Return to Transcripts main page
CNN Newsroom
UN Vote On Gaza Resolution Expected Friday; Czech Republic Mass Shooting; Whelan Concerned For His Safety In Prison Camp; Top Putin Critic, Jailed In Russia, Missing For Weeks; U.N. Vote on Gaza Resolution Expected on Friday; Bin Laden, Hamas and the Sudanese Money Man; Bird's Eye View of Iceland's Erupting Volcano; Harvard President under Fire Again Following Plagiarism Accusations; Thousands Protest New President's Economic Plan. Aired 1-2a ET
Aired December 22, 2023 - 01:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[01:00:25]
JOHN VAUSE, CNN ANCHOR: Ahead here on CNN Newsroom, with agreement on the wording of a ceasefire resolution, the UN Security Council looks set to vote Friday after a five day delay. At the same time, the death toll in Gaza has passed a grim milestone.
Why, the search for a motive for why a gunman went on a rampage in Prague killing more than a dozen people.
And spectacular images from a volcanic eruption in Iceland, following magma causing dangers fro residents.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Live from Atlanta, this is CNN Newsroom with John Vause.
VAUSE: Well after four delays and a week of intense negotiations, the UN Security Council was set to vote Friday on a resolution calling for more humanitarian aid for Gaza and a pause in fighting. The delays were caused by multiple objections from the US. But after a closed door session Thursday night, the US Ambassador to the UN declared support for the latest draft resolution and denied it was a watered down version of the original.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
LINDA THOMAS-GREENFIELD, US AMBASSADOR TO THE UNITED NATIONS: We have worked hard and diligently over the course of the past week with the Emiratis, with others, with Egypt to come up with a resolution that we can support. And we do have that resolution now. We're ready to vote on it. It's a resolution that will bring humanitarian assistance to those in need.
VAUSE: The precise wording of the draft resolution calls for a suspension of fighting between Israel and Hamas, and an increase in humanitarian aid allowed into Gaza. The World Food Program and other UN agencies report more than one in four households in Gaza currently face extreme hunger. And if the conflict continues, famine will be next. It appears Israel has no plans to scale back its military offensive despite a surging number of civilian casualties, and a CNN analysis has found Israel targeted at least three locations in Gaza this month, where civilians were told by the IDF to seek safety.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VAUSE: Despite a 76 day unprecedented Israeli offensive from the air, sea and ground, which killed at least 20,000 Palestinians and laid waste too much of Gaza, Hamas continues to be a real and present danger to Israel, on Thursday firing a barrage of rockets and missiles at Tel Aviv. Meantime in Gaza, doctors describe unbearable conditions as their constant Israeli bombardment continue. Here's CNN's Will Ripley.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
WILL RIPLEY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Another day in Israel, another round of rocket fire, Hamas targeting Tel Aviv with a barrage of rockets from Gaza. Israeli media reporting some 30 rocket interceptions by the Iron Dome, no injuries or major damage. The Israeli military warning Gaza residents it will retaliate with more airstrikes aimed at areas already reeling from more than two months of brutal bombardment.
US intelligence agencies warned, Hamas' credibility and influence has grown dramatically in the more than two months since the October 7th terror attacks. As global outrage grows over Israel's military response, nearly constant Israeli airstrikes on Gaza plunging hospital hallways into total darkness, putting countless patients in peril. The World Health Organization warns --
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What we found here is a hospital that's really almost completely stopped functioning.
RIPLEY: The WHO says northern Gaza has no functioning hospitals left, only nine of 36 hospitals operating in all of Gaza, all of them in the south. Doctors describing unbearable conditions.
On the ground in Gaza, fierce firefights. Israeli forces going door to door, building to building, snipers opening fire with deadly results. The Israeli military says it killed hundreds of Hamas militants. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warning more bloodshed is coming.
BENJAMIN NETANYAHU, ISRAELI PRIME MINISTER (through translation): The choice I am offering Hamas is simple, surrender or die. They do not have and will not have any other option.
RIPLEY: Those grim words after Hamas rejected Israel's offer for a one week pause in fighting, in exchange for the release of 40 Israeli hostages, prioritizing women, the elderly and patients desperately in need of medical care.
[01:05:03]
A Hamas statement saying they won't agree to any talks about prisoner swaps until after Israel ends its military operation in Gaza, an operation that only seems to be intensifying. The Israeli military taking the fight underground, uncovering what he calls hidden Hamas tunnels, underground bunkers beneath the battle scarred streets.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
RIPLEY: And that massive explosion you just saw there is what Israel calls the demolition of a massive underground tunnel complex underneath Palestine park in Gaza City. They say it housed apartments and living quarters along with offices for senior Hamas leadership. Israel claims that since the ceasefire, they have killed at least 2,000 Hamas militants. The overall death toll in Gaza, as reported by the Palestinian Health Ministry in Ramallah, around 20,000 people. Will Ripley, CNN, Tel Aviv.
VAUSE: Sean Casey is the emergency medical teams coordinator for the World Health Organization. He is with us this hour from Rafah in Gaza. Thank you for joining us. Thanks for taking the time.
