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Families of Hamas Hostages Face Israeli Lawmakers; U.S. Defense Secretary Unveils Military Aid Package to Ukraine. OpenAI Head Steps Down; Argentine President-elect Faces Daunting Task on Day One; 41 Construction Workers Trapped in India's Collapsed Tunnel; More than 200 People Convicted in Italy's Largest Mafia Trial. Aired 3-4a ET
Aired November 21, 2023 - 03:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[03:00:00]
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ROSEMARY CHURCH, CNN ANCHOR: Hello and welcome to our viewers joining us from all around the world and to everyone streaming us on CNN Max. I'm Rosemary Church.
Just ahead. Tensions flare in Israel as family members of Hamas hostages meet with lawmakers.
Ukraine seizes a critical foothold along the front lines, what it could mean for the future of the war.
And turmoil in the tech industry as OpenAI employees threaten to quit en masse after the sudden ouster of the company's CEO.
UNKNOWN (voice-over): Live from CNN Center, this is CNN NEWSROOM with Rosemary Church.
CHURCH: Good to have you with us. Well, the families of hostages held by Hamas, demanding answers as they continue to wait for news of their loved ones. Emotions were running high when some met with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his war cabinet for the first time since Hamas' attack on October 7th.
Family members also attended a committee meeting in the Israeli parliament as they urge Israeli officials to do more to free the hostages taken more than 40 days ago. Now this comes as Hamas now claims it's close to reaching a truce agreement with Israel. U.S. officials also say negotiators are closing in on a deal to release some of the hostages Hamas abducted on October 7th. But they caution the details are still being worked out.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOHN KIRBY, U.S. NATIONAL SECURITY COUNCIL COMMUNICATIONS COORDINATOR: And we believe we're closer than we've ever been. So were hopeful, but there still work to be done and nothing is done until is all done. We are laser-focused on the American citizens that we know are being held hostage and we want them out, all of them, everybody should be out now. But here we are in a negotiation and we're getting closer to the end we believe of that negotiation so again I'm going to be careful.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHURCH: All this as the Israeli military continues its fight against Hamas in Gaza. An IDF spokesperson says forces reached the heart of Gaza City much earlier than Hamas had expected and are advancing according to plan.
Well, meantime, the World Health Organization says 28 out of 33 neonatal babies have been evacuated into Egypt from Gaza. We have learned that two of the babies died over the weekend and three others were reunited with their families. CNN's Nic Robertson is following developments and has more now from Sderot in Israel.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR (voice-over): A rare glimmer of hope in Gaza. Neonatal babies from the embattled Al- Shifa hospital delivered to Egypt for safe care. Hopes also on the rise again for a potential hostage release, as many of the kidnapped families gathered to press the Prime Minister to get a deal done.
SHAI WENKERT, SON HELD IN GAZA (through translator): It's very difficult and embarrassing that I need to stand in front of the camera and then I need to go meet them in order to receive answers.
ROBERTSON (voice-over): Even so, Qatari negotiators say their confidence levels are increasing.
SHEIKH MOHAMMED BIN ABDULRAHMAN AL-THANI, QATARI PRIME MINISTER: The sticking points honestly at this stage are more practical, logistical.
ROBERTSON (voice-over): But the reality on the battlefield is different. No sign of a deal securing ceasefire yet.
Another hospital under fire. This time the Indonesian hospital near the Jabalia refugee camp. The IDF say they were returning fire against shots fired from within the hospital. Twelve people were killed according to the Ministry of Health in the area.
Indeed, Israel is continuing to press its offensive across much of northern Gaza, including showcasing tunnels it unearthed at the Al- Shifa hospital, alleging they are part of a wider Hamas command and control system that they've yet to show, that they say gives them legitimacy to take the hospital.
CNN does not have independent access to the Al-Shifa, where a handful of doctors remain, treating more than 100 patients too badly injured to move.
[03:04:52]
Over the weekend, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu appeared emboldened by U.S. President Joe Biden's backing that a ceasefire too soon could benefit Hamas, implying such a defense against global critics will buy future gains against Hamas. BENJAMIN NETANYAHU, ISRAELI PRIME MINISTER (through translator): The
third thing that has brought the achievement is a diplomatic iron dome that allows us to continue fighting until victory.
ROBERTSON (voice-over): Despite Netanyahu's confidence, pushback is growing from Israel's Arab neighbors and the U.N.
ANTONIO GUTERRES, U.N. SECRETARY GENERAL: We are witnessing a killing of civilians that is unparalleled and unprecedented in any conflict since I am Secretary General.
ROBERTSON (voice-over): On top of the dangers from shelling and missiles, another looming problem for Gazans. The weather is worsening. For many of the more than one million displaced, flimsy plastic sheeting, all they have between them and the coming winter.
