Return to Transcripts main page

CNN Newsroom

Tornadoes And Severe Winds Strike Central U.S. As Another Round Of Rain And Snow To Pummel The West And North; U.S. Energy Department Assesses With "Low Confidence" COVID May Have Originated From Chinese Lab Leak; NYT Investigation Exposes U.S. Migrant Child Labor Abuses. Aired 1-2a ET

Aired February 27, 2023 - 01:00   ET

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

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[01:00:28]

LAILA HARRAK, CNN ANCHOR: Hello, and welcome to our viewers joining us from the United States and all around the world. I'm Laila Harrak, and this isn't CNN Newsroom. Powerful storms sweeping across the southern plains with reports of multiple tornadoes, large hail, and damaging wind.

Plus, a new U.S. intelligence reporting rekindles the debate over the origin of COVID-19. We'll tell you what we know and what we still don't.

Plus, a shocking New York Times investigation uncovers a crisis unfolding in American factories. Migrant children found working dangerous and often illegal jobs. We'll talk to the reporter and capture their stories.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Live from Atlanta. This is CNN Newsroom with Laila Harrak.

HARRAK: We begin this hour with the dangerous storm system battering the central U.S. right now bringing tornadoes, damaging winds and hail to parts of Oklahoma, Kansas and Texas. At least one tornado was confirmed in Norman, Oklahoma where students at the University of Oklahoma were urged to seek shelter.

There are now reports of widespread damage there downed power lines and debris blocking roads, while the system is so strong a wind gust of 114 miles an hour was reported in northern Texas in the town of Memphis. So far more than 90 storms have been reported across the southern plains.

On the phone right now actually we have an envision is extreme storm chaser Aaron Jayjack who is in northern Oklahoma. Aaron, good to have you with us. Can you tell us exactly where you are right now and what the conditions are?

AARON JAYJACK, EXTREME STORM CHASER: Yes, so I'm in Norman, Oklahoma, which is just outside of Oklahoma City. In fact, it's the home of the National Weather Service that's giving out all the warnings and watches that we've been seeing today in Oklahoma.

And so I was tracking the storms today. I started off in the Texas panhandle, significant severe weather threat that we had expected today and started off in the Texas panhandle and worked my way east across I-40, across Oklahoma and I-40 until I got to Oklahoma City and I dropped down to Norman and that's when this tornado just came through about maybe about a couple hours ago. And I was just at where the damage path was just a little bit ago.

HARRAK: And what did you see as you were tracking this storm?

JAYJACK: Yes, so I-40, you know, we initially we were expecting some semi discrete storms that could produce tornadoes and then eventually the storms are expected. This is what happened to form into a big long squall line. Even possibly a derecho at 80 mile -- 80-mile per hour or faster winds was expected from the storms in the squall line and they did have the possibility to produce these embedded tornadoes and that's exactly what we had in Norman.

And as I worked my way down I-40 intense inflow winds being sucked into the storm systems that move towards Oklahoma City and then I guess I got into Norman the tornado off and the at least the first trade that I know of that caused damage here in Oklahoma City -- Oklahoma today.

HARRAK: And Aaron, how does this storm compare to other storms that you've tracked?

JAYJACK: Yes, so this is a, you know, obviously this is it's a nighttime tornado, you know, it's those are always quite difficult and, you know, and extra dangerous. One thing today is it's, you know, it's February it's you know, traditionally the southern plains and tornado alley if you will, doesn't really start to come alive with these tornadoes in these severe weather outbreaks until maybe March, especially April in May that's the, you know, peak tornadoes severe season here in the southern plains.

But you know, so this is a quite an early wake up call for people living in the southern plains. You know, the Great Plains or I guess are ready to start producing tornadoes already.

HARRAK: Aaron Jayjack, thank you so much for joining us and do stay safe.

While the threat of extreme weather is not over yet on the U.S. West Coast, a winter storm dumped massive amounts of snow and rain in parts of southern California over the weekend. It led to a rare blizzard warning for the region. The storm made for dangerous travel conditions in some areas. Some residents tell CNN they've been unable to leave their home since Friday.

