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Ecuador Declares "Internal Armed Conflict" As Violence Escalates; Jordan King To Host Sisi, Abbas For Gaza Talks; Federal Judges Appear Skeptical Of Trump's Immunity Claim; Earth Dangerously Close To Warming Limit Set by Paris Agreement; Doctor Describes Dire Situation in Gaza; FAA Grounds Certain Boeing 737 Max 9 Planes; Investigators Focusing on Bolts in Boeing 737 Max 9 Aircraft; Doctors: U.S. Defense Chief Treated for Prostate Cancer; Gabriel Attal Becomes New French Prime Minister; Tech Firms Unveil Newst Innovations at Annual Conference. Aired 1-2a ET
Aired January 10, 2024 - 01:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
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JOHN VAUSE, CNN ANCHOR: Coming up on CNN Newsroom, Ecuador plunged into chaos, security services unable to quell an explosion of deadly gang violence.
America's most senior diplomat pushes Israel on a two-state solution with the Palestinians, a plan despised by the Netanyahu government. And if his lawyers have their way, a President Donald Trump would be legally allowed to shoot someone on Fifth Avenue.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Live from Atlanta. This is CNN Newsroom with John Vause.
VAUSE: Ecuador's president has declared a state of internal armed conflict and authorize the military to neutralize drug gangs beyond a wave of bloodshed and violence, which has left the nation in shock. These eight people were killed Tuesday two others wounded in Ecuador's biggest city Guayaquil and unsaved on television show your live broadcast around 1:00 p.m. local time, viewers watched as more than a dozen armed men wearing hoods stormed a studio gunfire could be heard ringing out and staff were forced onto the floor.
And police intervened arresting all 13 gunmen. They say all hostages and stuff at the network are alive. Explosive material as well as guns and grenades were recovered from the scene with one of the TV anchors describing the attack as extremely violent.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JORGE RENDON, TC TELEVISION ANCHOR (through translator): We heard something we thought it was a fight that was going on outside the studio. But that wasn't the case. The producer told us be careful. They are getting in. They are robbing us. The studio doors are very thick. They wanted to enter the studio so that we could say what they wanted. I guess their message.
Then we settled in a safe place. But when they entered they asked for us to go live. They insulted us but we managed to get in safe place.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VAUSE: The head of the joint commander of the armed forces says the future of the country is at stake. On Monday, the president declared a 60-day nationwide emergency after a high profile gang leader escaped from a prison sparking a wave of killings, kidnappings as well as prison uprising.
The spiraling violence is the biggest test yet to face the newly elected young president who won last year's runoff vote with promises to tackle soaring crime. Ecuador's neighbor Peru announced Tuesday it will declare an emergency along its entire northern border region amid the unrest. More now on the violence in Ecuador from CNN's Patrick Oppmann.
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PATRICK OPPMANN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: John, even for Ecuadorians numb from out of control gang violence the storming of a TV station by armed assailants was shocking in comes as their government declares all-out war on the gangs.
OPPMANN (voice-over): Its cameras broadcast live armed gunmen take employees of a TV station in Guayaquil, Ecuador hostage. The journalists are threatened and forced to the floor at gunpoint while viewers watch. The latest scenes of out of control gang violence plaguing the South American nation. Ecuadorian say they are in shock.
LUIS ARTURO BELTRAN, WAITER (through translator): All citizens are afraid. Today there were attacks in Quito, in Cuenca, Quevedo, everywhere.
OPPMANN (voice-over): On Monday, Ecuador's President Daniel Noboa declared a state of emergency a day after the government said notorious gang leader Adolfo Macias, known as Fito escaped from prison Guayaquil before his transfer to a maximum security facility.
DANIEL NOBOA, ECUADORIAN PRESIDENT (through translator): The time is over for when those convicted of drug trafficking and murder tell the government what to do.
OPPMANN (voice-over): The government implemented a curfew and mobilized a manhunt of 3,000 police officers and members of the armed forces to search for the escaped gang leader. The gang struck back on Tuesday, raiding the TV station, taking police and prison guards hostage, setting off bombs and attacking the university.
Ecuador had long been spared the epidemic of violence carried out by drug cartels throughout much of the region. But as a country has increasingly become a key transshipment point for illegal drugs heading to Europe and the U.S., local gangs partnered with cartels have battled each other and the government for control. In 2023, presidential candidate Fernando Villavicencio was
assassinated after naming individuals he said we're involved in the drug trade, and then the six alleged hitmen arrested for his killing were apparently murdered in prison as well.
Villavicencio's running mate on Tuesday called on the country to unite to defeat the gangs.
[01:05:05]
ANDREA GONZALEZ, ECUADORIAN POLITICIAN (through translator): This is the moment that Ecuador stands and leaves behind political terrorism.
OPPMANN (voice-over): The country's president Noboa on Tuesday declared several of the gangs terrorist organizations in order to the armed forces to quote neutralize the violence. Police of the TV station said they had arrested 13 alleged gunmen and rescue the hostages.
As the government declares war though there is no sign the gangs are backing down.
