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Ukraine Curbs Power Usage After Russian Attacks Energy Plants; Putin Declares Martial Law In Annexed Areas; Truss Government Struggling With Yet More Turmoil; Iranian Sports Figures Want Iran Banned From World Cup. Aired 1-2a ET
Aired October 20, 2022 - 01:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
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JOHN VAUSE, CNN ANCHOR: All around the world at this hour, you're watching CNN Newsroom. Coming up, electricity restrictions and rolling blackouts down place across Ukraine, as Russian airstrikes continue to inflict critical damage on national power grid.
Liz Truss likes to be the shortest serving British prime minister in history.
Also, a glimmer of good news on carbon pollution and the fate of the planet and clear proof that what we do really does matter.
ANNOUNCER: Live from CNN Center. This is CNN Newsroom with John Vause.
VAUSE: Right now power rationing is underway across Ukraine, with ongoing Russian airstrikes causing widespread and serious damage to parts of the national power grid. The government restrictions are in effect and will continue until 11:00 p.m. tonight local time.
Internet service is also slow to a crawl in weak spots, where the government wants electricity consumption reduced to a minimum to avoid increasing the length and number of rolling blackouts.
Meantime in Moscow, a desperate move by a desperate leader Vladimir Putin has declared martial law across territory, Russia does not fully control. For Ukraine regions, Russia claims to have annexes weeks ago, but for the most part, the declaration appears to be almost meaningless.
Half of those regions have been partially under Russian military occupation for years. And in recent weeks, Russia has been losing territory to our Ukrainian counter offensive. Putin has also increased security across Russia, especially provinces neighboring Ukraine. Here's what the U.S. president had to say.
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JOE BIDEN, U.S. PRESIDENT: I think Vladimir Putin finds himself in an incredibly difficult position. And what it reflects to me is it seems his only tool available to him is to brutalize individual citizens in Ukraine, Ukrainian citizens to try to intimidate them into capitulating. They're not going to do that.
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VAUSE: The Russia occupied city of Kherson, Kremlin backed officials are telling residents there to evacuate ahead of that Ukrainian counteroffensive. And as CNN's Nic Robertson reports the evacuation is expected to affect tens of thousands of people.
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NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR (voiceover): Ukrainian civilians now under Russian martial law, in Kherson City lined up to be evacuated potentially to Russia. Russian imposed officials in illegally annex Kherson have told them it's not safe to stay. Up to 60,000 forced out. Boats used to ferry them away from the front line and their homes to an uncertain future.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (Through translator): I bought extra clothes for my dog. My other half, my antidepressant.
ROBERTSON: Ukrainian officials have accused Russia of whipping up hysteria, compelling people to leave. Residents receive text messages Wednesday morning from the pro-Russian administration. Dear residents it read, evacuate immediately. There will be shelling of residential areas by the Armed Forces of Ukraine. The punishment under martial law for failing to comply unknown, the threat clear.
KIRILL STREMOUSOV, RUSSIAN-INSTALLED DEPUTY GOVERNOR OF KHERSON REGION (through translator): I ask you to take my word seriously, and to understand them as meaning as prompt and evacuation as possible.
ROBERTSON: Vladimir Putin is tightening his grip not just on Kherson, but Donetsk, Luhansk and Zaporizhzhia. The four territories he illegally annexed last month, all put under military command.
Ukrainian forces have been advancing through several parts of the Kherson region in recent weeks, capturing villages and farmlands along the west and banker the Dnipro River. The Kremlin's new commander for Ukraine said Tuesday that the situation in Kherson was far from simple and implicitly hinted his forces may withdraw.
SERGEI SUROVIKIN, COMMANDER OF RUSSIAN OPERATIONS IN URAKINE (through translator): Our further plans and actions regarding the city of Kherson will depend on the unfolding military in tactical situation on the ground. I repeat it is already very difficult today.
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ROBERTSON: Across the rest of Ukraine, Putin's forces kept up their barrage on power stations. And despite at least four cruise missiles and 10 drones shut down by Ukrainian forces. Another three electricity generating plants hit, more Ukrainians denied power and water.
Amid those dwindling supplies, President Zelenskyy calling a crisis meeting to head off a nationwide blackout, vowing to keep critical infrastructure up and running.
ROBERTSON (on camera): In this war, Putin is turning out the lights, but it is Ukraine that's taking the key commodity territory. Putin's martial law officials here say an indication of just how much he is losing control. Nic Robertson, CNN Kyiv, Ukraine.
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VAUSE: Steve Hall is a CNN national security analyst and former CIA chief of Russia operations. Good to see you.
STEVE HALL, CNN NATIONAL SECURTY ANALYST: Great to be here.
VAUSE: OK. So just a few weeks ago, referendums are joining Russia withheld in those Ukrainian regions. The vote ended with a 90 percent in favor. And on that, here's the State Department spokesperson on Wednesday. Listen to this.
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VEDANT PATEL, U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT SPOKESPERSON: It should be no surprise to anybody that Russia is resorting to desperate tactics to try and enforce control in these areas. The truth is, is that Russia is not wanted in these regions, and the people of Ukraine are rejecting Russia's illegal invasion and seizure by force of what is Ukrainian territory.
