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Putin Praises Trump But Warns Supplies Of Tomahawk Missiles To Kyiv Could Hurt Ties; 2 Killed In Terror Attack On British Synagogue; Trump Will Determine How Long To Give Hamas To Accept Gaza Plan; White House Mass Layoffs Could Start In Coming Day; Trump Determined The U.S. Is Now In A War With Drug Cartels; Journalist Will Be Deported to El Salvador on Friday; Rise of ICE Impersonations Raising Fear Across U.S.; Migrant Caravan Seeks to Settle in Mexico; Sean Combs Asks for Mercy in Letter Ahead of Sentencing; Rare Glimpse into Britain's Prince William's Private Thoughts. Aired 1-2a ET
Aired October 03, 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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[01:00:31]
POLO SANDOVAL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, I'm Polo Sandoval coming to you live from New York City, where it is now 1:00 a.m. Friday, wherever you may be watching. Welcome to CNN Newsroom. And here's what's ahead.
Russian President Vladimir Putin mocking NATO members while also warning of the potential of a new level of escalation in Ukraine. Have those details.
Also, the latest on the investigation into the U.K. as authorities are calling an incident there a terrorist attack on a Jewish synagogue.
And music mogul Sean "Diddy" Combs, just hours from learning his sentence in his federal sex crime trial.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Live from New York. This is CNN Newsroom with Polo Sandoval.
SANDOVAL: We want to begin with Russian President Vladimir Putin as he puts the U.S. on notice that sending powerful new missiles to Ukraine could backfire, he says. The White House is considering supplying Kyiv with Tomahawk missiles, which are used for long range strikes.
But speaking at a forum in southern Russia on Thursday, Mr. Putin said that there would be a diplomatic price to pay.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
VLADIMIR PUTIN, RUSSIAN PRESIDENT: (through translator): Can Tomahawks harm us? They can. We'll be shooting them down and improving our air defense systems. Will this damage our relations, which are now seeing some light at the end of the tunnel? Of course it will. But how could it be otherwise? Using Tomahawks without the direct participation of American military personnel is impossible. This would mark a completely new, qualitatively new stage of escalation, including in relations between Russia and the United States.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SANDOVAL: Mr. Putin also challenged a recent statement by U.S. President Donald Trump, who called Russia a paper tiger. The Russian leader said that NATO is fighting his country by helping Ukraine. So he responded to Mr. Trump with a question.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
PUTIN (voice-over): We've been advancing steadily and resolutely. Are we a paper tiger then? What is NATO in this case? What is NATO like if we're a paper tiger?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SANDOVAL: Well, meanwhile, NATO is beefing up its military presence in Eastern Europe after a series of airspace incursions blamed on Russia. Operation Eastern Sentry include surveillance flights looking out for Russian drones as well as warplanes near the alliance's borders. CNN's Fred Pleitgen flew on a surveillance plane that keeps an eye out for possible Russian incursions.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice- over): A quick takeoff from an air base in western Germany. We're on a NATO E3 Sentry surveillance plane on a mission deterring Russian incursions into NATO airspace.
PLEITGEN: The reason why these flights are so important is that this plane has a massive radar on top and it can see really far in all directions, about 650 kilometers for higher flying objects, a little less for lower flying objects object. But that means that it can see planes and other aircraft coming towards NATO airspace long before they get there.
PLEITGEN (voice-over): While Moscow is praising what they say are improved relations between Russian leader Vladimir Putin and U.S. President Donald Trump, it's also been testing NATO's readiness. NATO jets recently scrambling to shoot down several Russian combat drones that crossed into member state Poland's airspace.
And in late September, NATO says Russian MiG-31 fighters flew over Estonia airspace for 12 minutes while alliance interceptors were rushed to escort them back out. Even though Russia denies its planes ever crossed into NATO territory.
This is part of the U.S. and its allies answer more surveillance flights. The operation named Eastern Sentry. Captain Jacob Anderson says if Russian jets come close, they'll see them.
CAPT. JACOB ANDERSON, U.S. AIR FORCE: At that point, we probably have been watching them for a while, so we're pushing them over the military tactical data links. It's not just us that are aware of it. The whole theater is aware that this track is approaching the airspace.
PLEITGEN: If we go back and look at the map, we can see that we're cruising around Eastern Europe right now. This is Kaliningrad, that part of Russia. You have Belarus down here. So the plane is situated here, but can still look very far into territory, even beyond the borders of NATO.
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PLEITGEN (voice-over): And the E3 needs to stay in this area for hours. Only possible thanks to U.S. Air Force tankers providing gas to extend the mission. Air to air refueling a plane the size of a commercial jetliner is extremely challenging, the pilots tell me.