OPPMANN: And it still remains a mystery how the notorious gang leader known as Fito apparently walked out of prison whether he had any help on the inside and despite a country wide manhunt, where he is now, John.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VAUSE: Our thanks to Patrick Oppmann for that report. Now in the Middle East, urgent shuttle diplomacy continues for America's most senior diplomat trying to prevent the war in Gaza from escalating and after talks Tuesday, Tel Aviv, Secretary of State Antony Blinken announced Israel has agreed to allow a U.N. assessment of Northern Gaza to determine when hundreds of thousands of displaced Palestinians are allowed to return home.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ANTHONY BLINKEN, U.S. SECRETAYR OF STATE: Palestinian civilians must be able to return home as soon as conditions allow. They must not be pressed to leave Gaza. As I told the Prime Minister, the United States unequivocally rejects any proposals advocating for the resettlement of Palestinians outside of Gaza. And the Prime Minister reaffirmed to me today that this is not the policy of Israel's government.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VAUSE: During meetings with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his war cabinet, Blinken also stressed the need to avoid further harm to civilians in Gaza, as well as protecting civilian infrastructure. Secretary Blinken also pushed the Israeli government towards a two-state solution, saying Israel's long term security as well as normalization of ties with Arab states was dependent on the creation of a lasting viable to help Palestinian state. Blinken is also expected to push the Palestinian Authority for reforms
and better governance when he meets with the President Mahmoud Abbas in the West Bank in the coming hours.
Also, Wednesday, Jordan's king will host a regional summit on efforts to push for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza. For more details here's CNN's Nic Robertson reporting in from Tel Aviv.
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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's such a pleasure to have you in Israel.
NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR (voice-over): Meetings.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: First of all, you're welcome here.
BLINKEN: Nice to see you.
ROBERTSON (voice-over): Back to back to back to pressure Israel to better protect Gaza civilians, saying some progress made.
BLINKEN: We have an agreement that the U.N. will now conduct an assessment to determine the conditions necessary for people to be able to move back home.
ROBERTSON (voice-over): In Gaza, where Israeli officials say the battle tempo easing, the wars effects remain harsh. Nine Israeli troops killed Monday. Dead and wounded Palestinians continue overwhelming hospitals, and as Blinken urged better humanitarian access needy Gazans stormed food trucks.
From his meetings in the region the past week, Blinken set out a path to peace, which so far has been publicly rejected by Israel's government.
BLINKEN: If Israel wants its Arab neighbors to make the tough decisions necessary to help ensure his lasting security. Israeli leaders will have to make hard decisions themselves. Israel must be a partner to Palestinian leaders who are willing to lead their people and living side by side in peace with Israel.
ROBERTSON: Blinken also saying that Palestinian leaders must reform a message he said it takes a Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, Wednesday, who appears under increasing pressure to step aside and allow new leadership more palatable to Israel. In essence, Blinken asking both sides to change. No guarantees it will happen. Nic Robertson, CNN, Tel Aviv, Israel.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VAUSE: To Jerusalem now, Yaakov Katz, senior columnist at the Jerusalem Post and a senior fellow at the Jewish People Policy Institute. And welcome back. It's good to see you.
YAAKOV KATZ, SENIOR COLUMNIST, JERUSALEM POST: Thank you, John. VAUSE: So it seems right now there is growing pressure on Israel to
work towards a two-state solution which has essentially been in the deep freeze for a long time with Palestinians, especially for the White House.
Just last month, Prime Minister Netanyahu told reporters I'm proud that I prevented the establishment of a Palestinian state because say everybody understands what the Palestinian state could have been, now that we've seen the little Palestinian state in Gaza. He added, I will not let the State of Israel go back to the fateful mistake of Oslo, (INAUDIBLE) Oslo Peace Accords.
So what Secretary Blinken and others now want would mean a dramatic about turn from not just Netanyahu but his entire government. And that seems unlikely to say the least.
KATZ: To see the least, John. A two-state solution with the current government in Israel is not something that's at all possible, viable, or in the cards. This -- let's remember, this is possibly the most right wing government that Israel has ever had.
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And as a result, a two-state solution is not at all any of their policy or any part of their campaign. With that said, I think what we saw yesterday with Secretary Blinken in Tel Aviv, were comments about a larger and wider regional possibility of a normalization package with the Saudis, for example. That's a way that he wants to try to entice Israel to deescalate, to look towards the day after in Gaza to try to work together with the Palestinians.
And say that the way to do that and what the cherry on top of it might be, is this bigger deal with the Saudis that you could see at the end of it all, but again, a two-state solution that sees the withdrawal of Israel from parts of the West Bank, in the aftermath of October 7, when we saw what happens, when Israel withdraws from territory, and what type of massacres and barbaric attacks it could potentially face. I don't think that there's great support for that in the wider Israeli public, let alone in this government.
VAUSE: OK. So you mentioned the deal with Saudi Arabia as a potential cherry on top of normalization of relations with Israel. So also, on Tuesday, you know, we heard from the Saudi Arabian ambassador to the U.K. outlining how that could actually still be possible now. Here he is.
(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)
PRINCE KHALID BIN BANDAR AL SAUD, SAUDI ARABIA'S AMBASSADOR TO THE UK: We've been at this for a long time and willing to accept Israel for a long time. It's a reality that's there that we have to live with. But going back, we can't live with Israel without a Palestinian state.
