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CNN International: Transition of Power in Syria; Arrest Made in Murder of UnitedHealthcare CEO; Jubilation on the Streets of Damascus After Assad Regime Ends; Netanyahu Takes the Stand in His Corruption Trial; Controversial Trump Picks Finding More GOP Senate Support; Daniel Penny Acquitted of Negligent Homicide; Syrian Rebels Appoint Mohammad al-Bashir as Caretaker PM; Israel Launches Airstrikes Across Syria; Russia-Syria Relations Uncertain After Government Collapse; Charles Dickens Museum Decorated for Christmas. Aired 8-9a ET

Aired December 10, 2024 - 08:00   ET

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

[08:00:00]

AMARA WALKER, CNN CO-ANCHOR OF "CNN NEWSROOM": Hi, everyone. And welcome to our viewers all around the world. I'm Amara Walker. This is "CNN Newsroom". Just ahead, restoring order after Assad, The Syrian rebels take the first steps towards forming a new government. The man suspected of shooting a prominent healthcare CEO has been captured and charged with murder. We are live in New York. And fighting back, President-elect Trump's pick to run the Pentagon is going on the offensive to save his nomination.

And we begin with fast-moving developments in Syria as the country marks the start of a new era following the ouster of President Bashar al-Assad. Rebel groups are preparing to take control of the government after 13 years of a civil war that has killed hundreds of thousands of people. The leader of the main rebel group, Abu Mohammad al-Julani, met former President Bashar al-Assad's outgoing prime minister on Monday to discuss the transfer of power.

Now, the U.N. Envoy for Syria says the country is now at a crossroads with great opportunities, but also with great risks.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GEIR O. PEDERSEN, U.N. SYRIA ENVOY: No one, absolutely no one saw this coming. I believe even the armed groups that are now in control of the Damascus have been surprised at what has happened. But of course, what we have seen is a watershed moment in Syria's history.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WALKER: For civilians, life in Syria is starting to return somewhat to normal. People are back on the streets, some shops are open. Syria's banks are also reopening today. We have exclusive reporting from CNN's team on the ground in Syria, just days after the fall of the Assad regime. Chief International Correspondent, Clarissa Ward, gives us the firsthand look at Bashar al-Assad's luxury car garages. She spoke to CNN's John Berman earlier.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JOHN BERMAN, CNN CO-ANCHOR OF "CNN NEWS CENTRAL": CNN's Clarissa Ward, one of the few Western journalists on the ground in the region. Clarissa is with me now. Communications have been tough. We have you. Please just tell me where you are, what's behind you.

WARD: So John, we are actually here in one of several garages belonging to Bashar al-Assad. We are on the compound of the presidential palace, and you can see. This is a man who had expensive tastes. We've seen Aston Martins, we've got Lamborghinis, we've got Ferraris. I want to add as well that we've been walking through this compound, there are many garages. We were just in a lot where there were dozens and dozens of armored cars, if you can believe that.

I don't know how anyone would need so many armored cars. And I'm bringing you over here because you can see this collection of classic cars over here. And the reason this is all significant, John, the reason that we're talking about this, that we're showing you this, is because really this is indicative of the deep, deep corruption of the Assad regime, which is a big part of why this whole uprising started in the first place.

Back in 2011, Bashar al-Assad had been ruling for some years, his father for many decades before, and the levels of corruption and greed, the opulence, and the lavish lifestyle when so many Syrians were struggling to put food on the table. You imagine, John, the last 14 years, Syrians have been under bombardment. They've been tortured, maimed, kidnapped, killed. And meanwhile, Bashar al-Assad was living literally like a king with garages full of cars, with palaces, with incredible mosaics and marble.

And we actually watched in the presidential palace, some ordinary people who managed to sneak in, walking around with their jaws drop. They could not believe how he was living at a time when Syria was suffering so acutely. And so, this really is a metaphor for the root of the rot, for where it all started and what it really means, the spirit of this Syrian uprising. Obviously, we're not going to sugarcoat it. There is a lot of anxiety in this moment.

There is a lot of anxiety about the makeup of rebel forces, about whether there will be chaos, whether there will be strict Islamic law. And so, it's not that everybody is out in the streets celebrating, but most Syrians are united in finding these displays of wealth and opulence, truly sickening and indicative of the sickness of the Assad regime, John.