SEAN CASEY, EMERGENCY MEDICAL TEAMS COORDINATOR, WHO: Thank you.
VAUSE: Well, we saw you just a moment ago in Will Ripley's report. That was on your first hand assessment of two major hospitals in Gaza. It's one thing to read about the lack of medical supplies, the operations, the amputations been performed without anesthesia, or to hear about widespread extreme hunger or watch dead bodies on TV from Gaza.
But going there firsthand to smell it to hear it, hear from those who are suffering the most. I imagined it brings a very different perspective.
CASEY: Absolutely, I mean, it's very shocking to see young children with their legs amputated, with their whole families go to see patients in Al Ahli Hospital sleeping on churches, when they should be in intensive care unit. It's an unbearable situation. The couple of hospitals that still have some staff on site are really only able to provide basic trauma stabilization, basic emergency care that they're hardly even able to manage the pain and manage the suffering. Let alone provided a proper medical care for patients in northern Gaza.
VAUSE: So the two medical facilities you went to Al-Shifa and Al Ahli where a church is being used on hospital grounds to care for hospice patients, usually face with six months left to live. Here's part of what you saw, here's the report (inaudible).
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CASEY: A hospice doesn't imply a level of care that the five doctors and five nurses are simply unable to provide given the circumstances. At the moment, it's the place where people are waiting to die unless we are able to move them to a safer location where they can receive care.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VAUSE: People just simply waiting to die. So, how dire conditions for these people who barely had months left to live?
CASEY: These are not people who should be waiting today. Al Ahli is a hospital that last week was running, operating theaters that had inpatient wards that had staff on site. Today, it's operating almost like a hospice but a hospice doesn't imply a level of care. These people are getting almost no care because there are five doctors and five nurses left.
Others have been detained, were extremely concerned about their welfare. The hospital has no power and has no water. We delivered medications and medical supplies two days ago, but it's not meant to be a hospice and many of these people don't need to die. If they had access to basic surgical care, if they had access to a clean and safe hospital ward, there would be no need for many of these deaths.
At the moment, the health facilities are not able to operate. Many of the staff have been displaced or detained. The health facilities themselves have been destroyed. And without fuel to power the generators, they have no power so they can't operate any medical equipment. It shouldn't be a hospice but that's what it's become.
VAUSE: Yes. After days of delay, the UN Security Council appears to be moving closer to a vote on a ceasefire resolution after the US dropped his objections. But what does that delay going to a fifth date? What does that actually mean in reality for the people in Gaza, because each day seems like a living nightmare?
CASEY: Everyday here is a nightmare for people across Gaza. Here in Rafah where I am, there are 1 million people displaced every inch of opening ground on the sidewalks and on the streets. It's covered by makeshift shelters. In northern Gaza, people have no access to health services. And everywhere we go people are starving.
Even in the hospital, even when I talked to patients with serious injuries, the first thing they asked me for is water or food, not pain medication. So every day that we wait for a ceasefire, every day that the fighting continues, more people are suffering, more people are dying. And it continues to be very, very difficult to provide assistance and care in these circumstances. So we need that ceasefire and we need it now, it can't be delayed any further.
[01:10:04]
VAUSE: Well, 76 days of Israel's military offensive in Gaza has now just left, what, 9 out of 36 medical facilities, which remain partially functional. And all nine are in southern Gaza, which means northern Gaza has no functioning hospital at this point. When you say partially functional, you sort of touched on this before but what does that actually mean in practical terms? What works, what doesn't?
CASEY: I can tell you about two hospitals just north of here, in Khan Yunis, European Gaza Hospital and Nasser Medical Complex, which are partially functioning. They have maybe 25% or 30% of their normal staff, and they have 200%, 300%, 400% of their patient load, plus thousands of internally displaced persons living on site, Nasser Medical Complex, which is one of the most important hospitals here in southern Gaza, was struck by shelling, and that a 12-year-old girl was killed in her hospital bed at that hospital after having both of her legs amputated, just weeks before.
So they're partially functioning but because they're still providing services, they have some staff on site. In both cases, they're still able to perform surgery. But there's people everywhere. The halls, the stairways are completely filled with patients with displaced persons. And in the emergency departments, there's hundreds of people coming in every day. So they're partially functional, but they're really stretched far beyond capacity, and many people are not able to access appropriate care in these hospitals despite their functionality.
VAUSE: Sean, thank you for being with us. Thank you for everything you do. It's probably very difficult grim work right now, but thanks for being with us.
CASEY: Thanks, John.
VAUSE: Well, the Czech Republic investigators are now still searching for a motive why. Why did the gunman carry out the deadliest mass shooting there in decades. Police say a gunman went on a shooting spree at a university in Prague, Thursday. At least 14 people were killed, 25 others were wounded. Investigators believe he later took his own life but that is yet to be confirmed.
