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CNN International: IDF: Bodies Of Three Hostages Recovered From Gaza; Aid Groups Distributing Supplies From U.S. Floating Pier; Intl. Court Of Justice To Issue Ruling In Case Against Israel. Aired 8-9a ET
Aired May 24, 2024 - 08:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
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AMARA WALKER, CNN ANCHOR: Appreciate you joining us this morning. Thank you very much. Another hour of "CNN News Central" starts right now.
FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, HOST, "CNN NEWSROOM": Hello, and welcome to our viewers all around the world. I'm Fredricka Whitfield, and this is the CNN Newsroom.
Just ahead, in the next hour, the UN's top court will rule on South Africa's request for Israel to withdraw from Gaza. This as more bodies of Israeli hostages have been recovered. We'll have the very latest developments. Then, devastating pictures of a landslide hitting a remote village in northern Papua New Guinea. Many are feared dead. Plus, both Joe Biden and Donald Trump are confident they can take the other down in next month's presidential debate. They're preparing for it in very different ways. We'll tell you how.
All right. We begin with several new developments in Israel's war with Hamas. In the next hour, the UN's top court will rule on South Africa's emergency request for Israel to halt its Rafah offensive. This as the U.S. works to get hostage and ceasefire talks between Israel and Hamas back on track. A U.S. official tells CNN, CIA Director Bill Burns will head to Europe in the coming days to try to revive the process. Meanwhile, the Israeli military says it has recovered the bodies of three hostages from Jabalia in Gaza. Israel says they were killed on October 7.
Let's bring in CNN's Ben Wedeman, who is following the developments from Rome. Ben, good to see you. So, what can you tell us about the bodies of the hostages recovered in an overnight operation?
BEN WEDEMAN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes. This was an operation in the Jabalia refugee camp in the northern part of Gaza, which has been the scene actually going back almost to the very beginning of this war of intense bombardment and fighting. The Israelis have gone back into Jabalia again, and during the course of this operation, they came upon three bodies.
Now, from the forensic inspection, it appears that they were all killed on the 7th of October. So, Hamas was simply holding dead bodies, not the living. Now, among them was a 59-year-old dual Brazilian-Israeli citizen from the town of Sderot, which is very near the line that divides Gaza from Israel, and apparently he was killed while going to pick up his granddaughter. In addition to that, there were two men who were at the Nova Music Festival, which, of course, was attacked in the very early hours of the 7th of October. One of them was a 30-year-old French-Mexican citizen. The other was a 42- year-old father of two from Tel Aviv.
WHITFIELD: And then, Ben, what are you hearing about the situation inside Gaza, even as the U.S. tries to revive talks on a ceasefire and hostage deal?
WEDEMAN: The situation in Gaza, particularly in the Rafah region in the southern part of the strip, is going from bad to worse. According to the UN, more than 800,000 people who were in Rafah have been displaced elsewhere, keeping in mind, of course, many of them have already been displaced three, four, in some cases five or six times. And the Israelis say that they are conducting what they describe as an operation targeted and precise in manner.
Now, the United States repeatedly warned Israel against launching a major operation in Rafah. Now, the Israelis have been going it perhaps by doing the salami approach, rather than taking the whole thing. They're taking it bit by bit. But, the end result is the same. It appears that most people are trying to get out of Rafah as quickly as possible to avoid getting killed or wounded by the Israelis.
Now, as far as the humanitarian situation goes, as a result of the military operations in Rafah, the crossing to Egypt has been closed now for quite some time, which means not much food is getting into Gaza itself. Now, there is that American pier that has been -- that has gone into operation. According to the Americans, 500 tons of supplies have gone in. But, that project has been marred by complications because it's very easy to get the material to the pier, but then distributing it, delivering it to those who need it most is very difficult, because a, of course, most of Gaza is an active war zone. And also, there are desperately hungry people who are looting those trucks that are delivering the goods before they actually get to those they're supposed to get to.
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In addition to that, we know that, for instance, some of the hospitals in Gaza simply aren't operating anymore or are on the verge of collapse. There is the Al-Aqsa Hospital in Deir al-Balah, which is in the central part of the Gaza Strip. They apparently have about 1,200 patients there, which is well over their normal capacity, and they're running out of fuel to run their generators, which provide the power for life-saving equipment. And that's just one hospital. Many other hospitals have simply been completely knocked out of operation.
So, the situation in Gaza, and I don't have time to go through all of it, but it's obviously going from bad to much, much worse.
WHITFIELD: Incredible.
WEDEMAN: Fredricka. WHITFIELD: All right. Ben Wedeman, thank you so much.
All right. Let's bring in CNN's Nic Robertson from London who has more on South Africa's emergency request at the International Court of Justice. So, Nic, what should we expect in today's activity?
NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: Yeah. I mean, sort of going back, if you were just set the scene, South Africa borders case at the ICJ right at the end of last year, and the ICJ took a view on the allegations that South Africa was accusing Israel of genocide of the Palestinian population inside of Gaza. The very early reading, the first reading, because the actual sort of determination is going to take a couple of years, the ICJ said, look, not determining here that there is actually genocide going on, but with making the determination that the Palestinian people have a right to be protected from genocide, and therefore called on Israel to give monthly reports to improve the humanitarian situation for the people in Gaza, and to make sure that people, civilians weren't being killed.
Now, the South African government has three times or is now on its third occasion of trying to sort of stiffen, if you will, and move -- make more active the language and authority of the ICJ here. And in essence, a couple of weeks ago, when the IDF went into Gaza, the South African allegation is that actually moving people to safe areas was not actually making them safer, and this was making the situation worse. So, they went back to the ICJ and said we want to have these stronger preventative measures. And they're calling now for full access for humanitarian aid, full access for investigators for potential other crimes that have been committed, full access for journalists.
So, what they are doing here is trying to sort of take up a level and put greater pressure on Israel to stop and curtail its actions in Rafah. Now, Israel, for its part, has said that South Africa is working as the legal arm of Hamas, that these are -- the allegations, morally and factually unfounded. So, the ruling will be, when we hear it in the next hour or so, will it apply more pressure on Israel to allow in humanitarian aid, or will it just determine to continue with its own investigations, the big picture of genocide, and say what we've said already stands?
WHITFIELD: And what about the ceasefire negotiations? Might there be an impact there?
ROBERTSON: It does seem that as Israel gets greater and greater international pressure on it, its determination to follow through or Israel's -- the Israeli government under Benjamin Netanyahu really feels that that recognizes that there is this international pressure, but counters it against their military operations that they say are precise, that are not targeting civilians. And what we've seen often is that they will try to push ahead with their original plans, and how that therefore impacts a possible ceasefire negotiations.
It's a moment of huge international pressure on Israel. But, it doesn't seem that it's responding in the way that many in the international community want it to. And it doesn't seem that what the ICJ will say today can bring a bearing on those talks for hostage release, certainly not a quick change.
WHITFIELD: OK. All right. We'll leave it there. Nic Robertson in London, thanks so much.
All right. China says it's testing its ability to quote "seize power and occupy key areas" as it begins its second day of military drills around Taiwan. The drills are the largest in more than a year, and come just days after Taiwan swore in its new President.
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Taipei, meanwhile, is condemning the exercises as irrational provocations and has dispatched its own forces.
CNN's Will Ripley has more on that, along with protests taking place outside of Taiwan's parliament, centered around a controversial bill.
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WILL RIPLEY, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Day two of China's military exercises encircling Taiwan, and new claims from Beijing that this was a test of their power seizure capabilities, essentially simulating an attack and potential occupation of Taiwan. This is something that China has been hanging over Taiwan's head for decades, and in recent years, they've really stepped up these military exercises, which Taiwan, along with the United States and others, view as reckless and provocative, escalating regional tensions. Exercise is seen as coercion. The United States saying they're committed to supporting Taiwan's defense under the Taiwan Relations Act in Taiwan, investing billions to bolster their own self-defense capabilities.
In the Taiwanese capital, there have been protests, protests because of actions in parliament that some members of the public say are potentially putting Taiwan's democracy in danger. Some lawmakers in the opposition party are trying to pass legislation that would take power away from the newly elected President of Taiwan, Lai Ching-te. And these members of the public say that if they did that, these lawmakers, who are seen as friendly to China, would have power to potentially trade some aspects of Taiwan's freedom in exchange for economic benefit from Beijing, and that is something that they say they just won't stand for, including a man who I met who flew all the way here from California where he has lived for the last four years, even though he was born here in Taiwan.
RIPLEY: Why did you come all the way here?
LI HONG-CHENG, PROTESTOR: Because I support democracy. I believe democracy is -- it's a freedom that people should exercise and freedom come with very, very hard price.
RIPLEY: Those protests were followed by a brawl inside parliament last Friday when lawmakers actually got physical with each other, arguing over these proposed legislative reforms. It is a sign of just how divided and polarized Taiwan has become even with these Chinese military drills happening just miles off the coast.
Will Ripley, CNN, Taipei.
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WHITFIELD: And CNN is learning new details about a devastating landslide that struck a remote village in Papua New Guinea. The International Organization for Migration says the disaster covers an area the size of quote "approximately three to four football fields". More than 100 people are feared dead. We're also hearing that victims likely would have been asleep when the landslide overpowered them.
CNN's Anna Coren brings us more.
