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Kamala Harris Accepts Democratic Presidential Nomination; Robert Kennedy, Jr. to Drop Out of Presidential Race; Russia Gains Ground in Eastern Ukraine; Indian Prime Minister Modi to Visit Ukraine; IDF Operations Intensifies Inside Gaza; Harris: "I Will Not Cozy Up To Tyrants And Dictators"; 13 Dead, 300,000+ Impacted By Flooding In Bangladesh, India. Aired 2-2:45a ET
Aired August 23, 2024 - 02:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[02:00:00]
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
MICHAEL HOLMES, CNN HOST: Hello and welcome everyone. I'm Michael Holmes. Appreciate your company. Coming up here on "CNN Newsroom."
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KAMALA HARRIS, DEMOCRATIC PRESIDENTIAL NOMINIEE: And together, let us write the next great chapter in the most extraordinary story ever told.
(CHEERING)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: Kamala Harris officially the Democratic nominee for president, calling for unity and pledging a new way forward.
Ukraine works to defend its eastern border where Russian troops are quickly closing in on a strategic city, prompting mandatory evacuation.
And just about no place is safe for Palestinians in Gaza, increasingly desperate and on the move with nowhere to go.
Welcome everyone. Kamala Harris is hoping to ride the raucous enthusiasm of the Democratic National Convention straight to the White House. She addressed delegates in Chicago just a few hours ago.
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HARRIS: I accept your nomination to be president of the United States of America.
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HOLMES: Harris recounted her childhood, raised by her immigrant mother during the Civil Rights era. She talked about her career as a prosecutor and attorney general, fighting for victims of fraud and sexual abuse. And she promised to be a president for all Americans, cutting taxes for the middle class, protecting reproductive rights, and fighting gun violence.
Harris also took aim at Donald Trump claiming his plans for tariffs would raise prices for all Americans and she warned he would use the power of the presidency to serve only himself. Harris urged voters to leave behind the bitterness and division of the past and chart a new way forward.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
HARRIS: We were underestimated at practically every turn. But we never gave up. Because the future is always worth fighting for.
(APPLAUSE)
And that's the fight we are in right now. A fight for America's future.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: Harris delivered a forceful stance on foreign policy, praising U.S. partnerships in Europe and around the world and vowing to stand strong with Ukraine and the NATO alliance. But she walked a fine line on the war in Gaza.
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HARRIS: President Biden and I are working to end this war such that Israel is secure. The hostages are released. The suffering in Gaza ends, and the Palestinian people can realize their right to dignity, security, freedom and self-determination.
(CHEERING)
And know this, I will never hesitate to take whatever action is necessary to defend our forces and our interests against Iran and Iran-backed terrorists. I will not cozy up to tyrants and dictators like Kim Jong Un, who are rooting for Trump.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: More now on the Democratic Convention finale from CNN's MJ Lee.
MJ LEE, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: For four days there was a jubilant celebration here in Chicago culminating and Vice President Kamala Harris on Thursday night formally accepting her party's nomination for the presidency.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
HARRIS: On behalf of the people, on behalf of every American, regardless of party, race, gender, or the language your grandmother speaks, on behalf of my mother, and everyone who has ever set out on their own unlikely journey, on behalf of Americans like the people I grew up with, people who work hard, chase their dreams, and look out for one another.
[02:04:54]
On behalf of everyone whose story could only be written in the greatest nation on earth, I accept your nomination to be the president of the United States of America.
(CHEERING)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEE: But despite all of this, the confetti and the balloons and the celebration, I am told that the vice president remains clear-eyed about what could come next after Chicago. I spoke with somebody who recently spoke with the vice president, and they said that even though the vice president with them didn't use the word honeymoon, the idea is definitely there.
The idea that the honeymoon period that we have seen over the past month or so could come to an end at some point and that there's a recognition by the vice president and others on down in the Harris campaign that the enthusiasm and the momentum that have fueled Harris's quick ascension to the top of her -- the party's ticket, that those things could wane for reasons that may or may not be under the vice president's control.
But for the time being, Thursday night, the partying, the celebration, all of those things continuing in Chicago, including with the vice president heading over to the Queenie's Supper Club here in the United Center, where she was going to be greeted by supporters. And also, there's something else she is celebrating tonight, her 10th wedding anniversary with Second Gentleman Doug Emhoff. MJ Lee, CNN in Chicago.
