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Russia Launches ICBM targeting Dnipro in Ukraine; House Republicans Blocked Ethics Committee Report on Former Rep. Gaetz; Australia Moves to Ban Kids Under 16 from Social Media Use; Sean Diddy Combs Faces Five New Lawsuits. Aired 3-4a ET
Aired November 21, 2024 - 03:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
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UNKNOWN (voice-over): This is CNN Breaking News.
ROSEMARY CHURCH, CNN ANCHOR: We begin with this breaking news this hour. Ukraine's Air Force says Russia launched an intercontinental ballistic missile today during a morning attack.
We are working to get information on what was targeted and any reports of casualties or damages. Ukraine's military also says it shot down six Russian cruise missiles during the attack.
I want to bring in CNN's Clare Sebastian who joins us live from London following all these developments. So, Clare, what more are you learning about this breaking news on Russia launching an intercontinental ballistic missile?
CLARE SEBASTIAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yeah, Rosemary, this claim this morning is coming from the Ukrainian military, which says that Russia fired an intercontinental ballistic missile from the Astrakhan region towards the city of Dnipro in central Ukraine.
It was part of a broader missile attack, as you say, something that has become very commonplace in this war, but this as far as we know is the first time there's been a claim of an ICBM being used.
We don't know which kind they didn't say and we are still sort of trying to verify these reports and look into reports of potential damage. The head of the military administration in the city of Dnipro says that an industrial enterprise was damaged and there were two fires in the city as of now.
No reports of any casualties, so all the information is still very much trickling in, but obviously this comes in a climate of escalation really in this war. This is a week in which Ukraine has now reportedly used both U.S. ballistic long-range missiles and U.K.-produced storm shadows on Russian soil, something that Russia has made very clear that it views as an escalation. Russia has also been rattling the nuclear saber, suggesting Putin
signing a decree this week updating the country's nuclear doctrine, which seems to lower the bar for a first use of nuclear weapons. Now, to be clear, what we're hearing from Ukraine suggests this was the missile itself. There's no suggestion, of course, that a nuclear payload was involved.
But clearly, this adds to this sense of escalation. And, of course, it comes a day after we saw several embassies close in Kyiv, including the U.S. Embassy, over concerns about a potentially significant air attack. So all of this together really adds to this sense of heightened tensions at this point around this war.
CHURCH: Yeah, and that is the concern, isn't it? What this could perhaps mean in terms of the escalation of this war as Ukraine increases the number of missile strikes into Russian territory? And you know, we have been seeing, of course, images from Moscow, from across Russia, in fact, of shelters, nuclear shelters, in an attempt to unsettle people. So what's being said about those efforts?
SEBASTIAN: So look, I think what Russia is trying to do is project strength, try to raise the level of fear in the West, given that it's watching these red lines being crossed with the restrictions being lifted on using long-range missiles on Russian soil.
I think the sense there is that they need to raise the level of fear in the West, that Russia could still escalate further. That is why they have been public with those, sort of, nuclear efforts and why we see the intense saber-wrappling, which by the way has been a hallmark of this conflict so far, intensify in recent days.
Obviously the context here is that the West, the U.S. and the U.K. and France have allowed these missiles now to be used on Russian soil in response to what they viewed as an escalation by Russia bringing in North Korean troops at some 11,000 or more believed to be in the Kursk region where Russia has been amassing forces ahead of what's expected to be a big push to get Ukraine out of there.
So the West believed that they were responding to a Russian escalation. Russia now, it looks like trying to show that it can escalate even further, Rosemary.
CHURCH: Yeah, of course, we need to find out more about this ICBM. We need more details on that, clearly. Clare Sebastian, joining us live from London with that breaking news report. I appreciate it.
Well, European and U.S. officials are not on the same page about what happened to two undersea internet cables deep in the Baltic Sea. Both cables were cut within hours of each other on Sunday and Monday, but it's still unclear how or by whom.
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Germany and Finland believe it was no accident and they are pointing a finger at Russia as a possible culprit, but two U.S. officials tell CNN that Washington's initial assessment suggests there was no foul play and that the cable was accidentally cut by a vessel dragging its anchor. The incident came just weeks after the U.S. warned that Russia could target key underwater infrastructure. Moscow denied any involvement.
Well now to the Middle East where Israeli forces have been hitting targets in cities from Gaza to Syria. Syrian state media is reporting that at least 36 people are dead after Israeli airstrikes targeted several locations in the central city of Palmyra.
State media also says more than 50 people were injured and there was significant damage to buildings in the area.
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Smoke could be seen rising over the southern suburbs of Beirut, where Lebanese state media says Israeli airstrikes destroyed several buildings and were accompanied by low-altitude flights of hostile drones.
