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U.S. Pauses Shipment of Bombs to Israel Amid Concerns Over Their Potential Use in Rafah; Israeli Leaders Say Rafah Military Incursion Will Continue Until Hamas is Eliminated in Gaza or Hostages Are Freed; Thousands March in Amsterdam, Clashes With Police Reported; Police Clear University of Chicago Encampment, but No Arrests; Students Set Up Camp Outside Cambridge University in the U.K.; Macklemore Supports Palestinians, University Protests With New Song; Biden Speaks Out on Antisemitism at Holocaust Memorial; Peak of Tornado Season in Full Effect Across the U.S.; Scientists Say Last Month Was Hottest April on Record; Yearly Heat Record Could Again Be Broken in 2024. Aired 2-3a ET
Aired May 08, 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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[02:00:16]
ROSEMARY CHURCH, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: Hello and welcome to our viewers joining us from all around the world and everyone streaming us on CNN Max. I'm Rosemary Church. Just ahead. The U.S. puts a bomb shipment to Israel on hold amid concerns over its Rafah invasion.
Stormy Daniels takes the stand on Donald Trump's hush money trial, sharing graphic details about her alleged sexual encounter with the former president.
And TikTok hits back suing the U.S. government of a new legislation that would effectively ban the app.
ANNOUNCER: Live from Atlanta. This is CNN NEWSROOM with Rosemary Church.
CHURCH: Good to have you with us. And we begin with new developments in the war in Gaza. A U.S. official tells CNN the Biden administration has paused a shipment of bombs to Israel concerned about their potential use in the invasion of Rafah. The weapons held back last week include 2000-pound and 500-pound bombs. Meanwhile, the White House is expressing optimism that Israel and Hamas can reach a ceasefire and hostage release deal.
But on the ground in Gaza there's only death and destruction. The Israeli military operation in Rafah has killed at least 27 people since it started late Monday, including six women and nine children. An IDF spokesperson says approximately 20 terrorists have been killed so far. Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant visited an artillery battery at the Israel-Gaza border near Rafah on Tuesday, where he outlined the IDF's mission.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
YOAV GALLANT, ISRAEL DEFENSE MINISTER (through translator): This operation will continue until we eliminate Hamas in the Rafah area and the entire Gaza Strip or until the first hostage returns. We are willing to make compromises in order to bring back the hostages. But if that option is removed, we will go on and deepen the operation. This will happen all over the strip in the south in the center and in the north. We know that Hamas only responds to force.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHURCH: CNN's Scott McLean is following developments live this hour in Istanbul. He joins us now. So Scott, what are we learning about this pause in U.S. bomb shipments to Israel?
SCOTT MCLEAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Rosemary, look, perhaps this is just one more piece of evidence of the pressure that is piling up on the Israelis to get a deal done and to avoid mass casualties in Rafah. We know that Prime Minister Netanyahu is feeling pressure at home within the protesters, he's also polling suggesting that most Israelis want him to prioritize getting a deal done to get the hostages home, rather than the military invasion into Rafah.
In terms of this shipment, we know this according to reporting from our colleague Oren Lieberman, citing a U.S. official that the Biden administration has paused a shipment of bombs to Israel citing concerns that they will be used in densely populated areas like Rafah. We are talking about a shipment involving some 3500 bombs about half of them are one-ton bombs or 2000-pound bombs.
The other half are 500-pound bombs. Now the concern in particular is with these one-ton bombs because they had been used prolifically. According to a CNN analysis done early on in the war by Israel thus far, but they do a heck of a lot of damage. They leave a massive crater, they spray shrapnel hundreds of feet. And so, this is not the kind of precise weaponry that is used to go after one particular person.
These are the kinds of bombs that really cause mass damage and that is the concern. And it also comes after the U.S. paused a shipment of ammunition over the weekend to Israel. Now, the U.S. official told Oren Lieberman that look, no final decision has been made on the status of this shipment. And the Pentagon spokesperson says that this in no way affects the U.S.'s ironclad resolve to protect Israel's security or to defend Israel.
