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Religious Festival Turns Deadly In India; Judge Pause Trump's Federal Aid Freeze; North Korea's Harsh Battlefield Tactics. White House Downplays Migrant Workers' Role on U.S. Farms; Caroline Kennedy Urges Senate to Reject RFK Jr. For U.S. Health & Human Services Secretary; Plane Catches Fire in South Korea While Preparing for Takeoff; Celebrations of Lunar New Year Begins. Aired 2-2:45a ET
Aired January 29, 2025 - 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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[02:00:26]
LYNDA KINKADE, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Hello and welcome to our viewers joining us around the world. I'm Lynda Kinkade. Just ahead. The world's largest religious gathering in India turns tragic as multiple people are killed in a massive crowd crush.
Confusion and chaos. A judge pauses the Trump administration's funding freeze of federal assistance programs affecting some of the most vulnerable in the U.S.
And the harsh tactics North Korean troops are using in the battlefield fighting for Russia amidst war against Ukraine.
ANNOUNCER: Live from Atlanta. This is CNN NEWSROOM with Lynda Kinkade.
KINKADE: We begin with a massive crowd crush in India at the world's largest religious gathering. An official at a local hospital says at least 14 people are dead. Several others are being treated for injuries. Organizers believe the stamping began after a control barrier broke in the early hours of Wednesday morning in Andhra Pradesh state. Reuters and local media reported witnesses seeing several dead bodies near the river bank where the incident occurred.
Got some live pictures where over six weeks, about 400 million Hindu devotees are expected to attend the festival. Officials say extra safety measures had been put in place. I want to welcome CNN's Kristie Lu Stout is following the developments for us from Hong Kong. So, Kristie, this was the largest religious gathering in the world. Just explain to us what we know about how this tragedy unfolded.
KRISTIE LU STOUT, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Lynda. This is what we know a deadly crowd crash is taking lives. India's Maha Kumbh Mela. This is the largest religious festival in the world. The situation is still very fluid. At this moment, we understand at least 14 people were killed, that's according to a local hospital. And local authorities say that this crush, it took place after a barrier broke.
And I want to show you video from Reuters, in which you see the immediate aftermath of the disaster. Devotees are climbing over the fence, some even through the fencing, to escape the throngs of people. And also emergency responders they shortly later on arrived at the scene, and there were scenes of ambulances just racing through, getting through the huge crowds to reach the injured and to take them to hospital.
Pilgrims there on site. They've been speaking to media, and they say that the crowd crush happened early, early on Wednesday. It happened about 1:30 a.m. local time. They described 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.
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STOUT: Now this took place as about 100 million Hindu devotees were expected to visit the site on Wednesday and take a dip, this holy dip into the sacred waters in Uttar Pradesh state in India. This is according to local media. Now, this is a gathering that is so massive. You can see it from space and there. These images have been taken from space by an astronaut. This is Don Pettit from the International Space Station, which he shared on social media.
You can see the (INAUDIBLE) underway. Now Wednesday, this day is one of the most significant days of this massive festival. This is the day when devotees come to bathe at the rivers, at the confluence of the rivers. Now, after the crowd crush took place again, 1:30 a.m. local time, according to witnesses security has been stepped up. We heard from the state chief. He says that the situation is "under control."
But despite this deadly crowd crush, as you can see on your screen, this video was taken after the incident, millions of devotees are still thronging the area. You know, video that we have from the scene there, drone video as well shows massive crowds still there, still gathering near the river. So, the threat very much remains after the sacred day turned deadly. Lynda?
KINKADE: All right. Kristie Lu Stout for us staying across those developments. Thank you.
STOUT: Thank you.
KINKADE: Donald Trump's to plan to freeze all federal aid has run into its first challenge with a U.S. district judge temporarily blocking part of that order while she considers a lawsuit brought by several nonprofit groups. This ruling came just minutes before the freeze was set to go into effect Tuesday, potentially impacting thousands of federal programs like the ones you see here, and trillions of dollars in grants and loans.
Some lawmakers in Washington are expressing their disapproval over the move, fearful of how an interruption of aid could affect many vulnerable Americans.
[02:05:10]
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I hope it's short lived because there's real people that depend on these grants.
SEN. CHUCK SCHUMER (D-NY): This is cruelty, this is lawlessness. This is a heist done on a national scale.