[08:05:00]

BERMAN: Clarissa, you can add my jaw to the list of those that have dropped at these images behind you, these rows and rows of luxury cars, given what has happened in Syria. Also, I guess my surprise that days after the Assad regime fell, that they're still there and in one piece. So explain to me the state of civil society in Damascus right now. Is there law and order?

WARD: Right now, there is. There was half a day when Assad first fell, where there was looting in the streets. It was quite chaotic. Then you had more rebel forces from Hayat Tahrir al-Sham coming down from the north with orders to really secure the capital, and they're the ones who are in charge of this entire complex. They are not letting anybody in and out.

I believe we are some of the few who have managed to get in here, and they have taken pains again and again to keep telling us that the cars have not been touched, that the cars will not be moved, that the cars will not be stolen, because they see their lack of corruption as being a badge of honor and a real contrast to the behavior of the regime. There was in the presidential palace and parts evidence that in those initial hours or that first day after Assad fell, that people had come in and ransacked the palace. But again, the rebels were really stressing to us, this wasn't our group. We don't do this.

Now, I will say one small detail that I found interesting, John, when we went into the palace, the rebels who were guarding it would not talk to me or look at me until I put my scarf on. And so, as much as they are making these moves and saying things such as people can wear what they want, this is a pluralistic society, we respect the rights of minorities. You do still have absolutely extremely conservative tendencies from the majority of these --

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WALKER: All right, from Bashar al-Assad's luxury car garage, we find Clarissa Ward now out in the middle of Damascus. We hear some chanting there. Hi, Clarissa, describe the scene for us. What's going on?

WARD: Hi, Amara. It's so interesting to see because for the last few days, there has been a lot of tension on the ground. People have been staying at home. They've been very cautious about coming out. They've been nervous about what will happen. Today, it is a different feeling. We are certainly starting to feel some of that elation, some of that jubilation that comes from knowing that Bashar al-Assad and his brutal regime are now gone forever.

And I wanted to bring in my new friend here, Judith. How are you, Judith?

JUDITH: Hi. I am good. This is\ --

WARD: Tell me what this feels like.

JUDITH: This is absolutely amazing. After all of these years, we are live on the international TV. This is -- this is amazing. This is unspeakable. This is us after 50 years of darkness. This is us after 50 years of death. This is absolutely amazing. (Inaudible).

(CROSSTALK)

WARD: Did you imagine, we've had -- you've had 14 years or so.

JUDITH: No.

WARD: Did you ever imagine? JUDITH: No, no. This is -- this is not -- you can't -- you can't even cross this idea over your mind, never. This is actually -- it's every day, you woke up and you go out of the door and think that, I'm going to die now. I'm going to die now. Tomorrow, I'm going to die. This is all of what we have been raised on for the past 13 years. I have no idea how to tell you how I am feeling right now. This is absolutely amazing. I have no words to express this.

WARD: You know, some people are concerned that a lot of the rebels are Islamists.

JUDITH: Yeah.

WARD: They are from organizations that have extremist ties. Do you worry about this?

JUDITH: For me, after what I have witnessed yesterday and what happened in Saydnaya Prison, this is absolutely fine. Let's have the rebellions. Let's have this Islamic, whatever, (inaudible) out. This is more -- this is more peaceful than what the regime and the Assad regime was doing to our mother, to our daughters, to our people here in Syria.

This -- anything that would come after the Assad regime would be more, more, more --

WARD: Better.

JUDITH: -- more humanic -- more humane. You can say, this is unspeakable. This is unbelievable.

WARD: Judith, thank you.

JUDITH: I have no words. Thank you. Thank you for being here with us. Thank you for sharing our freedom. Thank you for being with us.

WARD: Thank you. Thank you so much.

JUDITH: Thank you.

WARD: And Amara, I mean, this is what you're hearing again and again. It's not that people don't have anxieties about what comes next. It's not that people don't have questions about the nature of some of the rebel forces, but what you hear over and over is this idea that just let us have this moment. Let us have this moment.

