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74 People Killed in a Military Plane Crash Near Ukrainian Border; United Auto Workers Endorses Joe Biden for Reelection as President in the 2024 Elections; Man Responsible for the 2019 Kyoto Studio Fire Sentenced to Death Penalty; France Debating Abortion as a Permanent Constitutional Right; Jon Stewart Returns as Host of The Daily Show in Time for the Election Season. Aired 3-4a ET

Aired January 25, 2024 - 03:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

[03:00:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ROSEMARY CHURCH, CNN ANCHOR: Hello and welcome to our viewers joining us from all around the world and to everyone streaming us on CNN Max. I'm Rosemary Church.

Just ahead. A Russian military plane crashes near the Ukrainian border, but who was on board and what caused the crash are in dispute.

And a U.N. shelter in Gaza comes under fire amid intense fighting between Israel and Hamas. In the southern part of the enclave, we will have a live report on all the details. Plus --

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARBARA PRAVI, FRENCH SINGER AND SONGWRITER: Having the right to do abortion cannot be like a condition of politics.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: Lawmakers in France debating a bill to permanently ensure a woman's ability to get an abortion.

UNKNOWN (voice-over) Live from Atlanta, this is CNN Newsroom with Rosemary Church.

CHURCH: Thanks for joining us. Ukraine is calling for an international investigation into a deadly plane crash in Russia near its border with Ukraine. Moscow is accusing Kyiv of downing the military plane in the Belgorod region, calling it a terrorist act. Russia claims 74 people were on board, including 65 Ukrainian soldiers being transported for a prisoner swap, and all of them were killed in that crash and you can see the plane hurtling toward the ground before it erupts in a ball of fire behind some buildings.

Two Russian officials claim the aircraft changed course to quote, avert danger to civilians in a nearby village. Russian state media released this video of the crash site showing debris scattered across a snowy field. Ukraine says it regards any Russian military aircraft approaching Belgorod as a legitimate target but he's not confirming that it shot down the plane.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY, UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT (through translator): It is obvious that the Russians are playing with the lives of Ukrainian prisoners, with the feelings of their relatives and the emotions of our society. It is necessary to establish clear facts as much as possible, given that the plane crash happened on Russian territory that is beyond our control.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: CNN's Matthew Chance has details of the crash.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MATTHEW CHANCE, CNN SR. INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): This is the moment the Russian military transporter plunged from the skies.

And I witness gasps as a huge orange fireball billows from the ground.

Russia says the aircraft was shot down and while Ukraine hasn't confirmed it, this Russian border region is an active war zone.

I was clearing the snow when suddenly there was a loud bang, says this Russian eyewitness on local TV. There was an explosion in the sky, he says, and I got scared.

Across the frozen crash site near the Russian city of Belgorod, twisted metal debris is strewn across a wide area, along with human remains.

Ukraine says the plane had a cargo of missiles heading to the front lines. But Russia insists. The aircraft was carrying 65 captive Ukrainian soldiers en route to a prisoner exchange.

CNN can't independently verify either claim.

I feel pity for everyone, says this Russian woman who saw the plane go down. My own grandson is fighting in our special military operation, she says. And all of those on board probably had people waiting for them too.

In recent weeks, Ukraine has been stepping up attacks across the Russian frontier, hitting an oil terminal near St. Petersburg with a drone strike last week. They are taking out a strategic Russian long- range radar detection aircraft flying near the border.

In the Russian-controlled city of Donetsk in eastern Ukraine, local officials say at least 25 people were killed last weekend in a Ukrainian bombardment.

Meanwhile, on Russian state television, commentators have condemned the latest shoot down, saying it was Ukrainians killing their own. [03:05:06]

This was yet another premeditated criminal act, which does not surprise us, says this former Russian general. It's now routine behavior, he says, by the Kyiv regime.

But Kyiv says if Ukrainian prisoners of war were on board ahead of an exchange, as Moscow claims they were not informed that Russia may have deliberately put their lives in danger.

Matthew Chance, CNN, London.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHURCH: Last hour, I spoke with retired Major General Mick Ryan of the Australian Army, and I asked him for his thoughts on the conflicting accounts of this incident.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MAJ. GEN. MICK RYAN (RET.), AUSTRALIAN ARMY: Well, there's some big questions that remain to be answered. You know, if it was shot down, was it the Ukrainians or accidentally the Russians and what was actually on board this aircraft? Just because the Russians have said there were POWs there, I don't think we can take them at face value.

CHURCH: So, Ukrainian officials say Russia deliberately compromised the safety of the prisoners on board that plane to destabilize and weaken Ukraine's international support. Do you think that's what's going on here? And if it is, will that work for Russia, do you think?