[01:05:04]

And now a second storm system is about to move into the region in the hours ahead. More now on the severe weather from CNN's Camila Bernal.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CAMILA BERNAL, CNN CORRESPONDENT (on camera): The sun is finally out in Southern California but we're still left with a lot of snow in this area, one to two feet of snow in higher elevation areas. More than six feet of snow over the last couple of days. A lot of snow, a lot of rain and a lot of wind in Southern California. That is something that people in this area are just not used to on Sunday.

Some of the highways remained closed in the Southern California area including Interstate 5, which is right behind me. Normally you would see a lot of traffic, but authorities are still trying to clean up the highway not just the highway but also the on and off ramps.

So, authorities saying it is still not safe for a lot of these drivers who are essentially stranded on the side of the highway, waiting to get back on the road to get to their final destination.

In the LA area a lot of rain over the last couple of days there was flooding down trees and many, many left without power. Thousands, in fact, still without power. Just about 14 miles south of where I am in Castaic, California, the round essentially crumbling, and RVs ending up in the Santa Clara river because of the what happened as a result of this storm. Many of the residents they're extremely concerned and essentially also stranded because they could not get on the highway. Here is someone impacted by all of this.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm actually traveling from Bakersfield and I can't get to work right now because of the snow. The 5 is close to going towards Bakersfield. So I've been able to get back and forth to work for a couple of days. And also I'm just kind of afraid we're going to have to evacuate if it gets any worse.

BERNAL: And it's still not over. We're expecting more storms over the next couple of days. Not as intense as what we saw over the last couple of days, but we could still see some rain, some snow and wind in the Southern California area. So authorities still telling people to be very careful, especially since we are not used to this type of weather in this area. Camila Bernal, CNN, Labette, California.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HARRAK: The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has approved resuming shipments of contaminated waste out of East Palestine, Ohio, where a train carrying toxic chemicals derailed earlier this month. Well, it comes as House Republicans plan to investigate the derailment and what they describe as a flawed response by the Biden administration. CNN's Priscilla Alvarez has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

PRISCILLA ALVAREZ, CNN WHITE HOUSE REPORTER (on camera): President Biden is defending his administration's response to a train wreck in East Palestine that left toxic chemicals seeping into water, air and soil and saying that administration officials and federal teams are on the ground helping residents navigate the aftermath of this wreck, especially as concerns grow over long term health of these residents. And for those who are already saying that they feel sick.

Now, federal teams are on the ground going door to door to inform residents of how to access free health assessments, as well as get testing for their drinking wells or drinking water. But the administration has come under fierce criticism for their response and whether they acted quickly enough after this wreck occurred.

Now Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg responded to that and said that President Biden takes this as a top priority.

PETE BUTTIGIEG, U.S. TRANSPORTATION SECRETARY: The President is taking a personal interest in this situation from early on, and I wanted to make sure he knew about what I saw on the ground, both in terms of the administration response and that's something that has been really well coordinated where our department comes in really is transportation policy, making sure that in this moment, with so much focus on what happened with this derailment that we are acting, both to hold Norfolk Southern accountable and to make sure that we do more to prevent all derailments.

ALVAREZ: Now President Biden says that his officials were on the ground two hours after the wreck and that they have been working and are engaged with local and state officials, as far as whether he's going to visit there are no plans as of yet. Priscilla Alvarez, CNN, the White House.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HARRAK: The U.S. Department of Energy has determined the spread of COVID-19 is most likely the result of a leak from a Chinese laboratory in Wuhan. Well, that's according to an updated classified intelligence report. But two sources tell CNN the department's only has quote, low confidence in the findings.

The lab leak theory is one of several that have been floating around Washington, but there hasn't been a consensus or even an official opinion from the White House on the cause of the pandemic but some Republican lawmakers feel the report is enough to demand accountability from Beijing.

[01:10:04]

But a former U.S. ambassador to China says no matter what the reason, the U.S. has to be ready in case of another pandemic.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GARY LOCKE, FORMER U.S. AMBASSADOR TO CHINA: We need to find out exactly how the Coronavirus, the COVID virus hit the world and cause millions of death not just in America but all around the world. If it came from an animal we need to be prepared. And we need to beef up our public health response to the next pandemic, so it is important for our scientists to get to the bottom of this.

