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Loud Explosions In Syrian Capital, Smoke Visible In Sky; Rebels Preparing To Take Over Syrian Government; U.S. And Qatar Still Working For Gaza Ceasefire; Bashar Al-Assad's Brutal Regime Toppled by the Rebels in Syria; Netanyahu Set to Testify in Historic Corruption Trial; FBI to Conduct Background Checks on Thousands of Appointees; Jay-Z Calls for Accuser's Identity in Rape Case Against Him. Aired 2- 2:45a ET

Aired December 10, 2024 - 02:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

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[02:00:32]

ROSEMARY CHURCH, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: Hello and welcome to our viewers joining us from all around the world and to everyone streaming us on CNN Max. I'm Rosemary Church.

Just ahead. Restoring order after Assad Syrian rebels meet with the toppled regime's outgoing prime minister. The first steps towards forming a new government.

The man suspected of shooting a prominent healthcare CEO has been captured and charged with murder after alluding authorities for five days.

And Benjamin Netanyahu prepares to take the witness stand for the first time in his long running corruption trial.

ANNOUNCER: Live from Atlanta. This is CNN NEWSROOM with Rosemary Church.

CHURCH: Good to have you with us. New development in Syria. At this hour, CNN teams in Damascus report hearing a series of explosions a short time ago, there are reports that Israel carried out air strikes in Damascus on Sunday. When CNN asked about those reports, the Israeli military declined to comment. Meanwhile, rebel groups in Syria are preparing to take control of the country's government after a swift and stunning march to power.

The leader of the main rebel group, Abu Mohammed al-Golani, met former President Bashar al- Assad's outgoing prime minister on Monday to discuss the transfer of power. But A source told CNN that a decision has not been made yet on who will be the transitional prime minister. Rebel officials plan to release a list of senior Assad officials wanted for torture. There are long documented reports of the Assad regime committing atrocities against Syrians.

Rebels and civilians are tearing down symbols of the Assad regime and the rebel coalition says members of Assad's military forces must register with them. They have issued a general amnesty for soldiers conscripted into the military, but that does not apply to those who volunteered.

The civilians' life in Syria is starting to return somewhat to normal. In Aleppo, people are back on the street. Some shops are open and banks are expected to reopen in the coming hours.

America's top diplomat is urging the rebels who topped Assad's regime to prepare for inclusive government governance in Syria. Secretary of State Antony Blinken says senior officials are traveling to the Middle East to work with regional partners on the crisis. He did not say whether the U.S. is considering contact with the leading Syrian rebel group, which it had designated a terrorist organization but he made clear, the U.S. has enduring interests in Syria.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ANTONY BLINKEN, UNITED STATES SECRETARY OF STATE: We have a strong interest in preventing the reemergence of ISIS, given the death and destruction that it's wrought for so long. We have a clear interest in ensuring that whatever weapons of mass destruction or components are left in Syria do not fall into the wrong hands. We have a clear interest in doing what we can to avoid the fragmentation of Syria, mass migrations from Syria and of course, the export of terrorism and extremism.

The region and the world have a responsibility to support the Syrian people as they begin to rebuild their country and chart a new direction.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: Joining me now is Wa'el Alzayat. He is the CEO of Emgage. A Muslim advocacy group, and a former U.S. Middle East policy expert at the U.S. State Department. Appreciate you joining us.

WA'EL ALZAYAT, CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER, EMGAGE: Thanks for having me so.

CHURCH: Syrians are celebrating the fall of the long and brutal Assad regime. But what comes next in terms of leadership for this country after the Syrian rebel leader met with the regime's outgoing prime minister to discuss the transfer of power?

ALZAYAT: Well, what's next is figuring out this political transition, as you mentioned, the commander of the main rebel group met with the outgoing prime minister and incoming one has been deputized to lead this transition period. Though many Syrians are expecting a more inclusive process to proceed, obviously, you know, law and order needs to be insured as much as possible.

[02:05:01]

But Syrian society is very diverse. The rebel group that Mr. Jolani heads is one of others and there are other political actors on the ground. Not to mention there are different segments of the country, particularly the Kurds in the north who are not part of what's been happening here in places like Aleppo and Damascus. So, all eyes were beyond how this transition proceeds.

CHURCH: So, what can you tell us about the Syrian rebel leader who overthrew Bashar al-Assad, Mohammed al-Julani? Who is he, and how would he lead the newly liberated nation of Syria if he does end up doing that?

