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Israel Forces Launch Lethal Strike On West Bank's Jenin; Macron Pushes For An End To The Riots Testing His Authority; Zelenskyy Visits Wounded Defenders In Odesa Region; Diabetes Projected To Affect 1.3 Billion People by 2050; Studies Predict Dramatic Rise in Global Diabetes Cases; Doulas on a Mission to Save the Lives of Black Mothers and Their Babies in the U.S.; French Tourism Sector Suffers Amid Protests; Biden to Meet King Charles III Ahead of NATO Summit; Low Birth Rate Threatens Japan's Economic Future; Impact of Writers' Strike Felt Across Other Industries. Aired 1-2a ET
Aired July 03, 2023 - 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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MICHAEL HOLMES, CNN ANCHOR: Hello everyone and welcome coming to you live from Studio 4 at the CNN Center in Atlanta. I'm Michael Holmes, appreciate your company. Coming up here on CNN Newsroom, Israeli forces launched a deadly military operation in the West Bank. The Palestinian Authority President calling it a new war crime went live in Israel.
Tens of thousands of police are deployed across France and uneasy calm after days of violent protests following the police killing of a teenager. And later, a look at the alarming rise in diabetes expected worldwide. While he weighed experts say it could be a defining disease of the century.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Live from CNN Center. This is CNN Newsroom with Michael Holmes.
HOLMES: Tensions are flaring once again in the West Bank as Israel stages what it is calling a counterterrorism operation in Jenin and its adjacent refugee camp. Unverified video appears to show explosions and witnesses have reported ongoing gunfire. The Palestinian health ministry says at least three people have been killed, 25 others injured.
The Israel Defense Forces says it was quote striking terrorist infrastructure unquote, including a camp command center it said that militants were using as a base. For more let's go over to CNN's Elliott Gotkine in Tel Aviv for us. Yes, yet another IDF offensive in the occupied West Bank. And again, its Jenin is the target.
ELLIOTT GOTKINE, JOURNALIST: That's right, Michael, though this particular incursion seems to be much larger than some of the ones that we've been seeing of later Israel says that it's been using UAVs drones, and also about a brigades worth of troops. That's around about 500 of troops here in Israel to go into the Jenin and refugee camp, which it's describing as a hornet's nest. It says it's a in the IDF's words, an extensive and complicated operation, as you say, to focus on infrastructure, also seizing weapons and munitions.
Israel saying that it sees a number of IEDs, improvised explosive devices. You'll recall just the other week that one of those took out some Israeli military vehicles on another incursion, another operation going on there.
So far, Israel says that it's actually killed seven militants. This operation has been going on since about 1:00 a.m. local time. So now for the past seven hours, and according to the IDF, there is no timeline, there is no particular endpoint. They are going to operate in there for as long as they feel the need to do so.
And as you say, there have been a number of injuries as well, the Palestinian Ministry of Health saying the last count that there were some 25 Palestinians injured as a result of this incursion, which as I say, is ongoing. Michael.
HOLMES: Yes. I want to ask you about something else to the protests against Netanyahu's plans for what he calls judicial reform. They're far from over. He said he was going to pull a controversial part of it. Everybody said, Well, we're going to keep protesting.
GOTKINE: Right. Well, he did say, certainly there was an interview in the Wall Street Journal last week that he said that certain aspects of issues or judicial overhaul were dead and buried. And then there were reports just yesterday, saying that actually, he was potentially going to revive them.
Of course, this controversy surrounds the effectively neutering the Supreme Court's ability to throw out laws that it deems as unconstitutional from the Israeli Knesset or parliament and also giving the government of the day the power to choose the judges that would sit on the Supreme Court.
So these protests today are planned to take place at Ben Gurion International Airport. This to all intents and purposes is Israel's main endpoint and outpoint for international passengers are about 90,000 due to come in and go out today, on more than 500 flights.
The protesters say that they are upping the ante, if you like in their protests against this judicial overhaul. They're planning to block rows going to and from the airport. They're advising passengers to travel by train, and really just to try to show that they are still there that they are still protesting and that Netanyahu is government's plans for this judicial overhaul need to be revised and put to bed and these protests have now been going on for something like six months.
But protesting at the airport, not the first time that it's happening, but certainly it's not something that happens every week and the protesters will be wanting to make their voices heard. Israel for its part is determined. The government says As determined to ensure that there's no disruption to flights. [01:05:03]
Although there are expectations that there will be delays and as I say that passengers have been advised to avoid going to the airport certainly later on in the day by car and to go there by train instead. Michael.
HOLMES: Certainly those protests not going away, Elliott Gotkine in Tel Aviv. Thanks so much.
Turning our attention now to France where unrest has eased but tensions linger after days of violent protests. That unrest sparked by Tuesday's fatal police shooting of a 17-year-old of Algerian descent. Some 45,000 security forces remain deployed across the country, as officials brace for any further flare ups of violence.
