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Water System IN Mississippi's Capital Collapsing Amid Floodwaters; Losses of Greenland Ice Will Cause Sea Levels to Increase; EU to Call Urgent Meeting as Energy Crisis Worsens; A Year After American Forces Left Kabul; U.N. Official: 24 Million People Require Humanitarian Aid; Growing Concern For Millions of Afghans as Winter Approaches; Due to Engine Problem, NASA Delays Launch of Artemis 1; As General Election Draws Near, Republicans Attempt to Change Their Positions on Abortion; Heated Discussion Over Biden's Idea to Reduce Student Loan Debt; Ukraine Launches Counteroffensive; U.N. Inspectors Head To Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Plant; At Least Five Killed In Clashes In Baghdad's Green Zone. Aired 2-3a ET
Aired August 30, 2022 - 02:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
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[02:00:29]
ROSEMARY CHURCH, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: Hello and welcome to our viewers joining us from all around the world. You are watching CNN NEWSROOM. And I'm Rosemary Church. Just ahead. Ukraine strikes back a counter offensive is officially underway and Ukraine says they're having some early success. Much of Pakistan is underwater amid devastating floods. I'll speak to an aid organizer about what she's seeing on the ground.
And mission to the moon scrubbed when Artemis 1 can finally prepare for liftoff.
ANNOUNCER: Live from CNN Center. This is CNN NEWSROOM with Rosemary Church.
CHURCH: Thanks for being with us. And we begin in Ukraine where a long awaited counter offensive appears to be underway with Ukrainian troops launching a series of attacks on Russian forces in the south.
Ukrainian military source tells CNN soldiers managed to break through Russia's defensive line and retake four villages in the Kherson region. The sources Ukraine's eventual target is the city of Kherson. A strategically critical port on Ukraine's Black Sea coast. Kherson was the first major city to fall under Russian control in early March.
In his nightly address, Ukraine's president vowed again that Russian soldiers would be pushed out of the country entirely.
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VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY, UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT (through translator): We will chase them to the border, to our border which line has not been changed. Occupiers are well aware of it. If they want to survive, it's time for the Russian military to run away, go home. If they do not hear me, they will have to deal with our defenders who will not stop until they free everything that belongs to Ukraine.
And this is not something special. It's not something that just started. We've been talking about this for 187 days on.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHURCH: CNN's Sam Kiley is on the ground in Ukraine with the latest.
SAM KILEY, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Ukrainian armed forces have launched a counter offensive against the Russian invasion after many weeks of what are called shaping operations, attacking logistics spaces, communications line, bridges, ammunition dumps and even airfields. Now this latest counter offensive is being hailed as an attempt to recapture Kherson.
A very important strategic location. The only regional capital that had fallen to the Russians. It was captured early on in the war because it controls the water supply into Russian held Crimea. Now, according to sources, military sources that have told CNN that at least four villages have fallen fairly rapidly in the first day of fighting to the Ukrainians. Whether they get held or not remains to be seen.
But this is clearly an attempt by the Ukrainians to shift the whole initiative away from the Russians to regain it for themselves and to try to punch through. They are saying that they've got enough troops that they have very sophisticated new weaponry that has been supplied by NATO and other allies and they are going to put it to good use.
Sam Kiley, CNN in Kryvyi Rih.
CHURCH: A dangerous mission is also underway in a different part of Ukraine. Inspectors from the U.N.'s nuclear watchdog are now making their way to the embattled Zaporizhia Nuclear Plant. The team arrived in Kyiv on Monday and they are expected to reach the plant in the coming days. It comes after weeks of repeated shelling around the Russian-held plant and growing fears of a potential nuclear disaster.
Russia and Ukraine have accused each other of the attacks. Both countries say they welcome the U.N. team visit with Ukraine's foreign minister expressing his thanks on Monday.
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DMYTRO KULEBA, MINISTER OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS OF UKRAINE: Without an exaggeration, this mission will be the hardest in the history of IAEA given the active combat activities undertaken by the Russian Federation on the ground. And also the very blatant way that Russia is trying to legitimize its presence at Zaporizhia Nuclear Power Plant.
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[02:05:06] CHURCH: CNN's Melissa Bell is in Kyiv with the latest.