(END AUDIO CLIP)
VAUSE: So basically, that author is back on the table never left, if you like, despite overwhelming opposition from within Saudi Arabia to normalization of relations with Israel. You know, it seems there are others within the region who are willing to make hard choices and go the extra distance. At this point, why isn't Israel?
KATZ: It's a very good question. And I think that we have to remember three parts to it. The first is Israel still at war, right. And now is not necessarily the time for Israel's to start talking about a two- state solution when it's still fighting, what happened to the Hamas states in the Gaza Strip and what that state turned into, and the enemy that Israel faced on its southern border, when Hamas had its sovereignty and its rule over Gaza, what it turned Gaza into, and we see these pictures every day, John, the hundreds and hundreds of kilometers of tunnels under the Gaza Strip, the factories to make long range rockets with the Iranian design, the attacks that are still being carried out against Israeli soldiers there. This is a war that still has to be fought. That's number one.
Number two, a two state solution, like I mentioned for Israelis is something that's hard to digest at the moment, because what it entails is withdrawal from territory in the West Bank, or with some Israelis called Judea and Samaria, the hills that overlook Tel Aviv Herzliya, the coastal plain in Israel.
They think about Gaza, excuse me, and they think about the precedent and they say, Can we now do this also in the West Bank? Do we want to have rockets now pouring down from to, for instance, to Tel Aviv?
And then the third part is you're right, though, there is that possibility for a wider normalization. We heard that from the Saudi ambassador in the UK, we heard enough from Secretary Blinken. It's not something that we should ignore. And we should have a government that should be thinking about the wider possibility here.
Unfortunately, like I mentioned before, this government is not going to be the one that's going to get them to make those moves because of the nature and its composition. Netanyahu is kind of stuck between the Americans who want him to move forward, and very right wing members of his coalition who will not let him move an inch in that direction.
VAUSE: Very quickly, you mentioned that a two-state solution is not possible with this current Israeli government is any solution to this conflict, apart from a military one, which is doubtful whether it's going to work long term, is there any viable solution for this right wing government in Israel right now?
KATZ: I think that you and I will agree, John, that military means it's or military action as a means just for a political resolution we need to articulate here in Israel. What is that political endgame that we want to see happen in Gaza? And so far, Israel has not done that. I think that is a mistake. I think that Israel needs to tell the world and also its own people.
What is it planning to do in the Gaza Strip in the day after? We don't want to reoccupy Gaza. We pulled out in 2005, with the intention not to have to go back and to give the Palestinians an opportunity to be able to flourish there. Unfortunately, Hamas flourished and not the Palestinian people. Now
there's an opportunity for resets in the aftermath of this operation. But part of that requires Israel to say what do we want to see happen there? And so far, we don't have that.
VAUSE: Yaakov, thanks for being with us. Yaakov Katz there in Jerusalem, appreciate the analysis. Thank you.
To Donald Trump's ongoing legal battles now and in the federal case alleging election interference in 2020, Trump's lawyers argued all charges should be dropped, because it's President Trump is immune from prosecution. That argument or presidential immunity seems to be a hard sell with a federal appeals court as CNN's legal affairs correspondent Paula Reid explains.
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PAULA REID, CNN LEGAL AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): President Trump traveled to Washington Tuesday to watch arguments in a federal appeals court hearing over whether he should be shielded from criminal prosecution.
DONALD TRUMP, FORMER U.S. PRESIDENT: I feel that as a president, you have to have immunity very simple.
REID (voice-over): Trump was not required to be in attendance, but was in court to witness the three-judge panel express skepticism of his legal team's claim that he could not be prosecuted for his actions unless he is first impeached and convicted by Congress.
JUDGE FLORENCE PAN, U.S. COURT OF APPEALS: Could a president ordered SEAL Team 6 to assassinate a political rival? That's an official act, an order to Seal Team 6.
JOHN SOUER, TRUMP ATTORNEY: He would have to be in which speedily be, you know, impeached and convicted before the criminal prosecution.
PAN: I asked you to yes or no question.
SAUER: There's a political process that would have to occur under our structure our Constitution, which require impeachment and conviction by the Senate in these exceptional cases.
REID (voice-over): Trump's lawyers argued that when trying to overturn the 2020 election, Trump was acting in his official capacity.
SAUER: To authorize the prosecution of a president for his official acts, would open a Pandora's Box from which this nation may never recover.
REID (voice-over): Trump's lawyer also warned that if this near absolute immunity was not recognized, there could be a possibility of vindictive prosecutions against political rivals. SAUER: It would authorize, for example, the indictment of President Biden in the Western District of Texas after he leaves office for mismanaging the border allegedly.
REID (voice-over): The Special Counsel rejected these arguments, noting the charges were brought in this case because of what they describe as extraordinary conduct.
JAMES PEARCE, SPECIAL COUNSEL: Never before has there been allegations that a sitting president has with private individuals and using the levers of power starts to fundamentally subvert the Democratic Republic and the electoral system.
REID (voice-over): And argued that impeachment and conviction through a political process should not be required before a criminal prosecution.
PEARCE: I think it would be awfully scary if there weren't some sort of mechanism by which to reach that criminally.
REID: The court here has been operating on an expedited schedule. So we expect we will likely get a decision soon, whoever loses can then ask the entire circuit to hear the case. But that requires the majority of judges in the circuit to agree to hear it. It's not clear that'll happen. Then, of course, there is the next step, which is appealing to the Supreme Court, and they're already weighing this question of valid eligibility related to former President Trump.