[08:10:00]

For the first time in 14 years, the bombs have stopped. For the first time in 14 years, we can take to the streets. We can demonstrate and we don't have to worry about being shot or imprisoned or tortured or killed. And I think there's just a desire to be allowed to celebrate despite the ambiguity about what this next chapter may bring. People here want to feel optimistic, they want to celebrate, and they want the world to see their victory. WALKER: Yeah, you can absolutely feel and hear the joy in that woman's voice, as you spoke with her. Clarissa, just quickly, where are the rebels? As you've been driving around Damascus and elsewhere, have you been seeing them on the streets? Are they also joining in on the celebrations or are they doing more, I guess, administrative stuff?

WARD: The rebels are all over the streets. There's a few of them. There's one right here, in fact, just there. They're all over the streets. They're guarding the various ministries. They are guarding the presidential palace, for example, where we were earlier. They are trying to get all of the various administrations back to work, get traffic police back to work, to make sure that the fabric of society, that the wheels of society keep on moving.

And most of them have been very friendly, have been very polite. They have been given strict, strict edict from their leadership that they need to respect Syrian minorities. That they need to respect that this is a pluralistic society, that they should not be imposing their religious views on anyone they come across. I will say, when I was at the presidential palace, as you heard before in my report, they asked me to put on a headscarf, that was in isolated incident.

And here we are on the streets and you can see, there are women who are covered, there are women who are not covered. There are Muslims, there are Christians. These are ordinary Syrian people celebrating this moment.

WALKER: It's just incredible to see these scenes considering the fact that Bashar as-Assad's toppling was just so lightning fast and so stunning to the world. So many people did not see this coming. Regarding society and everyday stuff, is that just going on as normal when it comes to -- we mentioned the bank. The Central Bank is open, people going to work, school.

WARD: So, the Central Bank was looted on the first day. Now, it is under guard. There hasn't been, or there haven't been more reports of looting. There have been continuous Israeli airstrikes through the night, although not so much during the day. We have seen long lines outside bakeries, people also waiting in line for gas. Some indications of shortages of cash, of petrol, things like this.

There's also a curfew in place, and actually that curfew is supposed to start any minute now, although it's not clear that people, if you can see, everyone's a little excited. They want to get in on the act here. But that curfew begins at 4:00 p.m. local every day. It goes until about 5:00 a.m. and that is for the purposes of making sure that there is calm on the streets.

But as I said, today is the first day and I should note that we arrived in the evening, the night after Assad fell. So I can't speak to exactly what happened on that first day. But certainly, since yesterday, it is the first time we are really seeing big crowds of people celebrating on the streets, feeling bold enough, feeling brave enough to get out there and just celebrate. WALKER: Stunning scenes there of jubilation. And yes, allowing the Syrians to have their moment of optimism. Clarissa Ward, we so appreciate you being there on the ground. Thank you very much for your reporting there from Central Damascus.

Well, the Prime minister of Israel has taken the stand in his own corruption trial. Benjamin Netanyahu is charged with fraud, bribery, and breach of trust. CNN's Jeremy Diamond reports from the courtroom in Tel Aviv.

JEREMY DIAMOND, CNN JERUSALEM CORRESPONDENT: Well, this is the first time that a sitting Israeli prime minister has taken the stand in his own defense in a criminal trial. It is an extraordinary moment, not only for the history that is being made as the Israeli prime minister walked into this courthouse and then began testifying in his own defense, but also because of the moment at which it comes, with Israel facing a multi-front war. That was part of the reason why the Israeli prime minister sought to delay this very moment of testifying in this case, unsuccessfully though, as the judges ultimately ruled that he would have to show up to testify in his own defense, a process that could take several weeks.

We expect that the Prime Minister will testify as many as three times a week for as long as six hours per day, initially beginning with questions from his own defense attorneys who have been giving him a lot of running room here to make comments about foreign policy, accusations against the media as he really tries to make his own case.

[08:15:15]

But then, the more serious cross-examination will come from the prosecution. And there are three cases that are involved in the trial that the prime minister has been facing for four years now. They are Case 1000, Case 2000, and Case 4,000, all of them effectively boiling down to allegations of corruption that the Israeli prime minister offered favors to wealthy businessmen in exchange for more favorable media coverage or in exchange for lavish gifts, some several hundred thousand dollars in champagne bottles, in jewelry and other gifts that these businessmen allegedly provided.

Now, the prime minister and his attorneys, of course, maintain that he is innocent and we have heard the prime minister already on the stand, making his case, defending himself against these allegations, insisting that he is innocent.