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ANNA COREN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Emergency crews in Papua New Guinea are trying to access a remote village in Enga Province in the north of the country, where a landslide is believed to have killed more than 100 people. Around 3 a.m. on Friday, Kaokalam village situated in the highlands was hit by an enormous landslide, flattening houses. One eyewitness said that the entire village was gone. Pictures and video on social media show villages trying to find survivors in the earth and rubble. Large boulders, tree trunks and collapsed buildings scattered the Earth. One resident said the debris was making it hard to find the bodies. The highway to the area has been cut off, making it inaccessible for rescue workers to get to the scene of this natural disaster.
A Red Cross official told CNN that a recent earthquake and heavy rainfall in the area may have been responsible for triggering the deadly landslide.
JANET PHILEMON, CARETAKER, NATIONAL TREASURER, PAPUA NEW GUINEA RED CROSS: There was a 4.5 earthquake in the area about four days ago. So, that could have shaken things up a bit, opened up some cracks. If rain followed, you would possibly get the weakening and then sometimes these landslides in those circumstances just happen like this one did overnight with seemingly no cause.
COREN: The Prime Minister of Papua New Guinea, James Marape, issued a statement, saying "We are sending in disaster officials, PNG Defence Force, and the Dept. of Work and Highways to meet provincial and district officials in Enga and also start relief work, recovery of bodies, and reconstruction of infrastructure. I extend my heartfelt condolences to the families of those who lost their lives in a landslide disaster." Now, the scale of destruction is enormous, and many fear the death toll will rise.
Anna Coren, CNN, Hong Kong.
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WHITFIELD: All right. Some of the world's richest countries are seeking a decision on using frozen Russian assets to help Ukraine. G7 foreign ministers are meeting now in Italy.
[08:15:00] They're talking about hundreds of billions of dollars held in Western financial institutions since the start of the Russian invasion.
CNN's Clare Sebastian has the latest.
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URSULA VON DER LEYEN, EUROPEAN COMMISSION PRESIDENT: We will stop Putin from using his war chest.
CLARE SEBASTIAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Just days after the first Russian military trucks rumbled over Ukraine's border, the West had crossed its own Rubicon --
NED PRICE, FORMER SPOKESPERSON, U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT: We have imposed restrictive measures against Russia's central bank.
SEBASTIAN (voice-over): -- freezing around $300 billion of Russian foreign currency reserves, funds the Kremlin had saved up for a moment like this. Moscow was blindsided.
SERGEY LAVROV, RUSSIAN FOREIGN MINISTER (Interpreted): The reserves in the central bank, really, none of those who made predictions could have thought what sanction the West might apply. It's theft.
SEBASTIAN (voice-over): And yet, within a few months, as images of destruction flooded in, talk turned cautiously from freezing to seizing.
JANET YELLEN, U.S. TREASURY SECRETARY: I'm unclear whether or not it would be possible without legislation.
SEBASTIAN (voice-over): Alongside long-awaited military aid to Ukraine, that U.S. legislation finally came this April.
ANTONY BLINKEN, U.S. SECRETARY OF STATE: Our Congress has given us the power to seize Russian assets in the United States. We intend to use it.
SEBASTIAN (voice-over): But, Europe has by far the most skin in this game.
CHRISTINE LAGARDE, EUROPEAN CENTRAL BANK PRESIDENT: That opens a whole series of other questions which have to do with respect of the international legal order, which have to do with financial stability.
SEBASTIAN (voice-over): About two thirds of the $300 billion of frozen assets are sitting in the EU, mostly in Euroclear, a Belgian financial institution.
TOM KEATINGE, ROYAL UNITED SERVICES INSTITUTE: They are earning this so-called extraordinary profit as a result of sort of sitting there and accruing interest. And I think people are comfortable that the extraordinary profit doesn't really belong to the Russians.
SEBASTIAN: Here in Brussels right now is there is a sense of urgency among European leaders because of the potential for another Trump presidency.
KEATINGE: Part of the discussion here is acknowledging how difficult it was for the most recent tranche of funding to come out of the U.S. And so, of course, the Trump factor features.
VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY, UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT: Putin loves money above all.
SEBASTIAN (voice-over): For Ukraine, too much time has already been lost. Russia's surprise offensive in the north likely already adding to what the World Bank estimates is a half-trillion-dollar reconstruction bill.
KEATINGE: The fact that Kharkiv is under as much pressure as it is under right now, that has to be at the front of mind of those who are thinking about, do we give the Ukrainians $2 billion? Do we give them 20 billion? Do we give them 200 billion? Right? So, I think the most powerful weapon we can give them right now is funding.
Clare Sebastian, CNN, London.
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WHITFIELD: And we're just a couple hours away from a controversial sentencing hearing in Turks and Caicos. A judge there is set to sentence an American tourist who was found guilty of violating the island's strict ban on guns and ammo. Bryan Hagerich could get a 12- year prison sentence for having a box of ammunition in his luggage. He is one of five American tourists arrested in Turks and Caicos recently on firearms charges. A U.S. congressional delegation visited the island this week to plead for their release.
