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U.S., Ukraine Officials Gather in Saudi for Peace Talks; Former Philippine President Arrested on Crimes Against Humanity; Judge Blocks Donald Trump's Move to Deport Palestinian Student Activist; CNN's My Freedom Day Marks 9th Year. Aired 3-4a ET

Aired March 11, 2025 - 03:00   ET

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

[03:00:00]

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CHRISTINA MACFARLANE, CNN CORRESPONDENT AND ANCHOR: Hello and welcome to our viewers joining us from all around the world. I'm Christina Macfarlane.

Just ahead, a critical moment for Kyiv as U.S. and Ukrainian officials gather in Saudi Arabia with peace talks set to get underway soon.

U.S. markets plunge after Donald Trump refuses to say whether his trade war could spark a recession.

And former Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte is in custody on a warrant for crimes against humanity.

UNKNOWN (voice-over): Live from London, this is "CNN Newsroom" with Christina Macfarlane.

MACFARLANE: And we begin with reports of a massive Ukrainian drone strike on the Russian capital overnight.

According to Russian state media, defense forces intercepted more than 300 drones fired at Russia, with 91 of them specifically targeting the Moscow region. Officials say one person was killed and several others wounded.

The attack unfolded just hours before critical talks between the U.S. and Ukraine on ending the war with Russia. That meeting in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, is set to begin in less than two hours.

And it comes less than two weeks after the last U.S.-Ukraine meeting at the White House ended quite badly. This time, Volodymyr Zelenskyy is not expected to take part in the actual talks with the U.S. But the Ukrainian president is in Saudi Arabia meeting with the Crown Prince.

The top American diplomat says he wants to know what concessions Ukraine would be willing to make, adding that these talks will be key in determining whether the U.S. will lift its pause on military aid and intelligence sharing.

Well CNN's Clare Sebastian is following all of these developments, joins me here now in London.

Clare, let's get to that massive drone attack we saw images of there in Moscow overnight. I guess the timing of this unlikely to have been a coincidence with these talks set to get underway in less than two hours.

CLARE SEBASTIAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Christina, look, we haven't officially heard anything from Ukraine on this very large barrage of drones, some 337 in total, shot down in various different regions, 91 over the Moscow region, according to the Russian defense ministry. Ukraine hasn't said anything, but I think, as you say, timing is hardly coincidental coming ahead of these critical talks in Saudi Arabia.

It was a fairly disruptive, not to mention destructive attack, one death. It's pretty rare to see deaths from Ukrainian drone attacks as far away from the Ukrainian border as this. I think there's only ever been one other in Moscow, and that was last September.

So definitely noteworthy disruption as well with airport closures and delays to flights there.

And I think this is potentially from Ukraine a way of sending a message. Their long-range drone program is something that has been homegrown, that has proven extremely effective in this war in terms of hitting Russian military sites, energy infrastructure and, of course, on several occasions, the capital itself, again, far beyond the border.

They claim as of now, according to the defense ministry, to be the world's largest producer of tactical and strategic drones.

So this is, to quote the U.S. president, "a card potentially that they can play in this war and in peace talks."

And as I said, this is happening on this extremely critical day diplomatically. In terms of what these talks in Saudi Arabia today could bring in terms of a path to peace, I think the expectations have been lowered somewhat by the U.S. side ahead of this.

Marco Rubio, the U.S. Secretary of State, saying that this is really more of an exploratory meeting, that the U.S. will be in listening mode, he said, and they're really just trying to figure out which concessions Ukraine will be willing to make, which they will then present to Russia.

Incidentally, a source familiar with the matter has told CNN that Steve Witkoff, Trump's Middle East envoy, is expected in Russia later this week. We don't know as of yet who he will be meeting with. But in terms of this meeting today in Saudi Arabia, I think the first job for Ukraine is to repair the damage from that Oval Office meeting less than two weeks ago.

Marco Rubio saying that potentially there could be a deliverable there when it comes to unpausing U.S. aid, he said the meeting will be key. And if they come out and, quote, "feel good about that," then potentially decisions would be made on that front.

