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Blinken Visits Saudi Arabia to Iron Out Ceasefire Deal and to Attend World Economic Forum; New CNN Poll Shows President Biden's Handling of War in Gaza Disapproved by Many Americans. Pope Francis Visited Venice For the First Time in More than Six Months; Emperor Penguins Are Now in the Brink of Extinction; Sumo Wrestlers Faced Off With Their Babies in the Annual Crying Sumo Event. Aired 3-4a ET

Aired April 29, 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]

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ROSEMARY CHURCH, CNN ANCHOR: Hello and welcome to our viewers joining us here in the United States and all around the world. You're watching "CNN Newsroom" and I'm Rosemary Church.

Just ahead, America's top diplomat arrives in the Middle East, hoping to secure a ceasefire in the war and freedom for hostages held in Gaza.

Plus, looking ahead to a Trump-Biden rematch. A CNN poll reveals lackluster support for President Biden as he faces backlash on his handling of the war in Gaza.

And emperor penguins at risk, how the world's largest penguin species is severely threatened by climate change.

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

CHURCH: Thanks for joining us. The U.S. is ramping up diplomatic pressure surrounding hostage release and ceasefire talks involving Israel and Hamas. U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken arrived in Saudi Arabia earlier, where he will meet with Arab officials. Blinken is expected to discuss aid to Gaza, as well as how to achieve a, quote, "lasting peace and a pathway to a Palestinian state".

On Sunday, U.S. President Joe Biden and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu spoke by phone. A source described the call as constructive. They focus primarily on freeing more hostages held by Hamas, as well as whether any potential ceasefire deal can be reached.

And CNN's Scott McLean is live in Istanbul and joins us now. Good to see you, Scott. So what is the latest on Antony Blinken's trip to Saudi Arabia, and what's he hoping to accomplish at these planned meetings in the next few hours, and of course at the World Economic Forum? SCOTT MCLEAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hey, good morning, Rosemary. Yeah,

the priorities for this trip are pretty clear. Number one, of course, is figuring out how to end the war in Gaza, get a ceasefire deal and get those hostages returned. The U.S. is also in discussions with a series of Arab countries on a plan for the day after the war and how to parlay that into a two-state solution, or at least the pathway towards one. And that is where the Saudis come in, because the U.S., of course, has long been trying to expand on the Abraham Accords signed under President Trump, which normalized relations between Israel and a handful of Arab countries. And they want to expand that to include the Saudis.

But the Saudis have made quite clear that none of this is going to happen without an end to the war in Gaza and without a solution to the Palestinian issue and a clear, irreversible path to a two-state solution.

Now, the Secretary of State, Antony Blinken, had said on Friday that he believes it's possible to make this kind of deal even without an end to the war. That, though, would be a change in what we have been hearing from U.S. officials for some time. Either way, he certainly has his work cut out for him.

And we understand that while he's in Riyadh, he's going to be meeting not only with the Saudi foreign minister, but also with the Crown Prince, Mohammed bin Salman himself.

U.S. officials say that, look, Blinken is going to take what he learns from these Arab leaders in Riyadh to Jordan and then to Israel and then present all of this to the Israelis. And much of what he's going to tell them will probably be about aid getting into Gaza.

The U.S. has long been trying to urge the Israelis to do more. It was a few weeks ago that President Biden gave a pretty terse warning to the Israelis after the death of those World Central Kitchen staff there. And perhaps then it's no coincidence that the Israelis, as of late, have been talking about doing just that, ramping up aid, opening the port of Ashdod, opening another gateway for aid to get into northern Gaza, getting more aid in through Jordan, and of course working with the Americans on that floating pier to deliver aid directly into Gaza as well.

And one other thing that's worth keeping in the back of your mind as well, Rosemary, and that is that we are nearing about a little over a week away from where Secretary of State Antony Blinken must confirm to the U.S. Congress that assurances that he has received from the Israelis that U.S. weapons are being used only in accordance with international law are reliable and credible. This despite the State Department report on human rights and internal dissent within the State Department that really cast doubt on whether that is in fact the case. Rosemary.

