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Netanyahu Under Pressure Amid Iran Attack And War In Gaza; Israel-Iran Tensions Raise Fears Of Wider Conflict In Region; Israeli War Cabinet Divided On Response To Iran Strikes; Zelenskyy Pleads For Air Defenses As Russia Strikes Chernihiv; Afghanistan And Pakistan Enduring Deadly Rains And Flooding; Foreign Ministers Meet in Capri, Italy to Discuss Middle East, Ukraine, and Possible Sanctions Against Iran; Trump and Polish President Discuss NATO Spending, Ukraine; Third Night of Protests in Georgia Amid Reading of Controversial Bill; Bangladeshi Show "SS Food Challenge" Tries to Reduce Hunger; North Korea Unveils New Song in Honor of Kim Jong Un. Aired 2-2:45a ET
Aired April 18, 2024 - 02:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
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[02:00:25]
KIM BRUNHUBER, CNN ANCHOR: Warm welcome to all of you watching us around the world and streaming us on CNN Max. I'm Kim Brunhuber. This is CNN NEWSROOM.
Thanks, but no thanks. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu rebuffs allies calls for restraint against Iran, saying Israel will make its own decisions. After months of political deadlock, U.S. lawmakers appear poised to vote on fresh age for Israel and Ukraine, but could it end up costing House Speaker Mike Johnson his job.
And unrest in Georgia after lawmakers approved an early draft of a controversial bill that critics are calling repressive and progression.
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ANNOUNCER: Live from Atlanta. This is CNN NEWSROOM with Kim Brunhuber.
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BRUNHUBER: We begin in the Middle East where world leaders are trying to prevent a wider conflict in the region after Iran's retaliatory attack on Israel. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met with the British and German foreign ministers in Jerusalem on Wednesday.
While he said he appreciates their government support, he told an Israeli Cabinet meeting that Israel will respond to the Iranian strikes, however, it sees fit. Listen to this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BENJAMIN NETANYAHU, ISRAEL PRIME MINISTER (through translator): I thank our friends for their support for the defense of Israel. And I say this, both support in words and support in actions. They also have all kinds of suggestions and advice. I appreciate it, but I want to make it clear, we will make our own decisions and the state of Israel to do everything necessary to defend itself.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BRUNHUBER: Now, that message from the prime minister may be due in part to pressure from within his own coalition government, specifically Israel's far-right finance minister Bezalel Yoel Smotrich, who has openly called for a military response with a "disproportionate toll" that would, "rock" Tehran to deter any future strikes." But it appears most Israelis don't share his opinion.
A Hebrew University poll conducted soon after the Iranian attack found 74 percent of Israelis are opposed to a counterstrike on Iran if it would harm relations with Israel's allies.
Now, Benjamin Netanyahu was already facing growing calls to resign from many Israelis, fed up with his handling of the war in Gaza. And that was before Iran's unprecedented attack.
As CNN's Nic Robertson reports, the pressure on Netanyahu and his government has perhaps never been greater.
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NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR (voice-over): As protesters in Tel Aviv were trying to unseat Israel's prime minister, Saturday, demanding he stop the war in Gaza, allow the release of hostages, Iran was launching attack drones towards them.
The two things are not disconnected. Iran appears to think Benjamin Netanyahu is vulnerable, unpopular at home, increasingly alienated from his ironclad ally, America.
GERSHON BASKIN, FORMER HOSTAGE NEGOTIATOR: He has created so much damage to our society. The sacrificing of hostages is the kind of harm that will take a generation or more for Israeli society to heal from.
ROBERTSON (voice over): Gershon Baskin negotiated Israel's last major hostage deal with Hamas. The release of IDF soldier Gilad Shalit in 2011. He fears Netanyahu isn't negotiating in good faith.
BASKIN: He wants to prolong the war because he knows on the day that this war is over, and the Commission of Inquiry, headed by a Supreme Court Judge will be formed that will hold him responsible for what happened on October 7th, and for what led up to October 7th.
