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Biden Stresses NATO Strength At Nordic Leaders Summit; General's Criticism Reveals Cracks In Russian Military; Biden Admin.: Hacking Operation Gave China Critical Insight Into U.S. Thinking Ahead Of Blinken Trip; General: Cluster Bombs Arrive in Ukraine; Italy Issues Heat Red Alert for Rome and 9 Other Cities; Actors Set to Join Writers on the Picket Line; Pakistan Boy Among 600+ Killed in Shipwreck off Greece; Autopsy: Lisa Marie Presley Died of Bowel Obstruction; Remembering Christine McVie; A.I. Used to Catch Thieves. Aired 1-2a ET
Aired July 14, 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 HOST: Hello, everyone. I'm Michael Holmes. Appreciate your company. Coming up here on CNN Newsroom, U.S. President Joe Biden tells leaders of the Nordic Summit the world stands united against Russian President Vladimir Putin and his invasion of Ukraine.
Meanwhile, Putin is sharing details of a meeting he supposedly had with Yevgeny Prigozhin in the days after the Wagner chief marched his mercenaries towards Moscow.
And the U.K. company is using AI to catch would be shoplifters, why some groups are crying foul.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Live from CNN Center. This is CNN Newsroom with Michael Holmes.
HOLMES: U.S. President Joe Biden is back in Washington ending a busy week of talks with European allies as the war in Ukraine rages in their backyard. One of Mr. Biden's primary goals was securing long term commitments from allies to keep supporting Ukraine. Speaking at a news conference just a short distance from the Russian border, the president said it is critical those pledges don't waver.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Mr. President, this critical moment in history, this inflection point, the world is watching to see, will we do the hard work that matters to forge a better future? Will we stand together? Will we stand with one another? Will we stay committed to our course?
This week, Finland, the United States and our allies and partners says a resounding loud, yes. Yes, we'll step up. Yes, we'll stand together. And yes, we'll keep working toward a stronger, safer and more secure world.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: Ukraine's leader has been desperately hoping for a clear timetable to join NATO, but he didn't get that at the summit in Vilnius. Instead, he received NATO's commitment to extend that invitation, but only after the war ends and other conditions are met. Russia's president with this reaction.
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VLADIMIR PUTIN, RUSSIAN PRESIDENT (through translator): As for Ukraine's membership in NATO, this creates threats for Russia's security, obviously. And one of the reasons for this special military operation is the threat of Ukraine joining NATO. I'm convinced that it won't improve the security of Ukraine itself. And in general, it will make the world a lot more vulnerable and will lead to additional tension on the international stage.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: Finland received fast track approval to join NATO back in April and that's where President Biden capped off his European trip. CNN's Laura Aguirre has our report.
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BIDEN: The United States is committed to Finland, committed to NATO, and those commitments are rock solid.
LAURA AGUIRRE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A powerful message delivered on Russia's doorstep. President Joe Biden meeting with Nordic leaders in Finland, a country that shares more than 800 miles of border with Russia, and is the newest member of NATO's growing alliance.
BIDEN: We defend every inch of NATO territory.
AGUIRRE (voice-over): Not yet in NATO is Ukraine, but they're closer than ever. This week, the alliance agreed to streamline Ukraine's application process, once the war with Russia ends.
BIDEN: Putin has already lost the war. Putin has a real problem.
AGUIRRE (voice-over): NATO is also boosting Ukraine's finances and firepower with a substantial new aid package. Controversial cluster munitions from the U.S. arrived in that country Thursday.
BIDEN: You'll see that Ukraine makes significant progress on their offensive and that it generates in a negotiated settlement.
AGUIRRE (voice-over): Others are not yet convinced.
GEN. WESLEY CLARK (RET.), FORMER NATO SUPREME ALLIED COMMANDER EUROPE: I don't think it's over despite the fact that the administration has said that Putin already lost. I'm not sure he accepts that. AGUIRRE (voice-over): With Sweden now on deck to join NATO and a wave of new military weaponry heading to Ukraine. The pressure won't ease on Russia anytime soon.
BIDEN: Will we stay committed to our course? This week, Finland, the United States and our allies and partners says a resounding loud, yes.
AGUIRRE (voice-over): I'm Laura Aguirre reporting.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HOLMES: Joining me now from Washington Jack Detsch. She's pentagon and national security reporter with The Excellent Foreign Policy magazine. Thanks for taking the time at President Zelenskyy, you know, he went in to the summit wanting clarity on joining NATO, remember said the time wasn't right of course. U.S. Secretary of State defense, rather Lloyd Austin told CNN he has no doubt it will happen. What's your read? Is the pathway clear for Ukrainian membership?