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MELISSA BELL, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice over): For many, it's a nightmare scenario. Shells landing just miles from Europe's largest nuclear plant. Zaporizhia has become a flashpoint in the war in Ukraine, with both sides blaming the other for the artillery strikes that threaten the site and neighboring towns. Nine people were injured in shelling in the nearby town of Enerhodar on Sunday night according to a Russian-backed official.
Last week, shells landed about 100 meters from Zaporizhia's reactors. CNN is unable to verify who's responsible for the shelling. Ukraine claims the site's been turned into a military base. Satellite images today show Russian armored vehicles hidden by a reactor. A demilitarized zone, not under discussion, according to the Kremlin but some hope is perhaps on the way. Early Monday, the head of the International Atomic Energy Agency Rafael Grossi tweeted that a delegation of experts would arrive in South Korea later this week.
They arrived in Kyiv today. The mission 14 experts headed by Grossi, one of the few diplomatic agreements to have come out of the war so far.
RAFAEL MARIANO GROSSI, DIRECTOR GENERAL, IAEA: I think now, there is general recognition that we need to be there, we need to be there soon. Kyiv accepts it, Moscow accepts it.
BELL: Ukraine has repeatedly called on Russia to remove its troops from the site with Andrii Yermak, the head of theUkrainian president's office describing Russia's actions as nuclear blackmail on Sunday. In Zaporizhia power has been a concern with nearby fires twice briefly cutting the plants external electricity that powers critical functions last Thursday. A total loss of power would be disastrous.
PETRO KOTIN, ENERGOATOM PRESIDENT: If we have cut off power supply from outside and after that diesel generator stop, then there will be completely the same scenario like at Fukushima.
BELL: Grossi says that currently safety systems in place at the power plant remain operational with radioactivity levels within normal range. Even so authorities are not taking any chances. In Ukrainian- controlled territory exercises this month in case of nuclear fallout.
Near Zaporizhia locals have been collecting iodine pills to defend against the effects of a possible radiation leak. In a land that's no stranger to nuclear disaster prudence is worth its weight in gold.
Melissa Bell, CNN, Kyiv.
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CHURCH: At least five people are dead after a day of violent protests in Iraq's capital. Supporters of powerful Shia cleric Muqtada al-Sadr stormed the heavily fortified green zone after al-Sadr announced he was withdrawing from politics. They clashed with security forces and some even went for a swim in the pool of the Republican Palace, once home to Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein.
CNN's Nada Bashir is following developments for us. She joins us live from London. Good morning to you, Nada. So after a day of deadly clashes in Baghdad's green zone sparked by al-Sadr's announcement that he'll withdraw from politics. What is expected to come next?
NADA BASHIR, CNN INTERNATIONAL REPORTER: Look, Rosemary, we have seen sporadic protests taking place by al-Sadr supporters over the last few weeks. But there are real fears now that these latest protests that we are seeing could lead to sustained violence and clashes between the side loyalists and supporters and of course, the Iraqi security forces. And as you laid out there, we saw real scenes of violence yesterday in the heavily fortified green zone.
And around the perimeters of this area, we saw a tear gas being used by the security forces and also rounds of live bullets being shot. And that is the concern. This is really escalating beyond the point of the tensions that we've seen over the last few weeks as you lay there already, at least five people killed, dozens more wounded. That figure though could very well be much higher as we continue to hear more from Iraqi officials overnight and into the morning.
And of course, we have you seen real calls for these protesters to leave the green zone for restraint to be held. Just yesterday, we heard a statement from the Iraqi Security Forces saying that they would carry out the utmost restraint and ensuring that calm is maintained and that there isn't any violence. But of course, that isn't what we're seeing on the ground. There has been a heavy-handed crackdown on these demonstrations.
And in the past we've seen these protests being encouraged by Muqtada al-Sadr calling on his supporters and in fact on all Iraqi citizens to take to this streets in response to the political stagnation we've seen over the last few months since elections were held in October and in response to what he's described as corruption calling for a complete overhaul of the Iraqi political framework.
[02:10:11]
But of course, as you laid out, this has been triggered in response to his announcement that he will be withdrawing or at least intends to withdraw entirely from political life. Now, Rosemary, I have to note that al-Sadr actually back in June so that he would be stepping down from politics. He called on his 73 lawmakers in the Iraqi parliament to withdraw from their seats in response to that political stagnation.