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VAUSE: It's a fair point. And in terms of everyday life, though, in those regions, which have been under military occupation, with the military calling the shots on a daily basis, will martial law be essentially a distinction without a difference?
HALL: Yes, absolutely. It will be. I mean, you know, except I would take a slightly different spin on it. Yes, of course, the Russians have been in the Donbas region, had been in Luhansk and Donetsk, you know, for many years now. But they clearly right now don't control them.
And so how you actually start martial law, how you actually enforce martial law in regions that you don't fully control? I think it's a mystery. And I think quite frankly is silly. I mean, there's martial law implies that you have a way to enforce your will. And clearly, the Russians don't have the Donbas covered 100 percent in terms of being able to control it.
VAUSE: One thing this declaration does do, it gives Moscow, the Moscow backed leaders in these four regions authority to construct their own regional defense force or something like that, is that an attempt basically to reduce the need to send troops from, you know, Russia proper into Ukraine to try and counter some of the backlash Putin has received over that national call up?
HALL: You know, again, inside of Ukraine to include Luhansk, Donetsk and the rest of the Donbas region, you know, the Russians could have tried to force Ukrainians or perhaps recruit Ukrainians that might be -- might think more positively about Russia than other Ukrainians do, they could do that before the enforcement of martial law.
So, again, it's possible that they're trying to make it slightly easier for themselves in those areas that they control. But again, if you don't control, you know, a particular part of an area, then you know, you can't forcibly conscript anybody, or really, you can't even recruit people who perhaps want to fight for you. So, again, it's a bit of a mystery as to why they think martial law is going to be particularly affected inside of Ukraine to include the Donbas.
VAUSE: So we look at what's happening outside Ukraine, inside Russia, and this may have more impact, actually, because they've -- Putin is an accurate sort of martial law light. It's one step below a full declaration, governors in eight regions bordering Ukraine that begin greater authority, maintain control, maintain public order, it's your troops that sort of thing. Where do you see this now heading?
HALL: Yes, so actually, that's quite a bit more interesting for me, those oblasts, those regions that surround what's under attack in Ukraine by the Russians right now. So it'll be interesting, because one of the things that I say a lot, so when I talk about this is well, you know, there's really no rule of law in Russia. But then the question becomes, well, if there's no rule of law, then why are they doing things like, you know, declaring martial law.
And one of the things that I think is just part of human nature is, is that you've got governors in those areas who respond directly to Putin, directly to the Kremlin, you'll, of course, have generals that report fairly directly to the to the Kremlin and to Putin himself. We have information that Putin himself is calling up and directing military operations.
And I think this in part is just a desire on the Kremlin's part to try to make sure everybody knows who's in charge in those Russian areas that surround Ukraine. And the answer is, it's the military it shows that they're very concerned I think about sabotage operations, paramilitary operations on the part of the Ukrainians inter Russia behind Russian lines.
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And for that reason, I think, among several others, perhaps, is why martial law or martial law light one stage before that has been declared in those areas.
VAUSE: What about the extra powers that Putin gets from this declaration inside Russia, in the sense that the greater authority he's receiving under these new laws? And the speculation that this move to a war footing for the entire nation? How do you see that?
HALL: I think it's more again just to simply be able to control things better on the battlefield and those areas that are nearby. Remember, you've got a lot of logistics going through these and going through some of these towns that are right on the border or close to the border with Ukraine. So I think it's a desire to have a better logistics train, a better communication, command and control.
And again, there are two reasons for that. The first is the logistics had been such a horrible part of this war for the Russians. The Ukrainians had been so good at disrupting the logistics, they weren't great anyway, but the Ukrainians have had significant success.
And then again, the other thing is simply firm command and control to make sure that the Kremlin when it wants something done, there's not a governor fighting with the military command or fighting with, you know, one of the self-proclaimed, you know, fighters that are fighting inside of Ukraine. So it's an effort, I think, to streamline that and hopefully make the whole war effort more efficient, and better.
VAUSE: Steve, thanks so much, really appreciate insights. It's great.
HALL: My pleasure.
VAUSE: The EU look set to sanction Iran for supplying a tech drones to Russia's war effort in Ukraine. European diplomat says the sanctions could come later this week. Russia has increased the use of Iranian drones they (ph) claims not to have with attacks on multiple Ukrainian cities including Kyiv. The UN Iran's ambassador denying selling drones and other weapons to Russia.
But an EU spokesperson says there is sufficient evidence to move forward with sanctions. And U.S. State Department also claims to have abundant evidence that Russia is using Iranian drones to attack civilians and critical infrastructure in Ukraine.
The U.S. has warned around there will be consequences. Wednesday raised the possibility of sanctions as well.
It seems almost unbelievable, but the past six weeks of Liz Truss as s Prime Minister has been her predecessor Boris Johnson looked like a rock instability and a bastion of virtue. The British Conservative government has been engulfed in more chaos on Wednesday and on several fronts.