SEN. CHRIS MURPHY (D-CT): This is what a king does. This is not how a democracy works. One man does not decide how taxpayers' money is spent.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I've never seen anything quite like this in American history.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We have a constitutional crisis.
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KINKADE: Well CNN's Jeff Zeleny has more reporting now from the White House.
JEFF ZELENY, CNN CHIEF U.S. NATIONAL AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT: Another test of presidential authority and power is underway here in just the second week of the new Trump administration. The Trump administration put all federal programs on pause. Some $3 trillion in a variety of spending. It really set a chaos and confusion across the Capitol here and indeed throughout the country.
But a federal judge ruled on Tuesday night that he would pause that order temporarily to have all parties make their case here. At issue is federal spending. And the Trump administration is arguing that all federal programs will be under a review. They say they will not affect people, individually, not Social Security, not Medicare, not Medicaid. But that was unclear on Tuesday, as confusion set in across the government over which programs were actually paused.
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said this.
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KAROLINE LEAVITT, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: This is not a blanket pause on federal assistance and grant programs from the Trump administration. Individual assistance that includes Social Security benefits, Medicare benefits, food stamps, welfare benefits, assistance that is going directly to individuals will not be impacted by this pause.
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ZELENY: But that deadline of Tuesday at 5:00 p.m. passed as the federal judge stepped in and temporarily blocked the pause on these spending programs. So now what is most likely to happen is a constitutional challenge between the White House and indeed the Congress over which entity controls the spending. The President believes that spending should be in his purview. Congress has already authorized all of these programs.
So, at issue here, of course, our controversial programs that have already been addressed in the President's executive orders. Immigration, diversity, equity and inclusion and foreign aid as well. So now next week, there will be a big discussion on, can the funding go forward on these bills? But what this actually is yet another example is of the President's executive authority really flexing that executive muscle here and Congress is crying foul.
Democrats really the first time in this new Trump administration, rallying around one another and pushing back. They now believe that they have an issue on which to fight the president. We shall see. The bottom line, this could go all the way to the Supreme Court.
Jeff Zeleny CNN, the White House.
KINKADE: Well, given the questions over the legality of the federal aid free. CNN's Senior Legal Analyst Elie Honig explains why he believes it won't actually happen.
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ELIE HONIG, CNN SENIOR LEGAL ANALYST: I do not think this is constitutional, and I think this will be struck down by the courts. Ultimately, I think this will land in the Supreme Court, and I do not think they will support Donald Trump. First of all, just basic constitutional law, Article One creates Congress. The very first power given to Congress in the Constitution is the power of the purse.
Second of all, there was a law passed by Congress in 1974, the Impoundment Control Act that basically says the president cannot refuse to spend or block money allocated by Congress, except in very narrow circumstances for a brief period of time. And third of all, the U.S. Supreme Court decided a case in 1975 that says even without regard to that law, it's still on unconstitutional for Donald Trump to do what he's trying to do here.
So, we're going to see this move through the courts very rapidly, but ultimately, I think Trump will lose. I think the courts will say, you cannot do this.
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KINKADE: Well, still to come. The Trump administration is carrying out mass deportations. How it's impacting undocumented migrants in the U.S. That's ahead.
Plus, a top Trump official insists that the raids won't impact farm workers. When we come back, we'll fact check that claim.
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KINKADE: Welcome back. CNN has gained rare insight into the actions of North Korean troops fighting for Russia and its war against Ukraine. Kyiv special forces say the soldiers from Pyongyang are using brutal, near suicidal tactics on the battlefield. CNN's Nick Paton Walsh sent this report from eastern Ukraine. We must warn you, there are graphic images throughout.
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NICK PATON WALSH, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): These are the first images on the ground of the capture of North Korean troops by Ukraine. The soldier is injured, can hardly walk, but they spirit him away. Russian shelling intensifies to prevent capture.
A wild prize pulled through their wires here from brutal fighting in Russia's Kursk region against a radicalized, near suicidal enemy, but one who'd never seen drones in war before. The special operations forces who fought them told us.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (text): They are all young, fresh and hardy. But they're only prepared for the realities of an Eighties war. Despite all attempts to call them to surrender they continue to fight.