RYAN: I think it's unlikely to work for Russia internationally, but domestically is a different case. I think Putin will be using this in the buildup to his March election to provide further evidence to continue the war against Ukraine.

CHURCH: And Ukraine's President Zelenskyy says Russia is playing with the lives of POWs, but at the same time could not confirm the 65 Ukrainian prisoners were actually on board that plane. How likely is it that they were, do you think? And who's at fault here, if they were?

RYAN: Well, it's interesting messaging coming out of the Ukrainians. They haven't categorically denied there were POWs on board. They've talked about putting them at risk. So possibly they could have, but we just don't know.

At the end of the day, that was a legitimate target by the Ukrainians. It was a military aircraft that was not declared as a transport for medical or POWs. So the Russians are definitely to blame here in either way.

CHURCH: Does this have President Putin's fingerprints all over it? I mean, is this a possible setup to make Ukraine look bad?

RYAN: It could be and it's always easy to see big conspiracies in here. But I think the simplest answer this is probably a great big bureaucratic stuff up by the Russians who changed the method of transport at the last moment and have potentially been caught out by it. But there's a lot of things we just don't know about this crash yet.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: U.N. officials report at least 12 people are dead and 75 injured by Israeli tank fire on a shelter for refugees in southern Gaza. Videos show smoke billowing from the Khan Younis Training Centre where the U.N. says one of the buildings was housing 800 people displaced by the fighting.

Israel says the incident was not the result of an aerial or artillery strike by its forces. It says the strike may have been Hamas' fire.

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Israel has intensified its military offensive in and around Khan Younis, the second biggest city in Gaza. Palestinian health officials and paramedics report Israeli tanks and drones firing at people trying to flee the area around two besieged hospitals. Many of those forced from their homes have fled to Rafah, which the U.N. now says is crowded with 1.3 million displaced people.

U.S. military officials say Houthi rebels in Yemen fired three ballistic missiles at commercial ships operating around the Red Sea on Wednesday. U.S. Central Command says a nearby Navy ship shot down two of them and the third missile landed in the water. They say the missiles were aimed at a US flagged, owned and operated container ship in the Gulf of Aden. No one was injured and the ship was not damaged. But the Iran-backed Houthis say they engaged with a number of U.S. warships and claimed to inflict a direct hit on a commercial vessel.

Let's bring in journalist Elliott Gotkine who is following all of these developments for us. He joins us live from London. Elliot, what is the latest on that deadly strike on a U.N. shelter in the Ghazan city of Khan Younis?

ELLIOTT GOTKINE, JOURNALIST: Rosemary, this was a vocational training center and certainly in peacetime that's what it was and it was helping young Palestinians learn the skills they need to get better jobs.

[03:10:00]

Of course after October the 7th, once this war began in the wake of the Hamas terrorist attacks it was converted into a shelter and the overall complex houses some tens of thousands of Palestinians that have been displaced from other parts of the Gaza Strip. Now in this specific area, the specific building that was struck. The U.N. says that this was a carpentry workshop, that there were about 800 people sheltering there and that initially the death toll was nine. Now it's saying 12 people were killed in this strike when two tank shells hit this building creating a fire and that there were some 75 people wounded, 15 of which is now saying were critically wounded. Now Israel, as you said, is saying that for now it's ruling out that

this was an airstrike or an artillery strike. It is saying that it's undertaking a thorough investigation and that it doesn't rule out the possibility that this could be Hamas. The one thing we do know for sure is that there has been intense fighting going on in Khan Younis and just in the last few minutes another note from the IDF talking about killing a number of terrorists and other infrastructure from Hamas as part of its ongoing operations there.

From the U.N.'s perspective this strike on this U.N. facility is not the first such incident since this war began and it probably won't be the last.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JAMES MCGOLDRICK, U.N. HUMANITARIAN COORDINATOR FOR THE PALESTINIAN TERRITORY: There have been a number of incidents over the last month or so which makes us wonder whether the deconfliction system itself is actually working to an optimal level. And this is yet another incident whereby a building which has been used for humanitarian purposes seems to have been damaged or struck.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GOTKINE: And Thomas White from UNRWA, the United Nations Relief and Works Agency, which was running this facility, saying that after repeated attempts, they were finally able to reach that building last night to provide medical care and evacuate those that needed to be evacuated.

But adding that the situation in Khan Younis, where he notes that some of these hospitals are surrounded and there is intense fighting going on, underscores a constant failure to uphold the fundamental principles. of international humanitarian law. Rosemary?