Home Secretary Suella Braverman quit over a minor infraction using her letter of resignation to outline a scathing rebuke of the Prime Minister, rather than as a second senior minister to depart the Truss government in less than a week.
She's been replaced by Grant Shapps who earlier this week, said the prime minister had a Mount Everest to climb to remain in power. Senior members of the Conservative Party are also in open revolt.
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CHARLES WALKER, BRITISH CONSERVATIVE MP: I'm livid and I really shouldn't say this, but I hope all those people that put Liz Truss in number 10, I hope it was worth it. I think it was worth it for the minister or red box, I think it was worth it, to sit around the Cabinet table, because the damage they have done to our party is extraordinary.
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VAUSE: Liz Truss was mocked and (INAUDIBLE) during the weekly Prime Minister's questions, and she's now in danger of becoming Britain's shorter serving leader ever. CNN's Bianca Nobilo picks up the story.
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BIANCA NOBILO, CNN CORRESPONDENT (on camera): Prime Minister Liz trust had a roller coaster day on Wednesday and not the fun kind. The day kicked off with reports that her special advisor had been suspended pending an investigation and then she had to appear for Prime Minister's questions and she faced a confident leader of the opposition. And she knew that this was a make or break moment for her fragile Premiership.
KEIR STARMER, BRITISH LABOUR PARTY LEADER: I've got the list here. 45P tax cut gone. Corporation tax cut, gone. 20P tax cut gone. Two-year energy freeze, gone. Tax free shopping, gone. Economic credibility, gone. And to suppose best friend, the formula Chancellor, he's gone as well. They're all gone. So why she's still here.
LIZ TRUSS, BRITISH PRIME MINISTER: Mr. Speaker, I am a fighter and not a quitter. I have acted in the national interest to make sure that we have economic stability.
NOBILO: Truss has more energetic and at points fiery performance seems to report her a little bit more time with her party. Although later in the House of Commons, the vice chairman of the powerful backbench committee of Conservative MPs that controls rules over ousting leaders and electing new ones declared publicly to the House of Commons and nation that he could no longer look voters in the eye and that the Prime Minister had to go.
WILLIAM WRAGG, BRITISH CONSERVATIVE MP: I am personally ashamed. Because I cannot go and face my constituents, look them in the eye and say that they should support our great party and the polls would seem to bear that out.
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NOBILO: And the political blows kept coming when Suella Braverman announced that she was resigning as Home Secretary. She said that this was over a technical infringement sending an official document from a personal e-mail address, but she didn't waste the opportunity in her resignation letter to criticize the government.
In a thinly veiled attack, she said that she held herself to the highest standards, and her resignation was the right thing to do. Writing, the business of government relies upon people accepting responsibility for their mistakes, pretending we haven't made mistakes carrying on as if everyone can't see that we've made them and hoping that things will magically come right is not serious politics rather.
Braverman continued that she has deep concerns about the direction of the government. Will her resignation be the first of many or an isolated incident? It's impossible to say this evening, which just underscores the instability of this current government. Bianca Nobilo, CNN, London.
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VAUSE: Last hour (ph) I spoke with CNN European Affairs commentator, Dominic Thomas, and asked, Will Liz Truss be forgiven for all of the mistakes she's made.
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DOMINIC THOMAS, CNN EUROPEAN AFFAIRS COMMENTATOR: These mistakes are not behavioral. They're not just simple, bad life choices. She was elected on these particular policies and on this platform, they're in her DNA. They are the political candidate that she is, that is her vision as to where Britain should go. And it's been rejected by the markets. It's been rejected by the British people. And to that extent, John, she's completely illegitimate and has no claims to be able to apologize and hope that this will somehow turn the suffering British public around, John.
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VAUSE: And there was further mayhem and confusion in the British Parliament during a vote over fracking. The confusion was whether or not it was linked to a confidence vote. Some MPs playing conservatives were being physically dragged back in to support the government.
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CHRIS BRYANT, BRITISH LABOUR MP: Madam Deputy Speaker, I would urge you to launch an investigation into the scenes outside the entrance to the no lobby earlier. As you know, members are expected to be able to vote without fear or favor. And the behavior code which is agreed by the whole of the house has shot -- there shall never be bullying or harassment of members. I saw -- I saw members being physically manhandled into another lobby.
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VAUSE: Other conservatives dismissed the reporter manhandling coercion and pandemonium but it's another side of the chasm and the chaos within the Truss government.
When we come back here on CNN amid a wave of Venezuelan migrants seeking asylum in the U.S., new Biden administration policy, leaving them in limbo.
Also ahead, a long way from home but not out of reach of China's intolerance for dissidents. A pro-democracy demonstrators beaten in the UK. Gears he may be silenced for speaking out against Beijing.
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VAUSE: Some prominent Iranian sports figures want the country banned from the upcoming Football World Cup because of Tehran's brutal crackdown on anti-government protesters. (INAUDIBLE) of FIFA they wrote Iran's brutality and belligerence towards his own people has reached a tipping point, demanding an unequivocal and firm disassociation from the football league and sports world. Football, which should be a safe place for everyone, is not a safe space for men -- for women or even men.