ROBERTSON: The hostage issue is just one of many pulling the country apart. The prime minister says there will be an inquiry once the war is over.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Prime Minister Netanyahu, you have to be strong.
ROBERTSON (voice over): A true government rallies attitudes are uncompromising, risking alienation with America by shunning us demands.
ROBERTSON: What they are saying, 33,000 Palestinians is too many. They will be killed.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There'll be -- we want 5,000 -- 100,000 people.
(CROSSTALK)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: No. In World War II, there was Nagasaki, there was Hiroshima, that America wanted to win the war.
ROBERTSON: They are calling here for more people to come out on the street and support the prime minister, telling him to be strong. But the reality, according to independent polling here, is that only 52 percent of the people believe the prime minister can bring the hostages' home. This is a divided country.
[02:05:02]
ROBERTSON (voice over): Six months after Hamas's brutal attack, the Nova Music Festival site, where more than 350 people were slaughtered by the terror group has become a memorial.
Oma Kadmon, whose brother was killed, came back, says she feels the lost more now.
OMA KADMON, BROTHER KILLED ON OCTOBER 7: There is one solution, very clear, very simple. But it's not politically correct, so --
(CROSSTALK)
ROBERTSON: What's your solution.
KADMON: Therefore, clean all Gaza.
(CROSSTALK)
ROBERTSON: Love of Gaza.
It is everyone support you.
KADMON: I know it's impossible, but this is my wish, you know.
ROBERTSON (voice over): Israel's war in Gaza has so far claimed the lives of more than 33,000 people, according to the health ministry there, and triggered a humanitarian crisis of catastrophic proportions.
Baskin gets Israelis anger, says, they are still living in the trauma of October 7th. But that won't bring peace.
BASKIN: The ultimate victory over Hamas, it's not military, it's political. It's when the Palestinians have freedom and dignity.
ROBERTSON (voice over): Iran's missiles that impacted Sunday might focus minds. Israel's enemies are exploiting divisions, or it could deepen the wedge this debate over how to respond drags on.
Nic Robertson, CNN, Jerusalem.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BRUNHUBER: And joining me now is Yaakov Katz, senior columnist and editor at The Jerusalem Post. Thank you so much for being here with us.
So, I just want to start with what we just saw and heard there. What do you make of the external divisions in Israel that are playing into not just the war against Hamas, but also possibly the attack by Iran?
YAAKOV KATZ, SENIOR COLUMNIST AND EDITOR, THE JERUSALEM POST: There is no question, Kim, that Israel is really at a divisive point at the moment. And we have to remember that when the war broke out with Hamas on October 7th, they came on the heels of about a year of a severe rupture within Israeli society over proposed judicial reform, if you recall that the prime minister and his coalition were trying to push through.
But I don't think that this is all just about what's happening internally, right. Israel today is the country that is most attacked and most threatened in the world. We have five active fronts as we speak, where Israel's being attacked. Hamas in Gaza, Hezbollah in Lebanon, where you had 18 soldiers just yesterday, severely wounded from anti-tank missiles and suicide drones.
We have the Houthis in Yemen, who are firing still drones and missiles into Israel. And of course, Iran and Iraqi, and Syrian militias.
So, this is -- this is a country that is facing the gravest external threats, I think today on the globe.
BRUNHUBER: Internally, though, the war Cabinet itself is divided as well, the prime minister, the defense minister, and the former head of the military, how are the divisions and the lack of trust between them affecting the decision making on what to do about Iran's retaliatory attack?
KATZ: Israel faces like you said, Kim, a very serious dilemma of what to do when it comes to what Iran did this past Sunday morning, when it launched hundreds of drones and cruise missiles and ballistic missiles at Israel. The first direct unprecedented attack from Iranian territory against the Jewish state of Israel.