In northern Gaza, the director of the Kamal Adwan Hospital says 65 bodies have been pulled from the rubble after Israeli strikes overnight in the city of Beit Lahiya. He says doctors and medical staff are digging with their bare hands because there are no rescue teams there and no ambulances to provide assistance. He expects the death toll to rise.
And in central Gaza, Palestinians searched through rubble following a deadly strike on a school that had been turned into a shelter. At least six people were reportedly killed.
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BARBARA WOODWARD, U.K. PERMANENT REPRESENTATIVE TO THE U.N. AND CURRENT PRESIDENT OF THE U.N. SECURITY COUNCIL: Will those in favor of the draft resolution contained in document S/2024 835, please raise their hand.
Those against.
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CHURCH: On Wednesday, the U.S. vetoed a U.N. Security Council resolution that called for an immediate and unconditional ceasefire in Gaza. Ambassador Robert Woods said the U.S. has made clear it could not support a ceasefire that failed to secure the release of hostages still being held by Hamas.
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ROBERT WOOD, DEPUTY U.S. AMBASSADOR TO THE U.N.: A durable end to the war must come with the release of the hostages. These two urgent goals are inextricably linked. This resolution abandoned that necessity and for that reason, the United States could not support it.
(END VIDEO CLIP) CHURCH: Palestinian officials condemned the veto, saying the move only emboldens Israel to continue its crimes against innocent civilians. The Palestinian deputy ambassador had this reaction.
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MAJED BAMYA, PALESTINIAN DEPUTY U.N. ENVOY: A ceasefire doesn't resolve everything, but it is the first step towards resolving anything. And what is the answer of those who are still unwilling now, after all this death and destruction, not to call for an unconditional ceasefire?
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CHURCH: We are also following a diplomatic push to reach a ceasefire in the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hezbollah in Lebanon. U.S. envoy Amos Hochstein is expected to meet today with Israeli leaders, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who is hoping for further progress after spending two days in Beirut working on efforts to try and broker a truce.
CNN's Paula Hancocks is following all of this live from Abu Dhabi. She joins us now. So Paula, what more are you learning about Israel's deadly overnight strikes on Beit Lahiya in northern Gaza?
PAULA HANCOCKS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Rosemary, this does appear to be a very deadly strike that we are learning more about. It was, as you say, in Beit Lahiya. It was very close to the main hospital there, the Kamal Adwan Hospital. And we've been hearing updates from the director himself as the casualties are brought into the hospital.
He says at least 65 bodies have been brought into the hospital so far, but he said that death toll is expected to rise as they are still trying to get to people under the rubble.
Now he says that because of what has been happening over the past six weeks in this area with the Israeli military not allowing the Gaza civil defense to be operating and also Israel saying that Hamas is trying to rebuild in that area so they've been carrying out a significant military operation against them.
For that reason, he says, there is not a single ambulance that is able to work in the area, and they don't have the civil defense rescue teams. And so doctors and medical staff at this point are with their hands trying to retrieve those under the rubble.
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He also says that at the hospital itself, all they are able to give is first aid, and that has been the case for some time now, as he accuses the Israeli military of blocking aid getting into that particular area.
Now Israel has said that they have seen Hamas regrouping in this area just last week. The IDF claimed that they had killed about 1,000 Hamas militants and detained 1,000 more. We have seen images from the ground though at this hospital and we do see many bodies shrouded and many of them do appear to be children.
So once again, civilians being caught up in this deadly airstrike. Now we understand from the doctor, at least 200 people were believed to have been in and around this building that was targeted at the time of the strike here. He says that the hospital will turn into a mass grave if urgent intervention from international organizations does not occur and medical supplies are not brought in.
Now we have been hearing more concerns, more warnings from U.N. agencies about the situation in northern Gaza. One report saying that they fear that there is a famine that is about to happen. In fact we heard from the director of the Kamal Adwan hospital that he expects within the next few days they will have more cases and more fatalities of malnutrition coming to the area as well.
Now the Israeli authorities say that they have been allowing aid to get to this particular area and they have been rejecting accusations that they have been blockading this particular area of northern Gaza off. Rosemary?
CHURCH: Our thanks to Paula Hancocks bringing us that live report from Abu Dhabi. I Appreciate it.
Donald Trump scored a political win on Wednesday after House Republicans moved to block the release of an ethics committee report into former Congressman Matt Gaetz. His nomination as future Attorney General is in limbo over sexual misconduct allegations in that report.
But it didn't stop him from taking meetings with key Republican senators alongside Vice President-elect J.D. Vance on Wednesday. It comes as the "New York Times" reports it obtained a document assembled by federal investigators confirming payments from Gaetz to women who claim he paid them for sex.
Amid the chaos, Democrats are not backing down, trying to ensure the ethics report is made public. More now from CNN's Manu Raju.
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MANU RAJU, CNN CHIEF CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: House Republicans on the Ethics Committee, voted to block the release of this ethics report. The chairman of that committee, Michael Gass, told me ahead of that meeting that he had some reservations about releasing it because he contended it was not completely done yet.