HOLMES: Natasha Lindstaedt is a professor of government at the University of Essex. She joins me now. It's good to see you, Professor. This was the biggest moment of Kamala Harris's political life so far. What's your report card on how she did?
NATASHA LINDSTAEDT, PROFESSOR OF GOVERNMENT, UNIVERSITY OF ESSEX: I think that the bar was set pretty high because the Democratic convention just had a lot of electrifying speeches, just a very deep bench of individuals who spoke, talking about Michelle Obama, Barack Obama, Bill Clinton, Hillary Clinton, Oprah Winfrey. So she had a lot to live up to. Her candidacy has been rolled out. This campaign has been rolled out in almost an expert way.
But she didn't disappoint. I mean, she was energized. She was clearly fired up, but she was serious. She came across as very effective, tough, presidential, and she did a good job presenting who she is to the American people, what her policies are all about, while also making the case against Trump very effectively, how he is just this unserious man, but he is very dangerous for America and why he's dangerous and how he would be cozying up to dictators as he did with Kim Jong-un and how he really only cares about himself. So she drew a stark contrast between what she wants to achieve --
(TECHNICAL DIFFICULTIES)
-- and unity and what Trump wants to achieve, which is mostly just to self-enrich --
HOLMES: Right.
LINDSTAEDT: -- and increase his own power.
HOLMES: Yeah, getting some pretty rave reviews broadly speaking. There is usually a convention bump in the polls, a sugar high as some call it. Looking back at the DNC week in its entirety, do you think it will have changed minds among those crucial independents or perhaps Republicans who don't like Trump? Or could the hype be fleeting?
LINDSTAEDT: It's really hard to say. I can't imagine Trump supporters are going to be swayed by this. I don't know if they're even watching the DNC. But for those that are undecided, the Democrats did about as good a job as they could, portraying themselves as this open, fun, excited party that wants to extend itself to all Americans.
They focused on a lot of issues that Americans would care about, that the middle class would care about, affordable housing, reproductive rights, lowering the cost of child care, prescription drugs and so forth, while also poking fun at Donald Trump. I mean, this is something that the Democrats haven't done yet.
They've mostly just fear mongered about Trump and what he could do to the U.S. democracy, but they poked fun at him as this sort of weird guy. Why would you vote for him? And that seems to be resonating better than the fearmongering was. It seems to be a very joyful, fun campaign that is connecting with a lot of people that might work.
HOLMES: Yeah, and the vice presidential candidate, Walz, he's getting good reviews as well. Harris again paid tribute to President Biden, who of course stepped aside to make way for her candidacy, but he was not there. How do you see his role or non-role between now and election day? Will campaign leadership want him at a distance?
[02:09:57]
LINDSTAEDT: I don't think they want him at a distance, but I do think he's not going to play a huge role. He had a really big night, night one. That was his swan song. And of course, Kamala Harris is building off of his policies, but going a little bit more aggressive on issues of affordable housing.
She did pivot a little bit, and at least rhetorically, the way that she talked about the crisis in Gaza. And I never heard a Democratic nominee speak quite that way, talking about self-determination for the Palestinian people. And that's something that she's doing because she cares about it herself, but you can see that's a way of reaching out to younger voters and to the uncommitted movement.
HOLMES: Yeah.
LINDSTAEDT: And so Biden's presence is there, but I don't think he's going to be that active on the campaign trail. She's trying to differentiate herself a little bit, but also talk about being an extension of his leadership.
HOLMES: Yeah, it'll be interesting to see if her message on Gaza resonates because a lot of young people out there still see her as part of the Biden administration problem when it comes to unbridled support for Israel. I wanted to ask you this before we go. There's word of the third party candidate, Robert Kennedy, Jr. dropping out perhaps endorsing Trump. He's been polling in the 4 percent range of late. What impact do you think a Kennedy withdrawal and endorsement will have on what remains a very tight race particularly in those swing states given some of, you know, those people have already defected to Harris after she became a candidate, what do you think him pulling out is going to do?
LINDSTAEDT: Right, we've seen these third party candidates' kind of have an impact. It definitely did in 2000 with Rob Nader affecting Gore supporters at these states that were really tight in the margins. I actually see Kennedy's candidacy and him dropping out as evenly affecting both candidates, evenly affecting both Trump and Harris. There are some really liberal progressive people that want to vote for Kennedy (ph), but also some more conservative people that wanted to vote for Kennedy.
