloodshed and so much destruction brought by Russians in Ukraine.

You know, Ukrainians are armed. And I believe they will be very great resistance if some crooks will take the power or will try to take the power and to make their life business as usual.

VAUSE: I see you're in your fatigues in a vehicle there, you're in the southern part of Ukraine. Are you actively engaged in defending Ukraine right now from this military offensive by the Russians?

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OMELYAN: We are all engaged. And it's our war for independence. So, there is no one left doing nothing. But I do believe that together we will win. And definitely, great battle is coming next day in the eastern Ukraine as bad things are happening right now in southern Ukraine. We spent all night under heavy bombing. In Mykolaiv as well.

But we assure that this is the last battle of Putin. And if military assistance from the west will come on time, there is no chance for Russian federation to win in Ukraine. And definitely for us, it's a big issue how we deal with Russia after. Because there is no Putin question, it's a question of Russian empire. And Putin is only a temporary guy who leads the same politic -- policy of Kremlin.

VAUSE: Volodymyr Omelyan, thank you so much for being with us. So we wish you the best of luck. Stay safe.

OMELYAN: Thank you, sir.

VAUSE: Well, in the United States, a major shift in COVID-19 policy. A court has ordered the end of mask mandates for public transportation. When we come back, how airlines and the White House are responding to that judge's order on mask mandates. What it all actually means, who's happy, and who's not.

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CHURCH: Well, the U.S. mask mandate for public transportation is no longer in effect. A judge overturned the directive, saying the Centers for Disease Control overstepped its authority by enacting it. The White House calls the ruling disappointing. And says it's being reviewed.

Several major airlines immediately made masks optional. Some warned there could be confusion since the ruling took them by surprise.

Pete Muntean has details.

PETE MUNTEAN, CNN AVIATION CORRESPONDENT: This was one of the major mask mandates to remain in place. The federal transportation mask mandate was slated to end in two weeks on May 3rd. Now by order of a U.S. district judge in Florida, Kathryn Kimball Mizelle. She says that goes beyond the CDC's authority and now the White House has confirmed that the transportation mask mandate is no longer in effect, pending a federal review.

This was required on planes, trains, buses, boats and in terminal starting in February 2021, not long after President Joe Biden took office. It was extended to March 18th. Then April 18th, then an extension to May 3rd. Now we know that this is going away, and we have heard from airlines like Alaska Airlines, Delta Airlines, and United Airlines that they will follow through with this order.

Essentially making it so that passengers and employees can wear masks only if they want to. We will see, as this pans out if there is any pushback from the Biden administration or any appeal.

Pete Muntean, CNN, Reagan National Airport.

CHURCH: And now to a warning from China's vice premier, she is vowing to send anyone in Shanghai with COVID-19 and their close contacts to government designated quarantine sites. And says it will happen, quote, "without exception."

The remarks come as dozens of cities across China are already in full or partial lockdown under the countries strict zero COVID strategy.

CNN's Steven Jiang is following the story for us from Beijing, he joins us now live. Good to see you again, Steven.

So, we've already seen heartbreaking stories as a result of these severe COVID lockdowns. And now this harsh government warning about quarantine. What is the latest on all of this?

STEVEN JIANG, CNN BEIJING BUREAU CHIEF: Well, Rosemary, it just seems to be a never-ending nightmare for Shanghai's 25 million residents. Most of whom are still being sealed in their homes. And many of them are lacking adequate access to food and other supplies as well as medical care for non-COVID causes.

Now this latest order from that vice premier you just mentioned, it's already starting to cause a new round of anxiety, frustration, and anger. Because without exception line means a growing number of senior citizens, some of them in their 90s are now being forcibly removed from their homes and being sent to government isolation wards.

Many of those facilities are actually in very crowded and primitive conditions with little medical care being provided on site. So, the way they are treating this most vulnerable group of people, which ironically their zero COVID policy is supposed to protect, is really causing a lot of new backlash as well.

And another controversy comes in the form of a viral video that seems to show workers dumping a large amount of perfectly looking vegetables that were supposed to be sent to Shanghai residents who are in desperate need of groceries. Now local officials insisted those vegetables had gone bad inside and had to be disposed of.

All of this of course are just some of the snap -- some snapshots from this growing misery and chaos in Shanghai. But as you mentioned, lockdowns are affecting dozens of cities across China, millions of people being affected.

In the past few weeks, we have seen authorities sometimes lockdown an entire city for just a single several cases. Now the reason they are doing this of course is quite obvious. The central leadership here in Beijing has made clear, zero COVID is here to stay. Because they say this is still the most effective way to protect people. And according to them, to avoid massive deaths and destruction. That

the COVID virus has caused in the west.