So it's a little nebulous what Ukraine is supposed to do. But I think the suggestion there is that they will have to continue with the sort of charm offensive as they try to repair that relationship and restore U.S. aid. Christina?

MACFARLANE: Yes, a lot at stake for Ukraine later today. Clare Sebastian, thanks very much for now.

[03:05:01]

And we're tracking turmoil as well in global financial markets as stocks in Asia are now mixed following a sell-off on Wall Street. U.S. stocks plunged Monday, with the Dow closing nearly 900 points to mark its worst day of the year. The Nasdaq saw its biggest single-day decline since September of 2022.

And we're still several hours away from new trading day. But here's where the U.S. futures stand right now.

U.S. President Donald Trump is set to meet with top business leaders in Washington in the hours ahead, where he may offer more clarity on his trade policy. Right now, concerns are growing over the impact of Mr. Trump's tariffs and his refusal to rule out a recession this year.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MARIA BARTIRIMO, FOX NEWS ANCHOR, "SUNDAY MORNING FUTURES": Are you expecting a recession this year?

DONALD TRUMP, U.S. PRESIDENT: I hate to predict things like that. There is a period of transition, because what we're doing is very big.

We're bringing wealth back to America. That's a big thing. And there are always periods of -- it takes a little time.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MACFARLANE: And CNN's Marc Stewart is following developments and joins me now live from Beijing. Good to see you, Marc.

Of course, Asia not immune to any of this uncertainty. How have the markets there been reacting since opening this morning?

MARC STEWART, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It's been a rough day, Christina. We began the day with a number of losses across the major indexes here in Asia.

Some improvement, but not a very encouraging day across Asia. We'll be interested to see what happens when markets open in Europe and, of course, in the United States.

Of course, the words of President Trump reverberate around the world. His suggestion or indicating there's a possibility of a recession in the U.S. certainly will create a lot of unease in other parts of the world. But it's not just what he has to say. It's also what we're hearing from corporate leaders.

For example, Delta Airlines, a worldwide carrier based in the U.S. but serving Europe as well as markets here in Asia, it cut its profit forecast in half, saying that consumers in the U.S. at least are a bit jittery about the economy and may not want to spend money as they had in the past.

So those words matter as well. In fact, later today in the United States at least, a number of companies are going to be releasing their earnings, looking at how they did last quarter. But as part of that, executives often talk about the future, what they see as potential growth and as potential obstacles. So those words are going to perhaps carry a lot of weight as we look at the day ahead.

In addition, as you mentioned, President Trump is expected to make some further remarks about the economy. So that will be important too. But these economic concerns aren't just limited to the United States.

Here in China, we're seeing this very interesting phenomenon of deflation. Of course, we've heard of inflation, where prices go up, but deflation is where prices go down.

On the surface, that seems like that's not such a bad thing. Products are cheaper. But the concern is that people will wait to spend money even further.

And that could cause an economic slowdown here in China. And of course, China being the world's second largest economy, what happens here can certainly impact other parts of the world.

You know, Christina, as we've talked about many times before, traders want stability. They want a roadmap for the future.

But right now, things are kind of murky. It's very difficult to know what's going to happen from one day to another. So that's why these remarks that we'll hear likely from President Trump and perhaps from other leaders of corporate America, that's why they are going to weigh so much in what the future may hold, Christina.

MACFARLANE: Yes, every word will be measured and watched very closely. Marc Stewart there in Beijing. Thanks very much, Marc.

Well, joining me now from Los Angeles is Robert Koepp. He's the director of the Asia-Pacific Geoeconomics and Business Initiative at Chapman University. Thank you so much for your time.

You know, it was just three weeks ago that the S&P 300 was at a record high. Monday's decline was the steepest of the year. And as we were hearing from our Marc Stewart there, I mean, this is ricocheting and sending shockwaves around the globe.

How alarmed are you by the speed with which all of this has happened? And how imminent do you think the threat of recession is at this point?