ALZAYAT: Well, he is Syrian. He's actually from the Golan government in the South and in his youth, he traveled to Iraq to fight with al Qaeda against the U.S. military after the fall of Saddam. Years later, he came back to Syria with al Qaeda but had a break with him and basically established his own group called the Al Nusra Front and then eventually they became Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, HTS.

And he publicly broke with the terrorist organization and said that his organization's focus is merely on toppling the Assad regime and bringing a more representative government in Syria. So, he has done that and he's put out some pretty impressive statements regarding assurances for minorities, for Christians, for Kurds, for Syria's neighbors, though, again, obviously there are a lot of cautious optimism regarding how he'll proceed whether he will indeed allow a civilian government to take over, what kind of influence he's going to want to maintain, or if he would decide that he himself would like to be the next president of Syria.

CHURCH: And U.S. President Joe Biden is keeping a very close eye on events in Syria and has mapped out next steps, including engaging and supporting Syria's neighbors and call, says a moment of opportunity but also one that brings risk and uncertainty, while the next U.S. president Donald Trump, says this is not America's fight and should stay out of it. What is your reaction to those two very different approaches to Syria?

ALZAYAT: Well, there are some truths, but they're obviously incomplete. Look, the Syrian people are in an incredible moment of joy and happiness that I think we should allow them to bask in for perhaps few more days. And are extremely entrepreneurial. They are eager to rebuild their country and they've suffered terribly under Assad. You're seeing the images in the videos from his dungeons and jails.

Just very heartbreaking. What's happening perhaps as many as 100,000 who are missing and nobody can find are presumed to have died in his jails. So, it's a pretty horrific situation that they want to emerge from and rebuild their country. So that is the joy, the optimism, and yes, as President Biden said, there are concerns in terms of how this transition will proceed, who will be running Syria.

But ask any Syrian and they will tell you, well, at least most Syrians that they had to get beyond the Assad family, single family rule to get to what is next. They were never going to become a more humane, democratic, safe, secure, prospered country as long as Assad and the people around the war in power. What incoming President Trump has said is also partially, I think, representative of where the American public is. They do not want to be involved in, you know, another Middle Eastern war to be sending their troops. In fact, I think the American public wants to bring the American troops who are in Syria back. But if you look at the map and where Syria is bordering Jordan, Israel, Lebanon, Turkey, Iraq, it becomes very obvious that the country is important and whether it is stabilizing the region.

The issue of terrorism, refugees, there are six million refugees abroad who many of them are eager to come back and some have even started coming back are all consequential and directly or indirectly it does affect the United States.

CHURCH: Wa'El Alzayat, thank you so much for talking with us. Appreciate it.

ALZAYAT: Thanks for having me.

CHURCH: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says the fall of the Assad regime has opened up a new chapter in the Middle East. And he insists the collapse was the result of Israel's blows against Hezbollah and Iran. Both supporters of the Assad government.

His comments come as the Israeli military released video showing what it says were forces preparing for and then entering Syria. Mr. Netanyahu says his country is taking steps to address any threat that could emerge following Assad's ouster.

[02:10:04]

BENJAMIN NETANYAHU, PRIME MINISTER OF ISRAEL (through translator): We are taking all the actions necessary to try to ensure our security with regard to the new situation created in Syria.

And the State of Israel is establishing its position as a center of power in our region as it has not been for decades. Those who cooperate with us will benefit greatly. Those who attack us will lose big. We want to see a different Syria, both for our benefit and for the benefit of the people of Syria.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: The U.N. confirms that Israeli troops have entered the Syrian buffer zone, which it says is a violation of the 1974 agreement on disengagement with Syria. Over the weekend, Mr. Netanyahu ordered the military to take control of the buffer zone that separates the Israeli occupied Golan Heights from the rest of Syria. He says Israel will ensure its security by maintaining its presence in the Golan Heights, which it captured from Syria in 1967.

U.S. National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan is expected to travel to Israel this week, marking the first trip by a U.S. official to the region since the toppling of the Syrian regime. Though Sullivan is set to discuss a range of issues the U.S. remains focused on continued efforts to secure a cease fire in Gaza.

Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa'ar confirmed on Monday that indirect negotiations were underway to secure the release of hostages still held by Hamas. Qatar has also applied renewed pressure on Hamas in an effort to reach a resolution ahead of a second Trump presidency.

The Iran-backed Houthi rebels are continuing to attack Israel from Yemen. On Monday, the Houthi High Command confirmed they were behind a drone strike that hit an apartment Building in central Israel. While the Houthis are claiming a successful strike, no casualties were reported according to Israeli emergency services.

