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Trump Threatens Tariffs As Tool Of Political Retaliation; Humanitarian Officials: People Could Die From Aid Freeze; Israel: All Cooperation With UNRWA Will Cease On Thursday; Caroline Kennedy Calls RFK Jr. A Predator Before Hearing; U.N.: Many Dead In Goma As M23 Rebels Continue Advance; Chinese Social Media Celebrates Success Of DeepSeek; Genetic Testing Revolutionizing Our Understanding Of Disease; Madison Keys Opens Up About Winning First Major Title. Aired 1-2a ET

Aired January 29, 2025 - 01:00   ET

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


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[01:00:25]

JOHN VAUSE, CNN HOST: A sacred day turns deadly at a mega religious gathering India. Hello, I'm John Vause. Ahead on CNN Newsroom.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translator): Suddenly there was a huge crowd and we got stuck somehow.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE: The rush to save survivors caught in a crowd crush of tens of millions of worshipers.

Putting the freeze on Donald Trump's freeze on federal spending.

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SEN. CHUCK SCHUMER (D-NY), MINORITY LEADER: This is cruelty. This is lawlessness. This is a heist.

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VAUSE: And it's on hold for now, but not before creating chaos, confusion and concern across the United States and around the world.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RIYAD MANSOUR, PALESTINIAN AMBASSADOR TO U.N.: Our people want to go back even to a destroyed spot in order to rebuild their lives.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE: But where to start and how? Challenges like never before, just as the biggest U.N. aid agency in Gaza will soon be banned.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Live from Atlanta, this is CNN Newsroom with John Vause.

VAUSE: Right now, emergency crews are rushing to save the victims left badly hurt on the busiest day at the world's largest religious gathering. Organizers believe the crowd crush began after a control barrier broke in the early hours of Wednesday morning in out of Pradesh state. Reuters and local media report witnesses saw several dead bodies near the riverbanks where the incident occurred.

Over six weeks, about 400 million Hindu devotees are expected to attend this festival. Officials say extra safety measures had been put in place. Let's get the very latest now. Live From Hong Kong, CNN's Kristie Lu Stout.

We know that, you know, stampedes have happened in these kind of festivals before in the past. What are they saying about this incident?

KRISTIE LU STOUT, CNN CORRESPONDENT: You know, it's still a fluid situation. We're gaining more information hour by hour. What we know is this a deadly crowd crush has taken lives. India's Maha Kumbh Mela, this is the largest religious festival in the world. Several people are feared dead.

That's all we can report at the moment. We're still waiting to get more clarity from authorities. But according to local authorities, they say that this crush took place after a barrier broke. And I want to show you this video from Reuters in which you see the immediate aftermath of this disaster. Devotees climbing over the fence, climbing through fences to try to escape the throngs of people after the crowd crush.

Emergency responders shortly after they arrived at the scene with ambulances just racing through the huge crowds to get to the injured and to take them to hospital.

Now, pilgrims there on site have been speaking to reporters and they say that the crowd crush happened early, early this morning. It happened 1:30 a.m. local time and they describe harrowing scenes of chaos. I want you to listen to this crowd crush survivor.

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UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translator): Suddenly there was a huge crowd and we got stuck somehow. People started pushing aggressively and we fell.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

STOUT: Now, this took place as about 100 million Hindu devotees were expected to visit the site on Wednesday and take a holy dip into the waters, the sacred waters in Uttar Pradesh State, India. This according to local media.

Now, this is a gathering that is so huge you can see it there on your screens, the drone video there, you could also see it from space, quite literally. There were images shared earlier from an astronaut onboard the International Space Station showing the Kumbh Mela festival underway. And this day, Wednesday, is one of the most significant days of the festival. This is when devotees, they come to bathe at the confluence of the three rivers. But despite what happened, 1:30 a.m. local time this morning, despite that fatal crowd crush, millions devotees are still thronging the area.

As you could see there in this drone video, it shows the massive crowds that continue to gather there near the rivers. Security has been stepped up to safeguard lives during what is again the world's largest religious gathering. But the danger remains. Back to you.

VAUSE: Kristie, thank you. And as you say, we're still trying to get an official death toll on -- from the crush there in the religious festival, but the local hospital is reporting at least 14 people have been killed.

Kristie Lu Stout in Hong Kong, thank you.

STOUT: Thank you.