CNN's Carlos Suarez is following the story for us. Carlos, good morning to you. So, what should we expect today?
CARLOS SUAREZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hey, Fred. Good morning. So, we expect that this judge is going to hand down a sentence in this case. And according to Hagerich's attorney, the judge could also rule on the constitutionality of this law in question. The sentencing really is taking place as this back and forth between officials on the Turks and Caicos Islands and the U.S. really pick up.
Yesterday, the country's premier went after some comments that were made by some U.S. lawmakers after they visited Turks and Caicos Islands over the weekend. He took great exception with the allegation that officials said that the country there is targeting Americans. The premier went on to say that in the past six years, 195 people have been convicted of firearm offenses, and that of those 195, only seven of them have been Americans. And so, the premier said, look, let's let this judicial process play out. The judges on the island have discretion here. And the premier also noted that no American that's ever been convicted of possessing ammunition on the -- in the Turks and Caicos Island has ever received a mandatory minimum sentence of 12 years in prison.
And so, again, Fred, we expect the sentencing to take place at around 10 o'clock in the morning. And then, we'll learn just how long Hagerich may spend in jail, considering the charges against him.
WHITFIELD: All right. Keep us posted. Carlos Suarez in Miami, thanks so much.
All right. It is the unofficial start to summer in the U.S., Memorial Day weekend. We will take a look at how busy the roads and the skies are expected to be, right after this.
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And we'll tell you how Joe Biden and Donald Trump are preparing for their big debate next month right here on CNN, contrasting styles, when we continue.
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WHITFIELD: All right. This long Memorial Day weekend is the unofficial start of the summer across the U.S., and that means barbecues, outdoor events, and travel, a lots of travel. AAA says nearly 44 million Americans will travel between Thursday and Monday, and many of them by air. The Transportation Security Administration expects to screen some 18 million passengers over the holiday period. But, most actually will be traveling by car. AAA says it expects to see the highest numbers since it started keeping track back in 2000.
Our Pete Muntean is joining us now from Annapolis, Maryland, where lots of people are often heading to the coast, getting some beach activity. What's happening?
PETE MUNTEAN, CNN AVIATION CORRESPONDENT: This is the gateway, Fredricka, to the beaches in Ocean City, Maryland, and Delaware. And officials here in Maryland anticipate about 300,000 people will drive over the Chesapeake Bay Bridge here between today and Monday. It is a huge number and it fits into the theme of so many people taking road trips for this Memorial Day holiday weekend. 38 million people expected to drive 50 miles or more. That's a four percent increase over last year. It's even bigger than pre-pandemic, 2019, even bigger than 2005 when travel fully rebounded after 9/11, the biggest since 2000. That's before iPhones, even before the iPod.
Now, AAA says the thing that's really driving this is the fact that gas prices have remained relatively flat compared to last year. The national average for a gallon of regular, $3.60, about the same as a year ago is around $3.56 then. And AAA says that so many people are really budgeting for travel first and skipping on other things rather than eating out or maybe going to a store. I want you to listen now the AAA spokesperson Aixa Diaz. She says that gas prices really don't play that big of a factor in people deciding to travel over this holiday weekend. Listen.
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AIXA DIAZ, AAA SPOKESPERSON: Gas prices, though, have never really been a factor in terms of keeping people home. AAA has always found that people will just budget around gas prices. It's certainly nice that we're not paying some astronomical number right now, but it doesn't really hold people back.
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MUNTEAN: The bottom line here is that you have to leave early, and AAA is telling people, the best time to travel today, before 11 a.m., after 8 p.m., the worst time, between noon and 7 p.m. The interesting thing is Friday is still a workday for most people here in the U.S.
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So, that means is that there will still be normal commuters on top of holiday travel, especially during the evening rush, and that's when things can get really grisly. Traffic in some spots, some major metro areas, could be two or three times the norm. We're only seeing the start of it here, Fredricka.
WHITFIELD: Yes, you are. OK. So, what about the weather? I mean, am I seeing overcast there behind you? Is that a deterrent in any way or just not a factor at all?
MUNTEAN: Of course, during summer travel, thunderstorms are always a huge factor. And the FAA says the weather could really play a factor today. There could be ground stumps today. And some major hubs like Minneapolis, a big hub for Delta, also Atlanta, another big hub for Delta, and Chicago, big hubs for United, American and Southwest. So, we could see some weather impact today. Thankfully, today looks relatively placid. We'll wait and see how the weekend plays out, though. Of course, there is the big rush back that everyone tries to take part in on Monday.
WHITFIELD: Oh yeah.
MUNTEAN: So, we'll see as the weather develops over the weekend.