[03:05:08]

CHURCH: All right. Our thanks to Scott McLean in Istanbul. David Sanger is a CNN political and national security analyst and

White House and national security correspondent for The "New York Times". He's also the author of "New Cold Wars: China's Rise, Russia's Invasion and America's Struggle to Defend the West". And he joins me now from Washington. Good to have you with us.

DAVID SANGER, CNN POLITICAL AND NATIONAL SECURITY ANALYST, AND NEW YORK TIMES SECURITY AND WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Great to be back with you, Rosemary.

CHURCH: So Israel's war with Hamas is a top talking point at the World Economic Forum in Saudi Arabia, where U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken will be in attendance in a few hours. What progress do you expect will be made on hostage release and ceasefire talks with Blinken also set to visit Israel on this trip?

SANGER: I think the key part of this for the hostage talks is Israel, but it's all part of three moving parts here. One is whether or not Israel goes into Rafah. The second is whether or not they get the hostage deal, which at this point really has more to do with Hamas. I think Israel has signed off on the offer that the United States and European allies have put together.

And then the third piece of it is whether or not there would be a Saudi deal that would recognize Israel, which would also, of course, require that Prime Minister Netanyahu agree to a two-state solution. He sure doesn't sound like that's where his head's at right now.

CHURCH: Yeah, indeed. And of course, President Joe Biden and Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu spoke earlier Sunday via phone. The President reiterating his clear position on the potential Rafah invasion, calling on Israel to ensure civilians are protected. But Israel says it will invade Rafah even if a hostage deal is reached. What will be the consequences of this?

SANGER: Well, if they did invade, it would, and they invaded in the six-week period that was covered by the ceasefire, it would seem to be probably a violation of the ceasefire.

I don't think that's what they're discussing. If they do get the deal and there is the six weeks, I think that would put off the Rafah invasion. Now, of course, the idea is immediately to build on the six weeks to get another six weeks or a longer ceasefire of some kind.

CHURCH: And David, the killing of tens of thousands of Palestinian civilians in this war is not only causing misery in divisions across the Middle East with fears of an expanding war, but it's also creating chaos and anger on American college campuses with calls for an end to the war and for colleges to divest from companies that support Israel and its war in Gaza. And we've seen clashes between dueling pro- Palestinian and pro-Israeli protesters at UCLA over the weekend. How critical is it that this war ends now?

SANGER: Well, pretty critical if they can get the ceasefire, which may be different from the war ending. I think if they're hoping to alleviate the protests. You know, I've talked to a number of people on different university

campuses in the past couple of days, and, you know, they have a short- term hope that since the terms are coming to an end, that that may take some of the air out of this.

But there are graduation ceremonies coming, and that will be a very public way for the protesters to make their point, even if it's highly disruptive of the graduations.

And then, of course, there's the Democratic convention coming in Chicago. And I think the biggest fear that the Biden administration has is that those protests would then roll into Chicago and have a look of chaos on the outside while they're trying to portray the president as the one pathway to order and sort of a respect of law on the inside.

And that could be a pretty tough look, especially with all of the inevitable comparisons to Chicago of 1968, which was, of course, anti- Vietnam War protests.

CHURCH: And David, earlier this month, Iran and Israel stepped back from the brink with a collective sigh of relief from the region and across the globe. But that danger is not over yet, is it? What next move do you expect from Benjamin Netanyahu and how desperate is he right now?

SANGER: Well, he's pretty desperate because, as you've seen over the weekend, there were also protests in Israel to get the hostages back. There have been protests against his continued time in office.

[03:10:08]

He's presumably trying to stretch this all out because as soon as the war actually comes to some kind of a halt, if not a permanent end, but even just a temporary halt, there will be the inevitable investigations, Rosemary, into the intelligence that was received prior to the October 7th terror attack, and then the question of why the Israeli Self-Defense Forces did not move more quickly and get to Gaza and deal with the issue in a much more timely manner.

