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Title 42 Expired, Border Controls Tightened; The Supreme Court Declares Former Pakistani PM's Arrest and Detention, Unlawful; Turkish Citizens will Cast their Votes despite the Shadows of the Earthquake; Wagner Leader on the Edge as Ukraine Makes Progress; Thailand Prepares for the General Elections; Prime Suspect in Natalee Holloway's Disappearance Now Faces Charges in the U.S. Aired 3-4a ET

Aired May 12, 2023 - 03:00   ET

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

[03:00:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KIM BRUNHUBER, CNN ANCHOR: Hello and welcome to all of you watching us around the world. I'm Kim Brunhuber.

Ahead on "CNN Newsroom," A Covid-era immigration policy expires in the U.S. How the end of Title 42 will affect migrants who want to enter the country?

Signs Ukraine is moving towards launching its counteroffensive against Russia. What we could see in the days before it begins?

And the European Union considers new rules for artificial intelligence and they could affect how you interact with A.I.

UNKNOWN (voice-over): Live from CNN Center, this is "CNN Newsroom" with Kim Brunhuber.

BRUNHUBER: We begin with a landmark change in U.S. immigration policy. The controversial Covid-era rules known as Title 42 expired just a few hours ago now. And that means harsher consequences for those entering the country illegally. Thousands of migrants seeking asylum made their way to the southern border ahead of the deadline.

Authorities have detained a record number of migrants in the past few days. While things appear quiet at crossings right now, one official tells CNN it will get worse. The head of U.S. Homeland Security gave this warning to those seeking to enter the country illegally.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ALEJANDRO MAYORKAS, U.S. HOMELAND SECURITY SECRETARY: If anyone arrives at our southern border after midnight tonight, they will be presumed ineligible for asylum and subject to steeper consequences for unlawful entry. I want to be very clear. Our borders are not open.

(END VIDEO CLIP) BRUNHUBER: And a little while ago, U.S. Customs and Border Protection said it will comply with a federal court ruling that temporarily blocks the release of migrants from border patrol without court notices. It calls the ruling harmful and would result in unsafe overcrowding of their facilities. The ruling expires in 14 days and the Biden administration is expected to appeal.

CNN's Senior National Correspondent Ed Lavandera has the latest from El Paso, Texas.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ED LAVANDERA, CNN SENIOR U.S. NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: The public health policy known as Title 42 has been lifted. It had been in place since March of 2020 during the Trump administration, and it essentially became a de facto immigration policy, even though that's never what Title 42 was intended to do. But, nevertheless, it has been kept in place and kept out about three million migrants from requesting asylum since that time.

So now the question becomes what will the U.S. southern border look like now that this has been lifted and what is the future of migration here along the southern border?

The U.S. Border Patrol Chief says that he no longer expects this massive rush of people, which at some point the Biden administration was estimating would be anywhere from 15,000 to 18,000 people per day.

The U.S. Border Patrol Chief says they've already started seeing in the days leading up to this point a larger influx of migrants. So he thinks that it is not going to be as dramatic as what had been anticipated.

And you know, now for migrants requesting asylum, it's become a much more traditional but difficult process. Now that Title 42 is gone, there are stricter penalties in place that can threaten the migrants' ability to immigrate into the United States. So this really does change the dynamic on the ground here.

And one of the things to look for will be the number of people trying to evade arrest by U.S. Border Patrol officials here on the ground. We're also starting to see an uptick in the number of people crossing in areas away from city centers where there is a heavily-fortified border wall and that sort of thing. So the question becomes how many more people will be trying to evade arrest and get away from Border Patrol agents here on the ground and continue to enter the country illegally.

But you know right now you know we're getting kind of like mixed signals if you will as to what exactly is going to happen here in the days ahead. Many border communities bracing for the worst. But it's a question of just how intense will this influx of migrants be, we just don't have a clear picture yet on this situation.