But of course, since that move back in June, we have seen him repeatedly calling on his supporters to take to the streets to take part in these demonstrations. But I also have to say that we have seen in the past that any call from al-Sadr for these protests to wind down for demonstrators to return home has also been heated, although we did see a days long sit in stage at the Iraqi parliament in August.
So there are questions as to whether al-Sadr's influence may go some way into easing the tensions that we have seen. In the last day we've heard from the Outgoing Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi urging Muqtada al-Sadr to call on his supporters loyalists to return home to heed the instructions of the Iraqi security forces. A nationwide curfew has now been enforced. That was enforced at around 7:00 p.m. local time yesterday and will remain in place until further notice.
And we've heard from a close aide of Muqtada al-Sadr sharing in a post on Facebook yesterday that al-Sadr has now gone on hunger strike until the violence ends, until the use of weapons stops and whether or not this will go some way to encouraging protesters to return home to encouraging calm to return to Baghdad is still a real question. Of course, we are hearing reports of continued clashes overnight.
The question now is whether these protests will continue to escalate and whether we will see more violence on the streets of Baghdad. Rosemary?
CHURCH: All right. Nada Bashir joining us live from London. Many thanks.
Well, Pakistani officials say deadly flooding has caused more than $10 billion in damages this year. Children in some cities are having to be taken home by boat since the waters are so high. Pakistan's climate change Minister says one-third of the country is underwater after repeated monsoon rains. And according to the International Rescue Committee, more than 70 percent of the people they've contacted don't have access to enough clean drinking water.
CNN's Anna Coren has more now on the flooding from Hong Kong.
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ANNA COREN, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice over): A young life hanging in the balance winched across rushing water in Pakistan floods soaked Sindh province. Safely off the bed frame it's an older man's turn. Lucky for some, but these floods have killed over 1000 people since mid June, including over 350 children according to UNICEF.
ABDULLAH FADIL, UNICEF REPRESENTATIVE IN PAKISTAN: This is the calamity of proportions I think Pakistan has not seen. Some of the areas hit are also some of the most vulnerable areas of the country.
COREN: Pakistan normally goes through three to four monsoon rain cycles each year. It has had eight in that time. And the wet season will drag on through September. Extreme heat has baked the earth. The rain can't soak in flash flooding comes next.
These satellite images show the Indus River swelling, nowhere for the water to go and few routes to escape it. Highways through central Pakistan have been cut off, bridges broken as villagers wash away. In the northwest of the country, army choppers rescued desperate people. Another person saved, others the scramble for the next helicopter.
FADIL: This is a climate crisis. Climate that has been mostly done by richer countries contributing to the -- to the -- to the crisis. And I think it's time that the world responded to support Pakistan in this time of need.
COHEN: As Pakistan and NGO's appeal for international aid the weather forecast is finally brightening. All are hopeful for a break in the rain, a chance to further assess the damage. What is immediately obvious, the toll that climate change is taking. Pakistan's relatively low carbon footprint not enough to save it from the dangers of our warming world.
Anna Coren, CNN, Hong Kong.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CHURCH: Joining me now is Farah Naureen, the country director in Pakistan for aid group Mercy Corps. Thank you so much for being with us. At this difficult time for your country and of course, your organization, Pakistan is estimating damages as high as $10 billion. And while some financial support is coming from the IMF, the task right now for your humanitarian aid group is to help all those in need and we're talking about millions of people, aren't we? So what is the biggest challenge right now?
[02:15:08]
FARAH NAUREEN, MERCY CORPS COUNTRY DIRECTOR, PAKISTAN: Thank you very much first of all for having me today and thanks for this question. As you have already mentioned, the extent of damages and the scale and nature of this disaster is really immense. We're on the ground, along with many others trying to provide immediate relief to the people who have been displaced in our -- are either in relief camps but majority are in makeshift camps along the sides of the roads, waiting for assistance.
The country has appealed for international aid, and the U.N. flash appeal is going to be launched in a couple of hours as well. We really hoping that at this time the overall world community mobilizes to support Pakistan in immediate relief efforts. And there's a lot more to do in the coming months, two years because the impact of this disaster is going to be felt for a very, very long time.
CHURCH: And how shocked are you by what you are seeing on the ground? And what help are you able to give people in the next few days and weeks especially those who've lost their homes and have pretty much only the clothes on their back?