And in the coming hours, the French president Emmanuel Macron is set to meet with the presidents of France's lower and upper houses. This coming after he huddled with his top ministers on Sunday, urging them to restore order. The shooting victim's grandmother also calling for calm.
(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)
VOICE OF NADIA, GRANDMOTHER OF SHOOTING VICTIM (through translator): I blame the policeman who killed my grandson. I'm the grandmother. I blamed the policeman who killed my grandson. That's all I want. The police they are here. Fortunately, they are here and the people who are breaking things that tell them stop, stop. They use the house death as a pretext.
Now they must stop. They shouldn't break the windows. They shouldn't break the schools. They shouldn't break the buses the moms take. We take buses. We don't have cars. We don't have anything. Please stop. It's the moms who take the bus. It's the moms who walk outside. We want to calm things down. We don't want them to break we want them to remain calm. These young people.
(END AUDIO CLIP)
HOLMES: CN's Nic Robertson is following developments has more now from the streets of the French capital.
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NIC ROBERTSON, CNN ITNERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR (on camera): In the center of Paris again another night bracing for possible violence police out in numbers on the Champs-Elysees. 871 fire sets Saturday night compared to Friday night 2,500 or so the night before 3,900 or so. The numbers trending down if Saturday night was a pivot. Sunday night is going to be a real test if that violence trends down the center of Paris, Champs-Elysees.
Looking down there, there's still a lot of tourists out the sun's setting. People still enjoying the evening. There are riot cops on the streets there but not the bus that there was the activity that there was at the same time on Saturday.
Over here a few more police officers here. They're getting around the city and these small saloon vehicles. That's how they're racing around to try to stay on top of any potential protests and just looking around down here just as it's falling dark. You can see the police officers with their motorbikes.
And those were the high speed officers Saturday night. There are police officers riding the motorbikes, riot officers sitting pillion passenger keeping moving, moving in groups of 20. Keeping, moving and staying on top of the rioters and that's what we're hearing from the government right now still keeping the same number of officers on the streets.
45,000 police and (INAUDIBLE) saying that they will have swift justice for any perpetrators of violence and try to stay on top and quash any outbreaks of violence. Meanwhile, Nahel's grandmother, the young boy who was tragically shot and killed on Tuesday, his grandmother appealing for peace and calm. Nic Robertson, CNN, Paris.
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HOLMES: The German chancellor, Olaf Scholz says his country is watching the unrest in France with concern. Emmanuel Macron postponed his planned trip to Germany amid the riots. Mr. Scholz said he is confident the French president will calm the situation.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
OLAF SCHOLZ, GERMAN CHANCELLOR (through translator): We are good friends with France. We are both a pair when it comes to making sure that the European Union, which is so important to our common future works well. That is why we are of course looking at the riots with concern. And I very much hope. And I'm certainly convinced that the French president will find ways to ensure that the situation improves quickly.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: Joining me now from Los Angeles is CNN European Affairs commentator, Dominic Thomas. Good to see you Dominic. It does seem that the worst has not over but less tense. But what are the risks of this immediate crisis passing and the and the root causes over and above the police shooting remain in place those systemic issues you and I have talked about these past days?
DOMINIC THOMAS, CNN EUROPEAN AFFAIRS COMMENTATOR: Yes, Michael. I mean, I think the situation of course remains unpredictable. And even if things were to fizzle out at this particular juncture, the fact remains that there would be a lingering malaise in French society, a continuation of what we saw in 2022 with the high abstention rates in the in the presidential election.
[01:10:05]
We know that the opposition to Emmanuel Macron is significant and that he's lost his legislative majority. And we know that moving forward not so much for him as an outgoing president, but for his party, that that objective remains to capture the votes on the right and to poach on far right, political agendas.
And I think that to that extent, that means continuing on with this tough Law and Order agenda, which renders the situation I think, all the more volatile and likely to reignite as we move forward and over the next few months, Michael.
HOLMES: Yes. And what we've also talked about over recent days is France's race policy, which is meant to be essentially colorblind, everyone is equal. But has that policy just being made to look a bit ridiculous, you know, masking the reality that, know, the nation is not colorblind.
THOMAS: Yes. Well, there's been so much evidence over the past, simply the past few days, let alone the kind of the over the longer history. And if you just listen to the experiences of those who feel impacted, not just by racial profiling, but the ways in which discrimination works its way out or its way in French society, and how those very principles of the Republic are not being applied equitably. It would seem glaringly obvious, at least to outsiders, that there is a problem with the Republic.
The issue is that in order to address these issues, beyond simple financial solutions, would mean a kind of radical rethinking of the applicability of those ideals of liberty, equality and fraternity. And that does not seem like something that the authorities are willing to undertake at this particular juncture. And I think that therefore, moving forward, there is a real likelihood, Michael, that these kinds of questions will remain unaddressed moving forward.
HOLMES: Yes. And in the purely economic sense, I mean, fashion shows start next week, the Tour de France is underway. France is hosting the Rugby World Cup, Summer Olympic preparations are underway. how damaging is this to France, in terms of tourism is certainly not the images they want out there.