Democrats said this is all an effort to bury damaging allegations against Matt Gaetz, potentially undercutting his ability to become the Attorney General of the United States, and they argue that it should be released.
Now, this is not over yet because Democrats say that they plan to force a vote on the House floor and that vote will have to occur under the rules of the House. It would have to happen within two legislative days, meaning that this could happen since we're running up to the Thanksgiving recess. It could be punted until after Thanksgiving, but the vote would have
to happen in some form, at least by that point when they return after the Thanksgiving holiday. The question will be if Democrats have the majority of the House to force a vote to actually force this report to be released.
That means they would have to ensure that at least three Republicans break ranks, join with them to move ahead on this issue.
One Republican earlier this evening indicated he would in fact vote with Democrats on this issue believing that the public and Republicans and Democrats need to see this information.
There might be a vote in the House to release that report. Would you vote to release that report?
REP. DERRICK VAN ORDEN (R-WI): I think it's very important that everybody has as much knowledge as possible so that they can make an informed decision. That sounds like a yes. That's a yes.
So if the rumors are true about Mr. Gaetz' conduct, then there should be referrals to other agencies. And if they're not true, then there's a whole lot of people that owe him an apology.
RAJU: Now that Republican, Derek Van Orden, has had a fraught relationship with Matt Gaetz over the years and also underscores how Matt Gaetz, after years of battling with his colleagues, could potentially lose this vote on the House floor.
We'll see if it ultimately comes to that or if Senate Republicans will get access to this information because a lot of GOP senators, particularly on the Senate Judiciary Committee, considering this nomination, want to see all this information so they can understand the gravity of these allegations as they assess this critical decision about whether to move ahead with this nomination, vote to confirm him.
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One person who's not concerned with the blocking of this report though is Senator John Thune, the incoming majority leader who told me earlier in the evening that it was their call, the House Ethics Committee's call not to release the report, did not object to that decision at all.
Manu Raju, CNN, Capitol Hill.
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CHURCH: Joining me now to discuss this is Caroline Heldman, a Democratic strategist and professor of critical theory and social justice. Appreciate you joining us.
CAROLINE HELDMAN, DEMOCRATIC STRATEGIST AND PROF. OF CRITICAL THEORY AND SOCIAL JUSTICE: Good to see you, Rosemary.
CHURCH: So Republicans on the House Ethics Committee voted to block the release of this report on Matt Gaetz. But even some Republican senators say they want to see that report before considering the confirmation of Gaetz as President-elect Donald Trump's pick for attorney general.
So how likely is it that the report will be released or perhaps leaked instead and how imperative is it that senators see the contents of that report?
HELDMAN: Well, it's part of the confirmation process that is very in depth. And so I imagine these senators will either hear directly from the two women who alleged that Matt Gaetz paid them for sex with some apparent PayPal and other online receipts.
It is very clear to me that Donald Trump has an issue in the Senate with this particular nomination. There are a number of Senate Republicans who really don't want him confirmed and they don't want Donald Trump to make them kind of walk the plank and oppose him.
But as Manu pointed out, they only have the luxury of losing three senators. If they lose a fourth, the person is not confirmed. So I would imagine that they will get their hands on all of this information. The question is whether or not the American public will and I would imagine a leak is likely imminent given the gravity of this report.
CHURCH: And Gaetz was on Capitol Hill Wednesday alongside Vice President-elect J.D. Vance meeting with senators in an effort to gain their support for his nomination. And despite the growing controversy, Gaetz told reporters the meetings were going great.
Will any of these GOP senators dare defy Donald Trump, even in light of these serious allegations against Gaetz?
HELDMAN: I would imagine that we will see some peel off. Susan Collins comes to mind, Lisa Murkowski, Even Joni Ernst has come forward and said that there are concerns here. Matt Gaetz is a man who has made his career really burning his own party. You recall that he ousted Speaker Kevin McCarthy, and the party has never forgiven him for that.
But he has -- the chickens are coming home to roost that Matt Gaetz has put into the world with his own party. And Donald Trump, I mean, these are really big allegations for the top cop for the attorney general of the United States, kind of wild that he put Matt Gaetz. Let's see whether or not the senators actually draw a line on this one confirmation.
I think that many others will sail through who are, you know, mediocre at best or perhaps incompetent. But Matt Gaetz is a very controversial pick and let's see whether or not you know they called Donald Trump's bluff.
CHURCH: And as this drama's played out, we were of course expecting to hear President-elect Donald Trump's pick for Treasury Secretary on Wednesday. We're still waiting for that. It appears to be quite challenging, doesn't it, to find someone who's able to balance Trump's unconventional economic policies while also maintaining credibility with the markets that are concerned, of course, about Trump's tariff agenda.