Saturday will be a nationwide day of mourning as this nation comes to grips with this tragedy.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
PETR FIALA, CZECH PRIME MINISTER (through translation): We all shocked by the horrendous act. And it's hard to find the words to express condemnation on the one hand, and on the other the pain and sorrow that our entire society is feeling in these days before Christmas.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VAUSE: Well, police had received a tip off about the shooter. They tried to stop him before the rampage. They closed down one building but that wasn't enough to save the 14 people who were killed. More details now from CNN's Melissa Bell.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MELISSA BELL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Terror on the streets of Prague, students risking their lives to escape a government's bullets that killed more than a dozen on Thursday afternoon. More than 20 were injured, 10 severely in the shooting at Prague's Charles University before the gunman, an enrolled philosophy student, was eliminated, police said.
It's an attack that has rocked the Czech Republic.
FIALA (through translation): There's absolutely no explanation, no justification for this. Like many of you, I'm feeling a deep sorrow and disgust over this incomprehensible and brutal violence. BELL: As night fell on Prague, details emerged about the 24-year-old suspect. Before the deadly shooting in the capitol, police said the shooter left his home village where his father was found dead. Intent on further bloodshed, he made his way to the Czech capital. Tipped off, police forces rush to evacuate the building where the shooter was due to attend a lecture but he struck elsewhere, forcing students to barricade themselves inside classrooms later evacuated on mass.
Their preparation for end of year exams brutally shattered by the country's deadliest shooting in decades. No indication of a link to international terrorism, the Czech Interior Minister confirmed but tonight a city in shock on a continent where mass shootings are few and far between. Melissa Bell, CNN.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VAUSE: Juliette Kayyem is a CNN senior national security analyst and former assistant secretary of the Department of Homeland Security. Professor Kayyem, good to see you.
JULIETTE KAYYEM, CNN SENIOR NATIONAL SECURITY ANALYST: Thanks for having me.
VAUSE: OK. So right now, we don't know the name of the shooter, we don't know a motive, but we do know this could have been worse. Here's the police chief for the Czech Republic.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MARTIN VONDRASEK, POLICE CHIEF(through translation): The information that the shooter is a student of the faculty and that he was supposed to attend a class today, we found that out ourselves. His class was supposed to start at 2:00 PM but in a different building away from the shooting scene.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
[01:15:04]
VAUSE: There was a tip off, which was, you know, fortunate, the fact that actually made it to the right person, that actually was accurate and timely, and then acted on was also fortunate as well.
KAYYEM: Yes.
VAUSE: But what could the law enforcement done more with the information that they received apart from just closing the one building?
KAYYEM: I mean, they could have obviously, we know that now, that whatever notification they had given to the university or -- and especially in particular to the students, was either didn't exist or was inadequate. Part of it may be that the tip that they got was related to someone who might be suicidal, rather than a mass murderer. So they may have been responding to -- trying to keep that person or trying to catch that person before they got to the university or college. They closed down one building and that person is intent on a mass murder. There's a lot to learn here.
VAUSE: I've lost count of the number of times you and I have spoken about mass shootings in the United States. Sees this country is now almost numb to gun violence. But that's not the case in Europe. Listen to what a student at the university said to CNN. Here he is.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JAKOB WEIZMAN, CHARLES UNIVERSITY STUDENT: I live in the US for a very long time. And I would never -- I would, you know, if it were happening anywhere, it would have happened in the US. But now it's spreading like a disease, you know, to Europe as well like this copycat mentality.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VAUSE: I mean, I just wonder if that is actually kind of a legitimate concern that, you know, one mass shooting leads to another mass shooting, leads to more and then it sort of takes hold.
KAYYEM: That's exactly right. I mean, that's the sort of culture of social media that these people get glorified. The social media has no border, so people in other countries will begin to follow them or copycat them, or see that kind of notoriety that is raised. We don't know his exact motive, the fact he killed his father, and then went to an institution that he had an affiliation with, you know, may suggest that he, you know, this was quite personal, obviously, that there were issues related to the family and or the school. We'll learn more about that.
But part of the investigation is also going to be what were his social media networks, because those -- whether they're based in the United States, or they're just reflecting on things in the United States, is quite relevant in terms of radicalization, in terms of violence. We just simply don't know what that triggering motive was in this instance. We will definitely learn more over the next couple of days.
VAUSE: And when it comes to gun laws, this sort of a quirk here too, which sort of moves the Czech Republic closer to the US and Europe, because gun ownership in the US is a constitutional right. While in Europe and the Czech Republic owning a gun is allowed and controlled by government legislation.
The Czech Republic has relatively liberal gun laws compared to the rest of the European Union. To obtain a gun legally, a person needs an official firearm license, which requires a medical examination, or weapon proficiency exam, and no previous criminal record. It's a critical thing. Those are liberal gun laws.
KAYYEM: Yes.
VAUSE: There was also, though, a constitutional amendment, made to the Czech Republic's charter of fundamental rights back in 2021, which legally guarantees the right to defend one's own life, or the life of another person with a weapon. So we get into that right to bear arms sort of thing. And it turns out the shooter in Prague legally own multiple firearms.
And over the years, the Czech Republic, I guess, has seen more gun violence and the rest of Europe. So there seems to be a correlation there in terms of gun laws, and the US, and where the Czech Republic sort of intercepts of the Venn diagram.