It is also worth noting briefly, Rosemary, that today is also the deadline that the Secretary of State Antony Blinken has to report to Congress. His determination as to whether the statements made by Israel are the assurances made by Israel that weapons supplied to Israel by the United States are being used in accordance with international law. Blinken needs to certify that those assurances are credible and reliable. Rosemary?
CHURCH: And Scott, what's the latest on Israel's operations in Rafah and could it impact hostage and ceasefire talks in (INAUDIBLE) [02:05:02]
MCLEAN: Yes, Rosemary. The IDF says that they are going after terror targets but CNN has confirmed that at least 27 people have been killed, thus far since Monday. And more than half of them are women or children. There have been some 100,000 people ordered to leave part of Rafah but the mayor says that the area that they're going to is inadequate, it simply does not have the infrastructure facilities.
It also is lacking a large hospital now because the biggest hospital in Rafah has been deemed by the IDF to be in the conflict zone and has been effectively shut down. The Israelis have insisted that the best way to get the hostages back since the outset of the war is with military pressure. This move in Rafah is obviously putting a heck of a lot of humanitarian pressure on ordinary Palestinians as well. And Hamas made clear yesterday that it's not helping to get a deal. Listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
OSAMA HAMDAN, HAMAS OFFICIAL (through translator): If the aggression continues, there will be no ceasefire, because the Israelis are the ones attacking and shooting. It is normal for the resistance to respond to this aggression, to respond in defense and to respond in order to defeat the occupation.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MCLEAN: So Rosemary, look, Hamas also said in that press conference that the deal that had agreed to which was not an Israeli proposal, by the way, ticks its boxes. Involves withdrawal of Israeli troops, involves the return of displaced people. And it also involves an end to the siege. And the wording of that is pretty important, because a diplomatic source who spoke to CNN said that this is essentially a way of Hamas agreeing to a long, prolonged ceasefire or permanent ceasefire without actually calling it a permanent ceasefire, because we know that Hamas will not agree to any ceasefire that is not permanent or effectively permanent.
And the Israelis won't agree to any kind of a ceasefire that is permanent. And so, this was perhaps a way to bridge the divide there, which appears to be one of the big sticking points that the two sides still have.
CHURCH: Scott McLean joining us live from Istanbul with that report. Appreciate it. Well, the U.S. State Department says Israel has committed to reopening the border crossing for aid shipments into Gaza in the coming hours. The Israeli takeover of the Rafah crossing and the military operation nearby have sent thousands of panicked Palestinians fleeing. People are heading for so called expanded humanitarian zones designated by Israel. But aid group saved the sites are not equipped to handle the influx.
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UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): The situation is very difficult. The street we were on was targeted with an airstrike hitting the entire residential block.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translator): We don't know what to do, we are going into the unknown.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): I don't know where to go. I don't know where to head to. I prefer to die. Death is more dignified than this.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHURCH: The medical director at Rafah's last operational hospital is calling for backup as injured patients flood the facility. This comes after a major hospital in eastern Rafah was evacuated after it was classified as being within the combat zone. And with the Rafah crossing closed, aid trucks are backing up. The head of the U.N. Relief and Works Agency or UNRWA is urging all crossings into Gaza be reopened without delay.
Joining me now from Rafah, Scott Anderson is the director of United Nations Relief and Works Agency affairs in Gaza. Appreciate you being with us.
SCOTT ANDERSON, DIRECTOR OF UNITED NATIONS RELIEF AND WORKS AGENCY IN GAZA: Thank you for having this morning.
CHURCH: So your organization is committed to staying in Russia despite Israel's military operation there and of course, the imminent ground offensive. Why is it so important to stay?
ANDERSON: We're here to deliver humanitarian aid to people where they are and we also provide protection just by our presence. So, we are committed to stay and deliver not just under but the entire international humanitarian community. We will be here as long as people are here and in need of aid. If people move or choose to move then we will go to where people are provided made there.
But we are committed to staying here and to delivering and Rafah as well as the rest of the Gaza Strip.