But, you know, the result of that is across the country, local authorities, their lesson drawn from Shanghai is not how impossible to contain this virus with their current approach. But rather, when it comes to lockdown, to do it early and do it big. Rosemary?

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CHURCH: All right, Steven Jiang, thank you very much for bringing us up to date on that situation. I appreciate it.

Well, we have breaking news from Afghanistan where witnesses report multiple explosions at schools in western Kabul. Police say this happened in a predominantly Hazara Shia neighborhood in western Kabul. There's no clear information yet on casualties. We'll continue to follow the story and bring you details as they come into us.

Still to come, Ukraine's president says thousands have been forced into Russian territory as they fled the fierce fighting in Mariupol. We will hear from two civilians who made that journey, that's next.

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VAUSE: Welcome back, everyone. I'm John Vause, live in Lviv, Ukraine. Twenty-five minutes past the hour.

Breaking news from eastern Ukraine. Local authorities report bombardment by Russian forces.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy says the battle for the Donbas is now underway. Now the major setbacks in Russia's efforts to take the capital Kyiv, Russian troops have now regrouped or positioned to the east, and in the south. Russia has moved heavy artillery, aviation support, and nearly a dozen additional battalion groups into that area.

Ukrainian officials calls it the second phase of the war. President Zelenskyy though, vowing to fight on. Towns in the east are under relentless shelling, you can see buildings are burning, heavy smoke blanketing the skyline. This scene being repeated across the Donbas region right now.

Situation is drawing even more dire in the southern city of Mariupol. A Ukrainian marine commander described it as hell on earth. Some civilians still trapped there, face a difficult choice, stay in that city, or find safe passage to Russia.

CNN's Scott McLean spoke to two Ukrainians forced to make that decision.

SCOTT MCLEAN, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: It's been two weeks since these suitcases were first packed. Two weeks since Evgeny and Ludmila escaped the hell of Mariupol to Russia. And then finally to safety in Estonia.

LUDMILA (through translator): Before now it was just --

MCLEAN: Stress.

LUDMILA (through translator): Here we are able to really relax. I feel that we are safe here.

MCLEAN: They lived across the hall from each other in an apartment building on the northern edge of Mariupol.

EVGENEY, FLED MARIUPOL (through translator): For 14 days, from the beginning of the war, somehow all the shelling was all fly past us.

MCLEAN: But their luck would soon run out, in the relentless bombardment of the city, their building was eventually hit. The damage though was limited enough for them to stay, even without power, water, heat, or a cell signal.

LUDMILA (through translator): When you hear these explosions, you have an idea the direction they are coming from. And you know what you have to do, lay on the ground, run, or sit down. But silence is horrifying.

MCLEAN: On day 38, the building was hit again, it was time to leave.

EVGENY (through translator): It was impossible to go further into Ukraine. We lived in a different part of the city, there were two encirclements surround us, as I understand. If we went in that direction, well, the only way to leave was through the Russian Federation. And the only thing we were concerned with at that time was leaving this ring of fire. We didn't have a choice.

MCLEAN: They made it to a school in Mariupol where Russian-backed soldiers were evacuating people east to the village of Sertana. Then a week later, so-called filtration in Bezimenne, where at a site like this one they were searched, fingerprinted, and questioned by Russian soldiers before crossing the border into Russia to the city of (Inaudible) Likely to the shelter shown here.

EVGENY (through translator): It was the first time we took a shower in roughly 50 days, right?

LUDMILA (through translator): Forty-one or 40.

MCLEAN: With the help of ordinary Russians, they made it to St. Petersburg, then on to Estonia. Their story is part of a larger trend, most of the two, sometimes 300 Ukrainian refugees arriving in Estonia every day are entering the country through Russia.

MEELIS PILLE, NARVA BORDER GUARD (through translator): Most of them are coming from Mariupol after having passed the humanitarian corridor. But there are also those who say they have been deported to Russia but have managed to come here, and we accept them all.

MCLEAN: On this day, they're catching a train to the Estonian capital after staying at a hostel ran by volunteers.

SERGEY TSVETKOV, VOLUNTEER HELPING REFUGEES (through translator): Some were taken by Russians by force from Mariupol to Russia. And later they fled from camps on the territory of Russia. But others go voluntarily.

MCLEAN: From Tallinn they are not sure where they go, but they are optimistic.

LUDMILA (through translator): We will have some difficulties along the way but if you compare what we went through, everything will be just fine. The future must be better, we don't have another option.

MCLEAN: Scott Mclean, CNN, Narva, Estonia.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

VAUSE: Let's go live now, Clare Sebastian is standing by in London. So, Clare, those are the civilians who got out of Mariupol. We do know that there are still civilians there. Among those civilians are moms and dad, elderly, and a bunch of kids who are actually hold up in that steel and iron facility where the last of the Ukrainian fighters are.