CHURCH: And Elliott, what more are you learning about those Houthi ballistic missiles targeting U.S. vessels in the Red Sea?

GOTKINE: I think it shows, Rosemary, doesn't it, that despite a number of strikes by the U.S. and to a lesser extent by the U.K. and their allies, that the Houthis still maintain the capability of disrupting and damaging shipping. And we've seen that, you know, as long as it's still being supplied by Iran that it will, or it certainly up until now, has been able to continue to manage shipping in the area. It claims to have scored a direct hit and to have forced these commercial vessels to turn around.

And I suppose, you know, whatever the specifics of this particular case, it's clear that shipping is still being very much disrupted. And this is one of the most important waterways in global trade, accounting for about 10 percent of global trade. And it's having a particularly damaging effect on some of the countries. around the Red Sea, particularly Egypt, which is seeing a precipitous plunge in revenue that it makes from the Suez Canal, which is one of its biggest money earners. And that is another reason why the international community is trying to prevent the Houthis from continuing to disrupt this very critical shipping route. Rosemary?

CHURCH: Elliott Gotkine with that live report from London. Many thanks.

Members of Israel's war cabinet are expected to discuss the latest truce and hostage proposals when they meet today. But with no end to the war in sight, there is growing division in the ranks. One cabinet minister recently told Channel 12 News the idea of defeating Hamas is unrealistic and Israel has failed to achieve its highest priority, freeing the hostages. Polls show Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's job is at risk and some are calling for early elections.

Joining me now is Reuven Hazan. He is a professor of political science at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. Many thanks for joining us.

REUVEN HAZAN, PROFESSOR OF POLITICAL SCIENCE, THE HEBREW UNIVERSITY OF JERUSALEM: Good morning Rosemary.

CHURCH: So as Israel's war with Hamas grinds on more than 100 days into the fighting, we are seeing a deepening of divisions within the Israeli war cabinet and between Israel and the United States, while protesters demand more action on the release of hostages. So let's start with the war cabinet, where far-right ministers are calling for the ethnic cleansing of Palestinians, while other ministers want new elections and criticized the military campaign, one general actually calling for an extended ceasefire. So what impact could these divisions have on the direction of the war and support for Netanyahu?

[03:14:58]

HASAN: Well, first of all, let me clarify. There's no one in the Israeli war cabinet that is calling for the ethnic cleansing of Palestinians. These are some ministers that sit in the wider cabinet. They are not involved in military decisions and their statements should be dismissed because they are made for internal political purposes.

Now, the war cabinet itself, after about 110 days, is getting to the point where it realizes that the two goals that were set for this war, the first was to destroy Hamas militarily, and the second was to bring the hostages home, are no longer compatible. In other words, by pressing Hamas, we are not creating an incentive for them to release the hostages, and therefore Israel's in a dilemma. And it has to decide, do we want the hostages as the top priority, or do we want the war as the top priority?

And this is splitting not just Israeli society, it's splitting the war cabinet. And you can see Netanyahu taking one position, and Benny Gantz, who led his party into the war cabinet, taking quite a different position.

CHURCH: So what impact will that division have on the war going forward?

HAZAN: Well, it's an impact that we won't feel in the short term because it is not going to rip the war cabinet apart. Many guns will remain. They will find a way to continue to prosecute the war together. The only time that we will see a political impact in Israel is when the war finally begins to grind to a halt. And then because of these internal divisions, and especially if we cannot return the hostages home, you will probably see Gantz's party leaving the war cabinet.

This will leave Netanyahu with a razor-thin majority that is based on the more extremist and fanatical parties in the Israeli government. And that will probably return the country to protests in the streets, the dislike of the government, and Netanyahu in the polls right now is probably at the worst point he has ever been in his very long political career.

CHURCH: So of course it gives him more incentive to keep the war moving on, doesn't it? And we are also seeing major differences emerge between Israel and the United States with Benjamin Netanyahu publicly ruling out a two-state solution, a slap in the face to the U.S. How significant is this and the fact that Israel appears to be ignoring calls from the Biden administration to reduce civilian casualties by making more targeted hits on Hamas?

HAZAN: Well, you've asked several questions. First of all, yes, there is a growing rift between Israel and the United States because the United States wants to see the day after. Once the military operation is successful, and that's an if, somebody has to step into the vacuum. If not, Hamas will come back.

Netanyahu does not want the Palestinian Authority to step into this vacuum. After all, for many, many years he has weakened the Palestinian Authority and actually strengthened Hamas because that helped him move any talk of a two-state solution away.