Who might be the best person for the job with current frontrunners, including billionaire hedge fund manager Scott Bensett, former Federal Reserve Governor Kevin Walsh, and Chief Executive of Apollo Global Management Mark Rowan?
HELDMAN: Well, it's hard to say. So we know that he's already extricated two candidates in the running. He put Lutnik, he gave him a consolation prize as the head of Commerce. And so we know that, as you're pointing out, Rosemary, this is a really challenging position for Donald Trump, because economists are saying that his plan for tariffs could add as much as $15 trillion to the deficit. And so, I'm sorry, to the debt.
And so he is looking at candidates, as you're pointing out, who can calm the market, but also doing (inaudible). And he's not an economist. So Donald Trump is putting someone in an impossible position. But I think Rowan, the billionaire, is probably his frontrunner. It's hard to say. He has three candidates. He'll meet with them this week.
But, yeah, this is not a job that any kind of reasonable person would want because of the impossibility of actually doing it right.
CHURCH: Caroline Heldman, many thanks for joining us. I appreciate your analysis as always.
HELDMAN: Thank you so much.
CHURCH: And coming up, more on our breaking news. Ukraine claiming Russia launched an intercontinental ballistic missile during a morning attack. We are live in Kyiv.
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CHURCH: Alright. Let's get you up to date on our breaking news this hour. Ukraine's Air Force says Russia launched an intercontinental ballistic missile today during a morning attack on the city of Dnipro.
I want to go Kyiv now and CNN's --
Okay, we're going to go to Malcolm Davis, who we were talking to earlier in that actual fact last hour.
Malcolm Davis, joining us from London, a senior analyst of defense strategy and capability at the Australian Strategic Policy Institute. Thank you so much for talking with us.
So, Ukraine is saying that Russia launched this intercontinental ballistic missile. We understand that it landed in Dnipro. We do not know. Anything else about details regarding the ICBM, whether it was carrying any nuclear weapons? Talk to us about the significance of this, what it could mean, what it signals to you. MALCOLM DAVIS, SR. ANALYST OF DEFENSE STRATEGY AND CAPABILITY,
AUSTRALIAN STRATEGY POLICY INSTITUTE: Yeah, I don't think it was carrying a nuclear weapon because the U.S. has specialized satellites that will detect the nuclear definition and there's been no statement from the U.S. about a nuclear definition and a nuclear explosion will be seen by so many people it would be quickly reported.
So first thing first, no nuclear weapon, no nuclear explosion. The second point is that this was an ICBM. It was an RS-26. It is designed to be carried nuclear weapons, but it's possible the Russians offloaded the warheads and simply by the missile as a signaling move, a move.
In other words, to send a message to the West in response to the use of ATACMS and Storm Shadow. So clearly, it was a signaling move rather than an actual attack, per se. It hit Dnipro. There's no information as to what damage it caused, but clearly, no nuclear explosion.
CHURCH: All right. Malcolm, I do want you to stand by because we do have Nick Paton Walsh with us now, joining us from Kyiv. Nick, I want to go to you. What more are you learning about this ICBM that was apparently launched by Russia?
NICK PATON WALSH, CNN CHIEF INTERNATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: Yeah, look, I mean, I think it's important just to take a big step back here and accept the limited information we do have at this time, which is the Ukrainian Air Force saying they think a ICBM was launched by Russia, roughly we think in the early hours of the morning, probably about 5 a.m.
Some air sirens at the same time went off in the Kyiv area as well. Now, whether they hit, the indications are that it's landed into Dnipro. We don't know what the target was. There are no immediate reports of casualties or targets being hit in the urban area.
It's likely it was directed at critical infrastructure. It's also not uncommon for if Ukrainian military targets are hit for us not to ever know about it or for the information about that to take a long time to emerge.
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Local residents have reported hearing an abnormal sound at that particular time and also simultaneously, there are thought to have been other missiles, one Kinjal and six others fired in that direction. I would surmise, speculate that they may have been designed to confuse air defenses to ease the path if this indeed was an ICBM.
That's the limited amount of information we know at this stage. The context of what's happened is that we have for some time been expecting a Russian escalation. Now, why an ICBM? Well, I would imagine that this is something that if you saw it on a radar would cause concern, that you might associate, as your guests were saying, with the use of nuclear weapons. There is no indication at all at this point that has occurred. We would be having a very different, more immediate conversation if
anyone had seen a nuclear explosion overnight. So it appears to me, from what the limited information we have is that Russia is reaching into its significant arsenal using something it hasn't, it seems, used before, as far as we know to send a message to the West that it has greater capabilities.
Now, it's important to also point out we don't know what the impact of this device was. Significantly longer range, heavier payloads, certainly. Does this herald potentially Russia's use of more of these? Well, that is entirely possible.
And I should also point out as well, this comes with the context of the closure of the American embassy and three other that we know of NATO embassies in Kyiv yesterday. Were they aware, potentially, that this might happen and decided to take those precautions as a result?