Nic Robertson, CNN, Sderot, Israel.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CHURCH: CNN's Scott McLean is following developments and joins us now from Istanbul. Good to see you, Scott. So families are calling for the safe return of their loved ones taken hostage by Hamas and they want answers. What did Israeli lawmakers tell them and what is the latest on those hostage negotiations?
SCOTT MCLEAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yeah, Rosemary, it seems like those negotiations are potentially soon bearing fruit. There are positive signs coming from the Qataris, from Hamas, from the Americans, and the Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, who met with hostage families yesterday says that he told them that it is his sacred and supreme mission to get those hostages released. You also have the Red Cross saying that it is ready to implement any deal that might be agreed upon on the ground to actually get people out.
The broad parameters of the deal, which we know from U.S. sources, would involve releasing a number of hostages from Gaza. 50 is the latest number according to a draft proposal in exchange for an unknown number of Palestinian prisoners released from Israeli jails over the course of four or five days of a pause in fighting.
There could be more hostages from Gaza released if that pause is extended, but nothing is ever simple in Israel. You mentioned some of the families met with a committee of the Israeli Knesset yesterday. Among the lawmakers was the national security minister, a hardline far right politician who believes that the Palestinian territories should be annexed. And that meeting got extremely tense and extremely heated. And I want to play a clip for you. It's not translated, but trust me, you don't need to speak Hebrew to understand the high emotions inside that room. Listen.
(VIDEO PLAYING)
So part of the reason for those high emotions inside that room is that the National Security Minister is pushing legislation that would hand down the death penalty to terrorists and that may be all well and good under normal circumstances, but under these circumstances, hostage families believe that could potentially put their families in greater danger. And I want to play you a clip from one of those hostage family members. His name is Hen Avigdori. He, his daughter and his wife are currently held hostage in Gaza and here's what he told the committee. Listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
HEN AVIGDORI, HUSBAND AND FATHER OF HOSTAGES (translated): I want my child back home, it's very simple, not to satisfy any enemy. I want my girl back home. This discussion to my understanding and my view is risking the lives of Jews, and instead talking about death, which was the most frequent word in this discussion, talk about life, 239 living hostages. Get them out and then talk about destroying, death penalty, anything you want.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MCLEAN: Now, the Israeli government is under immense pressure to get some kind of a deal done. In fact, polling shows that most Israelis would favor a deal or would support a deal to release thousands of Palestinian prisoners in Israel in exchange for these 239 hostages being held in Gaza. But this is all complicated by the fact that there are multiple parties involved in these negotiations, the fact that communications with Hamas people in Gaza are not great Hamas leadership outside of Gaza. It's not clear whether they actually know the precise location of all the hostages as well. So there are some logistical challenges as well.
And from the Israeli side, any release of Palestinian prisoners, Rosemary would need the sign off of the entire Israeli cabinet. And many of them are hardline, far-right people who right now are much more intent or much more focused on destroying Hamas militarily than getting back those hostages.
[03:10:07]
CHURCH: Yeah. A lot of hurdles to overcome. Scott McLean, joining us live from Istanbul, many thanks.
Well more than 12,700 Palestinians have been killed as a result of Israeli attacks on Gaza since the start of the war, that is according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health in the West Bank. The ministry, which gets its data from sources inside Hamas-controlled territory, says more than 5,000 of those killed were children.
Now, Gaza residents are facing the threat of bad weather and sickness, making the enclave barely livable, as the U.N. aid agency operating in Gaza warns. CNN's Nada Bashir has more. And a warning, her report contains graphic images.
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NADA BASHIR, CNN REPORTER (voice-over): Darkness and destruction inside northern Gaza's Indonesian hospital. Twelve killed here overnight including patients and a member of medical staff when Israeli tank fire hit the hospital, according to health authorities in the Hamas-run strip.
The Israeli military says they were responding to gunfire from inside, targeting their troops. But the civilian toll has been condemned by the U.N.'s World Health Organization chief, describing the attack as appalling.
For civilians in central Gaza, Monday morning brought with it more devastation. Local residents say this building was struck overnight, blaming Israel's ongoing aerial bombardment of the region. Locals here say more than a dozen were killed, now buried beneath the rubble.
CNN has reached out to the Israeli military for comment and allegations of an overnight airstrike on the neighborhood. Amid the rubble, bodies are pulled out one by one carefully wrapped in blankets.
UNKNOWN (through translator): The building collapsed on top of 30 people. Many were killed and there are still people buried under the rubble right now.
BASHIR (voice-over): The Israeli military says it is targeting Hamas, but with each passing day, more civilians are killed.
Among the victims on Monday, a young girl, carried away by a neighbor, killed alongside her father, a doctor at the nearby Al Aqsa Martyrs' Hospital.
This is not a war anymore. This is genocide, he says.
This scene now all too familiar, even for the young. Many here are from northern Gaza, taking shelter in this embattled town, hoping to move southwards.
The U.N. says hundreds of thousands have already fled northern Gaza. Many seen here over the weekend waving makeshift white flags, the injured chaining behind. It is a long and difficult journey. Many are exhausted and distraught.