The United States definitely wants the two-state solution on the table, and this is an issue that is splitting Israeli society down the middle, although, as I said, Netanyahu opposes this. And, he will probably use this for internal political reasons. He can campaign in Israel as he is the only one capable of stopping a Palestinian state from being established.

And this puts him at further odds with the United States as the U.S. heads towards an election. And although an election in Israel is years away, if the government's majority begins to collapse, we could have an election here quite soon, maybe at about the same time as the United States.

The other question you asked about humanitarian issues, let's remember, and we really have to always put this war into context. It began by the butchering of 1,500 Israeli civilians. The Israeli military does not target civilians. We are doing the best we can. But Hamas is a terrorist organization embedded in the civilian population, and therefore we will do the best that we can, but you cannot do everything when their goal is to have you hit their own civilians so they can whip up more support against Israel.

CHURCH: Reuven Hazan, thank you so much for your perspective. We appreciate it. HAZAN: Thank you for having me.

CHURCH: Much more on the Israel-Hamas war still ahead this hour. We will hear from a 20-year-old Palestinian on what it's like losing her friends, her home, and her youth to the war in Gaza.

[03:19:58]

Plus Nikki Haley's quest to keep her campaign alive after a decisive loss to Donald Trump in the latest Republican primary and a major endorsement for President Biden from a group representing hundreds of thousands of blue-collar workers, what it means for his campaign. Back with that and more in just a moment.

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CHURCH: The Trump and Biden campaigns have begun a full-scale pivot to the general election. After the former president's double-digit win in New Hampshire, Trump and Biden allies are now convinced the fight for the Republican presidential nomination is effectively over. But the last Republican challenger standing says not so fast.

CNN's Jeff Zeleny explains.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JEFF ZELENY, CNN CHIEF U.S. NATIONAL AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT (voice- over): Joe Biden and Donald Trump are headed closer to a rematch.

JOE BIDEN (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I've never been more optimistic about America's future.

ZELENY (voice-over): In what could be the longest general election contest in modern American history. With a decisive win in New Hampshire, Trump cemented a political comeback among Republicans.

DONALD TRUMP (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: When you win Iowa and you win New Hampshire, they've never had a loss. There's never been. So we're not going to be the first, I can tell you.

ZELENY (voice-over): Even as his last remaining GOP rival vowed to press on, raising pointed questions about Trump's competence and electability.

NIKKI HALEY (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Most Americans do not want a rematch between Biden and Trump. The first party to retire its 80- year-old candidate is going to be the party that wins this election.

ZELENY (voice-over): Tonight, Haley is back home in South Carolina, not to lick her wounds, but to soldier on, even as another Trump-Biden showdown looks all but imminent.

The Republican primary calendar is barely underway with Nevada in two weeks and South Carolina still one month away, long before a crush of 15 states on Super Tuesday. But Trump advisors insisted it's time to turn to a battle with Biden, even as the former president made clear Haley was still squarely on his mind and perhaps still in his way.

TRUMP: Who the hell was the imposter that went up on the stage before? and like claimed a victory she did very poorly.

ZELENY (voice-over): Despite Biden's own deep political challenges, he remains a central part of Haley's increasingly complicated argument.

HALEY: They know Trump is the only Republican in the country who Joe Biden can defeat.

ZELENY (voice-over): She's making the case in new South Carolina TV ads that it's time to turn the page.

UNKNOWN (voice-over): Biden too old. Trump too much chaos. A rematch no one wants. There's a better choice for a better America.

ZELENY (voice-over): Republicans delivered a double-digit victory to Trump in New Hampshire, but primary voters overall sent warning signs for his standing in a fall election. Haley won big among college graduates and independents, and 42 percent of voters said Trump would not be fit for the presidency if convicted of a crime.

But loyalty among hardcore Republicans and Trump's swift coalescing of party leaders has power to rebound for the history books.

[03:25:09]

TRUMP: The reason we have support is because they are so bad at what they're doing and so evil and they're destroying our country.

ZELENY: The Biden and Trump campaigns are moving quickly to start their own general election campaigns, which would be the earliest start in modern American history, despite the fact that a majority of Americans say they aren't interested in a rematch. Nikki Haley, for her part, is vowing to fight on in South Carolina, holding a rally Wednesday night in North Charleston.

ZELENY (voice-over): Jeff Zeleny, CNN, Manchester, New Hampshire.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHURCH: Despite Trump's performance so far, some Republican lawmakers are concerned his tactics have not changed since his first campaign and may not attract new voters. CNN's exit poll in the New Hampshire primary shows that although Trump dominated the Republican vote, 64 percent of undeclared voters chose Nikki Haley.