THOMAS: Yes, well, all, you know, these events are global events, right, whether it's fashion, you know, the Tour de France, you know, other major events, the upcoming 2024 Olympics. And, you know, ironically, they provide not just great visibility to France, but also visibility to individuals, groups and communities who might feel that they're not being heard adequately domestically.
And they know that they can amplify their message on the international stage by drawing attention through protests to their plight --
HOLMES: Yes.
THOMAS: -- and thereby applying pressure to the governments. And I think that when it comes to tourism, obviously, France and the capital Paris is one of the most visited destinations in the world, and that the unpredictability and uncertainty is, of course, going to push tourists to make decisions to visit alternative sites, Michael. HOLMES: Yes, yes, quite worrying. I mean, we heard from German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, a little earlier. He also said, you know, he said, I don't expect France will become unstable, which in itself is a little bit worrying. He also said it is always true that we must do everything to ensure that solidarity in our societies functions well. How concerned is the broader European Union about the scenes in France
as well as the underlying issues?
THOMAS: Yes, well, that's a great question, Michael. I think also, you know, the German Chancellor sort of use of words like rioting are somewhat questionable because, of course, we're talking about many people here demonstrating and so on, too.
But I think that there's a deep awareness that many European countries, the question of immigration, ethnic relations, migration and so on is an important issue. There are vulnerabilities in some of these places, but also tremendous concern at the ways in which these questions are being instrumentalized by far right political parties and disrupting the business and operations of the European Union. So I think those concerns are real and they're watching France very closely.
HOLMES: Always great to get your analysis, Dominic. Thank you Dominic Thomas there for us.
THOMAS: Than you.
HOLMES: Ukrainian military officials are reporting heavy fighting all along the eastern front. They say Russian forces are attacking in several directions, including of Avdiivka, and Lyman, but Ukraine says its forces are having partial success south of Bakhmut. They posted this video here showing what appears to be a drone hit on a Russian tank in the region. You'll see it just now. And there it is.
Ukraine says it is gradually advancing along the southern front lines surround Berdyansk and Melitopol.
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Meanwhile, Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy went to Odesa where he visited injured soldiers in a hospital. He is trying to reassure the country that the Navy's defense capabilities are effective now and will be after the war.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY, UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT (through translator): The enemy will certainly not dictate the terms in the Black Sea, and the invaders will have to be as afraid of approaching our Ukrainian Crimea and our Asov ses coast as Russian ships are already afraid of approaching our Black Sea coast.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: Although Russian forces are putting up a strong fight in Ukraine the effects of the Wagner insurrection in Moscow may soon put them on weaker footing. CNN Ben Wedeman explains from eastern Ukraine.
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BEN WEDEMAN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (on camera): The short lived mutiny by Wagner boss Yevgeny Prigozhin, has greatly affected Russian power on the battlefield that according to Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy. At a press conference in Kyiv, he claimed that Russia is losing the war and that Ukraine should take advantage of the situation to push the Russians out.
He cautioned, however, that every meter, every kilometer cost lives, and that Ukraine's counteroffensive will take time.
Now, on the front in eastern Ukraine soldiers we've spoken to have said nothing changed on the battlefield during or after Prigozhin insurrection, that the going is tough and the Russians are still putting up stiff resistance as the counteroffensive continues.
But with the fate of Prigozhin and the Wagner mercenaries still unclear, the reverberations of instability in Russia may yet reach the front lines in Ukraine. I'm Ben Wedeman, CNN reporting from eastern Ukraine.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HOLMES: Now the war in Ukraine has created disillusionment in Russia. And this presents an opportunity for the U.S. according to CIA director William Burns. And that's because some of those disillusion people might want but does provide secrets to U.S. intelligence. The agency has been openly recruiting potential Russian assets on the social media platform, Telegram.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
WILLIAM BURNS, CIA DIRECTOR: Disaffection with the war will continue to gnaw away at the Russian leadership beneath the steady diet of state propaganda, and practiced repression. That disaffection creates a once-in-a-generation opportunity for us at CIA, at our core, a human intelligence service. We're not letting it go to waste.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: Douglas London is a retired senior CIA operations officer. He's also an adjunct associate professor at the Georgetown University Center for Security Studies. He's also the author of "The Recruiter: Spying and the Lost Art of American Intelligence." Perfect person to talk to on this. Good to see you again, sir.
So we heard earlier Director Burns mentioning this Telegram channel and the CIA outreach, and it reminded me you wrote about this on cnn.com back in May, and it was interesting, you opened the piece by writing happy people don't spy, angry people do. So what are the signs the CIA would be looking for to make outreach to an angry person?
DOUGLAS LONDON, FORMER SENIOR CIA OPERATIONS OFFICER: Well, the most important thing is their access to information value, Michael, but they're also looking at their motivations. Are these people that would be willing and interested to speak to a foreign intelligence service, namely the United States, which has been portrayed, as you know, the great evil by Vladimir Putin.