(END VIDEO CLIP) HARRAK: The U.S. is warning there will be real costs for China if the country were to provide Russia with lethal aid to be used in its war on Ukraine. Well, that comes after the CIA director said the U.S. is confident Beijing is considering sending such aid that when intelligence suggests a final decision has not been made. The U.S. national security adviser weighed in as concerns grow over what China may decide.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JAKE SULLIVAN, U.S. NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISOR: Beijing will have to make its own decisions about how it proceeds whether it provides military assistance, but if it goes down that road, it will come at real cost to China and I think China's leaders are weighing that as they make their decisions.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HARRAK: While meantime, on the frontlines in eastern Ukraine, there is fierce and relentless fighting in and around the city of Bakhmut. That's where Russian forces are now eyeing further advances as the edge towards the center of the city from three sides. This video posted on social media shows some of the damage left by the ongoing battle. And CNN's Alex Marquardt has the latest from Dnipro.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ALEX MARQUARDT, CNN SENIOR NATIONAL SECURITIY CORRESPONDENT (on camera): Some of the fiercest fighting ways some of the heaviest casualties on both sides is now taking place around the city of Bakhmut. Russian forces, primarily from the Wagner mercenary group appear to be making games claiming that they have taken several villages to the north of the city in an attempt to encircle it. Ukrainian forces say that they are standing their ground in the face of intense Russian assaults.

Now, this fight for Bakhmut has evolved over time from a longer range fight with artillery and tanks and mortars to something that is much closer quarters urban warfare, the fight going from house to house and street to street. For now, there is no talk from Ukrainian officials about surrendering the city but President Zelenskyy's stance on that has softened recently saying that they will not defend it at any costs if it means that everybody is going to die.

Meanwhile, U.S. officials now publicly warning that China is actively considering sending lethal aid so weapons to Russia for use in Ukraine. The Biden ministration had already warned China about non- lethal aid that was being sent to Russia. Now Biden administration officials saying that China is actively considering sending that aid, but they have not yet made a decision. Here's what the CIA director Bill Burns told CBS this weekend.

BILL BURNS, CIA DIRECTOR: Well, we're confident that the Chinese leadership is considering the provision of lethal equipment. We also don't see that a final decision has been made yet. And we don't see evidence of actual shipments of lethal equipment. And that's why I think Secretary Blinken and the President have thought it important to make very clear what the consequences of that would be.

MARQUARDT: Burns also talked about the deepening relationship between Russia and Iran. Iran has been supplying Russia with kamikaze drones and ammunition. Now according to Director Burns, Russia is poised to start offering Iran help with their missile program and is also considering sending fighter jets to Iran, that relationship between Iran and Russia proceeding at a fast pace Burns says in a way that he considers disturbing. Alex Marquardt, CNN, Dnipro, Ukraine.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HARRAK: Still to come, from the cereal that you eat for breakfast to the socks on your feet. It could be the product of child labor. After the break, I'll speak with an investigative journalist and child advocate about the dangerous spike in migrant child workers in the United States.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[01:18:10]

HARRAK: Packing cereal boxes washing hotel bed sheets, making parts for cars and sewing tags onto clothing. Those are just some of the jobs mentioned in a new investigation by the New York Times highlighting the surge in migrant child labor law abuses right here in the United States.

Victims of the quote new economy of exploitation the piece highlights young boys and girls forced into working punishing jobs and often brutal conditions, fearing they might be deported migrant children around the United States are putting themselves in harm's way to make quick money, regardless of how dangerous it may be.

Well, joining me now to discuss this very important topic, our two guests Hannah Dreier is an investigative journalist who reported this story for The New York Times. And Gregory Chen is the Senior Director of Government Relations for the American Immigration Lawyers Association. A very, very warm welcome. Thank you both for joining us.

Hannah, I want to start off with you for those who haven't had the opportunity yet to read your harrowing expose. Describe what your investigation uncovered.