After a five-day manhunt, there's finally a suspect behind bars for the fatal shooting of United Healthcare CEO in Manhattan. And not long ago, New York prosecutors charged him with murder. 26-year-old Luigi Mangione was arrested on Monday while eating at a McDonald's in Pennsylvania. Police say he got nervous and started shaking when asked if he had recently been to New York.

Police say Mangione was found with a gun and suppressor, "both consistent with the weapon used in the murder," as well as a two-page document railing against the health care industry. The Ivy League graduate faces five charges in Pennsylvania, but did not enter a plea in court. CNN's Brian Todd tells us what's known about Mangione and his privileged upbringing.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

LUIGI MANGIONE, THE SUSPECT IN THE KILLING OF UNITEDHEALTHCARE CEO BRIAN THOMPSON: All these endeavors take a huge amount of courage.

BRIAN TODD, CNN CORESPONDENT (voice-over): Graduation video suggests Luigi Mangione was valedictorian at this prestigious all boys private school in 2016. His family owns a nursing home chain in Maryland and his cousin is a state legislator. Authorities say the note found in his possession railed against the health care industry.

JOSEPH KENNY, CHIEF OF DETECTIVES, NEW YORK POLICE DEPARTMENT: We don't think that there's any specific threats to other people mentioned in that document, but it does seem that he has some ill will toward Corporate America.

TODD (voice-over): The note said, "these parasites had it coming, and I do apologize for any strife and trauma, but it had to be done," according to a police official who has seen the document. The note says he acted alone and that he was self-funded and it asked why we have the most expensive healthcare in the world and yet are ranked 42nd in life expectancy.

JONATHAN WACKROW, FORMER SECRET SERVICE AGENT: Oftentimes, when, you know, suspects leave these types of documents, it's really to try to control the public perception of what their act was.

TODD (voice-over): Authorities are also investigating other writings of his online, the profile photo on an X account that appears to belong to Mangione features what looks like an x-ray image of a spine with hardware from a surgery. And a profile on Goodreads, also appearing to belong to Mangione lists a number of books about coping with chronic back pain. That profile also reviews the anti-technology manifesto of the Unabomber.

He was a violent individual rightfully imprisoned, who maimed innocent people, the Post says, but it also calls him an extreme political revolutionary, and notes how prescient many of his predictions about modern society turned out.

ED DAVIS, FORMER BOSTON POLICE COMMISSIONER: Is it someone that was individually aggrieved, someone whose family members suffered as a result of the decision that this company made or is it a broader sort of activist person that is rebelling against capitalism?

TODD (voice-over): On the one hand, analysts say, the crime was carefully planned.

JOHN MUFFLER, FORMER U.S. MARSHAL: He definitely did his operational planning, pre-attack surveillance. Knew his -- knew the location of this meeting and knew where he was going to be.

TODD (voice-over): But on the other hand.

[02:15:02]

MARY ELLEN O'TOOLE, FORMER SENIOR FBI PROFILER: There are a number of mistakes that the shooter made to include leaving forensic site evidence behind. The DNA, all the videos taking off his mask.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHURCH: Steve Moore is a CNN law enforcement contributor and a retired FBI supervisory special agent. He joins me now from Los Angeles. Steve, good to have you with us.

STEVE MOORE, CNN LAW ENFORCEMENT CONTRIBUTOR: Good to be here Rosemary.

CHURCH: So now the suspect has been arrested and charged with the murder of United Healthcare CEO Brian Thompson in New York. What stands out to you, given the details that are coming to light about Luigi Mangione and why he may have done this?

MOORE: Well, it just dovetails nicely with what the theory has been the entire time. It's somebody who is aggrieved and angry at the healthcare system. Although it may it appears that it may be not just limited to healthcare, but that would be a main issue, especially for somebody who has back pain, severe and chronic. That was interesting to me. And the fact that he had the manifesto on him, and it wasn't a manifesto in case I get arrested.

It was a manifesto, I believe that he was going to send, or in some way transmit to the press or the police to kind of explain and justify at some level, his actions.

CHURCH: Yes. I want to talk more about that two-page manifesto that was found in his possession criticizing the health care industry. How far do you think it goes in perhaps explaining his motive here? MOORE: Well, I think it goes a long way towards explaining his motive. It doesn't go an inch towards describe -- towards justifying what he did. And what I learned, I worked a lot of extremist groups and issue groups that were violent. When I was in the FBI, almost every single one had a manifesto or some type of document that justified their existence or their actions. This really locks him in to the -- to -- well, ironically enough, the Unabomber type of operator who is aggrieved and angry enough and has the psychological wherewithal to harm someone to make their point.