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JACK DETSCH, PENTAGON AND NATIONAL SECURITY REPORTER, FOREIGN POLICY: No, Michael, it doesn't seem like it's clear, at least to Ukrainian officials I talked to this week. And there was a real palpable anger in Kyiv over the outcome of the summit, because they felt like they came in with very reasonable expectations. They understood they weren't going to get into NATO now. But they wanted a very clear path, clear benchmarks that would allow them to finally join the alliance.
We didn't see that come out of this, only vague promises that if Ukraine met conditions, at a certain point, they would be allowed into the alliance. And this is adding to a lot of historical heartburn for the Ukrainians. Because if you look back two decades, when Ukraine gave up their nuclear program, they were promised security guarantees by the United States that didn't materialize.
In 2008 of course, Ukraine was promised a path into the alliance that didn't materialize either. And then Russia, of course, invaded Crimea and, of course, before that, Georgia. So Ukraine is feeling sort of a lot of palpable anger at this point. It's not clear yet how the relationship will be repaired. Of course, the West put forward some certain conditions, continuance of security aid.
So one of the tangible steps is that it seems like the political cohesion in the west over Ukraine is still settled. But Ukraine really felt like it had the wind at its back when it came to the weapons that were coming through. They've gotten artillery. They've gotten cluster munitions. They've now gotten long range weapons from France and the United Kingdom. Now, NATO is really at the top of their list.
HOLMES: Yes. So then what -- what did the summit change for Ukraine in the big picture? I mean, membership wise, we know what's going on, but also in terms of general level of support.
DETSCH: So it's a question mark, that remains to be seen. There was a statement that came out of the G7 after the summit, indicating that support will continue and will perhaps be magnified, though it didn't come with specific pledges. Ukraine wanted much more specific and brass tacks conditions.
What I think that we're seeing, though, in spite of the vagueness that came out of the summit, is even if you talk to the most hawkish people in the NATO alliance, Eastern European defense officials I was speaking to this week, they actually indicated that the vagueness could be a political top cover for some of the people who are a little bit more reticent within the alliance to actually give Ukraine potentially a step forward -- toward the Alliance.
Then, eventually, as this process unfolds, and the war continues on, and potentially it resolves itself in Ukraine's favor. You could see a scenario where Ukraine is much more ready to join the alliance and you have political top cover for the countries that are a little bit more reticent to let them in, such as the United States and Germany.
HOLMES: Yes, of course, they're, you know, they're going to come to a point at one point where all 31 states are going to have to agree on membership. And that's not a given either. Russian President Vladimir Putin said that Ukraine's, you know, future membership would create threats to Russia security, but that's one reason he gave for starting the war in the first place, NATO encroachment.
And yet, as a result of the war, you got Finland in Sweden about to be how much stronger is NATO now versus before the war.
DETSCH: Sweden's entry could be a significant boon to the alliance. They're almost the straw that stirs the drink in the Nordic countries. This would allow the Nordic countries to develop a joint Air Force, which would not only police that NATO's new northern flank, but it could help police the Baltic countries where there's limited air cover.
It can provide increased cyber capabilities. It could give NATO a much more resilient defense industrial base when you look at Saab and the other countries that are in the Swedish Defense industrial base already. So this gives NATO significant ability to defend some of its soft spots. And if Turkey hadn't caved here, and actually allowed the Swedes into the alliance, which it appears they're now willing to do.
You would have seen NATO kind of in this middle ground, this real limbo, where they have to defend the northern flank without Sweden without Swedish submarines without Swedish F-35s. That would have been a real predicament for the alliance.
HOLMES: Yes, yes. Great analysis there, Jack Detsch with Foreign Policy Magazine, really appreciate it. Thanks so much.
DETSCH: Thank you so much, Michael.
HOLMES: A Russia newspaper is reporting new details from President Vladimir Putin's closed all meeting with Wagner mercenary boss, Yevgeny Prigozhin and his commanders just days after their short lived open rebellion. Putin is quoted as saying he made clear the options for Wagner commanders who wanted to stay in the military. But hat when asked if Wagner would continue as a fighting unit, Putin told the newspaper, Wagner doesn't exist.
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But then said the group actually does exist, but legally it doesn't, because such a group would be considered illegal under Russian law. So that's clear now. Ukraine says its troops are keeping up their momentum south of Bakhmut, have a look at this video released by Ukrainian officials which shows the brutal fighting near that city.
They also claimed to have killed up to 200 Russian troops in a recent strike on the city of Tokmak. It's located in southern Ukraine where Kyiv says it is consolidating recent gains. But up north, Ukraine playing defense and building new fortifications along the border with Russia and Belarus. They say the goal is to prevent sabotage groups and armored vehicles from crossing over.
Top Russian lawmakers urging the military to keep General Ivan Popov in service. He was fired after railing against top military leaders over what he called lack of support for troops at the front lines. But another lawmaker is slamming the release of his criticism online as a political show. Nick Paton Walsh with more.