And the Cabinet is divided because on the one hand, there are people who were almost what were five, six days into this almost, and Israel has yet to retaliate. People are concerned, legitimately, I think that this policy of containment, if not retaliating will only invite Iran to think that it can do this again.
On the other hand, there are those within the Cabinet who are listening to what the Americans, and the British, and the French, and other G7 friends of Israel are telling us, which is, don't retaliate. The interception of those missiles and drones was a win, you're able to do it successfully with this new collective regional alliance, which involves the Jordanians and the Saudis and others. That's the big win to show in defiance of Iran that the region stands together, don't escalate things and focus on what you have to do, which is finish up the Gaza Strip.
So, Netanyahu is really trying to thread a very difficult needle, I would say, through this whole situation, on the one hand, wrap up the war in Gaza, and the other hand, make sure that Iran learns a lesson, it can't do this again.
BRUNHUBER: Yes. And then, you talked about threading the needle, there also domestic calculations in terms of timing, right?
KATZ: No, without a doubt. I mean, you know, Israel today, we have 2 million Israeli schoolchildren who are on vacation, because Passover starts Monday night, so, they've already gone on holiday break. The whole country, at least of the 7 million Jews in this country will be sitting down Monday night for what's known as the Seder. Right?
[02:10:03]
That festive Passover meal, as Jews gather around the world that will also be taking place here.
Is this the time you want to maybe gamble and go to a larger, widespread conflict with Iran that could also engage his blood in Lebanon, and then people instead of sitting at that Seder meal, they'll be sitting in their bomb shelters, right, and trying to hunker down in face of another onslaught of Iranian and Hezbollah missiles.
So, this is definitely another calculation. But I have to say, Kim, is that I think Israelis look at this whole situation, then, they understand something very simple. It's not normal, what's going on here. It's not normal that Israel is attacked every single day on multiple fronts.
It's not normal, that there is a country called Iran which has fired hundreds of missiles and drones into Israeli territory. And yes, they were intercepted, but they need to be looked at as if each one landed, damaged, and killed people.
Just because a bullet was shot doesn't mean -- and it didn't hurt you, it doesn't mean it wasn't shot, it was still fired. And therefore, Israelis realized that this situation is not tenable, and it needs to change. And we want the world to stand with us to make a change.
BRUNHUBER: Yes, but I mean, poll suggests that Israelis, you know, what 74 percent of them don't want to a retaliation that would jeopardize its relationship with its allies. I mean, you talked about these calls for moderation from the U.S. and also its allies within the region.
So, what is your sense? Do you think that they will listen to those calls?
KATZ: Look, this is a severe problem, I think that we suffer from at the moment. And this is a lack of trust that we have between our government here in Jerusalem, and let's say the Biden administration in Washington and other governments around the world.
It's no secret that there is a tension. And there is a tenuous relationship today between Prime Minister Netanyahu and President Joe Biden. And this has to do with past grievances and maybe the form of the Israeli coalition and the right-wing bent and the judicial reform.
But whatever it is, when you don't have that basic trust, which you need between a prime minister and a president, you need between two governments, especially when facing the magnitude and scope of threats that Israel faces. That's going to be a handicap. And I think that, that contributes to this lack of decisiveness that we're seeing right now in how to respond to retaliate potentially to Iran.
So, definitely, there is a lot of blame to go around and it falls on all the sides here when it comes to what's happening.
BRUNHUBER: All right, we'll have to leave it there, but always appreciate your analysis. Yaakov Katz in Jerusalem. Thank you so much.
KATZ: Thank you.
BRUNHUBER: Officials in Gaza report multiple casualties from the latest Israeli airstrikes, including nine people killed in Gaza City. Israeli military says its planes eliminated a number of terrorists and destroyed terrorist infrastructure in central Gaza. The targets included launching posts and booby-trap structures.
Another Israeli airstrike and Rafah killed seven Palestinians, according to Civil Defense officials in Gaza. CNN has reached out to the IDF for comment. People sheltering in Rafah say they were told to evacuate to the city, where they would be safe.