Ed Lavandera, CNN, El Paso, Texas.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BRUNHUBER: And CNN's Rosa Flores was in El Paso as officials and migrants made their final preparations for the end of Title 42.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ROSA FLORES, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Dark. Cold. Dusty. That's how the final day of Title 42 started near the banks of the Rio Grande in El Paso, Texas. In the encampment where hundreds of migrants were waiting to get processed by immigration authorities.

[03:05:05]

This couple from Colombia who didn't want to be identified by name wanted to make a fire to keep their 10-year-old daughter warm. They say she's shaking from the cold, the overnight chill going straight through the blankets.

Just feet away, migrants arriving, including this couple.

Did you want to come before Title 42 ended?

They say they're from Columbia and that the woman is 37 weeks pregnant.

Just feet away, a team of Texas National Guard members assemble border barriers of concertina wire. The work is slow, coordinated, methodical. This is the sharp metal migrants crawl through to enter into El Paso.

Major Sean Storrud, the commander of this mission, says his team has deployed more than 17 miles of it. But as Title 42 ends, Guard members are doing something different, creating a gap in the border barrier.

MAJOR SEAN STORRUD, TASK FORCE WEST COMMANDER, TEXAS NATIONAL GUARD: We actually created that gap not to admit people, but to give the migrants the opportunity to go back.

FLORES (voice-over): Storrud says Guard members will explain to migrants that once Title 42 lifts, there are consequences to entering illegally.

STORRUD: We don't want to trap them into that bad decision to cross illegally. We wanted to give them the option to take it back.

FLORES (voice-over): But some migrants crossing along the nearly 2,000 mile border were not choosing that option. Not in El Paso.

Not in Yuma, Arizona.

And not in San Ysidro, California.

Border authorities on the U.S. southern border are encountering about 10,000 migrants per day and border patrol holding facilities are over capacity, according to federal officials.

MAYORKAS: We are clear-eyed about the challenges we are likely to face in the days and weeks ahead. And we are ready to meet them.

FLORES (voice-over): Back in El Paso, a group of migrants huddled on the Mexican side, determining how to cross into the U.S., while a group of three others had just crawled through the concertina wire, the woman's hand caught by the sharp metal. And her friend shows us the gaping wound on his leg, the result of an assault in his native Guatemala. And says the conditions in their countries is the very reason why migrants risk and endure everything to be here.

Rosa Flores, CNN El Paso.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BRUNHUBER: A possible U.S. default on its debts could now be just weeks away. The White House and congressional leaders had negotiations scheduled for later today, but then decided to postpone them.

CNN's Jessica Dean has details.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JESSICA DEAN, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: The clock keeps ticking as we get ever closer to that June 1 deadline of when we could potentially default. We do know that here on Capitol Hill there were representatives from the House, the Senate and the White House staff level, all meeting today for about two hours and 15 minutes. Now originally, the Big Four, that would be President Joe Biden, House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries, House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell were all supposed to meet again on Friday. That meeting between the Big Four has been postponed.

We're told that one of the attendees had a funeral to go to and also that the staff level was making progress. They felt like that was a better way to go in a better use of time for the staff to again meet on Friday instead of the Big Four. And then again, the Big Four would meet next week and hopefully try to make some progress.

Now, we also heard from some House Republicans on Thursday, who talked a little bit about the contours of the negotiations that may be taking shape, where Democrats and Republicans may be able to negotiate to find a deal. And there were four core areas. They were permitting reform, unspent Covid funds, work requirements, and spending caps. That's what we were told by some House GOP members who were in the room.

And we were also told by Garret Graves, a House GOP member, he called it negotiations. He said that they can call it whatever they want, but that's what's happening right now. Dusty Johnson adding that the last 48 hours has given him some hope that potentially they can get to a deal.

But again, just to underscore, they're still pretty far apart. But the fact that they're at least having these meetings is a step in the direction toward a deal.