CHURCH: And Steve, you mentioned Mangione's back injury. How do you think that might have played into this murder and why he did this?

MOORE: I think first of all, the back -- the back issue could give an indication of what of his interaction with the healthcare system. It may be something that he's seen over and over again, trying to get treatment, and maybe because of chronic pain. Those types of claims are frequently reviewed or even declined. So it may be that he is in that situation where his health care was either denied or he had trouble getting it.

And I think the other thing is you have to put in the amount of stress and psychological issues that severe chronic pain can cause a person.

CHURCH: Yes. And Mangione was found with a gun and suppressor consistent with the murder weapon. How likely is it that he was planning another targeted attack as some have suggested?

MOORE: I don't think we can rule it out, but to me, it appeared that he was carrying with him the essentials that he needed in case he had to leave. We used to call them go bags, or some, something along that line where if you have to leave without going back to your hotel room or your room at a hostel, you have with you everything you need to go forward, regardless of what your plans are.

The things he could not replace were his I.D.s and his weapon. And so, he kept that with him, either for protection or for future actions, which you we certainly couldn't rule out.

CHURCH: Steve Moore, thank you so much for joining us. We appreciate it.

MOORE: Thank you.

CHURCH: Desperate families in Syria spent hours Monday searching for loved ones inside one of the country's most notorious prisons. A place Amnesty International called the human slaughterhouse. CNN cameras go inside, that's next.

Plus, some of Donald Trump's most controversial picks for his next administration spent another day with Senate lawmakers looking to drum up support. We'll have the latest from Capitol Hill.

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[02:21:16] CHURCH: Welcome back, everyone. For several frantic hours on Monday, people searched Syria's most notorious Saydnaya prison. They suspected that some prisoners were being held in secret cells inside what Amnesty International called the human slaughterhouse. CNN Chief International Correspondent Clarissa Ward was there.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CLARISSA WARD, CNN CHIEF CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The stream of families never stops climbing towards Syria's most notorious Saydnaya Prison, pushed on by reports that thousands of people imprisoned by the regime of Bashar al-Assad are still trapped alive in a section underground.

The red section of the prison they've been trying for days to reach it may soon, Meson Labood (ph) tells us.

There's no oxygen because the ventilation went out, and so they all may die. For the sake of Allah, help them.

WARD (on camera): Is someone from your family in the prison?

My three brothers and my son in law, she says.

WARD (voice-over): The roads are choked with cars full of people looking for loved ones. As soon as they see our camera, they approach holding lists of names of those who vanished inside Assad's dungeons never to be seen again.

We have to get them out before tomorrow, this man says. They don't have food, they don't have water.

WARD (on camera): Everybody has just started running. It's not clear if they have managed to get into this part of the prison.

WARD (voice-over): My God, my God. The woman prays, my God. As the crowd surges towards the prison.

WARD (on camera): So, it looks like they think that they have managed to get access. A lot of celebratory gunfire, people now just flooding in.

WARD (voice-over): After the initial jubilation, an agonizing wait for confirmation from the rescue workers. Many here have been waiting for decades. Hope was something they didn't let themselves feel until now.

Rescue workers with Syria's White Helmets break through the concrete looking for a way in. No one is certain where this red section is or if it even exists. Inside the prison, family members are searching too.

WARD (on camera): You can see people everywhere just combing through all the papers and records they can find, looking for names, seeing if maybe their loved ones are there.

WARD (voice-over): Tens of thousands of Syrians were forcibly disappeared in Saydnaya.

[02:25:03]

Lost in the abyss of a prison that was known as a slaughterhouse, industrial scale, arbitrary detention and torture all to keep one man in power.

WARD (on camera): They call this the white area of the prison because they say the conditions here are much better than in other areas but you can see it's still miserable.

WARD (voice-over): In the center of the prison, another frantic rush, someone thinks they have found a tunnel. They desperately try to get a look inside. Others look on helpless, not knowing is agony. Assad may be gone, but the legacy of his cruelty remains.

WARD (on camera): After we returned from our trip to Saydnaya, a group called the Association of Detainees and the missing in Saydnaya said that they do not believe that the red section exists, that they are confident that all of those who were detained in Saydnaya were released on December 8th before 11:00 a.m. And the White Helmets, those rescue workers that you saw there have now confirmed that they have concluded their search.