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MOHAMED ABO LUBDA, RESIDENT, RAFAH (through translator): The destruction in Rafah. Every day there is targeting in Rafah. Every day. Daily, there is targeting in Rafah. There is no safe place. Not in Rafah, nor in Khan Yunis, or in Gaza, and not in the entire Gaza Strip.
They brought the displaced to Rafah, and as you can see the targeting. Every day there is targeting in Rafah.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BRUNHUBER: A new statement from UNICEF details just how deadly the war on Gaza has been for children. Now we just want to warn you the video here is especially graphic.
UNICEF says nearly 14,000 children had been killed since the war started on October 7th. Another U.N. group reports one child in Gaza dies or is injured every 10 minutes. 19,000 children in Gaza are now orphans. To end that suffering in Gaza, Qatar has been acting as mediator to reach an agreement for a temporary ceasefire in the enclave and to release Israeli hostages held by Hamas.
But now, the country's prime minister says it's planning a comprehensive evaluation of its role because its efforts are being misused by some for "narrow" political gains.
Now, he didn't point anyone out by name, but said the role of a mediator is limited when parties are unwilling to compromise.
Ukraine has struck a Russian airfield in occupied Crimea. And that's according to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who says the target was on the northern end of the peninsula.
A local pro-Ukraine resistance groups says, a Russian air defense system and a command post were hit.
Meanwhile, Ukraine is reeling from a Russian missile strike in the northern city of Chernihiv.
Officials say at least 18 people were killed in the attack early Wednesday, and close to 80 others injured.
[02:15:00]
The strike damaged the hospital in more than 20 apartment buildings. President Zelenskyy says it wouldn't have happened if Ukraine had enough air defenses to fight back.
He also urged allies to ramp up their weapons production. Here he is.
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VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY, PRESIDENT OF UKRAINE (through translator): This is time that everyone in Europe, in the free world, needs to use to strengthen for more arms production, for more arm supplies, for the termination in general. The normal life of the world is based on determination. And Europe can definitely not lose this time for the sake of our common security.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BRUNHUBER: Now, Ukraine could be one step closer to getting the aid it's been asking for. On Wednesday, U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson said he'll put a $61 billion package up for a vote on Saturday.
It's a bill his Republican colleagues have blocked for months and hardliners are again warning the move could cost Johnson his job.
Here is CNN's Manu Raju reports.
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MANU RAJU, CNN CHIEF CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice over): Speaker Mike Johnson's decision to set up a high stakes Saturday night vote and rely on Democrats to prove aid to Ukraine, now putting his job on the line.
REP. MATT GAETZ (R-FL): There is no other way to describe it. It's surrender. It's disappointing.
REP. TIM BURCHETT (R-TN): I'm very disappointed. I just think the Speaker needs to get home and listen to our vice.
REP. CHIP ROY (R-TX): I'm well past the point of giving grace here.
RAJU: Is it the time for him to get out of office?
ROY: I need -- I need a little bit more time today, but it's not good.
RAJU: Do you have confidence in him?
ROY: It's not good.
RAJU: Will you vote to vacate him?
REP. ERIC BURLISON (R-MO): I haven't made up my mind yet. And he's pushing us to the brink.
RAJU (voice over): Marjorie Taylor Greene, who is leading the charge to oust Johnson says she's still weighing when to force a vote. But says support for her effort is on the rise.
REP. MARJORIE TAYLOR GREENE (R-GA): It is growing. And I think some people are becoming more angry than I am. I don't know how long people are going to tolerate this because he's doing nothing but serving the Democrats.
RAJU (voice over): Johnson defending his plan.
REP. MIKE JOHNSON (R-LA): I'm operating with the smallest margin in U.S. history.
The only way to get a rule on the floor is that it requires a couple of Democrats.
RAJU: Johnson's move came after he shelved the Senate's $95 billion aid package for more than two months. Instead, he decided to split that aid package up into several pieces. And to add to it, other policy measures, such as a loan for Ukraine aid and a potential ban on TikTok.