MAJ. JASON SANCHEZ, U.S. AIR FORCE: Essentially the power management, the lateral management, ensuring that you feel nice and comfortable in your enclosure to and from a certain position.
PLEITGEN (voice-over): Crew members come from various NATO member states, all of them with the same stake in the mission success. Lt. Col. Stephen Wahnon tells me it's.
LT. COL. STEPHEN WAHNON, U.S. AIR FORCE: Not one nation, it's all of NATO that's represented on this aircraft right now. So when we are patrolling these borders, they're our borders. Right. So it means a lot for us to be here to defend our borders.
PLEITGEN (voice-over): And NATO says surveillance seeing possible threats before they get close is key to keeping those borders safe. Fred Pleitgen, CNN, Geilenkirchen, Germany.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SANADOVAL: Now that you have that fascinating look on board, let's get some analysis now from Los Angeles and go to Robert English, the director of Central European Studies at the University of Southern California. Robert, it's great to see you again.
ROBERT ENGLISH, Director OF CENTRAL EUROPEAN STUDIES, UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA: Nice to be here.
SANDOVAL: So in his latest remarks, President Putin claims that NATO countries are waging a war against him, that the U. S. led alliance is fighting against Russia over Ukraine. Do you get a sense that the Russian leader could maybe feel cornered right now?
ENGLISH: I don't know if he feels cornered because, you know, he's the one launching these overflights, these provocations and pursuing a very aggressive hybrid war strategy against the west, against those countries supporting Ukraine. At the same time, he's worried about the threat from the White House that we might escalate by deploying Tomahawk cruise missiles, not deploying them directly, but helping the Ukrainians by supplying them and supporting their use of them, that they have such a long strike range, they're so accurate that could really deal some devastating blows to Moscow.
So he's preemptively bluffing. He's preemptively challenging and saying if you do that, we are ready for even more. Watch out.
SANDOVAL: He also insisted that Russia has no plans to invade NATO countries even seemed to mock rising fears those Russian drones that you mentioned that are invading European airspace, I mean, should Europe believe him?
ENGLISH: I don't think he has plans to invade Europe. I mean, we can all see the big picture, which is that he's bogged down in Ukraine and at only extremely high cost in men and materiel are his troops able to advance incrementally even though they have an overwhelming advantage in numbers over the Ukrainians.
So if it's that hard to gain a few kilometers, of course he's in no position to attack the Baltics or Poland directly. But these kinds of hybrid tactics that keep us off balance, that strike underwater, they cyber sabotage, overflights, provocations, they keep us on edge. And that's what he's doing on purpose, trying to divide the west, trying to introduce divisions. And so far, NATO is mainly holding firm.
But there are cracks in the alliance and no one knows where this will go because we don't know ultimately Putin's intentions, how far he'll push, nor President Trump's intentions. Will he follow through on the threat of these long range missiles? Those are the two big questions right now.
SANDOVAL: Yes, a lot really hangs on these missiles. I want to get back on that again here. Putin says that if the U.S. supplies these cruise missiles to Ukraine, that it will only serve to damage relations between Washington and Moscow. While he dismissed what that could mean on the battlefield.
In your analysis, do you think that he should have a reason to worry about how these weapons could serve to benefit Ukrainian forces?
ENGLISH: Were they provided to the Ukrainians and then the Ukrainians went through the several months, minimum of installation, training in their launch, in their guidance. It would take a long time, but were that to be done, yes, they could inflict some serious damage, really serious damage on targets much closer to Moscow.
And that, of course, would be the key question. Would the Ukrainians use them, with our targeting support, of course, our satellite intelligence, to strike Russian refineries, air bases, military command posts, or would they perhaps inadvertently cause a lot of civilian deaths the way Russia's strikes into Ukraine do? And then we really would be in a dangerous escalatory situation.
So if that's done, it will take time and it will be a significant escalation as we move up this ladder of confrontation.
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My feeling is that the White House probably won't. They're holding that in reserve. They're threatening it, but they're not ready to go there yet. They're hoping it will induce Putin to see sense and move more quickly towards negotiations. SANDOVAL: I also thought it was interesting that Putin seemed to at
least temporarily stray from the conversation about what's happening right now in Ukraine and talked more about what's happening domestically here in the United States.
What do you make of Putin hailing Charlie Kirk a hero, the way Putin put it, he said that the conservative activist was killed for promoting the same values that he said they believe in his country. Obviously, he clearly was not referring to free speech. So what's your assessment?