HANNAH DREIER, INVESTIGATIVE REPORTER, THE NEW YORK TIMES: So we are seeing an unprecedented wave of migrant child labor in this country. Children are crossing the border in unprecedented numbers. And what we found is that a lot of these kids are ending up working the most punishing jobs in the US.

And so I spent the last year talking to children some as young as 12, 13 outside of factories, meat processing plants, and really what we have uncovered is that this kind of migrant child labor is in every part of the supply chain.

[01:20:00] So we found kids making Cheerios, chewy bars parts for GM, Fruit of the Loom socks, J. Crew shirts. It's just everywhere. And I think everybody sort of knew that this was happening once in a while a child would come here on their own and end up in an exploitative situation. But we're really talking about thousands and thousands of children being exploited for their labor.

HARRAK: It is incredibly, incredibly shocking. Greg, what do you make of Hannah's troubling findings?

GREGORY CHEN, SENIOR DIRECTOR OF GOVERNMENT RELATIONS. AILA: Well, these are just such incredible important reporting. And they certainly comport with my experience as an immigration advocate and child advocate. In the 1990s, I started my legal career advocating for migrant children in San Francisco, many of whom were trafficked or exploited.

But the situation has now changed more than 25 years later. And as Hannah said, more children are coming from Central American countries in particular, fleeing from violence, persecution, criminal cartels, and poverty. And that number has more than increased by 10 times in just the past decade, since, let's say, 2012.

The other major phenomenon here is that U.S. efforts to block people from getting humanitarian protection, including asylum is forcing more children and families to seek assistance by smugglers bring them into the country. And oftentimes these children arrive, and they are in debt. And they have to seek work to pay off that debt.

HARRAK: It's incredible. I mean, Hannah, share with us what these children who you spoke to, for your reporting, told you about their experiences.

DREIER: A lot of the children talk to me, I think, because they felt like they hadn't understood what life was going to be like in the US. And they wanted other kids who are making this call to sort of understand the realities.

So some of these kids were, you know, coming from countries that have a lot of violence, have a lot of poverty, especially after the pandemic. And they had been working maybe with their parents at a farm after school and sort of thought that that is what they were coming to.

And then I mean, I've talked to kids who would meet somebody on Facebook would say, Oh, if you come up here, I'll take care of you. They would show up, in one case, a 14-year-old showed up in Florida, and the man the government had released him to said, No, actually, you have to go find your own apartment. And guess what you owe me $4,000. So you'll be working at a restaurant every night until 3:00 a.m. until you pay that back.

And other kids come up. And they're just completely on their own, or they're living with other children, you know, in a house. I talked to a 13-year-old boy in Michigan who works on an egg farm. And he says he would love to go to school. He thought that he would be able to buy it's so expensive in this country. He's working 12-hour days, six days a week, just to sort of afford his living expenses and rent in a room there.

HARRAK: Just an incredible portrayal there. Gregory, what is the role of the Labor Department? You know, when a manufacturer violates child labor laws, this department go after these cases? How successful are they, in it prosecutors prosecuting these abuses?

CHEN: Well, the Department of Labor certainly has a critical role here in enforcing U.S. labor laws, which do protect children from working in harmful conditions working too many hours, and working under age. And there are investigators who are making sure to go after people who exploit children and break the US labor laws.

The other aspect of this is that children who are in these situations need to be protected from the fear of being deported out of the country. Because if you're afraid that you might be deported on the country, what happens is you're going to be too afraid to report labor law violations. And you're going to be unable to take advantage of the protections that U.S. labor law provides.

Actually, the Department of Labor and Homeland Security have set up protections for adults and children so that if they are in that kind of situation, they can get protection, and the fear that they will be deported is much less because they can get protection from that deportation process.

So that's a critical element. But they have to go hand in hand. You have to -- both the labor law violation investigation, but also protection from immigration deportation.

HARRAK: Hannah, your investigation found that a number of leading American brands and manufacturers benefit from the exploitation of vulnerable young workers. Give us a sense of how widespread these cases are. And are companies aware of these practices. Because from your reporting, I mean, some kids died on the job.