So, I'm not sure what exactly this is going to have, what impact this is going to have, but we're still just looking to see what the convention, as you mentioned, what bump they're going to get after that. And we'll see if she's able to keep the momentum going and maybe grab some of those Kennedy supporters that have been disgruntled.
HOLMES: Professor Natasha Lindstaedt, thank you so much. Always good to see you.
LINDSTAEDT: Thanks for having me.
HOLMES: Now Donald Trump watched Kamala Harris's speech and posted about it in real time on his Truth Social platform, predictably perhaps criticizing Harris for things like talking a lot about her childhood and accusing her of lying about Project 2025, the conservative blueprint for the next Republican president, which he disavows, and he voiced more complaints in a phone call on Fox News.
(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)
DONALD TRUMP, REPUBLICAN PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: It was a lot of complaining. She didn't talk about China. She didn't talk about fracking. She didn't talk about crime. She didn't talk about 70 percent of our people are living in poverty.
(END AUDIO CLIP)
HOLMES: Now Trump also told Fox News it's possible, as he put it, that he would be meeting with Robert F. Kennedy Jr. on Friday to discuss an endorsement from the independent candidate. Kennedy, as we were just discussing them with Professor Lindstaedt, is expected to suspend his presidential campaign during an event in Arizona. A spokesperson told CNN Kennedy withdrew from the Arizona state ballot on Thursday.
Trump already in the battleground state of Arizona as part of his counter-programming against the DNC this week. At a campaign event in a US-Mexico border town on Thursday, Trump repeated some false claims about immigration and about Kamala Harris. He also said he wants to propose new punishments for people convicted of human trafficking. Here he is.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: We will impose tough new sentences on illegal alien criminals. These include a 10-year mandatory minimum sentence for anyone guilty of human smuggling, a guaranteed life sentence for anyone guilty of child trafficking, and a death penalty for anyone guilty of child or woman sex trafficking. We'll also impose the death penalty on major drug dealers and traffickers.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: Now at the same event, Trump appeared to publicly acknowledge for the first time that he actually lost the 2020 election. Although of course he's been regularly lying about that election and falsely claiming it was rigged. But Trump said he, quote, "came up short in the votes."
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TRUMP: This was the last week in office for me because of a horrible, horrible election where I got many millions more votes than I got the first time, but didn't quite make it just a little bit short.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
[02:15:03]
HOLMES: Meanwhile, Ukraine is urging civilians to leave the city of Pokrovsk as Russian troops get closer, but some people are still fighting to stay on, even though the city may fall. We'll have that story and more after the break.
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HOLMES: Russia is pointing a finger at Ukraine for the sinking of a civilian vessel carrying fuel tanks at a port near Crimea. It says the vessel caught fire and went under after a Ukrainian attack in the port of Kavkaz on Thursday. Russian officials say there are no confirmed casualties. So far, Ukraine not commenting on it.
Russia, meanwhile, claiming more progress near the Ukrainian city of Pokrovsk, northwest of Avdiivka. Moscow says it captured a village about 25 kilometers southeast of the city, but Ukraine hasn't confirmed that. Kyiv says that from a different direction, Russian troops are about 10 kilometers from Pokrovsk and approaching faster than expected. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy says Ukraine is fighting on all fronts.
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VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY, PRESIDENT OF UKRAINE (through translation): Our defensive operations in Donetsk region, Kharkiv region, in the south of Ukraine, our liberation from Russia's Black Sea fleet, our operation in the Kursk region and our almost daily strikes on Russian military targets, they all are our systematic effort in defending Ukraine and our effort to end the war under the conditions of an independent Ukraine.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: As Russians approach Pokrovsk, Ukraine is telling civilians to leave while they still can. Almost 400 were evacuated on Thursday, the highest daily number this year, according to Ukraine's rail network. But as Salma Abdulaziz reports for us, some civilians don't want to leave their city.
SALMA ABDELAZIZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Parents are hiding their children to avoid mandatory evacuation orders in eastern Ukraine, in the city of Pokrovsk. There, Ukrainian officials say that Russian troops are advancing more quickly than they expected. Families have been given just two weeks to leave their homes. Hundreds are leaving daily. One local official giving a stark warning, saying things will only get worse. Leave was his word of caution.