VAUSE: A last minute court ruling has halted the Trump administration's plans to freeze all federal aid spending. The president's executive order has been challenged by multiple lawsuits after creating widespread confusion and concern over the impact the freeze would have on thousands of government programs, as well as potentially trillions of dollars in government spending. The past 24 hours, the White House has tried to clarify the scope of the spending freeze, arguing it's not a blanket pause and programs like Social Security and Medicare will not be affected. CNN's Kaitlan Collins pressed the White House spokesperson about the legality of the president's order.

[01:05:22]

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KAITLAN COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR: Who advised the president on the legality of telling government agencies that they don't have to spend money that was already appropriated by Congress?

KAROLINE LEAVITT, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: Well, as the OMB memo states, this is certainly within the confines of the law. So, White House Counsel's office believes that this is within the president's power to do it and therefore he's doing it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE: From the programs are continuing to operate as usual, but their future is now uncertain. CNN's Brian Todd spoke with volunteers in Maryland about how the potential loss of funds would affect them.

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BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Anthony Velasquez (ph), a chef at this Meals on Wheels facility in Takoma Park, Maryland, preps for tomorrow's deliveries. This is one of 5,000 Meals on Wheels programs across the U.S. serving more than 2 million elderly and homebound people which have been worried that they could be affected by the federal freeze on grants and loans.

RUTH MASTERSON, MEALS ON WHEELS OF TAKOMA PARK, MARYLAND: The memo that came out from the White House is causing a great deal of anxiety and confusion and chaos. It puts a lot of our programs at threat and at risk.

TODD (voice-over): The White House later tried to clarify, implying that Meals on Wheels may not be at risk. But Meals on Wheels does get much of its funding from a grant and the freeze does affect grants.

JOAN ALKER, CENTER FOR CHILDREN AND FAMILIES, GEORGETOWN UNIV.: There are many, many programs serving infants, toddlers, mothers, families all across the country that are being affected today. Head Start programs, child care funds, maternal and infant home visiting programs. There are seniors impacted by this, people living with chronic disease.

TODD (voice-over): The Trump administration later tried to clarify that, Social Security and Medicare are supposed to be exempt. Also said not to be affected, Pell grants, Head Start, funds for small businesses, farmers, rental assistance and other similar programs.

LEAWITT: People who are receiving individual assistance, you will continue to receive that.

TODD (voice-over): But still uncertainty about Medicaid and other grant programs.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No individual now on Medicaid would see a cutoff because of the pause?

LEAWITT: I'll check back on that and get back to you.

TODD (voice-over): Nonprofit advocates tell CNN school meal, programs to combat domestic violence and suicide prevention hotlines are also at risk, as is the home heating assistance program that helps people pay their heating bill.

MARK WOLFE, NATIONAL ENERGY ASSISTANCE DIRECTORS ASSOCIATION: But timing is terrible. You know, this is a very, very cold winter. It's also an expensive winter. About a million and a half families have yet to apply. Those families, if the freeze continues, we won't be able to help.

TODD (voice-over): The uncertainty over what's affected taking a toll.

ALKER: We're already hearing of panic spreading across the country, particularly in programs that are serving moms and babies.

TODD: Tell me what your clients have called and what are they saying?

MASTERSON: Clients are afraid that they're not going to be receiving their meals.

TODD (voice-over): Other organizations and agencies quick to feel the pinch.

ALKER: These programs, they have very small operating margins. They can't manage without funding even for a short pause of two weeks. This will create chaos in the lives of many families.

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TODD (on camera): What would a pause in funding for maybe just a day or a few days really mean? Well, Ruth Masterson of this Meals on Wheels program says here it would have a ripple effect. Not only would people go without meals for that period, but a lot of this food being prepped would go bad. So they would have to use their volunteers to throw out rotten food rather than serve people meals.

Brian Todd, CNN, Takoma Park, Maryland.

VAUSE: Humanitarian officials are warning many could die as a result of the aid freeze. U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio called for an immediate stop to foreign aid last week pending a review. But on Tuesday, he issued a waiver with exemptions for life saving humanitarian assistance includes core life-saving medicine, medical supplies, food, shelter as well as supplies and reasonable administrative costs. Rubio says the waiver does not apply to programs that go against President Trump's agenda.

And the Trump administration clamping down on the arrest and deportation of undocumented immigrants in the U.S. There were 969 arrests Tuesday, following nearly 1,200 on Monday and hundreds more over the weekend. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, or ICE, is releasing a daily list following immigration raids. ICE field officers have been ordered to make at least 75 arrests each day, but White House official Stephen Miller says that figure is expected to be a floor, not a ceiling.