[01:25:00]

DREIER: I mean, what companies have told us is that they're looking into this. And they don't tolerate any child labor in their supply chain. But the ease with which I was able to find these kids really makes me wonder. I mean, I -- when I set out to do this reporting, I thought that I would have to crack a trafficking ring. I thought it was going to be so subterranean. But actually, my experience was, I would go to a town and by the next day, usually, I would be talking to a child who is working in violation of child labor laws for a big company.

So, I can't tell you what's going on there. Companies are often, you know, protected, because there's a manufacturer and often a staffing company between them and the child who was hired. But we found kids who, you know, their lungs were burning because they were making Flaming Hot Cheetos all night, or they were spending 12 hours bent over a machine in a sock factory. Like I said, making socks for Fruit of the Loom. Some of these companies like Ben and Jerry's are acknowledging that there are children in their supply chain. And their take is it's better for kids to work for us, where at least some minimum labor laws are followed, then to not be able to work for Ben and Jerry's, or Ben and Jerry's supplier and have to go work at some other worse situation. But by and large, what we're hearing from corporations is a lot of denial.

HARRAK: A lot of denial, Gregory, in terms of these kids, I mean, is nobody looking out for them. I mean, what would you tell them in terms of if they needed to leave these very precarious situations.

CHEN: So there are health and human service and different federal agencies that are going to provide protection for these children. But because as Hannah was describing, in such compelling detail, the number of these children has increased in the past many years, the Health and Human Services Department is cannot cover and provide protection for all of them.

One thing that is so critical is that these children needs social workers and lawyers to advocate for their needs on a daily basis, as well as for their protection, because they are so extremely vulnerable. And they won't know what kind of labor laws protect them to begin with. They don't understand English, most of the time, we're have very limited English, and certainly won't understand the complexity of U.S. labor law. Our current U.S. law does not guarantee these children lawyers to represent them, and to look out for their interests.

The other thing that I'll just say that so important is that we have to make sure that the U.S. humanitarian protection system is available to children and families, and the fact that in recent years, particularly under the Trump administration, but it's continued under the Biden administration, we've seen more restrictions being placed on asylum, and on humanitarian protection, it makes it harder for people to get the kinds of legal protection, they need to be able to stay here.

And so they're constantly in a tenuous, uncertain situation, which puts them into these vulnerable conditions such as working for an exploitative work environment.

HARRAK: Hannah, want to give you the final word, are you keeping in touch with these children?

DREIER: I am in touch with them. Some of them since I've started this run, have been fired from these jobs. But I mean, my experience is that when there is a crackdown, these kids end up in a different job. And one thing that really I've found heartbreaking is that, you know, these are not undocumented kids, the government knows they're here. And a lot of them would qualify for work permits if only they had lawyers. There's really no reason for them to be working the most dangerous, you know, the most illegal jobs. If they had lawyers most of them could just be working at a grocery store or in fast food. But instead they're sort of forced to go from dangerous.to dangerous job. And that's a lot of what I've been seeing. HARRAK: Well, I hope your reporting, and I'm sure it will make a difference. So thank you so much. Hannah Dreier of the New York Times and Gregory Chen, thank you both.

CHEN: Thank you.

DREIER: Thank you.

HARRAK: Ukraine's railway system is a vital link with Europe it has delivered dozens of diplomats and keeps people and commerce flowing. My conversation with the head of Ukraine railways after this break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[01:32:50]

HARRAK: Welcome back.

More now on one of our top stories this hour.

The U.S. is warning China that if it provides Russia with lethal aid to use in Ukraine, it would, quote, "come at a real cost to Beijing". Washington says it is confident China is considering sending drones and ammunition to Moscow.

It comes as Russian forces are eyeing more advances around the eastern city of Bakhmut. Ukrainians are desperately fighting to defend the area and have launched frequent counterattacks to reclaim lost territory.

Well, most of the world leaders who have visited Ukraine since the war began have traveled by train. Ukrainian railways, the state-owned operator of the country's rail network has carried more than 200 foreign diplomatic missions to Kyiv, including U.S. President Joe Biden's ten hour overnight journey from Poland last week.