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NICK PATON WALSH, CNN CHIEF INTERNATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): As Russia paraded Thursday the surrender of heavy weapons from the failed Wagner rebellion to the regular army, effectively Russia disarming itself. Fresh criticisms of the wars disaster were coming from inside the top brass against itself. Echoing the same complaints made by the perhaps vanished and vanquished Wagner Chief Yevgeny Prigozhin, a bombshell audio message from a top commander in the south, the latest tear in the fabric of Putin's command.
IVAN POPOV, RUSSIAN GENERAL (through translator): I, in the na,e you, in the name of all our fallen combat friends, I had no right to lie. Therefore, I outlined all the problems today in the army. The lack of counter-battery in combat, of artillery reconnaissance stations and the mass deaths and injuries of our brothers from enemy artillery. I also raised a number of other problems and expressed it all at the highest level, frankly, an extremely harshly. Our senior commander hit us from the rear treacherously and violet decapitating the army at the most difficult and tense moment.
WALSH (voice-over): Likely meant this man, Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu, who ordered Popov sacked shortly after he expressed the sense Shoigu was doing his usual tour of factory, Thursday, as Kremlin sources insisted the audio was private meant for soldiers ears only as if that somehow made it OK.
Another surreal type of disaster management on display, Thursday, as Russia tried to show control after the assassination of another top commander while out jogging deep inside Russia. Here is alleged assassin Russia's claims he's the killer and confessed hard to verify, showed how he purportedly carried out the killing. In the gilded servitude of Putin's Russia, none of this, the hitman in Russian parks are the commanders fired for decrying frontline incompetence is ever meant to happen. But still, it is daily and faster perhaps that he can process or adapt.
Nick Paton Walsh, CNN, London.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HOLMES: At least six people were killed and 14 wounded in an attack carried out with explosives in western Mexico. The governor calls it a brutal act of terror. He says police received an anonymous complaint on Tuesday about human remains on a road. But when they arrived at the scene, at least seven explosive devices were detonated in what he describes as a trap. Four state officials and two civilians died.
The International Criminal Court is investigating a wave of violence in Sudan's Darfur region since mid-April when rival factions plunged the country into war. The ICC says reports of killings and sexual and gender based violence have surged in Darfur, including allegations of mass rape and violence against children. Now this coming as the U.N. says it has found scores of bodies in a mass grave in the Darfur region. More now from CNN's Stephanie Busari in Lagos.
STEPHANIE BUSARI, CNN SENIOR EDITOR, AFRICA: A mass grave with at least 87 people was discovered in Sudan's West Darfur region, a United Nations agencies said Thursday. The grave was discovered outside the region's capital in El Geneina. And the U.N. says some of the bodies were of ethnic metallic people who are often targeted by Sudan's paramilitary rapid support forces, also known as RSF.
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The U.N. says it has credible information that the killings were carried out by the RSF who are fighting against the Sudanese national army. The RSF have denied the involvement in the attacks, the RSF involved from the Janjaweed militia, which were accused of genocide and war crimes in Darfur for 20 years ago.
United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Turk, said he was quote, appalled by the callous and disrespectful way, the dead along with their families and communities were treated. The U.N. has said crimes against humanity have been committed in Darfur, and that there are fears that history could be about to repeat itself out 20 years after the genocide that killed more than 300,000 people and displaced millions.
The gruesome discovery came as leaders from Sudan, six neighboring countries met in Cairo for more mediation talks. Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi presented an initiative based on a ceasefire, opening up safe passages for aid and comprehensive dialogue between the warring parties.
Leaders at the summit also expressed their concern over the spillover effects Sudan's three-month conflict as hard on their borders. The U.N. says nearly 2.8 million people have fled Sudan, many without passports for some of these countries such as Ethiopia, Chad and Libya.
Stephanie Busari, CNN, Lagos.
HOLMES: Still to come here on the program, China based hackers are accused of breaking into U.S. government e-mail and gaining some critical information. What the Biden administration says they talk. Also Europe already sweltering and forecasters say it is just the beginning of a major heatwave. We'll have a report from Rome after the break.
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HOLMES: U.S. Secretary of State had quote candid and constructive talks with a top Chinese diplomat on Thursday on the sidelines of the ASEAN Foreign Ministers Summit. A State Department official said there were no breakthroughs although none were really expected. The meeting in Jakarta was the latest effort to lower the temperature between superpowers after months of soaring tensions. We're told Antony Blinken and Wang Yi spent a fair amount of time discussing fentanyl. Many of the chemicals used to manufacture come from China. But China so far seems unwilling to cooperate with U.S. on stopping the flow.
Now Blinken can also raise the matter of hacking and warned that the U.S. government will respond to any action that targets its interest. That's after Microsoft announced that China based hackers breached e- mail accounts at two dozen organizations, including some U.S. government agencies. The Biden administration says it believes that China gained some critical insights from that hack. CNN's Kylie Atwood explains.