All of that is going to likely reflect pretty poorly on Mr. Netanyahu, so he's trying to push all that off as much as he can. And then, of course, on the deal with the Saudis, it's going to be really interesting if he ends up being the one who can't sign off on the final agreements that would make that possible.

CHURCH: David Sanger, I appreciate you joining us and sharing your perspective. Thank you.

SANGER: Great to be with you.

CHURCH: As you just heard, in the U.S., college campuses have been shaken by unrest with pro-Palestinian protests cropping up at several universities from the East Coast to California, like at the University of California, Los Angeles, where physical altercations broke out between protest groups after a security barrier was breached. CNN's Camilla Bernal has more.

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CAMILLA BERNAL, CNN U.S. NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Throughout the day here at UCLA, we did see a lot of violence. We saw from both sides, people pushing, people shoving, things getting violent physically and verbally as these two sides essentially collided.

The university had a lot of trouble keeping the two sides separate. At the end of the day, what we were seeing is this line of security officers who essentially put their bikes to divide the two sides, the group that was here supporting the Jewish students on campus and the group that was here supporting the Palestinian side and the students who are in the encampment here at UCLA.

We saw a lot of clashes throughout the day. The division that these security guards put in place has helped, but tensions are high. Passions are extremely high. I've talked to people on both sides of this issue, and here's what they've told me.

UNKNOWN: We are for peace. I can tell you that right now. We have come here to demand for the release of our hostages. We are coming here to show them that we're not afraid. The only people that are calling for aggression are the people hiding behind those masks because they are too afraid to show their face. Do you see anyone here with a mask on this side of the protest? No, because we stand with what we believe in.

UNKNOWN: They love to play this mask trope so highly, but it's because they terrorize us all the time and they censor us. Students are constantly getting doxed on things like Canary Mission, and their identity is being threatened. Every single time anyone tries to be pro-Palestinian, there's always a threat of violence with surveillance and censorship from the Western media, from the Western government, and as well from Zionists as well. So they need to protect themselves because they're consistently getting attacked. If we're getting attacked, what else could we do but to cover our identities instead of getting doxed, surveilled, and censored?

But primarily it is for safety reasons. We're sick of getting surveilled when we just want to talk about genocide. We're sick of getting surveilled when we want to talk about the truth of Zionism in Israel. So if they're going to attack us, we're not going to back down, but we're going to take precautions.

BERNAL: And we have not heard of anyone being arrested today. The police did not get involved for much of the day, but we are seeing campus police officers moving some of those protesters and sort of creating that barrier to keep this space clear from those protesters.

Again, the university policy is that they were not going to get involved unless they felt that the safety of the students was in danger. So we have not seen too much involvement in terms of stopping the protesters, but they are here and they have been throughout the day. Camilla Bernal, CNN, Los Angeles.

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CHURCH: A new CNN poll finds high levels of disapproval for U.S. President Joe Biden's handling of the conflict in Gaza. 71 percent of respondents say they don't like the way he's handled the war between Israel and Hamas. That number is 81 percent among those aged 18 to 34. The survey also asked registered voters their preferences in a head- to-head matchup between Mr. Biden and Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump and found Trump leading by a margin of six percent.

[03:15:08]

Larry Sabato is the director of the Center for Politics at the University of Virginia. He joins me now from Charlottesville. Always a pleasure to have you with us.

LARRY SABATO, DIRECTOR, CENTER FOR POLITICS, UNIVERSITY OF VIRGINIA: Thank you, Rosie.

CHURCH: So here we are about six months away from one of this country's most consequential elections. And despite one candidate facing multiple charges and attending his own criminal trial, most polls indicate a tight race with a new CNN poll going even further, showing Donald Trump at 49 percent compared to Joe Biden at 43 in a head to head matchup, with some very clear warnings for the president when it comes to the war in Gaza and the U.S. economy. So what is your reaction to those and other poll numbers that show the two men tied in critical swing states?

SABATO: Yes, I think you put it exactly right, Rosie, it's actually very, very close. And most of the surveys show ties in the only states that matter, seven or eight of them out of 50. And so we ought to focus more on them because we don't have a national election. As everybody has learned, whether they're happy about it or sad about it, we have an election in a small number of swing states and they're the ones that determine the results.