Jeremy Diamond, CNN, Tel Aviv.

WALKER: Jeremy, thank you. And still to come, one of Donald Trump's most controversial cabinet picks appears to be winning over at least some key Senators. An update on the Trump transition is coming up. Also, you may be shocked at the insult Donald Trump just lobbed at the leader of Canada, a war of words over tariffs. When we come back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WALKER: Police have a sharp-eyed McDonald's worker to thank for capturing the man they believe killed a healthcare CEO. Police in Altoona, Pennsylvania arrested Luigi Mangione and charged him with murder. They believe the 26-year-old carried out the murder of UnitedHealthcare's CEO, Brian Thompson.

Police say when they arrested Mangione, they found a bag with a gun they believe was used in the murder, along with a silencer and anti- corporate America writings. Brynn Gingras joining us now from New York with the very latest. And the latest is that he has been charged with murder. What more can you tell us?

BRYNN GINGRAS, CNN U.S. NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yeah, Amara, he has been charged with murder in New York. We're waiting to find out how extradition is going to work. He's going to have to have another court date where he can decide to waive it or not waive it. In the meantime, of course, the investigation continues.

We know that investigators have scrubbed all of his social media accounts, clearly trying to figure out what the motive is here, and probably also waiting to try to talk to him even more if he is willing to talk. But we have learned a lot for ourselves, based on his social media, Amara. We have learned, this is a person who grew up in one of the wealthy -- a very wealthy family in Maryland, very prominent family, and also went to some of the best schools in the entire country.

And we know that, he lived in Hawaii in a co-living space for quite a while.

[08:20:00]

And actually, it was -- living a great life, to be honest. He talked about how he enjoyed hiking. He was the leader of their book club. And we know that his friends said they had great conversations, but really it was just this summer, where he somewhat just disappeared. We've seen on social media people tagging him wondering, where did you go? Are you doing OK?

One person was asking, are you going to honor your RSVP to my wedding? Your family is worried about you. So, it does seem like something switched. Now, what happened? That's the big question here. A little bit more deeper dive into his social media, we found an X account that showed a picture of a spinal sort of X-ray and it had some hardware in it.

It does appear according to talking to people who used to live with him, that he did have some sort of surgery and did have some sort of chronic pain after a surfing lesson that made him bedridden for about a week while he was in Hawaii. Again, not clear if this exactly points directly to why he went after CEO of UnitedHealthcare, but certainly it does raise a lot of questions.

We do know also that he was very active with reading. He was extremely intellectual. At one point, he was even sort of giving a nod to Ted Kaczynski, the Unabomber, calling him a political revolutionary. So, there are just a lot of threads out there that police are really going to be looking into, trying to figure out exactly why he committed this murder and -- allegedly and figure out what is the motive behind it.

I do want to talk to you about a statement that the family did recently release overnight, saying this. Our family is shocked and devastated by Luigi's arrest. We offer prayers to the family of Brian Thompson and we ask people to pray for all involved. So at this point, again, we are waiting to hear when he might be back in court for those new charges and when extradition might happen out of Pennsylvania.

WALKER: Yeah, I mean, considering his background, it's just so hard to understand what triggered this --

GINGRAS: Yeah.

WALKER: -- young man to allegedly shoot and kill this healthcare CEO. Can you tell us a little bit more, Brynn, about what is in these writings? I mean, he does start it off by -- with an apology.

GINGRAS: Yeah, he does start it off with the apology. This is the paperwork that was found on him. There are writings about the healthcare industry. It does raise the question, was he done, because he kept the gun on him according to police with the silencer. We've seen that picture. So it does raise that question for investigators, but some of the things that were written, it says the parasites had it coming and then another writing in those papers are, I do apologize for any strife and trauma, but it had to be done.

So it does raise this question, was he trying to take matters into his own hands? Become some kind of hero, which you heard the governor of Pennsylvania last night in a news conference say, he is no hero because certainly, it has created a lot of division, if you will, online about this whole incident in general. But, again, these are all things that are being collected at this point, as he waits in a jail cell.

WALKER: Yeah. Interesting that he uses the plural form of parasites --

GINGRAS: Yeah.

WALKER: -- when he refers to what happened. Brynn Gingras, really appreciate you joining us this morning. Thank you.

GINGRAS: Yep.