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KYLIE ATWOOD, CNN U.S. SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: The Biden administration believes that China's hack of U.S. government agencies provided the Chinese government with insights into the Biden administration's thinking ahead of the planned visit to China by the Secretary of State Antony Blinken. That's according to two U.S. officials familiar with the matter.
And we should know that Microsoft said that they learned about this hack on June 16th, from their customers, and that's when they began investigating it. That is the same day that the Secretary of State left Washington and headed to Beijing for those meetings. Now, we should also know that this hack only was able to gain access to the unclassified side of U.S. systems.
And so therefore, when you talk to U.S. officials, the amount that the Chinese officials were able to glean was quite limited. But it did provide them with some insights leading into the Secretary of State's visit, which could have contributed to how Chinese officials thought about that visit, which is significant. We should also note that Secretary of Commerce, Gina Raimondo, who's also compromised in this hack. She is planning to visit Beijing in the coming months.
Kylie Atwood, CNN, Washington. HOLMES: Joining me now from Houston, Karim Hijazi, Managing Director of SCP & CO, he's an expert at investigating Chinese cyber espionage and all things cyber. It's good to see you. These latest attacks involve not just Microsoft servers, of course, but also U.S. government agencies, including the State Department. How significant is all of this, in your view?
KARIM HIJAZI, MANAGING DIRECTOR, SCP & CO: I think it's very significant, Michael. Ultimately, you know, any kind of breach into a computer system, especially a government environment is nothing to be trifled with. And the fact that it's still using the classic methodology of getting in through an e-mail account and surveilling those e-mail accounts is extremely alarming, because it's a way to collect intelligence and further perpetuate or laterally move through a system which is of concern.
So certainly the fact that it was able to get in or whoever was able to get in and lurk and persist for an extended period of time, I understand it was from May onward, is certainly a high consequence.
HOLMES: Yes. You're the expert but to the casual observer, like me, these hacking attacks seemed to be happening, you know, way too often and way too easily. Is it easy for them, what's not being done right in terms of defense?
HIJAZI^ The hard part with this kind of attack is that it's leveraging the weakness of the person rather than the technology. So ultimately, if someone falls for a phishing e-mail, and I'm not suggesting that's necessarily how they got in, in this case, except you know, a well- placed e-mail that looks well formatted, it has an innocuous looking link in it, or in many cases, the sophisticated groups can actually deploy something that doesn't require any kind of clicking.
So unfortunately, they're hacking people, rather than technology in many cases. And that's sort of going to continue to be a problem for quite some time. So it is a prolific way of getting in. It's a hugely powerful vector.
HOLMES: What is the worst case scenario with these hacks? I mean, not just ransomware, which happens a lot. But in a national security sense, as we said, the U.S. government agencies were impacted by these latest attacks, what damage could be done?
HIJAZI^ Well, there are several really serious concerns. One is obviously the harvesting of intellectual property intelligence that would otherwise be caught, gets out into the hands of a nation state actor that's elsewhere that has malicious intent. The ability to influence or propagate a rumor or do a disinformation campaign from within is also a huge concern, since they have access to things like personal e-mails and corporate e-mails, or in this case, governmental work e-mails, they can propagate a narrative that maybe is untrue and create a lot of disruption in that regard.
And then lastly, just the simple loitering in the environment, allows them to get a good idea of the landscape and the network topology so they can move around as they see fit, which is probably part of the worst case scenario here.
HOLMES: Yes. And I guess to that point, I mean, state sponsored hacking can be for financial gain as well, but it's also espionage and spying, isn't it? I mean, you wrote, I think it was earlier this year on your Substack that technology is a force multiplier in the field of espionage. How does that play out that multiplier?
HIJAZI^ Absolutely. You know, ultimately, you're talking about the ability to get in, copy yourself to other machines or propagate yourself to the connection list of an individual in this particular case. So you essentially gain the momentum that you would otherwise not gain by going one by one or, you know, in the old days of 80s movies hacking where someone's at a keyboard trying to get in. Most of this is perpetuated by things like malware and now in modern times we're talking about AI and machine learning based algorithmic systems that can do it on its own and right better than a human can write to get, you know, an e-mail put together that someone may very well fall for or click on.
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So the ability to sort of scale rapidly is what I meant by force multiplication with technology. And it has always been the case with technology. It's just that we're seeing the advent of things like AI that actually really amplifies that, and exponentially creates a problem, as we're probably going to see in the future.
HOLMES: Yes, great point. I mean, people government's taking it seriously and updating the private or government sectors. I mean, what is the answer? What is the best event?
HIJAZI^ It's a hard question and an even harder answer, because we're talking about the ability to sort of abide by the regulations and the compliancy standards that exist. And the government certainly has some very stringent methods and procedures that they demand. However, unfortunately, like I mentioned earlier, when it comes to human error, it's hard to mitigate, you can only train people so much, and you can only kind of beat it into their skull so much that they need to do X, Y or Z.