You would possibly imagine that a nuclear power, when using a missile like this, might choose to warn other nuclear powers so they don't mistake it as a different kind of launch.
But look, I think it's important as we go forward talking about this to put the word nuclear aside, this is simply, as we see at the moment, the use of a different type of conventional missile by Russia to send a message, to get through Ukrainian air defenses and I think we will learn probably more in the hours ahead about the nature of the target here.
It is certainly fair to say an escalation doesn't necessarily mark a change in Russia's capabilities. We have to simply work out what this missile was able to do and of course if we see more in the days and weeks ahead, Rosemary.
CHURCH: All right our thanks to Nick Paton Walsh for bringing us that live report from Kyiv.
We do want to go back to Malcolm Davis, who is in London. Malcolm, as you were saying, and of course, as we just heard from Nick Paton Walsh as well, you believe this intercontinental ballistic missile was a message, sending a message from Russia to the West. Talk to us about that, because it comes in the midst of this escalation in the war in Ukraine, doesn't it?
DAVIS: Yeah, well, look, I think Nick's point about focusing on the conventional aspects to this is an important one. I have to say an ICBMs primary role is to deliver nuclear weapons at great distance.
But clearly what the Russians have done here is take the nuclear warheads off missile and launch the missile either as an inert missile without anything on it, or maybe with some sort of conventional warhead. So they are trying to send a message. They're trying to basically send the west. Look, the use of these Storm Shadows and ATACMS missiles, maybe is challenging Russia's critical interests. And so they're trying to intimidate us into backing down here.
And I think it's important that we don't back down. I think we really do need to make clear to Russia that Ukraine has a right to defend itself. I think the other point to make is that if indeed this is a signal to the West to back down and an implicit nuclear threat, then if we do back down, the Russians are only going to do this again and again and again.
They will see this as an opportunity to use the threat of nuclear weapons. Even actual use of weapons without the warheads per se to try and intimidate us. So I think it's important that we stand firm and hold our nerve and not panic about this. I don't think this necessarily implies an impending nuclear attack by Russia.
CHURCH: So Malcolm, can you think of any instance in the past where a country has used an intercontinental ballistic missile in anger at any other country?
DAVIS: Well, certainly, I mean, intercontinental ballistic missiles like any missile can carry a variety of warheads. And, you know, Chinese have intercontinental ballistic missiles and intermediate range ballistic missiles that can either be conventionally armed or nuclear armed.
The Russians are developing similar capabilities. And this is a clear indication of a ICBM that has had the warheads removed and is used in a conventional role only or even as an inert system.
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I think that this is probably the first time where an actual ICBM has been used in anger in this manner, but we just have to make clear, no nuclear explosion, no nuclear warheads, we should not panic about the risk of this leading to a nuclear war.
CHURCH: So how do you know the specifics of this particular intercontinental ballistic missile? How are you so sure?
DAVIS: Because we know the Russian systems as a military analyst, we read technical journals and we listen to authoritative experts, who study this stuff and who know what Russian missiles are being developed. The RS-26 being a two-stage intercontinental ballistic missile system designed to deliver a nuclear warhead at the intercontinental range.
We know these systems exist. We see photos of them to see the technical aspects and diagrams of them. So we have a general understanding of what the Russians are doing in the open source. And obviously government has a much more higher level understanding in the classified world.
So I think that really we have a fairly good understanding of what the Russians have in their arsenal, how they could use them, their nuclear employment strategies, and what they might use these sorts of weapons for in a variety of operational contexts certainly. This is the first time we are seeing an ICBM being launched without the warheads in an operational setting.
CHURCH: Malcolm Davis, thank you so much for joining us again from London. We appreciate it.
DAVIS: Thank you.
CHURCH: Well Australia makes what it calls a trailblazing move to protect kids from the harms of social media. Still to come, details on a proposed ban and an uphill battle to enforce it.
Plus music mogul Sean Diddy Combs is facing five new lawsuits accusing him of sexual assault. We will have details on what the new accusers are claiming.
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CHURCH: Welcome back to "CNN Newsroom." I'm Rosemary Church. Want to check today's top stories for you?
The director of a hospital in northern Gaza says 65 bodies have been pulled from the rubble after Israeli strikes overnight in the city of Beit Lahiya. He says doctors and medical staff are digging with their bare hands because there are no rescue teams and no ambulances to provide assistance. He expects the death toll to rise.
And in Washington, House Republicans have blocked the release of an ethics report into former Congressman Matt Gaetz, Donald Trump's pick for attorney general. The report concerns alleged sexual misconduct and other allegations, and Democrats have vowed to make its findings public.