MOHAMED AL-SHAHID, DISPLACED JABALYA RESIDENT: We will die if we stay. One minute we will die. Many rockets fall on our heads.
BASHIR (voice-over): Mohamed says his daughter was injured following an airstrike on a school they were sheltering in the northern city of Jabalia. Now they are hoping they will find some semblance of peace in the south. But even here, in the very place Israel is telling civilians to evacuate to, there is no escape. And as the weather begins to turn, the situation is growing more dire with each passing day. This family from Jabalia now sheltering in the southern city of Khan Younis, making do with what little they have left.
RANDA HAMUD, DISPLACED JABALYA RESIDENT (through translator): Yesterday was very difficult. Our tents flew away, the rain came down on us, we were drenched. We just want an end to the war.
BASHIR (voice-over): But as the war threatens to intensify in southern Gaza, and calls for a humanitarian ceasefire continue to go unheeded, there is little hope remaining for the people of Gaza.
Nada Bashir, CNN in Jerusalem.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CHURCH: Hostilities continue along the Israel-Lebanon border as the IDF and Hezbollah militants continue to exchange heavy fire, including the use of missiles. Early Monday, Hezbollah says it fired four powerful ballistic missiles striking an Israeli military camp near the border. The IDF says it later struck the sources of those Hezbollah launches. Lebanon's national news agency reports at least 12 civilians have been killed since this round of fighting began last month, while Israel says at least two of its civilians have died.
Japan is condemning the hijacking of a ship in the Red Sea and is seeking help to secure the release of the vessel and its 25 crew members.
[03:15:06]
This video shot by Houthi rebels from Yemen shows the moment The cargo ship is leased by a Japanese company, but Israeli media outlets report that an Israeli businessman is part owner of the British company that owns the ship.
On Monday, the U.S. condemned the act and demanded the immediate release of the ship and its crew.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MATT MILLER, U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT SPOKESPERSON: The Houthi seizure of the motor vessel Galaxy leader in the Red Sea is a flagrant violation of international law. We demand the immediate release of the ship and its crew and we will consult with our allies and U.N. partners as appropriate on next steps.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHURCH: Just ahead, what the U.S. defense secretary promised the Ukrainian president during his surprise trip to Kyiv on Monday.
Plus tensions are flaring again between Poland and Ukraine. We will explain why thousands of trucks are backed up along the border between the two countries. Back in just a moment.
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CHURCH: To the war in Ukraine now and Germany's defense minister Boris Bistorius is visiting Kyiv his second trip since the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Germany is the second largest provider of military aid to Ukraine after the United States. And Bistorius' visit comes a day after U.S. defense secretary Lloyd Austin unveiled a new $100 million military aid package for Ukraine during a surprise trip to Kyiv.
Austin visited Poland today where he met with troops and Polish officials. The White House had warned earlier this month that funding for Ukraine is dwindling, but Austin says he sees bipartisan support for Ukraine in both chambers of Congress.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
LLOYD AUSTIN, U.S. DEFENSE SECRETARY: I would point out that Ukraine matters. What happens here matters, not just to Ukraine, but to the entire world. This is about the rules-based international order. This is about, you know, not living in a world where a dictator can wake up one day and decide to annex the property of his peaceful neighbor. That's not the world that we want to live in. And so this is more than just Ukraine. This is about, again, a rules-based international order.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHURCH: Meantime, Ukrainian forces say they have won a key foothold at the Dnipro River. CNN's Anna Coren shows you how they managed this win.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ANNA COREN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Meandering through the marshlands of Kherson region in southern Ukraine is the mighty Dnipro river, now the new front line in Ukraine's war against Russia.
In recent weeks, marines have managed to cross this expanse of water using inflatable boats, establishing a tenuous foothold on the left bank of the river.
[03:20:01]
Hey, am I in Vietnam?, asked this soldier sarcastically, brushing past tall grasses. A reference to another bloody conflict that ended before most of these soldiers were even born.
According to Ukrainian Armed Forces, they've pushed back the Russians three to eight kilometers, two to five miles, from the riverfront, making it difficult for the enemy to fire mortars at positions on the right bank.
However, Russian drones, artillery and aerial gilded bombs are still landing and constantly. In exclusive access with drone pilot Serhiy, his night mission had just been aborted because the Russians had identified his unit's position on the right bank, hunkered down in his pickup, hiding under trees from Russian birds above. The 32-year-old former journalist tells me they're under constant bombardment.
COREN: What are you hearing?
SERHIY OSTAPENKO, SOLDIER OF DRONE UNIT "SONS OF THUNDER" (through translator): Explosions. Now there is an attack on the place where I am. There are kamikaze drones, I think it's shahads, rockets, most likely grats, mortars and tanks. It's always like that here. Today they are using guided aerial bombs. Do you hear it too?