Meantime, deportees are arriving in their home countries. Two Colombian Air Force planes brought hundreds of their citizens back to Bogota on Tuesday following a huge diplomatic spat between Colombia's president and the U.S. president.

David Sanger is a CNN political and national security analyst, as well as the author of "New Cold Wars, China's Rise, Russia's Invasion, and America's Struggle to Defend the West."

Good to see you, David. It's been a while.

[01:10:01]

DAVID SANGER. CNN POLITICAL & NATIONAL SECURITY RETALIATION: Great to be back with you.

VAUSE: OK. So, what we're seeing in many ways is this sort of unmantling of the post-World War II international system which the U.S. established in many of the disagreements that Donald Trump is having around the world regardless of who this disagreement is with. The president most notably taking a very hard line approach with Colombia in a dispute over landing commission for U.S. Military flights carrying deportees. Colombia backed down when faced with the threat of punitive tariffs on their exports to the United States. Here's Donald Trump.

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DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: As you saw yesterday, we've made it clear to every country that they will be taking back our people that we're sending out, the criminals, that the illegal aliens coming from their countries. We're taking them back and they're going to take them back fast. And if they don't, they'll pay a very high economic price and we're going to immediately install massive tariffs.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE: So let the nations be warned. The president just strong armed the closest U.S. Ally in Latin America and there will be consequences from this. And as I say, it also serve as a warning to other countries.

SANGER: Well, there may be consequences from this. I'm not sure that President Trump thinks so, John. I think he sees this as a series of power relationships and that the United States is in such a preeminent economic situation, particularly over a country like Colombia, where more than a quarter of their exports go to the United States, that he can win these bilateral disputes. And of course, it was lost on no one that Colombia is right next door to Panama, right? And that's where Marco Rubio is going next weekend or this coming weekend.

And he is going to, I'm sure, repeat the president's demand for resumption of American control over the Panama Canal. And they've just watched this confrontation take place with Colombia. So they sort of see Trump as returning to this era of gunboat diplomacy.

VAUSE: The U.S. president also wants to impose tariffs on China, not just for economic reasons, but also because of the flow of illegal drugs going into the United States. Here he is.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: (Inaudible) how much will the --

TRUMP: We're thinking about that, too. We're talking about a tariff of 10 percent on China based on the fact that they're sending fentanyl to Mexico and Canada.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE: Past administrations haven't really gone down this road before of using tariffs as a tool of foreign policy, not just economic policy. And one reason for that is that under the World Trade Organization rules is not allowed. Here's part of video from the WTO called "Let's Talk Tariffs."

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UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: WTO members negotiate the maximum tariffs that they will apply on all sorts of products entering their country. They commit to not exceed those levels, and in fact, they can charge less.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Once a country has defined the tariffs it wants to apply, it has to offer the same LUTI level to all WTO members. No discrimination, no enemies.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE: Now, you mentioned just before that the United States president believes he can have this spat with Colombia because it's a bilateral trade deal and the U.S. can spy that. But the United States, while it's the world's richest country, is it rich enough to simply do whatever it wants to the rest of the world combined?

SANGER: Well, is it rich enough? Yes, you can try. At some point, you pay a price because tariffs are put back on your goods and because any tariff placed on foreign goods that are coming in flows through to the consumer and becomes inflationary. But usually when tariffs are put in place, it's to make up for the fact that another country is subsidizing its industry. Think of China subsidizing solar panels or cars.

It was Joe Biden who put a huge tariff on the import of Chinese cars before they were even imported to the United States. And that was just a few months ago. But this is a different kind of use. This is, if I don't like your politics, your policies, I'm going to go after you. And the president's using national security as an argument about why he can't.

VAUSE: Well, the president has also tried to pause all spending on foreign aid, and that's brought a warning from the CDC in Africa. Widespread pauses to U.S. foreign aid funding raises the risk of a global pandemic, particularly the potential spread of mpox, the illness caused by the monkeypox virus. Also concerned from the World Health Organization about the impact of a pause in funding would have on programs aimed at stopping the spread of HIV globally, saying any pause could lead to rises in new infections and deaths, reversing decades of progress, potentially taking the world back to the 1980s and 1990s when millions died of HIV every year globally, including many in the United States of America.

