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Haiti's Prime Minister Resigns Amid Escalating Violence; Tensions High In Jerusalem As Ramadan Begins; U.S.: Ukraine Likely To Lose Ground Without Military Aid; Former Trump Employee Unwittingly Helped Move Classified Documents; Princess of Wales Apologizes for 'Confusion' Caused by Photo. Aired 12-1a ET

Aired March 12, 2024 - 00:00   ET

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

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PAULA NEWTON, CNN ANCHOR: I'm Paula Newton. Ahead here on CNN Newsroom.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CINDY MCCAIN, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, WORLD FOOD PROGRAMME: Famine is eminent, it's eminent.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

NEWTON: Not enough food and perhaps not enough time for the people of Gaza hoping to avoid a humanitarian disaster.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BILL BURNS, CIA DIRECTOR: Ukraine is likely to lose ground and probably significant ground in 2024.

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NEWTON: New warnings about what Ukraine could face on the battlefield without more ammunition soon.

And the Princess of Wales tries to clear up confusion over a royal photo fiasco, but it's only leading to more questions.

ANNOUNCER: Live from Atlanta. This is CNN Newsroom with Paula Newton.

NEWTON: And we do have new developments just in the CNN, Haiti's Prime Minister has resigned as the violence in his country just gets worse. Officials of CARICOM, a regional bloc, say Ariel Henry submitted his resignation Monday night. This comes after regional leaders met earlier on Monday in Jamaica to discuss a framework for a peaceful political transition. The country has been plunged into crisis after powerful gangs carried out highly coordinated attacks right across the capital of Port-au-Prince since last month. Now Meantime, America's top diplomat says the U.S. will contribute $300 million for a Kenya-led multinational security mission to Haiti. Antony Blinken's announcement came after a high level emergency meeting, you see them there, in Jamaica, all of them discussing Haiti's political crisis.

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ANTONY BLINKEN, U.S. SECRETARY OF STATE: I think today's meeting on Haiti, so critical bringing CARICOM together is testament to make his leadership, leadership in the hemisphere that we share, leadership at a critical moment, a critical moment for Haiti but also a critical moment for all of us.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

NEWTON: For more, we're joined by Jacqueline Charles. She is a Caribbean correspondent for "The Miami Herald." Jacqueline, good to see you again. Listen, things are obviously dire in terms of not just what's going on in Haiti, but the solution to it. So we have that meeting with CARICOM in Jamaica. They're calling for something that's broader and more inclusive. What does that mean?

JACQUELINE CHARLES, CARIBBEAN CORRESPONDENT, MIAMI HERALD: Well, it's very interesting because I've been following this meeting all day. It started about three hours late. There were seven different proposals that were sent to CARICOM, practically overnight, they really wanted just one.

And what seems to be emerging is kind of a piecemeal of some of the different proposals. But not everybody in these meetings is happy. It got heated at some time. And I understand that they've now asked for a postponement. But what we understand is that it's leaning toward a seven member presidential panel. And when you think about this, you know, this panel is going to have the powers of the presidency.

So it's like seven presidents, it's what people are looking at this and trying to figure out what does that mean. I think what the international community learned today, that despite their criticism of the process, up until now that it's very difficult to get Haitians to arrive, you know, at a consensus, and you're not going to be able to make everybody happy.

And while they made it seemed or allowed them to believe that they were, you know, giving their opinions and they were coming at this, there was definitely a lot of nudging on the part of CARICOM leaders and the United States from individuals that I spoke to who were part of this process.

NEWTON: As you said, you know, a lot of controversy even about what's taking place at that meeting in Jamaica, and then they have to make it work on the ground. You know, the gangs and the international community actually agree on one thing, and that this needs to be a Haitian-led solution. Is that even possible, given that the gangs at this point in time, the gang leaders are looking for political power? CHARLES: Well, they're looking for political power. They're looking for amnesty. They're looking for you not to have a multinational security support mission. And one of the criterias that they had to agree to, you know, the Haitians as part of this panel was that, you know, to be supportive of this multinational security support mission.

And what's interesting is that there are a number of people or organizations that are in play, that, you know, will have gone on the record saying that they had oppose it. Now we're understanding that they've changed their position.