[03:35:10]
Gaetz is among the cabinet nominees who must be confirmed by the Senate, where Republicans hold a slim three-seat majority. Trump has yet to name his selections for Secretary of the Treasury, Agriculture, Labor and for Housing and Urban Development. We expect those to be announced in the coming days.
A judge in the U.S. state of Georgia has sentenced an undocumented Venezuelan migrant to life in prison without the possibility of parole for murdering 22-year-old nursing student Laken Riley.
Riley's violent death in February ignited a political firestorm in the United States when then Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump lashing out at immigrants and at the Biden administration's border policies. Now the verdict is giving Riley's family a small measure of justice.
Rafael Romo reports.
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JUDGE H. PATRICK HAGGARD, SUPERIOR COURT, WESTERN JUDICIAL CIRCUIT: Count one malice murder. I find the defendant guilty.
RAFAEL ROMO, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Guilty on all 10 charges. That's the verdict in the bench trial of Jose Ibarra, convicted in the killing of 22-year-old nursing student Laken Riley while she was jogging on the University of Georgia campus back in February.
ALLYSON PHILLIPS, MOTHER OF LAKEN RILEY: This sick, twisted and evil coward showed no regard for Laken of her human life.
ROMO (voice-over): Her mother said Ibarra, an undocumented migrant from Venezuela, not only took her daughter's life, but he took away the life of her family and friends.
PHILLIPS: This monster took away our chances to see Laken graduate from nursing school. He took away our ability to meet our future son- in-law. He destroyed our chances of meeting our grandchildren. And he took my best friend.
What Jose Ibarra did to my sister is almost unbearable to listen to. I am completely disgusted having to even look and be in the same room as him.
ROMO (voice-over): Today, Judge Haggard sentenced Ibarra to life in prison without the possibility of parole.
SHEILA ROSS, PROSECUTOR: The evidence in this case has spoken loud and clear that he is Laken Riley's killer and that he killed her because she would not let him rape her.
ROMO (voice-over): During closing arguments, prosecutor Sheila Ross called the evidence against the 26-year-old that includes one key item, a black hat.
In surveillance video, investigators say an unknown person wearing a black Adidas hat stuffed a bloody jacket into a dumpster near the crime scene.
The day after the murder, investigators spotted Jose Ibarras' brother Diego wearing the same black hat, something the defense tried to spin in closing arguments.
KAITLYN BECK, DEFENSE ATTORNEY: There is no way Diego put on that hat without noticing something was strange about it. And the reason he put it on without questioning why it's got dirt and blood all over it is because he already knew that it was there.
ROMO (voice-over): But when officers started questioning Diego and his two brothers, they noticed scratches and injuries on Jose Ibarra.
ROSS: The fact is, if Diego had not been wearing that hat, we may have never caught these people. We may have never caught him.
ROMO: Before issuing the sentence, Judge Haggard told the courtroom that he acknowledges that there is no such thing as closure but just another stage in this tragedy for Laken Riley's family. Later in life, he added, referring to the painful loss, you start smiling about the memories, and I'm hopeful that at some point that takes over for the grieving family.
Rafael Romo, CNN, Athens, Georgia.
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CHURCH: Prosecutors have a green light to pursue the death penalty in the gruesome stabbing of four University of Idaho students. On Wednesday, the judge rejected 13 pretrial motions filed by attorneys for the suspect, Bryan Koburger.
Among other things, they claimed the death penalty would violate his constitutional rights and international law. Prosecutors say Koburger killed the four students at their off-campus home in Moscow, Idaho, about two years ago. He faces four counts of murder and his trial is set to begin in June.
A farewell service for celebrated Russian ballet dancer Vladimir Shklyarov is underway in St. Petersburg. Shikharov died Saturday after falling from the fifth floor of an apartment building. He was the principal dancer with the world-famous Mariinsky Ballet.
After Russia invaded Ukraine, Shklyarov was quoted speaking out in support of peace. An investigation into his death is underway, but so far authorities say they believe it was an accident.
[03:40:02]
Family and friends of former One Direction singer Liam Payne gathered to pay tribute to him on Wednesday. A horse-drawn carriage brought Payne's casket to the church for a private funeral in Amersham, northwest of London. Payne's former One Direction bandmates Zayn Malik, Harry Styles, Niall Horan and Louis Tomlinson all attended the service.
One Direction became the first group to have its first four albums debut at number one on the Billboard 200 chart. The 31-year-old singer died last month after falling from the third-floor balcony of a hotel in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Officials say Payne had alcohol, cocaine and a prescription antidepressant in his system at the time of his death.
Five men and women have filed new civil lawsuits accusing music mogul Sean Diddy Combs of drugging and sexually assaulting them. We will have details on the new accusations after the break.
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CHURCH: Welcome back everyone.
Australia is moving to ban anyone under 16 from using social media, calling it a world-leading reform to protect children from harmful content online. New legislation would force social media companies to verify users' age or face hefty fines. But exactly how that would be done is still an open question.