ROBERT KOEPP, DIRECTOR, ASIA-PACIFIC GEOECONOMICS AND BUSINESS INITIATIVE, CHAPMAN UNIVERSITY: Well, it's a little early to say we're about to enter a period of the dreaded R-word, but it is worrying. Absolutely. I mean, the worst thing that could be happening is this momentum continues. It'll be very interesting to see what President Trump has to say to business leaders in a few hours.

It's time to be reassuring. He hasn't been that way for the last few weeks, and especially with the recent comments from a man who's not known for being understated to say he's not willing to eliminate the possibility of a recession.

[03:10:01]

MACFARLANE: Yes. And more than that, I think what the Trump administration are making clear is that they're willing to tolerate a degree of economic pain to achieve their goals, which is to bring jobs back to industries in the United States, which is not something the markets or the general public are used to.

How much longer do you think the government can let the stock market continue with this decline before intervention is needed to prevent the country sliding into a recession?

KOEPP: It's a good question. I mean, you would think that despite the words that they're willing to take the pain, the voters likely aren't, and the midterm elections are only two years away, and the Republican Party, according to past patterns, is likely to lose its majority in at least the House.

So their congressional grip is going to be slipping, according to patterns, and it will get much worse, that decline in congressional power and the president's own bully pulpit, if in fact average Americans start to experience real economic pain.

The president campaigned on exactly the opposite. From day one, inflation was supposed to be taken care of and it was supposed to be ushering in a golden era.

Now they're saying everyone's got to suffer. So there's going to be a lot of pushback, I think, unless they start correcting course before too long.

MACFARLANE: Yes, and, you know, understandably so, within the past few weeks, we've seen so many head-spinning reversals from Donald Trump, you know, he's imposed, threatened, suspended, resumed tariffs, all of which is creating uncertainty for investors, not something the markets thrive on. How would you advise investors in these uncertain times, especially when it's not clear what the Trump administration policy is at this point on the economy?

KOEPP: Well, you've actually described the very reason it's difficult to give any sort of advice, and that is it's not so much the tariffs themselves, which a lot of economists will, of course, argue aren't very good, but there are some arguments that can be made if you're going to usher in a restructured economic program. Okay, it could make some sense in that regard. But it's on again, off again, just as you said. And it's that uncertainty that's even worse, you could argue, than the tariffs and the impact they'll have.

So, you know, normally you would say with tariffs, okay, look at certain industrials, certain beneficiaries from trying to bring back technology to the U.S. Those could all stand to benefit.

But because tariffs keep going this way and that, and moreover, we also don't know a lot about the general geoeconomic policies this administration wants to put forward. It's just hard to call anything.

MACFARLANE: Well, as we've been saying, we will keep a close eye on what Donald Trump has to say later today to clean any insight into where this might be headed. But for now, Robert Koepp, I appreciate your comments. Thank you.

KOEPP: Thank you.

MACFARLANE: A populist former president under arrest while Interpol has taken the Philippines' Rodrigo Duterte into custody. We'll have a live report.

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[03:15:00]

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MACFARLANE: Welcome back. Former Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte has been taken into custody by police in Manila on an arrest warrant issued by the International Criminal Court.

In this video, which was recorded by one of his daughters, Duterte can be heard asking, "what is the crime that I committed?"

The International Criminal Court issued the warrant for alleged crimes against humanity that's in connection with his deadly crackdown on drugs before he left office in 2022. Duterte was detained after returning from a campaign rally in Hong Kong.

CNN's Mike Valerio is tracking this live from Seoul. So, Mike, what more have you been learning about the arrest and the circumstances that led up to it?

MIKE VALERIO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, we're hearing his supporters and the former president, Christina, reject these charges. And we're going to hear more from that Instagram stream video in a couple of seconds.

But the magnitude of this, Christina, is coming into focus. I know there's so much going on around the world. But make no mistake, this is the former head of state of a country of more than 100 million people in custody because of an arrest warrant filed by the ICC, them alleging the investigators at The Hague from the ICC, alleging that this was all through the direction of this former president, the extrajudicial killing of not just 6,000 people in the name of ridding the Philippines of illegal drugs, but advocates of these victims say up to perhaps 30,000 people.