So unclear they're going to weigh in, but of course, the Trump strategy is as much about delay as it is about the merits of this case. Paula Reid, CNN, Washington.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VAUSE: Still to come here on CNN, 2023 was a record year for global warming. And there's more to come and it's getting worse we'll break down the very latest climate report.
And after a door plug on Alaska Airlines Flight breaks off mid-flight, Boeing admits there was a mistake. But exactly what mistake is he referring to. Details coming up.
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VAUSE: Not just shattering global records last year, that planet is now dangerously close to a critical climate threshold. A point which eight years ago, almost 200 countries agreed should not be crossed. CNN chief climate correspondent Bill Weir has details.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BILL WEIR, CNN CHIEF CLIMATE CORRESPONDENT: 1.48 degrees Celsius that was the amount of global warming in 2023, to one hundredths of a degree away from that pivotal number of 1.5 that the world agreed is should be the upper limits of manmade global warming. But we're there.
2023 is a lot of people felt it around the world just was undeniable, not only did it break previous records, the hottest year ever in 2016, shattered them, obliterated them most northern latitudes you can see on the map there up in Canada, there are good three, four degrees of warming. Warming much faster than the rest of the world. So it is not even
If we look at the global surface temperatures going back 57 years, it goes back to 1967, my birth year, there's my life and temperature graphs here. And 2023 you can see how that bar on the right is so much higher than anywhere else. Usually these records are broken by just hundredths of a degree because you're talking about so much areas, so much mass, so much time. But '23 was deadly special in so many ways.
And then as we look at the through the year, as the temperatures bounced around that 1.5 line there, we dipped above and march came back down. But as you can see the temperatures around the world hit that 1.5 threshold and stayed there for most of the back end of the year, even going above two degrees of global warming for a couple of days in November. That has never happened before.
For the first time ever, you can lay 2023's calendar over a calendar of 19 or 1850 to 1900. And every day was a full degree warmer than those before. And this doesn't even take into account the estimated millions of species of plants and animals that could go extinct by 2050. Bill Weir, CNN, New York.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VAUSE: Well, climate change doesn't come cheap. Last year, the U.S. saw a record 28 disasters, which caused a billion dollars in damage or more from wildfires and floods to hurricanes and tornadoes and beyond, report says the total cost of all these events or the $92 billion. That could still rise because the damage built from the severe weather at the end of the year is yet to be included.
So the cost of climate change went beyond the money. Nearly 500 deaths are attributed directly or indirectly to those disasters. It's the eight most disaster related fatalities on mainland USA since 1980. Joining me Richard Steiner, a marine biologist and conservation scientist. Rich thanks for being with us. Thanks for taking the time.
Thanks very much good to be with you.
VAUSE: OK, so beyond that big headline 2023, the hottest day ever for mankind. It was notable that it was the first year that temperatures every day, were at one degree Celsius higher than pre industrial times. And also for the first time, two days in November, were actually two degrees Celsius above that pre industrial baseline.
What seems to say is that the climate models were pretty much on the money except for one thing. It's happening a lot faster than anyone thought.
RICHARD STEINER, MARINE BIOLOGIST: Absolutely correct. Yes, the observations just keep coming in and piling up, don't they? And they've been doing this for decades are going to continue for the next few decades. And I think the bottom line here is we should all be frightened and frightened into action. The observations that we're seeing these days are actually exceeding the predictive models. And that should be cause for alarm for all of us.
VAUSE: Why isn't there?
STEINER: I'm sorry, what was question?
VAUSE: Why is it there the alarm? I mean, you know, a lot of people are terrified about many more on.
STEINER: Yes, I think part of it is people have sort of baked in. They've normalized the bad news and they tune it out. A lot of people have a cultural affinity for one side of the issue over another. Some people have become numb to it. Some people are fatalistic, and think that there's no hope up there is.
I mean, we are as your leading piece just mentioned, you know, we're hitting 1.5 degrees C this year in the next few months. And it will probably sustain over the next several years to reiterate that that limit, but that's the limit that the world nations met in Paris, in 2015, saying that we shouldn't go beyond this limit if we want a sustainable, prosperous human civilization in the future.
We're going to pass that tipping point in the next few months. People need to It sort of embed this and embody this in their psyche and their politics and their consumer actions and who they vote for governments.
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But people are sort of, you know, not paying close enough attention. But if anything can help people pay attention, it sees weather disasters that are happening throughout the world right now that hundreds of billions of dollars worth of, you know, floods and droughts and wildfires and storm events and, and thousands of people being killed. But if that won't get people's attention, what pray tell will.
VAUSE: It's a good question. Also playing into all of this, though is the warming effect to the wind pattern is the El Nino effect. Listen to this.
STEINER: Yes.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SAMANTHA BURGESS, DEPUTY DIRECTOR, COPERNICUS CLIMATE CHANGE SERVICE: 2023 would have been an exceptional year without El Nino when we look at sea surface temperature, in particular, the temperature across the global ocean there extra polar global ocean. So we record the temperature between 60 degrees north and 60 degrees south to remove the icy parts of the ocean. We had record temperatures in the ocean from April onwards. This was before the El Nino event was classified. (END VIDEO CLIP)
VAUSE: So how long is El Nino expected to be with us? Is it a reasonable expectation that temperatures will fall once it's over, what do we expect?