VAUSE: That exactly right. Look, I mean, look, these rules, whether it's our constitutional amendment or in the Czech Republic, they often say they create a floor, what's sort of expected conduct, right? And in these instance, the floor is rather high that people -- there's an expectation that people would allow -- would be allowed to own a gun, and then you put additional requirements on them. That's what the Czech Republic has done.
They're saying, yes, you can have a gun. We're going to put these restrictions on them. And these are real restrictions. I mean, the medical examination, training, no criminal record whatsoever. These are insignificant restrictions. But I think the -- what the Czech Republic is going to have to look to is, are those restrictions enough? The quantity of guns in terms of ownership, you know, do you want people owning, you know, 8, 9 or 10 guns, depending on how many this gunman had.
And then, you know, a rethinking about how permissive does the society that does not experience a lot of mass murderers but compared to its neighbors is more violent, or has the potential to be more violent, I should be careful here, does it want to reflect some of the more stringent laws throughout the European Union. And that is something that I have no doubt will be debated in the Czech Republic.
[01:20:03]
VAUSE: Juliette, good to see you. Thanks for being with us. Happy holidays.
KAYYEM: Thank you
VAUSE: Still ahead here on CNN, former US Marine and current inmate in a Russian gulag, Paul Whelan, has told CNN he's been targeted inside that prison. And now he fears for his safety. Also activity around at a rocking volcano in Iceland appears to be slowing, but officials continue to warn the area remains dangerous. Very latest from the eruption zone in a moment.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
VAUSE: Welcome back, French President Emmanuel Macron has reminded lawmakers in both the US and the EU, what's at stake as they block military aid for Ukraine.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
EMMANUEL MACRON, FRENCH PRESIDENT: Today, in this country that has been under Russian aggression since the beginning of 2020 and the freezing winter, Russian aggression continues. You who know what the balance of power is are well aware of what we cannot allow to happen and how we cannot allow Russia to win, what tomorrow hold for us Europeans.
So we'll continue to help the Ukrainians what we do, even if it cost us is decisive for our country's security for our role in Europe and for Europe sovereignty.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VAUSE: Meantime, an apartment building in the Ukrainian capital was hit by Russian drone Friday morning. Kyiv's mayor says two people were injured in the attack.
Now on Paul Whelan, the former US Marine wrongfully detained in Russia for the past five years. In a court with CNN Wednesday, he said he now fears his safety after being assaulted by another inmate in a Russian prison camp last month. We learned is serving a 16-year long sentence after he was accused of being a spy, which he denies. CNN's Brian Todd has details.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: American Paul Whelan wrongfully detained in Russia for five years now faces new dangers in a Russian prison camp. Whelan tell CNN he's being targeted by an official at the remote camp in the Mordovia region where he's being held. Whelan says the official is retaliating against him because the official was admonished following an assault on Whelan by another inmate on November 28.
We spoke to Whelan's sister about his latest account.
ELIZABETH WHELAN, PAUL WHELAN'S SISTER: I am concerned and horrified but not surprised to hear of these latest issues he's having. Mordovia is very isolated. I'm sure that the prison guards are used to being able to get away with an awful lot without anybody paying any attention to them whatsoever.
TODD: According to Whelan, the prison official who he did not name called on prisoners to instigate fights with Whelan so that Whelan himself would be disciplined. He says prisoners on the officials behalf asked him for $1,100 in protection money, the exact amount that's in Whelan's prison account. "Prisoners would not have known that unless they had been told."
Then he said, the prison official, "having no luck with obtaining the money, he ordered me to move to a different barrack, which would expose me to criminal behavior as well as the potential of assault."
[01:25:10]
The White House Calls Whelan's latest accounts troubling and says it will address this with Russian officials.
JOHN KIRBY, COORDINATOR FOR STRATEGIC COMMUNICATION, NSC: We did in recent days put forward a serious proposal that Russians rebuffed it regardless of what Mr. Putin says. And we're working hard to see what we can do to get another proposal that might be more successful to get both him and Evan now.
TODD: John Kirby is referring to Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich, who's also wrongfully detained in Russia. Paul Whelan gave CNN even more chilling details of the dangers he now faces from other inmates. "Most people carry knives here, and many use stimulants which can make them wild and violent."
SARAH MENDELSON, FORMER US HUMAN RIGHTS OFFICIAL AT UN: The conditions like all Russian prisons are very bad, right? So the prison guards are controlling access to the bathroom, food, light, day, your mobility. And, you know, this fact of corruption is particularly intense.
TODD: I asked Whelan's sister if he carries any kind of a weapon to protect himself.
E. WHELAN: Paul has gone out of his way to make sure that there's nothing that can be done or said about him that would cause him to incur additional charges because that's what the Russians will do. They will add charges onto your sentence.
TODD: Whelan also told CNN he feels threatened because he's an American, and that the prisoners in his camp "don't look too kindly upon the US support of Israel in Gaza."