But the real question is, as you alluded to, is whether or not a political deal whether it's tonight or tomorrow, whether that's going to be suffice for the gangs that have basically been wreaking havoc with these coordinated violent attacks, you know, across Haiti's capital.

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NEWTON: Yes. And again, we'll remind people that in Kenya, there are, of course, a police force that was apparently in pre-deployment mode to perhaps go to Haiti to help out the police there. I have to ask you, the aid agencies say they will run out of critical supplies food, medicine within just a couple of weeks. How precarious is the situation in Haiti, given the fact that by air, land and sea now the gangs are completely in control it seems?

CHARLES: Well, you know, Haiti is such a strange place. I mean, it's volatile one minute it's up, one minute it's down. I mean, today, they were managed to get several trucks of fuel out into the capital, because they were running low with gasoline and diesel, there was just only a couple of days left.

Yesterday, the World Food Programme managed to be 200 -- 200,000 in -- the World Food Programme has managed to provide 200,000 meals to individuals. But again, we don't know what's going to happen tomorrow. We don't know what's going to happen the next day. I mean, there was a recent rat talking both about targeting the National Palace as well as the hotels of Port-au-Prince.

So again, a lot is riding on at least the international community has put a lot of weight under getting some sort of a political deal. One of the things that's clear is it isn't a seat for the gangs at the table. And, you know, what does that mean and how they're going to interpret that.

NEWTON: Yes, and we will continue to watch this, as you said, quite volatile, with things changing really by the hour. That meeting does continue in Jamaica. Jacqueline Charles for us, thanks so much. Appreciate it.

CHARLES: Thank you for having me.

NEWTON: And we do in fact, have more updates on the story. It does seem like Ariel Henry has decided that he would resign. But he's also now saying through a spokesperson that he would remain in place as prime minister, as the leader of Haiti, until some type of an interim government were formed. Now, right now there's no timetable on that would happen. But also what is key here is whether or not he wouldn't be able to even return to Haiti. That's been the problem so far as he remains in Puerto Rico.

Now to the war and situation in Gaza, Israeli officials say an offensive in the southern city of Rafah is not imminent. They say the IDF has not yet built up the forces needed for a ground incursion, and plans for civilian evacuation have not been finalized. More than 1 million people are currently sheltering in that city. Israeli officials say although a potential evacuation could take at least two weeks. And offensive into Rafah during the Islamic holy month of Ramadan, they say has not been ruled out.

Meantime, the U.N. Secretary General is calling everyone involved in the fighting to, quote, honor the spirit of Ramadan by silencing the guns and releasing all the hostages in Gaza. Antonio Guterres is also asking Israel and Hamas to return to peace or ceasefire talks.

And although the U.S. military air dropped more food and drinking water into Gaza much more, of course is needed. The World Food Programme director says famine will happen if Palestinians do not get more aid.

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MCCAIN: WFP is gravely concerned about humanitarian conditions across Gaza, particularly the north, which is in the grip of a humanitarian catastrophe. If we do not exponentially increase the size of aid going into the northern areas, famine is eminent, it's eminent.

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NEWTON: Now the situation in Gaza appears to be widening the rift between U.S. President Joe Biden and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Jeremy Diamond has more on that and new tensions in Jerusalem during this holy month of Ramadan.

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JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: He has a right to defend Israel, a right to continue to pursue Hamas. But he must, he must, he must pay more attention to the innocent lives being lost as a consequence of the actions taken.

JEREMY DIAMOND, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): President Biden's mounting frustrations with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu now bursting into full view.

BIDEN: He's hurting, in my view, he's hurting Israel more than helping Israel.

DIAMOND (voice-over): And the Israeli prime minister firing back.

BENJAMIN NETANYAHU, ISRAELI PRIME MINISTER: Well, I don't know exactly what the President meant. But if he meant by that, then I'm pursuing private policies against the majority, the wish of the majority of Israelis and that this is hurting the interests of Israel, then he is wrong in both counts.

DIAMOND (voice-over): Vowing a Rafah offensive, which Biden has cautioned against, will come.