CHURCH: And Israel has taken over the Rafah border crossing on the Palestinian side, essentially locking out humanitarian aid but the U.S. State Department says Israel will reopen the nearby Kerem Shalom border crossing for aid shipments to get into Gaza in the coming hours. What impact does all this have on the already dire humanitarian situation in Gaza?
ANDERSON: It has significant impact. Every day that the crossings aren't open as a day of opportunity lost to bring in much needed aid for people for the innocent civilians that have sought shelter in Rafah and other parts of the Gaza Strip. Most importantly, right now we need fuel. Diesel drives everything that we do in Gaza. It allows us to deliver aid to make sure water is produced and distributed for hospitals to continue to run.
[02:10:08] We see positively that the IDF has said they will open Kerem Shalom today, the U.N. has an assessment team in route now to look at the cross-border operation space to make sure it's clear to view (INAUDIBLE) and to make sure that we can open and operate once we have clearance. And that aid is critically needed for the people that are being displaced further. So, we can make sure that they have aid wherever it is they choose to (INAUDIBLE) their families.
CHURCH: And of course, the meantime Israeli military action in Rafah and the fear of what is to come has resulted in thousands of Palestinians fleeing the area, but where are they going and what access will they likely have to humanitarian aid once they relocate?
ANDERSON: So, we've tracked roughly 50,000 people departing Rafah in the last 48 hours. We've seen them go to Khan Yunis, some have gone to the expanded humanitarian area of Mawasi. Others have gone to (INAUDIBLE) we think as a U.N. that people should choose where they want to go, when we will provide aid to them wherever they may decide to seek shelter with their families.
It does create a bit of a challenge, Mawasi velocity certainly does not have the infrastructure that you would expect. And Khan Younis is just recovering recently from an operation that took place there. So, a lot of the infrastructure that we would normally rely on in terms of water generation and distribution in terms of sewage and solid waste, all those things are frayed or broken.
And everything that we do now has to be trucked in. Moving water and moving food for over a million people is very much a logistical challenge. But we are committed to staying here and delivering aid to people. If we can get the crossing open today, I'm confident that we can get aid to the people that are most in need.
CHURCH: Yes. That is so critical, of course. And aid groups, including Iran say that the expanded humanitarian zones designated by Israel are not properly equipped to deal with the influx of fleeing civilians. So, talk to us about the greatest challenge right now.
ANDERSON: I mean, the greatest challenge is that people are fleeing to an area that's overpopulated the density of the population is too great. And the Mawasi area already had over 400,000 people seeking shelter there. And it's essentially a sandy area. So, there's no sewage infrastructure. There's no water infrastructure, there aren't roads that lead into it. And all this creates a problem for us to get people aid but also for people to receive aid and just meet their basic necessities every day.
It's a challenge also for health, the hospital in Rafah that was evacuated, we are trying to get health points set up in coordination with World Health Organization and other international partners to make sure that in addition to food and water, we're providing health care for people wherever they are.
CHURCH: Scott Anderson in Rafah, many thanks for joining us. We do appreciate it and all the work you do.
ANDERSON: Thank you very much for having me on.
CHURCH: A big win for Donald Trump in one of his four criminal cases. The classified documents trial which was set to begin this month has been postponed indefinitely by a judge appointed by the former U.S. president himself. Aileen Cannon cited issues around classified evidence saying they need to be worked out before a jury is chosen. She said the process will take until at least late July.
Now that means this trial could then conflict with Trump's to other federal cases, making it much less likely the documents case will go to trial before November when Trump could be elected president again. And his next attorney general could theoretically make the charges disappear.
Well, meanwhile, former adult film star Stormy Daniels provided the most explosive testimony yet in the criminal hush money case. She spoke about her alleged affair with Trump in sometimes explicit detail, which led to a motion for a mistrial, which was denied and then heated cross examination. CNN's Paula Reid has a report.
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DONALD TRUMP (R) PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: It's very, very unfair trial.