So let's turn to CNN's Hanako Montgomery. She joins us live from Tokyo. Good to see you, Hanako. So what's behind the motivation of this legislation and how might it be put into effect?
HANAKO MONTGOMERY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi Rosemary, it's good to see you. So we know this proposed legislation comes as the Australian government, including its Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, suggests that social media can at times do more harm than good, especially for kids under the age of 16 who they believe are too young to be on these platforms.
It also comes after several high-profile cases in Australia where young children ended their lives because, their parents say, they were bullied online.
This is the story of Charlotte O'Brien, one such victim who took her life just two months ago. A warning to our viewers, you may find the following content disturbing.
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MONTGOMERY (voice-over): For all the positive connections, the joy social media can create, it can also quickly strip it away, destroy it forever.
KELLY O'BRIEN, MOTHER OF CHARLOTTE O'BRIEN; I will miss your hugs, your kisses, your love, your beautiful, beautiful smile.
MONTGOMERY (voice-over): In September, 12-year-old Australian girl, Charlotte O'Brien, took her own life after years being bullied on social media. Her parents quickly joined a political fight to protect children from online harm.
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The Australian government says the best way to do that is to ban anyone under 16 from using social media.
ANTHONY ALBANESE, AUSTRALIAN PRIME MINISTER: Social media is doing social harm to our young Australians, and I am calling time on it. The safety and mental health of our young people has to be a priority.
MONTGOMERY (voice-over): Under new legislation introduced to Australia's parliament, there would be consequences for social media companies caught systematically breaching the age restriction and other safety measures. Fines reaching tens of millions of dollars.
But children or parents won't be punished for breaking the new rules. Instead, the government says the ban will help moms and dads to say no to young people who want to stay online.
BEN KIOKO, 14-YEAR OLD SOCIAL MEDIA USER: Yeah, so being autistic, I have a really, really hard time connecting with others. And doing that online makes it a lot easier.
MONTGOMERY (voice-over): Some experts too say that a catch-all approach may not be helpful.
JUSTINE HUMPHREY, UNIVERSITY OF SYDNEY: Even though the age is really fundamentally important that we need to get right, what we're talking about when we say we're going to introduce a ban by age is that it legates the fact that young people have very, very different levels of maturity.
MONTGOMERY (voice-over): But advocates of the ban point to age limits on alcohol, gambling and smoking, arguing social media can be equally damaging for those too young to use it.
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MONTGOMERY: So, Rosemary, as you just saw, for grieving parents and for those who support this bill, these regulations are long overdue and they believe that the new rules could make the internet a safer place for young children.
But critics argue that actually in not all cases social media can be harmful, that in some cases it can actually create communities for young people and they can find safe spaces. But the Australian government still has many questions that it needs to answer, specifically how it plans to implement these new regulations.
But the next step, Rosemary, is for this legislation to pass through Australia's Senate next week where it will be further deliberated. Rosemary?
CHURCH: -- still watch to see what progress is made on this. Hanako Montgomery with that heartbreaking story. Many thanks.
The list of people accusing music mogul Sean Diddy Combs of sexual assault is growing. An attorney has filed five new lawsuits against Combs, different from the criminal cases that he's already in jail for. And the lawyer says he represents more than 100 people who accuse Combs of assault.
More details now from CNN's Elizabeth Wagmeister.
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ELIZABETH WAGMEISTER, CNN ENTERTAINMENT CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Five new lawsuits against Sean Diddy Combs, coming from three male and two female accusers, one who claimed she was a minor. The alleged incidents span a period of more than 20 years.
One Jane Doe alleges she was drugged and sexually assaulted in 2004 when she was 17 years old at one of Combs' infamous July 4th white parties in the Hamptons.
In a lawsuit filed late Tuesday, Jane Doe alleges she lost consciousness after being served a drink, the lawsuit stating, when she awoke, plaintiff's underwear was missing, and she felt throbbing pains in her vaginal and anal areas.
All three John Does claim they were sodomized by Combs after being given spiked drinks, and one accuser alleges he was sexually assaulted during a 2001 casting call for a music video. Combs denied the new claims. His attorneys telling CNN Mr. Combs never sexually assaulted or trafficked anyone, man or woman, adult or minor.
Instead, shifting their focus to another lawsuit filed against Tony Buzbee, a Texas attorney who has been leading the charge against puns, representing dozens of alleged victims.
In a new statement, Combs' team says Buzbee suits are shameless publicity stunts. That lawsuit against Buzbee was filed by an anonymous male celebrity who claims the victim's attorney is extorting him with wildly false, horrific allegations that baselessly rope him into the sweeping allegations against Combs.
Buzbee, who denies the extortion claims, told CNN in an interview last month that his firm was looking into other public figures who his clients have alleged were involved in Combs's misconduct.