Meantime Iranian rock climbing Elnaz Rekabi met with the Sports Minister would say, after returning from Seoul, where she competed without her headscarf. According to state media, the minister expressed her -- his support rather for Rekabi encouraged her to continue on with her career. CNN's Nada Bashir has details.
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NADA BASHIR, CNN REPORTER (voiceover): A hero's welcome amid a storm of controversy. Elnaz Rekabi's returned to Tehran may have drawn crowds of supporters, but it was her appearance without a hijab or headcovering at a climbing competition in South Korea, which drew the spotlight.
ELNAZ REKABI, IRANIAN ROCK CLIMBER (through translator): The situation happened entirely accidentally. The struggle that I had with wearing my shoes and preparing my gear made me forget about the proper hijab that I should have had. I apologize to the people of Iran and for the turbulence in worry that I created for them.
BASHIR: The pro athlete's words reiterating an earlier apology shared on her Instagram page. There's some human rights organizations have expressed concern that Rekabi may happen speaking under duress and could still face repercussions at home.
The International Federation of Sport Climbing however, says it has received clear assurances that Rekabi will not suffer any consequences and will continue to train and compete. Rekabi's returned from Seoul comes amid ongoing protests across the country sparked by the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini, who died in the custody of Iran's notorious morality police after she was detained for allegedly wearing her hijab incorrectly.
Women and young girls have been openly defying the regime's conservative dress code. The Iranian rock climber has so far refrained from publicly voicing her support for the movement. But she has become yet another symbol of defiance for those protesting for change, prompting fears that Rekabi could be used by the regime to set an example to other women.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They just can't let it go unpunished because they know how crucial it is to maintain this barrier of fear among people.
BASHIR: Nada Bashir, CNN, London.
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VAUSE: Pro-democracy protester who says he was beaten by workers at the Chinese Consulate in Manchester. Now fears he will be silenced by Beijing. Video online (INAUDIBLE) the protesters show scuffles after demonstrators say consulate workers tried to take away their signs and placards. A news conference Wednesday, Chan described how the workers dragged him inside the Consulate gates and then the (INAUDIBLE) worse.
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BOB CHAN, PRO-DEMOCRACY PROTESTER: I then found myself being drafted into the grounds of the consulates. I held on to the gate where I was kicked and punched. I could not hold on for long and was eventually pulled into the grounds of the consulate.
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VAUSE: And China's consul general told Sky News it was his duty to pull the hair of a protester. Claims his colleagues did not beat anyone and that the consulate workers were the ones who were attacked.
Meanwhile, the cracks in Beijing strict COVID -- Zero COVID policy are becoming harder to ignore as anger spreads over repeated lockdowns, daily COVID testing and forced isolation. China's President Xi Jinping says he's prioritize the people and their lives above all else to hold back the virus. But images from the street tells a very different story. Here's CNN's Selina Wang.
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SELINA WANG, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voiceover): He struggles to breathe and crawl, sweating profusely. Exhausted under the weight of his hazmat suits. He's wearing layers and layers of them. This is a demonstration from a Chinese citizen all the way in New York City's Times Square, a metaphor for the suffocating zero COVID policy many feel in shooting pings China, it's to mark the ongoing Communist Party Congress where Xi is expected to secure his unprecedented third term.
ZHISHENG WU, CHINESE ARTIST: There are so many repressive emotion during this two or three years. I vent my emotion out.
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WANG: But in China shows of defiance are swiftly censored. Just a week before in Beijing, two big banners attacking China's supreme leader and his COVID policies were hung on a busy overpass. One of them reads Say no to COVID test yes, yes to food. No to lock down, yes to freedom. The other banner reads remove dictator and national traitor Xi Jinping.
People involved in the demonstration could be jailed or even worse. China's draconian zero COVID policies have descended millions of lives into chaos. Fights with COVID enforcers, screams for freedom from locked apartments, protests for food and supplies.
During a snap locked down in an airport in southern China, security even help guns near travelers. Entire cities are still being locked down over a handful of COVID cases. This woman yelling out in frustration that she's been in isolation for six months already. But the images of pain erased from China's internet. UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's just a general (INAUDIBLE) policy where people are being forced and herded and the dignity is being taken away.
WANG: We are not revealing this residents identity because of fears of retribution for criticizing the government.
WANG (on camera): So why is Xi Jinping sticking to zero COVID?
STEVE TSANG, DIRECTOR, SOAS CHINA INSTITUTE: Because Xi Jinping can never be seen to have make a mistake. Constantly we have the Party propaganda machinery churning out narrative that, in fact the zero COVID is protecting lives in China.
WANG (voiceover): Beijing claims there would be a disastrous health care scenario, like the million plus COVID deaths in America if China didn't have it zero COVID policy. The pandemic is also Beijing's perfect chance to upgrade its surveillance technologies, including mandatory smartphone health apps that track the daily movements of virtually all 1.4 billion people. Yet many in China have adapted to the new normal with regular COVID tests and rolling lock downs.