Jessica Dean, CNN, Capitol Hill.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BRUNHUBER: A U.S. federal judge in Virginia has ruled that a national ban on selling handguns to 18 to 20 year olds is unconstitutional. The judge said that the age limits weren't consistent with the country's quote "history and tradition" and so they violate the second amendment. It's the latest legal volley over age-based firearm regulations following a Supreme Court ruling last year that changed how such challenges are evaluated.

[03:10:00]

Once expected U.S. Marine veteran will be charged in the chokehold death of a man on a New York subway. The Manhattan District Attorney's Office says it will arrest Daniel Penny on a second-degree manslaughter charge. The 24-year-old Penny was caught on camera restraining 30-year-old Jordan Neely, a homeless street artist. He allegedly had been shouting on the subway and saying he had nothing to live for. Neely's death led to protests about the incident and the way homelessness and mental illness are treated. Attorneys for Daniel Penny say he stepped in to help his fellow passengers keep safe. They believe Penny will be quote, fully absolved.

More deadly violence in the Middle East as rockets fly from Gaza and Israel reports its first death. More details ahead.

And later Election Day is approaching in Turkey. One of four presidential candidates just dropped out and we'll tell you why. That's coming up. Stay with us.

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BRUNHUBER: And right now, Pakistan's former Prime Minister Imran Khan is inside an Islamabad courthouse a day after the country's Supreme Court ruled that his arrest earlier this week was unlawful. Pakistani police imposed an emergency ban on gatherings ahead of the hearing. His Khan supporters called for a peaceful demonstration at the courthouse.

CNN producer Sophia Saifi joins us now live from Islamabad. So Sophia, we're just popping up live pictures from right outside the courthouse and we're seeing a large gathering. It looks peaceful. We also see police there. So take us through what we're expecting to see today. Are we expecting him to be released and are you anticipating any more violence?

SOPHI SAIFI, CNN PRODUCER: Kim, Khan has only just very recently arrived at the Islamabad High Court amidst very tight security. So what we're seeing right now is the Islamabad High Court compound, where there are hundreds of riot police, traffic police, regular police, as well as paramilitary troops with a little bit of the media that's positioned outside. There's a strict ban on people gathering within the Capitol, let alone

outside the court. There has been a call for people coming in to peacefully gather, but they've been prevented. Many roads are blocked around the capital. There has been this fear of clashes because of what we've seen over the past couple of days. We don't know what's going to happen after this court appearance.

Imran Khan appeared before the Supreme Court yesterday, and the Supreme Court had said that Imran Khan's detention was illegal, but had still kept Khan in protective custody and made him spend the night at a police guest house of the Supreme Court. So he's filing a petition against the corruption charges that led to his arrest, a bail petition, so potentially he could be released and then we'll have to see what he does.

Will he call for his supporters to calm down, to stand down? Will he condemn the violence that has taken place over the past couple of days? Pakistan's Prime Minister, a couple of nights ago right after Khan's arrest and in the midst of all these protests called his supporters terrorist. Pakistan's military, after various military installations where attacks said that they will not have a zero- tolerance policy for any sort of violence that will take place in the country. The military has been called in to make sure that the law and order situation is calm, but that does set the scene for potential clashes of Khan supporters, not just with the police, but with the military too.

So we're hoping that the situation calms down, that all of the people involved call for calm and peace, but while that's happening, majority of the senior leadership of Imran Khan's party has been apprehended and is currently in police custody. It's an election year. Pakistan's economy is in the doldrums and we'll just have to see what happens after this court appearance and what decision the judges make. Kim?

BRUNHUBER: All right. We'll stay on top of this story. CNN producer, Sophia Saifi in Islamabad. I Appreciate it.

More deaths in the Middle East as fighting continues between Israel and Islamic Jihad militants in Gaza. Israel Defense Forces say more than 800 rockets have been fired from Gaza since Israel launched deadly strikes on Islamic Jihad targets in Gaza on Tuesday. One rocket fired from the enclave hit an apartment building in the Israeli city of Rehovot on Thursday, wounding five people and killing one. It's the first Israeli death since the violence started early this week.