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WALSH (voice-over): There's a unique challenge here. Ukraine wants to take captives, but the North Koreans seem to prefer to die. They shoot one here in caution. In the distressing images that follow, they pull one injured Korean's leg, then realize he has a grenade he detonates under his chin. His last words were to scream North Korean leader Kim Jong-un's name, South Korean officials say.
We meet the Ukrainians who show us the faked Russian military papers he was carrying, suggesting he was from Russia's Far East, and his military radio codes. Another paper, handwritten pledges of brainwashed courage.
These notes from a soldier killed really a snapshot of the mindset inside the Hermit Kingdom. Declarations of loyalty, even tactics on how to fight Ukrainian drones, and also the suggestion that their presence here is about helping North Korea prepare for war. It's a remarkable insight, but also a reminder of how this biggest land war in Europe since the 40s is becoming more global.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (text): The hammer of death to the unknown and the puppet trash is not far off. We wield the powerful force that makes them tremble in fear. World, watch closely.
WALSH (on camera): These notes from a soldier killed, really a snapshot of the mindset inside the home, their kingdom. Their curations of loyalty, even tactics on how to fight Ukrainian drones. And also, the suggestion that their presence here is about helping North Korea prepare for war.
It's a remarkable insight but also a reminder of how this biggest land war in Europe since the '40s is becoming more global.
WALSH (voice-over): But also, a glimpse of the fear they live under, how they inform on each other. Notes from an officer writing a critique of his fellow soldiers.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (text): He engaged in a unimaginable disgraceful act by stealing supplies. (Another soldier) failed to uphold the Supreme Commander's dignity and placed his personal interest above all.
WALSH (voice-over): Ukrainians film themselves taking DNA samples from the dead, which they say proved these were Korean. Ukraine says up to a third of the 12,000 here are already dead or injured, and more are coming.
Amur shows us the newish A.K.-12 rifle and backpack Russia gave the North Koreans. They are overladen with ammo, he says, but sometimes nobody armor or warm clothes and minimal water.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (text): We have seen cases when fighters from North Korea ran without body armor. They often don't wear helmets which we find strange as well. They're very maneuverable, they run and move very quickly. They're hard to catch, especially with a drone.
WALSH (voice-over): This thermal drone video shows that speed of attack. Below are seven Ukrainians in a trench facing 130 North Koreans above, who race at them and then try to flank them. Many died here, but they seem to be learning.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translated text): They have a plan of what to do if they are attacked by a drone. It's one person who takes the hit. Two or three people stand on the side and shoot directly. It is worth noting that they shoot quite well. This suggests that they were trained ...
WALSH (voice-over): Ready to die, everybody checked for grenades. But not ready for this modern warfare. On a training mission, many won't survive, for a future war not even glimpsed yet.
Nick Paton Walsh, CNN, Sumy, Ukraine.
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KINKADE: The U.S. envoy to the Middle East is set to meet with the Israeli prime minister and Defense Minister today. An Israeli official tells CNN that the agenda will include negotiations for the second phase of the cease fire and hostage release deal between Israel and Hamas. U.S. President Donald Trump's envoy to the region, Steve Witkoff, played a role in negotiating the first phase of the deal in the lead up to Mr. Trump's inauguration.
Israel announced it will cease all cooperation with the United Nations Agency for Palestinian refugees beginning tomorrow. Israeli parliament voted to ban the agency from Israel and bar all communication one year after the October 7th Hamas attack.
Well, still to come. We'll have the latest on Trump's mass deportation policy for undocumented immigrants and its potential impact on agriculture.
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KINKADE: The Trump administration is clamping down on the arrest and deportation of undocumented immigrants in the U.S. U.S. Immigrations and Customs Enforcement or ICE officials say they arrested 969 people Tuesday. ICE field officers have been ordered to make at least 75 arrests every day. White House official Stephen Miller says that figure is expected to be a "floor, not a ceiling."
Undocumented immigrants in New York are worried as they try to follow their daily routines despite the chaos of deportations. CNN's Gloria Pazmino spoke with some of them.
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GLORIA PAZMINO, CNN NEWSOURCE NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Fear and uncertainty in New York City's immigrant community, as federal law enforcement agencies launch immigration enforcement operations expected to last several days.
SARAHI MARQUEZ, DACA RECIPIENT: I feel scared. I feel nervous. I feel anxious.