WHITFIELD: All right. We'll handle that one when it comes. For now, hey, just enjoy the weekend --
MUNTEAN: Yeah.
WHITFIELD: -- and look for sunny times, if you don't have sunny skies. All right. Pete Muntean, all right, thanks so much, Pete.
OK. Meantime, the skies will be filled with passengers as well. Our Ryan Young is at Hartsfield-Jackson Airport in Atlanta, one of the world's busiest airports on a regular day. So, what's it like now --
RYAN YOUNG, CNN SENIOR U.S NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Absolutely.
WHITFIED: -- as folks want to get the weekend started?
YOUNG: You better know it. People were arriving here, getting ready to get out of town. And of course, they have to get to that traveling that Pete was talking about. And I can't believe you were already asking him about the hubs, because obviously, this is a huge hub for Delta. When you think about passengers going through the world's busiest airport, you know the lines are going to be long. Security has already been brisk this morning. We've seen some adjustments here by security. But, we've been told by the TSA that they are fully staffed and ready to accommodate all the travelers.
One thing, Fred, though, very rarely does anything ever beat the Super Bowl when it comes to numbers. But, after the Super Bowl here in Atlanta a few years ago, there was 104,000 passengers that went to TSA. Just yesterday, the record was set, over 111,000 people went through the TSA here in Atlanta. But, all this increase is going to happen all across the country. In fact, we're even told that 3.5 million travelers will be in the air over the next few days. That's up since 2018, some nine percent.
So, you can see that the public really wants to get out of town. They want to travel. They want to experience Memorial Day. And as we've been talking to people here, most of them are telling us they've been trying to get here at least an hour ahead of time. But, we're trying to find a park. It's actually pretty hard for them. So, we've seen some people running already this morning. Fred.
WHITFIELD: Yeah. Parking, horrible on a good day, but especially now with all that construction right there at the airport. All right. Thank you so much Ryan Young, at Hartsfield-Jackson Airport in Atlanta.
YOUNG: Absolutely.
WHITFIELD: All right. Still to come, the actor famous for the line "You talking to me?", now talking to voters. Robert De Niro gives the Biden campaign some superstar power.
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WHITFIELD: All right. CNN has gotten a little peek behind the scenes at how Joe Biden and Donald Trump are preparing for their first debate next month here on CNN. Sources close to the two men say they both think voters will notice a physical decline in the other guy from four years ago. Biden plans to needle and taunt Trump, hoping to provoke his rival into making controversial statements. Trump, well, he is not planning formal practice for the debate, instead, believing his improvisational style will carry the day. The first debate will be right here on CNN, June 27.
CNN's Edward-Isaac Dovere has been looking into the debate prep. So, he is joining us now from Washington with more on what you're learning.
EDWARD-ISAAC DOVERE, CNN SENIOR REPORTER: Good morning.
WHITFIELD: Hi, Isaac.
DOVERE: Look, they -- when you talk to people who've been in prep sessions with Biden in the past, the word that often comes up is sprawling, exhausting. They talk about how Biden just likes to go through everything over and over again. They're expecting a lot of that over the course of the next couple of weeks. But, a real focus, they think, on trying to, as you said, taunt Trump, and they feel like getting him to just be confronted by Biden onstage and say, what do you think about all these things that you've done? Your role in the abortion restrictions being in place now because of the Dobbs decision. Your role in January 6. All of that just going right at him.
Whereas, for Trump, as you mentioned, it's a sort of improvisational style. Aides telling us that they still do not expect formal debate planning or prep sessions from Donald Trump and that he -- that they haven't really talked to him about it so far yet even, and they think that they can continue to push the case to voters on immigration, on inflation, and the economy overall. And that these two are looking at each other, and each of them, notably, sees this as a really important debate. Each of them believes that they will be able to display the other as having really deteriorated over the course of last couple of years.
Of course, this is a historical moment. There is never in the history of American politics been a time where two presidents have debated like this. And these two guys have not debated anyone at all since the last time they debated each other four years ago.
WHITFIELD: Oh my goodness. It's going to be interesting indeed. Something tells me these last few weeks, they're all going to be hunkering down pretty seriously, finding a way to get ready.
All right. CNN's Edward-Isaac Dovere in Washington, thanks so much.
DOVERE: Thank you.
WHITFIELD: All right. Still ahead of that debate, President Biden is pulling in some A- list star power, thanks to a new campaign ad narrated by Hollywood legend Robert De Niro, who was taking aim squarely at Trump. Listen.
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ROBERT DE NIRO, AMERICAN ACTOR AND FILLM PRODUCER: From midnight tweets to drinking bleach, to tear gassing citizens and staging a photo op, we knew Trump was out of control when he was President. Then he lost the 2020 election and snapped, desperately trying to hold on to power. Now, he is running again, this time threatening to be a dictator to terminate the Constitution.