And Palestinian officials have been killed in Gaza, including militants and uninvolved civilians. Since the start of Operation Shield and Arrow, Israel says it's hit nearly 200 targets in Gaza.

In Turkey, the presidential election is being held this Sunday, but one of the four candidates withdrew Thursday. Muharrem Ince had low poll numbers and some critics feared he would split the opposition vote against current President Erdogan. In a press conference he said, he didn't want to be blamed when the opposition loses the election, but his centrist homeland party will remain in the parliamentary race. And the presidential election may only be a few days away, but for

many in Turkey, they're still trying to recover and move forward from February's devastating earthquake. Here's Jomana Karadsheh with more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JOMANA KARADSHEH, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Few are the tombstones that identify the dead. They call it the cemetery of the unknown, where more than 4,000 victims of Turkey's catastrophic quake are buried. Some of the youngest lie here, with poignant clues left for those still searching for their missing loved ones. Time has yet to heal the wounds of the broken city of Antakya and its people. Life amid the ruins and mere existence in this deserted town, where elections and campaign promises are overshadowed by despair.

[03:20:02]

Grief and pain still so raw for those who survived, left only to mourn. Meltem lost her mother, father, sister, brother, little nieces, and the hardest loss of all, her only child. Little Elan had just turned 6. He was with his cousins for a sleepover when the earthquake hit. Meltem and her husband, Ayhan, dug through the rubble with their bare hands. The three longest days of their lives ended when an Italian search-and-rescue team recovered the lifeless bodies of their boy and the rest of the family.

The couple, like thousands of others, blamed their tragedy on the state's initial chaotic slow response and on shoddy construction and government amnesties for contractors who violated building codes. On Sunday, they will take their anger to the ballot box.

Over the years, they stole our future from us. Now our loved ones were taken away from us, Ayhan says. Elections is our only way to hold officials to account. We hope to slam the doors of hell shut.

Anger may not translate into any major surprises at the polls in the city, historically split between the opposition and ruling party. But the stakes are much higher in strongholds of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's AK party across the massive earthquake zone. There was no time wasted to win back the hearts and minds of their people in places like Kahramanmaras, the epicenter of the devastating quake.

This hilltop project with a dozen newly constructed homes was inaugurated by the Turkish president, the kind of photo op Erdogan needed in the wake of the disaster.

(on-camera): The era of Recep Tayyip Erdogan has been defined by a construction boom, and he's promised to rebuild the earthquake zone within a year. And this is what the opposition is up against, convincing people that they too can deliver.

(voice-over): Thousands of subsidized housing units are under construction here, more rebuilding in the city center that's rumbled back to life, but beneath the facade of normalcy, a reality of life in limbo. Mealtime brings hundreds into the food queues. Those who've lost

everything now rely on their state to feed them. Most still live in tents. But not even the worst earthquake in generations seems to have shaken the loyalty of Erdogan's supporters. And they're keen to show us as they wave his party's flag.

As long as Tayyip Erdogan is in power, our houses will be built, this man tells us.

Down the road, the city's old bazaar is bustling once again. Quake survivors struggling to get back on their feet, now also facing their country's crushing economic crisis. This 69-year-old once Erdogan supporter says he's boycotting the vote.

They see him as a saint. It's too much, he says. I can't afford to buy anything I survive on earthquake aid.

A cafe nearby is the only escape from it all for students like 18- year-old Ziya. He's a first-time voter, but hasn't decided if he'll cast his vote.

Should we worry about elections, or about the collapsed buildings, or lies last, he says, about what surrounds us or my dreams.

Confusion, apathy, loyalty, anger. It's just all too much for those still trapped in a life from hell. They can only hope when the dust settles from these most consequential of elections, they won't be forgotten.