PAULA REID, CNN SENIOR LEGAL AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Donald Trump coming face to face with Stormy Daniels in court as she took the stand to tell the jury about her alleged sexual encounter with the then businessman. Prosecutors asked Daniels to identify Trump in the courtroom. She pointed towards him saying in the navy blue jacket with Trump having no visible reaction.
After walking through how she got into the adult film industry, the prosecution quickly turned to Daniels' first introduction to Trump at a 2006 golf tournament in Lake Tahoe. That meeting turned into a dinner invitation she initially declined, but her publicist got her to reconsider. What could possibly go wrong or his words to me Daniels were counted with a giggle. If nothing else, you'd get a great story.
[02:15:01]
She described Trump's hotel suite in detail saying that when she arrived, he was wearing satin pajamas. Does Mr. Hefner know you stole his pajamas? She teased him. Asking him to change and he obliged. Daniels said Trump asked her about the business aspects of her adult film directing. And her possibly appearing on The Apprentice and she briefly asked Trump about his wife Melania who had recently given birth to their son Baron.
We're calling Trump said we don't sleep in the same room. The statement causing Trump to shake his head and murmured his attorneys. When she later returned from a trip to the bathroom, Daniels testified that Trump was waiting for her on the bed wearing only boxers. I felt like the room spun in slow motion, Daniels said, I thought oh my God, what did I misread to get here? She testified that the two had sex.
Although Trump did not initially ask her to keep the encounter quiet. She said I told very few people that we actually had sex because I felt ashamed that I didn't stop it. It was after Trump began running for president.
TRUMP: And when you're a star, they let you do it. You can do anything.
REID: And the infamous Access Hollywood tape came out that her then publicist said she should sell the story. My motivation wasn't money. It was to get the story out. She testified. But when she found out Trump and Michael Cohen interested in buying the story for $130,000. She told the court it was the best thing that could have happened, because then I'd be safe and the story wouldn't come out.
Then in a searing cross examination, Trump's attorney Susan Necheles, push Daniels. Am I correct that you hate President Trump? Yes, Daniels replied. You want him to go to jail. Nicholas asks, I want him to be held accountable, Daniels said. If he's found guilty, yes. Daniels casual and relaxed demeanor changed as the defense's questions became more pointed, attacking her credibility and trying to establish Daniels has always just been trying to make a profit.
You've been making money by claiming to have had sex with President Trump for more than a decade, Necheles asked. That story has made you a lot of money, right? Daniels responded. It's also cost me a lot of money.
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REID: Court will not be in session on Wednesday, but Daniels will be back on the stand Thursday to continue that cross examination. The big thing we're watching for the next 72 hours is whether Trump can continue to abide by the gag order that prohibits him from attacking any witnesses in this case. Daniels clearly got under his skin at times but the judge has threatened him with possible jail time if he violates the gag order again.
Paula Reid, CNN, New York.
CHURCH: Coming up. Two Ukrainian security officials charged with protecting President Zelenskyy have now been arrested accused of participating in an assassination plot. The details just ahead.
Plus, TikTok is ready to fight a potential ban in the U.S. in court and was shaping up to be an historic legal battle. We'll explain.
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CHURCH: Ukrainian officials say they have stopped an actively developing Russian plot to assassinate President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. The Prosecutor General's Offices two officials in Ukraine's government protection unit were arrested and charged with treason. CNN's Frederik Pleitgen brings us the details.
FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Now, it certainly seems like a pretty big deal here for the Ukrainian intelligence services that they thwarted this collaboration of two colonels who are working in the Ukrainian secret service with the Russians. The Ukrainians are saying that these two are being accused of what the prosecutor's office calls "subversive activities against Ukraine in exchange for financial compensation."
Now, on the one hand, the Ukrainian say that these two colonels gave information to the Russians, but that there were also several assassination plots. One of them against Ukraine's president, but apparently one of the two colonels also received a drone and ammunition for use in another plot, possibly against the head of Ukraine's military intelligence service Kyrylo Budanov. Now, of course, the Ukrainians are blaming the Russians for all this.