[01:15:03]

There seems to be a misconception that among many within Trump's realm or many of his supporters, that foreign aid is some kind of charity. That it's just a gift to the rest of the world that doesn't come back with any benefits to the United States. It's quite the opposite.

SANGER: It usually is quite the opposite. The programs you just described for HIV, aids, the biggest efforts there were actually done by a Republican president, George W. Bush, who viewed foreign aid as a critical part of American soft power. President Trump doesn't think much in soft power terms. So both foreign aid is a target, so is basing American troops in Japan or Korea or Germany. You know, you ask the military about that, they say forward basing is both a deterrent to war and puts you in a much better place if you have to actually go into action. You've distributed your forces forward already and the equipment that they use. To President Trump and many of his supporters, that's really not the case. It's a rip off by countries that are seeking to use the U.S. Military so they don't have to pay their own. So, you know, sometimes he uses this for leverage to get the Europeans to pay more. Sometimes he uses it for punishment, as you just described.

VAUSE: David Sanger, good to have you with us. Good to see you, sir. Thank you.

SANGER: Great to be with you.

VAUSE: In a moment, the Israeli ban on the U.N. Agency for Palestinian refugees in Gaza will go ahead. We'll speak to a top UNRWA official. What the agency is calling a disastrous decision. That's next.

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[01:21:11]

VAUSE: Time is running out. The U.N. agency for Palestinian refugees in Gaza set to be banned in just days, just as the territory is facing the challenge of rebuilding. Israel's U.N. Ambassador notified the Security Council that UNWRA must hold activities and vacate all facilities in Jerusalem by Thursday. The head of UNWRA slammed Israel's decision and warned of the serious ramifications.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PHILIPPE LAZZARINI, UNRWA COMMISSIONER GENERAL: In two days, our operation in the occupied Palestinian territory will be crippled as the legislation passed by the Israeli Knesset takes effect. At stake is the fate of millions of Palestinians, the ceasefire and the prospect for a political solution that brings lasting peace and security.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE: The ban was passed by Israel's parliament more than a year ago in the wake of the October 7th Hamas attack and warns there's no alternative to the work done by the agency and if it's banned, Israel will be responsible to replace those services. That's a claim Israel rejects.

Live now to Khan Younis in central Gaza and joining us is Sam Rose, the director of UNWRA affairs in Gaza.

Sam, thank you for speaking with us. We appreciate your time.

SAM ROSE, DIRECTOR, UNRWA AFFAIRS IN GAZA: Thanks for having me on.

VAUSE: So the ceasefire is not even a week old, Israel and Hamas yet to agree on phase two. So there's still a lot which can go wrong. But is there now at least a sense in Gaza that perhaps the time is right to begin to rebuild? ROSE: People have been waiting for this moment for so, so long. I mean, we've seen dramatic scenes over the past week. Hostages being released and reunited with their families, prisoners released. And then in the past two or three days, we estimate over 400,000 people flooding back to their homes or the remains of their homes in the north.

So the contrast between what were facing and what we faced for 16 months, almost 16 months, is absolutely dramatic. And yes, people are filled with hope. They're filled with trepidation and fair, complex emotions as well. But there is real hope that we've entered this next phase along May it continue.

VAUSE: Back in May, that was eight months into the war, about the halfway point. The U.N. believe that rebuilding Gaza would cost about $50 billion and it will take 10 years. Even at that time, those estimates seemed incredibly optimistic. Is the reality here no one really knows just how much and how long it will cost and how it will take. And also they don't know who will pay for it?

ROSE: Exactly. I mean, there are so many factors here in terms of the financing, in terms of the need for a political process to support any investments coming in, the ability of the private sector to be rejuvenated so people can support themselves and very simple things or simple things in most places that we faced in Gaza for many years in terms of the entry of the supplies, the equipment, the plants that is going to be needed to remove the rubble, to make the ground safe and to provide services for families as they remain displaced, many of them for many years.

VAUSE: You know, there are so many challenges in Gaza right now. They seem to be endless. And you can add to those challenges now this potential ban on UNWRA which goes into effect Thursday. It's the biggest aid agency in the territory and Palestinians say that Israel has long wanted to put this ban in place. Listen to this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MANSOUR, PALESTINIAN AMBASSADOR TO U.N.: The Israeli government from long time ago, it's not from the time of October 7, they are trying to destroy a key component of the rights of the Palestinian people, which is the right of the refugees to return to their homes and to have compensation.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE: There is a long running dispute between UNWRA and Israel and what UNWRA does in Gaza. But what will be the impact at this point in time if the agency is not there to begin rebuilding?