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PAZMINO (voice-over): Sarahi Marquez, a DACA recipient, was brought to the United States by her parents when she was six years old. She has degrees in psychology and by biology and helps run the family restaurant here on Staten Island. For the past two weeks, workers have become increasingly panicked.
MARQUEZ: We work long days. We're just trying to make a better place. And I wanted to speak out and not let fear intimidate me.
PAZMINO (voice-over): Since Trump signed his executive orders, Marquez has instructed her workers to memorize her phone number. Some are arranging transportation to and from work to avoid walking on the street.
MARQUEZ: It feels like we're hunted down. And I say to myself, what more can I do to prove myself?
TOM HOMAN, BORDER POLICY ADVISER: We're sending a message, it's not OK to be in this country illegally. It is not OK to enter this country illegally. Is it a crime, and there's going to be consequences.
PAZMINO (voice-over): More than 200 federal law enforcement officers fanned out across the city on Tuesday. Secretary of Homeland Security, Kristi Noem joined early morning enforcement operations. Fear is also spreading across the city's migrant shelters. Parents declined to speak on camera but some told us they've kept their children from school in recent days. Out of fear, ICE could show up at school or that they will be picked up in any operations. Others told us they have no toys. Genesis Romero (ph) says she takes her daughter to school so she can go to work. She feels some comfort thanks to her temporary protected status after fleeing Venezuela, but she worries some bad apples will ruin the American dream of many. It's selfish, she says of President Trump's directive. We're here to work and provide for our families and the future of our children, she says.
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PAZMINO: Now today's ICE operation here in New York City resulted in at least 24 arrests, including the arrest of a well-known Tren de Aragua gang leader wanted for violent offenses here and in Colorado. Now, many of the migrants I spoke to today told me that they agree people like him should be arrested and deported, but they worried that this administration will not differ between criminals and people trying to make an honest living.
Gloria Pazmino, CNN, New York.
KINKADE: President Donald Trump had vowed to lower grocery prices during his campaign, but will that be possible given the mass deportation of immigrant workers? CNN asked a top Trump official how immigration rates may impact prices, given a large percentage of agricultural workers are undocumented.
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STEPHEN MILLER, WHITE HOUSE DEPUTY CHIEF OF STAFF FOR POLICY: Only one percent of alien workers in the entire country work in agriculture. The top destination for illegal aliens are large cities like New York, like Los Angeles. And small industrial towns, of course, all across the heartland. The illegal aliens that Joe Biden brought into our country are not full stop doing farm work. They are not.
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KINKADE: However, that's not correct according to the government's own data from the Department of Agriculture. About 40 percent of farm workers in the U.S. are undocumented.
Manuel Cunha, Jr. is the president of the Nisei Farmers League and joins us now. Good to have you with us.
MANUEL CUNHA, JR., PRESIDENT, NISSAI FARMERS LEAGUE: Yes. Thank you very much for having me on this evening.
KINKADE: So you represent some 500 growers in California. What's been the reaction there to Trump's mass deportation plan?
CUNHA: Well, what happened on -- what we've seen on January 6 caused a lot of disruption in the San Joaquin Valley when they started down in Bakersfield, the Border Patrol, ICE and DHS just came in, and yes, they're trying to apprehend criminals and those folks and we get that. But what it did is they came into our town, the towns, and started arresting people at various stores and areas. And that has caused nothing but the next day, in the days after, as the Border Patrol proceeded north to other towns. Workers not coming to work at all, very much feared.
KINKADE: So we just heard from the President's Deputy Chief of Staff saying that undocumented migrants make up just one percent of the workforce in agriculture, and that is far from the truth. During Trump's last term, the U.S. Labor Department said 49 percent of the workforce in agriculture was undocumented migrants. That figures down to 40 percent now. Still a huge percentage for a country that, along with China and India, rank among the top three agricultural producers in the world. How are the fears of deportation impacting the day to day operation on farms?
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CUNHA: Yes, it is impacting our farm operations. Workers not coming to work. They don't come to work and the job cannot get done and that delays the process for the continuing months, especially in California where we're picking citrus and where we're doing a lot of pruning for tree, fruit, and vineyards. And it has -- it has caused a lot of problems. I hear it every day. And right now, I'm in D.C. and on this issue of immigration, it is causing problems.