So let's watch this Instagram video again, streamed by one of his daughters. This is him trying to defend himself. Let's watch and see what he says.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RODRIGO DUTERTE, FORMER PHILIPPINE PRESIDENT: You who may know the legal basis of my being here. As I -- apparently, I was brought here, not of my own volition.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VALERIO: So you hear him. He says he was not brought here on his own volition, which, Christina, we pointed that out when we were with Rosemary Church. That's not exactly how the ICC works.

The International Criminal Court has been investigating these extrajudicial killings for years and advocates of the victims saying, of course, society would want to rid itself of this problem, but you need due process. You have to have an arrest, go through a trial, be sentenced by a judge and jury, not being executed on the streets like thousands of people were.

[03:20:06]

And to that end, we have a new statement from the Human Rights Watch, Byron Lau, who's deputy Asia director, and he writes, in part, "his arrest," meaning former President Duterte, "could bring victims and their families closer to justice and sends the clear message that no one is above the law."

The circumstances of how this happened, you know, Duterte is still a political force, widely influential. So he was in Hong Kong over the weekend giving a speech to the expat diaspora population in Hong Kong. Elections coming up in the Philippines two months from tomorrow.

China and Hong Kong are not members of the ICC. So there was speculation that perhaps some arrest warrant would come down for his part. Duterte at this Hong Kong rally seemed to accept that this was going to happen and said in so many words that he was behind or supported these extrajudicial killings for the sake of the nation, paraphrasing him lightly there.

So he goes back to the Philippines this morning. The arrest happens. The government of President Marcos signaled that it was going to cooperate because it's still a member of Interpol, maybe not a member of the ICC anymore as of 2019.

But because the Philippines is still a member of Interpol, that is one of the reasons why this arrest could happen. So what we're watching in the hours and perhaps days to come, whether or not he's going to make a trip to Europe, to The Hague, that would be extraordinary, Christina. MACFARLANE: It really would, Mike, and important, as you mentioned

there, to point out that Duterte is still politically active in Hong Kong or has been up to this point. Mike Valerio, thanks very much.

Turning now to Syria.

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A cause for celebration following some of the worst violence seen in the country in years. Syria's interim president, Ahmad al-Sharaa, says he's reached a deal with the Syrian Democratic Forces to integrate them into the country's new state institutions.

The Kurdish-led group, which controls much of Syria's oil-rich northeast, is backed by the U.S. This comes as Syria's worst violence since former President Bashar al-Assad was ousted last year.

Fighting broke out between the new interim government and Assad loyalists. A U.K.-based monitoring group, the Syrian Network for Human Rights, reports hundreds have been killed, including civilians.

Hey, coming up. The Trump administration hits a roadblock as it attempts to deport a legal U.S. resident over his anti-Gaza war activism.

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[03:25:00]

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MACFARLANE: Hi, welcome back to "CNN Newsroom." I'm Christina Macfarlane. Let's check today's top stories for you.

Concerns over the U.S. President's trade policy have led to a widespread sell-off on Wall Street. The Dow dropped nearly 900 points to close Monday down two percent, marking its worst day of the year. Mr. Trump has heightened concerns after refusing to rule out a recession.

Russia says it downed more than 300 drones fired from Ukraine overnight, according to state media, 91 of them targeted the Moscow region. It's unclear how many hit their targets, but video geolocated by CNN shows an explosion at an apartment building in the southern Moscow region.

Meantime, delegations from the U.S. and Ukraine are getting ready to hold talks in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, aimed at resolving the war with Russia. Secretary of State Marco Rubio says the U.S. will be in listening mode and wants to hear what concessions Ukraine would be willing to make to end the fighting.

Nigel Gould-Davies is a senior fellow for Russia and Eurasia at the International Institute for Strategic Studies. Thank you for your time. Today's meeting will be more than just about re-establishing relations

between Ukraine and the United States after that disastrous Oval Office showdown. It will also be about more than signing just a raw minerals deal. It will be, I think, about revealing the U.S., revealing what sort of peace they have in mind for this deal.