Senators told CNN's Manu Raju something needs to change if the Republican Party wants to secure the White House.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. THOM TILIS (R-NC): I'm going to support the Republican nominee and that nominee is going to have to go after that middle ground or you don't win. SEN. JOHN CORNYN (R-TX): After a primary there needs to be a broader

appeal than just the primary voters. You can't win with just your own base.

SEN. LINDSEY GRAHAM (R-SC): I think when you look at the structural problems of President Biden with the electorate versus that of Trump, I think Trump has a better hand, but there's a long way to go.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: Meantime, U.S. President Joe Biden is trying to shore up his voter base as the race heats up on Wednesday. Mr. Biden said he was proud the influential United Auto Workers Union had just endorsed him for re-election. Of course, union members are free to vote for whomever they like in November. But the UAW's president said members can either quote, stand up and elect someone who stands with us. Or we can elect someone who will divide us.

CNN's MJ Lee has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MJ LEE, CNN SR. WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: President Biden on Wednesday receiving a coveted political endorsement from the United Auto Workers. This coming just one day after the Biden campaign declared the unofficial beginning of the general election. This endorsement bringing into focus some of the blue collar union voters that both President Biden and the former President Donald Trump will be fighting for, particularly in some of these Midwest states where these kinds of voters could ultimately end up deciding which way those states break.

Now, in remarks that the president gave on Wednesday to these union workers, he explicitly called out the former president and what he said about their contrast. Take a listen.

BIDEN: During my presidency, we've opened 20 auto factories and more to come. We've created more than 250,000 auto jobs all across America. And while I stood in solidarity on the picket line. As your president said, I want to pick a line Donald Trump went to a non-union shop and attacked you.

LEE: Now, even though the UAW endorsement carries a lot of weight, that doesn't necessarily mean that all of the members will ultimately end up supporting President Biden come November.

Keep in mind, back in 2020, a lot of the rank-and-file members actually ended up supporting the former president, Donald Trump, even though back then, President Biden received that endorsement as well.

MJ Lee, CNN, The White House.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHURCH: Two U.S. airlines say some of their Boeing 737 MAX 9 planes could be back in the skies this weekend. On Wednesday, aviation regulators cleared the way for the planes to return to service if they pass a set of inspections. The planes have been grounded since a door plug blew off mid-flight on an Alaska Airlines jet earlier this month. It left a hole in the plane's fuselage, the size of a refrigerator, but the pilots still managed to land the plane safely. Boeing's CEO met with U.S. lawmakers on Wednesday and said his company is not cutting corners on safety.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DAVE CALHOUN, BOEING CEO: We fly safe planes. We don't put airplanes in the air that we don't have 100 percent confidence in.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: But Boeing's troubles are far from over. The U.S. Senate announced a new investigation into the company's safety record, and the aviation regulators say they will not approve any expansion in Boeing's 737 MAX production until the company's quality control issues are resolved.

Time for a short break. When we come back, the threat of famine hangs over Gaza. We'll hear from the U.N. official who says every single person in the territory is hungry.

[03:30:00]

And the man who set a famous Japanese animation studio on fire killing dozens of people has learned his fate.

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CHURCH: Since the war in Gaza broke out, 20-year-old Nowara Diab has lost her two best friends, who she says were killed by Israeli airstrikes. Diab and her family were forced to flee their home in northern Gaza and have moved too many times to count. Now in Rafah, Diab describes the life and friendships lost since October 7th.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

NOWARA DIAB, DISPLACED 20-YEAR-OLD PALESTINIAN IN GAZA (voice-over): As I walk on the streets in Gaza, death, destruction, and chaos is all around me. I often think about how my life could have been, and how I would still have a home, and how my two best friends, Maimana and Abraham, would still be alive.

DIAB: My heart aches every single day for Maimana and Abraham, who were killed in their homes by the Israeli airstrikes.

DIAB (voice-over): Maimena was a beautiful soul and so creative. I'd always brag about how great she was. We talked for hours on end, talking about anything and everything, or just being silly.

Every moment with her was full of love and laughter. Her talent for painting was extraordinary. This painting of a yellow flower will always hold a special place in my heart. Little did I know, it would be her last gift to me. It broke my heart having to leave it behind, just like I had to leave

her.

Abraham was the most kind and funny person I'd ever met, not to mention also the smartest.

We got to know each other when working on a play about King Odysseus at a theater project in Gaza. He played the role of a king.

And what just make everyone laugh.

And was rarely seen without his camera, capturing the good times.

DIAB: (inaudible) I don't think that there will be any good moments. I need them so much right now and I need them more than ever. But I know that they are now in a better place. I just know.