And they're also looking at suitability. Is this somebody that has the wherewithal to conduct a clandestine relationship and who would be reliable and providing secret information.
HOLMES: So the channel apparently got two and a half million views in its first week on the platform. So there was curiosity. But OK, somebody is interesting. What has to happen to turn a curious view into actual contact? What's the psychology?
LONDON: Well, the onus is on them. And the video, I believe, is really designed to reach beyond the traditional Russian intelligence officer who probably already knows that if they've made up their mind, and they want to step forward and cooperate with Western intelligence, they know how to do it. They know how to do it securely.
But for the many others who have information of great value to the United States and its allies, they don't know or they might be sitting on the fence. So the video I think, does a good job of appealing to them, appealing to their sense of patriotism, really, and giving them some details on how they could do it securely without getting caught.
HOLMES: Now, it's interesting when we talk about motivation, the Wagner leader, Yevgeny Prigozhin said, among other things before he's mutiny. He said that the reasons given by Putin to start the war were bogus, that of false pretenses. No, NATO threatened all the rest of it.
Do you think that comment might be the sort of thing that might make someone in Russia say, well if the reasons for this war are a lie, I'm going to make a move here and talk to the Americans.
[01:20:09]
LONDON: We have great precedent if we look back to the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991. And I was overseas as a hungry (INAUDIBLE) at the time. We had a great number of Soviet officials or former Soviet officials come forth, because they were so disenchanted. They had lived their whole lives, committed their lives to this lie of communism and the Soviet state.
What Prigozhin did most definitely I think, and most severely for Putin is show the emperor has no close and revealing the lies on which he's built his narrative over the years. And I would imagine, there's a fair deal of planning and scheming going on right now by many who had been on the fence before.
HOLMES: Yes, right. And perhaps I've had my people who heard that might think, OK, I'm fed up with this.
LONDON: Absolutely. I mean, these are folks that were committed to an institution because that institution serve them. But you know, Putin is somebody who had really been popular because he had provided what the Russian people wanted, stability, he had restored their pride in Russia as a world power. The country was more predictable, and they liked a strong man image. And I think Prigozhin role of revolt really took the lines away from that showed him for what he is.
HOLMES: You also write in your piece on cnn.com, about how in the past Russians who've spied for the CIA, and not for the most part of doing it for mercenary reasons, financial reasons, what is the most common rationale?
LONDON: They've largely done for ideological reasons more often than not, it's been patriotism. These are patriotic Russians, but who see their government as illegitimate and doing their country harm. So they look for a way to fight back to rise up to play a role and sometimes just to take revenge against the system that has punished them and their loved ones so severely.
HOLMES: And here's one for you, because you know all about it. Why should that Russian being wooed believe the U.S. and its motives? I mean, surely he or she doesn't think the U.S. is necessarily being altruistic in its approach? And you know, how do they know they can trust the American?
LONDON: Well, they're already taking a risk by coming forward, which already allows for some degree of trust. And, you know, there's this whole choreography of the great dance between the intelligence officer and the prospective agent. And that's done usually over a period of time.
It's not something that's as possible when you have this virtual approach in which the Russians themselves are stepping forward. But there's still this kind of dating process that's going to go on where the case officer on the other end of that virtual line is going to try to establish their own voters duties (ph) as their perceptions of voter duties (ph) of the person making the approach.
HOLMES: Yes, and just put a bow on it. And real quick goes without saying that the Russians and the Chinese and others for that matter, we're doing exactly the same sort of outreach to Americans, right?
LONDON: But for different reasons. They're less likely to use patriotism or ideology. In fact, they don't like it. They use this method we call MICE, which is money, ideology, compromise and ego to try to find people who are vulnerable. We're actually looking for people who are patriotic and looking for ideological reasons to be good intelligence partners.
HOLMES: My go to guy on the Intel world, Douglas London, as always, thanks so much.
LONDON: Thanks for having me back, Michael.
HOLMES: Still to come on the program. A new study predicts a dangerous rise in diabetes by 2050. I'll speak with one of the authors of that study about what is contributing to a health crisis.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK) [01:25:53]
HOLMES: Diabetes could affect more than 1.3 billion people around the world by 2050. That's according to a new study published in the medical journal The Lancet. The projected figure is more than double the amount of people living with the disease in 2021 around 529 million.
Experts attribute the expected rise in diabetes to common risk factors like a poor diet, the use of tobacco or alcohol and low physical activity. Data projects that North Africa and the Middle East could have the largest prevalence rates at nearly 17 percent. Most of the cases are of type two diabetes, which is largely preventable and often reversible.
Dr. Shivani Agarwal is an Associate Director of the Fleischer Institute of Diabetes and Metabolism at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine, and Montefiore Medical Center. Doctor, great to have you with us. I know you've worked on this report.