And this happening while on another part of the frontline, Ukrainian forces are advancing in Kursk, where Ukrainian troops launched a surprise offensive two weeks ago. Of course, that surprise element now very much gone. Russian troops have been able to reconfigure and are fighting back. Ukrainian forces saying they're facing fierce resistance in Kursk and that Russian troops are not surrendering in the same manner that they were before.
Russia also claiming that Ukraine tried to expand that offensive, tried to push into a nearby province of Bryansk. Ukrainian forces have yet to comment on that, but we do also know that there was cross- border drone attacks into Russia in the area of Volgograd.
[02:20:03]
A military airfield was attacked by Ukrainian drones. There was video that showed smoke billowing from that area after that attack. And these drones, of course, go back and forth. It is tit-for-tat with Russia firing dozens of drones on Kyiv as well.
These front lines continue to morph, move and change as Russia determines its priorities. Some Ukrainian officials fearing that that Eastern Ukrainian assault may be an attempt to distract them from that push on Kursk and President Zelenskyy, yet again reiterating his need for Western support. Salma Abdelaziz, CNN, London.
HOLMES: The Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has just arrived in Ukraine and is expected to meet with President Zelenskyy in the hours ahead. This coming weeks after Mr. Modi travelled to Moscow for talks with President Putin. During that visit, Russia launched several assaults on Ukrainian cities, including a deadly strike on a children's hospital. CNN's Marc Stewart joins me now to discuss. So Marc, what's going to be Modi's message even, you know, especially after the visit with Putin?
MARC STEWART, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Right, Michael, this is complicated. But based off of what we have been hearing from New Delhi and from his visit yesterday to Poland, this is very much gonna focus on statesmanship. During his stop yesterday in Warsaw, he talked about the importance of dialogue, of advocating for peace in the region, diplomacy. So expect to hear a lot of those themes from the Indian Prime Minister.
But this is where it gets tricky and this is where it gets complicated. The Indian Prime Minister has condemned Russia, or I should say, he has called for a ceasefire, but he has not gone so as far to condemn Russia and its invasion of Ukraine. It has strayed away from resolutions in the United Nations dealing with Ukraine. And that could be very problematic when he meets with President Zelenskyy. So that's something that he's going to have to try and quell.
You could argue that there are some geopolitical reasons behind this move by India. It has other relationships, including that with Russia and China, to kind of pacify and keep under its domain. But this is something that is going to have to come up in conversation most likely, especially because President Zelensky invited the Indian prime minister to Ukraine. So you could argue that he has the upper hand. He will also very much want to determine the path of this discussion.
But there will be other points of discussion. As one official from New Delhi said, this will be a full gamut of diplomatic issues, but also issues relating to economics, to trade, and to defense. And these are two nations, Ukraine and India, that have had a long-time diplomatic relationship, going back decades into the early '90s. They have had a trade relationship.
It's interesting to note that a number of doctors from India have received training in Ukraine over the years. So while there are certainly, Michael, some difficult issues, there are also some parts of this relationship that both sides certainly would like to strengthen and maintain.
HOLMES: Yeah. We'll see how it all unfold. Marc Stewart there for us in Beijing. Appreciate it.
Now Gaza ceasefire talks are set to resume this weekend in Cairo. The CIA Director Bill Burns and top White House envoy Brett McGurk are expected to attend the high-level meetings with Israeli and Egyptian officials. Officials confirm the ceasefire talks will focus on the Philadelphi corridor and the Rafah crossing on the border between Egypt and Gaza.
Israeli forces seized control of the area in May and it remains a key sticking point in reaching a deal. Now, the talks come as Israel steps up its military operations in Gaza. You can see just some of the damage. Palestinian officials said Israeli strikes killed at least 22 people, including children over the past 24 hours.
And Palestinian and relief groups have said time and again there is nowhere safe to go in Gaza. The war reaches all corners of what is a tiny enclave, even into the humanitarian zone where civilians are being told to go and shelter. And that so-called safe zone is shrinking even more. More details now from CNN's Nic Robertson. A warning, his report contains graphic video.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR (voice-over): As peace talks stall, an overnight Israeli airstrike in northern Gaza. Pulled from the rubble, charred children. Images too horrific to broadcast. Twelve dead, no injured, no survivors, according to Palestinian officials. Israel's military says they're looking into the incident.