[03:35:08]

DIAB (voice-over): Now, life in Rafah is hard. I wake up trying to survive another day. Thankfully my family and I are alive. For two weeks we stayed in a tent in Khan Younis, shared by seven people. Water is the hardest thing to ever find here.

Rarely bottles are given to us like this on a truck. But with so little we were forced to drink salty water for a while.

DIAB: So if we don't die from airstrikes, we're gonna die from dehydration and starvation. When this war is over, there's another one waiting for us. The agony in our hearts. Going back home and seeing everything crumbled into pieces. Gone just like the tens of thousands of Palestinian men, women and children killed in this war. I hope that my story has meant something to you. And you can think of us as human beings. not just numbers, because this is me giving you a sneak peek into hell.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHURCH: An extraordinary report there. The Israel Defense Forces say they do not target civilians and that their war is against Hamas, not the people of Gaza.

The humanitarian situation in Gaza seems to worsen by the day, with one U.N. official saying every single person in the territory is hungry. Aid groups say the fighting and communication blackouts have prevented them from safely delivering food and more than half a million people are facing catastrophic hunger. The city of Rafah, near the border with Egypt, is now housing more than a million displaced people and communicable diseases are spreading with respiratory infections and jaundice on the rise.

And I spoke earlier with Michael Fakhri, the U.N. Special Rapporteur on the right to food. He says Israel is destroying Gaza's food system and weaponizing food. I asked him to explain.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) MICHAEL FAKHRI, U.N. SPECIAL RAPPORTEUR ON THE RIGHT TO FOOD: Every single person in Gaza is hungry. One quarter of the population is starving, and famine is imminent. We've never seen a population go hungry so quickly and so completely.

And the reason is, first of all, humanitarian aid is being blocked. It's not reaching people in Gaza quickly enough and to an adequate amount. It's just trickling in.

Second, to follow up on your point, the food system is being destroyed. What we know is that Israel has destroyed 22 percent of agricultural land in northern Gaza, and as Israeli forces move south, they're destroying more and more agricultural land, greenhouses and orchards.

70 percent of fisher boats have been destroyed, so people don't have access to the sea. And this is a longstanding problem. This is -- there was a sixteen-year blockade sold dozens were experiencing food insecurity before the war so is already a precarious situation and civic infrastructure has been destroyed. People don't have the necessities of life, their homes are destroyed, hospitals are destroyed, all civil infrastructure is being destroyed. And you combine all of this and this is why we have this profound risk of famine in a way that we haven't seen before.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: As the deadly fighting between Israel and Hamas continues, so too does a dire humanitarian crisis. And CNN has gathered a list of vetted organizations that are responding on the ground. You can find details on how you can help at a special section of our website, cnn.com/impact.

A Japanese man found guilty of carrying out the country's worst mass killing in nearly two decades has been sentenced to death. The 45- year-old defendant set fire to a renowned animation studio in Kyoto back in 2019 with dozens of people inside. 36 were killed and many others wounded.

CNN's Hanako Montgomery picks up the story.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

HANAKO MONTGOMERY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: The key point of contention throughout the significant case was whether Shinji Aoba was mentally competent enough to be held criminally responsible for his crimes. Aoba and his defense argued that he wasn't, that he suffered from a psychological disorder that made it impossible for him to tell what was right from what was wrong. Aoba admitted that he committed the attack on Kyoto Animation because he believed the studio plagiarized his work.

[03:39:57]

The prosecution sought the death penalty for Aoba when the trial began last September. They argued that he was fully competent and should be held criminally responsible for setting fire to the renowned Kyoto Animation Studio in 2019 that killed 36 people and injured 32 others.

And some of these victims were young people. They were young animators who had hopes and dreams of becoming successful creators, but their lives were cut short, in which Japan's worst mass killing in nearly two decades. And this case is also significant because of where it happened. Anime is a beloved Japanese art form, both domestically and abroad. And Kyoto Animation is part of that.

Kyoto Animation created a number of notable works since its founding in 1981. So when this case happened nearly five years ago, fans all around the world mourned their favorite animators' deaths.

Hanako Montgomery, CNN, Tokyo.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHURCH: Authorities in China say a building fire that killed at least 39 people on Wednesday was caused during the improper renovation of a cold storage unit. That is according to Chinese state media.

Video from the scene in the city of Xinyu, in the country's southeast, shows huge plumes of smoke pouring out of the building as some people inside jumped to safety. Workers were refurbishing the basement area when the fire broke out and spread to other floors. The workers were reportedly using fire illegally, although officials did not explain. Authorities are holding 12 people in connection with the fire.