But back in New York, this Chinese artist is doing what he can to remind the world that while they've moved on from COVID millions in China are still suffering under the weight of lockdowns and repression. Selina Wang, CNN, Hong Kong.
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VAUSE: Still ahead here on CNN Newsroom. Somalia once again facing widespread famine, but already children are dying and others are falling (ph) severely ill on mass.
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VAUSE: Welcome back. I'm John Vause. You're watching CNN NEWSROOM.
Vladimir Putin has declared martial law in parts of eastern and southern Ukraine -- territory which is slowly slipping from Russia's paw (ph) and liberated by Ukrainian counteroffensives.
And the Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy recently sat down for an interview with CNN's news gathering partner ZTZ (ph) and he was asked, would Ukraine be willing to give up some of that territory for a peace deal with Moscow.
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VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY, UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT (through translator): Well, the issue is that you cannot trade in what is not yours. That's what Russia cannot understand. In our steps -- in the steps that will make this land, does not belong to me or to anyone, any president before me, or after me.
All of our land belongs to the citizens of Ukraine. One -- one part -- one-40 millionth part of it belongs to me. I'm one of 14 million Ukrainians. This all belongs to us, the citizens of Ukraine, the future generations.
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VAUSE: Putin has also ordered tighter security across western Russia including areas around the capital, Moscow.
CNN's Brian Todd has details.
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BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Vladimir Putin's declaration of martial law in four regions of Ukraine, analysts say, could have a crushing effect on Ukrainians in those regions who don't side with Russia.
SARAH MENDELSON, FORMER U.S. HUMAN RIGHTS OFFICIAL AT U.N.: You could expect certainly curfews, and property being seized. But you could also see the mobilization of civilians, for army service, which is again a war crime.
TODD: It could also mean tighter censorship, restrictions on public gatherings, more law enforcement power for Russian officials in those areas of Ukraine.
The declaration of Martial Law allows for the so-called evacuation of people in those Ukrainian regions, under the pretext of getting them to safety.
Tens of thousands of Ukrainians in the Kherson region have already been relocated, as Ukrainian forces made gains there. Human rights experts Sarah Mendelson says that may not rise to the level of ethnic cleansing but --
MENDELSON: They can be forcing them through these filtration camps where they're looking at social media, they're looking at whether or not they're pro Ukrainian.
We know that there are upwards of a million Ukrainians who have been taken into Russia. We don't know where they. We expect that that will be more of the same.
TODD: Russia doesn't control all of those regions Putin claims to have annexed. 0
SAMUEL CHARAP, SENIOR POLITICAL SCIENTIST, RAND CROP: When faced with choices about whether to back down or to double down, Putin has consistently demonstrated, over the course of the last month, in particular that he is prepared to double down. Putting at risk basically everything else.
TODD: In the United States, martial law has not been imposed in decades. It's been imposed after natural disasters. Like the 1906 San Francisco earthquake and the Chicago fire of 1871, to ensure order. It was also imposed during the battle of New Orleans in the Civil War.
Now, Putin is also declaring heightened levels of security inside Russia itself. Areas not only near Ukraine but also around Moscow.
VLADIMIR PUTIN, RUSSIAN PRESIDENT (through translator): Designed to ensure the safety of people for security and anti-terrorist protection of critical facilities, and the maintenance of public order.
TODD: Those measures inside Russia, analysts say, might not rise to the level of martial law, technically, but it's clearly a tightening of the screws on his own people, by the former KGB colonel.
CHARAP: There are going to be fewer opportunities to escape the (INAUDIBLE) state. The opportunities eventually for travel, both within the country and outside of it, are likely to be limited.
TODD: The analysts we spoke to said we should watch for the possibility that some governors of regions inside Russia, not the Ukrainian regions that Putin wants to annex, but regions inside Russia itself could start to impose even more crushing restrictions on their citizens than have been talked about, in an effort to please Vladimir Putin.
Brian Todd, CNN, Washington.
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VAUSE: According to Mexico's foreign minister, in recent days the U.S. has sent more than 700 Venezuelan migrants back to Mexico. An increasing number of asylum seekers are heading north through Central America on their way to the U.S. But now the Biden White House has a new plan to keep them from crossing the border.
Journalist Stefano Pozzebon has details.
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STEFANO POZZEBON, JOURNALIST: Thousands of migrants, most of them Venezuelans, are finding themselves stranded in Mexico, in part because of a recent decision from the White House to expand Title 42 to Venezuelans.
The measure allows U.S. border patrols to deport back into Mexico undocumented migrants that are found on U.S. soil on public health grounds.
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POZZEBON: But these migrants who are traveling from South America through Mexico, trying to reach the U.S. southern border are saying that their lives are now in limbo as their plans to relocate to the United States have been broken by this new policy.
Some of them are thinking of remaining in Mexico where already 77,000 Venezuelans live and work every day, according to the Mexican foreign minister Marcelo Ebrard.
In the Mexican cities along the U.S. southern border such as Tijuana, Juarez and Matamoros, as well as cities in the southern state of Chiapas, have seen the largest movements of migrants in recent days.