NAUREEN: So, from the beginning this summer has been extremely unusual for Pakistan, it started very early on when normally spring would have started with severe heat waves. And then the monsoon said earlier, the normal and then it has the rain has been going on and relentlessly for the -- for the last two months. What we're seeing on the ground in terms of immediate needs is need for food, for shelter, for clean water, as well as healthcare services because in some of these areas, the water is there and in some parts of -- especially saying that in Balochistan there are some parts where water is not going to recede anytime soon.
Which means a lot of outbreaks of communicable diseases. We are seeing loss of crop, loss of livestock. As the water will not recede, we are also foreseeing loss of future crops. So you can imagine the impact in terms of food security and nutrition and livelihoods.
CHURCH: Yes. I mean, the task for your organization is just immense, isn't it? What is your biggest concern as you try to organize aid and support for all of those people in need?
NAUREEN: Yes. So I think for all the actors who are present on the ground, the local partners as well as the INGOs, between all of us, there's plenty of work to do. Together with the government and other partners. What's really needed is for the donor money to be mobilized as early as possible so that more aid can be expanded to the people who are in need. We reaching out to the people who we can, especially in the worst affected areas that the need is immense.
We -- together with our local partners will be able to reach a large population before that the donor money has to -- has to be mobilized as soon as possible.
CHURCH: And have you ever seen anything like this in your country? And do you worry that your organization won't be able to meet this enormous need that is felt by so many people?
NAUREEN: So the country has seen floods in the past as well. Everybody remembers the 2010 floods which we'll call super floods. The kind of scale and the nature of these floods and the way a large geographic areas have been impacted with large population, the loss of infrastructure, the damage to crops and to livelihoods. I don't think we have seen a disaster of the scale in the last few decades.
So it is really huge. I think -- I think we also need to look at -- you have mentioned in the show already how this is climate driven. I think we also need to look at the need for more funding for climate adaptation in countries like Pakistan. So that sufficient measures and as we build back, we build back in a more climate resilient way. So I think right now there's a -- there's a huge responsibility on the whole of the world to come into action especially with regards to climate adaptation.
CHURCH: Yes. Lt's hope that happens very quickly. And we salute you and your organization. Farah Naureen, thank you so much joining us live from Islamabad.
All right. I want to turn to tennis now. Serena Williams day at the U.S. Open. If she is indeed retiring, she is going out with a bang. The 23-time Grand Slam winner was dominant in first round play defeating Montenegro's Danka Kovinic.
[02:20:06]
Now this could be Williams last tournament after she announced earlier this month that she plans to evolve away from tennis. After the match, she said she wants to stay vague about retiring because you never know.
CNN contributor Cari Champion was in the crowd. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CARI CHAMPION, CNNCONTRIBUTOR: I believe tonight the crowd was electric. It was magical and the special part about it was that I felt like Serena started off a little sluggish. But the crowd willed her to win. She felt the love. She felt the significance of the moment. Her first Grand Slam U.S. Open and this likely as we're saying qualifiers might be it for her.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHURCH: And we will have much more on Serena is when and the day's other action after U.S. Open still ahead this hour in a World Sport.
And still to come on CNN. What exactly is a special master? Why former U.S. President Donald Trump is seeking one and how that could impact the investigation into his handling of classified documents.
And later, researchers say the world sea levels are set for a significant rise due to a melting ice sheets in Greenland. We're back with that in just a moment.
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CHURCH: Welcome back, everyone. Angola officials on Monday announced the winner of the country's most competitive election in its democratic history. The incumbent president and his MPLA party won just over 51 percent of the votes. The win extends the party's 47-year winning streak going back to Angola gaining independence from Portugal in 1975.
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UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): The opposition contests but there are adequate institutions to make this contestation. They should do it because the law allows these situations. There are deadlines and we will wait.
We won the fifth election and whoever wins the fifth election has reasons to open at least five bottles of champagne.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHURCH: And open the champagne he did. The victory comes despite rising disenchantment with the ruling party and the status quo. Election officials say only about six million of the 14 million Angolans who registered to vote did so.
Kenya's opposition leader says he will respect the upcoming Supreme Court ruling on his month -- on this month's presidential election. But Raila Odinga says he still believes he won. The opposition leader is challenging his last two deputy president William Ruto alleging the vote was rigged. Ruto denies the allegations. The Election Commission Chairman declared Ruto the winner but four of the seven officials discern the results. Kenya's Supreme Court has until Monday to make its ruling. Turning now to U.S. politics and Republicans are calling for more transparency after the Justice Department unsealed the affidavit used to obtain the search warrant for Donald Trump's Florida home.