Yet the House is expected to tie those bills together in one big package and send it back to the Senate for final approval.
The House will vote on a separate border security bill that won't be included in the final package that will be sent to the Senate, all of which a major rebuke to his right flank.
That includes Congressman Thomas Massie, the second Republican to join the effort to oust him.
REP. THOMAS MASSIE (R-KY): The strategy is not to try. I think the strategy is to fall on a sword.
RAJU (voice over): But with just two votes to spare, Johnson will need Democrats to salvage the bill, something likely to happen with President Biden announcing the support.
Now, the question, will Democrats save Johnson's job?
RAJU: Does he still deserve to be saved if it comes to it?
TOM SUOZZI, (D-NY): Well, I've already committed to do that. The bottom line is we have to show that these -- this chaos caucus does not have the power they think they have.
REP. DON DAVIS (D-NC): I'll put it this way that the Speaker is -- the thing as working in the better interest of American people, I would definitely consider --
RAJU (voice over): All as many Republicans warning hardliners not to seek Johnson's ouster.
REP. DAN CRENSHAW (R-TX): They want Russia to win so badly that they want to oust the Speaker over it, I think they want to be in the minority to -- everything.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
RAJU (on camera): Now, Democrats are not united on the idea of saving Mike Johnson as Speaker. In fact, Pramila Jayapal, who is the leader of the progressives told me that she would not support this idea, because she's concerned about his conservative ideology. And other one, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, told me that they need to extract more concessions from Johnson before Democrats should entertain that idea. And Democrats themselves will meet at 9:00 a.m. Eastern, Thursday morning to discuss how to proceed.
Manu Raju, CNN, Capitol Hill.
BRUNHUBER: All right. Still to come, torrential rains and flooding have killed more than 100 people in Pakistan and Afghanistan. We'll show you the damage the severe weather left behind. That's coming up. Stay with us.
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[02:21:23]
BRUNHUBER: The United Arab Emirates and neighboring countries are trying to recover from deadly downpours that drenched the region. This was the UAE's heaviest rainfall in 75 years or since records have been kept. At least one person was killed there, after his vehicle was swept away.
Meanwhile, there's a huge backlog of travelers at the Dubai International Airport, the world's second busiest. Inbound, international flights are being allowed to land again after many were delayed diverted or canceled and in the neighboring Oman, at least, 18 people were killed by flash flooding. According to state media, some of the victims were schoolchildren.
The death toll continues to rise in Afghanistan after heavy rains and the flooding there. Afghan officials say, at least, 70 people have died so far, with dozens more injured and thousands of homes damaged. The deadly weather is also affecting Pakistan, where at least 40 deaths have been reported.
CNN meteorologist Allison Chinchar has details.
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ALLISON CHINCHAR, CNN METEOROLOGIST (voice over): Streets completely flooded. Thousands of acres damaged and scores of people dead across Pakistan and Afghanistan due to heavy rainfall.
This week, the region has seen an unprecedented amount of rain, including extreme floods in the UAE, Bahrain, Oman, and Iran.
In neighboring countries, Pakistan and Afghanistan, the damage has up ended people's lives.
SHER RAHMAT, RESIDENT, PESHAWAR, PAKISTAN (through translator): We took the children and escaped with them. The flood has damaged the walls of our home and all our things have been washed out with the water. I have no clothes to wear. We now have just a few kitchen items. All things have been washed away.
ZUBAIR ALI, MAYOR, PESHAWAR, PAKISTAN: Most of the people here have livestock and farming businesses. Now, this is all damaged because of the flood.
DOST NABI, RESIDENT, LAL-PUR DISTRICT, AFGHANISTAN (through translator): People are taking out their animals and belongings from under the mud. And people suffered huge losses. All the walls of the houses have been destroyed and need to be rebuilt.