Trains across Germany are running late or not at all as their drivers walk a picket line for a second straight day. Still to come, a nationwide strike that threw a wrench in travel plans across the country.

Plus, France could become the first country in the world to include the right to an abortion in its constitution. Details from Paris after a short break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CHURCH: Argentina's new president is facing massive pushback on the streets against his sweeping economic reforms. On Wednesday, the nation's labor unions held a nationwide strike against the policies pushed by President Javier Milei. They include spending cuts and ending some protections for businesses and consumers while making it easier to privatize public companies.

Mr. Milei has made it his priority to tame Argentina's skyrocketing inflation. This is how some protesters reacted to his proposals.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MARTA ALGANARAZ, RETIREE (through translator): It is a national disgrace what we Argentinians are going through. A country that has everything. We have everything. We lack nothing and yet we lack everything.

FABIAN FARQUETTE, HISTORY PROFESSOR (through translator): It is important to participate because it is a way to express that the people are present. Democracy is not a statistic on election day. Democracy is every day.

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[03:45:04]

CHURCH: Some of Mr. Milei's reforms have been put on hold by the courts, while others are slowly making their way through Congress.

It is day two of a train driver's strike in Germany, which is expected to wreak havoc on travel plans and supply chains across the country. The drivers are demanding better pay and a shorter work week from the state-owned rail operator, which says the protest will cause delays and cancellations across the board from commuter services to freight transport. Some passengers have mixed feelings about the workers' action.

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UNKNOWN (through translator): I think it is important that employees stand up for their rights, but on the other side, for me personally now, this is a pain.

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CHURCH: The six-day strike is the longest in the rail operator's history.

And you are looking at live pictures from France where farmers who have been using their farm vehicles to block key roadways are vowing to keep up their protests across the country as they demand concrete responses from the government.

The roadblocks that started in one southern region last week have already spread to all four corners of France. The unions are protesting against cheap imports and government regulation. One farmer expressed his frustration with the situation.

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UNKNOWN (through translator): We like our job, we like going to the stables, but frankly, when we see what we earn in the evening, we are tired, we are at the end of our limit, and we no longer want to be, we honestly don't want to anymore.

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CHURCH: A union representative told CNN he's been talking with his counterparts in other European countries about the issues affecting farmers across the continent.

Meantime, France is now debating whether to make abortion a permanent right. On Wednesday, French lawmakers discussed a bill that would enshrine a woman's right to an abortion in France's constitution. The measure is backed by President Emmanuel Macron, who recently promised that, quote, women's freedom to have an abortion will be irreversible.

CNN's Melissa Bell is in Paris with more on France's abortion debate.

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MELISSA BELL, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A heartfelt cry on the streets of France. Just days before the U.S. Supreme Court reversed Roe vs Wade in the summer of 2022. A ruling that was to impact women in the United States but reverberate around the globe.

SARAH DUROCHER, PLANNING FAMILIAL (through translator): With what happened in the U.S., there was a strong reaction in France by politicians. Several laws were proposed and the Prime Minister came to see us here at family planning to tell us how worried she was about the right to abortion.

BELL (voice-over): A right as hard won in France as it was elsewhere. The procedure only legalized in 1975 after a battle led by the lawmaker and then health minister Simone Veil, a woman speaking to a parliament of men.

SIMONE VEIL, THEN-FRENCH HEALTH MINISTER (through translator): This is an injustice that must be stopped.

BELL (voice-over): Now France is looking to go further, making abortion a constitutional right.

EMMANUEL MACRON, FRENCH PRESIDENT (through translator): This will enshrine the freedom of women to choose abortion and to be a solemn guarantee that nothing will ever limit or abolish this right because it will have become irreversible.

BELL (voice-over): Among those supporting the move, the singer Barbara Pravi. Her own experience of abortion at 17, so traumatic that she wrote a song about it.

BARBARA PRAVI, FRENCH SINGER AND SONGWRITER: I felt very alone because the woman who took me wasn't very good actually. She was very judgeful. She was like, how old are you? Why are you here? you're not ashamed.

BELL: What difference do you think it'll make to have it inscribed in the constitution?

PRAVI: Having the right to do abortion cannot be like a condition of politics, you know. It has to be something we have and no discussion.

BELL (voice-over): Recent polls suggest that over 80 percent of the French population supports safeguarding abortion rights, but France too has its anti-abortion movement, with both sides taking to the streets over the weekend.

UNKNOWN: I'm really against it. For the doctors practicing it, for the ladies living it, for the babies dying, and even fathers.

BELL (voice-over): But for those in favor of the change, it's about putting an end to the argument once and for all.