For CNN, this is Stefano Pozzebon, Bogota.
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VAUSE: The head of the World Health Organization is warning of a possible genocide looming in Ethiopia's Tigray region. He says the risk is there due to people being denied access to food and health care.
Millions of people have been practically kept under siege since the war began almost two years ago.
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TEDROS ADHANOM GHEBREYESUS, DIRECTOR GENERAL, WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION: This is a health crisis for a 6 million people and the world is not paying enough attention.
I urged the international community and the 0media to give this crisis the attention it deserves. There is a very narrow window, now, to prevent genocide.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VAUSE: The director-general is from Tigray and says the conflict has also affected him, as well as his family.
Right now, according to UNICEF, one child is being treated for malnutrition every minute -- every minute in Somalia as concerns grow over worsening food crisis. Sweeping (ph) drought has wiped out crops and livestock, forcing thousands of families from their homes in search of food and water.
CNN's Larry Madowo has details.
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LARRY MADOWO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: A health care worker measures this child's arm in Somalia. This one's being checked up with a stethoscope and this child's temperature is being checked while these mothers and children wait their turn.
In August, 44,000 children were treated for malnutrition in Somalia.
JAMES ELDER, UNICEF SPOKESPERSON: Now, if we break down those numbers for the month, that is that today, every single minute of every single day, a child is being admitted to a health facility for the treatment of severe, acute malnutrition.
So that's one per minute, that's a child whose mother has worked for days to get help for (INAUDIBLE) to survive, her child whose life, of course, hangs in the balance.
MADOWO: The UNICEF spokesman says the situation now in Somalia looks worse than it did in 2011, when 260,000 people died due to famine. ELDER: Today, it's four failed (INAUDIBLE), the fifth looks grim, the
affected population is twice the size of 2011. Things are bad and every side indicates that they're going to get worse.
So without greater action, without greater investment, we are facing the death of children on a scale not seen in half a century.
MADOWO: Elder tells CNN his team has seen thousands of families forced to travel miles to seek out food and water after losing their homes, crops, and livestock in the drought.
The international community has not yet made a formal declaration of famine. Based on an area hitting certain rates of mortality, food insecurity and other metrics.
But many aid workers are warning that millions of people in Somalia are already facing a humanitarian catastrophe.
ETIENNE PETERSCHMITT, FAO REPRESENTATIVE IN SOMALIA: Of course, we should not wait for a famine declaration to act because then it will be too late. We know from 2011, when we faced a famine situation, and a famine declaration that by the time the famine was declared, half of the 260,000 people who died had actually already died.
MADOWO: And if this drought turns out to be one of the worst ever, some in the U.N. believe climate change is going to make future droughts even worse.
MARTIN GRIFFITHS, U.N. OFFICE FOR COORDINATION OF HUMANITARIAN AFFAIRS: A devastating drought, like the one pushing Somalia to the brink of famine, are made far deadlier when they combine with extreme heat.
We can expect more of these in future and these things are only going to get far worse as climate change continues to spiral out of control.
MADOWO: A grim forecast for Somalia's children if the world doesn't act.
Larry Madowo, CNN.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VAUSE: We'll take a break.
When we come back, we might just be back on track to lower the planets temperature with only the smallest increase in carbon pollution, and why that's good news. In a moment.
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VAUSE: The White House will release 15 million barrels of oil from the U.S. Strategic Petroleum Reserves in order to try and lower the cost of gasoline. Prices have headed up in recent days after OPEC announced plans to cut production.
The extra barrels of U.S. crude though will not be released until December. It will amount to less oil than the U.S. uses in just a day.
This comes weeks before the U.S. midterm elections, but administration officials insist it's not political.
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MITCH LANDRIEU, WHITE HOUSE SENIOR ADVISER: Prices of gas have been coming down although they've been picking up a little bit. Now they're moving down for the last three weeks.
But had the president not done this, the price would've gone up much larger. So it's not a political statement. He's doing as he said, everything he can to make sure that we lower prices for Americans, and this is another step in that direction.
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VAUSE: President Biden will travel to Pennsylvania on Thursday, stopping in Pittsburgh to deliver remarks on infrastructure, then head to Philadelphia to campaign for Democratic Senate candidate John Fetterman.
Good news for the environment, CO2 emissions from fossil fuels are set to rise by less than 1 percent this year. That's according to a report from the International Energy Agency (INAUDIBLE) countries adopting renewable energy amid fuel shortages caused by Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
Experts predict an emissions increase of 300 million metric tons this year, drastically less than in 2021, when some countries went back to coal. The numbers show more have adopted solar and wind energy.
It comes less than three weeks before the COP27 climate negotiations are set to begin in Egypt.
Leah Stokes, is an associate professor of environmental politics at the University of California, Santa Barbara. She joins us this hour from Toronto.
Lea, welcome back to the show.
LEAH STOKES, ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR, UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, SANTA BARBARA: Thanks so much for having me on.