It just takes one time to fail. That's the asymmetry of the problem is that the adversary can try many times and fail. We can only effectively fail once and it's all over. So there's a real problem with trying to keep this thing level playing field.
HOLMES: Yes, great point. Great analysis. Karim Hijazi, thanks so much. Appreciate it.
HIJAZI^ My pleasure.
HOLMES: Still to come on the program, a man is cleared of groping a teenage girl because the act lasted less than 10 seconds. The viral reaction on social media coming up after the break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK) HOLMES: U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin says he has no doubt Ukraine will become a NATO member after the war. He spoke with CNN's Wolf Blitzer after the NATO summit in Lithuania, where Kyiv received security guarantees but no firm timeline for joining the alliance.
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WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: From a military standpoint, Mr. Secretary, how close is Ukraine to meeting NATO standards?
LLOYD AUSTIN, U.S. DEFENSE SECRETARY: Well, there are a number of things that will have to be done as you know, they -- a big part of their inventory is his legacy equipment. And so in terms of training and equipping, there's work to be done but we're doing that work as we're helping them as they fight this war.
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And so things have been done up to this point. There is more that will need to be done to ensure that they have a full complement of capabilities.
BLITZER: So you have no doubt that after the war, Ukraine will become a member of NATO?
AUSTIN: I have no doubt that that will happen. And we heard just about -- all the countries in a room say as much. And I think that was reassuring to President Zelenskyy.
But there are other things that have to happen as well, you know, judicial reform. You know, things that make sure that the democracy is in good shape. And so those things will take place over time.
BLITZER: How much time do you think it will take after the war, let's assume the war ends, God willing it will end someday, how much time will it take for NATO to join -- for NATO to welcome Ukraine as a full member?
AUSTIN: I won't speculate on that, Wolf. I will just say that all the countries that I witnessed are interested in moving as quickly as possible.
BLITZER: So you think all 31 members of NATO right now want Ukraine in?
AUSTIN: I think it will be 32 by that time --
BLITZER: This week.
AUSTIN: -- right, but I do believe that everyone wants Ukraine to be on board.
BLITZER: As I said Sweden is now set to join NATO. How is it from your analysis, and you have good analysts, how is Putin reacting to this expansion of NATO? AUSTIN: Well, I'm sure Putin is very concerned. This is probably
something that he didn't expect to happen, although President Biden warned him of this at the very beginning.
But you know, he's brought NATO closer to his doorstep. And so, you know, if you were him, you would certainly be concerned about what you are seeing.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MICHAEL HOLMES, CNN ANCHOR: Now, just days after President Biden approved sending U.S. cluster bombs to Ukraine, the Pentagon confirms the first shipments have arrived in that country.
Cluster munitions are extremely controversial, and in fact, banned by more than 120 countries. That is because unexploded bomblets litter the landscape and remain lethal long after the fighting stops.
President Biden defended his decision as a difficult one, but said it was necessary to keep Ukraine in the fight.
CNN's Alex Marquardt with our report.
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ALEX MARQUARDT, CNN SENIOR NATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: Brigadier General Oleksandr Tarnavskyi is in charge of what is arguably the most important part of Ukraine's counteroffensive. Trying to punch through the Russian defenses in southern Ukraine and split Russia's forces.
Now, he told CNN exclusively he has a powerful new weapon, American cluster munitions.
Have you use them already? And how much do you think they're going to change the fight?
"We just got them. We haven't used them yet," he says, "But they can radically change the battlefield. The enemy also understands that with getting this ammunition, we will have an advantage."
Radical changes are needed, as Ukraine's counteroffensive has made only modest gains in his area, riddled with mines. The Russians, he said, prepared intensely.
"The counter offensive is successful but not as much as each of us would like," he tells us. They made very dense complex minefields which are now located in the areas where Ukrainian equipment and personnel will go through.
Tarnavskyi hopes the Russians will abandon areas where clusters would be most effective. He says the munitions will be strictly used away from civilians and only with the approval of senior leadership.
They've arrived as artillery ammunition is running low, and as news comes that a Ukrainian missile strike reportedly with a British cruise missile killed a Russian rising star, Lt. Gen. Oleg Sokov, the most senior Russian killed in Ukraine so far.
"Long-range ammunition that can reach well beyond the front line," Tarnavskyi says, "is in dire need."
"Long-range ammunition is effective," he says, this may be the most problematic issue today. "It's like boxing," he adds. "We hold the opponent at arms length, at long distances we defeat them effectively."
The Pentagon has confirmed that these U.S. made cluster munitions are indeed in Ukraine. They are banned by more than 100 countries, but not by Ukraine, Russia or the United States. If Ukraine uses these U.S.- made clusters, Russia says they will be forced to respond they say in a reciprocal manner.