What are your expectations for what we may see in that regard?

NIGEL GOULD-DAVIES, SR, FELLOW FOR RUSSIA AND EURASIA, INTERNATIONAL INSTITUTE FOR STRATEGIC STUDIES: Yes, so all these things are tangled up now, I would say. For Ukraine, restoring ties with America, that disastrous meeting at the Oval Office ten days ago, is a high priority.

But part of that, as you suggest, is signaling agreement on, or at least exploring the terms that the United States now seeks to extract from Ukraine, partly in terms of the shape of a future peace deal, partly in return for, I think Ukraine will hope, some restoration of the intelligence support and the aid that President Trump suspended.

[03:30:00]

The report suggests now that the United States might seek to extract some undertaking on the Ukrainian side to accept that it won't, at least in the shorter term, get back some of the occupied territory that Russia now controls in Ukraine, about 20 percent of that territory. Ukraine will be keen to avoid any suggestion that it should permanently accept Russian control of that.

The other issue that's in play here, also another domestic issue from Ukraine's point of view, is the suggestion that the Ukrainians would have to agree some sort of election process in due course for the presidency. So it seems that Ukraine is in a more difficult position now than ten days ago in terms of the issues that are in play as far as America is concerned.

MACFARLANE: So how then does Ukraine move forward with this? Because it has made quite clear in the past that it's unwilling to yield on conceding ground to Russia, what they would view as election interference at this stage, any declaration of neutrality that would be placed on them or as an expectation on them.

What could their next steps be? Because we know at this point that Ukraine really don't have that much leverage heading into these talks, especially when you consider that perhaps the one Trump card they had, so to speak, the occupation of the Kursk region, that is on shaky grounds right now as well. So where do you see Ukraine and their ability to shape this argument?

GOULD-DAVIES: Yes, that's a very good question. There will be points that Ukraine will seek to insist on, a full exchange of prisoners of war and ideally it will seek the return of its abducted, tens of thousands of abducted citizens in Russia, including many, many children.

But I think the way the dynamics of these negotiations are going, the thing that Ukraine might consider doing is proposing a ceasefire or accepting the proposition of a ceasefire. Now that's something that's resisted up to now. It wants to achieve its political and military objectives.

But to the extent that President Trump's absolute priority is on stopping the fighting, if Ukraine could say, OK, we're ready to do this, if Russia is, that throws back the initiative to Russia. Russia would then have to respond to that. And the interesting point here is that at no stage has Russia suggested it's interested in a ceasefire.

The repeated Kremlin position over many months, and Putin has restated it recently, is that Russia only wants a full and final end to the war. It's not interested in a halting or a freezing of the conflict.

So if Zelenskyy says, say, we're ready for a ceasefire, it's up to Russia to agree to this, they might hope, Ukrainians might hope that President Trump could be persuaded that in fact it's Russia that is the constraint. Russia holds the veto to ending the fighting and not Ukraine.

And they will hope that President Trump will then turn his pressure and his diplomatic fire against Russia. So it's a matter of calling Russia's bluff.

MACFARLANE: Very interesting. Well, that meeting, as we've been saying, is set to get underway in just under two hours. For now, we will wait to see the outcome.

Nigel Gould-Davies, we appreciate your thoughts. Thank you.

GOULD-DAVIES: Thank you.

MACFARLANE: On Monday, a federal judge blocked the Trump administration for deporting Mahmoud Khalil, a recent Columbia University graduate and Palestinian activist. He was arrested by U.S. immigration officials on Saturday night, targeted by the White House for his prominent role in anti-Gaza war protests at Columbia University. Protesters in New York are demanding his immediate release.

(VIDEO PLAYING)

Mahmoud Khalil is a legal U.S. resident and has not been charged with or accused of any crime. CNN's Gloria Pazmino brings us the latest.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

GLORIA PAZMINO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, at least for now, it looks like the government is going to have to make its case before a federal judge.