And I got to say the report is pretty stark when it outlines what's at stake. And I just want to quote from The Lancet for people. It says this diabetes will be a defining disease of the century. How the health community deals with diabetes in the next two decades will shape population health and life expectancy for the next 80 years. I mean, it couldn't be more direct than that. How worried are you?
DR. SHIVANI AGARWAL, FLEISCHER INSTITUTE OF DIABETES AND METABOLISM: I am very worried the numbers are staggering. So we have a sister report that came out with our series from Dr. Liane Ong at the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation that says that by 2050, we will have more than 1.3 billion people in the world with diabetes that is staggering.
And we see it. We see it in our in our neighborhoods, we're also seeing it across the world to globally we have this issue domestically, we have this issue.
HOLMES: What are the main factors that have led to such a potential jump in cases?
AGARWAL: Yes, so thank you for asking that. So we know that diabetes is it can be silent. We know that it can be affected by social factors. So what we speak about in our series is that the way we live, the way we eat, the way we play, the way we grow, where everything has an impact on our health, ultimately. And what we know is that the social factors can either be positive for our health or negative for our health.
And so what we speak about in this series is that what is happening is that inequity, whether you're living in an urban rural area, whether you're living in a lower middle income country versus a high income country, whether you're from a marginalized racial, ethnic group, those their experience of those social factors on your health, and especially diabetes really matters to ultimately whether you get diabetes, whether your family members get by diabetes, and whether your children get diabetes.
HOLMES: And that's an important point. I do want to ask you about that. I mean, the report said that by 2045 as many as three and four adults with diabetes will be in low or middle income countries. And the report is you just touched on their stress that structural racism and geographic inequality, inequity, contribute to this. How so how does that manifest play out in the real world?
AGARWAL: Yes, so structural racism and geographical inequity affect the way that laws are made, right, the way that resources are allocated. So a lot of low and middle income countries don't have economic booms. They don't have infrastructure like internet that is wide or broadband. They don't have a health care systems that are able to take on the onslaught of care for people with diabetes.
And so all of these inequities, I should say also that with all of these demographic shifts, rapid urbanization, we have an influx of junk foods, low quality junk foods that are very cheap and easier to afford for people.
[01:30:00]
And so you're seeing the way that we live and the access to our resources is really different between those lower and middle classes.
HOLMES: Yes, a huge issue.
The other thing that struck me, the report says that, overall global diabetes-related health expenditure is expected to rise to more than a trillion dollars, I think it was, by 2045. But the research says there is no real effective mitigation strategy currently in place.
That blows my mind, surely prevention is better than a trillion dollars spent on treatment, not to mention lives lost.
DR. AGARWAL: I totally agree. Unfortunately, our health care systems and the way that we even practice medicine is not built for prevention, right. So, we create problems and then we try to fix those problems. But if we think about diabetes as an economic issue, then I'm hoping that our policy makers will actually start paying attention to trying to curb diabetes and allocate more resources or policies towards prevention.
HOLMES: Yes. And real quick, we are almost out of time, but I have to ask you are there any short answers? What would you like to change tomorrow?
DR. AGARWAL: I think we need to make sure that we are understanding how our marginalized communities are affected by diabetes, we need to create policies, change ecosystems, build capacity in our health care systems and change the way that we practice health care in order to really combat this problem. But ultimately we need to start paying attention and actually fix the problem, not just admire the problem.
HOLMES: Yes. It is a massive issue and the thing is it is often preventable if the will is there. Dr. Shivani Agarwal, we're going to leave it there, really appreciate it. A fascinating report.
DR. AGARWAL: Thank you very much for having me.
HOLMES: Now the U.S. has the highest maternal mortality rate of any wealthy nation. The situation particularly dire for women of color. Well, now doulas who are essentially birthing coaches are trying to change that.
CNN's Amara Walker introduces us to one doula named is Zania Mathis who is on a mission to save lives.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ZANIA MATHIS, BIRTH AND POSTPARTUM DOULA: I've seen a mom code and a mom's contractions completely stop.
AMARA WALKER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Zania Mathis has seen a lot of close calls in her four years as a birth doula. It was her own traumatic experience that allowed her to choose this path.
Why are you a doula?
MATHIS: The maternal death rate, my own experience with delivering my twins.
WALKER: Mathis didn't want another parent to have the birth experience she did or worse, become a statistic. The U.S. has the highest maternal mortality rate among high-income countries with black mothers faring the worst. Black women are nearly three times more likely to die from pregnancy-related complications than white women according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Do you hope to help bring down the black maternal death rate?
MATHIS: I think I'm doing it. Just one client at a time.
WALKER: Doulas are trained birth workers. They provide physical, educational and emotional support for their clients before, during and after child birth.
Doulas like Mathis are working to address concerns specific to black mothers to be.
Her client (INAUDIBLE) Ray is due to deliver her seventh child, but this will be her first time using a doula.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I have learned so much from her. I just feel like a whole new mother.
WALKER: While labor and delivery are thought to be the most dangerous time of pregnancy, studies show it is after mother and baby come home when most deaths occur. Mathis says black doulas like her know how to advocate for their black clients.