But Russia has been using their own cluster munitions since the very beginning of the war and not just on the battlefield, but against civilians as well.
Alex Marquardt, CNN -- Dnipro, Ukraine.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
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HOLMES: On Thursday President Biden reaffirmed his commitment to bringing home Americans illegally detained abroad.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I'm serious about prisoners, James (ph). I'm serious about doing all we can to free Americans being illegally held in Russia or anywhere else for that matter. That process is underway.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: "Wall Street Journal" reporter Evan Gershkovich has been detained in Russia for more than 100 days after being arrested on espionage charges that he, the journal and the U.S. government vehemently deny. And fellow wrongfully detained American Paul Whelan has been in prison for nearly than five years, also on espionage charges that he and Washington deny.
U.S. officials recently confirmed that quiet discussions are underway with Russia to try to secure the release of both Gershkovich and Whelan.
U.S. President Joe Biden authorizing the Pentagon to send up to 3,000 military reservist to Europe. That will be part of Operation: Atlantic Resolve which has now received a new designation.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
LT. GEN. DOUGLAS SIMS, DIRECTOR OF OPERATIONS, U.S. JOINT CHIEFS OF STAFF: Operation Atlantic Resolve will be designated as a contingency operation. This new designation benefits troops and families with increase in authority, entitlements and access to the reserve component, forces and personnel.
This reaffirms the unwavering support and commitment to the defense of NATO's eastern plank in the wake of Russia's illegal and unprovoked war on Ukraine.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: Officials say it will take about six months to send their new troops and have them in place. They will join about 100,000 others who were already deployed in Europe under that operation. It has been bolstering NATO's eastern planks since 2014.
Much of Europe has been sweltering this month and climate scientists at the European Space Agency say it has only just begun. Italy, Spain, France, Germany and Poland all bracing for a major heat wave and temperatures are expected to reach a staggering 48 degrees Celsius. That's 119 Fahrenheit, on the Islands of Sicily and Sardinia, which could be the hottest temperatures ever recorded on the continent.
Now, people in the Mediterranean region, the Middle East, southeastern Turkey and North Africa are also bracing for scorching temperatures. And the Italian health ministry has issued a red alert, heat wave warning for ten major cities including Rome and Florence.
CNN's Barbie Nadeau reports on how people are coping in Rome.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BARBIE NADEAU, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Rome, the Eternal City, lately is more like the Infernal City. A deadly heat wave gripping southern Europe has made those trying to enjoy a Roman holiday rather uncomfortable.
CATHERINE HODGDON, TOURIST: I mean, it is hot. But yes, it is -- it is a little disappointing. I was thinking today like because we are planning to not be out when it is the hottest, like we are missing some hours to be able to do stuff.
But ultimately, to be able to enjoy it the most, we are going to have to cut out those hot hours in the day.
NADEAU: Temperatures are climbing and expected to top 40 degrees Celsius -- 104 degrees Fahrenheit in Rome. Italians have named the heat wave Cerberus, after a figure in Greek mythology that guarded the gates of hell.
Officials say the best way to combat the heat is with water, and Rome has no shortage of that. Rome has more than 4,000 public water fountains with drinkable water. And Rome's Civil Protection Agency has an app that will help visitors locate the closest one.
The command center head Giuseppe Napolitano tells us that common sense is key, and staying hydrated is essential. So is using water to cool off, he says. But tempting as it may be to swim in a fountain, doing so runs the risk of a several hundred dollar fine.
SARAH SMITH, TOURIST: We cannot to stay out all day, that is for sure.
ANDY SMITH, TOURIST: I think we just have to take a lot of breaks and not try and over plan.
NADEAU: The heat wave is supposed to last at least through next week, and for most tourists, canceling is not an option which means another week of hell not fit for man or beast.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HOLMES: Barbie Nadeau reporting there from Rome.
Now outrage in Italy, meanwhile, after a court acquitted a school janitor accused of sexual assault by groping a teenage girl because the act lasted less than ten seconds. The 66-year-old man said he touched the student under her clothes quote "as a joke", an explanation the judges accepted.
[01:39:48]
HOLMES: Now, the ruling sparked viral reactions on social media including people posting videos of themselves touching sensitive parts of their bodies for ten seconds to show how long and potentially life- changing that amount of time can be.
Now in his ongoing sexual assault trial on Thursday, actor Kevin Spacey told a London court, he touch his accuser in what he described as a quote "romantic and intimate way", but Spacey says he did not have sexual relations with the accuser because the alleged victim quote, "did not want to go any further".
The charges are related to incidents that allegedly happened in and around London in the 2000s and 2010s, when Spacey was the artistic director at London's Old Vic Theater. The 63-year-old actor is facing 12 charges including indecent assault and sexual assault. Spacey denies all the charges.