WALKER: So some of Donald Trump's most controversial cabinet picks are back in Washington to lobby Senators. Defense Secretary pick, Pete Hegseth says he now supports women in the military, claiming that his previous comments that women should not serve in combat roles were misconstrued. Hegseth met with key Senator Joni Ernst on Monday as pressure grows on her to support him.

Meanwhile, Tulsi Gabbard, Trump's pick for a Director of National Intelligence, met with top Senate Republicans on Monday. After the meeting, Senator Lindsey Graham indicated that he is open to Gabbard's nomination despite deep disagreements on U.S. involvement in Ukraine. And it appears that top Senate Republicans are ready to back Kash Patel to run the FBI despite his long history of criticizing the agency as being a part of the deep state. Manu Raju has more.

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's 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.

[08:25:00]

(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 counter 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 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.

WALKER: All right. Manu Raju, thank you. Now, even by Donald Trump's standards, this can be seen as a low blow. On Tuesday morning, Trump referred to Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau as the governor of the great state of Canada. It came in the wake of Trudeau warning that Trump's plans to slap tariffs on Canadian goods would devastate the Canadian economy and also hurt American consumers.

CNN's Matt Egan has been looking into the impact of the proposed Trump tariffs, including how much they would cost American consumers. He's joining us now, live from New York with more. Hey, Matt. I mean, it's interesting because Trump is now saying that he can't guarantee that his tariff plan will increase prices in America.

MATT EGAN, CNN REPORTER: Yeah. NBC asked the president-elect the other day if he could guarantee that consumers won't be hit with higher costs. And he said he can't guarantee anything. And this is a bit of a shift from what Trump said on the campaign trail, where he obviously praised tariffs as beautiful, the greatest thing ever invented, and promised to get prices down.

And look, just in the last five weeks since winning election, Trump has threatened to impose tariffs on a whole series of countries, not just Canada which you were just talking about, but also Mexico and China and BRICS nations. That's a group that includes Brazil, Russia, India, South Africa, Iran, UAE, and others. Again, that's just in the last five weeks.

And this reflects Trump's love of tariffs as a way to create leverage, to build pressure on friends and foes alike, and to try to get them to come to the bargaining table and reach a deal on legitimate issues such as illegal immigration or the trafficking of drugs. And there is a -- there is a case to be made for tariffs as a powerful bargaining chip because a lot of countries, their economies would just get crushed if they couldn't sell goods to America because the president has lobbed a 100 percent tariff on them.

I talked to a conservative economist, Stephen Moore, who is very supportive of the Trump agenda, and he told me that, look, it's a dangerous game but it's one that could work. Of course, there are costs here and there are risks, right, because a lot of companies have already said they will pass along the cost of Trump's tariffs to consumers in the form of higher prices. There's also the cost of all the uncertainty created by these threatened tariffs.

There's stock market losses. Some companies may decide not to invest money. They could decide not to hire as many workers. And Amara, one last point here, there is also the potential longer-term cost in terms of the loss of trust from friends and allies, who may not love it when the leader of the free world goes on social media and threatens to crush an economy with 100 percent tariffs. You got to wonder about that cost as well.

[08:30:00]

WALKER: Matt Egan, appreciate you breaking that down for us. Thanks so much.

Well, over a year and a half after choking Jordan Neely to death on a New York subway, Daniel Penny has been acquitted on charges of negligent homicide. This comes just days after the judge presiding over the trial agreed to dismiss the more serious charge of manslaughter. As the jury deliberated yesterday, clashing protests gathered outside the courthouse. The not guilty verdict was received with outrage by some present in the courtroom, including by Neely's father who was escorted out. Let's take a listen now to his reaction.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ANDRE ZACHARY, JORDAN NEELY'S FATHER: I miss my son. My son didn't have to go through this. I didn't have to go through this either. It hurts, really, really hurts. What are we going to do, people? What's going to happen to us now? I had enough of this, system is rigged.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WALKER: Following the ruling, New York City Mayor Eric Adams voiced his respect for the jury's decision, marking the end of a fraught trial in America.