CHINCHAR (voice over): Afghanistan alone has been reeling from terrible natural disasters in the last year. In October, a deadly earthquake killed over 2,000 people, and a harsh winter left more than 150 dead.
The heavy downpours are unusual for the region this time of year as Pakistan typically experiences monsoon season from June through September.
Authorities are bracing for the intense rainfall to continue throughout the weekend. Impacting mainly the southern region of the country. Pakistan ranks as one of the most climate vulnerable nations in the world, although, it is only responsible for less than one percent of the world's planet warming emissions.
Allison Chinchar, CNN.
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BRUNHUBER: It's been a year since the start of Sudan's brutal civil war and aid agencies are warning the country is on the brink of collapse. The humanitarian group Islamic Relief says many young children could soon starve to death in a crisis that's largely been ignored by the rest of the world.
CNN's Larry Madowo has our report.
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LARRY MADOWO, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice over): 14,000 killed, more than 8 million people forcibly displaced from their homes. Accusations of rape, murder, and horrific abuses. Sudan is on the brink, begging the world to see what's happening and send real help.
BASHIR AWAD, SUDANESE RESIDENT (through translator): All countries of the world are busy with the rest of the world. But we are third world countries. No one is concerned about us. That is why we all suffered.
[02:25:04]
MADOWO (voice over): Suffering so grave that half the population need humanitarian aid.
A brutal war between the Sudanese Armed Forces and a rival paramilitary group, the Rapid Support Forces, just entered its second year.
Nothing was spared, and civilians trapped in the conflict zone are traumatized.
DR. MAYMOUNA AL-BAKRI, RESIDENT OF SUDAN (through translator): We were inside our house when we were looted, robbed and beaten. All of this happened to us.
MADOWO (voice-over): The U.S. is the largest donor of humanitarian aid to Sudan. And just days ago, Washington pledged another $100 million in emergency aid, bringing the total amount donated since the start of the conflict to $1 billion.
But Secretary of State Antony Blinken has accused the warring parties of blocking vital aid civilians and egregious abuses.
ANTONY BLINKEN, UNITED STATES SECRETARY OF STATE: Both the SAF and RSF have carried out war crimes, including rapes, torture, extrajudicial killings, and other human rights abuses.
MADOWO (voice-over): Commanders for the SAF and the RSF have previously denied such allegations. With the world seemingly powerless to stop it, Amnesty International warns that the war in Sudan is likely to continue and cause more civilian suffering.
MADOWO: If these strong statements and condemnation from the U.S. and the U.N. and the African Union have not worked in Sudan, so, what's the fastest way to resolve the conflict?
ABDULLAHI HASSAN, SUDAN RESEARCHER, AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL: Exert pressure on the warring parties to end violations against civilians to end indiscriminate attacks against civilians, to allow humanitarian access, and to ensure they are held accountable for the violations they are committing in Sudan.
MADOWO (voice-over): Larry Madowo, CNN, Nairobi.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BRUNHUBER: All right. Still ahead, some of the world's top diplomats are gathering in Italy. We're live in Rome with a look at what's on the G7 foreign ministers' agenda. Plus, a controversial bill sparks a third night of protests in Georgia's capital. A look at what has so many people so angry. Stay with us.
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[02:29:58]
BRUNHUBER: G7 foreign ministers are gathering on the Italian island Capri for a day two of a summit that will include talks on the Middle East and Ukraine.
Italy, which holds the rotating G7 presidency, is calling for a ceasefire in Gaza while everyone is waiting to see if Israel retaliates against Iran for Saturday's drone and missile attacks.
Ukraine's foreign minister and NATO's secretary general are set to join the talks in the coming hours. We'll go live now to Rome and CNN's Barbie Nadeau. So Barbie, let's start with the Middle East, plenty of urgency around the situation in Gaza and trying to prevent a larger regional conflict with Iran.