DONALD TRUMP (R), FORMER U.S. PRESIDENT AND 2024 PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: If I don't get elected, it's going to be a bloodbath.
NIRO: Trump wants revenge, and just stop at nothing to get it.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WHITFIELD: Whoa. Priscilla Alvarez is at the White House. That's a pretty powerful punch there, Priscilla. So, how significant is this add to the Biden campaign strategy? Oh, Priscilla. Can you hear me now? OK. She is not hearing us. All right. We're going to try and reconnect momentarily.
All right. So, let's talk about Joe Biden's son Hunter Biden. He is set to be in court in just a few hours for a pretrial hearing related to his gun charges. His defense attorneys along with prosecutors will meet with the judge overseeing the case for the final time before the trial begins. The President's son was indicted in September in connection with a gun he purchased in 2018. He faces three charges, including making false statements on a federal form and possessing a firearm while using illegal drugs. The trial is set to begin June 3 in Delaware.
As southern Mexico grapples with record-high temperatures, the country's population of howler monkeys are feeling the heat.
CNN's Gustavo Valdez takes us inside the effort to save these endangered primates.
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A warning, viewers may find some of these images disturbing.
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WHITFIELD: All right. We apologize. We're unable to bring you that piece about the heat and the primates in southern Mexico. We'll try to bring that to you at some other point throughout the day. We've had some technical problems.
But, now let's talk again about the Biden reelection campaign pulling no punches with that new ad featuring Robert De Niro. Priscilla Alvarez is at the White House. Let's see if you can hear me, Priscilla. Good morning.
PRISCILLA ALVAREZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning.
WHITFIELD: OK. Let's talk about this ad. I mean, wow. I mean, it's powerful. It's not holding back. But, will it land to the voters the way the Biden reelection campaign wants it to?
ALVAREZ: Well, it's certainly the latest indication that they are ramping up the next phase of the campaign strategy in earnest by trying to make very clear the choices that are before Americans ahead of the November election, and most -- more specifically ahead of the June presidential debate here on CNN.
Now, in watching that ad, there are a few points that stick out, of course, Robert De Niro, who is there right in the ad, talks about drinking bleach, the threat to be a dictator, and wanting revenge, putting all of that on former President Donald Trump and the words that he has used. But also, he says that the former President has snapped. Now, I point that out because President Biden himself has started to say that in his fundraisers. He started to say that the former President seems unhinged, and that he snapped after losing the 2020 election. So, they're clearly building on that in a way to stoke the President's Republican rival and ramp up attacks against him ahead of this debate. [08:40:00]
Now, the campaign released a memo this morning where they essentially lay out what they plan to hit Donald Trump on during the debate. That includes on the economy, on abortion, and on threats to democracy, all of those points that we have heard the President talk about over the course of his campaign so far. But clearly, they feel like they have -- former President Donald Trump pegged to the point where they can lay out these policies and these issues and see them as weaknesses for the former President to try to defend against.
Now, of course, President Biden is, as you heard earlier from Isaac, preparing behind closed doors for this debate. But, what this ad at the very least does show us is that they are going to ramp up, put this on national television, local markets and on digital platforms to try to get voters revved up, because what the campaign is trying to battle here is this waning enthusiasm and not much energy for President Biden among voters. So, that fighting spirit that they say the President has is what they're also trying to stoke out of voters, especially those who do not want to vote for former President Donald Trump and just don't like him.
WHITFIELD: OK. So, Priscilla, tell us too a bit more about that dinner yesterday. We know the White House was hosting the Kenyan President. And apparently, there was a surprise appearance at the dinner that is allowing people to take note.
ALVAREZ: Well, he wasn't listed on the guest list, but he did make a brief appearance, and that would be former President Barack Obama. He came by the State Dinner briefly. Of course, remember that his father was born in Kenya, and during his time as President, he also visited the country. Now, he did not stay for the entire portion of the dinner but he had engaged with the Kenyan President earlier in the day at Blair House.
Now, of course, this was the White House rolling out the red carpet in honor of the Kenyan President with hundreds of guests in a transparent pavilion on the South Lawn, where according to the First Lady's office, they had over 1,000 candles, and also served a three-course dinner to all of those guests, which included celebrities and Washington types, as well as former President Bill Clinton as well. And all that was to book in this state visit from the Kenyan President a momentous one, the first African leader to have a state visit here at the White House since 2008.
And over the course of the day yesterday, the two presidents talking about a broad range of issues, and ending all of it with this glitzy affair at the White House.
WHITFIELD: All right. Let's see indeed. Priscilla Alvarez, thank you so much. Thanks for hanging in there with our technical fun.