Jomana Karadsheh, CNN, Kahramanmaras, Turkey.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BRUNHUBER: And be sure to watch CNN's special live coverage of the 2023 Turkey elections hosted by Becky Anderson as voters head to the polls to choose a new president in parliament to find out what's at stake and what the election means for Turkey's future. That's this Sunday, 7 p.m. in London, 9 p.m. in Istanbul, right here on CNN.

Ukraine is reportedly laying the groundwork for its expected counteroffensive. Next, a move from behind the front lines that officials say could be wearing out Russian defenses.

Plus, South Africa says it's neutral in Russia's war on Ukraine. But the U.S. says it has evidence South Africa helped the Russians. We'll have a live report from Johannesburg in just a few moments. Please stay with us.

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[03:25:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) BRUNHUBER: We're getting word of new Russian strikes in two regions of Ukraine. Officials say Russian artillery and air force unleashed a barrage of attacks on Kherson region, killing at least one person. Four others were wounded over the past 24 hours, while separate attacks on the city of Sloviansk, about 600 kilometers to the northeast, left one person dead and 12 others injured.

Meanwhile, Ukraine is reportedly working to smooth the way for its upcoming counteroffensive. Few senior western officials say Kyiv has already started what's called, shaping operations for its expected attack, which means it's launching selective strikes to soften Russian defenses.

For more, Scott McLean joins us from London. So Scott, what more are we learning about the so-called shaping operation and the counteroffensive that will presumably follow?

SCOTT MCLEAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yeah, so the question is whether or not the counteroffensive has begun at all and for the answer it really depends on who you ask. If you ask President Zelenskyy, he says that the Ukrainians need a bit more time to get more western weapons, more western equipment into the country before they can really begin that counteroffensive.

But if you ask the head of the Wagner private military contractor on the Russian side, Yevgeny Prokoshen, he says that Zelenskyy is lying and that the counteroffensive is already in full swing.

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And he points to the situation in Bakhmut, where even he concedes that the Ukrainians have had some success as of late.

The actual Ukrainian military says that yes, it has been able to exploit some Russian weaknesses on the flanks of the city, particularly the northern and southern parts of the city, where there is dynamic fighting, in their words going on at the moment. And they say that while they are definitely on offense, they're not calling it a counteroffensive.

The Deputy Defense Minister has said just today that the Ukrainians have managed to advance two kilometers on the Russians in just the past week. And as a result, the Russians actually last night had to put out a pretty unusual late night statement denying reports that the Ukrainians had made a major breakthrough in the Bakhmut region, saying that the situation there is under control. Of course, the big risk for the Russians is that the Ukrainians may be able to push forward on those outer flanks there and actually surround the Russians, either pushing them -- forcing them to retreat or perhaps forcing them to surrender after what has been a months and months of bloody fighting there.

And as you mentioned, Kim, Senior Western officials are saying that what Ukraine is doing at the moment is something called shaping, which means using airstrikes to take out things like artillery systems, take out things like command centers and weapons depots, things like that, in order to sort of shape the battlefield to make it easier for advancing troops to actually move on the ground. This could go on for several days before we see anything sort of resembling a full-scale counteroffensive. And this is something that we also saw ahead of the Ukrainian counteroffensive in Kherson last summer, which resulted in the Ukrainians taking back a very wide swath of territory. Kim.

BRUNHUBER: Alright, thanks so much for the update, Scott McLean. I Appreciate it.

The leader of Wagner Mercenaries is now inviting Russia's defense minister to visit Bakhmut. Yevgeny Prigozhin made the invitation after publicly slamming Russia's top military brass.

CNN's Fred Pleitgen has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

FRED PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): After months of brutal fighting, the battle for Bakhmut may be pushing Wagner boss Yevgeny Prigozhin closer to the edge.

Standing in front of the bodies of his dead fighters, he launched into a rant against Russia's military leadership, blaming them for the deaths.

YEVGENY PRIGOZHIN, WAGNER LEADER (through translator): You think you are the masters of this life? You think you can dispose of other lives? You think because you have warehouses full of ammunition that you have that right?