[02:25:07]
Large parts of the document were blacked out to protect law enforcement sources and the investigation into Trump's handling of classified documents. On Sunday Republican senator and Trump ally Lindsey Graham predicted dire consequences if charges are brought against the former president.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. LINDSEY GRAHAM (R-SC): I'll say this. If there's a prosecution of Donald Trump for mishandling classified information after the Clinton debacle, which you presided over and did a hell of a good job. There'll be riots in the streets.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHURCH: When he was asked on Monday about those comments, Graham said he rejects violence and was not calling for it.
Meantime, a hearing is scheduled for Thursday on Trump's request for a special master to review material the FBI took during its search of his Mar-a-Lago. Some of these documents may contain material covered by attorney-client privilege.
CNN's Brian Todd picks up the story from there.
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BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): In the escalating legal battle over the FBI search of Mar-a-Lago, the Justice Department said in a court filing on Monday, it's identified a "limited set of materials seized in the search that could potentially contain material covered by attorney-client privilege." And justice officials say they're in the process of addressing privileged disputes.
SHAN WU, FORMER COUNSEL TO U.S. ATTORNEY GENERAL: There may be certain correspondence between the lawyers and Trump, that the special master and probably the FBI would agree this is hey, this is a e-mail from one of Trump's lawyers to Trump. This is clearly privileged, we're not even going to look at it.
TODD: The effort to protect privileged information. Privileged communications between Donald Trump and his lawyers is a reason the former president requested a so called special master to oversee the review of all the evidence the FBI recovered in the Mar-a-Lago search. And a judge in the case as indicated she may well appoint one. What is a special master?
PAUL CALLAN, CNN LEGAL ANALYST: They're called special masters, not because of their chess playing ability, but because they have a special expertise that can assist a district court judge in sorting out important material in a case that's coming before him or her.
TODD: Experts say a special master is usually a neutral third-party expert who goes through seized materials in a case to ensure that investigators don't look through privileged information.
CALLAN: An investigator is not permitted to look at privileged information because, for instance, the attorney-client privilege involves a client who may be revealing things that are incriminating, which he would never reveal to anybody but an attorney because the attorney of course protects the distribution of that information.
TODD: Special masters were appointed in the cases of Michael Cohen and Rudy Giuliani, former attorneys for Trump who faced criminal charges and had their offices and homes searched.
Who are special masters? Are they usually judges, lawyers, who are they?
WU: They're usually maybe former judges, lawyers, oftentimes for financial issues, they wouldn't be, they may be people who are former accountants have that financial expertise. You want someone who has a mastery of the subject matter area.
TODD: But legal analyst Paul Callan says in the Mar-a-Lago investigation, finding the right special master will be especially difficult.
CALLAN: There are classified materials involved here and some of the most highest classified materials, those top secret SCI materials, you probably will need a special master who has prior clearance to look at classified documents.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
TODD: Paul Callan says another very difficult challenge for a special master in the Mar-a-Lago case will be determining whether former President Trump and his lawyers can assert executive privilege. Shielding materials that only a president can protect. Trump and his lawyers say even a former president can assert executive privilege, but there's a lot of dispute over that.
BRIAN TODD, CNN, Washington.
CHURCH: Still to come. Soaring energy bills have Europe on edge especially as winter approaches. Ahead, steps E.U. leaders are taking to address the crisis.
Plus, it's been one year since the U.S. withdrew from Afghanistan. We will take a look at the conditions millions of Afghans are now facing under Taliban ruling.
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CHURCH: In the U.S., the water system in the state capital of Mississippi is on the brink of collapse. Jackson is struggling after heavy rain and extreme flooding damaged infrastructure impacting some 250,000 people. The governor has declared a state of emergency for the city, saying there isn't enough running order to fight fires or even flush toilets. State agencies will help distribute clean water to residents while making sure emergency services have enough water to do their jobs as well.
A new study finds that even if we stop emitting greenhouse gases now, global sea levels could still rise by nearly a foot. The research published in the Journal, Nature Climate Change, predicts that more than three percent of Greenland's ice sheet will melt in the near future. And scientists say it will cause at least 25 centimeters of global sea level rise. Meteorologist Karen McGinnis joins us now with more on this.