[01:25:06]

ROSE: I mean, it will be dramatic, mark no words. I mean right now we are the largest, by far the largest aid operation on the ground in Gaza. We brought in two thirds of the food that's come in since the start of the ceasefire. We're providing, you know, 15, 16,000 medical consultations per day. So there's an impact on immediate delivery and distribution of aid.

But it also risks leaving a massive gap in terms of provision of basic services, health care, solid waste management, water production and distribution. The scale of what UNRWA does here is absolutely unparalleled. And if that is not able to continue, it will leave a massive gap. Before the war, were providing insulin and diabetes services to over 100,000 people in Gaza. We have those supplies inside now to allow us to continue.

But with this ban, it will just make it much more difficult to operate. And at a time the system and the international community needs to be scaling up in support of the cease fire, we are degrading the largest single actor that's been providing these services for the past decades.

VAUSE: Well, Israel says it's taking this move because ANRWA has been infiltrated by Hamas militants and others from Islamic Jihad, all also accusing the agency of having a poor record improving the lives of Palestinians. Listen to this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DANNY DANON, ISRAEL AMBASSADOR TO U.N.: When you look at the mandate of UNRWA, basically they were supposed to deal with education and health care. Unfortunately, look what they have done in Gaza in so many years. Tens of billions of dollars were spent in Gaza and they don't have proper school system, they don't have proper health system. So what they did with all those billions of dollars?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE: Has there been a time when those allegations are actually valid? And have those allegations or problems, whatever I call them, been addressed?

ROSE: I mean, look in relation to our health and education services, what UNWRA has achieved with the investments of the international community is perhaps the greatest success of the U.N. in the Middle East. And that is attested to in educational outcomes, in health outcomes. We had gender parity in our schools in the 1960s in Gaza, long before this was even being approached anywhere else in the region. Those staff, those teachers, those doctors that are products of unresistance, then went abroad to the Gulf and other places and helped build their public state systems. So in terms of the services that we provided, literacy levels, education levels, the facts do not support what I just heard.

VAUSE: Sam, thank you for taking the time to speak with us. Wish you all the very best of luck. A lot of work to do ahead.

ROSE: Thank you.

VAUSE: Thanks. Sam Rose there.

Now we'll take a short break. When we get back, violence seems to be spreading across the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo. Embassies now attacked in the nation's capital. More on that in a moment.

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[01:32:30]

VAUSE: Welcome back, everyone. I'm John Vause.

You're watching CNN NEWSROOM.

Germany's chancellor has lashed out at billionaire Elon Musk and his recent controversial remarks he made over the weekend. During a virtual appearance at a far-right political rally, Musk said Germany should move on from its past guilt over the Holocaust.

SpaceX and Tesla CEO regularly posts his support for the AFD Party, and has called the German chancellor an incompetent fool.

Here's what Olaf Scholz told CNN's Fred Pleitgen.

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FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: He is openly advocating for the AFD. He has said that Germany needs to get over its historic guilt for the Holocaust, and he's attacked you personally. Are you going to raise this with Donald Trump?

OLAF SCHOLZ, GERMAN CHANCELLOR: I disagree completely with Elon Musk and what he's doing. What is new is that he is intervening in favor of right-wing politicians all over Europe. And this is really disgusting.

And I'm absolutely critical about what Elon Musk said about the history of Germany. This is the week where we are remembering the freeing of the last people in the concentration camp of Auschwitz. And I'm absolutely clear there is a responsibility of Germany that will continue to be a responsibility.

We are very happy about the United States that freed our country and helped us to become a democracy again. And this is why I'm so angry about Elon Musk intervening for the far-right. And Elon Musk also not acting adequate to this killing of so many Jews and other people in Europe done by Germans in the past.

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VAUSE: On the eve of the U.S. Senate confirmation hearings for Robert F. Kennedy Jr., his cousin Caroline Kennedy is urging senators to reject his nomination for Health and Human Services Secretary. The daughter of the late U.S. President John F. Kennedy says RFK Jr. is, quote, "a predator and addicted to attention and power".

CNN's Arlette Saenz has details.

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ARLETTE SAENZ, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Caroline Kennedy issued a personal and scathing rebuke of her cousin, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., urging senators to oppose his nomination to become the next secretary of Health and Human Services.