VAUSE: Ok, the bottom line seems to be that this is a much smaller rising carbon pollution, and the International Energy Agency says 2023's numbers would've been more than three times higher, close to one billion tons were not for the major deployment of renewable energy technologies, and electric vehicles around the world.
And even with many countries firing up all coal-fired power stations because the cost of natural gas as a result of the war in Ukraine, there's been relatively small increase in coal emissions, which has been considerably outweighed by the expansion of renewables.
So finally what -- some good news, and is the message here actions matter, choices matter, government policy matters?
STOKES: Absolutely, you know, we saw a really big increase last year in 2021 because after the pandemic, a really big fall in carbon pollution, the economy roared back, and so did pollution.
And in order to break that link between economic activity and carbon pollution, we need government policy to make it cheaper for everyday people to get an electric vehicle, to get a heat pump, which is an efficient electric machine that can hat and cool your home without fossil fuels, you know, to get wind and solar deployed, and batteries.
We have so many technologies. What we really need is government policy pointing us in the right direction, and getting those technologies at the door.
And in some places like Europe and the United States, we are starting to see governments pointing the economy in the right directions.
So what this report is saying is, look, it could be a lot worse. Rationally making some progress on finally cutting carbon pollution.
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VAUSE: Yes, that's a good point, because the news just seems to be one bad headline after another.
And speaking of bad headlines, there is a study 0out from UCLA, which looks at the impacts of California's worst fire season on record, and the impact on the environment.
They found the fires released 127 million megatons of greenhouse gas emission to a carbon pollution or about twice California's total emission cut from 2003 to 2019.
16 years, twice the amount of work every 16 years of investment in reducing emissions, it's all gone, just like that.
The findings were only recently published, and there's no mention of them in the IAEA report.
So how does that all play into these numbers? Would 2023 look even better or you know, what do we make of this?
STOKES: So when it comes to our actions, right, trying to get off of fossil fuels and start using clean electricity, and electrification through things like electric vehicles, and heat pumps, and induction stove.
You know, those actions that we are taking, that governments are taking, they're making a difference. But unfortunately, we have already warmed the planet by more than one degree centigrade, it's about 1.2 degrees. And scientists have told us that if we get to 1.5 degrees, things could get really bad. In fact, we are already seen that at 1.2 degrees, things are really bad and so what that study from UCLA is showing is that wildfires just in the western United States, that's only in the Western United States are putting out massive amounts of carbon pollution.
We see that, of course, in Russia. We see it in Europe. We see it in Canada. So many parts of the planet are burning and that is really bad news. And it means that the climate crisis is happening now and we have no time left to waste when it comes to cutting carbon pollution.
VAUSE: And the longer that goes on, the longer we allow this carbon pollution deal into the atmosphere. The worst sort of natural events will become? And the less control we'll have over them, right.
STOKES: That's right. I mean look, the first scientific study that was able to contribute to link a specific extreme event to climate change went all the way back to a heat wave in 2003 in France, this was a very deadly heat wave that killed tens of thousands of peoples.
And so scientists have known that climate change is creating heat waves. Four spires, making hurricanes more frequent and more intense. You know, leading to drought. There's all these things happening. And scientists have been telling us that it's been happening for decades now.
we really have to heed the warnings of scientists, because right now so many people around the globe are on the front lines of delay.
You're seeing what the climate crisis is really meeting in their own backyards with things like wildfires.
VAUSE: Let's finish up with yet another study. This on e from the non profit, net zero tracker. The corporate world is way behind in setting climate targets. Just 32 of the 100 biggest private firms has set a target to reach net zero carbon emissions compared with 69 of the 100 largest public companies.
So again if leadership matters, policy matters, clearly what these companies do actually matters, are we at a point or close to a point where regulation will be needed to get these corporations to do the right thing?
STOKES: We have always needed regulation to get corporations do the right thing, unfortunately. You know, in study after study, what we find is that these pledges, even if a corporation makes them, it's barely worth the paper that they're written on.
There's a recent report from the Sierra Club, which looked at electric utilities. And basically the companies that have said that they want to clean up their electricity system by 2050 have a net zero effect. They're actually just as dirty when it comes to what they're doing as the companies who don't have a net-zero pledge.
So we need corporations to actually put actions behind their words, not just right empty promises. We don't have time for that anymore. We really need corporations to step up and if they won't, we need governments to make sure that they will.
VAUSE: Yes. Leah, thank you. It's good to have you with us. Leah Stokes there in Toronto. Appreciate it.
STOKES: Thanks for having me on.
VAUSE: A UCLA study (INAUDIBLE) some of California's worst fires have taken place over the last 20 years, five in one year alone. That was 2020.
Meteorologist Derek Van Dam joins us now to break it all down, Derek.
DEREK VAN DAM, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Yes. You know, John, those California emissions targets that they had literally went up in smoke, because of the cumulative impact from these wildfires in 2020, some of the largest wildfires in the state's history occurring during the month of September and August of 2020.
And this August complex, by the way that is referred to as a giga- fire, meaning that it burns at least 1 million acres, that's a term reserved for that large of a fire.