NETANYAHU: We will go there. We're not going to leave them. You know, I have a red line. You know what the redline is? That October 7th doesn't happen again.

DIAMOND (voice-over): Israeli officials tell CNN that offensive is not imminent. More forces must still pour into Gaza, and a plan to evacuate civilians has yet to be finalized. And the holy month of Ramadan is now a key part of that backdrop.

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As Ramadan begins, tensions in Jerusalem's old city are already flaring, wielding batons, Israeli police forcefully pushing back Palestinians at a gate to the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound. It's not clear how this scene began.

But on the first night of Ramadan, CNN witnessed Israeli Police refusing allow at least two dozen mostly young Palestinian men to enter the mosque, sometimes before even checking their I.D.s.

Disturbing public security is the official reason given over and over again, without explanation.

How am I disturbing public security? What did I do wrong? This man asked the officer. I'm not going back. I want to pray. But the answer is the same.

AHMAD, DENIED ENTRY TO AL-AQSA (through translator): This is the fifth or sixth gate I try to enter from. And they didn't say anything but disturbance of public security, and they simply sent us back. My soul is connected to Al-Aqsa, depriving me from al-Aqsa as if they deprive me of water. It's very difficult for me to a level I can't even describe. I will go home. May God give you health.

DIAMOND (voice-over): Israeli police said in a statement increased inspections were carried out and that they are acting to allow freedom of worship while balancing security and safety needs. The Israeli government said last week it wouldn't impose new restrictions on entry to the mosque during at least the first week of Ramadan, allowing access to a similar number of worshippers as last year.

But these first denials raise questions about how Israeli officials will handle the tens of thousands of worshippers expected for Friday prayers, especially amid tensions over the war in Gaza.

LAMIA SALEM, JERUSALEM RESIDENT (through translator): When you decide who to enter and who not to, you are creating problems. Everyone should be free to pray inside, youth, elderly, women, and children, everyone.

DIAMOND (voice-over): Jeremy Diamond, CNN, Tel Aviv.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

NEWTON: Still to come for us, U.S. intelligence chiefs warned that Ukraine's military will lose serious ground on the front lines if it doesn't receive arms and ammunition soon. More on what they said after a break.

Plus, a plane bound for New Zealand experiences a sudden drop, sudden in midair. CNN talks to one passenger after his absolutely terrifying experience. You don't want to miss this.

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NEWTON: And we continue now with developments in the Middle East. The U.S. believes Benjamin Netanyahu may be losing his grip on power. A new intelligence report says Israel's Prime Minister is losing the trust of the public and may soon face more protests and calls for resignation. Now that frank assessment came from U.S. intelligence chiefs who presented their latest report on national security threats to the Senate on Monday. CNN's Alex Marquardt has our details.

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ALEX MARQUARDT, CNN CHIEF NATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: Monday's worldwide threats hearing is a rare annual opportunity to hear from the most senior U.S. intelligence figures together answering questions.

They hit on a whole range of topics, including, of course, Russia and Ukraine. The CIA Director Bill Burns warning that now, two years into Russia's war in Ukraine, Ukraine could gain the upper hand offensively if the U.S. sends more aid. Otherwise, he said, Ukraine could lose a significant amount of territory this year. He said Ukraine is not lacking in courage or tenacity, but in ammunition.

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BURNS: I think down one road with supplemental assistance approved by the Congress lies the very real possibility of cementing a strategic success for Ukraine and a strategic loss for Vladimir Putin's Russia.

Down another road, however, without supplemental assistance, it seems to me, lies a much grimmer future. Ukraine is likely to lose ground and probably significant ground in 2024.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MARQUARDT: China continues to support Russia's efforts in Ukraine. And this year's unclassified threat assessment said that China has more than tripled its export of goods with potential military use to Russia since Moscow launched its invasion two years ago.

Here in the United States, the terror threat, according to the FBI Director, has soared since the October 7th Hamas attacks in Israel. Director Chris Wray told the Senate Intelligence Committee that it's on a whole other level now, a combination of different kinds of potential terrorist actors, both foreign and domestic.