Joining me now from Kyiv, is Alexander Kamyshin. He's the head of Ukrainian Railways, the country's national rail system. Sir, a very warm welcome to CNN. It is now more than a year since Russia invaded Ukraine. What has kept your network operating, even in the midst of this war and relentless Russian attacks on Ukraine's energy infrastructure?

ALEXANDER KAMYSHIN, CEO, UKRAINIAN RAILWAY: Well you probably know that Ukrainians are pretty resilient people, and Ukrainian railway men have doubled. So we had no choice but we have to keep running.

HARRAK: You had no choice but to keep running. Just before the war's first anniversary, you coordinated a very daring and dangerous trip, bringing the U.S. President to his meeting with Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

What everyone wants to know is how did you pull that off without a single leak?

[01:34:43] KAMYSHIN: Well, that was my privilege and honor to successfully bring in and out President Biden and actually good (INAUDIBLE) and good training before that. We got about 300 official delegations coming in and out of my country. And that is what we call iron diplomacy program. It is our privilege to be official carrier of all these worldwide leaders coming to see my president and we have to bring them in and out.

HARRAK: Yes, you have carried many important people, but also many Ukrainians looking for safety. What role do Ukraine's railways play in the war effort?

KAMYSHIN: I don't know what the role but we do operation program. We do material aid program. We do cargo (INAUDIBLE) program, iron diplomacy and some others. That is what we have to do and we do it.

HARRAK: You shoulder an immense responsibility, not only have you, like I said, ferried world leaders who have come to visit your country, but you are also a crucial lifeline for Ukraine. Can you speak to that?

KAMYSHIN: Some people say the railways is the lifeline. It is doubly important when we bring railway connection back to what they can see. We got a task from the president to reestablish railway connections to retake citizens, (INAUDIBLE) and military troops retake it.

Why people call it a lifeline, because first of all they can travel safely, travel freely again. That's freedom to travel.

Second, we bring humanitarian aid in scale. So, cargo exports can again from that area so we bring economy back to life. That is why some people say, we are the lifeline of the country.

HARRAK: What has changed for your network in this past year?

KAMYSHIN: The whole life changed. We were set to be developing, growing, investing and construction before the war. When the war began we had to set on the war rails (INAUDIBLE) and we had to accomplish our government mission, security mission. You are going to go that way. With Donetsk as well.

And meanwhile, we try to find a way how we can keep developing, keep growing, keep expanding, keep constructing even during the war and we find a way we can do it.

HARRAK: What has been the biggest challenge?

KAMYSHIN: The biggest challenge is losing people because that is the highest price in this war. We lost 150 skilled railway men and women. And 800 more are injured. That is really much.

HARRAK: What is the future for Ukrainian railways? What message do your trains convey to the world?

KAMYSHIN: The future of Ukrainian railways is being integrated into European railway network and I'm sure that we will bring value to European countries as well.

HARRAK: Alexander Kamyshin, thank you so much for joining us.

KAMYSHIN: Thanks for inviting me.

HARRAK: At least three people have been killed during a violent flare- up between Israelis and Palestinians in the West Bank. It started when two Israeli brothers were fatally shot on Sunday in what a local settle leader calls a terror attack.

That shooting sparked revenge attacks by Israeli settlers against Palestinians. Officials say at least one Palestinian man was killed, more than a hundred wounded and several homes and buildings set on fire.

Well, the attacks erupted on the same day Israeli and Palestinian officials reached an agreement to try to reduce violence.

CNN's Hadas Gold reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

HADAS GOLD, CNN JERUSALEM CORRESPONDENT: Two Israelis and a Palestinian are dead after a day of violence in the West Bank, as officials from Israel and the Palestinian authority met in Jordan in an effort to try to calm the increasing levels of violence and tension here on the ground.

The first event happened Hura (ph). This is a town that sits on a busy road that is often used by Israeli settlers to get to other settlements. And it's often a flash point.

Now, from what we understand, it seems as though an attacker or attackers used a car in some way to ram into the car of two brothers who were 19 and 21 years old before then shooting them at what local officials said was point blank range. They both died from their wounds.