Just think about the cumulative carbon dioxide that is released and emitted into the atmosphere. According to the study by the Environmental Pollution Agency, the wildfires associated with California in 2020, produced actually two times the amount of reductions that the state did over a 16-year period, so essentially erasing 16 years of emissions reduction targets that California worked so hard to do with electrical vehicle rollouts, et cetera.
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VAN DAM: It's just incredible to compare the average of 2020, how many acres we've burned, and how many wildfires occurred within the state compared to that running five-year average. Nearly four times as many acres burned, compared to that five year running average.
And that cumulative impact allowed for a 30 percent increase of carbon dioxide emissions into the atmosphere from 2019 to 2020.
So if you pile that all up, you associate the additional Emissions with these added warming that occurs to the planet, the study also found that $7 billion in damage can be associated with just those wildfire emissions alone.
Incredible. Currently, there's two large active wildfires occurring over the state of California. So, right now, the season has been quelled a bit by the great recent rainfalls, but 2020 certainly was a difficult year for California, John.
VAUSE: Yes. Absolutely. Thank you Derek, appreciate that.
And Canada's Sunshine Coast north of Vancouver, has not seen significant rainfall in more than a hundred days. A state of emergency has been declared across the region which means breweries, distilleries, other nonessential businesses are prevented from using treated green water from the local supply.
Water supply is being prioritized for residents, hospitals and firefighters. People say it could take weeks of moderate rainfall to replenish the reservoir.
When we come back here on CNN, the pillars of creation, like you've never seen them before. You've never seen them at all.
We'll show you the latest images from the James Webb Space Telescope.
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VAUSE: Welcome back. Seven minutes before the top of the hour.
The bravery and resilience of the Ukrainian people is being honored by the European parliament.
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ROBERTA METSOLA, EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT PRESIDENT: The 2022 Sakharov prize for Freedom of Thought has been awarded to the brave people of Ukraine represented by their president, elected leaders, and civil society.
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VAUSE: The Sakharov prize is awarded annually to individuals and organizations that defend human rights and fundamental freedoms. A point not lost on some residents in the capital of Kyiv.
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UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Now Ukraine is in the center of the world's attention. Ukraine deserves the prize because it sets an example of what a democratic society should be.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We have always thought to be free. We've always strived to be free. Now, for the whole world, Ukraine is the top issue. With our deeds and actions, we demonstrate that we are independent and free.
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VAUSE: The prize is named after the late Soviet dissident Andrei Sakharov and has been awarded every year since 1988.
Another legal blow to former president Donald Trump. U.S. federal has ordered the release of emails from one-time advisor John Eastman, ruling they were part of a crime related to Trump's efforts to overturn the 2020 election.
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VAUSE: The judge says the email shows Trump knew his claims of election fraud were wrong, but he continued to make them in court and to the public. He also says Trump then committed obstruction by pressing with these false claims for the purpose of delaying the certification of the election.
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ALYSSA FARAH GRIFFIN, FORMER WHITE HOUSE STRATEGIC COMMUNICATIONS DIRECTOR: This is a president who we know lied with impunity for the entirety of his time in office, frankly most of his career.
But this is a situation where you can't lie with impunity, you cannot lie in a court filing and misrepresent facts. It just confirms what many of us know, which is there's this desperate period in the final days ahead of the transfer of power after the election called for Joe Biden what was really some of these advisers around the president and the former president himself, throwing things against the wall to see what would stick.
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VAUSE: A CNN exclusive now. Sources say Trump's legal team is considering allowing another FBI search of the former president's Mar- a-Lago estate.
The Justice Department believes Trump has not complied with a May subpoena, ordering the return of all classified materials. An August search turned up nearly 22,000 pages of documents, including more than 100 with classified markings.
Another search's with Trump's lawyers present is one option which is under consideration.
And we will finish this hour with a new face on U.S. currency. Actress Anna May Wong will appear on the back of a new quarter starting Monday.
The actress of the silver screen in the 20s and the 30s is the first Asian American featured on U.S. money. Wong overcame widespread discrimination to carve out a career in Hollywood. Best known for the 1932 film, "Shanghai Express". Her keen sense of style made her a fashion icon.
She spent her life advocating for Asian American actress in Hollywood.
And finally with some breathtaking new images captured by the James Webb Space Telescope. Never before seen details of the iconic Pillars of Creation. Towers of interstellar dust and gas, speckled with newly formed stars which inspired the obvious name. Part of the Eagle Nebula, about 6,500 light years from earth.
(INAUDIBLE) inspired by football is saw a new record at an auction in Britain. The painting called "Going to the Match" sold for about $9 million Wednesday. It was made in 1953 by British artist Lawrence Stephen Lowery (ph). It shows a crowd of people heading to a football match in northwestern England. The buyer was Raleigh (INAUDIBLE) in Manchester which is named after the painting. The iconic painting will stay in the U.K. and remain accessible to the public.
That is the last story of the hour.
Thank you for watching. I'm John Vause.
CNN NEWSROOM continues with my friend and colleague Rosemary Church after this break.
We'll see you right back here tomorrow.
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