PLEITGEN (voice-over): For months, Prigozhin and Vladimir Putin's top generals, Sergei Shoigu and Valeriy Gerasimov, have been mired in severe infighting. But now the Wagner bosses' tirades are becoming more vicious and more frequent, accusing Russia's defense minister of withholding much-needed ammo.

UNKNOWN (through translator): Instead of using a shell to kill an enemy and saving one of our soldiers' lives, they are killing our soldiers.

PLEITGEN (voice-over): In a country where thousands have been jailed for criticizing Vladimir Putin's war, Prigozhin is getting away with his tantrums. That's because Putin doesn't fully trust his own military and needs Prigozhin, Russian investigative journalist Andrei Soldatov believes.

ANDREI SOLDATOV, JOURNALIST: He's extremely paranoid about control and political stability. Prigozhin is a tool to, if not to keep the military in check, at least to keep them off balance.

PLEITGEN (voice-over): The infighting seems to be costing Russia both lives and momentum. Ukraine's army now says it is making gains in Bakhmut. And while Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy says his forces long anticipated counteroffensive has not yet started, Prigozhin today once again accusing the Russian army of cutting and running. PRIGOZHIN (voice-over): Those territories that were liberated with the

blood and lives of our comrades every day progressed by dozens or hundreds of meters during many months, today are abandoned almost without any fight by those who are supposed to hold our flanks.

PLEITGEN (voice-over): Bakhmut was supposed to be a much needed win for Vladimir Putin, but now it could ring in major problems to come, Andrei Soldatov says.

SOLDATOV: I think he is nervous. Putin learned that you cannot trust completely what his people are telling him.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BRUNHUBER: In a highly unusual move, the U.S. Ambassador to South Africa has publicly accused the government of delivering arms and ammunition to Russia. He says weapons were loaded onto this sanctioned Russian cargo ship late last year at a South African naval base.

[03:35:07]

Let's bring in CNN's Senior International Correspondent David McKenzie live in Johannesburg. So David, walk us through the allegations and the reaction from the South African government.

DAVID MCKENZIE, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Kim, the allegations are unusual as you say and very direct. The U.S. Ambassador to South Africa talking to local media saying that this ship, the Lady R, which docked in Simonstown, a naval port in South Africa near Cape Town, was there to receive arms and ammunition from South Africa that would end up in Russia during this bloody war on Ukraine.

Now, that ship was sanctioned by the U.S. Treasury in May of last year, that already brings problems regardless of the specificity of that allegation. And it was a deeply suspicious moment when that cargo ship arrived in South Africa. It turned off its transponders for several days according to ship -- ship trackers. It then off loaded and unloaded goods in the dead of the night, according to eyewitnesses and opposition members of parliament.

And it added to the ongoing speculation that those South Africa claims it is neutral in this war in Ukraine, that perhaps they are less than neutral. And I think it is the bubbling frustration of the U.S. government that spilled out with the ambassador making these claims. Now, a short time ago, I was on the phone with the opposition member of parliament who first brought up these suspicions over the ship. He said there could be legal avenues in South Africa. He also said, in his view at least, it is an indication that the ruling party and the government may be placing themselves ahead of the interests of South Africa.

Of course, South Africa has a much larger trade relationship with the U.S. and with the U.K. and Europe. For their part, Kim, the South Africans are saying that there is no evidence yet presented of this, that they were already in discussions about this with the Americans behind the scenes. And at least one diplomat here is saying that this kind of megaphone diplomacy, as he put it, is unhelpful. Kim?

BRUNHUBER: Well, the mystery deepens. All right, David McKenzie, thanks so much.

Well, the European Union is working to bring in the world's first comprehensive artificial intelligence legislation. But what will it cover? Will it go far enough? We'll ask an expert, coming up. Please stay with us.