Do you feel safer from complications or even potentially death by having a doula and also a black doula who understands the quality of care that a woman of color could get?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Absolutely.
MATHIS: We have been looked at as we have a higher pain threshold, we've been looked at as dramatic.
WALKER: Mathis knows from personal experience, racial stereotypes about black women can lead to their pleas for medical help being discounted or ignored.
MATHIS: It is preventable. It is systemic racism. A lot of these deaths do not have to occur.
WALKER: And she's not alone in trying to get these numbers down.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Welcome to the 2023 Doula Expo.
LATHAM THOMAS, FOUNDER OF MAMA GLOW: We really want people to move away from this fear and want people to feel that birth is joyful and transcendent, because it is.
WALKER: The Mama Glow Doula Expo is trying to tackle the black maternal health care crisis and improve access to care, access that includes eliminating the cost of hiring a doula.
THOMAS: You don't have to qualify financially. You don't have to have a certain insurance type. There is no barrier of entry.
WALKER: Mama Glow and beauty company Carol's Daughter teamed up to combat high black maternal mortality rates with their love-delivered program. It expands access to doula services by providing grants to black families.
[01:35:00]
LISA PRICE, FOUNDER OF CAROL'S DAUGHTER: If you have a doula, and you're going through the process of having a child, you now have this person who is there to teach you how to advocate for yourself.
WALKER: Potentially saving more lives and making child birth a more joyful experience.
MATHIS: In the black community, we're told we don't need a doula. It is looked at as something that inspires as luxury goals. Look at the numbers. Look at the data. We need doulas more than any other race.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HOLMES: That's CNN's Amara Walker reporting there.
Quick break here on the program. When we come back, it is peak tourist season in France as violent protests rage across the country. We will hear from some holidaymakers who are there.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK) HOLMES: The streets of France were calm and quiet overnight after the country was rocked by days of unrest. Violent protests first broke out after Tuesday's fatal police shooting of a 17-year-old of Algerian descent.
About 45,000 security forces remain deployed across the country as officials brace for any further violence. French President Emmanuel Macron is set to meet with the leaders of the upper and lower Houses of Parliament in the hours ahead after meeting with his top ministers and urging them to help restore order.
Now, the unrest has started to impact the country's vital tourism industry. Hotels have seen cancellations and retailers have been vandalized. Even so, some tourists in the heart of Paris are not letting the turmoil affect their plans.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
HOLMES: Peak tourist season in France, for many visitors the sights of fiery, and at times, violent protests around the country over the fatal shooting of a teenager by police might make them worry about their itinerary. But protesters have largely left the most famed attractions in Paris alone, although some were dispersed from the Place de la Concorde on Friday.
This couple from the U.S. say they knew about the protests but did not change their plans.
DEROL, AMERICAN TOURIST: It's unfortunate it happened but --
MIRIAM, AMERICAN TOURIST: We decide still to come. We had confidence.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: -- we had to continue on.
We had confidence in the French countrymen to take care of the situation.
HOLMES: Another tourist from Chicago says her trip is still going as planned, but the anger on the streets here remind her of problems back home.
[01:39:54]
JACQUELINE BAUGHMEND, AMERICAN TOURIST: So far, we have not seen like the rioting and the cars on fire and such. But we also have that in the United States, back in 2021 with George Floyd.
So we live in Chicago and there was a lot of that there. So we've already experienced it.
HOLMES: Many places that cater to tourists say they are worried, not only about security, but about the economic impact of the protest.
One tour bus driver says he feels bad for the tourists who have come for a vacation, but says it's also hard on the people who are just trying to work. The country's main association for hospitality workers says many of its hotel members have seen an increase in the number of cancellations of reservations.
The French Retail Federation is also calling for more police to stop stores being vandalized. But for the most part, central Paris has been unscathed, with some exceptions like when police say protesters looted stores on the Rue De Rivoli and damaged a shopping mall.
There was also increased security along the Champs-Elysees, with police carrying out spot checks in the area.
In the port city of Marseille, where some of the country's worst violence happened, a bus carrying Chinese tourists was attacked during a protest, causing minor injuries to some passengers.
China's consulate general has lodge an official complaint, and called on the French authorities to keep their citizens and property safe.
Back in the French capital, some tourists say they're unfazed by it all, and making the best of the trip. It is, after all, still Paris.
CLAIRE, BRITISH TOURIST: We checked out the news. We think it's absolutely fine. There's so many things going on in the world. If you listen to everything, you would never travel.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HOLMES: U.S. President Joe Biden is heading to the U.K. later this month where he will meet with King Charles III. It will be the president's first official meeting with the monarch since he took the throne in May.
As CNN's Priscilla Alvarez reports, the stop will come ahead of an important summit in Lithuania.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
PRISCILLA ALVAREZ, CNN WHITE HOUSE REPORTER: The White House announced on Sunday that President Biden will be visiting three countries next week, the United Kingdom, Lithuania, and Finland.