BARBIE NADEAU, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: Yeah, that's right. You know, these foreign ministers have a lot on their plate, a lot to discuss and a lot of this goes on, of course, on the sidelines of these meetings. There are so many bilateral meetings that happen in addition to this. Of course, the focus right now is what to do about Iran and the countries in Europe who are part of the G7 are very interested in targeted sanctions, especially against the drone makers, for example. So, you've got a lot of different country, all seven of these countries have different agendas personally and how they deal with Iran, and their relationships with Iran.
Here in Europe, the countries do have closer relationships with Iran than say the United States does. So there's so much that these diplomats have got to try to agree on before they can go forward, take these plans back home to their bosses before the real meeting here in June in the southern province of Apulia, where the leaders will be meeting for the G7 too, Kim.
BRUNHUBER: Yeah, no easy answers on that front, then switching (inaudible) Ukraine at the top of their agenda as well. What are we expecting there?
NADEAU: Yeah, one of the big discussions right now is, of course, whether or not they can use some of these assets taken from the Russian oligarchs all across Europe and use those to try to give money to Ukraine for the weapons, because there has been a lot of pressure on a lot of countries, especially here in Europe, on continuing the funding of Ukraine where, of course, if they don't, everybody sort of knows what will happen there and you have the United States as well sort of backpedaling on how much support to continue with Ukraine.
Ukraine war would have been, if not for the conflict in Israel and Gaza, right now, would have been the top agenda for this G7 because it is so close and it touches so many people, and so many people are affected by it. Of course, there are so many Ukraine refugees still making their place in other European countries. It sort of has been on the back burner, but this afternoon, we are going to get the foreign minister of Ukraine in Capri as well to have -- to be in part of some of these meetings.
So, it is really important that these diplomats can kind of come up with an agreement that they can take back home to their bosses and see if they can implement any of these plans they want to make, Kim.
BRUNHUBER: All right. We'll keep monitoring and see what comes of it in the coming hours. Barbie Nadeau in Rome, thank you so much. Former U.S. President Donald Trump met with Poland's president in New York on Wednesday. The Trump campaign says the two discussed NATO member states increasing their defense spending and Russia's war on Ukraine. Polish President Andrzej Duda has called for pledges to be increased from 2 percent to 3 percent of a country's GDP.
Trump, the presumptive Republican presidential nominee, has been critical of NATO defense spending. In February, he said he would encourage Russia to do "whatever the hell they want to any NATO member that doesn't meet spending guidelines on defense."
Protests erupted for a third night in Georgia's capital over a controversial bill, which many say uses Russian tactics to crack down on free speech as it makes its way through parliament. But even though vocal crowds and the country's own president oppose the bill becoming law, there is not much they can do to stop it. CNN's Sebastian Shukla reports.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEBASTIAN SHUKLA, CNN INTERNATIONAL FIELD PRODUCER (voice-over): Protesters and police clashing on the streets of Georgia's capital Tbilisi. Skirmishes for the second consecutive year against a controversial foreign agents bill, a schism between government and public, mass protests outside the parliament of this former soviet republic and from within. Georgian opposition seeing this bill as more than a smack in the face, the leader of Georgia's ruling political faction, Georgian Dream, being attacked by an opposition MP and a brawl ensuing.
Lawmakers have just passed a bill known as "On transparency of foreign influence" that would require all organizations that accept funds from outside the country to register as foreign agents or face fines. Approved on first reading by a majority of 83 votes in a parliament of 150, the country's division encapsulated by spontaneous applause and immediate descent. Protesters and the opposition united on their stance that Russia is at play here, even dubbing it the Russian law.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (Inaudible) in cahoots with Putin to let us without sovereignty. We can see definitely the Georgians and Georgian will cannot be defeated. (Inaudible) Georgians will prevail over the Russian (inaudible).
[02:35:00]
TAMAR KHOJAMIROVI, OPPOSITION SUPPORTER: It is like copy pasted from similar Russia law against freedom of media, against freedom of organizations, and it is like we will receive same results as now Russians are facing.