And the attacker or attackers got away. They ran away and Israeli officials say, that there is currently a manhunt to try and find them.

Then, just a few hours later officials from Israel, the Palestinian Authority, Jordan, Egypt and the Americans were all meeting in the southern Jordanian town of Akaba to have a rare summit.

[01:39:50]

GOLD: The sort of summit like this has not happened in more than a decade or so -- to try and calm the situation on the ground especially ahead of the Muslim and Jewish holidays of Ramadan and Passover that are once again overlapping this year and a lot of fears that these holidays will only exacerbate the situation on the ground.

Now, out of that meeting there was a joint statement that the Israelis and Palestinians want to work together to potentially reengage on security cooperation. The Israelis had agreed to essentially stop settlements for a few months while the Palestinians would commit to not issuing any sort of actions against Israel in the United Nations.

They also agreed to meet once again in March ahead of Ramadan in Egypt, but then just soon after these joint statements came out that were agreed upon by the officials there from all the different countries, we were getting statement from Israeli officials seemingly contradicting what had been announced at that summit.

The Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu saying that construction and regulation in the occupied West Bank will continue, and that there will be no construction freeze.

Then his minister of national security Itamar Ben-Gvir, he is one of the most right wing members of this new right-wing government tweeted out something that essentially said, what happens in Jordan stays in Jordan, essentially, pushing back against this agreement that Israel would stop settlements, considered illegal under international law, but Israel does not agree with that assessment, that there would be any sort of stop in settlement activity, some thing that's so important to many members of this right-wing government.

And then as night fell, more violence in the West Bank, specifically in the area where the attack took place, seemingly might be called revenge attacks by Israeli settlers, we know that at least one Palestinian man was shot dead, Palestinian officials say it was the result of clashes with settlers, and Israeli forces, but clearly the situation on the ground only worsening, and many people are not necessarily optimistic that whatever the officials came to agree in Jordan will have any sort of immediate effect to help calm the situation here in the region.

Hadas Gold, CNN -- Jerusalem.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HARRAK: We'll be right back.

[01:42:12]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRAK: In the day ahead, the double murder trial of disgraced attorney Alex Murdaugh is set to resume in South Carolina. It will follow a heated cross-examination where Murdaugh was grilled about the killings of his wife and son.

The prosecution pointing out inconsistencies in his previous statements to police, including a claim that he wasn't at the dog kennels where the killings took place rather. Murdaugh has admitted to previous lies, but he insists he did not kill his family.

Votes are still being counted from Saturday's election in Nigeria, but anger growing after officials didn't arrive at certain polling locations, meaning would-be voters who did show up could lose their chance to pick the country's next president.

CNN's Larry Madowo has the story from Lagos. (BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

LARRY MADOWO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Fighting for the right to vote, in what could be Nigeria's tightest presidential election ever.

People getting pretty agitated here. If they too (INAUDIBLE) the election, they should have voted but didn't get to vote, it's become so hectic that the military has been called in to try and keep the peace.

MADOWO: The Nigerian army rolled into a neighborhood in Lagos where voters and two polling units spent all of election day waiting to cast their ballots but politicians they'd not show up. they returned the next day -- we waited several more hours -- growing impatient as the chance to vote slowly slipped away.

ABIGAIL SAMUEL, LAGOS VOTER: Nothing works in this country, nothing works in this country. There is no security. There is no good hospital. There is no good roads. Nothing. The educational system is in shambles. For once, youth are coming out to vote, and we are (INAUDIBLE) it is heartbreaking --

MADOWO: Abigail Samuel staying, shared by other young people who registered to vote in record numbers in this election, hoping to reboot a deeply dysfunctional Nigeria.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I must fight for my (INAUDIBLE), I must fight, she won't go to (INAUDIBLE). I'm tired; I'm tired. We are tired, We are tired. We are tired. We are tired of seeing this crap.

MADOWO: Officials of the independent National Electoral Commission say, they are already telling the result of the area about the mission polling units.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You know U.S. constitution, anywhere there is violence, there is no way to vote again.

MADOWO: But CNN found no signs of violence at the polling unit where election workers did not show up, as people cast ballots just steps away.