And it's shocking, Karen. So, what impact could these rising sea levels have on vulnerable coastal areas around the world?
KAREN MCGINNIS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Rosemary, over the decades, literally decades worth of climate reports, information that really sends the alarm up on what could happen to our planet if we do not do something about it. This one, in particular, really hits a different type of level or an alarm.
As we take a look across what the latest projection is is that more than three percent of Greenland's ice sheet, the second largest ice sheet in the world that possibly could melt if we do not change what we're already doing. This is going to add a project between 25 and about 30 centimeters of sea level rise. Not just in some areas, but globally. Its impact would be shocking. It would be devastating.
And they're saying that also, over the last 100 years, we have seen, kind of, an acceleration of these very toxic gas products. And it does appear that over the next 30 years, they're saying this is going to have been much more quickly than going into the next century. We could see this happen going into the next 30 years.
So, what about these coastal flood events? This is just one depiction. In one city, that I am very familiar with, and that is Charleston, South Carolina. Here is the Ashley River, this is the Cooper River, this is the mainland region, Peninsula of Charleston. What would it look like if we saw between 35 and 30 centimeters or almost a foot of sea level rise? Well, a lot of these areas would be inundated with rainfall.
A human devastating event that could happen, an environmental disaster, and overall we're looking at devastating results global wide where we could see these sea level events that would be devastating in many vulnerable areas. Our latest typhoon is making its way towards Okinawa and, Rosemary, it is packing a punch. It has really increased dramatically over the past 24 hours, up to winds of 215 kilometer per hour.
[02:35:00]
CHURCH: That is a real concern. Glad you're keeping a very close eye on that. Karen McGinnis, many thanks.
Well, EU leaders plan to hold an emergency meeting over its energy crisis next week. They will gather in Brussels on September 9th to discuss ways to tackle the problem as prices skyrocket across Europe. Many EU officials blame Russia for the deepening crisis and worry about access to electricity and heating in the colder months. German Chancellor Olaf Scholz calls the issue a top priority.
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OLAF SCHOLZ, GERMAN CHANCELLOR (through translator): We are in complete agreement that rapid actions to be taken. And I think this will now succeed more quickly across Europe than other framework conditions because we are naturally under pressure to act. And I'm sure individual countries will handle it separately, but that we will act in a coordinated and vast manner.
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CHURCH: Officials also fear the energy crisis could trigger a deep recession.
While uncertainty and fear are gripping millions of people ahead of the cold winter in Afghanistan, as we mark one year since the U.S. withdrew from the country and the last American troops departed. There were the scenes in the days leading up to that, desperation and chaos erupting at Kabul Airport as Afghans attempted to flee the country and the Taliban but were met with violence.
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CHURCH: An attack at the airport killed 13 U.S. service members and about 170 Afghan civilians just days before the U.S. withdrawal. Today, one U.N. official says, many Afghans are facing extreme hardship and millions are in desperate need of humanitarian assistance.
U.N. Aid Chief, Martin Griffiths, laid out some of what they are facing in a speech to the security council. He says eight out of 10 Afghans drink contaminated water, and close to 19 million are facing levels of food insecurity, that includes six million Afghans now at risk of famine. And more than half the population, some 24 million people, need humanitarian assistance.
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MARTIN GRIFFITHS, UNDER-SECRETARY-GENERAL FOR HUMANITARIAN AFFAIRS: These are the figures, Mr. President, and they are devastating. And, frankly, they're difficult to comprehend. We worry that they will soon become worse. Once the cold weather sets in, food and fuel prices already high will skyrocket. Families will have to choose between feeding their children, sending them to school, taking them to a doctor when they fall sick, or keeping them warm.
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CHURCH: Griffiths says $600 million is urgently needed to support winter preparation. And the humanitarian response plan for Afghanistan currently it has a gap of more than $3 billion. And if you would like to help the millions of Afghans facing food insecurity and in need of humanitarian aid, you can go to cnn.com for more information. And you're watching CNN, do stay with us.