SHUKLA (voice-over): President Vladimir Putin's spokesperson disagrees. There is no way to link this bill and the desire to secure Georgia's internal politics with some kind of Russian influence. This is not the case. Russia, Georgia's neighbor who went for a brief war with in 2008, has a similar law on foreign agents and is widely viewed as being a suppression of civil society and press freedom. Georgia's ruling party still aspires to become a full EU member, but the block has described the law as not in line with EU core norms or values.
President Salome Zourabichvili has promised to veto it, but the Georgian dream seem prepared to foist the bill on Georgians kicking and screaming.
Sebastian Shukla, CNN, Berlin.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BRUNHUBER: Some call it hunger games with a social twist, a game show that rewards players with food they can barely afford to buy for their families. We'll have a report on the Bangladesh Food Challenge, it is coming up after the break. Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BRUNHUBER: Bangladesh has made major strides in reducing chronic hunger. But during the COVID-19 pandemic, it worsened not just in Bangladesh but around the world. That's when one show runner stepped in, providing food through what some people call "The Hunger Games." CNN's Kristie Lu Stout explains.
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KRISTIE LU STOUT, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): From the far-flung corners of rural Bangladesh, an unlikely internet sensation is making quite a splash with billions of views and counting, and millions of subscribers. This is the "SS Food Challenge," often called the Hunger Games with a social twist. It is also reminiscent of another global rage, Takeshi's Castle, an epic game show from Japan, in which players overcome obstacles to win. While the comparisons are inevitable, the beginnings of "SS Food Challenge" are rooted in necessity rather than the sole thrill of it.
OMAR SUNNY SOMRAT, CREATOR, SS FOOD CHALLENGE: The journey of "SS Food Challenge" started in 2020, but when inflation hits in Bangladesh and the price of edible items go so high, it was a viral topic. Then we come with the idea of giving edible items as rewards.
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LU STOUT (voice-over): Rising living costs have been a sore point for Bangladesh, a country where around a fifth of its over 170 million people live below the poverty line.
RUCHIR DESAI, FUND MANAGER, ASIA FRONTIER CAPITAL: Inflation has been pretty high over the last few years because of (ph) multiple factors. It is combination of the war in Ukraine, high commodity prices, and high fuel prices in 2022 and also, removal of many subsidies linked to domestic consumption, such as fuel and cooking gas in 2023.
LU STOUT (voice-over): The ripple effects are still quite evident.
MOHAMMAD BABLU, RICKSHAW PULLER IN BANGLADESH: We are barely surviving with prices of everything going up. I struggle to balance between buying rice and lentils, and my children's expenses. Can't fix this dilemma.
LU STOUT (voice-over): This is where the "SS Food Challenge" steps in, a silver lining to a very dark cloud, a source of entertainment in grim times, with social welfare at its core.
SUNNY SOMRAT: My biggest challenge is to control the crowd. Everyone wants to participate in the games, but in a game day, I can only allow 100 to 120 or at most 150 people.
LU STOUT (voice-over): Yet backed by a tiny team of 25, a simple phone camera and zero sponsors, this noble venture manages to keep the calm on-site. While taking the online world by storm, at the same time, ensuring that no participants, even those who lose, leave empty handed.
Kristie Lu Stout, CNN, Hong Kong.
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BRUNHUBER: North Korea has a new hit song, it is called "Friendly Parent," and it is dedicated to Leader Kim Jong Un, listen to this.
The lyrics praise Kim as not just a friendly parent, but also a great leader. The song debuted this week during an evening concert and ceremony in Pyongyang. Kim Jong Un presided over the event, which also celebrated the completion of a new high-rise apartment development that spans 80 hectares, a sign at the top of one of the buildings reads, "Heaven on earth." No word on whether "Friendly Parent" will be available on iTunes or Amazon Music.
I'm Kim Brunhuber. "World Sport" is next, then I'll be back in 15 minutes with more "CNN Newsroom."
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