STEINER: Modestly, certainly, El Nino is a relatively cyclical event that happens every three to seven years on average in the eastern tropical Pacific. And it affects weather globally, but particularly here in the Western Hemisphere.
But yes, it will subside, it may subside later this year. So some have predicted, but no one knows. But that will continue. But that will continue masked on top of the gradual but continual increase in global average temperatures, both in the ocean and air temperatures, and with enormous impacts.
We're already seeing those this year. And I don't want people to be fatalistic about this, even though we've reached the 1.5 degrees C tipping Point. We can still keep warming below two degrees C beyond which it's catastrophic. And that's what all the sides says.
So we can still keep below that limit if governments get to act action, and do their jobs with regulation, enforcement, taxation of carbon and subsidization of alternative, low carbon energy alternatives.
Governments know how to do this, but they just have to get the fossil fuel industries out of the way. They pretend to want to collaborate, but that's a facade. They're simply trying to continue to make trillions of dollars off the fossil fuel resources right now, and resist the transition to a sustainable energy economy because they make too much money at it. And many other governments, captured government offices and officers are part and parcel of the problem.
So there's way to do this. We can do it. We need to invest in it. And I'm very hopeful that this recent report may catalyze the sort of the last straw of resistance, and we'll get beyond but one important thing, if we need to elect leaders that understand the science, and understand the solutions and want to get there, and the worst thing that can happen here for the world, and certainly for the United States, if Donald Trump were to be reelected, and go to the White House, because we lost at least four years of progress in the U.S. and globally on climate change mitigation during those years. We cannot afford another four years lost like that.
VAUSE: And it's certainly true that what happens in the U.S. election impacts the rest of the world is an important election to watch. Rich Steiner, thank you for your words. Thank you for being with us sir. Very much appreciate it.
STEINER: Thanks very much. Appreciate it, John. Good night.
VAUSE: Cheers. Well, environmental groups are raising concerns over Norway's push to our deep sea mining between its coast and Greenland. Under this plan approved Tuesday by Norway's parliament. Well, the 100,000 square miles of Arctic seabed would be open for exploration and they're larger than the United Kingdom.
Supporters say extracting metals and minerals from the ocean floor without Norway reduce carbon emissions faster. But scientists are worried about potential damage to whales and other marine life.
Still to come, a doctor has just returned from Southern Gaza sharing his -- what he witnessed inside the hospitals there and why he says it was a lot worse than he expected.
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VAUSE: Monday was a deadly day for Israeli troops in Gaza. Six IDF soldiers were killed in central Gaza, three others in the south. And the Palestinian death toll in Gaza is climbing after Israeli airstrikes.
The (INAUDIBLE) hospital says it treated dozens of casualties, and there are these images, which showed people praying over dead bodies.
The World Health Organization is stressing it cannot afford to lose the remaining operational hospitals in Gaza when the enclave's health care sector is collapsing at a rapid pace.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEAN CASEY, W.H.O. EMERGENCY MEDICAL TEAMS COORDINATOR IN GAZA: So, what we are seeing is really worrying around al-Aqsa Hospital and intensification of hostilities, very close to the European Gaza Hospital and very close to Nasser.
We cannot lose these health facilities. The absolutely must be protected. This is the last line of secondary, tertiary health care that Gaza has. From the north to the south it's been dropping, hospital after hospital.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VAUSE: Dr. Anas El Kassem has just returned from Gaza. He's a trauma surgeon and cofounder of Union of Medical Care and Relief Organization and vice chairman of the group's organization there in Canada. He joins us this hour from Toronto. Thank you for speaking with us.
DR. ANAS EL KASSEM, CO-FOUNDER, UNION OF MEDICAL CARE AND RELIEF ORGANIZATION: Thank you for having me.
VAUSE: So you were in Khan Yunis, for two weeks. That's a long way from a hospital in Hamilton in Canada to one of the last functioning hospitals in Gaza. Was it as bad as you expected? Was it worse?
Because, you know, this isn't your first rodeo. You've done war zones before. You spent time in hospitals in Syria.
DR. EL KASSEM: I think it is worse than what I had expected, to be honest with you. I mean I've been in Syria, I have in (INAUDIBLE). There has been bombardment even on hospitals. I work in a basement when the building was bombarded.
But the intensity of the airstrikes, the highly populated area of Gaza being, you know 4 by 10 kilometers being bombarded on a daily basis with some bombs I'm hearing 1,000 kilograms.
I think I have seen way more injuries than what I have seen in Syria, particularly we're talking within three months that's quite intense.
VAUSE: A lot of those who are wounded are children, tens of thousands in fact of children in Gaza might have been killed or wounded during this war. You treated a lot of those wounded kids.
You also had some very really tough choices to make about who received attention and who did not. So how did you make that call? And now that you're back home, and you have a moment to look back and debrief have you question those decisions at all? You know, flashback to those moments?
DR. EL KASSEM: Yes, absolutely. I mean this is probably one of the most difficult decisions that you have to make us a physician and as a surgeon.