ENGLISH: Yes, I think he's doing two things at once there, and they're kind of clever, even devious. One is he's indirectly saying to the conservatives, hey, we're with you. We liked Charlie Kirk. We liked his values. We do the same thing here in Russia. So why are you so angry at us? Right. You should be our friends. That's the first thing he's saying.
The second thing he's saying at the same time is that your country is divided. You have serious domestic problems. You're in no shape because you've already got a trade war with China and frictions all over the world, the Middle East, and you name it. Are you really in condition now to escalate with Russia and bring this to a more dangerous level? He's saying those two things at once.
And again, it's a devious tactic, but it'll have some impact on members of Congress, members of President Trump's base and his own administration.
SANDOVAL: Not only exploding divisions in Europe, but also potentially divisions here in the United States as well. It's absolutely fascinating.
ENGLISH: Exactly.
SANDOVAL: Thank you so much for your insight as always. Robert English, Pleasure having you. Thank you.
ENGLISH: You're welcome.
SANDOVAL: Well, now to what police in Manchester, England, are calling a terrorist incident. Two people are dead and several others injured in a stabbing and a car ramming at a Jewish synagogue. This all happened on the holiest day on the Jewish calendar, Yom Kippur, as people were gathering for a morning prayer service. CNN's Nic Robertson has the latest. But first, a warning to viewers that his report does contain some graphic content.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR (voice-over): As the injured lay in the street, armed police shout at the alleged attack, whom they identify as Jihad Al-Shamie, a British citizen of Syrian descent, whom they say was wearing what appeared to be an explosive device, then shoot as he refuses to comply. The deadly events unfolding early Thursday morning outside a synagogue
in the northern city, Manchester, on the holiest day of the year for the Jewish community, Yom Kippur. Gary Wernick was inside the synagogue.
GARY WERNICK, SURVIVOR OF SYNAGOGUE ATTACK: I saw somebody I knew sitting in a chair or being put in a chair covered with blood. And I realized that was not a place for me to be. And I went back that point. I knew it was a serious incident.
ROBERTSON: And what do you think can happen at that moment?
WERNICK: Get killed.
ROBERTSON: You thought that could happen to you?
WERNICK: Yes, yes.
ROBERTSON: You might die?
WERNICK: Yes.
LAURENCE TAYLOR, HEAD, UNITED KINGDOM COUNTER TERRORISM POLICE: Two people have died. The attacker has been shot dead by the police. Based on what we know, counterterrorism policing has declared this as a terrorist incident.
ROBERTSON (voice-over): In this exclusive CNN video shot in a residential street barely a quarter mile from the synagogue, two 30- year-old men were arrested on suspicion of commission preparation and instigation of acts of terrorism and taken away. Police say a 60-year- old woman arrested on the same charges too.
ROBERTSON: Do you feel safe living in the UK now?
WERNICK: Britain, I think, has always been unsafe.
ROBERTSON: It's a safe place to bring your girls up.
WERNICK: No.
ROBERTSON (voice-over): police also praising the public for their quick actions preventing even more bloodshed.
CHIEF CONSTABLE SIR STEPHEN WATSON, GREATER MANCHESTER POLICE: There were a large number of worshippers attending the synagogue at the time of this attack. But thanks to the immediate bravery of security staff and the worshippers inside, as well as the fast response of the police, the attacker was prevented from gaining access.
ROBERTSON: The attack so serious, the British Prime Minister cut short a trip to Denmark, returning in a hurry to the U.K. to chair a meeting of his top security officials.
KEIR STARMER, BRITISH PRIME MINSITER: I'm already able to say that additional police assets are being deployed to synagogues across the country and we will do everything to keep our Jewish community safe.
ROBERTSON (voice-over): For some, it will feel too little, too late.
[01:15:00]
Across the U.K., antisemitic attacks have been on the rise. So too the fear that something like this could happen.
VICKY, MANCHESTER RESIDENT: We do have Orthodox people on this road. They're probably not safe now and they have lots of children. For somebody to know today is Yom Kippur. I just feel this has been definitely planned.
ROBERTSON: And after his security cabinet meeting, the British Prime Minister saying that this was an attack on Jews because they are Jews. Around here people feel that this is one of the worst antisemitic attacks in the UK. It is a collective trauma that will be felt way beyond the victim's family and friends.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SANDOVAL: The White House says U.S. President Donald Trump will be determining just how much time to give Hamas to accept a plan to end the war in Gaza. The President said on Tuesday that they had three to four days to respond, which would be either Friday or Saturday.