That's another one. I think it was a rocket.
COREN (voice-over): The job of his aerial reconnaissance unit is to provide cover for marines crossing the river and to watch the enemy on the other side.
COREN: Do you feel safe where you are?
OSTAPENKO (through translator): It's dangerous here, where we live and where we work. Every time I enter the zone, I say goodbye to my life. But I realized that my life can be ended at any moment. You get used to it, but it's unpleasant.
COREN (voice-over): The reason this left bank operation is so important for Ukraine is to open the road to Russian-occupied Crimea and to protect the nearby city of Kherson. A year ago, the Russians withdrew from Kherson, using the Dnipro River as a defendable natural barrier between the two sides. But in the last month, attacks on Kherson have intensified to the point where the region's military governor told me there were 700 incoming rounds in one day.
This is revenge and now it's felt more, he says, because our soldiers are already on the left bank and our civilians are feeling this revenge. 300,000 residents used to live in Kherson, now less than a quarter remain, including 56-year-old Inna.
She cares for her invalid mother and her four-year-old grandson.
24 hours a day it's scary. When it's quiet it's even scarier than when there is shelling. She says she lived through 8 months of Russian occupation and will endure this as well. Our main task is to survive, she explains. That was the priority during the occupation and it's the same thing now. We have to survive.
A daily struggle for a population that's being constantly terrorized.
Anna Coren, CNN, Kyiv.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CHURCH: Retired Major General Mick Ryan of the Australian Army joins me from Brisbane. Thanks so much for being with us.
MAJ. GEN. MICK RYAN (RET.), AUSTRALIAN ARMY: Hi Rosemary.
CHURCH: So Germany's defense minister has just arrived in Kyiv a day after the surprise visit of U.S. defense secretary Austin who met with President Zelenskyy announcing a new $100 million military aid package and emphasizing U.S. support will continue to be a priority for the Biden administration. But it's one of the smallest packages yet. So will this be enough to help Ukraine's fight against Russian aggression, do you think?
RYAN: Well, I think every little bit helps, Rosemary. But at the end of the day, I think the priority for the U.S. defense secretary, and indeed the German one as well, is to kind of put their arms around President Zelenskyy and his team and say, listen, we're not abandoning you, we're still here. We know it's been a tough year will continue to provide aid, but we do need to get that package, particularly for the Americans, through the U.S. Congress in the short term. CHURCH: So let's get to advances on the battlefield right now. And we
are seeing reports Ukrainian troops have pushed Russian forces three to eight kilometers back from the Dnieper Riverfront, winning a foothold on the left bank of that strategic river. So how significant is this militarily? And what might it signal given Ukraine's counteroffensive has yielded very little progress up to this point, hasn't it?
RYAN: It has been a very tough six months for the Ukrainians. It's not like they've made no progress. They certainly have on the ground in the east and now this river crossing and they've certainly made progress in the Black Sea pushing the Russian fleet out and their strategic strikes in Crimea and Russia.
[03:24:56]
But this operation across the Dnipro River, it's actually a pretty significant achievement just to get across but It's really uncertain what they're really trying to do here. Are they trying to start a new front or is this a faint to try and draw Russian forces away from the east and the south?
CHURCH: And of course the world has taken its focus off Ukraine since Hamas attacked Israel on October 7th, triggering another war, this time in Gaza. So what progress has Russia made since then, since we stopped watching? And how would you assess the war in Ukraine right now?
RYAN: Well Russia has only made minor gains, particularly in the East around Avdiivka, but it's come at enormous cost. Indeed, they've lost more troops per day during this battle than any other activity, including the initial days of the war and during the worst days of the Battle of Bakhmut. So if they are able to take it, which is beyond, which, you know, is still doubtful, it would be a periodic victory. Where are we at the moment? Well, we're not quite at a position of stasis yet. I think the Ukrainians still have momentum. They have not culminated in their ground operations yet, but it will be a very tough winter ending.
CHURCH: And how much longer would you expect this war to continue on? Do you see an end point here, or do you think it's just going to keep grinding on?
RYAN: Well, it's hard to see it ending in the next 12 months or so unless the amount of equipment, munitions and training and intelligence we're providing to Ukraine. At the moment we're helping them defend themselves. There needs to be a shift to helping them beat Russia and we're not resourcing them to do that. So without that shift I think this war is going to continue on to 2024 and probably 2025 as well.
CHURCH: And what do you see as Russia's likely next step militarily?
RYAN: Well, Russia's strategy really is just to not lose. It just needs to keep its army in the field. It will continue building defenses. And Putin is waiting, playing a waiting game. He thinks that he can outweigh Western countries. He's mobilized his people, his industry, his economy for this war. He believes that's his theory of victory, is to outweigh the West.
CHURCH: Mick Ryan, thank you so much for joining us. I Appreciate your analysis.
RYAN: Thank you.