[01:34:50}
Because when we received, you know, for instance in Khan Yunis hospital, the Nasser Hospital we were pretty close from where the fighting apparently is a few hundred meters. Because you hear the bombardment all the time. You hear the tanks, the airstrikes, the drones 24 hours on top of us.
But when you get, you know, 15 injuries I was counting seven or eight children. And, then you have to make difficult decisions because you have so limited medical supplies, limited you know, humanitarian staff with you. And we were only six surgeons from U.S. and Canada.
So you have to decide. Who is going to probably go to the OR and who is going to be left behind. Although in an ideal situation, probably, we'd be able to save everyone. We would call in Canada, U.S., a second or a third team. But you don't have that kind of luxury, you know.
So you have to decide who you're going to be saving and who's has to be left behind unfortunately.
VAUSE: Well, Sean Casey, who coordinates the emergency medical teams for the World Health Organization is in Gaza right now. On Sunday, he visited the Shifa Hospital in Gaza City.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CASEY: The hospital director just spoke to us and he said his one request is that this hospital be protected. Even though many of the staff of left, even though this hospital is under enormous pressure the one request that the hospital director said is that the international community needs to make sure that this hospital, and other hospitals like it stay protected, that they not get struck, that they not get evacuated. (END VIDEO CLIP)
VAUSE: You know, the one consistency about Gaza right now seems to be whatever the chaos and death and destruction might be on any given day, the next day will almost certainly be worse. Has that been your experience?
EL KASSEM: Yes, no -- I agree with. I mean I certainly agree with the U.N. Statement that the hospitals need to be protected. But unfortunately it hasn't been the case. Al-Shifa hospital, Indonesian hospital, Kamal-Edwan Hospital, the Rantisi Hospital would be either bombarded or surrounded by tanks. And then the patients -- we heard some horrible stories by the physicians who left the al-Shifa hospital to the southern Gaza, they had to evacuate the hospital with a lot of injuries. With a lot of patients that they had to walk on their feet to south Gaza.
And unfortunately the largest hospitals in northern Gaza are not functioning at the current time.
VAUSE: We keep hearing about Gaza's health system, being on the verge of collapse. And you know, the difficulties, which they're enduring. But I guess, you know, if you compare treatment and care, which most people receive in developed countries -- Canada, Australia, United States wherever -- would you say Gaza's health system really has already collapsed?
DR. EL KASSEM: Yes, I mean to start with the health care system was not probably the best because of the siege on Gaza for years, right. And before that there is, you know, an occupation on Gaza, from 1967.
But even after that, it never picked up, it never became, you know, an advanced health care system, if you will. But with this war, it was on the verge of collapsing. And 100 percent, it did collapse. I can see that, and even in southern Gaza, with the two major hospitals in Khan Yunis that we have major lack of equipment, of medical supplies, you know, CT Scan machine, and things like that, let alone the lack of drugs, you know, analgesia, antibiotics. I had to do stitches without analgesia in the E.R. Because you want to save the analgesia for the major surgeries in the OR.
So, certainly it has collapsed. And we witnessed that during the two weeks that we visited Gaza.
VAUSE: Dr. Anas El Kassem there. We appreciate your time, sir. Thank you for being with us.
DR. EL KASSEM: Thank you for having me.
VAUSE: Boeing's CEO appears to have admitted the company was at fault for a door blowout on an Alaska Airlines flight last week, telling employees the company needs to acknowledge mistakes. David Calhoun has promised complete transparency of the investigation into what went wrong on the 737 Max because, quote, "this stuff matters."
The (INAUDIBLE) administration said certain Boeing 737 Max 9s remain grounded while the door plug are unprotected. A former Boeing factory manager, turned whistleblower recently addressed the Alaska Airline incident. Here is.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ED PIERSON, BOEING WHISTLEBLOWER: This is actually in many ways an awesome wake-up call because it could've been so much more tragic. There's so many other issues that the planes have, and we've been monitoring for a while now.
So yes, I wasn't surprised at all and maybe that's the most shocking part is some of us who have been watching this and we've been reporting on many, many production quality defects. They've had over 20 serious production quality defects just since the plane rolled, you know and went back to the service.
So this is a very concerning --
(END VIDEO CLIP)
[01:39:45]
VAUSE: Faulty bolts and door plugs are now the focus of an investigation involving Boeing, two airlines and the Federal Aviation Authority.
CNN's Tom Foreman has details.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
TOM FOREMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: An astonishing question raised by federal investigators. Could it be that the plug, which burst free of that Alaska Airlines plane forcing an emergency landing was not properly locked into place?
After all the National Transportation Safety Board has the plane, the plug, and lots of other evidence. But --
CLINT CROOKSHANKS, AEROSPACE ENGINEER, NTSB: We have not yet recovered the four bolts that restrain it from its vertical movement. And we have not yet determined if they existed there. That will be determined when we take the plug to our lab in Washington, D.C.
FOREMAN: While such plugs are not normal doors each can be opened, somewhat like a door for maintenance according to this website by a former 737 pilot.
CHRIS BRADY, BOEING 737 TECHNICAL GUIDE: As it shows in this photo here, the hinge they open outwards. Unhinge downwards.
FOREMAN: Two bolts at the top, and two at the bottom were supposed to prevent that. But the holes that would've helped those bolts, aviation experts note, shown no signs of tearing or stress.