[02:25:04]
In the past few days, strikes killing families in the north, center and southern Gaza. As diplomacy fails, desperation in Gaza increases. In parallel with the renewed push for peace, Israel's military is pushing into previously declared safe zones. Over the past month, CNN has tracked a more than one-third reduction in the areas supposedly safe from Israeli strikes. Less than 11 percent of Gaza technically safe.
But even the shrunken safe zone, no protection for Mahmoud Abou Tiyor's (ph)three-year-old niece, killed in a tent in the safe area, he says. They attacked us by surprise. All of a sudden, a quadcopter came on us and started shooting. We ran away towards the beach, but my niece was killed.
While diplomats' shuttle to talks, Gazans are increasingly on the move too, reluctantly responding to increasing Israeli evacuation orders, telling them their sanctuary not safe. This is the 10th time we've been displaced; he shouts. Where shall we go to? Where shall we go to? We ask all the world, Biden and the others, all the Arab states to find a solution, Abu Mohammed Hajaj (ph) says. The Palestinian people are dying. the people of Gaza are being killed and going through hell.
Absent a peace deal, Gaza's unsafe safe zones appear to face extinction. Gazans themselves caught in a roulette of no good options. Nic Robertson, CNN, Tel Aviv.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HOLMES: Well the Democrats' celebration has drawn to a close and what a party it was in Chicago with keynote speech from Kamala Harris. Coming up, her take on dealing with dictators and the peaceful transfer of power. You're watching "CNN Newsroom." We'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK) [02:30:26]
HOLMES: Returning to our main story, the final night of the Democratic National Convention and the biggest political moment of Kamala Harris's political life. She formally accepted her party's nomination for U.S. president, sharing her life story and values and vowing to be a president who, quote, leads and listens.
Harris also reaching out to Republicans, independents and undecided voters.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KAMALA HARRIS, VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATESE & 2024 PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I know there are people of various political views watching tonight, and I want you to know, I promise to be a president for all Americans. You can always trust me to put country above party and self. To hold sacred America's fundamental principles, from the rule of law to free and fair elections, to the peaceful transfer of power.
(APPLAUSE)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: And while laying out her foreign policy vision, the U.S. vice president vowed to hold autocrats accountable, which she said Donald Trump will not do.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
HARRIS: I will not cozy up to tyrants and dictators like Kim Jong Un, who are rooting for Trump...
(CHEERING)
HARRIS: ... who are rooting for Trump, because, you know, they know, they know he is easy to manipulate with flattery and favors.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: Hollywood and the music industry showed up for Harris all week long. On Thursday, performances by Grammy winners, The Chicks, as well as Pink.
(VIDEO CLIP PLAYS)
HOLMES: And there were many high powered speeches by prominent Democrats.
Here now a look at some of the sights and sounds of the Democratic National Convention.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: And the honor of my lifetime to serve as your president. I love the job, but I love my country more.
GOV. GAVIN NEWSOM (D), CALIFORNIA: California, we proudly cast our 482 votes for the next president, Kamala Harris.
BILL CLINTON, FORMER U.S. PRESIDENT: Kamala Harris is the only candidate in this race who has the vision, the experience, the temperament, the will and yes, the sheer joy to get something done.
MICHELLE OBAMA, FORMER U.S. FIRST LADY: America, hope is making a comeback. Yeah.
(CROWD CHANTING "USA")
HILLARY CLINTON, FORMER SECRETARY OF STATE: She will never rest in defense of our freedom and safety. Donald Trump fell asleep at his own trial and when he woke up, he made his own kind of history, the first person to run for president with 34 felony convictions.
REP. JASMINE CROCKETT (D-TX): Kamala Harris has a resume. Donald Trump has a rap sheet.
GOV. JOSH SHAPIRO (D), PENNSYLVANIA: So are you ready to protect our rights/
CROWD: Yes!
SHAPIRO: Are you ready to secure our freedoms?
CROWD: Yes.
SHAPIRO: And are you ready to defend our democracy? And are you ready to elect Kamala Harris and Tim Walz?
GOV. TIM WALZ (D-MN), VICE PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: It's the honor of my life to accept your nomination for vice president of the United States.
(CHEERING)
WALZ: Our job, our job, our job, our job, for everyone watching is to get in the trenches, one phone call at a time, one door knock at a time, one $5 donation at a time.
Look, we got 76 days. That's nothing.
[02:35:00]
There'll be time to sleep when you're dead.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Together.