Clarissa Ward CNN, Damascus.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHURCH: Still to come, we will break down how rebels brought down Bashar al-Assad's decades long dictatorship in just a matter of days.

Plus, Israel's Prime Minister on trial for corruption. We'll take you live outside the courthouse in Tel Aviv where Benjamin Netanyahu is set to testify for the first time.

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CHURCH: For half a century, the Assad family ruled over Syria with an I am fist, with reports of mass incarceration, torture, extrajudicial killings and atrocities against the Syrian people. But after 13 years of Civil War, Assad's regime suddenly came crushing down.

CNN's Katie Polglase takes a look at how the rebels captured Damascus.

KATIE POLGLASE, CNN INVESTIGATIVE REPORTER (voice-over): The shouts of freedom. This weekend, the Assad's regime's decades long rule over Syria ended with the fall of the capital, Damascus.

[02:30:06]

POLGLASE (on camera): This takeover was led by multiple groups with differing ideologies. Now, we don't know yet if this was actively coordinated, but our analysis of more than 100 videos indicates this was a multi-pronged approach with groups swarming the capital from different directions. Here's how it unfolded.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

POLGLASE voice-over): Rebels under the Islamist group, Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, had been capturing key towns in the north of Syria. As the week progressed, they started heading south towards the capital, Damascus. On Thursday, they captured the city of Hama. By Friday, they are still inching their way further south, reaching nearby the town of Talbiseh, just north of Homs. An airstrike hits nearby, but the fighters are undeterred, cheering after the strike hits.

And now, they're not alone. To the south of Damascus, other rebel groups are also mobilizing. This is on the road outside Dara on Friday night where the revolution started back in 2011. The group filming call themselves the Southern Operations Room. The next day, fighters from the Druze religious sect are also part of the rebels' progress, tearing down a statue of President Assad's father in a town just outside of Damascus.

As the different groups of rebel forces continue to close in on Damascus, regime forces begin withdrawing. Here, they're fleeing on foot. By Saturday night, rebel fighters are in central Damascus and taking control of key sites. This is the Umayyad Square. By Sunday, civilians are entering the presidential palace, bringing out whatever they can.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

POLGLASE: Now, several different rebel groups are present in Damascus and President Bashar al-Assad has fled to Moscow. The question is, will these groups work together? Can they work together? And fundamentally, who will be in charge of Syria next?

Katie Polglase, CNN, London.

ROSEMARY CHURCH, CNN ANCHOR OF "CNN NEWSROOM": Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will soon testify for the first time in his historic corruption trial. It covers three separate cases alleging the Prime Minister did favors for businessmen in exchange for gifts and favorable media coverage. It's the first time a sitting Israeli prime minister will take the stand facing criminal charges.

If Netanyahu is convicted and it's upheld on appeal, he would have to resign. He has denied any wrongdoing. So, let's go live to Tel Aviv, where CNN's Jeremy Diamond is outside the courthouse. Jeremy, what can we expect to happen as we wait for the Prime Minister Netanyahu to testify?

JEREMY DIAMOND, CNN JERUSALEM CORRESPONDENT: Well, after months of attempting to delay this moment, the Israeli prime minister will be making history today, although perhaps not in the way that he would like to. He will become the first sitting Israeli prime minister to testify in a criminal trial and he does so facing the potential of several years in prison should he be convicted.

There is -- this trial though is likely to go on for several more years, but what -- the moment that we are facing now is going to be him taking the stand, a process that could last for several weeks. For three times per week for up to six hours per day, the Israeli Prime Minister will testify for several weeks in this trial. He will initially face questioning from his own defense attorneys who will likely give him the time and the space to lay out his views on this case, to make his statements on this.

And then he will face cross-examination by the prosecutors in this case, a process that will likely take the biggest chunk of time of this testimony. We know that in this case, he is -- this is three cases all lumped together, caseC1000, Case 2000 and Case 4000. In these cases, he's facing allegations of bribery, of breach of trust, and of fraud. Effectively, these allegations center around the fact that he allegedly did favors for businessmen in exchange for gifts and favorable media coverage. The Israeli prime minister, of course, denies all of these allegations.

Tonight, he held a news conference, taking questions from reporters for the first time in nearly a hundred days in which he lambasted the case that has been standing against him for over four years at this point, insisting that he did nothing wrong, calling this a brutal witch hunt, and saying that the accusations against him are absurd and baseless.