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CHRISTOPHER WRAY, FBI DIRECTOR: It's the first time I've seen in a long, long time the threats from homegrown violent extremists, that is, jihadist inspired extremists, domestic violent extremists, foreign terrorist organizations and state sponsored terrorist organizations all being elevated at one time. Since October 7th, though, that threat has gone to a whole nether level.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MARQUARDT: And as a result of Israel's war in Gaza, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's grip on power is slipping, according to this intelligence report. His viability as a leader is in jeopardy because distrust has deepened across Israeli society, it says. According to the intelligence community, a different, more moderate government is a possibility.

Monday's hearing was the first of two days. On Tuesday morning, the intelligence chiefs will face the Intelligence Committee of the House of Representatives for more questioning.

Alex Marquardt, CNN, Washington.

NEWTON: David Sanger is a CNN political and national security analysts, a White House and national security correspondent as well, for The New York Times, also the author of "The Perfect Weapon." And he joins us now from Washington. Good to have your insights on this. The intelligence assessment was categorical, right? And yet, the U.S. seems no closer to providing aid to Ukraine. Do you see anything changing that in the next few weeks?

DAVID SANGER, CNN POLITICAL & NATIONAL SECURITY ANALYST: You know, you hear a couple of theories back and forth, Paula, about what might change it and ways that the Democrats might find a way to get around the opposition of some of the House leaders and get this to a vote. I don't think there's much doubt that if this come -- if Ukraine aid comes to a direct vote in the House of Representatives, it will pass probably by a fairly wide margin.

But the problem is getting it there. And that's why there's all this discussion of procedural methods that will work its way around. I think there are a lot of Republicans who are quite concerned about being tagged as basically the folks who are siding with Putin on the work. And I think many of them are finding themselves deeply uncomfortable with that. But there's a fairly small but significant group that is fundamentally taking their signals from former President Trump and saying this is not the United States' role to be involved in the aid Ukraine at all.

NEWTON: Do you think the threat assessment though today move the needle a bit?

SANGER: Maybe a bit because the intelligence community is supposed to be, you know, fairly impartial here. I don't think anything that you heard from the CIA Director Bill Burns, or the Director of National Intelligence, Avril Haines, was a surprise on this point. They basically said the Ukrainians are running low on ammunition. The Russians are producing it at a higher rate. If there is no aid, you can expect the Ukrainians to lose ground.

NEWTON: And to follow up on that, David, you know, CNN has reported that Russia appears on track to produce nearly three times more artillery munitions than the U.S. and Europe. Even more startling, you know, Ukraine's rationing, CNN has reported on that from the frontlines, Russia is firing five times more shells each and every day for now. Yes, we know the effect it has on the battlefield, but their political consequences aren't there.

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SANGER: There are. Those numbers, which are pretty consistent with what we've been finding in our own reporting at The New York Times and elsewhere, is that the Russians are shooting in the range of 10,000 artillery rounds a day, that's pretty wild, to 2000 by the Ukrainians. So there are a couple of factors that are in place here.

First of all, there's more production ramping up in the United States at the big facility in Scranton, which is right near where President Biden grew up, it's actually just a few miles from the house he grew up in. And in Europe, I've just been in Berlin for several months. And there's a new facility that is ramping up as well in Germany. But these won't be coming online with significant production until probably early next year, maybe the middle of next year. And the question is, do the Ukrainians have a future that's that long.

And the problem is not just artillery. It's also that with the absence of funding, you can't get the air defenses to the Ukrainians, and that's what they need to take down the drones and missiles.

NEWTON: Yes, absolutely. And before I let you go, David, you know, Trump met with Hungarian leader on the weekend, Viktor Orban, and he said that part out loud, right, that he said, if Trump is reelected, he won't give a penny in his words to Ukraine.

SANGER: He may well be right. You've heard others even other Republicans say that that's not the case. I have no reason to believe that President Trump's view on this has changed. I remember when we interviewed him on foreign policy in 2016. During his first run for president, he made the argument that this was the Europeans problem, and they needed to care about it more than the U.S. did.