About 160,000 actors are set to officially go on strike in less than two hours effectively shutting down much of movie and TV production in the U.S. Contract talks between their union and major studios and streaming services fell apart on Thursday. Actors are calling for increased pay for streaming residuals as well as protection surrounding A.I. technology. They are joining writers who have been on the picket line already for two months. This is the first time since 1960 that both unions will be on strike together.
At a news conference announcing the strike, union president Fran Drescher said studios left the actors no choice.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
FRAN DRESCHER, PRESIDENT, SAG-AFTRA: I cannot believe it, quite frankly, how far apart we are on so many things. How they plead poverty. That they're losing money left and right when giving hundreds of millions of dollars to their CEOs.
It is disgusting. Shame on them. They stand on the wrong side of history.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: Now in response to the strike of the Tv and film studios said the union turned its back on what they described as a substantial offer for higher pay and benefits.
More to come here on CNN including a tribute to a classic song.
(MUSIC)
HOLMES: We will tell you how a Fleetwood Mac bandmate honored the late Christine McVie.
Stay with us. We'll be right back.
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HOLMES: The Senegalese navy has intercepted a boat carrying some 70 migrants bound for Europe and turned them over to authorities. Now this happened at the mouth of the Senegal River which flows into the Atlantic Ocean. A separate migrant boat capsized in the same area on Wednesday killing at least six people.
[01:44:52]
HOLMES: Dangerous journeys from migrants in West Africa tick up during these warmer winter months. Nearly 100,000 migrants have already arrived in Europe this year according to the U.N. Refugee Agency.
Italy, by far, the most popular destination followed by Spain and Greece. It was near Greece that an overcrowded boat, of course, packed with more than 750 migrants, you'll remember capsized back in June, the majority drowned including a 14 year old boy from Pakistan.
CNN traveled to his home in Punjab Province and spoke to his devastated father.
CNN's Anna Coren with our exclusive report.
ANNA COREN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: The last plains of Gujarat in Punjab Province are home to some of the most fertile land in all of Pakistan. The mighty Indus River and it's tributaries, the lifeblood.
But not everyone here prospers from its richness. 14-year-old Mohammed Abuzar (pH) felt the heavy burden of responsibility. His father, a school van driver earning less than $90 a month, was struggling to provide for the family.
Abuzar worried about the future of his younger brothers, especially six-year-old Hassan, who is severely disabled. "My son pleaded with me to be sent abroad," he explains. "He said look
at how we live, we will die of hunger. It's best for me to leave so I can support our family."
Many older boys from the village had already made the trip to Europe through human smuggling operations, sending hefty remittances back home.
Abuzar's uncle had decided to go, and the teenager knew this was his chance.
"The people smuggler said it would cost more than $8,000 U.S. to send my son to Italy. I said, I cannot afford it. He told me, your kid will earn that in a couple of months.
At the beginning of May this year, Abuzar, his uncle, and a small group of teenage boys from the village set off. Human smugglers organized for the group to fly from Karachi to Dubai, then to Egypt before transiting to Libya. From Tripoli International Airport they drove to the Libyan port city of Tobruk and waited in a cab filled with other illegal migrants for the next month.
The day before the group set sail for Italy, their final destination, he sent a video to his brothers, hoping to make them laugh. He then recorded the group's final prayers. That night, he called his father.
"My son was really happy. He said, don't worry dad, it will be ok. We will have lifejackets, it is a big boat. Once I am there you'll have nothing to worry about."
On the 9th of June, Abuzar boarded the Adriana, a fishing vessel with a capacity of 100. Instead, 750 illegal migrants were crammed aboard, of which almost half were from Pakistan, according to the Pakistani interior ministry.
Within days, the trawler would capsize off the coast of Greece, as a Greek coast guard ship watched on. More than 600 people drowned, in what would become one of the deadliest migrant boat tragedies.
Among the survivors, only 12 Pakistanis. Abuzar was not one of them.
"Dying of hunger is better than this. Don't send your children away. For us, life and hell are now the same."
But this grieving father's warning is falling on deaf ears. According to U.N. migration, last year Pakistanis weren't even among the top ten nationalities arriving in Europe. This year however, they are ranked number five with economic migration fueling the surge.
A financial crisis in Pakistan and record high unemployment is driving many families to make these life-altering decisions.
ROBERTO FORIN, HEAD OF E.U. OFFICE, MIXED MIGRATION CENTRE: The common narrative is that smugglers are to lure people into this dangerous journey. We look at who are the people that's influencing the decision of migrating and it's mostly family. And so migration is a family investment.
COREN: For this mother in (INAUDIBLE) in Pakistan administered Kashmir, her 20-year-old son was supposed to be on that ill-fated vessel. She says the human traffickers disembarked because of overcrowding. He is now waiting for the next boat.
"I asked him to come home, but he won't," she explains. He wants to go to Europe, like other boys from our village. I pray that he makes it.