We've just heard that a federal judge here in New York has said that Khalil cannot be deported from the United States until there is a hearing on the case later this week.

[03:35:06] Now, that is important because since Khalil was arrested on Saturday, attorneys and advocates have been pointing to the fact that there's been little to no due process in his case so far. It's still not clear exactly why he was arrested, but a White House administration official has said that they're pointing to evidence that Khalil distributed pro-Hamas flyers during the protests at Columbia University last year.

Now, whether or not that is enough evidence that a crime was committed and a crime that would justify someone's removal from the United States will be determined by an immigration judge. In the meantime, we know that Khalil was arrested Saturday evening at his home, which is on the campus of Columbia University. He was there with his wife, who happens to be a U.S. citizen and who is also eight months pregnant, according to his lawyer.

She also told us, quote, "ICE's arrest and detention of Mahmoud follows the U.S. government's open repression of student activism and political speech, specifically targeting the students of Columbia University for criticism of Israel's assault on Gaza. The U.S. government has made clear that they will use immigration enforcement as a tool to suppress that speech."

Now, Trump took to social media earlier on Monday, saying that Khalil's arrest is only the first of many that follows a promise that he made to deport international students who participated in protests against Israel's war in Gaza. Those protests took place across several campuses, not just here in New York City, but across the country.

Now, Columbia University has so far declined to comment on Khalil's arrest specifically, although they have acknowledged that ICE was present on the campus last weekend.

Gloria Pazmino, CNN, New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MACFARLANE: Now critics say the Israeli government is also conducting its own crackdown on free speech. They point to a recent police raid on a bookstore and the store owner's detention as proof that the government is becoming increasingly intolerant of pro-Palestinian voices in Israel.

CNN's Nic Robertson showed us what happened.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR (voice-over): In East Jerusalem, undercover cops rifle the shelves of an internationally-renowned bookstore.

Owner Mahmoud Muna looks on in disbelief, watching, he believes, the erosion of his and his customers' intellectual freedoms.

MAHMOUD MUNA, EAST JERUSALEM BOOKSHOP OWNER: Any book that had the word Palestine, had a flag, had colors, had any expression of a national or political identity of the Palestinians, became possibly a suspect book.

ROBERTSON (voice-over): Muna, under house arrest when we met, was still struggling to understand why he had been targeted.

MUNA: What I do in the bookshop is I create a space and I put in it books that create conversations.

ROBERTSON (voice-over): The police carried away bags of his books, returned most of them, and ultimately focused on a child's coloring book, which Muna says was in a back room, not for sale, titled "From the River to the Sea," words many Israelis interpret as a threat to the Jewish state. Muna and his nephew were taken into custody, held almost 48 hours.

MUNA: There's a devastating feeling that's in this place. Within 30 minutes you could be running one of the most international bookshops of the city, and within 30 minutes you are in a dungeon underground in a detention center.

ROBERTSON (voice-over): Lawyers, international diplomats and Israeli friends rallied to his side in the courts. A petition was signed by some of Israel's leading writers and poets.

Police arrested him for, quote, "selling books containing incitement and support for terrorism." The charges later downgraded, Muna says, to the catch-all disrupting public order.

That Palestinians should feel mistreated by Israeli police is not new. But Muna's cultural standing has some on Israel's left worried that since Hamas' October 7th attacks, Israeli freedoms are increasingly under attack too.

GIDEON LEVY, ISRAELI JOURNALIST AND AUTHOR: And what happened in the bookstore, in the educational bookshop, should be a red light, a very strong red light for all of us.

ROBERTSON (voice-over): Respected journalist Gideon Levy, once a go-to voice on the Israeli left, is slowly disappearing from the national conversation. No longer invited, he says, for Israeli T.V. interviews.

[03:39:52]

LEVY: In Israel there is a government which is using anti-democratic means, not to say fascist means, against freedom of thought, freedom of speech, any kind of freedom, and they do it with pride.

ROBERTSON: And they say that this is the only democracy in the Middle East.

LEVY: This joke, I think nobody takes it seriously anymore.