It is surprising, certainly to Democrats and I think certainly to the Biden White House, that it would be tied given the fact that one of the candidates is in a courtroom day after day and that he's facing a total of 88 felonies in four separate jurisdictions. That's unusual. It's totally unprecedented in American history.

And for that reason and not just that reason, I expect things to change maybe several times between now and the actual poll voting in October, November.

CHURCH: And one of the issues causing President Biden a lot of grief is the war in Gaza. That new CNN poll we mentioned showing 71 percent of voters disapproving of his handling of the issue with protests intensifying at college campuses across the country. And we know he talked with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu Sunday. So how can President Biden end this war, move it in that direction, at least, and resolve the issue that could potentially cost him considerable votes, particularly with younger voters?

SABATO: Yes, this is really hurting Biden with the young. I'm, of course, in the middle of a college campus. I live here and I hear these kinds of sentiments daily. It's not as though President Biden, even though we clearly are the number one supporter of Israel, we're supplying billions and billions of dollars of weapons.

Even President Biden doesn't apparently have all that much influence over Prime Minister Netanyahu. So there's a limit to what President Biden can do. But what he can do is make clear and do it much more publicly than he has been his opposition to some of the policies of the Israeli government, certainly in Gaza, and what he's doing on the humanitarian side to increase the relief that's going to those in Gaza who don't have enough to eat.

That would help. It's not nearly enough. And people always expect too much of a president. They do not have magic wands. They can't end wars overnight. They can't tame inflation overnight. But that goes with the territory. We expect them to do much more than they can.

CHURCH: Another issue causing President Biden major problems and potentially support is the economy. And despite some encouraging signs, only 34 percent of voters in the new CNN poll approve of his handling of the economy. Why is the message of an improving economy not getting through? Because we are seeing some, you know, some interesting signs.

SABATO: Yes, and then there is clear improvement in many of the categories of the economy. It's really a twofold problem. The first is that traditionally throughout American history, there has been a lag time between public perception of an improving economy and the realization among at least a good bit of the public that, in fact, it has improved.

But also it's the fact that inflation is the economic problem that people deal with daily as they go to the gas station, as they go to the grocery store.

It's really hard to put out of your mind. And people seem to believe that somehow taming inflation means going back to the earlier prices. That will never happen. And deflation itself would be a disaster.

I think part of this is public education. Part of it is the other issues will have to crowd in and take some of the territory that's being occupied by inflation.

CHURCH: And of course, we're seeing President Joe Biden out there campaigning, but the polls showing he's not getting his message across on many issues. So how can he turn this around as he struggles with the younger voters, as we've discussed, and apparently losing more black voters?

[03:20:10]

SABATO: He has to depend on the Democratic Party support that he has, which is at least three quarters of the party, and I think will grow to about 90 percent by Election Day. He has to depend on the leaders of those groups, leaders of communities, of states, everybody who is in the Democratic Party.

Whether they're excited about Joe Biden or not, they're going to have to join hands and push him over the top if he's going to win. Because it's not just going to happen organically.

I think at one time, some of us thought it might, but it isn't happening.

So it's going to take an enormous amount of effort. Every day matters. And what's happening to Donald Trump matters, too. This is a choice. You're not simply electing somebody in a vacuum. It's not thumbs up or thumbs down on Biden.

You're comparing Biden to Donald Trump, his behavior and also his record. Incredibly, people now think the Donald Trump presidency was successful when, in fact, it has been judged the worst American presidency in all of our history. The experts in the field think it was the worst. I happen to agree with them. So public perception of reality and the real reality, they're two very different things right now. And for Biden to win, they've got to come closer together.

CHURCH: Larry Sabato, we thank you for joining us and for your perspective and analysis as always.

SABATO: Thank you, Rosemary.

CHURCH: Coming up next, deadly tornadoes leave a path of destruction across the central U.S. and the threat is not over yet. We'll bring you the latest on this severe storm system.