All right. Now, some disturbing allegations against Sean "Diddy" Combs in a new lawsuit that was filed Thursday by a woman who says she met the rapper when she was a student in New York in 1994. The complaint accuses him of four instances of sexual assault from the mid-90s to the early 2000s. It also accuses him of battery. CNN has reached out to a representative for Combs, who has previously denied allegations and other lawsuits against him. And this comes as Diddy's former girlfriend Cassie Ventura is speaking out for the first time about a 2016 video showing her being physically assaulted by the music mogul. Ventura's public comments come just days after CNN exclusively obtained that graphic surveillance footage.
Elizabeth Wagmaster -- Wagmeister, rather, has more on what Ventura is saying. And we do want to warn you, some of the images in her report are disturbing.
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ELIZABETH WAGMEISTER, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Cassie Ventura breaking her silence for the first time since CNN uncovered this disturbing video showing music mogul Sean "Diddy" Combs violently throwing her to the ground, then kicking and dragging her. On Instagram, Ventura thanking family, friends and strangers, writing "The outpouring of love has created a place for my younger self to settle and feel safe now, but this is only the beginning. My only ask is that EVERYONE open your heart to believing victims the first time."
The surveillance video from 2016 also shows Combs throwing a vase at then-girlfriend Ventura in the hallway of a Los Angeles hotel, the security camera footage seeming to corroborate part of Ventura's 2023 lawsuit against Diddy, alleging he punched Ms. Ventura, giving her a black eye, then took glass vases in the hallway and threw them at her. The lawsuit since settled also referenced this --
SEAN "DIDDY" COMBS, RAP MOGUL: I got to give a special thank you.
WAGMEISTER (voice-over): -- a 2022 acceptance speech in which Combs spoke of Cassie in a much different light.
COMBS: -- also Cassie for holding me down in a dark times. Love.
WAGMEISTER (voice-over): But now, with the ugly truth of his abuse caught on video, Diddy took to his own social media Sunday to respond.
[08:45:00]
COMBS: I mean, I hit rock bottom, but I make no excuses. My behavior on that video is inexcusable. I take full responsibility for my actions in that video.
WAGMEISTER (voice-over): The allegations continue to pile up against Combs. This week, former model Crystal McKinney filed a lawsuit alleging Combs drugged and sexually assaulted her in 2003. And Combs still faces possible charges related to those federal raids on his homes in March. The LA County District Attorney says the hotel video from 2016 won't lead to new charges because the statute of limitations expired. Cassie didn't address the video directly, but did say "Domestic violence is THE issue. It broke me down to someone I never thought I would become." Advocates say cases like Cassie's are helping to turn the tide for victims of abuse. DEBRA KATZ, WOMEN'S RIGHTS ATTORNEY: It means that people who were too scared, they were too young, they felt that they'd be disbelieved long ago, but whose lives were altered, now have an ability to come forward and seek legal redress.
WAGMEISTER (voice-over): Cassie speaking directly to those victims, writing "I offer my hand to those that are still living in fear. No one should carry this weight alone."
WAGMEISTER: Now, when Cassie filed her lawsuit back in November, it was filed under what is called the New York Adult Survivors Act. That is a law that created a look-back window for alleged assaults that happened outside of the statute of limitations. Now, with us releasing this surveillance video from 2016, and with the Los Angeles District Attorney's office saying they cannot bring new charges because it's outside of the statute of limitations, that has generated a large conversation about whether these laws protect victims or abusers.
Now, I do want to point out that you may have noticed both Cassie, in her statement on Instagram, and Diddy, in his apology video, neither of them addressed each other by name. That is because I have sources familiar with the settlement who tell me, per that agreement, they are not allowed to talk about each other.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WHITFIELD: All right. Elizabeth Wagmeister, thank you so much. All right. Combs has denied allegations against him in the lawsuits that remain active as he faces growing legal challenges.
Still to come, a job-free future? Elon Musk thinks that is what's ahead. He says blame or credit artificial intelligence, next.
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WHITFIELD: All right. Whether it's working in an office, driving a vehicle, or even anchoring a new show, our jobs as we know them could one day be taken over by AI, at least according to Elon Musk, who has been speaking about the future of artificial intelligence at a major tech conference in Paris. Joining virtually, Musk told delegates that he believes in a future where goods and services can be largely provided via technology, making jobs optional. However, in order for all of that to work, Musk says there would need to be universal high income, not to be confused with universal basic income. Musk did not share what that could look like.
Clare Duffy is on the story for us. So, Clare, Musk also said, in order for all of that to work, there needs to be this universal high income, not to be confused with the basic income.
[08:50:00]
So, break it down for us. How would all this work?
CLARE DUFFY, CNN BUSINESS WRITER: Yeah. I mean, I think -- before we get into this, I think we need to remember that Elon Musk is kind of the king of making bold, outlandish predictions that don't always unfold the way that he thinks they will. But, that being said, look, he did say that he thinks we may see a future where jobs could be optional. You could have one if you want as a hobby, but that AI and robots could provide all of the goods and services that we need, and that -- in order to do that, we would need this universal high income. But, he didn't really elaborate on what that would look like.