ROBERTSON (voice-over): The list of Israelis getting leaned on is growing. Knesset member Offer Casif is a case in point. Knesset members voted to expel him last year when he said Israel may be committing genocide in Gaza. OFFER CASIF, KNESSET MEMBER: The very fact that members of parliament

can impeach another member of parliament, that's anti-democratic because that's a clear case of tyranny of the majority.

ROBERTSON (voice-over): Casif narrowly avoided the expulsion, but even now is banned from the chamber, aside from voting.

CASIF: There is an ongoing, profound, systematic political persecution of anyone who raises an alternative voice to the government.

ROBERTSON: Freedom of speech is at stake.

CASIF: Freedom of speech doesn't exist. It's not even at stake anymore. It doesn't exist.

ROBERTSON (voice-over): Israeli government officials reject Casif's characterization.

DAVID MENCER, ISRAELI GOVERNMENT SPOKESPERSON: We'll maintain freedom of speech under the rule of law, so any measures which are taken are always taken within the framework of Israeli law, with all the appropriate checks and balances from our democracy.

Levy, whose own newspaper, "Haaretz," lost government funding last year over objections to their critical coverage of Israel's actions in Gaza, worries he too will be shut down.

LEVY: This government has an agenda and this agenda is to try as much as they can to shut mouths and to close any criticism.

ROBERTSON (voice-over): Muna and his nephew's stores are open again. A group of visiting British MP's among the latest customers.

UNKNOWN: It's just very, very good to be able to come here and see you open.

ROBERTSON (voice-over): The stakes of successful trade, Muna says, are higher than ever.

MUNA: You are creating a whole generation that their ability to think will not be beyond that framework that has been set by the government. This is a very dangerous. Very dangerous.

ROBERTSON: Muna says he's never received a list of banned books and the Israeli government pushes back against accusations. It's cracking down on free speech. But the raid on this store has raised awareness that this government is different to previous and that may come at a cost.

Nic Robertson, CNN, Jerusalem.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MACFARLANE: Now, after nearly a month in hospital, a big breakthrough for Pope Francis and his battle with double pneumonia. The latest from Rome just ahead. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[03:45:00]

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MACFARLANE: The Vatican says Pope Francis' health is improving and he spent another peaceful night in the hospital. The 88-year-old pontiff has been hospitalized since February 14th.

Our Ben Wedeman is joining us live from Rome. And Ben, this is encouraging news.

BEN WEDEMAN, CNN SR. INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, it certainly is. What we heard yesterday at the Vatican, a briefing by Vatican officials, is that doctors now say his prognosis has improved. In other words, his general health situation has improved. And that's the first time we heard that.

We have heard over the last few days about slight improvements, but now it seems that the overall picture is better. They say that the pope is out of imminent danger from the double pneumonia that has kept him here in Rome's Gemelli Hospital now for 26 days.

However, they add that his medical condition remains complex and that they are not in a position at this point to predict or determine when he might be able to leave his room on the 10th floor of the hospital here and move back to Casa Santa Marta, the Vatican residence where he normally resides.

Now, during the day, he continues to receive supplemental oxygen via nasal cannula or by night via a mask. Nonetheless, we are told by Vatican officials that from his armchair, the 88-year-old pontiff is participating remotely in what are called spiritual exercises at the Vatican, marking the period of Lent. Christina?

MACFARLANE: Well, we know he hates to be idle, so that is very good news indeed. For now, Ben Wedeman in Rome, thank you.

Still to come, students across the globe celebrate freedom and push to end the modern day slavery. We'll be sharing their thoughts as CNN's 9th annual My Freedom Day continues.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNKNOWN: My Freedom Day means --

UNKNOWN: Equality.

UNKNOWN: Human rights.

UNKNOWN: Education.

UNKNOWN: Freedom.

UNKNOWN: Education. (END VIDEO CLIP)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[03:50:00]

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MACFARLANE: We are back with the global celebration of freedom and the theme of this year's My Freedom Day is freedom to learn.