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CHURCH: Welcome back everyone. Well, NASA is now hoping for a launch this Friday for its Artemis 1 rocket which will mark the U.S. Space Agency's first moon mission in almost 50 years. But first, their team will need to fix an issue with one of the rocket's four engines, which forced them to scrub Monday's liftoff. The latest now from CNN's Kristin Fisher.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Mission and liftoff at the Space Shuttle Discovery --
KRISTIN FISHER, CNN SPACE AND DEFENSE CORRESPONDENT (voiceover): Engine number 2058 has helped propel six space shuttles into orbit, starting with this flight back in 2006.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Scrub of the attempt of the launch of Artemis 1.
FISHER (voiceover): But today, this system that cools that engine was the primary culprit behind the scrub of the first test flight of the Artemis moon rocket.
MICHAEL SARAFIN, ARTEMIS MISSION MANAGER: We need the engine to be at the cryogenically cool temperature, such that when it starts it's not shocked with all the cold fuel that flows through it.
FISHER (voiceover): NASA says it is too soon to determine when it will try again. But Artemis mission manager, Mike Sarafin, gave a classic NASA response when addressing if the next launch opportunity on Friday is still in play.
SARAFIN: There is a non-zero chance we'll have a launch opportunity on Friday.
FISHER (voiceover): The Artemis rocket or SLS has largely been cobbled together using leftover parts from the Shuttle Program. The four RS 25 engines on Artemis 1 combined flew more than 20 shuttle Missions. NASA had hoped that by recycling these old parts, they'd be able to build this new rocket faster and more affordably. Instead, the SLS rocket is six years behind schedule and billions over budget.
LORI GARVER, FORMER DEPUTY ADMINISTRATOR OF NASA: We know these shuttle parts were very finicky and expensive. And so, it shouldn't have been any surprise that putting them together differently was going to also be expensive and take longer than we hoped.
FISHER (voiceover): Still, this rocket is the most powerful ever built. It's designed to return humans to the moon by 2025, and someday go on to Mars. Thousands of people converged on the Kennedy Space Center today in hopes of seeing it fly for the first time, including Vice President Kamala Harris.
KAMALA HARRIS, U.S. VICE PRESIDENT: Today, was a very important day. Meanwhile, a lot of folks might be disappointed that the launch did not actually happen. A lot of good work really happened today.
FISHER (voiceover): NASA Administrator, Bill Nelson, whose own shuttle flight scrubbed four times reminded that these kinds of delays are routine for any spaceflight, but especially a first test flight.
BILL NELSON, NASA ADMINISTRATOR: This is a brand-new rocket. It's not going to fly until it's ready. Needless to say, the complexity is daunting when you bring it all into the focus of a countdown.
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FISHER, (on camera): Despite all of the technical issues, this rocket is still the only rocket in the world as of now, that is capable of carrying people to the moon, and that's this close to being ready to launch. SpaceX is developing a similar rocket, but it's not quite ready yet. Though that rocket, called Starship, is going to be fully reusable, which would make it much more affordable to fly in the future. Kristin Fisher, CNN, at the Kennedy Space Center.
CHURCH: And thanks so much for joining us. I'm Rosemary Church. World Sport is up next. And I'll be back with more news from all around the world in about 15 minutes. You are watching CNN. Do stick around.
[02:45:00]
STEWART: Well, keep in mind, those of us that are pro-life and those that have fought and advocated for overturning Roe V. Wade for years. And ever since Roe V. Wade was imposed, pro-life advocates have been fighting to overturn it. This is not a political issue for the --
LEMON: But they --
STEWART: -- it is -- this is --
LEMON: I know where you're going with that. But what I'm saying is, for the folks who are now scrubbing their websites and now all of a sudden saying that they're changing their minds. This isn't something that, you know, was from their heart that they believe in. If it's an issue that's going to keep them from winning an office then they'll go, oh, yes. I changed my mind. STEWART: Well, exactly. And look, again, this is not an issue about politics. This is an issue about saving and protecting the sanctity of life. And what --
LEMON: But not for those candidates.
STEWART: -- what we're seeing is many of them took too extreme of a position. I happen to believe there should be exceptions for rape, incest, and life with the mother. But the whole point is to protect the sanctity of life. And many of those people went too far --
LEMON: What I'm saying is, but why did that change? What caused them to change that? Just because they're not going to win an office?
ALLISON: Because they're being disingenuous.
LEMON: So, that's my whole point.
ALLISON: Because they just want to win. It's about power. It's not about the saving -- the life of an unborn child. It's about winning. It's about grabbing power so you can send Nancy Pelosi packing. They'll do whatever -- they'll say and do whatever they need to to win. And then when they get an office, the lights of their voters and go back and retract their ruling.