It marked a rare moment where Caroline Kennedy has spoken out to criticize Robert F. Kennedy Jr. amid his political ambitions over his presidential campaign and now his pursuit of this position.

[01:34:51]

SAENZ: She posted a lengthy video on social media where she outlined many of her concerns directly to senators, saying that she has seen troubling behavior in his past, accusing her cousin Robert F. Kennedy Jr. of taking hypocritical stances on vaccines and also saying that he is addicted to attention and power.

Take a listen.

CAROLINE KENNEDY, DAUGHTER OF JOHN F. KENNEDY JR.: While he may encourage a Younger generation to attend AA meetings, Bobby is addicted to attention and power. Bobby preys on the desperation of parents of sick children. Vaccinating his own kids while building a following hypocritically discouraging other parents from vaccinating theirs.

Even before he fills this job, his constant denigration of our health care system and the conspiratorial half-truths he's told about vaccines, including in connection with Samoa's deadly 2019 outbreak of measles, have cost lives.

SAENZ: It's unclear whether this message from Caroline Kennedy will hold any sway with senators on Capitol Hill as they begin to weigh Kennedy's nomination. But it likely is an attempt to not just get Republicans to the no column, but also ensure that Democrats remain united in opposition to Kennedy's nomination.

Now, we have heard from some Republican senators who have said that they want to hear some public commitments on Kennedy -- from Kennedy on issues like his past vaccine skepticism, and also past support for abortion access.

Kennedy is set to face a grilling up on Capitol Hill on two different occasions. He will have his first hearing before the Senate Finance Committee on Wednesday, and then a second hearing before the committee that deals with health issues on Thursday.

Arlette Saenz, CNN -- the Capitol.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

VAUSE: In South Korea, investigations are underway to how a plane caught fire while preparing for a flight to Hong Kong. Crews working on the burned-out fuselage of the airbus jet can be seen here. The plane belongs to South Korean budget operator Air Busan.

All 169 passengers and seven crew were evacuated, with three sustaining minor injuries. The emergency slides were deployed on both sides of the (INAUDIBLE) plane. South Korea's Yonhap News Agency reports the fire began in the plane's tail section. The scare comes less than a month after the deadliest air disaster on

South Korean soil, when a Jeju airplane flying in from Bangkok crashed at Muan Airport's runway. All but two of the 181 passengers and crew were killed.

The U.N. says many dead bodies are lying in the streets of Goma in the Democratic Republic of Congo, where Rwanda-backed M23 rebels are continuing their advance and now control some of the city's airport, according to a French intelligence source.

There are hopes for a diplomatic solution. The presidents of the DRC and Rwanda are due to meet at a summit in the coming hours.

CNN's Salma Abdelaziz has details.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SALMA ABDELAZIZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Heavy fighting was seen around Goma Airport just a couple of days after the M23 rebel group claimed that it had full control of the city in the eastern part of the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Now, M23 has been advancing for weeks on Goma. And this lightning-fast offensive has forced hundreds of thousands of people to flee. At least a dozen U.N. peacekeepers foreign soldiers are dead.

Hospitals are overwhelmed with the wounded and now the tensions have spread to Kinshasa, the capital, where protesters were setting fires around Western embassies including the French embassy, the American embassy, the Belgian embassy, angry at what they see as western intervention in African affairs.

Now why is all of this happening? Well it may have something to do with your cell phone. The M23 rebel group, this militia group, which is accused of really terrible human rights violations, is backed by a neighboring country, Rwanda, that's according to the United Nations and other aid groups, although Rwanda denies this.

And the accusation from those groups is that Rwanda and the M23 are after valuable minerals, precious minerals that are in the eastern part of the DRC that are used to build our phones and to build our computers.

Now there is one sign of hope, one sign of progress. Kenya says that it is bringing both Rwanda and officials from the DRC to a negotiating table to try and find a diplomatic solution. Of course, the U.N. is appealing for calm.

Salma Abdelaziz, CNN -- London.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

VAUSE: In a moment, Chinese social media all abuzz over DeepSeek. The man behind the new A.I. assistant can see where some why some analysts are now casting doubt over the hype.

[01:39:29]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

VAUSE: U.S. tech stocks have recovered after a major selloff Monday, sparked by fears over DeepSeek, China's recently developed A.I. app. Now, many analysts though, want more proof the program actually lives up to all the hype.

CNN's Ivan Watson reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

IVAN WATSON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Celebration erupts across Chinese social media at the surprise success of Chinese A.I. startup DeepSeek.