CHURCH: And Jeremy, how is this playing out across Israel?

DIAMOND: Well, there's no question that this trial is extraordinarily divisive in part, of course, because the Israeli prime minister has sought to turn his base and his supporters against the judicial system in this case.

[02:35:00]

We have seen efforts by lawmakers in his party, ministers in his government as recently as recently as last night, seeking to delay this moment, to delay the prime minister having to take the stance, citing the ongoing security situation in the region. Those attempts ultimately failed. But there are, of course, many in Israel who have been waiting for this day, including the protesters who are outside the courthouse today, the Israeli prime minister's political opponents, and many people in Israel who believe that the Israeli prime minister has been prolonging this war even, in order to avoid facing this trial, facing this moment of reckoning in which he will take the stand for the first time as an a sitting Israeli prime minister in a criminal proceeding.

The outcome of this case is uncertain. But what is clear is that it has already provoked deep fissures (ph) in Israeli society and that the outcome of this trial is likely to have an effect as well on the political divisions that continue in this country.

CHURCH: Our thanks to Jeremy Diamond, reporting there live from Tel Aviv, appreciate it.

The FBI is gearing up for detailed background checks on thousands of appointees for Donald Trump's incoming administration, including his pick for Defense Secretary, Pete Hegseth. But these investigations may have little bearing on whether Hegseth and other controversial picks make it into the next Trump cabinet. Manu Raju has more now from Capitol Hill.

MANU RAJU, CNN CHIEF CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Republican Senators began to fall in line behind Donald Trump's most controversial picks, including to run the FBI. That of course is a position that wouldn't necessarily need a nominee, but Donald Trump is signaling that he is ready to fire the existing FBI Director, Christopher Wray, even though Wray has three more years left on his term, and replace him with Kash Patel, someone who has been very much in line with the MAGA wing of the Republican Party.

But a number of Republican senators, including the incoming Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, Chuck Grassley, who is trying to -- who said in a letter issued on Monday that he has "no confidence in Wray's leadership," told me after his meeting with Kash Patel, that Patel actually agrees with his position.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. CHUCK GRASSLEY, (R-IA): If you will look at a letter I sent to Wray today, that this nominee thinks that those things are wrong. They violate my responsibility of Congressional oversight and he wants to make sure that Congressional oversight works.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

RAJU: And then there's Tulsi Gabbard, someone who has taken positions on Ukraine that is countered to a lot of Republicans' views in supporting Ukraine. Also has take -- went -- took a trip to meet with Bashar al-Assad, of course now the ousted Syrian dictator. She met with him back in 2017. Her positions on Syria have caused a lot of concerns as well, but she met with a number of Republican senators and afterwards several of them sounded open to supporting her nomination, including Senator Lindsey Graham of South Carolina.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. LINDSEY GRAHAM, (R-SC): We've had policy differences. I know her, I like her. She wanted to stay in the JCPLA (ph). I thought that was a mistake, but she'll be serving Trump.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

RAJU: And then there's Pete Hegseth, of course, he's one of the most controversial nominees because of allegations of past misconduct, including excessive drinking, including allegations of sexual assault, something that he has denied. But there's been some Republican Senators who have held out so far, including Senator Joni Ernst.

She's a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee and has pointedly not taken a position yet on his nomination. She met with him for a second time, that second meeting occurred on Monday. Afterwards, she indicated she is open to supporting his nomination, saying that she would support him through the process, but it wouldn't say specifically she's a yes yet, but sounded very positive based on some assurances that he gave her.

So for Donald Trump's key nominees at the moment, things are looking positive for him, but there's still some time left in this confirmation process, which of course can get bumpy rather quickly.

Manu Raju, CNN, Capitol Hill.

CHURCH: And we'll be right back.

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[02:41:38]

CHURCH: Shawn Carter, better known as billionaire rap mogul, Jay-Z, is asking a court to require a woman accusing him of rape to reveal her identity or dismiss the lawsuit altogether. In a motion filed Monday, Jay-Z's lawyers argued it's an issue of fairness and that his accuser's attorney is using the media to damage their client's reputation. The woman alleges Jay-Z and rapper Sean "Diddy" Combs raped her when she was just 13 after being drugged at an after-party for the MTV Video Music Awards in 2000. Jay-Z has denied the accusations.

I want to thank you so much for joining us. I'm Rosemary Church. "World Sport" is coming up next. Then I'll be back in 15 minutes with more "CNN Newsroom." Do stay with us.

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[02:45:00]

(WORLD SPORT)