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[03:40:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BRUNHUBER: Thailand is preparing for a pivotal General Election this weekend, and the future of Thai democracy could be on the ballot. CNN's Paula Hancocks has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

PAULA HANCOCKS, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A surprise drop in at Thailand's famous water festival, Songkran, last month. Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha, former coup leader and army chief, tried to show his softer side ahead of elections. But polls show his party running a distant third.

PRAYUT CHAN-O-CHA, THAI PRIME MINISTER (through translator): What do we have to adhere to? Nation, religion and the monarchy, isn't that right? These pillars hold the hearts of the Thai people.

HANCOCKS (voice-over): Recent polls suggest what many people want is change. Two progressive parties in the lead both pledging to remove the military from politics.

Pheu Thai, the party of the well-known Shinawat political dynasty. First Thaksin, then his brother-in-law, his sister, his daughter, speaking to the press last week, just two days after having her second baby.

PAETONGTARN SHINAWATRA, DAUGHTER OF THAKSIN: I think that Thailand has changed already. We can't wait anymore.

HANCOCKS (voice-over): Another Pheu Thai candidate for Prime Minister, real estate developer Srettha Thavisin, a political novice who's tapped into Thai's concerns about the economy.

SRETTHA THAVISIN, PHEU THAI PARTY PRIME MINISTER CANDIDATE: Thailand has been in a bad economic situation for the five to eight years, okay? We are kind of in a coma.

HANCOCKS (voice-over): Pro-democracy protests in 2020 highlighted frustrations, particularly among the youth, calling for fundamental changes in the way the country is run.

Of course, the Move Forward Party is based on, calling for changes to the military, the economy, and even the once untouchable monarchy.

Chonticha Jangrew faces charges from her involvement in protests and two so-called less-majest charges, a strict law that forbids any criticism of the monarchy.

CHONTICA JANGREW, MOVE FORWARD PARTY PARLIAMENTARY CANDIDATE: So in the past the topics about the reform of the monarchy is already in the house only on in the secret test, but now I think it's turned out that we are talking about the reform of the monarchy or article 112 of the lawyer defamation in the public.

HANCOCKS (voice-over): From a taboo to public debate, a change that some experts call game-changing in Thailand, politically earth- shattering.

One wild card, however, the Thai military has staged a dozen coups since 1932, two in the past 20 years when the parties it favored were not in power.

THAVISIN: And we're afraid of doing a military coup. My simple answer to that is that, I can't be afraid of a ghost.

HANCOCKS (voice-over): As for the man who led the last military coup --

CHAN-O-CHA (through translator): It's up to the people what they want.

HANCOCKS (voice-over): Some experts consider a military coup at this time to be very costly, both domestically and internationally, with calls for change louder than they have ever been in Thailand's recent history.

Paula Hancocks, CNN.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

[03:45:09]

BRUNHUBER: We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BRUNHUBER: Joran Van Der Sloot's attorney says they will appeal an extradition order to the U.S. approved by Peru's Supreme Court. The Dutch citizen was one of the last people to see American teenager Natalee Holloway alive before she disappeared in Aruba nearly two decades ago. A prime suspect in her disappearance will face charges of extortion and fraud in the U.S.

CNN's Jean Casarez reports.

[03:50:00]

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JEAN CASAREZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): 18 years after Alabama teenager Natalee Holloway vanished on a school trip in Aruba The prime suspect in her disappearance is being extradited to the United States. Joran Van Der Sloot, who was one of the last people to see Holloway alive and twice detained in connection with her disappearance, will finally face federal charges in the U.S. for extortion and wire fraud.

BETH HOLLOWAY, MOTHER OF NATALEE HOLLOWAY: He knows exactly what happened. He knows what, where, when, who, why and how. He knows the answers.