An estimated 12 million children around the world are denied an education because of modern day slavery. These students in Ivory Coast explain why education should be a fundamental right of all people.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNKNOWN: I believe that all students should have the chance to learn critical thinking skills. It's one of the most important skills in life and the ability to assess a problem, explore solutions and make smart choices about the solution is a skill that everybody should be able to have and learn within their life.

UNKNOWN: So I believe that education helps the youth to promote themselves in the world and to prosperize in the world.

UNKNOWN: I believe education is a fundamental right because it provides tools and resources for students and the youth to achieve their dreams and prosper.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MACFARLANE: Let's go live to Nairobi, Kenya, where CNN's Victoria Rubadiri is with students at the Begathe Road Primary School. So Victoria, how have students been marking the day there?

VICTORIA RUBADIRI, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Right, so you caught us right in the middle of a puppet show. I'm at Mbagathi Road Primary School in the heart of Nairobi. It's a student body of roughly 750 students.

So the theme, of course, freedom to learn. So a lot of the messaging in the skits and the poem recitals we've witnessed today are some of those barriers that hinder students, children from accessing learning and education, like poverty, sexual violence.

And so we've seen a lot of that come out in some of the art pieces as well. So I'm going to have a small conversation with some of the artists here just to get a sense of why they chose these particular themes. Let's begin here.

What's your name?

TRAVIS, STUDENT: My name is Travis.

RUBADIRI: Travis. So why did you draw this particular picture?

TRAVIS: To show people stop child abuse.

RUBADIRI: Stop child abuse. I can see it says child abuse early marriage. Is that a problem in your community?

TRAVIS: Yes.

RUBADIRI: Okay. So these are some of the issues that some of these students also experience on a personal level. Let's go here to William and tell me about what you drew.

WILLIAM, STUDENT: I drew children must have freedom to play. They must play and not do work all the time. So they must have freedom to play.

RUBADIRI: Having free time to play. I mean, that is a very simple but important task for many of the students here.

It's important to note that 99 percent of the children here actually come from an informal settlement known as Kibera, which is the largest slum in Kenya.

[03:55:03]

So they understand fully what it means to come to school, to get a consistent meal and to be in a safe environment.

Lots of activities going on through the rest of the day. When you come back, of course, we'll have a lot more, including a fashion show.

MACFARLANE: Oh, looking forward to that. I have actually been to Kibera myself and seen firsthand how important education is for children in that region.

So for now, Victoria, we appreciate you bringing us the thoughts of those small children standing beside you. Thank you.

And our international coverage of My Freedom Day continues throughout today. Send us your thoughts on freedom to learn using the hashtag MyFreedomDay on social media and visit cnn.com/MyFreedomDay for more information.

Our Catherine, Princess of Wales, attended the annual Commonwealth Day service on Monday after missing last year's event because she was receiving cancer treatment. She joined her husband, Prince William and other members of the royal family at London's Westminster Abbey.

Kate announced earlier this year that she was in remission from the disease. It was also King Charles' first appearance at the event in two years. It comes after the British monarch's own cancer diagnosis last year forced him to miss it while he briefly stepped away from public facing duties.

And an Italian pup with soulful eyes is England's new top dog. Meet Muccia, a four-year-old blonde whippet. She was one of the 18,000 competitors at Crufts, which is the world's biggest dog show in Birmingham, England. Whippets are known for their speed, elegance and friendly demeanor. Muccia is now the first Italian dog to win the coveted Best in Show prize. A Tibetan mastiff from Romania named Viking came in second. He's the first mastiff to make it to that stage.

And a major volcanic eruption in Guatemala is forcing hundreds of people to evacuate. Authorities have evacuated nearly 300 families after Guatemala's volcano of fire started erupting overnight on Monday.

Another 30,000 people in the area could be at risk. Volcano is one of the most active in Central America. Nearly 200 people were killed when it erupted in 2018.

All right, that is it for now. Thanks for your company this hour. I'm Christina Macfarlane.

"African Voices: Changemakers" is up next. And stay tuned for "Early Start" with our Rahel Solomon starting at 5 a.m. in New York, 9 a.m. here in London.

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