Paul Whelan told CNN that when he spoke to prison officials about his security concerns, they told him he could go to solitary confinement 24 hours a day. CNN has reached out to the prison for comment on all of this, we have not heard back. Brian Todd, CNN, Washington.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VAUSE: Well, the two weeks out and still no word on the whereabouts of Alexei Navalny, the outspoken critic of Russian President Vladimir Putin. Navalny's daughter is speaking out about his disappearance. Dasha Navalnaya told CNN's Erin Burnett that she has not heard anything about where her father might be.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DASHA NAVALNAYA, ALEXEI NAVALNY'S DAUGHTER: Nothing. We haven't heard any new information for the past 16 days, which is very concerning. And we've been -- we started a global campaign, "Where is Navalny." There's multiple cities around the world, in Russia, and in New York as well. Today I attended a rally in front of the Russian embassy with a group of people who were are asking the same question, where's Alexei Navalny?
We don't know where he is. Our team, the Anti-Corruption Foundation team has appealed to the United Nations Human Rights Court. And they granted our appeal to ask the Russian government where he is. Officially, governments around the world has asked where he is, and the Russian government is refusing to say Putin is just hiding my father from us.
ERIN BURNETT, CNN ANCHOR: I mean, what I find incredible, Dasha, is the Kremlin just dismisses all of this. So the Putin spokesman, Dmitry Peskov, he told reporters, we have neither the opportunity nor the right or the desire to track the fate of prisoners who are serving sentences by court decision. So start acting like your father, some unknown name, not the lead opposition figure in Russia, so they aren't involved with. I mean, can you even believe a statement like that?
NAVALNAYA: It's ridiculous. And they are certainly just wasting time. When my father was poisoned with Novichok two years ago, their main objective was to waste time, was to not let people into his hospital room. And it's the same thing that they're doing right now. And what they're trying to do is they want us to get scared, they want us to stop working. They want the Anti-Corruption Foundation to fall apart without one of his main leaders, my father.
And that's not going to happen. We're going to continue doing our work. We're going to continue releasing investigations.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VAUSE: Alexei Navalny was serving 11 and a half years in prison on fraud charges when he was sentenced to 19 years in August for other charges, including creating an extremist community and financing extremist activity. Navalny denies all those charges.
We'll take a short break, when we come back after a fourth delay at the UN for a resolution to pause fighting in Gaza, Friday might just be the day when a vote actually happens. Also, a financier with links to Hamas and Osama bin Laden is sanctioned by the US in the wake of the October 7th attack. So why is he still doing business across Europe. Investigation in a moment.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[01:32:04]
JOHN VAUSE, CNN ANCHOR: Welcome back. I'm John Vause. You're watching CNN NEWSROOM.
After four days of delay this week, the U.N. Security Council appears likely to vote on a draft resolution on Friday calling for a suspension of fighting between Israel and Hamas, as well as an increase in humanitarian assistance to Gaza.
The U.S. ambassador to the U.N. says if the resolution, as worded, is put forward, the Biden administration will support it.
Joining us now from Washington is Aaron David Miller, former Middle East negotiator at the U.S. State Department for about three decades. Good to see you. Thank you for being with us.
AARON DAVID MILLER, FORMER STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: Thank you for having me, John.
VAUSE: Ok. One of the reasons why the Security Council is taking so long to vote on this ceasefire resolution is a disagreement over the inspection process for humanitarian aid entering Gaza. A spokesman for the U.S. delegation to the U.N. told CNN there are still serious and widespread concerns that this resolution, as drafted, could actually slow down delivery of humanitarian aid "by directing the U.N. to create an unworkable monitoring mechanism. We must ensure any resolution helps and doesn't hurt the situation on the ground."
Ok, so that was the reason on Thursday for the delay and, yes, inspections may be a legitimate concern, but that seems to be almost tangential in the bigger picture.
So on the day before that, you know, the reason for a delay was U.S. concerns about the wording of the resolution that called for a cessation of hostilities.
So you know, there is a delay after delay after delay, and all the time, 266 people are being killed on average every day in Gaza and half of the Gaza population is actually starving, according to the WHO. So maybe at this point there is a need for urgency here, which is lacking at the U.N. Security Council.
MILLER: Under normal circumstances, John, the Middle East negotiations have two speeds, slow and slower. This is obviously a much more difficult proposition.
I think the American position, if you read between the lines, I suspect they don't think any action in New York is going to remedy the situation on the ground.
Their view is clear. And that is the only thing that is going to work overtime is working with and, at certain moments, pressing the Israelis hard. There would have been no humanitarian assistance into Gaza, not a scintilla, because Benjamin Netanyahu and the current leaders in Israel would deny any aid to Gaza. Only as a consequence of the Biden administration's effort do you have any aid coming in.
And that's the same with hostages. There would have been no hostages released without the intervention of the president.
So here you have a situation in which the Israelis, clearly, play a critical role in determining what goes in. And I think the administration understands that and is trying to figure out a way to meet their sensibilities, as well as facilitate and expedite aid.
[01:34:50]
MILLER: Clearly Gaza needs much more than even a surge of aid could provide at this moment.
VAUSE: All this sort of back and forth continues at the U.S. Security Council, Jordan's foreign minister warned that a ceasefire vote was crucial to avoid what he called dangerous double standards.