CASAREZ (voice-over): He is accused of extorting thousands from Holloway's mother in exchange for details on the location of her daughter's remains. According to legal documents in March 2010, Van Der Sloot quote, offered to take the cooperating witness to the location of Natalee Holloway's body, advise as to the circumstances of her death, and identify those in her death and disappearance in return for a payment of $250,000. Papers were signed, a total of $25,000 was given to Van Der Sloot, and Holloway's attorney flew to Aruba.

Van Der Sloot took the attorney to a house saying her body was buried within the foundation. Soon after fleeing to Peru with the $25,000, he emailed the Holloway saying quote, he had lied about the location of Natalee's remains. Extortion charges were filed a short time later.

In May 2005, the 18-year old Holloway was last seen leaving a nightclub in Aruba with Van Der Sloot and two other men. All three were charged by Aruban prosecutors in 2007 for involvement in manslaughter, but a judge ordered their release, citing a lack of direct evidence. Her body was never found.

Beth Holloway said in a statement, she would be 36 years old now. It has been a very long and painful journey, but the persistence of many is going to pay off. Together, we are finally getting justice for Natalee.

After the U.S. legal proceedings conclude, Van Der Sloot will be sent back to Peru according to a statement from Peru's judiciary to a Peruvian prison where he is serving time for the murder of 21-year old Stephanie Flores. She was murdered five years after Holloway's disappearance.

CNN was allowed exclusive access to Van Der Sloot's cell shortly after his arrest, and in 2012, he was sentenced to 28 years in prison for that murder.

(on-camera): The attorney for Joran Van Der Sloot, Maximo Altez, is telling CNN that he is going to fight this extradition request that was ordered by Peru's Supreme Court. He believes the charges are just too old to have it be valid. Of course, there is an extradition treaty between the United States and Peru signed in 2001.

Jean Casarez, CNN, New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BRUNHUBER: E.U. lawmakers are moving closer to passing new rules to regulate artificial intelligent tools like Chat GPT. In a crunch vote Thursday, they agreed to tougher draft legislation. The blocks AI act could be the world's first comprehensive legislation to govern this new technology including rules over facial recognition and biometric surveillance.

Alright, while the lineup is in and we now know which 26 acts will be representing their nations in the Eurovision Song Contest Grand Final this weekend, the English city of Liverpool is hosting this time around on behalf of last year's winner Ukraine. Enthusiastic pop music fans have already gathered for the semi-finals and are now waiting for the big event on Saturday which can be seen around the world. The city has been transformed for the occasion with Ukrainian displays in the streets and Ukrainian-themed dishes being cooked up in local restaurants.

Well, the price of many goods has gone up over the past year and pasta is no exception. In Italy, the government held talks Thursday to look into why there's a surge in the prices for pasta. Prices were up 17.5 percent in March over the same time last year. It's more than double Italy's consumer inflation rate of just over 8 percent. A spokesperson for Italy's Ministry of Enterprise says higher prices should only be temporary. The average Italian eats about 23 kilograms or 51 pounds of pasta each year.

And Twitter could be about to get a new CEO. Current chief Elon Musk says he's found a replacement to step into his shoes and that should start in six weeks. Now, Musk didn't name the mystery woman, but media reports suggest it could be Linda Yaccarino, NBCUniversal's Head of Advertising. Musk has previously toyed with speculators, saying that his dog is actually the CEO of the multi-billion dollar company. He says he now plans to step back and become chair and chief technology officer.

[03:55:00]

A new system of risk-based rules will clear the way for gay blood donors in the U.S. The Food and Drug Administration will now ask all donors the same questions, and those include if the donor has a new sexual partner or more than one sexual partner in the last three months. If so, that person will be asked not to donate. It's intended to reduce the chance of someone with a new HIV infection from giving blood before the infection can be detected in a lab. Previously, the FDA had a lifetime ban on gay men giving blood.

All right, well, thank you so much for watching. That wraps this hour of "CNN Newsroom." I'm Kim Brunhuber. You can follow me at Kim Brunhuber, and we will have more "CNN Newsroom" just ahead with Bianca Nobilo. Please, do stay with us.