LEMON: OK. Listen, I just want to get this is with Jim Jordan. This is with student debt. I want to get to now. GOP Congressman Jim Jordan tweeting this out today. He said, "In real America, you work hard, you pay your bills, and provide for your family." We hear a lot of this real American rhetoric coming from Republicans. They don't think someone, you know, is a real America unless you're saddled with debt? Is that what is happening?
STEWART: Well, I guess people would rather him say, in Biden America, you work hard, pay off your loans, and Scranton (ph) Joe's settles with someone else loan. That's the reality of it. And what Jordan was trying to say is that the -- what Joe Biden did with this student loan, "Forgiveness", is he took it to the backs of people. Hardworking Americans that pay off their loans, and now they're paying for someone else's loan.
Most people in this country have a real problem with that. They don't like the fact that if you actually save for college and paid it off. Now, you're paying for someone else's. And that's the problem. That's the message that he was trying to get out there. And a lot of people don't like that.
ALLISON: I don't know who these people are. I am, like, dying to meet the people have saved up so much money that, you know, you can't start college unless you put your full payment for a whole year down. It's not like, you know, you can get a job and then save up, then the bursaries office is like, OK, we'll let you pay later. No, that's not why -- that's not how it works. And people have to take out loans.
I'm from Jim Jordan's State. And let me tell you something, I have student loan debt and I've worked very, very hard. And all of my friends also have student loans debt and have worked very, very hard. And you know who else that debt is also affecting, their parents. Because their parents are aging, and we're having to be concerned about taking care of them.
And when you have that debt weighing over you, we are all working hard. Nobody wants a handout. But the way the loan system is set up, you can't get from under it because of the interest on it.
LEMON: OK. This conversation is to be continued. I've got to run. Thank you both very much. I appreciate it. We'll be right back.
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[02:50:00]
LEMON: NASA's next window to attempt a launch of the Artemis 1 moon rocket early Friday afternoon, but it is still unclear if it will happen even then. Today's launch was scrubbed due to a problem with one of the rocket's giant engines. Here's CNN's Kristin Fisher.
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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Mission and liftoff at the Space Shuttle Discovery --
FISHER (voiceover): Engine number 2058 has helped propel six space shuttles into orbit, starting with this flight back in 2006.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Scrub of the attempt of the launch of Artemis 1.
FISHER (voiceover): But today, this system that cools that engine was the primary culprit behind the scrub of the first test flight of the Artemis moon rocket.
SARAFIN: We need the engine to be at the cryogenically cool temperature, such that when it starts it's not shocked with all the cold fuel that flows through it.
FISHER (voiceover): NASA says it is too soon to determine when it will try again. But Artemis mission manager, Mike Sarafin, gave a classic NASA response when addressing if the next launch opportunity on Friday is still in play.
SARAFIN: There is a non-zero chance we'll have a launch opportunity on Friday.
FISHER (voiceover): The Artemis rocket or SLS has largely been cobbled together using leftover parts from the Shuttle Program. The four RS 25 engines on Artemis 1 combined flew more than 20 shuttle Missions. NASA had hoped that by recycling these old parts, they'd be able to build this new rocket faster and more affordably. Instead, the SLS rocket is six years behind schedule and billions over budget.
GARVER: We know these shuttle parts were very finicky and expensive. And so, it shouldn't have been any surprise that putting them together differently was going to also be expensive and take longer than we hoped.
FISHER (voiceover): Still, this rocket is the most powerful ever built. It's designed to return humans to the moon by 2025, and someday go on to Mars. Thousands of people converged on the Kennedy Space Center today in hopes of seeing it fly for the first time, including Vice President Kamala Harris.
[02:55:00]
HARRIS: Today, was a very important day. Meanwhile, a lot of folks might be disappointed that the launch did not actually happen. A lot of good work really happened today.
FISHER (voiceover): NASA Administrator, Bill Nelson, whose own shuttle flight scrubbed four times reminded that these kinds of delays are routine for any spaceflight, but especially a first test flight.
NELSON: This is a brand-new rocket. It's not going to fly until it's ready. Needless to say, the complexity is daunting when you bring it all into the focus of a countdown.
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LEMON: Kristin Fisher, thank you so much. And thank you for watching, everyone. Our coverage continues.
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