All right, still to come. 50 years of Syria's brutal dictatorship toppled in less than two weeks. How did rebel groups do it? We will take a look. Then, Russia helped decide keep Syrian opposition forces at bay for nearly a decade. Now, Moscow's future with Damascus is in limbo. We're going to have the latest on the Kremlin's concerns in the region.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WALKER: Welcome back, everyone. Syrian rebels have appointed a caretaker prime minister for the next three months to oversee the country's transition to a new government. Mohammed al-Bashir was the head of the rebel-led Syrian salvation government in Idlib. Meanwhile, Middle Eastern nations are accusing Israel of using the political instability in Syria as an opportunity to execute a new land grab.

The IDF has launched airstrikes across Syria and deployed ground troops into and beyond a demilitarized buffer zone following the fall of the Assad regime. Israel says the strikes are meant to keep weapons from falling into the hands of extremists. The stunning fall of the Syrian regime caught the government and really the entire world by surprise. But the rebels who toppled Bashar al-Assad are a complex patchwork of fighters and it remains to be seen if they will actually work together. CNN's Katie Polglase takes a look at how they came together and captured Damascus.

[08:35:00]

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

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

POLGLASE: 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.

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.

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.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WALKER: What will come next is the big question, CNN Global Affairs Analyst, Kim Dozier, joining me now live from Washington. Kim, it's good to see you as always. Let's start with that question. Obviously, no one really has the answer right now. But just moments ago, it was fascinating to talk to Clarissa Ward there on the ground in Damascus and to see just all the people who had come out celebrating. There were children, there were women talking about their optimism for the future. There were also rebel soldiers there on the ground smiling at our cameras.

So far from what you have seen and heard from the rebel soldiers, including the leadership that has basically given the strict edict to respect minorities, they've already started these meetings to begin a transfer of power, what that will look like, it still remains to be seen. Do you share that optimism?

KIMBERLY DOZIER, CNN GLOBAL AFFAIRS ANALYST: Well, the question is, among the many questions, will the HTS command and control structure hold? Will they be able to implement that discipline, not just today, but this week and in the coming months, so that there isn't any sectarian bloodletting or revenge seeking? But HTS, as you mentioned, as Katie mentioned, is not the only militant group that's in the mix here.

Outside of Damascus, it's not clear who holds what. And yes, right now, there is this joy on the streets and this initial return to work, we're hearing that bank workers have gone back and opened their offices, shops are opening, some of the street workers, utility workers are going back to their jobs. Will they keep working at their jobs if this new provisional government can't keep paying their bills?

Syria is a broken country. 13 years of civil war have decimated much of the infrastructure, whereas Damascus might still be running, but other cities and towns are not. So, the haves and the have-nots, the disparities will grow. But it also goes back to how do you keep a people that have been literally tortured by the last regime from starting to track down and hunt down and seek revenge against those who have tortured and killed loved ones, neighbors, et cetera.

WALKER: Just like the, the U.N. Envoy said, this is not just a moment of opportunity, but also a moment of risk. Do you anticipate, Kim, to see foreign help, intervention in terms of trying to help rebuild Syria? And if so, what will you be watching for?

[08:40:00]

DOZIER: Well, the fact that the U.N. Syria Chief is already making positive noises about HTS, even though it's considered a terrorist group and it's on the rolls as a terrorist group in Britain, in the United States. The fact that they're saying, we're going to work with these people and get the aid in, that can be the leading edge that provides structure to aid groups and to the refugees who will want to return.

But, Syria will still be a limping state for a long time to come. And adding to that are the reports overnight that Israel has carried out something like 200 airstrikes across the country, and it says it's far from done as it tries to make sure that there's nothing left of the Syrian army to threaten it to the south. That also leaves the Syrian government, whatever future government will form, pretty defenseless in a very dangerous neighborhood.

WALKER: Yeah. Tell me more about Israel's strikes in Syria. It says that it's striking chemical weapons capabilities of Syria, but also this concern of potentially a secret stockpile of chemical weapons. We know that there was that American-Russian agreement with Assad for him to give up his chemical weapons. But of course, there's a concern that he still had a stockpile on the side that the world didn't know about. There are concerns that there might be a stash that may fall into the wrong hands.

DOZIER: Yeah. I have interviewed the Obama officials who carried out that removal of Assad's stockpiles, and they were shocked and upset to learn years later that there were some stockpiles that were apparently held back. However, when we spoke up to a Biden Administration official who was briefing reporters on Sunday evening, he was pretty blase about -- he's like, yes, we know where the chemical stockpiles are. We're not concerned about that.