[03:50:03]

PRAVI: If you put something in the constitution, it automatically changed people's minds. It could take maybe years, like five, six, seven, maybe ten years, but I know that my children will never think about the question about abortion.

BELL (voice-over): Barbara says she was able to put her loneliness and shame into song, but believes that France's constitutional change might help women in the future to feel neither.

Melissa Bell, CNN, Paris.

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CHURCH: We'll be back in just a moment.

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CHURCH: He's back! Comedian Jon Stewart is returning to The Daily Show. After nearly a decade away, known for his cutting criticism of politicians, he will host every Monday night as the U.S. prepares for this year's presidential election. CNN's Brian Todd has more.

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BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Late night viewers, brace yourselves for the return of Jon Stewart just in time for this year's presidential race the 61 year-old comedian returns to his former program The Daily Show on Comedy Central at least every Monday. He'll executive produce the show and work with a rotating lineup of hosts for the rest of the week.

After nearly nine years away viewers will once again experience Stewart's left leaning brand of cutting humor about politics, corporate America and the news media.

ERIK WEMPLE, WASHINGTON POST MEDIA CRITIC: I think his impact will be pretty big as far as one particular entity goes. He's always been able to jump on the absurd and really pound it and pound it.

TODD (voice-over): For 16 years as host of The Daily Show. Stewart reached an audience beyond just political junkies.

WEMPLE: Everybody watched, everybody tuned in, and a lot of people, especially young people, learned their news from The Daily Show. He was an enormous force in American society.

TODD (voice-over): Increasingly, Stewart wore his politics on his sleeve, gravitating toward interviews with figures like Senators Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren.

JON STEWART, THE DAILY SHOW HOST: They've told you nothing! SEN. ELIZABETH WARREN (D-MA): It's not that exactly.

TODD (voice-over): Stewart left the show in 2015 at the height of Donald Trump's rollicking first presidential campaign.

STEWART: What the (expletive) is wrong with him? It is hard to get mad at Donald Trump for saying stupid things. In the same way you don't get mad at a monkey when he throws poop at you at the zoo.

TODD (voice-over): Stuart turned to other projects supporting 9/11 first responders, a movie project, and a short-lived show on Apple's streaming service while the show he once helmed lost much of its viewership and its voice.

WEMPLE: In terms of a ratings vehicle which is how a lot of television execs keep score, it dropped a lot.

TODD (voice-over): Now, many Democrats are gleeful over the prospect of Stewart's potential broadsides aimed at the presumptive Republican nominee.

MARIA CARDONA, DEMOCRATIC STRATEGIST: Donald Trump is going to give Jon Stewart so much golden material that the Joe Biden campaign won't be able to put a value on it.

STEWART: Whoa. Joe Biden!

TODD (voice-over): But Biden could be a big target as well.

WEMPLE: People should remember that Stewart wasn't afraid to criticize both sides in his monologues, in his routines.

[03:55:01]

TODD: Media and political analysts say Donald Trump and his campaign will very likely do their own deep dive on Jon Stewart, try to dig up some dirt on him and some punch lines of their own to hit back at the comedian, ramping up the sheer entertainment of this campaign to new levels.

Brian Todd, CNN, Washington.

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CHURCH: Cannot wait.

Alright, tension is brewing in the special relationship between the U.S. and the U.K. over Britain's national drink, tea. It comes after a U.S. scientist wrote a book on what she believes will create the perfect cuppa. She says you need to add a tiny pinch of salt to block the perception of bitterness. This suggestion has absolutely baffled and horrified the British public and TV hosts are not afraid to fire back. Take a listen.

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KATE GARRAWAY, HOST, GOOD MORNING BRITAIN: I think the fact is she's an American making a cup of tea.

ED BALLS, HOST, GOOD MORNING BRITAIN: Which by definition means she's not an expert.

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CHURCH: Oooh. The U.S. embassy in the U.K. was quick to respond saying, We want to ensure the good people of the U.K. that the unthinkable notion of adding salt to Britain's national drink is not official United States policy and never will be. The U.S. embassy will continue to make tea in the proper way by microwaving it. More horror in Britain in response to that, no doubt.

Well, Ozzy Osbourne is planning to end his touring days with a proper goodbye to his fans with two final concerts.

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Osbourne's wife Sharon told Rolling Stone U.K. that he will perform in Birmingham, England, the city where he grew up. The 75-year-old singer has had health issues in recent years, needing several surgeries after a fall in 2019. His wife says Ozzy's voice is absolutely perfect and that he's ready to give his fans a legendary send-off.

And thank you so much for your company. I'm Rosemary Church. Have yourselves a wonderful day. CNN Newsroom continues next, with Max Foster.

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