You know, to be fair, you know, the five permanent members of the U.N. Security Council they use their veto power to protect their allies like China does for North Korea. But, what we are seeing play out over the last couple of days, is this some kind of unprecedented move by the U.S. in protecting Israel or is this just simply business as usual? MILLER: I think it is a little bit of both. The U.S. foreign policy is
filled with hypocrisy, contradictions, and anomalies. It's certainly true with behaviors of the five permanent members of the Security Council.
Look, I think the reality is that a ceasefire to the administration, certainly to the Israelis, is viewed as a defeat. A ceasefire in which Hamas would release hostages? All the hostages -- not a bad idea. A ceasefire in which the Brits and Germans, the other day, argued for demilitarization. Hamas lays down its weapons. That is a quid pro quo.
But a ceasefire just to have a ceasefire leaving Hamas in place? That won't fly.
VAUSE: Well, if Israel had transitioned to a more targeted military operation, then I guess the need for a ceasefire may not be as urgent. With that in mind, here is National Security Council spokesman John Kirby. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOHN KIRBY, SPOKESPERSON, NATIONAL SECURITY COUNCIL: The Israelis say they too, recognize the need to transition to a different phase of fighting. I mean in any military campaign, Trevor, you're going to -- you're going to transition to a different set of objectives and you're going to achieve those different sets of objectives through different tactics and operations. That is just a standard for the conduct of military operations.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VAUSE: And so from a military point of view that makes a lot of sense.
And here is the Israeli prime minister talking about the current stage of operations in Gaza.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BENJAMIN NETANYAHU, ISRAELI PRIME MINISTER (through translator): We are fighting until victory. We will not stop the war until we achieve all its goals -- destroying Hamas and releasing all our hostages.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VAUSE: They seem to be talking over each other in many ways, you know. The Israeli prime minister gave every indication that this military offensive in Gaza is not about to scale back at any time soon.
MILLER: I think, come January, and the administration has been reluctant to put out any public deadlines, come January, by the end of January if the operational tempo of the Israelis doesn't change from a division ground campaign to a division sized foray in an operationally intelligence-driven set of tactics, then I think the administration is going to face the decision.
And the options that they have are not great. One is slow walking and denying Israel military assistance. The second is voting or abstaining on a U.N. Security Council resolution or voting for it. And the third would be to push the Israelis towards a ceasefire.
I think, frankly, none of those things are going to happen. I suspect, in January, you will see a fundamental change in the operational tempo of the Israelis, certainly in southern Gaza, and it should create time and space for reliable humanitarian corridors and surging of much needed assistance.
If it doesn't, the administration will have to face its proverbial moment of truth with respect to what to do about a recalcitrant (ph) Israeli government.
VAUSE: Aaron, yes, that is -- that's pretty bleak. But thanks for being with us, we appreciate the insight, appreciate your views. Thank you.
MILLER: All right. John, take care.
VAUSE: In the days after the October 7th attack, the U.S. Treasury sanctioned a Sudanese money man linked to Hamas as well as Osama bin Laden. But despite that, it seems that Abdelbasit Hamza -- is still doing business in Europe. He denies the allegations, though.
CNN's chief international investigative correspondent Nima Elbagir has more.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
NIMA ELBAGIR, CNN CHIEF INTERNATIONAL INVESTIGATIVE CORRESPONDENT: A Hamas-linked financier sentenced for ten years on corruption charges in Sudan still maintains a network of business interests in Europe, despite being under U.S. sanctions.
Abdelbasit Hamza, a Sudanese businessman, linked by the U.S. to Osama bin Laden was arrested in 2019. In Sudan, after the downfall of dictator Omar al-Bashir and subsequently jailed by Sudanese authorities for handling Hamas's money among other charges.
But Hamza was only sanctioned by the U.S. after the militant group's October 7th assault on Israel. We worked in conjunction with Israeli investigative platform Shomrim and the International Consortium for Investigative Journalism, the ICIJ. Using documents provided to CNN from the Cyprus Confidential Leak, a trove of more than 3.6 million documents analyzed by ICIJ and 68 media partners.
The documents exposed much of Hamas's portfolio of businesses in Europe, part of a network of global assets previously estimated by Sudanese anti-corruption officials as worth over two billion dollars.
[01:39:56]
ELBAGIR: The paper trail makes clear, Hamza's business dealings in Europe have going on for some time, spanning two decades. They include a Cypriot firm, an Egyptian gold business, a Spanish real estate firm, and a Sudan-based company sanctioned by the U.S. less than a week after October 7th. Hamza denies any involvement in Hamas's financing and in a written
response, also denied any relationship to Osama bin Laden, calling himself a, quote, "political prisoner" who was been released by Sudanese authorities, quote, "completely innocent" in June 2021.
Israel's government denied to CNN that his actions in recent years had strengthened Hamas. Asked whether the funding provided by Hamza was critical to the October 7th attack, Netanyahu's foreign policy adviser tells CNN, "As we have 0reiterated, this question and many more will be examined after the war. The prime minister's war cabinet directed the IDF to destroy Hamas and free the hostages. Israel is fully focused on accomplishing those missions."