And this is happening on the day that Vladimir Putin was inaugurated into a record fifth term in office. Here's what happened.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
PLEITGEN (voice-over): Vladimir Putin making his own inauguration looks so commonplace, he takes time to finish a phone call. Before casually making his way to the grand ceremony inside the Kremlin. Those attending cheering him on as he ascends to a record fifth term as Russia's leader.
As President of the Russian Federation, I swear to respect and protect the rights and freedoms of people and citizens to respect and protect the constitution of the Russian Federation to protect the sovereignty, independence, safety and integrity of the state to loyally serve people he swore while once again blaming the West for deteriorating ties with Moscow.
The choice is there, as he said, whether they intend to continue to try to restrain Russia's development to continue a policy of aggression, continuous pressure on our country for years or to seek a path to cooperation and peace. Putin urging the West to halt military support for Ukraine as he himself continues to send hundreds of thousands of his own citizens to fight there.
The Russian military unleashing a massive aerial bombing campaign on Chasiv Yarchess making small gains here on the Eastern Front. It is due to the active use of aviation the Ukrainian commander says. Attack aircraft carrying guided bombs after the upgrade guided bombs began to hit more accurately than before. Thus, it is much harder to influence them with electronic warfare.
More than ever, Vladimir Putin's presidency is defined by war greeting his troops as part of the inauguration events. His position strengthened his power and nearly unchecked after a landslide victory in recent presidential elections. Putin has made clear he does not intend to change course or to back down as he continues to steer his country on a confrontation course with the U.S. and its allies.
His friend, the head of the Russian Orthodox Church, proclaiming Putin de facto Russia's leader for life. God grant that the end of the century marks the end of your stay in power, he says. Russia's constitution says Putin could remain in power for another 12 years, but that is just on paper. And today's Russia Putin makes the rules and steers this country in the direction he wants.
Frederik Pleitgen, CNN, Berlin.
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CHURCH: Ukraine's northern neighbor Belarus held what it says were surprised inspections of its nuclear arms carriers on Tuesday. The Belarusian defense ministry says President Alexander Lukashenko a key ally of Vladimir Putin ordered the inspections which came just a day after the Russian president and ordered his military to begin tactical nuclear weapons drills. Belarus does not have its own nuclear weapons, but it's signed an agreement last year allowing Moscow to station its nuclear weapons in Belarus for "defensive purposes."
[02:25:05]
British authorities say their military's payroll system has been hacked in a major cyberattack and that a foreign state could be involved. The British government did not name or blame China but some media outlets did. Its fear the hackers gained access to the bank details of service members and veterans. The defense ministry says measures are being taken to assist those potentially affected.
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GRANT SHAPPS, DEFENSE SECRETARY OF BRITAIN: Korea's reasons of national security. We can't release further details of the suspected cyber activity behind this incident. However, I can confirm to the house that we do have indications that this was the suspected work of a malign actor and we cannot rule out state involvement.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHURCH: China has denied all cyberattack allegations. Tic tock is suing to block a US law which could force a nationwide ban of the social media platform over security concerns and its links to China. The company argues the law infringes on free speech writing in a petition, "Congress has enacted a law that subjects a single-named speech platform to a permanent nationwide ban and bars every American from participating in a unique online community with more than one billion people worldwide." CNN's Clare Duffy reports.
CLARE DUFFY, CNN BUSINESS WRITER: The stakes here for Tik Tok are huge this bit bill could lead to a ban of TikTok. In the U.S., which is one of its biggest markets, 170 million American users and TikTok is claiming here that this bill infringes on the First Amendment speech rights of the platform and of those American users. Just as a reminder, this bill would force TikTok to find a new American owner spin off from its Chinese parent company ByteDance or face a ban in the United States.
But the company is claiming that this bill really is just a ban and that if it's left to stand left to stay in place, that it will lead to TikTok being blocked in the United States starting in January of next year. The company claims in this lawsuit that the divestiture required by this law, "is simply not possible." Not commercially, not technically not legally, and certainly not on the 270-day timeline required by this act.