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CHURCH: Tornado watches across the central U.S. are due to expire this hour, but a multi-day storm system is still bringing severe weather risks to millions as it continues to move across the country. According to the U.S. Storm Prediction Center, there have been nearly 500 storm reports since Thursday, including more than 135 reports of tornadoes. The storm system has already left a path of death and destruction in its wake, and some of the hardest hit communities in states like Oklahoma and Nebraska are now left picking up the pieces.

CNN's Rafael Romo reports.

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RAFAEL ROMO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Oklahoma Governor Kevin Stitt increased to four the number of storm-related deaths in his state, with one county alone reporting at least 30 injuries. Officials had earlier said there's an infant among those who died. The governor said two people died in the city of Ada, located about 85

miles southeast of Oklahoma City. A third person died in Marietta, Oklahoma, which is located on Interstate 35, about 115 miles south of Oklahoma City.

The fourth person died in Sulphur, a city the governor visited on Sunday to assess the damage. Governor Stitt had earlier declared an emergency disaster in an area that includes Marietta. Altogether, the governor's declaration includes 12 counties. The declaration states that severe storms, tornadoes, straight-line winds, hail and flooding affected different parts of Oklahoma. The damage in Sulphur, the governor said, was hard to watch.

GOV. KEVIN STITT (R-OK): Early reports, they think this is an F4 just kind of blowing right through downtown here. And I just haven't seen this much destruction from my time as governor. You just can't believe the destruction. It seems like every business in downtown has been destroyed now here in Sulphur.

ROMO: The Oklahoma Department of Emergency Management said it has received reports of injuries, property damage, flooding and downed power lines and trees across several counties. We're also getting new images of severe flooding in the city of Tonkawa, located about 90 miles north of Oklahoma City. And this all happened in the wake of yet another series of powerful storms that left a devastating trail of destruction in Nebraska.

An Omaha resident described to CNN affiliate KETV what it was like to hear a tornado coming.

UNKNOWN: Just like the movie State, it was like just a freight train. The noise was so loud. I'm not too afraid to admit it. I was crying like a baby because it was just the scariest feeling in the world. You had, it was helpless.

ROMO: Elkhorn, Nebraska was one of the hardest hit areas in the state. Nebraska Governor Jim Pillen said this weekend it is a miracle there were no deaths.

Rafael Romo, CNN, Atlanta.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHURCH: The death toll has now risen to at least 35 in Kenya after a dam burst its banks amid heavy flooding. A number of others are still missing. It comes after the government put the overall death toll from the recent flooding at over 100.

CNN's Larry Madowo joined us earlier before these latest casualties were confirmed and shared these details with us.

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RAFEL ROMO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Rosemary, we're seeing the devastation from this recent heavy rains in East Africa and especially in Kenya where the government now says the death toll has risen to 103. But overnight, a devastating situation just about 50 kilometers northwest of Nairobi in Mahi, Nakuru County, where a dam in Kijabe burst its banks and swept everything in its path.

The governor of Kenya's Nakuru County telling CNN that they fear at least 10 people have been confirmed dead so far, but the exact number of the dead could be tens more. They just don't know yet.

Right now, a search and rescue operation is ongoing by teams from the national and county government as well as from the Kenya Red Cross and other private sector.

Emergency teams were all on scene trying to rescue as many people as possible. This happened overnight in heavy rainfall and people must have been asleep when this happened so they must have been caught unawares by it.

To add to the complication here, part of the road was cut off because of recent heavy rain, so even access has been difficult.

[03:30:00]

So this morning, they've been clearing debris from this area and trying to reach as many people as possible with these teams who even had trouble getting to the scene to start with.

But that is just one situation, the latest that this country has seen over the past few weeks with devastating flooding in different parts of the country.

Kenya's longest and largest river, Tana River County, also burst its banks and has rendered parts of the northeast of the country completely impassable.