TONY BUZBEE, PLAINTIFF'S ATTORNEY: I'm not going to name an entity or an individual in a lawsuit that I cannot show was complicit in some way.
WAGMEISTER: Are we talking about household names? Are we talking about celebrities?
BUZBEE: Yes. All the above.
WAGMEISTER (voice-over): The new allegations against Combs come one year after the first lawsuit was filed by his ex-girlfriend Cassie Ventura, alleging decades of abuse.
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That lawsuit was quickly settled in November 2023, within 24 hours after it was filed. Combs denied Ventura's claims at the time.
Months later, on May 17th, CNN obtained security video of Combs assaulting Ventura in a hallway at a Los Angeles hotel in 2016, only then prompting this videotaped apology from Combs.
Ventura's lawsuit opened the floodgates of disturbing allegations for Combs, who now faces over 30 civil suits.
WAGMEISTER: Now it's not just these 30 civil suits that Sean Combs is facing. He also faces three criminal charges for which he is currently incarcerated. Now his criminal trial is currently set for spring of next year, but as he has been detained Combs has been trying to be released from jail.
Two separate judges have denied his bail request and he has a hearing coming up this Friday where a third judge will hear from his lawyers as they try to get him released from jail as he awaits this trial.
Now there's been a lot of back and forth from both sides. It seems like there's a different filing every day in this case. But prosecutors have said that they do not believe that Combs should be released because they allege that he has been obstructing this case.
They say that he has been paying inmates in jail to use their phone accounts. He says that he has been trying to tamper with witnesses. So it'll be interesting to see what happens on Friday, which is the next major hearing.
Back to you.
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CHURCH: And we'll have much more ahead. Do stay with us here on CNN.
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CHURCH: A volcano in Iceland is spewing lava and smoke for a sixth time this year, the latest eruption happening about 30 kilometers from the capital Reykjavik. But the city itself is not affected. The volcano was dormant for about 800 years before it started erupting in 2021. Scientists now say it's likely to stay active for decades.
The Pacific Northwest is struggling with a new threat from a historically strong Forecasters say torrential rain will get heavier as an atmospheric river gets even stronger. Parts of northwestern California could record about 16 inches of rain in 48 hours. Heavy snow is expected in higher elevations.
The bomb cyclone slammed the U.S. West Coast and Canada's British Columbia with destructive winds this week, killing at least two people and causing mass power outages that could last for days. More than 400,000 homes and businesses are without power in the Western U.S., according to poweroutage.us, and more than 55,000 customers are in the dark in British Columbia.
U.S. wildlife officials are announcing a new proposal to help protect the world's tallest animal as giraffe populations decline at an alarming rate. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is looking to list many giraffe species as either endangered or threatened, marking the first time they would receive federal protections under the Endangered Species Act.
It's a move environmental groups have been pushing since 2017. If finalized, the rule would expand new funding for research and conservation efforts and cut illegal hunting and trade of giraffes.
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Well lake pollution is causing power outages for people in two African countries. Victoria Rubidiri explains why.
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VICTORIA RUBADIRI, CNN CORRESPONDENT, "CONNECTING AFRICA": A sea of garbage atop a lake on the border of the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Rwanda.
It's unsightly and a problem with a ripple effect for families and businesses alike. Plastic bottles, gas cans and other trash collect at the bottom and on the surface of the water, clogging this hydroelectric dam and keeping water from properly entering its channels, limiting the amount of pressure and speed needed for this electric company's machines to power the region.
LJOVY MULEMANGABO, PROVINCIAL DIRECTOR, D.R. CONGO'S NATIONAL ELECTRIC COMPANY (through translator): We are forced to shut down the machines and start removing the waste, clearing the grapes. And when we stop the machines, power outages also occur.
RUBADIRI (voice-over): Waste management issues, intensified by heavy rainfall, cause people's abandoned trash to end up in the lake. Those mounds of garbage can have drastic consequences.
MULEMANGABO (through translator): If they leave the waste lying in a street, in the gutters, it ends up in the Rurizzi Dam, and this creates a lot of difficulties for us.
RUBADIRI (voice-over): As power outages plague the region, small businesses suffer. These welders feel the pressure as production slows, confused and frustrated by the sporadic electricity in their workshop.
ALEX MBILIZI, METAL WORKER (through translator): People tell us the power is out because of plastic bottles, but we don't know what to do about these bottles. If only there were a way to clear out these bottles so we could have electricity.
RUBADIRI (voice-over): Officials say there could be a way, if individual homes pick up waste. Authorities say waste companies could then collect it and bring it to a disposal site. But for now, it's only an idea, one that may prove crucial in tackling the region's pollution problem.
Victoria Rubadiri, CNN, Nairobi.
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CHURCH: I want to thank you so much for your company this hour. I'm Rosemary Church. Have yourselves a wonderful day. "CNN Newsroom" with Christina Macfarlane in London is next.
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