Israel supports the U.S. plan, according to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Hamas has been reviewing this so called 20-point proposal which calls for that group to disarm. And that's a move that group has rejected in the past. The White House would not explicitly say whether President Trump would actually enforce his deadline.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KAROLINE LEAVITT, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: The President made it very clear he wants to hear back from them very soon. I will leave it to the President or the Secretary of State to speak on that. But we expect and we hope that Hamas will accept the plan that was proposed by special envoy Witkoff. It's a good plan and as you know, it's been applauded by leaders all over the world.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SANDOVAL: And if you're getting ready to travel through Europe, an important update for you. The Munich airport is open again after closing temporarily because of drone sightings in the area. It was actually shut down for about seven hours on Thursday before resuming operations about two hours ago.
The closure affected thousands of passengers. Unexplained drone sightings temporarily shut down airports in Denmark last week. And there have also been a series of suspected Russian airspace incursions in countries like Poland. Estonia and Romania.
Still had a lot of finger pointing, but few actual negotiations here in the U.S. will have the very latest on efforts to end this ongoing government shutdown.
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SANDOVAL: Welcome back to CNN Newsroom. Want to take you now live to Los Angeles where it's just past 10:21 p.m. and a large fire there at an oil refinery is burning. That's according to our affiliate KBC that's reporting that there was an explosion at a Chevron facility in El Segundo.
Not a lot of information available at this point, just some of these pictures that are coming from the scene. We're working to get you much more, but again, looking at some live pictures out of the state of California where a large fire is burning at a Chevron oil refinery. We'll check back on the story.
Also ongoing right now, the U.S. government shutdown actually now entering day three and it seems more likely than ever to stretch into next week. Congress, they will be back in session in the day ahead.
And Democrats are once again expected to vote against the Republicans short term funding bill. Neither side seems to show any willingness to actually give up any ground. As of now, no votes are scheduled to happen over the weekend. The Senate Republican leader says that he thinks that they are unlikely, but is not ruling out a possible meeting with his Democratic counterpart.
Over the House a Democratic minority leader blasted Republicans for refusing to negotiate over health care subsidies. That's basically the main sticking point in the showdown -- in this shutdown.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REP. HAKEEM JEFFRIES (D) HOUSE MINORITY LEADER: Unfortunately, Republicans have shown zero interest in even having a conversation after the White House meeting on Monday. We've seen behavior by the president that is unserious and unhinged. And Leader Schumer and myself haven't gotten a single phone call as it relates to a follow up conversation.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SANDOVAL: Meanwhile, President Trump, he's been meeting with the White House budget chief to decide which federal agencies will face cuts. Russell Vought said earlier this week that mass layoffs would happen in the next day or two, meaning that the acts could possibly fall in the hours ahead. For more now, let's go to Washington and CNN's Rene Marsh.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
RENE MARSH, CNN U.S. NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Before this shutdown officially went into effect, vote had already gotten the wheels turning in this direction. In a memo, he told agency heads to consider mass layoffs for employees working on programs and projects whose funding has lapsed. There's no other source of funding and it's not aligned with the president's agenda. Those are the three criteria.
Right now it is not clear which agencies will see these mass layoffs, but the White House told reporters that the of employees affected would be in the thousands. But what is also happening simultaneously are cuts to programs the Trump administration doesn't like.
Vote announced on social media that nearly $8 billion in funding for what he calls the Green new scam, which was funding for clean energy projects in Democratic led states, had been canceled.
It's worth pointing out what is different from what we have seen in shutdown downs in the past is that the president is out front and center, not necessarily negotiating an end to the shutdown.
[01:25:00]
But instead saying that he'd use it as a, quote, unprecedented opportunity to essentially make things painful for Democrats and hollow out the federal workforce and eliminate programs that he doesn't like. AFGE, which is the largest union representing federal workers, they filed a lawsuit. They say that these mass firings during the shutdown that the Trump administration wants to carry out is illegal. They argue that it is an abuse of power.
And they also point out that in order to carry out these mass firings that they essentially would require people to work. Again, they are calling this all an illegal abuse of power. In their lawsuit, they say, quote, this is a cynical use of federal employees as a pawn in congressional deliberations and it should be declared unlawful. Rene Marsh, CNN, Washington.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SANDOVAL: Well, the Trump administration says that the U.S. is in, quote, an armed conflict with drug cartels. And that's according to a notice that the Pentagon provided to Congress that was obtained. The notice says that the president has determined smugglers for the cartel are unlawful combatants. And it says that the Defense Department was therefore legally authorized to strike a boat in the Caribbean in mid- September. Seventeen people have been killed in three different strikes on suspected smugglers over the last month.