Anna Coren, CNN -- Hong Kong.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
[01:49:50]
HOLMES: Well, we now know what caused Lisa Marie Presley's death according to a report by the Los Angeles County medical examiner. She died in January from a blockage in her small intestine.
It was attributed to a complication from weight loss surgery years before. The toxicology report also found certain medications in her system, but they did not contribute to her death. Lisa Marie was the only daughter of the late Elvis Presley and Priscilla Presley. She was just 54 years old.
And a founding member of the legendary group Fleetwood Mac is paying tribute to a bandmate who died last year. Drummer Mick Fleetwood wanted to honor the late keyboarder Christine McVie on what would've been her 80th birthday. He released an unusual version of her hit "Songbird". Here's a bit of it followed by the original version.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The song bird keep singing, like they know the score. And I love you. I love you like never before.
(MUSIC)
HOLMES: McVie wrote some of the Fleetwood Mac's biggest hits. She died last November after a brief illness.
When we come back, shoplifters beware. A.I. technology being used to catch thieves. Still to come what some are saying about the dangers to privacy. We will have that after the break.
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HOLMES: The maker of ChatGPT is under investigation for possible violations of the U.S. consumer protection law. It's the clearest example yet of direct U.S. government regulation of artificial intelligence. The Federal Trade commission wants to know if the company Open A.I. has damaged consumers' reputations by misusing personal data.
The A.I. powered chatbot is popular for its ability to provide detailed responses to questions. Not always accurate. Artificial intelligence is also being used by some British retailers
to catch shoplifters. But some groups say the facial recognition technology could do more harm than good.
Anna Stewart explains.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ANNA STEWART, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Got that feeling you are being watched? You probably are. And it's not just CCTV, A.I. could be watching too.
Your camera should have picked me up as I walk through the front door.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes.
STEWART: So if you are the security guard and you discovered that I had stolen something you would go to this and find me?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, I would scroll down and look at the system and I would know what time you walked in so I would be able to find your face and in fact here is your face.
STEWART: Stole a load of goods.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And ran out.
STEWART: I am a suspect, a case of mistaken identity, I assure you. But here is what happens next. A suspect's biometrics are storied by Facewatch for a year. If they return to the shop their presence will be alerted to staff. And for prolific thieves, all those suspected of taking a high value item, the biometrics could be shared with other stores in the area. All legal under British law.
[01:54:57]
SIMON GORDON, FOUNDER, FACEWATCH: I was reporting all these crimes to the police trying to help the police, giving them CCTV and nothing ever happened.
STEWART: This didn't start in the store but a wine bar. London's oldest wine bar in fact, run by Facewatch founder Simon Gordon.
GORDON: Our goal is to be the trusted, and we are, the trusted name in facial recognition and crime prevention. We are just here to prevent crime. We don't --
STEWART: Isn't that the police's job? Aren't you filling a gap that shouldn't be filled by private businesses?
GORDON: Everybody should be taking security seriously.
STEWART: Gordon says there's no bias in the A.I. algorithm and the company also uses human super facial recognizers but mistakes happen. Accuracy was 99.85 percent in June according to Facewatch. MADELEINE STONE, SENIOR ADVOCACY OFFICER, BIG BROTHER WATCH: If you're
put on a watch list your (INAUDIBLE) for a year, because there's no real due process. It's all done by private company. There's no police involvement. There's no direct evidence that anyone has actually committed a crime.
So you could very easily be wrongly placed on watchlist and have your life really change because some A.I. powered technology has flagged you as a criminal which you aren't.
STEWART: For shoppers leaving a store with Facewatch tech, there is a mix of opinions.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I don't want my face to be recognized. I'm just doing my shopping.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I mean it's uncomfortable but I mean understand why they're doing it.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think in this day and age, like even our phone, facial recognition, like biometrics and everything, it's all around us. So I don't think there is any escaping it.
STEWART: Back at the supermarket it's time to see how quickly alarm bells will ring now I've been flagged. That was quick, I didn't even make it on the first aisle.
GORDON: That's a match. It's 99 percent similarity. You would trigger an alert in a store down the road if you carried out more than one crime here or if it was over a certain value.
STEWART: Well, thanks for showing me how it works. Can I ask that you delete my profile?
GORDON: Absolutely.
STEWART: Not really.
Anna Stewart, CNN -- London.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HOLMES: The fast food franchise Chipotle is turning to a collaborative robot for help with guacamole production. It is testing the "autocado" which will perform tedious tasks of cutting, coring and peeling the avocado. But a real person still does all of the mixing of ingredients, we are told.
Chipotle says that the robot won't replace human workers, that will free them up for more complex tasks. The move comes during a time of historic labor shortage in the U.S. restaurant industry. Only once in the last two decades have there been as many openings in the industry as there are right now.
I'm Michael Holmes. Thanks for spending part of your day with me.
Kim Brunhuber picks it up from here as CNN NEWSROOM continues in a moment.
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