Well, the Europeans are now largely stepped up. The E.U. was just announced $54 billion over four years for the reconstruction work in Ukraine, but they simply don't have the military capacity to go give the Ukrainians what they want, and the U.S. does. And it'll be a really interesting historical question if Ukraine loses territory or has to come to a badly negotiated settlement with the Russians, of whether that fell in the hands of the U.S. Congress. President Trump and his advocates would say this is not what the United States needs to be doing. Former Republicans, George W. Bush Republicans would have argued that's exactly what the U.S. needs to be doing. NEWTON: And we shall see David Sanger for us, thanks so much, really appreciate it.

SANGER: Good to be with you.

NEWTON: And for more insight now, CNN's Nick Paton Walsh got a firsthand look at the dire situation on the ground. He was riding with Ukrainian medics to the front line and they say Russian forces have of course more weapons, but also more soldiers on the battlefield. Take a look.

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NICK PATON WALSH, CHIEF INTERNATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT (voice- over): Light is also their enemy here. Daylight brings the threat of attack drones, so it's hard to collect casualties from the front line. Dark is when they bring most wounded out. To medics hiding in the tree line.

The other light flashes from enormous bombs hitting the village of Orlivka and around. A tiny place of outsized consequence. It's Ukraine's defensive line, but Russia is raging hard for a breakthrough. The flash is constant. A seven-mile slog from there to here for the wounded.

MAKSIM, COMBAT MEDIC, 59TH INFANTRY BRIGADE (through translated text): There was a lot this morning. Six or four. But there were heavily injured. It depends on the day. Right now, it's relatively few. The Russians have more vehicles, more weapons, more men, and that's the biggest problem.

WALSH (voice-over): They wait underground for the radio to say who, when, where. It feels almost mundane. Often hours of silence. The thump of shelling hidden by a T.V. series.

ARTEM, COMBAT MEDIC, 59TH INFANTRY BRIGADE (through translated text): Drones are a huge problem. We rarely execute during daylight. Mostly at night. We try to extract the heavily injured during the day too.

[00:25:08]

WALSH (voice-over): Then it is time.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translated text): One wounded to pick up.

ARTEM (through translated text): What's the condition? When and who delivers?

WALSH (voice-over): They never really know what they'll find until they get there. And they too are targets. But along this eastern front, these slick routines carry on. Minus one key thing, hope.

WALSH: Because of the intensity of the fighting here, this happens all night, every night. The desperate race to use dark, the cover of night, to get the wounded to hospital as fast as possible. Here comes some more. UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translated text): Put the camera away! Put it away!

WALSH (voice-over): From one Humvee to another, the wounded of a war they're losing because the U.S. is dropping out.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translated text): I don't see blood. Roll the sleeve, brother.

WALSH (voice-over): The force of a blast appears to have broken his upper arm.

UNKNOWN MALE (through translated text): It's my bone.

UNKNOWN MALE (through translated text): Yes, I can see it.

WALSH (voice-over): It's going to be a painful drive until the drugs kick in.

UNKNOWN MALE (through translated text): Bodya! Drive slowly, no potholes, please.

WALSH (voice-over): He says he only had stitches out four days ago from another injury, a Russian attack drone ripping into their armored vehicle two weeks ago.

One of the five men hit inside then is still in hospital. Tonight it was also drones.

UNKNOWN MALE (through translated text): We were running four kilometers. Under the drones, under everything. They were waiting for us as soon as we arrived. Our two groups were pinned down by drones. The medivac was coming but we can't see it. It's also being shelled with everything they have. I just heard a bang right on my side. I fell down inside the Humvee couldn't feel my hand couldn't move the fingers. So the arm is still there, in its place.

UNKNOWN MALE (through translated text): Can they fix it?

UNKNOWN MALE (through translated text): Yes, there is nothing serious. You are lucky the artery isn't damaged.

WALSH (voice-over): When they get to the hospital, all is blacked out and we cannot even film the doors. Russia is scouring the front lines for any part of the medical chain to hit, to make help harder and further away, just like American money.

Nick Paton Walsh, CNN, near Orlivka, Ukraine.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

NEWTON: Next for us, speaking out about working for Donald Trump, an ex-Mar-a-Lago staffer breaks his silence about the classified documents case speaks exclusively with CNN.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) NEWTON: And a warm welcome back. You are watching CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Paula Newton.