Hamza's European business partner was contacted for comment on the U.S. sanctions and denied that Hamza had any ties to Hamas. In November, the United Kingdom also sanctioned Hamza, but he has not yet been sanctioned by the European union.
But this is not the first time Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu has faced allegations that he underestimated Hamas with deadly consequences. CNN and Shomrim have previously reported how Netanyahu allowed Hamas to receive millions of dollars of cash in suitcases provided by Qatar for humanitarian reasons.
The difficulty in monitoring such large sums of cash triggered concerns within Netanyahu's own cabinet among other officials.
NAFTALI BENNETT, FORMER ISRAELI PRIME MINISTER: I stopped the cash suitcases because I believe that a horrendous mistake allowed Hamas to have all of this suitcases full of cash that goes directly to re-arm themselves against Israelis. Why would we feed them cash to kill us?
ELBAGAR: Hamas finance networks remain a particularly contentious issue for Israel. The IDF said on Tuesday it had killed a Palestinian man accused of being a prominent Hamas financier as part of an operation to, quote, "dismantle" Hamas' funding lifeline.
These new revelations give fuel to critics who say that Israel and the U.S. underestimated the threat posed by Hamas and did not do enough to curb its illicit global network of business interests.
The U.S. State Department did not respond to CNN's request for comment.
Nima Elbagir, CNN -- London.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VAUSE: A bird's-eye view of Iceland's erupting volcano. When we come back take a ride with CNN and Iceland's Coast Guard flying directing into the eruption zone. back in a moment.
[01:43:10]
(COMMERCIAL BREAK) VAUSE: While volcanic eruptions in southern Iceland appear to be slowing, authorities say the area remains dangerous and it's too soon to declare this eruption is over.
More now from CNN's Fred Pleitgen reporting in from a Coast Guard helicopter.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Iceland's Coast Guard flying into the eruptions zone in the arctic night.
These flights are extremely important for the Icelandic Coast Guard. On the one hand, they have to survey the area, but they also have to practice in case they need to do mass evacuations at night.
Iceland was prepared for the massive eruption that started early this week, a more than two-mile-long fissure spewing magma hundreds of feet into the air.
But while residents have been evacuated, authorities are still working in the area.
JENS POR SIGUROARSON, COMMANDER, ICELANDIC COAST GUARD: So, this is highly important for us to do this during the night. And it is a lot of hazards involved.
PLEITGEN: The crew even spots a person walking close to the lava and say they notified police to check it out.
The eruption has weakened considerably, but magma is still bubbling below us. The crew strap me in for a closer look.
This is an amazing thing to be witnessing from up here. You can see just how active the volcanic zone still is. You can see the lava. You can smell the magma. You can feel the power that our planet is unleashing.
The chopper drops off right by the lava field to train evacuations.
This is extremely challenging, flying for these aviators. Right now, they are practicing hoist operations in case they have to medically evacuate a casualty from this area in the dark.
As furious as the eruption was initially, it also seems to be subsiding fast.
Seismologist Kristin Jonsdottir tells me.
KRISTIN JONSDOTTIR, ICELANDIC METEOROLOGICAL OFFICE: It was quite active in the beginning, four kilometers long fissure that opened. Very high rates of magma flow. So, it was a bit of a surprise that it has all culminated.
PLEITGEN: Those evacuated cannot return home yet, as the magma tunnel here remains active and authorities say further eruptions are still possible.
Fred Pleitgen, CNN -- Grindavik, Iceland.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VAUSE: SpaceX Dragon Cargo spacecraft is heading back to earth after undocking from the International Space Station just a few hours ago. The resupply mission was launched last month and included supplies and hardware to the ISS. The Dragon was originally scheduled to return last week, but bad weather in the southern United States caused delays. Splash down expected now on Friday, off the coast of Florida.
Still to come, a new controversy surrounding Harvard University president Claudine Gay. Why some of her academic writing are now under scrutiny.
[01:48:18]
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
VAUSE: Well, the biggest star of "Fast and Furious" franchise is being accused of sexual battery. Vin Diesel's former assistant filed a lawsuit Thursday accusing him, his sister Samantha Vincent and his company One Race Production for sexual battery, creating a hostile work environment, negligent vision and wrongful termination.
The civil suit claims back in 2010, Diesel forced himself on her in a hotel suite and performed a sex act in front of her. Vin Diesel has not responded to the allegations.
The president of Harvard University, Claudine Gay, is now under congressional investigation over allegations of plagiarism. Just weeks ago Gay, along with two other university presidents, were harshly criticized for their testimony before a U.S. House committee over anti-Semitism on college campuses.
Details now from CNN's Danny Freeman.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DANNY FREEMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Harvard University's president, Claudine Gay, back in the hot seat.
CLAUDINE GAY, HARVARD UNIVERSITY PRESIDENT: Thank you, Congresswoman.
FREEMAN: After the elite school said it found two more instances of inadequate citation in the embattled president's writings.