CHURCH: The U.S. says it has imposed visa restrictions on two Russian military officials for gross human rights violations in Ukraine. A colonel known as the Butcher of Bucha and a guard corporal, U.S. Secretary of State Anthony Blinken said the two Russians and their immediate family members are not allowed into the US. Blinken says the colonel led his brigade to Butcher where he says they killed, beat, dismembered, burned and conducted mock executions of civilians.
Poland and Ukraine are at odds again over trade between the European neighbors. Thousands of Ukrainian trucks are backed up on the Polish side of the border because of a protest by Polish truckers. It's now stretching into its second week. Ukrainian truckers have been exempted from securing permits to enter Poland since Russia invaded Ukraine in February of last year. The Polish truckers say they are losing business to foreign competitors. And the Ukrainian truckers say they are caught in the middle.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
VIKTOR ZARUDNYI, TRUCK DRIVER (through translator): We have been abandoned here. We are like hostages. Hostages in power games. What else can I say? If the government doesn't solve problems, who else can solve them? Here nobody is doing anything.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHURCH: Polish truck drivers say they want a limit on the number of licenses for Ukrainian truckers, but Kyiv says it won't even consider the demand.
Still to come, frustration and anger boiling over as the families of hostages being held by Hamas demand answers and more action from Israeli officials.
And later, a major shakeup for the company behind ChatGPT. We will take a look at the potential consequences for the future of artificial intelligence. Back with that and more in just a moment. Stay with us.
[03:30:00]
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ROSEMARY CHURCH, CNN ANCHOR: Welcome back everyone. The technology sector is going through a major transition that not even ChatGPT could have predicted. Microsoft has hired Sam Altman to lead its new artificial intelligence group. Just three days after he was fired from the company, he co-founded OpenAI. Sources told CNN the board thought he was too aggressive in developing
the technology. Last year, the company rolled out ChatGPT, the controversial artificial intelligence platform, capable of human-like writing, calculations, and coding. OpenAI has now appointed Emmett Shear as interim CEO. He is the former head of Amazon's streaming service, Twitch.
More than 500 OpenAI employees are threatening to quit. In a letter to the board of directors, they say, your actions have made it obvious that you are incapable of overseeing OpenAI. We are unable to work for or with people that lack competence, judgment and care for our mission and employees.
Meanwhile, investors are loving Altman's move to Microsoft. The company's stock hit a record high on Monday along with A.I. chipmaker Nvidia. More now from CNN's Brian Todd.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Chaos at the top of the tech world. The company OpenAI, one of the top players in artificial intelligence, thrown into disarray. On Monday, more than 500 OpenAI employees sent a letter to the company's board threatening to quit over the board's abrupt firing of OpenAI's popular CEO, Sam Altman.
KARA SWISHER, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: They might've had disagreements, but this is not how to run one of the most important companies of the A.I. age, at least.
TODD (voice-over): Since his ouster on Friday, Altman has been hired by Microsoft, which was OpenAI's biggest investor, to run Microsoft's artificial intelligence division, a shakeup that leaves OpenAI's future in doubt.
SWISHER: It was valued at $80 billion, and this is something the employees have now lost, you know, in that regard. It's the leading A.I. company.
TODD (voice-over): A company that created ChatGPT, a program that can draft a letter, write a novel, or generate answers to questions by drawing on millions of previous examples. Why was Altman fired by OpenAI's board? Industry watchers say it was a split between his vision for the future of artificial intelligence and the board's.
JON SARLIN, CNN DIGITAL PRODUCER: Those divisions were raging within OpenAI. Some people saw this incredibly valuable product and wanted to push forward. Others were more cautious saying that they had to be, you know, responsible for humanity.
TODD (voice-over): And Altman sometimes seemed to straddle both camps. Analysts say inside OpenAI, some board members viewed him as too aggressive, wanting to market artificial intelligence and push it forward. But he also told Congress earlier this year about the dangers of A.I.
SAM ALTMAN, THEN-CEO, OPENAI: I think if this technology goes wrong, it can go quite wrong. We are quite concerned about the impact this can have on elections.
TODD (voice-over): The potential for A.I. to create misinformation, like fabricated comments from candidates or fake news reports, is a huge concern going into 2024. Other worries?
BRIAN FUNG, CNN TECHNOLOGY REPORTER: Potentially job loss and people being displaced from the economy. Over the long term, however, I think there are a lot of people in the A.I. industry in particular who are concerned about the rise of what's called artificial general intelligence. You know, these kind of doomsday scenarios where, you know, an A.I. takes over the world.
[03:35:03]
TODD (voice-over): But analysts say that's balanced against the potentially positive things that A.I. can do, like helping to address climate change and improving our health.
FUNG: What artificial intelligence does is find patterns. And you know, a technology that's very good at finding patterns can help, you know, do things like diagnose diseases or develop vaccines.