LYNDA KINKADE, CNN ANCHOR OF "CNN NEWSROOM": What sort of problems?
CUNHA JR.: The worker is not taking their children to school. Number two, the workers are not able to go to work. So that means how do they live, how do they support themselves? The problem of that farmer knowing that he is going to get that crop harvested or not, unknown to that, and that problem just continually exacerbates in the rural communities. And when you do that, then you have problems.
The gangs and those types and the cartel types start influencing those workers by giving them money to do things. So it it's a bad situation. It is really bad.
KINKADE: Overall, undocumented workers account for over 5 percent of the U.S. workforce, and they paid almost $60 billion in federal taxes, almost $14 billion in state and local taxes in 2022 using individual tax identification numbers. Is that at odds with what we're hearing from politicians who claim that migrants are criminals and that these undocumented workers are simply taking welfare?
CUNHA JR.: No, they do not get welfare. They work very hard. They've been here for 20 to 30 years. Congress has failed to take care of this issue for our farm workers. Even when they fed the world during COVID, they put their life on the line, along with the growers, to feed the world. The farm workers are absolutely a dependable source of our labor for our farmers and for their families. They're not taking the workforce away at all.
KINKADE: Most undocumented workers we know come from Mexico, Central and South America, and Central and Eastern Asia. What would happen to the agricultural industry and prices for produce if there were no undocumented migrant workers? CUNHA JR.: The grocery stores would be worse than COVID with the toilet paper run. There'd be no food in the stores at all. If you shut my farmers down today and they continue the raids and the disruption, then maybe it's time for the farmers and the farms not to produce anything, to shut it down, and then let's see where Congress goes. Let's see where the world goes without our farm workers.
KINKADE: So, what is your message to the government?
CUNHA JR.: Take care of the criminals. Don't disrupt our rural communities. And farm workers are not criminals, nor are they other industries that have workers that are undocumented. Congress, you failed for 30 years. You haven't gotten this done. You use it as an election tool to get re-elected. U.S. Congress and U.S. Senators, and even the president, you have to take care of this problem. It's not right.
They've paid into social security. The employer has paid into social security, and they're not going to get it, but they've paid for it for 30 years. And they work very hard and they create a tremendous opportunity for their families. So, I ask you to please get this done and take care of these workers. They are not criminals. Stay out of the farms, stay out of our packing houses. Take care of the criminals.
KINKADE: Manuel Cunha Jr., we appreciate your time and perspective today. Thanks so much.
CUNHA JR.: Thank you.
KINKADE: Well, the confirmation hearing is said to begin in the coming hours for Robert F. Kennedy Jr. His cousin, Caroline Kennedy, is urging Senators to reject Trump's nominee for Health and Human Services Secretary. The daughter of the late U.S. President, John F. Kennedy says RFK Jr. is addicted to attention and power. She went on to accuse him of being a hypocrite, saying his kids were vaccinated despite his anti-vaccine stance.
Caroline Kennedy also accused RFK Jr. of financially benefiting from some of his anti-vaccine positions. Still ahead, it's time to celebrate the Lunar New Year. Say goodbye to the Year of the Dragon and welcome the Year of the Snake. More on the festivities ahead.
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KINKADE: Well, officials are investigating what caused a passenger plane in Busan, South Korea to catch fire as it was preparing for its flight to Hong Kong. You can see crews there working on the burned out fuselage of the Airbus jet which belongs to the South Korean budget operator, Air Busan. All 169 passengers and seven crew members evacuated with three sustaining minor injuries.
The emergency slides were deployed on both sides of the single-aisle plane. South Korea's Yonhap News Agency reports that the fire began in the plane's tail. The scare comes less than a month after the deadliest air disaster in 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 onboard were killed.
Well, finally, Asian communities around the world are celebrating the Lunar New Year and the beginning of the Year of the Snake. Looking at pictures there from Sydney, Australia, welcoming the New Year with the traditional lion dance.
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Celebrations include giving gifts and visiting friends and neighbors. Beijing residents started the Year of the Snake with prayers at the Lama Temple. Lunar New Year festivities last for 15 days ending with the Lantern Festival.
Well, that does it for this edition of "CNN Newsroom". I'm Lynda Kinkade. "World Sport" is up next. Then I'll be back in about 15 minutes with much more "CNN Newsroom."
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