Perhaps part of the calculation was they also knew that Israel was planning to take many of those stockpiles out. You can bet that Israel's intelligence services had already really penetrated the Syrian population that enabled Israel to take out a number of Quds Force commanders. These are Iranian military commanders who are helping coordinate Hezbollah proxies and helping prop up the Assad government.

Israel is now going after every single area where it thinks or is hearing now about where stockpiles might be located. Unfortunately, that probably means more civilian casualties as people, who are unaware of those stockpiles hidden in their neighborhood, can't get out of the way.

WALKER: But for the moment now, people in Syria there, in Damascus at least, having their moment, in elation and in joy as they do celebrate their freedom for now. Kimberly Dozier, really appreciate you. Thank you so much.

Well, Syrian communities across the globe are celebrating the fall of Bashar al-Assad's regime, as I've been saying, but the future of Syrian asylum seekers is now unclear. The U.K., Germany, and Austria announced that they are pausing asylum procedures as they assess the situation. And Austria's interior minister says they're also looking into deporting people back to Syria. Meanwhile, Turkey says it will take steps to allow Syrians to return home voluntarily.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RECEP TAYYIB ERDOGAN, TURKISH PRESIDENT: As Syria returns to stability, voluntary, safe, honorable, and regular returns will increase. It is my belief that our Syrian brothers longing for their country, which has lasted 13 years, will slowly end now. We have started seeing signs of this already. To prevent congestion and to ease traffic, we are opening the border gate for crossing.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WALKER: The Syrian Civil War has displaced millions since it began in 2011 with Turkey saying it hosts nearly 3 million Syrian refugees. But you can see Lebanon, as well as Jordan, also hosts a high number of refugees as well. Now, the Kremlin remains silent on the exact whereabouts of Bashar al-Assad and his family who have been granted asylum in Russia. CNN's Fred Pleitgen has more reaction from Moscow on the collapse of Assad's regime.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice- over): As Syrians celebrate the end of the Assad regime, ransacking the former leader's luxurious palaces, Russian leader Vladimir Putin was handing out medals to Russian soldiers marking 'Heroes of the Fatherland Day' in Moscow. The Kremlin confirming Putin personally granted Bashar al-Assad asylum here.

Naturally, such decisions cannot be made without the head of state. The Kremlin spokesman said it is his decision. The Russians refusing to comment on Bashar al-Assad's exact whereabouts or whether his wife Asma al-Assad, once described as a rose in the desert in a controversial article in Vogue Magazine, is with him.

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Moscow says Assad was granted asylum on "humanitarian grounds" even as Syrian storming his palace in Damascus discovered the lavish life the former dictator was leading, finding a huge collection of luxury cars, including Ferraris and a Lamborghini. The full brutality of the regime also coming to light as people storm the notorious Saydnaya Prison, infamous for torture and killings, desperately trying to free those incarcerated here.

Syria's transition also on display in the Russian capital. As of this morning, the flag of the Syrian opposition flies above the embassy here in Moscow.

PLEITGEN: The Russians, formerly the biggest backers of Bashar al- Assad say, they understand there is now a new reality in Syria.

PLEITGEN (voice-over): Russia's Air Force played a major role in helping Bashar al-Assad turn the tide at the height of Syria's civil war and push rebel forces out of much of the country. Also making Vladimir Putin one of the most influential players in the Middle East. And Moscow maintains not just a major air base in Syria, but also its only port in the Mediterranean Sea, where Putin's navy conducted large scale exercises just last week.

But the Russians acknowledge the future of their military presence in Syria is now uncertain and their capacity to influence Syria's future appears limited, Putin's foreign spy chief seemingly acknowledging.

The situation is obviously complicated, he says. The thing is Syria is a country composed of many diverse parts and whether various factions represented in the opposition are able to reach an accord will in many ways define the fate of the Syrian people and Syria as a state.

The Russians say they are in touch with the armed groups now controlling Syria. And while Moscow says it currently does not see the security of its bases here threatened, its forces have been placed on alert. Fred Pleitgen, CNN, Moscow.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WALKER: Still to come. A land that inspired an outdoor clothing brand, probably just as iconic as the landscape. You will recognize the name Patagonia. More details when we come back.