TODD: Is the federal government ready to regulate artificial intelligence and can it? Analyst Brian Fung says there is a strong desire among leaders of Congress to regulate AI, but he says they're not sure which rules to write for it yet because they're still learning so much about it.
Brian Todd, CNN, Washington.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CHURCH: Elon Musk, the embattled owner of X, formerly known as Twitter, is suing watchdog group Media Matters over a report highlighting anti-Semitic and pro-Nazi content on the social media platform, the report appeared to play a significant role in the recent mass exodus of advertisers from the site. The lawsuit accuses Media Matters of distorting the likelihood of ads appearing beside extremist content on X. Musk threatened a thermonuclear lawsuit against Media Matters over the weekend after major brands halted their advertising on the site following the report's release and Musk's endorsement of several anti-Semitic posts.
Argentine President-elect Javier Milei faces a monumental task of overhauling the country's economy after his victory in Sunday's election. Now that he has secured the presidency, he will have the chance to make several controversial changes which drew both fans and critics to his platform. But is it enough to turn the struggling country around?
CNN's Paula Newton breaks down what could happen.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
PAULA NEWTON, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It was an audacious campaign prop, the chainsaw, cutting reminder Javier Milei said of all that was wrong with Argentina's political system and economy and how he would fix it.
As president-elect, he says, that model of decadence will end. Now comes the hard part, how to make it happen.
It's clear Argentines want some shock therapy for their government and economy. Decades of debt, anemic growth, poor job prospects. It has sapped generations. But the crippling inflation, now well over 140 percent, is what most unnerves many Argentines and so compromised their lives.
Part of Milei's solution? Dump the country's peso, use U.S. dollars instead. It has been done in other countries, but none with an economy as large as Argentina's or as vulnerable.
CHRISTOPHER SABATINI, PROFESSOR, COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY: Implementing that is going to mean seriously undercutting people's social safety nets, undercutting subsidies for public transport and energy, as well as employment. He's going to run smack dab into really a popular backlash if he tries to implement that.
NEWTON (voice-over): But Milei says there is no turning back. He says he will implement steep cuts to government budgets. And in his words. blow up the Central Bank of Argentina. The president-elect is a trained economist. He's worked for banks in large Argentine companies. And his populist platform that Argentina is counting on now includes adopting U.S. dollars.
KEN ROGOFF, FORMER CHIEF ECONOMIST, IMF: That seems to be his signature policy, a little bit like Donald Trump and building the wall.
NEWTON (voice-over): Ken Rogoff is a former chief economist at the IMF. He has dealt firsthand with Argentina's debt crisis.
ROGOFF: When you inherit an economy that's in this big a mess, it's not easy to put it on its feet.
NEWTON (voice-over): Milei says he will radically transform the Argentine economy in what may become one of the most daring economic experiments in Latin America.
Paula Newton, CNN, New York.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CHURCH: And we'll be right back.
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[03:40:00]
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CHURCH: As anger mounts in Israel over the hostages taken by Hamas, dozens of family members clashed with Israeli lawmakers on Monday. There were intense exchanges during a committee meeting in parliament. Holding pictures of their kidnapped relatives, they voiced their frustrations, some quite vehemently. Families have been pushing the government to do more to bring home their loved ones.
Meantime in Tel Aviv, families and friends of the hostages took to the streets again to demand action. And dozens of families met with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and members of the war cabinet. Some say they left the meeting early because they felt no new information was provided. Others say they are disappointed the government was not prioritizing the release of the hostages above all else, including the mission to defeat Hamas.
CNN's Oren Liebermann is following developments and has more details now from Tel Aviv.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ORN LIEBERMANN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Gili Roman has waited 45 days for this moment. His sister Yarden has been a hostage in Gaza since October 7th. And this is the first chance for the families of the hostages to meet with the war cabinet.
GILI ROMAN, SISTER HELD HOSTAGE BY HAMAS: I do expect them to be transparent as much as possible about what can be done. OK? We all want to see everybody back today.
LIEBERMANN (voice-over): Frustration boiling over after six weeks and two days of questions.
SHAI WENKERT, SON HELD IN GAZA (through translator): It's something very hard, very embarrassing, that I have to stand here facing so many cameras and I have to go to a meeting in order to hear answers.
LIEBERMANN (voice-over): But as the meeting was set to start, not all of the families were allowed in.
DANNY ELGARAT, BROTHER OF HOSTAGE ITZUIK ELGARAT (through translator): In Gaza, there is enough room for the 240 who were kidnapped. And in the Defense Ministry, there isn't room for 130 families?
LIEBERMANN (voice-over): For weeks, some families have slept outside the defense ministry to remind the war cabinet inside that they will not leave and they will not let up. From hostages' square in Tel Aviv, they march to Jerusalem, picking up thousands of supporters along the five-day march to the prime minister's office, a public pressure campaign to force a meeting with Israel's leadership.
Adriana Adri's mother-in-law is a hostage in Gaza.