CROWD: Kamala! Kamala! Kamala!
HARRIS: Let's get out there, let's fight for it. Let's get out there, let's vote for it. And together, let us write the next great chapter in the most extraordinary story ever told. (CHEERING)
(MUSIC)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: Residents of Bangladesh and northeastern India dealing with devastating flooding and Indian officials are denying claims they exacerbated the problem. We'll have the latest coming up after the break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: A volcano in Iceland, southwest of the capital Reykjavik, erupted on Thursday, still spewing as you can see there, red hot lava. The same volcano erupted in May, and there have been a total of nine eruptions in the area since 2021.
Thousands of people who live nearby have been out of their homes anyway since November from previous threats. Iceland has more than 30 active volcanoes, making it a prime destination for thrill seekers who take part in so-called volcano tourism. Flights at Iceland's main international airport have not been affected.
Well, the sun is now up in Sicily, as the search resumes for the one person still missing after the sinking of that luxury yacht. The body of the British tech entrepreneur Mike Lynch was recovered Thursday, the sixth of seven people thought to have died in the incident. Lynch's 18-year-old daughter is still unaccounted for and there are concerns her body might have been swept out to sea. Fifteen people survived the tragedy, which has deeply affected the local community.
At least 13 people are dead amid heavy rainfall and flooding in Bangladesh and Northeast India. More than 300,000 people have been impacted including tens of thousands displaced from their homes.
CNN's Anna Coren is in the city of Comilla in Bangladesh on the border with India, and explains why there's now a diplomatic row between the two countries.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ANNA COREN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: We are in Comilla in southeast Bangladesh, on the border of India. And this city, like much of the region is now under water. There's been heavy rains the past few days and it is the end of the monsoon season. But locals say that last night without warning, suddenly everywhere was flooded.
Now, there are claims that India opened the floodgates of one of its dams, and that the water then surged down the Gomti River into Bangladesh causing this flooding.
[02:40:08]
Well, India denies it, saying the dam simply overflowed, but it does admit that there was a power outage and it wasn't able to warn Bangladeshi authorities that the floodwaters were coming.
Well, residents are furious. They have come here concerned that the levee is going to break and then flood other parts of the city. They say they have never seen such extreme flooding in their lifetime.
NAZMA AKTHAR, RESIDENT (through translator): I'm scared. What will I do with my belongings and my children? Where will I go? Water is all around my house.
COREN: Authorities say 3 million people have been affected by these floods. Tens of thousands have already been evacuated and in the last few minutes we have seen dozens of families take their belongings and leave.
Well, Bangladesh, a country of more than 170 million people, is on the front line of climate change, as flooding and cyclones become more extreme in recent years, and authorities say that conditions here will worsen with rain predicted in the coming days.
Anna Coren, CNN, Comilla, Bangladesh.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HOLMES: Canada's two major freight railroads are preparing to restart their engines after the federal government forced an end to a management ordered lockout. The lockout ended up lasting just 17 hours, but it threatened to disrupt multiple sectors in Canada and the U.S. including lumber, auto parts and agriculture, which rely heavily on cross-border rail trade. The lockout threw 9,000 rail workers onto the picket lines, their union protesting the management move and the decision by Canada's labor minister to end the dispute by sending the parties to binding arbitration.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
STEVEN MACKINNON, CANADIAN MINISTER OF LABOUR: Canada is a trading nation. Our government will do everything in its power to preserve the stability and certainty that our railways and entire economy are renowned for the world over.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: The labor minister says the trains could be rolling again within a few days.
And finally, the harbor in Sydney, Australia is one of the worlds busiest and it became the scene of a dramatic rescue operation on Friday. The subject in need of help was a young humpback whale with fishing gear tangled around its tail. You can see it there.
The harbor is on a migration route as the humpback highway, as it's called, and the whales sometimes come into Sydney harbor and get into contact with human beings and also fishing gear if its floating around out there.
The 13 meter long whale eluded rescuers at first. You can see they attach floats to it so that it would slow down and tire out. And it did indeed do that. And then it was cut free.
The mammal last seen heading back out through Sydney, heads to the ocean and the migration trail.
Thanks for spending part of your day with me. I'm Michael Holmes.
"WORLD SPORT" is next and then my colleague Kim Brunhuber will have more of your daily news in about 15 minutes. I'll see you tomorrow.
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[02:45:00]
(WORLD SPORT)