[03:30:07]

There's a little controversy of whether or not they are there now. We've been able to determine that the footage is actually of the facility. Now the question is, when was it recorded, that kind of stuff. But it does appear to be real, it does appear that that facility despite there are civilians says is being targeted by the Russians. SEBASTIAN: Yes, the Azovstal steel plant, John, in Mariupol sprawling

complex. About four square miles of territory. It seems to be the last pocket of resistance here. The Russian military saying that it has sort of blockaded the Ukrainian military in there. But as you say, we are hearing, and we are seeing images that purport to show about 1,000 civilians, according to the head of the Mariupol patrol police to CNN, that are short of sheltering in the basement of that facility.

With pictures appearing to show women and children. Sort of in this, sort of bunker style capacity in there. The commander of the Azov Regiment, one of the units defending the city. They say that the Russian forces are willingly, in their words, firing on that facility. Knowing that there are civilians inside.

So, this is sort of the last stand of the city of Mariupol that has been under intense bombardment, really since the early days of the conflict. Russia seems to be in control of most of the city. But Ukraine still continues to put up resistance.

And of course, this is a key strategic location for Russia as it tries to sort of piece together that land corridor between Crimea and the Donbas. And meanwhile, of course, shelling continues this morning in the Donbas region. We're hearing from the deputy prime minister that there are no humanitarian corridors opened. That Russia has not agreed to any humanitarian corridors today including from Mariupol into the neighboring city of Berdyansk. So, a severe humanitarian situation still on the ground there, John.

VAUSE: Clare, thank you. We appreciate the update. Clare Sebastian for us there live in London.

Well, that does it for me from Lviv here in Ukraine. Let's head back now to Rosemary Church in Atlanta at CNN world headquarters. Rosie?

CHURCH: Thank you so much, John, and do stay safe there, my friend.

Well, just ahead here on CNN Newsroom, disaster in South Africa. Catastrophic floods destroyed thousands of homes and washed away roads. Search and rescue operations are underway.

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CHURCH: Developing news from Afghanistan where witnesses report multiple explosions at schools in western Kabul. Police say this happened in a predominantly Hazara Shia neighborhood in western Kabul. There is no information yet on casualties, but we will of course continue to follow this and bring you details as they come into us.

Well, South Africa has declared a national state of disaster after floods, mudslides, and extreme weather devastated parts of the country. Days of torrential rain have left thousands homeless, more than 440 people died, and dozens missing. Ten thousand troops are helping with rescue missions and providing medical support.

CNN Zain Asher has that story.

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ZAIN ASHER, CNN CORRESPONDENT & ANCHOR (voice over): A rescue team on a mission to find a woman missing since torrential rains swept through parts of South Africa. They zero-in on the river, it's where locals say they found the remains of other victims.

UNKNOWN (through translator): We are here looking for our neighbor who was swept away by the river. We are sure she was swept away by the river because we have found her son, but we haven't found her.

ASHER: It's one of several such operations underway in and around Durban where emergency workers probe the banks of rivers and sniffer dogs comb through piles of debris to try to find dozens of people still unaccounted for. One relief official who just returned from the area says he hasn't seen this kind of flooding in decades.

MICHAEL CHARLES, HEAD OF COUNTRY CLUSTER DELEGATION FOR SOUTHERN AFRICA, IFRC: They've lost everything. They've seen their houses being swept away. Their livelihood been swept away. And you know, the situation is really quite dire.

ASHER: Officials say 10,000 troops have been activated to provide support for rescue missions, as well as to help clean up and bring aid to the more than 40,000 people left homeless from the floods. Disaster management workers and volunteers are packing water and other supplies to deliver to communities without clean water and power.

Some places are already getting help now that floodwaters have receded in some areas. But authorities in the Kwazulu-Natal province say many roads and bridges are damaged or washed away. The devastation is so widespread, South African President, Cyril Ramaphosa declared a national state of disaster.

CYRIL RAMAPHOSA, PRESIDENT OF SOUTH AFRICA: This is a humanitarian disaster that cause for a massive and urgent relief effort. The lives, health, and well-being of thousands of people are still at risk.

ASHER: With dry weather expected, officials hope to get a better look at the scale of destruction and begin the long process of recovery.

Zain Asher, CNN, New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

[03:39:59]

CHURCH: Police in Sweden have arrested 26 people and more arrests are expected after a weekend of violent riots and protests over Quran burnings. The clashes broke out across several cities, 40 people were injured including police and protesters. The violence was triggered by a far-right groups burning of the Quran. Several Arab countries condemned the burnings.

And for our international viewers, African Voices Changemakers is next. For everyone else here (AUDIO GAP) more news after a short break.

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(AFRICAN VOICES CHANGEMAKERS)

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