ADRIANA ADRI, RELATIVE OF HOSTAGE HELD IN GAZA: We don't have time. We don't have one hour more. We don't know if she is alive.
LIEBERMANN (voice-over): The Israeli military says at least two hostages were found dead in the enclave. 65-year old grandmother Judit Weiss, and 19-year-old corporal Noah Marciano. Now some families have their own fight. Far-right Israeli Minister of National Security Itamar Ben Gvir is trying to push a death penalty for terrorists through the Knesset, which the families say endangers their loved ones in Hamas captivity. Hen Avigdori's wife and daughter were taken on October 7.
HEN AVIGDORI, WIFE AND DAUGHTER HELD IN GAZA (through translator): Maybe instead of talking about the dead, talk about the living. Stop talking about killing Arabs, talk about saving Jews. This is your job.
LIEBERMANN: The family members of the hostages held in Gaza met for several hours with members of the war cabinet, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the Defense Ministry. One of those members who spoke to CNN says he left early because he was extremely disappointed to find out that there was no new information.
And even more disappointing, perhaps even aggravating, he says the government didn't indicate they were doing anything above and beyond to make sure that most important was the securing the release of the hostages, although it was important to the war cabinet, he tells us. More important or equally as important was defeating Hamas and continuing the war. That is not what they want to hear.
Oren Liebermann, CNN, in Tel Aviv.
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[03:45:01]
CHURCH: Scott Walker is a hostage negotiator, a former U.N. counterterrorism adviser and a bestselling author. And he joins me now from London. Appreciate you being with us. Family members of those kidnapped by Hamas on October 7th met with Prime Minister Netanyahu Monday to get some answers but instead left disappointed saying the subject of any hostage deal was not even discussed. So why are we hearing from the Biden administration that progress is being made with President Biden saying he believes a hostage deal is close?
SCOTT WALKER, HOSTAGE NEGOTIATOR (on the phone): Well, we've heard from the U.S., now the Hamas leadership and the Qataris that a deal is very close. And this is a very dangerous, sensitive part of the negotiations.
And, you know, they don't want to get their family's hopes up and there's still a lot to be ironed out, particularly on the logistics and the sequencing here for any release.
CHURCH: Right. I mean, it is difficult, though, that when they're getting those sorts of mixed messages but the loved ones of those kidnapped by Hamas say they believe the Israeli government is putting the mission to destroy Hamas ahead of any priority to safely return the hostages. Are they right or are other issues at play here?
WALKER (on the phone): Well, we're not sure exactly the nature of the specific conversations behind the scenes. But from the family's perspective, you know, their hopes are being built up here in terms of -- there's a possibility of their loved ones coming back now. And so we just need to wait and see how the next couple of days pans out. But I can't stress enough that just because there's an agreement in place to secure the release, it doesn't mean the safe and a timely recovery of the hostages.
CHURCH: So Scott, what does a hostage negotiation like this entail? What are the actual logistics involved in trying to release more than 200 hostages?
WALKER (on the phone): Well, ordinarily, it's pretty challenging when there's just one or two hostages. But when you have over 200 scattered about an active war zone, often being held underground, it just raises the challenges even higher. And so there are channels of communication open, which trust has been built between the Qataris and the Hamas and the Qataris and Israel. But the devil is in the detail, as I said, in terms of the specific logistics and practical steps needed to actually secure the release of the hostages.
CHURCH: And sources are telling CNN that a possible deal would involve a four to five day pause in the fighting to allow for the initial release of about 50 women and children and presumably Hamas will then receive Palestinian prisoners in return. What is your response to those details as a possible next step in the release of hostages?
WALKER (on the phone): Well, as I said, the devil is in the detail there in terms of if there is going to be any kind of ceasefire, how long is it for, what are the conditions? Yes, we've heard about the potential prisoner exchange, but what about aid or fuel? And that is what these last final sticking points will be about as to the details that both sides can agree on.
CHURCH: Scott Walker, many thanks for joining us on the line there. I Appreciate it.
Well, the U.S. says it welcomes China playing a constructive role in the Middle East as leaders from Arab and Muslim majority countries arrived in Beijing on Monday to discuss de-escalating the conflict. CNN's Paula Hancocks has more.
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PAULA HANCOCKS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: China is stepping up its efforts to play more of a mediator role in the conflict in Gaza. The Foreign Minister Wang Yi welcomed counterparts from a number of different Arab and Muslim majority nations on Monday, ministers from Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Egypt, the Palestinian Authority to name just a few.
Now, this delegation has made Beijing its first stop and it says that it will go on a tour of world capitals to push for an end to the conflict in Gaza. Now China's top diplomat did say on Monday that the world must act urgently to prevent the tragedy from spreading.
WANG YI, CHINESE DIPLOMAT (through translator): We have always firmly defended the legitimate rights and interests of Arab and Muslim countries and have always firmly supported the Palestinian people's efforts to restore their legitimate national rights and interests.