So there will be no other election in these places where the election didn't take place?

FOLAYEMI BUKOLA BISOYE, ELECTORAL OFFICER, ETI-OSA FEDERAL CONSTITUENCY: There is no other election again. There's no other election. The election we want to be in front was done.

MADOWO: The disenfranchised voters see this as an attempt to deny the preferred candidates crucial votes by the establishment. In an election without an incumbent president or a former military leader running, it was seen as a fresh start for Nigeria.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We are suffering in this country. We are suffering. It is very bad. I want people to call them leaders (INAUDIBLE).

MADOWO: Musician Banky (INAUDIBLE) to the main opposition PDP's ticket in the Lagos area with the affected voters.

BANKY WELLINGTON, MUSICIAN: They understand that their votes are their voices, and they want their voices to be heard. So when it starts to seem like this allegedly some sort of intentional suppression of that voice, people get frustrated, people get agitated.

MADOWO: Nigeria's agitated youth could be a powder keg, at risk of exploding if enough of them feel that their voices were not heard in the most significant election of their lifetime.

What did voting mean to you?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It is my choice, I did my best. That is what it means to me.

MADOWO: Larry Madowo, CNN, Lagos.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HARRAK: At least 59 people are dead after a shipwreck off the southeastern coast of Italy. Dozens of bodies have been recovered in the rough waters. The survivors tell CNN, they are from Iran, Pakistan, and Afghanistan. The regional president says the influx of refugees has been overwhelming.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ROBERTO OCCHIUTO, CALABRIA REGIONAL PRESIDENT: It is a day of grief for Calabria -- this is a struggle that falls into a general indifference. Calabria is a region that welcomed people. Last year we welcomed 18,000 migrants, but we can't be abandoned by Europe.

This type of tragedy should have been avoided the day before, and not lived how we are living at today, and how we will live it tomorrow.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[01:49:53]

HARRAK: At least -- or about 80 people were rescued from the water as they clung to pieces of the wooden boat. According to the United Nations, nearly 12,000 migrants have arrived in Italy by sea since the start of the year.

The ex-husband and former in-laws of a Hong Kong model who was killed last week appeared in court on Monday, according to a public broadcaster RTHK. Abby Choi's ex-husband is charged with murder, along with his father and brother. His mother is charged with perverting the course of justice. RTHK says, all four were denied bail.

Choi, a 28-year-old model and social media influencer was last seen on Tuesday. Parts of her dismembered body were found at a rental unit Friday.

And it has been three weeks since the devastating earthquake that hit parts of Turkey and Syria. On Sunday, Turkish football fans did something to help the youngest survivors of the disaster.

Fans bombarded the pitch with teddy bears and other stuffed animals, which will be sent to children impacted by the earthquake. It happened while the game was stopped at the four minute 17 mark on the clock, that is the time the earthquake struck on February 6th.

Some fans were also chanting, government resigned to protest the Turkish government's handling of the earthquake response.

You are looking at live pictures of the Kennedy Space Center at Cape Canaveral, Florida, where the SpaceX launch has been called off because of an ignition issue. The rocket was set to carry three astronauts, two from NASA and one from the UAE, and one cosmonaut to the International Space Station.

We will be right back.

[01:52:03]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRAK: History was made on Sunday at the Screen Actors Guild Awards, the film "Everything, Everywhere, All at Once" was the big winner of the night with actors making major strides for Asian representation and media.

Michelle Yeoh became the first Asian woman to win outstanding performance by a female actor in a leading role. It is the latest trophy she has taken for her part in the science fiction film.

And Ke Huy Quan took home the trophy for outstanding performance by a male actor and supporting role for the same film. The first Asian man to win the award.

Jamie Lee Curtis won outstanding performance by a female actor in a supporting role. And the cast took the night's top award, outstanding performance by a cast in a motion picture.

And that wraps up this hour of CNN NEWSROOM. On behalf of the entire team, thank you so much for spending this part of your day with us.

I'm Laila Harrak.

Rosemary Church picks up our coverage.

And I will see you next time.

[01:57:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)