The president will start his trip in the United Kingdom, where he is set to meet King Charles II who was recently coronated, as well as the British prime minister who visited the White House here last month's.
Now those high stakes meetings will later be continued for the president at the NATO summit where there is sure going to be discussion over Ukraine and the war that is ongoing there, particularly after the counteroffensive that has been launched and those internal tensions in Russia. All of that looming over this summit.
Now, President Biden has repeatedly talked about the strength of the NATO alliance, also saying that it has never, quote, "been more united".
But in all of these discussions, the ongoing debate will be looming over all of it, over how and when Ukraine may become part of that alliance.
Now, after that summit President Biden will then go to Finland where he will conclude his three country trip.
Priscilla Alvarez, CNN -- the White House.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HOLMES: Still to come, Japan's aging population threatening its economic future. What the government is doing to try to boost the country's birth rate.
You are watching CNN NEWSROOM. We'll be right back.
[01:43:21]
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: Terrifying moments in Alberta, Canada as a tornado touched down near the town of Didsbury -- have a look at that. Why would you drive into that? The storm mangled cars and heavy equipment and homes were splintered like matchsticks.
One woman said it looked like several airplanes had crashed around the neighborhood. Officials say the tornado spent at least 20 minutes on the ground, some livestock were killed, no people fortunately lost their lives.
Torrential rain has triggered flash flooding and landslides, meanwhile in mountainous areas of east and southwest China. People had to be evacuated from the onslaught of bad weather hitting those regions. You can see mud flows and rescuers working to clear debris away from roads.
In Chongqing, rescue crews used ropes to try to move stranded people to higher ground. And in Japan, authorities are reporting that heavy rains have left one man dead and at least one other person missing. Obviously lost the video there.
Evacuation warnings were issued for nearly 2 million people on Saturday. Many homes underwater after strong downpours in the region.
Speaking of Japan it is facing a demographic crisis that is threatening its economic future. The country's population is aging and many couples are choosing to either delay or avoid altogether having children.
CNN's Will Ripley reports.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
WILL RIPLEY, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Just after sunrise in a Japanese countryside -- no alarm clock needed. The Yokobori (ph) family feeds their flock of chicken, feeding themselves freshly laid eggs. French toast for breakfast, bread baked on a wood burning stove. Wood they chop from cedar forests surrounding their home.
Ten years ago, Miho was an office worker in Tokyo. Today, she's a homemaker. Former graphic designer Hirohito now a woodworker. The couple runs a small bed-and-breakfast.
For them, city life lost its luster in 2011. Japan's massive earthquake, tsunami and nuclear meltdown paralyzed Tokyo.
MIHO YOKOBORI, KAWAKAMI VILLAGE RESIDENT (through translator): Everyone was panicking, so it was like a war although I've never experienced war.
RIPLEY: Did something change fundamentally for you after that disaster?
M. YOKOBORI: After that, oh, I have to leave the life.
RIPLEY: A new life in the mountains of Nara Prefecture, their home miles from the nearest train station. Around here you need a car to get around.
It is so beautiful, but you are so far away from all of the 24/7 convenience of Japanese city life.
They moved to Kawakami Village, a tiny township tucked away on windy roads. The trees taller than most buildings.
When the young couple got to know their neighbors, they got quite a shock.
Did you guys know before moving out here, that the average age was as old as it is?
M. YOKOBORI: No.
RIPLEY: You didn't know.
The mayor tells me, more than half the village is over 65.
TADAAKI KURIYAMA, KAWAKAMI MAYOR: 40 years ago, the population was around 6,000. Today, it is 1,156.
RIPLEY: The village population, plunging faster than anywhere else in Japan. Some say it is in danger of disappearing for good. As people pass away, abandoned homes sit empty. Others sit underwater, casualties of a dam and reservoir finished a decade ago.
When you see the prediction of, you know, under 300 people living here 20 years from now, how do you -- what do you do as mayor to try to stop that from happening?
KURIYAMA: I'm not optimistic, but I don't think it will be that bad. I believe that people should live in such a nice place.
RIPLEY: The population data is dire, and not just in Kawakami Village. Nearly every local government in Japan predicts a lower population, and higher average age by 2045. Entire villages on the verge of extinction. Japanese society is shrinking and aging so fast it's future survival is at stake.
I'm going to one of the few places in Japan with population growth, you can probably guess where it is.
[01:49:55]
RIPLEY: For decades, Japanese young people have been fleeing their small rural towns, lured by the draw of big cities like Tokyo and Osaka, all of them connected by the bullet train.
But there is no magic bullet for Japan's population problems. Even in Tokyo, the towers are high, birth rates hit record lows. Japan's population plummeting for more than five years.
If the trend continues, experts fear it will fall past the point of no return, with too few women of childbearing age.
Why are so few women in Japan having children?
DR. YUKA OKADA, GYNECOLOGIST: People usually, for now, they do not have the money.
RIPLEY: Many don't have time either, says this Tokyo gynecologist.