HANCOCKS: Beijing and Washington have been at odds in their approach to the conflict.
[03:49:55]
The U.S., a key Israeli ally, and China has criticized Israel's retaliation for the October 7 attacks by Hamas and in fact has failed to condemn Hamas which has angered Israeli officials. Now, Beijing has been very vocal that the United Nations, also in the Security Council, calling for an immediate ceasefire in this conflict. Also, the Chinese foreign minister saying on Monday that Israel should stop its collective punishment on the people of Gaza.
Paula Hancocks, CNN, Seoul.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CHURCH: Still to come, efforts are underway in India to provide food and medicine to dozens of construction workers trapped underneath a collapsed tunnel. We're back with that in just a moment.
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CHURCH: Welcome back everyone. In India, efforts are underway to rescue 41 construction workers trapped under a collapsed tunnel for more than a week. Officials say a second pipeline has been installed to provide much-needed food and medicine to the workers. They say the new pipe has a six-inch diameter and it will be easier for workers to send large-sized materials acting as a secondary lifeline.
CNN's Vedika Sud has more.
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VEDIKA SUD, CNN REPORTER (voice-over): Two days after the collapse, a rescue officer contacts a man on the other side of the debris through radio. He says, stay calm, we'll pull all of you out very soon.
That promise was made last Tuesday. For over a week now, Indian authorities have been on a frantic mission to extract 41 migrant laborers trapped deep inside this Himalayan mountain, where a tunnel, which is part of the Indian government's ambitious highway project, was under construction.
But falling debris and frequent breakdowns of heavy machinery have slowed down rescue efforts. Racing against time, Indian authorities have now expanded their options to include drilling down from the mountaintop. They've reached out for international help from Norway and even contacting the Thai team that rescued a boy's soccer team stranded for over two weeks in a flooded cave in 2018. It could take days to reach these men.
ARNOLD DIX, PRESIDENT, INTERNATIONAL TUNNELING AND UNDERGROUND SPACE ASSOCIATION (through translator): The challenges? Look, you can see the challenges. That's the challenge. This terrain is absolutely made of laboring. We're in the Himalayas. Building a tunnel through this is extremely difficult. So, rescuing is also extremely difficult. But we're going to get the 41 men out.
SUD (voice-over): The project has received criticism from environmentalists who say heavy construction could further damage this ecologically fragile region.
Despite assurances from the federal and state governments, there's growing anger and anxiety. Family and friends camping near the site are desperate for a breakthrough. Food and oxygen are consistently being pumped to the men through pipe. A physician on site has told CNN that the men have started showing signs of distress.
MRITYUNJAY KUMAR, PROTESTING WORKER (through translator): The work has been sluggish, time is passing constantly, the spirits of those who are stuck inside is breaking. How do we console them?
SUD (voice-over): Trapped for over 8 days, 41 men are hoping to see light and their loved ones soon.
[03:55:04]
While on the other side, fervent prayers and rescue efforts continue on a war footing to bring them home.
Vedika Sud, CNN, New Delhi
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CHURCH: It's that time of year in Paris when the famed Champs-Elysees is decked out in holiday lights. Crowds cheered as the 400 trees lining the thoroughfare lit up for the first night of the season with the illuminated decorations on display until January 7th. The dazzling spectacle is an annual tradition with music, performances and cheer that attracts tourists from around the world.
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UNKNOWN (through translator): I love it. It's really, really beautiful with the lights, the music, the atmosphere. I love it. I really didn't expect that and it's wonderful.
UNKNOWN: Yeah, that's right. Yeah, because I have never been in Paris before and it's like a great opportunity to see a beautiful city.
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CHURCH: The city says the lights are not only festive but environmentally friendly, consuming the same amount of energy as a small family flat.
Also in France, a famous hat that once belonged to Napoleon Bonaparte has sold for a record $2.1 million at auction.
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The sale price was more than double the original estimate. The auction house says Napoleon had about 120 versions of his trademark two- cornered military dress hat, but only about 16 remain.
Well the queen of Latin music, Shakira, will avoid a highly-publicized tax evasion trial in Spain after striking a last-minute deal with authorities on Monday, right as the proceedings were about to begin. The court says she has agreed to pay millions in back taxes plus a fine of almost $8 million. The Spanish government had accused the pop star of failing to pay more than $15 million in income tax between 2012 and 2014. Shakira denied that, claiming she was not living in Spain full-time during those years.
And one of the largest mafia trials in Italian history has come to an end with dramatic results. A court has sentenced 207 mobsters to a total of 2,200 years in prison. They were all affiliated with the notorious Ndrangheta Crime Syndicate. The three-judge panel also acquitted more than 100 people. The trial began in January 2021 and featured testimony from about 900 witnesses.
And I want to thank you for your company. I'm Rosemary Church. Have yourselves a wonderful day. CNN NEWSROOM continues next, with Max Foster.
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