TikTok is citing here, for example, the fact that the Chinese government has said that it wouldn't allow TikTok to be sold with its recommendation algorithm, which is really the thing that makes this platform so valuable. So Tiktok saying it's not possible for us to be divested from ByteDance. Therefore, this is a ban and a ban is unconstitutional. And what's interesting about this is it's really going to set up the court to have to weigh the U.S. lawmakers' national security concerns when it comes to TikTok over or sort of against the First Amendment rights of this platform and of its U.S. user.
So, I expect that we'll see this legislation or this litigation, I should say dragged on for quite some time.
CHURCH: And still to come. U.S. President Joe Biden delivers a somber speech saying anti-Semitism has no place in America.
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CHURCH: Welcome back, everyone. A U.S. official tells CNN the Biden Administration has paused a shipment of bombs to Israel, concerned about their potential use in the invasion of Rafah. The weapons held back last week include 2,000-pound and 500-pound bombs. Israeli leaders are vowing to continue their incursion into the southern Gaza City until Hamas is eliminated or the hostages are freed. Hospital officials in Gaza reported at least 27 people killed, including six women and nine children. And the IDF says it has killed approximately 20 terrorists and located three operational tunnel shafts.
Pro-Palestinian protesters grappled with police in The Netherlands on Tuesday where thousands turned out to march. This comes one day after riot police broke up an encampment at Amsterdam University. School officials say the protests began peacefully on Monday, but they say it turned hostile after people through fireworks and burned an Israeli flag. Police say they dismantled protester's tents because of safety risks after they ignored requests by officials to leave the campus. Demonstrations are springing up at other universities across Europe. And in the U.K., pro-Palestinian student protesters set up a camp at Cambridge University.
In the U.S., on Tuesday, police cleared a camp erected by student protesters at the University of Chicago. Video shows officers taking down tents and signs from the main quad on the school campus. A statement issued by the university said they have been no arrests. Officials say they expect more protests, but they will not allow protesters to indefinitely disrupt the function or safety of the university.
The pro-Palestinian protesters now have support from Rapper Macklemore. He released a new song called 'Hind's Hall' in support of Palestinians, which also praises these student demonstrators across the U.S.
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MACKLEMORE'S HIND'S HALL SONG PLAYING: The people, they won't leave What is threatenin' about divesting and wantin' peace? The problem isn't the protests, it's what they're protesting It goes against what our country is funding Block the barricade until Palestine is free Block the barricade until Palestine is free
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHURCH: The song also slams the music industry for being "complicit" in their platform of silence. The song is named after a building at Columbia University, which students recently occupied and renamed in honor of a six-year-old Palestinian girl killed in Gaza. Macklemore known for his hits like 'Thrift Shop' has also been a vocal supporter of the LGBTQ+ community, while also criticizing social issues like poverty and consumerism.
U.S. President Joe Biden spoke out against rising antisemitism on Tuesday during the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum's annual Days of Remembrance ceremony. He called for greater vigilance against antisemitism in his speech, connecting the holocaust to the October 7 Hamas attacks on Israel. CNN's Kayla Tausche has more now from the White House.
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KAYLA TAUSCHE, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A speech of remembrance and rebuke, President Biden honoring the 6 million lives lost in the holocaust nearly 80 years ago and condemning the ferocious surge of antisemitism sweeping the country.
JOE BIDEN, (D) PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES AND 2024 PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: We have to remember our basic principles of the nation. We have an obligation to learn the lessons of history. So don't surrender our future to the horrors of the past.
TAUSCHE (voice-over): The president marked seven months of war since the day Hamas besieged Israel and overnight onslaught killing more than 1,200 and taking more than 200 hostage. The attack on Israel's Nova Music Festival, Biden suggesting is today's Auschwitz.
[02:35:00]
BIDEN: Too many people deny, downplaying, rationalizing and ignoring the horrors of the holocaust. On October 7th, including Hamas' appalling use of sexual violence to torture, and terrorized humans. It is absolutely despicable and it must stop.