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WALKER: A new series on CNN called "Visionaries" is highlighting trailblazers and leaders across sport, tech, business, and the arts. Kristine Tompkins spent 20 years as the CEO of outdoor apparel brand, Patagonia, before leaving the corporate world behind in favor of the natural one. CNN's Chief Climate Correspondent, Bill Weir met up with her in Argentina for a look into the company's origins.

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(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BILL WEIR, CNN CHIEF CLIMATE CORRESPONDENT: What is your earliest memory of nature and being sort of drawn to it?

KRISTINE TOMPKINS, PRESIDENT AND CO-FOUNDER, TOMPKINS CONSERVATION: You know, lot of people think, because I grew up on a ranch, that this is my foundation for nature, but you don't think about nature really. Not in the way that we come to think about it today, but really it was Yvon Chouinard in the mid-'70s seventies.

WEIR: Yeah.

TOMPKINS: Who really began to show me that not only is nature a thing all on its own, but that it's being damaged.

WEIR (voice-over): Yvon Chouinard, he would co-create a climbing equipment company that later became an outdoor apparel brand in 1973 called Patagonia, and he put Kris in charge.

WEIR: It's one thing to build a successful outerwear brand or outdoor adventure brand, it's another thing to make people rethink consumerism and our relationship with the outdoors, which I know is at the soul of what he -- was that what he was trying to build all along?

TOMPKINS: Oh, I think so. I mean, it was just the early '80s when he said, OK, we have to start giving away 1 percent of our profits every year to environmental groups who typically had a harder time raising money. And within a few years he said, well, wait a second, everybody can hide profits. So he said, let's make it 10 percent of our revenue. So sink or swim, we owed Mother Earth 10 percent of whatever we were selling. And it's still that way today.

WEIR (voice-over): Kris would spend 20 years as the CEO of Patagonia from its beginnings in the 1970s to setting a solid foundation in the '80s and guiding the company through a tumultuous period in the early 1990s. TOMPKINS: I loved that period because we were in the doghouse with the bankers and we weren't sure if we could really get the company back into a form and fashion that we had always believed it should be. And I loved the stress of that. I loved the risk of doing that.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WALKER: And you can see more from Bill Weir's interview with Kristine Tompkins on "Visionaries" premiering this weekend on CNN.

Still to come. We're going to take you inside a British pub to find out why Guinness is in such short supply.

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WALKER: It's one of Ireland's favorite exports, but now, pub goers in the U.K. are grappling with a shortage of Guinness supplies as the maker of the legendary drink struggles to keep up with demand. CNN's Anna Stewart explains why the beloved beverage has become so popular and whether you can still get a proper pint.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ANNA STEWART, CNN CORRESPONDENT: One pint of Guinness please.

JASON PATRICK GLYNN, CORRIGAN MANAGER: No problem.

STEWART: And here, we're going to have the perfect two-part pour, part of the tradition of Guinness. But not everyone's going to be as lucky as I am to get their hands on this Irish stout. British pubs are worried about a shortage. Are you going to run out?

PATRICK GLYNN: We've already run out. Last week, we ordered 30 Kegs and we received 15.

STEWART: Guinness is made by Diageo and they say they are at full capacity. They just can't make enough of the stuff. So why is it so popular? This is the drink of old men in rugby stadiums.

[08:55:00]

Well, gen Z is driving up demand.

STEWART (voice-over): Celebrities like Kim Kardashian and Olivia Rodrigo have become unlikely poster children and then there's the "Split the G" contest.

NIALL HORAN, IRISH SINGER-SONGWRITER: Basically, have to take one to two gulps or so and land this line, black and white line, in the gap in the letter 'G'.

STEWART: So close, just at the top of the 'G'. Well, that was a failure. Well, actually, there isn't a shortage of Guinness 0.0, so I could give that another go.

Anna Stewart, CNN, London. (END VIDEOTAPE)

WALKER: Anna, thank you. And finally, the Charles Dickens Museum in London is ready for Christmas. One of Dickens' most popular stories, 'A Christmas Carol' has had a lasting influence on the culture around the holiday, symbolizing it as a time for both celebration and charity. The museum is decorated in authentic Victorian style, giving the visitors of Christmas present a peak into Christmas past.

And that is my time. Thank you so much for being with me here on "CNN Newsroom." I am Amara Walker. "Connect the World with Eleni Giokos" is next.

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