There have been very harrowing videos on social media showing people drowning in boats trying to cross the river and then just completely getting swept by the currents and the winds in one direction. So all across the country and across the region, a lot of concern about these flooding after this heavy rainfall, the largest that this region has seen in some time.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROSEMARY CHURCH, CNN ANCHOR: Still to come, Ukraine hopes new military aid from its allies will help on the battlefield as Russia ramps up pressure on the front lines. We're back in just a moment.

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CHURCH: Russia's defense ministry says it's making gains in eastern Ukraine, taking over a village in the Donetsk region. That's where Ukrainian troops are facing the fiercest battles, according to the country's army chief.

[03:35:03]

He says the situation on the front line has escalated, but pointed out that it's changing every day. Ukraine's army chief also described the situation in the south as tense. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy hopes incoming foreign aid will turn things around on the battlefield.

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VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY, UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT (through translator): We are cooperating with our partners at all levels to achieve the level of efficiency and assistance that is needed not only to maintain our positions, but also to disrupt Russia's war plan. We are still waiting for the supplies that have been promised to Ukraine. We expect the exact volume and scope of supplies that could change the situation on the battlefield in Ukraine's interests.

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CHURCH: Zelenskyy went on to say his country is working with the US to firm up support for the next 10 years. And joining us now is CNN's Clare Sebastian. She joins us live from London.

So, Clare, Russia claims to be making these gains along the eastern front, just as additional U.S. aid has been approved. It hasn't arrived yet. What's the latest on all of this?

CLARE SEBASTIAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, I think, Rosemary, it's clear that the situation that we've seen developing over the past few months, Russia gaining the advantage, able to make these sort of small but significant tactical advances, particularly on the eastern front. That trend, until we see the concrete U.S. aid arriving on the ground, will continue. You know, the Ukrainian army chief saying it himself, the situation at the front has escalated. He talks about tactical successes for Russia in some areas. He also talks about successes for Ukraine in other areas.

But it's clear that Ukraine is largely on the defensive here. Russia is trying to push still west of Avdiivka, that town that it took in mid-February. It's also pushing west of the city of Donetsk, an industrial town of Krasnohorivka, is now under pressure. And in the Kharkiv region, very significant, because Ukraine has been able to really keep that front line up in the north pretty stable since that lightning counter-offensive in the autumn of 2022, where they took back large portions. Now, we see that Russia is pushing in the direction of Kupyansk. You see it there. It's managed to make some ground up in a village just 25 kilometers east of Kupyansk. So, things are moving there as well.

So, Ukraine is under increasing pressure. Russia has the advantage in manpower. It also has a significant aerial advantage. And we saw yet another massive attack on Ukraine's power grid over the weekend. DTEK, which is the country's biggest private energy company, saying that four of its thermal power plants were severely damaged. This is a company which just a couple of weeks ago said that it had lost 80 percent of its power generating capacity. So, we see these aerial attacks step up.

And this is the situation in which Ukraine finds itself. This is why we see President Zelenskyy yet again appealing in a phone call with the House Minority Leader, Hakeem Jeffries, for those Patriot batteries, which the U.S. says it is going to provide more of.

CHURCH: All right. Our thanks to Clare Sebastian joining us live from London.

Protesters in Georgia are denouncing the government's efforts to force through a controversial Russian-style foreign agents law. Thousands of people marched on Sunday against a bill they say will be used to crush dissent and civil society. If the bill passes, organizations that receive more than 20 percent of funding from abroad will be required to register as foreign agents or face huge fines. The E.U. says the bill could halt Georgia's integration into the bloc. Protesters say their future is in the West.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

LEVAN JOBAVA, PROTESTER (through translator): I want to show the position of my family, that we are in Russia and our path and future is in Europe, because we will need the European justice and the European order, where the system serves the people and not the other way around. The system doesn't serve people.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: The bill faces two more readings in Parliament. The next is on Tuesday.