BRADY: There is no apparent damage to the inside frame.
FOREMAN: And both Alaska and United say their inspection of plugs after the incident revealed lose hardware on other Boeing 737 Max 9.
Ed Pierson is a former Boeing employee turned sharp critic.
PIERSON: It's completely unacceptable to leave loose bolts or anything like that. If one person makes a mistake, they might make a mistake on another plane and another plane. This is really disturbing.
FOREMAN: Four times in the past two months, pressurization warnings appeared on the jet involved. The last just a minute before the plug flew causing explosive depressurization.
At least it wasn't cruising at 30,000 feet, says the chair of the National Transportation Safety Board.
JENNIFER HOMENDY, NTSB CHAIR: Folks don't have seatbelts on. They're going to restrooms. The flight attendants are providing service to passengers. we could've ended up with something so much more tragic. And we're really fortunate that that did not occur here.
FOREMAN: Boeing has now held a company-wide safety meeting in which the CEO has pledged complete and transparent cooperation with investigators. And he said Boeing will admit its mistakes. Although exactly what that mistake may be, we still don't know.
Tom Foreman, CNN -- Washington.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VAUSE: Doctors have revealed U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin had surgery for prostate cancer in December. His prognosis is good but questions remained that the White House was only notified on Tuesday.
CNN's Oren Liebermann has our report.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
OREN LIEBERMANN, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: There were major questions about the hospitalization of Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin and who knew what when based on the notification that should have happened.
Part of those questions were about the medical condition itself. What was it that Austin went through and what were the complications? Those questions were answered. We'll get to that in one second.
The other questions were about the notification process that seems to have catastrophically failed. Why is it that President Joe Biden did not know for three days after Austin himself was hospitalized? Those questions remain open.
So what we learned today, in an extensive statement from Walter Reed Medical Center where Austin still is at this point is that Austin was diagnosed with prostate cancer in early December. You don't want on December 22nd for what they call a minimally invasive surgery to deal with the prostate cancer it was caught early. He was under general anesthesia and he was released the next day. It's worth nothing that it's unclear if anyone knew at this point that he was under general anesthesia and that's significant because Austin is the Secretary of Defense. Even if his powers were delegated, his responsibilities delegated to his deputy secretary of defense, it is still a significant statement, a significant happening that Austin himself was under general anesthesia.
He then goes home to recover, and on January, doctors say he felt significant discomfort including nausea, pain. He then had abdominal fluids that had to be drained over the course of the next several days. He was moved into the ICU on January 2nd according to Walter Reed and that is where he began to recover, although he was still in quite a bit of discomfort.
He was given medications. There was an infection there, that infection has since been cleared. According to Walter Reed he remains at the hospital. Now doctors have said his prostate cancer was detected early and his prognosis is excellent.
So that there certainly the good news for Austin and for his recovery. He assumes full responsibilities on Friday. He has of course, been carrying those out from the hospital.
But then there's the bigger question on the notification here and how that failed to notify first Biden himself but other senior national security officials including those in the Pentagon and for example, Jake Sullivan the National Security Adviser.
[01:44:50]
LIEBERMANN: The Pentagon says that primary responsibility fell to Kelly Magsamen, Austin's chief of staff, but she was sick with the flu according to the Pentagon. What's unclear here is why no one else notified him and carried on the responsibility of notifying the president and of others.
One bit of stunning information that also came out today was how few people knew that Austin himself had been diagnosed with cancer. Even though Biden knew on January 4th, three days after Austin was admitted to the hospital, that he was there he didn't know until earlier on Tuesday that Austin had been diagnosed with cancer.
So that was held very tightly, even from the Pentagon, even from others who are at the top level of the U.S. government. Even the National Security Council acknowledging this shouldn't have been handled this way. Now the Pentagon promises to put out daily health updates.
Oren Liebermann, CNN -- at the Pentagon.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VAUSE: Something to consider before buying water in plastic bottles. New research has found they may contain up to 100 times more bits of plastic than previously thought. Columbia University used new technology to count and analyze the
plastic nanoparticles which are so tiny they can't be seen under a microscope.
Those little bitty particles can enter the bloodstream and invade our cells. Researchers say the founds millions of the plastic bits in three popular brands of water sold in the United States. They recommend using glass or stainless-steel containers for drinking water as well as for food storage. Get away from plastic. It's disgusting.
Coming up on CNN, legendary icon David Bowie now immortalized in the City of Lights, Paris honoring the late musician. That's next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
VAUSE: French President Emmanuel Macron has appointed 34-year-old Gabriel Attal as prime minister, the first openly gay prime minister, also the youngest and one of the most popular politicians in the country, all of which has Macron hoping the new hire will give his government a bit of a boost in popularity.
CNN's Melissa Bell explains.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MELISSA BELL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: A change of prime minister in France, it had been widely anticipated that Elisabeth Borne would leave (INAUDIBLE) after a tumultuous 20 months that's made even harder towards the end by the immigration law that many had seen as extremely controversial.
There had been rumors, she might be replaced. And, the name of her successor Gabriel Attal had become, in the last few days, the subject of a great deal of speculation.
Gabriel Attal becomes the youngest French prime minister in the history of the French Republic since 1958, also the first openly gay politician to hold the post of prime minister here in France.