[00:30:34]

Now to a CNN exclusive. A former longtime employee at Donald Trump's Florida resort is speaking publicly about the classified documents case for the very first time.

Known in court documents as Trump Employee Five, Brian Butler worked at Mar-a-Lago for 20 years. He says he doesn't believe the criminal case against Trump is a witch hunt, as the former president has claimed. But Butler says he believes Americans should know the truth about his ex-boss.

CNN's Katelyn Polantz has our details now from West Palm Beach, Florida.

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KATELYN POLANTZ, CNN SENIOR CRIME AND JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT: Brian Butler is Trump Employee Five in the criminal indictment of the former president brought by the special counsel's office. That indictment accuses Donald Trump of maintaining classified records, mishandling them at his Mar-a-Lago estate.

And the reason that Brian Butler is so pivotal in that indictment is that he heard things and he saw things. One of the things that he saw, he's now saying publicly to CNN, he previously told investigators about.

That is June 3rd, 2022. That's the day that the FBI and Justice Department visited Mar-a-Lago to get a hold of all of the classified records that Trump wasn't turning back over to the federal government, putting them back into the federal government's possession after he left the presidency.

On that day, when the FBI and Justice Department visited Mar-a-Lago to pick up everything, that was a day the boxes of classified documents essentially went out the backdoor.

Brian Butler spoke about Walt Nauta, the body man to Donald Trump, spoke about him to Kaitlin Collins, about how Nauta asked him, oddly, to borrow an Escalade, a car that later was used to move boxes and that Brian Butler used that car at the airport here in Palm Beach to take boxes and put them on the plane. Here's a little more from that.

BRIAN BUTLER, FORMER MAR-A-LAGO EMPLOYEE: And then what happened is Walt left before me, and he never goes directly to the plane. He's either in the motorcade when he goes there with the boss, which -- the former president.

And I remember telling him he left the club with I didn't know what he had in his vehicle, but he waited for me at a nearby business. And I told him I would tell him when I was leaving Mar-a-Lago.

So I left Mar-a-Lago. I texted him, Hey, I'm on my way.

He followed me. He pulled out and got behind me. We got to the airport. I ended up loading all the luggage I had, and he had a bunch of boxes.

KAITLAN COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR: You noticed that he had boxes.

BUTLER: Oh, yes. They were the boxes that were in the indictment, the white banker's boxes. That's what I remember loading.

COLLINS: And did you have any time -- any idea at the time that there was potentially U.S. national security secrets in those boxes?

BUTLER: No clue. No. I had no clue. I mean, we were just taking them out of the Escalade, piling them up. I remember they were all stacked on top of each other. And then we're lifting them up to the pilots.

POLANTZ: So that's Butler speaking about the movement of documents here in West Palm Beach, Florida, onto the Trump plane in June, a pivotal moment in the investigation.

But he then becomes privy to conversations after that that were just as important, conversations he was having with a best friend of his, someone he worked with at the Mar-a-Lago club for 20 years and now has had to cut off contact with --

POLANTZ (voice-over): -- because that man, Carlos de Oliveira, is a co-defendant of Donald Trump's in this investigation.

Two times he had suspicious conversations with Carlos de Oliveira that are now part of the Trump indictment, that piece of paper that the Justice Department has taken through a grand jury and will try to get a conviction from whenever they take this case to trial --

POLANTZ: -- in that Brian Butler was speaking about how Carlos, his dear friend, told him that another man working with Trump, a third co- defendant of theirs, was interested in the surveillance tapes of Mar- a-Lago, how long they would be kept potentially. They are accused of wanting to delete them, those surveillance tapes of them moving boxes.

He also spoke about Carlos de Oliveira being loyal to Trump whenever he was asked by people around Trump, would he be loyal or is he good? And Brian Butler told the Trump camp that his friend Carlos would be loyal. Here's a little bit more there.

BUTLER: You know, he takes the call. We're standing in the food court. I think we went to sit down. And he -- I can't remember how long the conversation was, but I know at the end of the conversation when they hung up, Carlos said, "He's going to get me an attorney."