Now, a U.S. House committee already investigating anti-Semitism at Harvard says it will also look at the plagiarism allegations.
In a new letter to Harvard's highest governing body, the committee's chair cites Harvard's honor code that states, members of the college community must commit themselves to producing academic work of integrity. And asks, does Harvard hold its faculty and academic leadership to the same standards? Last week, Gay submitted corrections to a pair of papers she wrote as a professional academic in 2001 and 2017.
But a CNN analysis of her writings documented other examples of plagiarism from the 90s when Gay was studying for her PhD at Harvard. Gay's 1997 dissertation lifted one paragraph almost verbatim from another source without citation.
Jonathan Bailey is a plagiarism expert.
What troubled you about the specific dissertation allegations more than others?
JONATHAN BAILEY, PLAGIARISM EXPERT & COPYRIGHT CONSULTANT: That paragraph showed a length of text that clearly could not have been produced any other way than through copying, was not quoted, and was not properly cited in the paper. So that's what made me worry about that one.
FREEMAN: A Harvard spokesperson told CNN in a statement Thursday the university reviewed more of her writings and Gay plans to update her 1997 work to correct these additional instances. Harvard said the inadequate citations were regrettable, but were not research misconduct.
In a previous statement about the earlier allegations, Gay defended her work, saying, "I stand by the integrity of my scholarship. Throughout my career, I have worked to ensure my scholarship adheres to the highest academic standards." The latest development coming a week after Harvard's top governing board unanimously stood behind Gay, following intense calls for her to resign over her congressional testimony on anti-Semitism on college campuses.
REP. ELISE STEFANIK (R), NEW YORK: So, the answer is yes, that calling for the genocide of Jews violates Harvard Code of Conduct, correct?
GAY: Again, it depends on the context.
FREEMAN: The allegations against Gay, who is the first black woman to serve as president of Harvard, have largely originated from conservative activists. But the question persists, is the school holding its president to the same standard as its students?
BAILEY: Plagiarism really exists on a spectrum between completely original writing and completely copied and pasted and trying to pass off someone else's work.
And right now, the best we have on Claudine Gay is sitting somewhere in the middle between the two.
FREEMAN: Now despite the increase in scrutiny over these plagiarism accusations, Harvard for its part is still publicly standing by its president but that House committee, they're moving along. They've requested troves of documents from the university so while these new corrections are coming, this story likely not over yet.
Danny Freeman, CNN -- Cambridge, Massachusetts.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VAUSE: In Argentina, thousands have protested tough new economy reforms proposed by the newly elected president, Javier Milei.
Milei signed a decree promising to dismantle hundreds of government regulations which he says are anti-business.
David Shortell has our report.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DAVID SHORTELL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: And thousands taking to the street in Buenos Aires in protest of this economic reform plan that was announced by Milei on Wednesday evening. He calls it an economic plan to rebuild the country after decades of poor policy and poverty.
The main idea of this plan is to essentially take the government out of economy. Argentina has, of course, had a very poor economy in recent years. It's been tending (ph) with one of the highest rates of inflation in the world.
Let me walk you through a few of these policies that he outlined in this Wednesday emergency session.
[01:54:48]
SHORTELL: He says he's going to privatize the country's state-run companies, which include a national airline and some energy groups. He's also planning to eliminate export limits and deregulate around the country's rental housing market.
And importantly he said that he'll rollback some employee benefits. Now that's certain to be a flash point in Argentina where poverty rates are very high and there are some powerful unions.
But none of this should come as a surprise. Javier Milei is a libertarian economist himself. He ran for president at campaign rallies literally holding a chain saw in his hand in a not-so-subtle reference to what he plans to do to government spending in office.
And then just a few days ago in his inaugural speech, he outlined his vision, calling it basically, shock therapy for the country. He said, it's going to hurt but it will work in the long run.
Take a listen to Milei on the radio, Thursday morning explaining a bit more of his rationale around these new policies.
JAVIER MILEI, ARGENTINA PRESIDENT (through translator): People benefit from lower inflation. They will benefit with the economy recovering. They will find a better job, a better quality of life.
What's the alternative? I do nothing and we go into hyperinflation? And profit will not drop 10 percent, 20 percent, but we'll drop 90 percent. SHORTELL: And markets largely reacting positively in Argentina,
following the news of this announcement, this new economic plan. Of course, markets measure one thing. The mood on the street is quite different.
Thousands in the street protesting in Buenos Aires, banging on pots and pans in typical Argentinian fashion. Saying that they want these austerity measures rolled. More protests are planned in the coming days.
David Shortell, CNN -- Mexico City.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VAUSE: Finally, an incredible discovery in Rome. An ancient banquet hall fit for aristocracy. Archaeologists say the dining room is about 2,300 years old with a centerpiece made of shells, coral, and other material.
Archaeologists have been working at the site for five years, and they say the discovery is unmatched because it's well preserved. And the mosaic depicts celebrations of naval and land battles.
Thank you for watching. I'm John Vause.
Stay with us. CNN NEWSROOM continues with Kim Brunhuber after a very short break.
See you next week.
[01:57:00]
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