There are some in the AI industry who think that guaranteed income, universal basic income, payments to people from the government, potentially from taxes on AI firms, could help sort of cushion the blow that AI could have on employment. But, that does feel like quite a far way off. And I have to say, personally, I also think this seems kind of like an out-of-touch comment from Elon Musk. I mean, I don't know about you, but I like my job. I think many humans are fulfilled by their jobs. And having those things taken away by technology may not be what everybody is looking for.
WHITFIELD; Yeah. We would all be bored to tears. Nobody has a job. Nobody wants to do anything. I don't think so. OK. So, Elon Musk, a man with lots of advice and philosophies, he also has a warning or two to parents of today. What is he saying?
DUFFY: Yeah. He did say that he thinks parents should be limiting their kids' time on social media because, and I'm quoting here, kids are being programmed by dopamine maxing AI, which I have to say is interesting coming from the CEO of a social media company that also uses algorithm, which is a type of AI to decide what people are going to see on that platform.
But, I think this really gets at sort of the contrast between Musk's various visions for AI. On one hand, he has what some might see is this sort of rosy vision for the future where nobody has to work and all of our needs are provided by AI. But, he has also called this technology his biggest fear. He has previously said that it could cause civilization destruction. And let's not forget that Elon Musk is also running an AI company xAI that aims to compete with open AI. So, really sort of conflicting messages that we're hearing from this billionaire who is intimately involved and looking to profit from this industry, Fred.
WHITFIELD: OK. All right. Clare Duffy, thank you so much.
All right. We're going to add to all that because Elon Musk has long been pushing a future where driverless cars are the norm. But, for most of us, reality has yet to catch up. So, one of the biggest concerns, of course, remains safety, and that's something a robotic startup in California is trying to tackle in a rather unique way.
Veronica Miracle has more as part of our "Bold Pursuits" series.
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VERONICA MIRACLE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The advent of driverless cars has promised to revolutionize the way we travel, but the hype has sometimes outpaced reality. A series of incidents involving robotaxis has stoked existing safety concerns and sparked angry protests in places like San Francisco, my home city, which has been at the forefront of development and autonomy. I'm here to visit the headquarters of Nuro, one of the few companies operating fully driverless vehicles on public roads today.
DAVE FERGUSON, CO-FOUNDER, NURO: How did everyone get it so wrong? A big part of that is that building a vehicle is incredibly complex. Vehicle manufacturers have a seven-year cycle for a new vehicle program. When you add that to sort of software speed around building new technology and trying to build the AV software, things get stretched out a fair amount of time.
MIRACLE (voice-over): Founded in 2016, Nuro is a robotics company that made its mark with the launch of the first ever self-driving delivery vehicles. Product delivery gave Nuro an opportunity to introduce the tech to consumers gradually, while also paving the way for new applications.
MIRACLE: When you started Nuro, did you have the intention that eventually you would get to transporting human beings?
FERGUSON: We did think that over time it would be a fairly natural next step. I think what's happened is that the technology pieces move faster, and we've gotten to a point where the tech is now ready, we believe, to expand to the passenger transportation market.
MIRACLE (voice-over): At the core of the company's electric-powered robots is the Nuro Driver, an AI-driven system designed to learn and improve through data. Nuro is also testing tech that will allow customers to gain insight into the inner workings of the driverless vehicles.
MIRACLE: I want to ask, what are you doing and why?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I am on a neighborhood road. I am proceeding because my path is clear.
MIRACLE: Fair response.
FERGUSON: It seems fairly boring unless there is something interesting going on. That's always been our dream of self-driving, is getting to the point where and we can trust this as much as today we trust an elevator. Right? We don't really think about elevators anymore.
[08:55:00]
MIRACLE (voice-over): So far, the Nuro passenger vehicles have been used for testing and mapping purposes, and Nuro has not disclosed plans for an imminent rollout. A safety-first approach, that so far has helped them steer clear of the headlines.
FERGUSON: No one wants to deploy at scale until they are very confident that the public wants the technology and is welcoming of it. There is a lot of risk here. It's really, really hard, but we think we can do it.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WHITFIELD: All right. Veronica Miracle, thank you. Interesting.
All right. Finally, this hour, a deceased Italian teenager, known as God's influencer, is closer to becoming the first saint of the millennial generation. Carlo Acutis used his computer skills to spread the Catholic faith and took care of his parish website. He died of leukemia when he was 15-years-old in 2006. The Vatican says he cured a Brazilian boy with a rare pancreatic disorder several years ago.
I'm Fredricka Whitfield. Thanks for being with me this morning. Connect the World with Becky Anderson is next.
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