The launch of DeepSeek latest A.I. chatbot triggered a selloff in American tech stocks, while the app surged to the top of the Apple Appstore, beating out higher profile A.I. competitors like ChatGPT and Google Gemini.

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: The release of DeepSeek A.I. from a Chinese company should be a wake-up call for our industries that we need to be laser-focused on competing to win.

[01:44:49]

WATSON: I've just installed DeepSeek on my phone. I'm going to ask it a question.

How much did it cost to develop DeepSeek?

"As an A.I. assistant, I don't have access to internal company information. For more details about DeepSeek, please visit the official Web site."

The company claims it costs just $5.6 million to develop this model, a fraction of the investment spent by much bigger American rivals. DeepSeek founder is Liang Wenfeng, a 40-year-old CEO who emerged from relative obscurity last week when he was invited to address the second most powerful man in the Chinese government.

Liang studied information and electronic engineering at China's prestigious Zhejiang University. He founded the hedge fund High-Flyer Quant in 2015, aimed at using mathematics and A.I. for quantitative investment.

Less than two years ago, he launched the A.I. company DeepSeek, employing young, homegrown talent. Liang described DeepSeek as an accidental disruptor in this interview last week, adding there's a gap of 1 or 2 years between Chinese A.I. and the United States.

But the real gap is the difference between originality and imitation. If this does not change, China will always be a follower.

ZACH KASS, FORMER HEAD OF GO-TO-MARKET, OPENAI: The success of open- source models, wherever they come from, in this case China, is great because it actually means that better technology will be available to more people at less -- at lower costs.

WATSON: But it's when you ask DeepSeek about China that you see glaring limitations.

I'm asking DeepSeek has Chinese leader Xi Jinping ever made a mistake?

"I am sorry, I cannot answer that question. I am an A.I. assistant designed to provide helpful and harmless responses."

ISAAC STONE FISH, CEO, STRATEGY RISKS: DeepSeek as the leader in A.I. would be catastrophic, but it would also be incredibly dangerous for free speech and free thought globally.

WATSON: DeepSeek appears to have revolutionized the A.I. space race and opened many unanswered questions about the company and its founder,

Ivan Watson, CNN -- Hong Kong.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

VAUSE: Transformation is underway in African health care. By taking saliva samples, Cape Town based BioCertica, sorry, uses DNA sequencing technology to map patients' genetic blueprints.

Africa Insider explores how genetic testing can revolutionize the way we understand disease and the way we tailor medication with help from a South African rugby legend.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JEAN DE VILLIERS, FORMER SOUTH AFRICAN RUGBY PLAYER: I'm Jean De Villiers, former professional rugby player.

What is genetic or how has genetic testing changed my life? Well, I've really benefited from it, you know, going through a professional career of 17 years, training really hard. And you know, when you're in that environment, I suppose you get results.

But understanding that you can actually get far better results if you know exactly what's going on inside of your body. And that you do by doing genetic testing.

GERT VAN WYK, CO-FOUNDER, BIOCERTICA: BioCertica is a biotechnology company and we really aim to create a genetic blueprint of our clients and enable them to know exactly what exercise to do, what medicines to take, and what foods to eat to enable them to live healthier life.

JAMIE FERNANDEZ, GENETICIST: We specifically look at a range of health and lifestyle traits, anything from how you are likely to process certain vitamins and minerals to your genetic predisposition to certain diseases like autoimmune diseases and cardiovascular diseases.

Have you done this before? UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I have actually, yes.

MAURITZ VENTER, SCIENTIST, GENETICIST AND BIOTECH ENTREPRENEUR: Polygenic risk scoring is a method combining information from multiple genetic variants to estimate an individual's likelihood to develop a disease, and the process is quite powerful as it's based on multiple genetic variants and it kicks out a final score. And that score indicates an individual's genetic predisposition to a disease.

FERNEZ: How it all works is that you do a saliva sample kit, and then we extract DNA from the cells from your cheeks. And then here we process that DNA, and then we can develop your genetic testing from there.

[01:49:46]

ARNO SMITH, CO-FOUNDER, BIOCERTICA: There's quite a big gain in terms of making sure that you can take the right medication, you can get more people out of the hospitals, and you can bring health care to people that need it at the right time.

ANCOIS BOTHA, DIETICIAN: When someone has done a genetic test, you can look at predisposed medical conditions that might be -- have an impact on their health later on.