TAUSCHE (voice-over): Biden urging Americans to remember why the Jewish state must defend itself as anger simmers and at times erupts on college campuses over how Israel is doing so. For Biden, today's antisemitism evokes the outrage over hate in a different college town.
BIDEN: Charlottesville, Virginia.
TAUSCHE (voice-over): Biden driven to run for president after a white nationalist in anti-Jewish rally in 2017 pledging to unify a divided nation with deep divisions on display once again.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
TAUSCHE (on camera): The Biden Administration believes that what would calm tensions in the U.S. now is a ceasefire deal being reached that would see those dozens of hostages freed. NSC Spokesman John Kirby said the parties, when they meet in Cairo this week, are down to negotiating the language of such a deal and they remain optimistic that a deal can be reached soon.
Kayla Tausche, CNN, the White House.
CHURCH: The peak of tornado season is in full force across the U.S. with watchers again in effect for a number of states in the midwest and south for the next few hours. And a severe storm threat for Wednesday stretches this from Texas to Maine, affecting more than 140 million people. Michigan was hit with several tornadoes late Tuesday, which injured at least 12 people and destroyed homes. A day earlier, tornadoes struck part of Missouri, Tennessee, and Oklahoma, where at least one person was killed.
According to the Storm Prediction Center, there has now been at least one tornado report every day in the U.S. for 13 straight days, roughly 300 were reported last month, the second most on record.
Well, last month broke yet another global heat record. The warmest April ever according to Copernicus, the EU's Climate Monitoring Service. That is now 11 straight months of record heat, and already it looks like we'll see the hottest year on record for the second straight year. CNN Meteorologist Chad Myers has more.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Here's what the globe looks like from the Copernicus Climate Change Service for April of 2024. It was the warmest April ever on record. And now, we have been month to month the month records for 11 straight months in a row. Next month will likely be one full year, but this is disturbing. Still, 1.58-degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels, trying to keep that number below 1.50 and that just hasn't happened. And it hasn't happened since July of last year.
This is the 11th month in a row where the global temperatures have exceeded any other year on record. So, way up there and same story for the warmest sea surface temperatures on record globally. Not everywhere is warm, there are some cooler spots, but with the El Nino in the Pacific and also the very hot areas here in the Atlantic Ocean, yes, the warmest sea surface temperatures globally that we have ever had. This red zone right here, and mainly right up in here, the development region for Atlantic hurricanes, the warmest it has ever been for this date, not the warmest it is going to be in July or August, but we are already starting out very, very warm. In fact, warm enough to probably equal June or July, already into hurricane season, although we haven't had any tropical cyclones here in the Atlantic Ocean yet. But that is likely to come.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHURCH: Still ahead, what's in a name, the iconic Swiss Army Knife is getting a makeover and losing a key feature, we'll explain.
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[02:41:04]
CHURCH: It's been seven long years since Nintendo released the mega popular gaming console, the Switch. And finally, a brand new console may be coming our way. Nintendo's president says there will be an announcement about the switch's successor by next March. Nintendo warns that current switch sales are flagging, they're projecting to sell 13.5 million units this year compared to nearly 16 million last year. But the product is still a huge profit driver for the Japanese company and it is home to game being icons such as Mario, Luigi, Link and Zelda.
Artificial intelligence added a plus one to the Met Gala's exclusive list. Katy Perry posted these photos of herself seemingly taken at the Met Gala, only she didn't actually attend the event Monday. It turns out AI generated the photos and the images fold some of the singer's fans and even her mother. Perry posted a message from her mom who said Katy's outfit made her "look like the rose parade."
And finally, a Swiss Army Knife without the knife. Victorinox, the company that makes the tools, says it is working on a new version that doesn't include a blade, imagine that. The company says the new product is partly a response to increasingly strict regulations on knives in many countries. But for fans of the original Swiss Army Knife, there is no need to worry, the company says the new product won't be a replacement for any of its current models.
I want to thank you for joining us this hour. I am Rosemary Church. "World Sport" is up next. Then, I'll be back in about 15 minutes with more "CNN Newsroom." Do stick around.
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