It had been widely expected there'd be a change or reshuffle that would lead to the departure of Elisabeth Borne who had held the post for 20 months. It had been a fairly tumultuous time for her. There had been the pension reform, also the protests on the street as a result of the killing of a 17-year-old of Algerian descent by the police, and of course the loss of Macron's presidential majority in parliament in the last election.
[01:49:56]
BELL: And yet she had survived thus far. It's understood that it was the immigration law introduced at the end of last year that may have put her in the most difficult (INAUDIBLE). That's when the rumors had begun that she might in the end be sacrificed in favor of a new prime minister.
Gabriel Attal then takes over. He's considered, ready controversial even within government ranks. It is that his nomination was subject (INAUDIBLE) as a result of opposition from several of the cabinet's biggest hitters (ph). He's now set to announce his new cabinet, looking ahead to the next few months, a difficult time it's expected, say those who watch French politics closely, with European elections that are likely to test the French government and the presidency of Emmanuel Macron.
Gabriel Attal now leading that government into them. And of course, beyond that towards the end of the second term of Emmanuel Macron.
Melissa Bell CNN -- Paris.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
Paris has honored the late David Bowie with his own street.
Rue David Bowie was unveiled Monday on what would have been his 77th birthday. The street is located in southeast Paris, the district which has long celebrated Bowie's boys legacy.
French journalists who know Bowie, says he would have been -- he adored Paris rather for its museums, night clubs, intellectual culture, and would've been delighted by the honor.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GEOFF MACCORMACK, MUSICIAN, CHILDHOOD FRIEND OF DAVID BOIWE: Paris has always been a special city for David and moi, throughout our lives and I'm sure if he would be delighted with the honor you are giving him. On behalf of David and his family, merci.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VAUSE: David Bowie died in 2016 after an 18-month long battle with cancer.
The coroner's report has found Irish singer Sinead O'Connor died of natural causes. That's according to U.K. media. O'Connor was found unresponsive at her home in London last July and pronounced dead at the scene. She was 56.
Bob Geldof, U2's Bono and other Irish notables attended her small private funeral in August. O'Connor shot to fame with her rendition of the Prince's song, "Nothing Compares to You in the 1990s.
Tech fans are getting a glimpse of all the latest high-priced gadgets and gizmos. Still ahead, the biggest names in tech unveiled their newest projects at the annual consumer electronics show. So much fun in a moment.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
VAUSE: Joining the list, the E.U. is considering an investigation into Microsoft's partnership with Open AI. The scrutiny comes after Microsoft gained a non-voting seat on the board OpenAI, one of the most influential companies in the artificial intelligence industry. Microsoft, also has a multibillion-dollar investment in the company.
The tech giant says gaining a seat on the board is not the same as a merger. Well OpenAI for its part says the board seat does not give Microsoft control over the startup's operations.
The move from the E.U. follows a similar announcement from British anti-rust officials and a report by Bloomberg. The is conducting a preliminary probe as well.
[01:54:41]
VAUSE: Microsoft, one of the many tech companies unveiling new innovation and high-priced gadgets at this year's Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. Organizers estimate that 50 percent of the Fortune 500 companies will be there, setting (INAUDIBLE) for deal making and saving (ph) the biggest tech trends of the year.
Who else would we send but CNN's Anna Stewart?
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ANNA STEWART, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It's one of the biggest trade shows in the world -- 130,000 attendees are expected to come here to CES in Las Vegas. They may only see the insides of the conference hall but that's ok because look thanks to the (INAUDIBLE) Telecom you could actually see the Las Vegas fare in slightly smaller form within the conference center.
Now there have been so many big announcements at the CES from the first day, from Nvidia new chips for PC computers and this is to enable better A.I. capability.
From Honda (ph), the launch of a new series of electric vehicles, the Honda Zero (ph) ultra lightweight, it's very space age, would be available from 2026.
And, perhaps the most entertaining moment actually from a Sony executive who managed to drive a prototype car, partnered with Honda onto a stage using a space station console. Plenty of gimmick but I hope dearly that is not the future of driving. Sony actually also unveiled a (INAUDIBLE) headset that's expected to be available later this year. No price tag on that.
Which brings me perhaps to one of the biggest tech announcements of the week by a company that isn't even here, Apple. With the Vision Pro expected now to go on with (INAUDIBLE) goes on sale February the second in the U.S. retailing at $3,500.
Aside from all of the big announcements of course, plenty of gadgets and (INAUDIBLE), robotics, wearable tech. Everything has a bit of A.I. in it this year, so will be playing with all of that so check in with us.
I'm Anna Stewart at CES -- in Las Vegas.
(END VIDEOTAPE) VAUSE: After being closed for three years because of the pandemic, a statue of Jesus believed to have healing powers is now open and drawing millions of pilgrims in Manila.
The parade of the Nazarene was back in full screen and many Filipinos believe the statue could heal uncurable ailments as well as bring some good fortune.
The statue from Mexico arrived in the Philippines in the 17th century. Some say the dark color has been caused by a fire. Others say the wood is made of mesquite wood. Quite a crowd.
Thank you for watching. I'm John Vause.
CNN NEWSROOM continues with my friend and colleague Rosemary Church after a very short break. See you back here tomorrow.
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