VENTER: There are many genetic tests on the market. And not all incorporate complex systems and analysis and tools like BioCertica.

So the risks are still -- the potential wrong interpretation of results, you know, false positives. It provides another layer of confidence and it's a confidence level that you are looking for in a case like this.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

VAUSE: We'll be right back in a moment. You're watching CNN.

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MIKE BANNISTER, FORMER CHIEF CONCORDE PILOT, BRITISH AIRWAYS: There we are.

XB-1 is supersonic, faster than the speed of sound?

We've got confirmation from the control room that she is supersonic.

What a wonderful achievement.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: She's coming back.

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VAUSE: Thats former chief Concorde pilot Mike Bannister, speaking Tuesday as Boom Aviation's XB-1 prototype, broke the sound barrier during a test flight, the first time a nonmilitary aircraft has gone supersonic over the continental United States.

Boom is aiming to build the world's fastest airliner and the first commercial supersonic flight since 2003.

It has been a long road to victory for Madison Keys. The 29-year-old American nabbed her first major title at the Australian Open. That's 15 years after first turning pro.

CNN World Sport's Don Riddell caught up with the newly-minted champion to talk about her big breakthrough.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MADISON KEYS, AUSTRALIAN OPEN CHAMPION: I had a little bit of time on the plane, you know, 14 hours to get back to the States. It gives you a little bit of time to think about things.

But I'm still kind of riding the high and just so incredibly happy and still kind of living in that "pinch me" moment.

DON RIDDELL, CNN WORLD SPORT ANCHOR: You have been waiting a long time for this, right? You turned professional just after the age of 14. And I think a lot of people thought you would have won one of these by now.

How have you navigated that journey? Because it's been a bit of a roller coaster, right?

KEYS: I think I also kind of thought that I should have won one of these by now. And I think that it was slowly starting to become a little bit of a mental block for me and a burden. And it was, you know, finally freeing myself of that burden that I was able to actually finally win one.

But I think I finally was able to separate my self-worth from winning and losing tennis matches.

[01:54:50]

KEYS: I think before I was so kind of wrapped up in that. It was really -- it was really kind of debilitating at times, especially in the big moments and the big tournaments that mattered.

So I think being able to kind of separate that and be proud of my career and what I've done so far gave me the freedom to really kind of just go after it. And being able to win a slam.

RIDDELL: I can only imagine having waited so long for a major trophy, that you wouldn't have wanted to let it out of your sight. And as you've just acknowledged, you had a very long flight back from Melbourne. So where did the -- where did the trophy go on the plane?

KEYS: The trophy had to go under the plane. It's a little too large to go in the overhead bins. And, there weren't enough seats to actually put it on the plane with us.

But it made it in one piece. Happy to have my eyes on it again.

RIDDELL: You've spoken quite openly about the therapy that you've had and benefited from. Can you give me an example of the kind of thing you've learned that has allowed you to make this adjustment?

KEYS: Well, I think for me, it was -- it really started with being vulnerable and kind of working through feelings by actually feeling them.

I think in the past, I never really wanted to actually be in them. I always kind of try to think my way through them. And by doing that, I was kind of always suppressing them and doing that I was so lost in actually suppressing them that I couldn't really focus on playing tennis.

So just being really honest and vulnerable and it kind of started bringing up things that I didn't even know that had become beliefs that I was holding within myself. So being able to find those and speak them and kind of work past them, I think was just such an important piece for me.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE: (INAUDIBLE) those with a sweet tooth but love anything spicy. So how about something swicy? Thats how some have described the new flavor of the year. McCormick, the top seller of seasonings, says the ahi amarillo, which is Spanish for yellow chili pepper, has hints of mango or passion fruit, along with the heat of cayenne pepper.

It can be used in all sorts of dishes like charred vegetables or meats, or add to a cocktail, just have it by itself.

Celebrations for the Lunar New Year will soon begin. 2025 is the year of the Snake. Families will visit temples, hold reunion dinners as New Year's Eve -- on the eve of the Lunar New Year.

Others will set off firecrackers to scare away the evil spirits, will give gifts, visit friends and neighbors, a good time will be had by all over the next 15 days, which will end with the Lantern Festival.

Thank you for watching. I'm John Vause.

Please stay with us. CNN NEWSROOM continues after a short break with my friend and colleague Lynda Kinkade.

See you right back here tomorrow.

[01:57:48]

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