Is life here in Tokyo too busy for a lot of people to find a partner?
OKADA: Working not office and at homes so, very difficult to meet other people.
RIPLEY: It sounds like there is a lot of lonely people in this big massive city.
OKADA: Yes. I think so too.
RIPLEY: Things are so bad, Tokyo's government is starting to subsidize egg freezing, hoping working women today become working moms tomorrow.
New parents in Japan already get a baby bonus, thousands of dollars to cover medical costs. For singles, a state sponsored dating service powered by artificial intelligence.
So far, boosting Japan's birth rate has been a losing battle. The Yokoboris are doing their part.
So when he was born, he was the first child in this village in how many years?
M. YOKOBORI: 25 years.
RIPLEY: 25 years?
Their neighbor, a lifelong villager says Kentaro's (ph) birth boosted everyone's spirits. KAORU HARUMASHI, KAWAKAMI VILLAGE RESIDENT (through translator): He calls me grandpa. My grandson lives in Kyoto. And I do not get to see him much.
RIPLEY: It sounds like Kentaro has a lot of adopted grandparents here.
HARUMASHI: I think so. I really think it is a big deal.
RIPLEY: Also a big challenge, raising a child in the mountains. No neighborhood kids to play with. Just six children in his kindergarten class 30 minutes away. The nearest high school, more than two hours away.
HIRO YOKOBURI, KAWAMI VILLAGE RESIDENT: We do the best we can, but the rest is up to Kentaro.
RIPLEY: Both say it is ok if their son decides to leave someday. Population data does show more young people moving to the countryside, lured by the low cost of living, clean air, and low stress lifestyle.
The key question: is Japan doing enough to pull up its plunging population, before it is too late.
Will Ripley, CNN -- Nara Prefecture, Japan.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HOLMES: Still to come as the Hollywood writers strike continues, we will look at the impact it is having on essential employees and businesses.
That's after the break
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: The ongoing strike by the Writers Guild of America is not only affecting movies and television shows, it is also having a significant impact on many behind the scenes employees and businesses that are essential to those productions.
CNN's Natasha Chen with more on that.
[01:54:57]
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
NATASHA CHEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yolanda Cendejas Garcia, a janitor, was laid off from Paramount Studios shortly after the writers' strike began. Fewer productions means less to clean.
Nearly two months later, she is collecting plastic bottles for cash. She's buying cheaper groceries. And says she will soon lose health insurance and worries about buying her diabetes medication.
And now SAG-AFTRA has announced an extension of talks over its deal with studios, while the 180,000 members have already overwhelmingly authorized a strike. These actors could add to more than 11,000 writers already on the picket line, and halt more productions.
YOLANDA CENDEJAS GARCIA, LAID OFF JANITOR, PARAMOUNT STUDIOS (through translator): The few savings I had are going away. When am I able to work again or what am I going to do? I don't know.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: A lot of stuff, huh?
CHEN: Marc Meyer Jr. (ph) laid off a dozen employees from his set and prop business in early June.
This warehouse is usually full of people buzzing around, loading tables, chairs, lamps, into 15 trucks a day. But listen, right now in this 89,000-square foot warehouse, it is quiet.
MARC MEYER JR. OWNER, FAUX LIBRARY: Now, you know, we're lucky to have one order returned.
CHEN: King's Deli, down the street from the Warner Brothers lot, is seeing half their business that usually comes from catering for productions. Co-owner Rosie Blosser says even three years after COVID- 19 began, they never really returned to normal. Now with the strike --
ROSIE BLOSSER, CO-OWNER, KING'S DELI: I'm trying to figure out like what can I do today to keep it going.
CHEN: Corri Levelle does not know the answer, either.
CORRI LEVELLE, OWNER, SANDY ROSE FLORAL: We're all dying out here.
CHEN: She said she was forced to move her floral prop business to a new location at double the rent just before the strike began.
LEVELLE: We still have the paper tags hanging on the doors that describe whose office it is because they haven't had a chance to completely get set up yet.
CHEN: She has laid off all but one employee.
The 100-day WGA strike in 2007 and 2008 caused more than $2 billion in economic damage. The writers union says adjusted for inflation, that means their current strike is costing the economy about $30 million a day.
KEVIN KLOWDEN, CHIEF GLOBAL STRATEGIST, MILKEN INSTITUTE: The overall economic impact is far more widespread across the country than it was last time around.
CHEN: The Milken Institute's chief global strategist estimates that even outside of California there will be at least a $1 billion loss this time in major film hubs like Georgia and New York, impacting people never named as part of making movie magic --
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We're so below the line, we're below the credits.
CHEN: -- who are essential nonetheless, waiting for an agreement on a contract they will never even see. UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And action.
CHEN: Natasha Chen, CNN -- Los Angeles.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HOLMES: Thanks for spending part of your day with me. I'm Michael Holmes.
But because one Australian's never enough, Rosemary Church is coming up next.
[01:57:50]
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