Australians are demanding an end to violence against women. Thousands across the country rallied for a second straight day on Sunday, calling for tougher laws on gender-based violence. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, who's been a vocal advocate on the matter, showed his support at a demonstration in Canberra.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ANTHONY ALBANESE, AUSTRALIAN PRIME MINISTER: I know, I know, and that's why I'm here. That's why I'm here. I know that we all must do better, but I know this as well, that I've got to be honest, it's not just government's problem, it's a problem of our entire society. And this is a national crisis.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[03:39:57]

CHURCH: Gender-based violence has re-emerged as a major issue in Australia in recent weeks, after several high-profile murder cases, including the mall stabbings in Sydney, in which five women were among the dead.

Coming up after the break, a rare visit from the ailing Pope. We'll have more on the pontiff's first trip outside of Rome since September. That's next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) CHURCH: Welcome back, everyone. Tesla CEO Elon Musk met with Chinese Premier Li Qian during a trip to Beijing on Sunday. Chinese state media reports that during the meeting, Li said Tesla's development in his country could be seen as a successful example of cooperation between the U.S. and China. Musk reportedly said that Tesla's Shanghai factory is the country's best performing. Tesla's full soft-driving software has been out for years, but it's still not available in China.

In the coming hours, Spain's Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez is expected to announce whether he will remain in office. On Sunday, thousands of his supporters rallied in Madrid, urging him to stay on the job. He shocked the country last week when he said he was considering resigning from the premiership. That came after a Spanish court began a business corruption investigation into his wife's private dealings. Mr. Sanchez denies the allegations against his wife, saying it's part of a sustained campaign against him by political opponents.

Well despite recent health concerns, Pope Francis traveled to Venice for his first trip outside of Rome this year. As CNN's Michael Holmes explains, crowds were eager to see the 87-year-old pontiff as he made one of his increasingly rare visits.

[03:45:05]

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MICHAEL HOLMES, CNN ANCHOR AND CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Crowds gather in Venice for a sight they haven't seen in seven months, Pope Francis making his first trip out of Rome since September, after canceling other appearances in recent months for health reasons.

But on Sunday, presiding over a mass to a crowd of more than 10,000 in St. Mark's Square, the 87-year-old pontiff seemed in high spirits, though he did admit being the leader of roughly 1.3 billion Catholics worldwide is a demanding job.

POPE FRANCIS, HEAD OF THE CATHOLIC CHURCH (through translator): I take you with me in prayer, and you too do not forget to pray for me, because this work is not easy.

HOLMES (voice-over): It was a packed day for the Pope, visiting a women's prison where the Vatican was holding its exhibit for an international art show, taking a water taxi to speak with young people, riding in a mini popemobile or wheelchair throughout the lagoon city.

Venice recently imposed a five-euro entry fee for day-trippers to cut down on tourism traffic, but for many locals, this was a thrilling visit.

LARA VOLPE, ENERGY CONSULTANT (through translator): It's a bit difficult to explain the emotion one feels in front of this person. I mean the idea that all the world's people go to Rome and the Vatican to see him, and for us who have him here close to home, it's an honor. HOLMES (voice-over): During mass, the Pope addressed some of the

challenges that Venice faces, from over-tourism to climate change. But he also admired its enchanting beauty, a city that is aging but ageless, resilient in the wake of many modern-day problems, something this Pope knows a little something about.

Michael Holmes, CNN.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHURCH: Still to come, the world's largest penguin species under threat. Why scientists say climate change is putting emperor penguins in a perilous position.

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[03:50:00]

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CHURCH: Only three weeks left in the English Premier League season, and there are only two teams who can win the title, Manchester City and Arsenal. World Sport's Don Riddell has more on the fight to the finish.

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DON RIDDELL, CNN WORLD SPORT: The Premier League title race would now seem to be a head-to-head between Manchester City and Arsenal. Liverpool have kind of fallen away in recent weeks, so it's now down to the Gunners to challenge Man City and try to prevent them from becoming the first team to win four consecutive crowns. But they had a tricky assignment on Sunday away at their bitter north London rivals Tottenham, and although Spurs played well, Arsenal got the goals.

That's Pikaia Saka making it two-nil midway through the first half, and Arsenal were cruising when Kai Havertz made it three-nil in the 38th minute. This was a frustrating day for Spurs. They had more possession, they had chances, but nothing dropped until the 64th minute when Cristian Romero punished Arsenal's goalie for a dreadful mistake.