[00:35:08]

COLLINS: Did he tell you anything else that Trump said to him?

BUTLER: I didn't ask, and I don't remember him saying anything else. But you know, I was just told not that long -- not, you know, too long before we're getting him an attorney by Walt. And then he gets the call that he's going to give them the attorney.

POLANTZ: So now de Oliveira, Walt Nauta, the second co-defendant, and Donald Trump are all headed to trial here in the federal court in Florida.

Brian Butler is a likely witness to be called at trial to testify against these men. And he's saying that he's wanted to do this, because he wants the truth to come out.

Katelyn Polantz, CNN, West Palm Beach, Florida.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

NEWTON: Still to come for us, the Princess of Wales apologizes for a family photo that was digitally altered, but her comments have done little to quiet the speculation surrounding her health.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

NEWTON: Authorities in New Zealand are investigating what's been described as a sudden mid-air drop on a LATAM Airlines flight which injured dozens of people Monday.

Now, a Boeing 787 Dreamliner headed from Sydney to Auckland suffered what the airline is calling a technical event, adding the plane experienced a strong shake during the flight.

And one man on board tells CNN the pilot checked on passengers after landing and said he lost control of the plane after his gauges malfunctioned. Here's how that passenger described what happened.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BRIAN JOKAT, PASSENGER ON LATAM AIRLINES FLIGHT LA800: It was -- it was -- it was like a scene out of a movie, where actually -- you're actually in the movie.

I had dozed off and, luckily, had my seat belt engaged. And the next thing you know, the plane as I've kind of looked, kind of learn to understand, dropped something to the effect of 500 feet instantly. And then have the effect of it coming like a roller coaster and then started to point down.

And that's when it -- and I opened my eyes, and there was various individuals at the top of the plane just stuck to the roof, and then they fell to the floor.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

NEWTON: Sounds terrifying.

An ambulance service in Auckland says about 50 people were treated for injuries, including one who remains in serious condition.

Catherine, the Princess of Wales, is apologizing for the, quote, "confusion" caused after releasing a photograph of her and her three children Sunday.

[00:40:05]

Major news outlets quickly withdrew the picture after discovering it had been manipulated.

While Kensington Palace has released somewhat of an explanation for the mishap, it's done little to quiet concerns about Catherines health. CNN's Richard Quest breaks down the controversy.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

RICHARD QUEST, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT/ANCHOR (voice-over): It was the picture that was meant to put to rest worries about Kate.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This photo of the Princess of Wales and her children has now been pulled from circulation.

QUEST (voice-over): Only hours after the photo was released on Mother's Day in the U.K., the Associated Press news agency was the first to withdraw it, using what they call a kill notification.

The A.P. said, "At closer inspection, it appears that the source has manipulated the image." By "source," they mean the princess.

The problem is Princess Charlotte's sleeve isn't where it should be.

ERIC BARADAT, DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY, AFP: We have experts, Photoshop experts, like the guys sitting behind me, that it doesn't take a second for them to see that the image was altered and manipulated.

QUEST: And her hair ends abruptly. The zipper on Kate's sweater is misaligned.

QUEST (voice-over): The other big agencies, Reuters and AFP, were quick to issue their own kill notices, telling news outlets not to use the image.

Then, more than 24 hours after she posted it, the Princess of Wales apologized, saying, "Like many amateur photographers, I do occasionally experiment with editing."

At one level, this is nothing more than an amateur photographer getting it wrong.

But the underlying issue is the fact that the Princess of Wales has not been seen since having unspecified abdominal surgery back in January.

This grainy photograph taken on Monday as Kate traveled to a private appointment with William, is one of the few images that's surfaced since then.

We don't know what editing she did. And the palace haven't released the unedited version. So is this just an amateur photographer's learning experience, or is there something more to the picture that's fueled a thousand words of speculation?

Richard Quest, CNN, New York.

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NEWTON: I'm Paula Newton. I'll be back at the top of the hour with more CNN NEWSROOM. But first, WORLD SPORT starts right after a quick break.

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