And then, three minutes from time, Spurs really rattled their opponents with a penalty from Son Heung-min. Tottenham, though, unable to find another, so Arsenal held on for three crucial points.

The Gunners must win every game and hope that Manchester City somehow slip up, otherwise it is City's title to lose. It's in their hands right now. They picked up another three points on Sunday with a two- nil win at Nottingham Forest. City's defender, Josco Guario, is having a wonderful month. That was his third goal in just five games, while Erling Haaland returned from injury, coming off the bench to make the points safe. That's his 21st Premier League goal of the season. Two- nil, the final score. So here's the table. Arsenal still top. The Gunners are a point ahead of Man City, but City have a game in hand. Arsenal have just three matches left to play. City have four. ERLING HAALAND, MANCHESTER CITY STRIKER: I think the most important thing is to not think, especially in these moments, about taking day by day. Honestly, if you overthink, you're going to be a bit crazy in your head. So relax now, enjoy, focus on the next one.

RIDDELL: The story will continue on Saturday, with both Arsenal and Man City playing their next Premier League games at home. Back to you.

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CHURCH: The emperor penguins of Antarctica are in peril. Low levels of sea ice, driven in part by climate change, are threatening their breeding grounds and causing colonies to die off. CNN's Lynda Kinkade has more.

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LYNDA KINKADE, CNN ANCHOR AND CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Waddling and gliding through the Antarctic, some of these penguins have seen better days. The world's largest penguin species, emperor penguins, are severely threatened by climate change.

Scientists from the British Antarctic survey say tens of thousands of emperor penguin chicks may have died as the species battled to survive record low sea ice in 2023.

PETER FRETWELL, BRITISH ANTARCTIC SURVEY: We know that they breed on sea ice. We know that sea ice is one of the first things affected as temperatures warm, ocean temperatures and air temperatures. And we're starting to see these losses in Antarctica now. Our models are quite dire.

KINKADE (voice-over): Dire because these penguins also lay their eggs and raise their chicks on sea ice. But with the ice melting away, the chicks may fall into the sea before they get their waterproof feathers, leaving them to freeze to death or drown.

Despite the recent losses, 2023 wasn't as bad as 2022 for the emperor penguins. Scientists say it's because some colonies adapted to the worsening conditions by moving south to find better ice or to more stable ice shelves or icebergs.

FRETWELL: It was reassuring that it wasn't quite as bad as we feared with the worst ever sea ice, but it was still bad.

KINKADE (voice-over): While this is a good sign, Fretwell says work still needs to be done to save the emperor penguin and we should do it before it's too late.

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FRETWELL: It could be worse, but that really depends on us. How much carbon and methane we put into the atmosphere. Can we change the trajectory of global warming that we're on (inaudible). If we can, we still have time to save the emperor penguin. But if we don't, then emperor penguins are going to be one of the first major animals that will be lost purely by the warming planet.

KINKADE (voice-over): Fretwell and his fellow scientists predict that 99 percent of the emperor penguin population could be gone by the end of the century. A tragic loss for a majestic bird.

Lynda Kinkade, CNN.

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CHURCH: After years of delay, an Australian billionaire is pushing forward with the creation of Titanic Two. Billionaire Clive Palmer and Blue Star Line are accepting proposals and plans from shipbuilders who would attempt to recreate the original ship, only bigger and better. Early designs reveal the Titanic II would hold more than 2,300 passengers, with almost half of the reserve for them. They're aiming to start building the ship next year.

And finally, a sumo wrestling match unlike any other. Competitors are not the massive hulking men in loincloths trying to force each other out of the ring. This time, the match is between babies, and whoever cries first is the winner. Around 100 babies joined the annual crying sumo event in Tokyo this year. For some, it took no time at all to become champions, although some babies couldn't help but smile.

I want to thank you for your company this hour. I'm Rosemary Church. Have yourselves a wonderful day. "CNN Newsroom" continues next with Max Foster.

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