Meanwhile, the Venezuelan government continues to criticize Washington after it says it detected five U.S. Combat planes flying near the Venezuelan coast. Already tensions are high between the two countries after the U.S. deployed warships to the Caribbean to tackle drug smuggling. And a CNN investigation finds a disturbing rise in cases involving people pretending to be ICE agents.
Just ahead here on CNN Newsroom, details on violent confrontations with fake federal immigration agents.
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POLO SANDOVAL, CNN ANCHOR: And welcome back. You're watching CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Polo Sandoval live in New York.
An Emmy Award-winning journalist detained by U.S. ICE agents will be deported to El Salvador in the coming hours. That's according to a civil rights organization that's been assisting Mario Guevara with his case.
You may remember him. He was arrested in June while reporting on protests in Georgia, video here from that day.
On Tuesday, an appeals court denied an emergency request to stop his deportation.
In a call with our colleagues at CNN Espanol, Guevara said that he is ready to return to El Salvador to regain his freedom, adding that he feels ashamed of returning in handcuffs.
Guevara's son said in a statement "Words cannot begin to describe the loss and devastation my family feels. I am in utter shock and disbelief the government has punished my father for simply doing his life's work of journalism. My father should have never had to face over 100 days in detention.
Well, amid the Trump administration's ongoing crackdown on immigration, a CNN investigation has uncovered at least two dozen instances of people impersonating immigration officers in 2025 alone.
CNN senior investigative correspondent Kyung Lah has this report.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He asked me for ID, definitely -- he's like, I need to see some ID. I'm ICE.
KYUNG LAH, CNN SENIOR INVESTIGATIVE CORRESPONDENT: All across the country, victims confused and terrorized by people posing as ICE officers.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Where are you from, Mexico? You're from Mexico?
LAH: CNN found a jump in cases this year.
Philadelphia: police say an auto shop worker was zip tied and robbed by a man in tactical gear, pretending to be ICE.
Houston, Texas: police arrested a man for impersonating an ICE officer accused of stealing $1,800 from a Guatemalan man during a fake traffic stop.
New York: police say this man claimed to be ICE and accused him of assaulting, robbing and attempting to rape a woman.
CNN found two dozen reports of people posing as ICE officers in Trump's second term. That's more than the last 16 years combined.
While CNN found some of the reported cases are violent, others are meant to torment. UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The ICE letters -- three ICE letters were huge.
LAH: Outside Seattle, Washington, this SUV pulled up to Emish Market, a store that caters to the Ukrainian community.
OLENA RAY, STORE MANAGER, EMISH MARKET: He was going back and forth on the car, back and forth.
LAH: Olena Ray (ph) is the store manager.
RAY: This is our main area where people -- this is our cafe. Majority of times employees speaking Ukrainian.
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RAY: It's a place where they can feel like home. The people were scared because they did not know if it's a real ICE or not, and what to expect if it's a real ICE.
LAH: The store security guard seen here called police.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They barricaded the front so nobody could get in or out of the lot. Then I went over and I'm like, what the (INAUDIBLE) are you guys doing?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You find it?
LAH: Law enforcement found the driver of the ICE-labeled SUV. He wasn't ICE at all. His name is Ilya Kukhar. Police say they got numerous tips about his social media. Like this video of a fake ICE arrest.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Hey, what are you doing?
LAH: Kukhar explained to police his motivation.
ILYA KUKHAR, ICE IMPERSONATOR: It was really a prank. Literally a prank video.
LAH: A video to generate likes on his social media account.
KUKHAR: What's up guys? Today we're going to be going around today and delivering ice to everyone and seeing their reactions.
LAH: When you found out that this was a joke, what was your reaction?
RAY: Mine was like, who would do that? Who would play with, you know, people's problems like that and try to scare people like that.
LAH: These are real ICE officers captured on video, masked, often in plain clothes, many in unmarked cars, detaining people they suspect of being undocumented immigrants across the country in Trump's second term.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You can't do that. You can't do that. Why -- what are you looking for? LAH: Without showing their faces, it's not hard to understand why that
may inspire ICE impersonators and why that's terrifying residents.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Hey. Are you ICE or a cop? Yes. Please call 911.
MIGUEL ARIAS, FRESNO CITY COUNCIL MEMBER: When ICE officers began to mask themselves, they gave the green light for these impersonators to do the same thing.
LAH: Fresno, California saw the impact. Councilman Miguel Arias says two men wearing these vests pulled people over in fake traffic stops. Police say they then went into 11 businesses saying they were ICE.
Police say again, this stunt was for social media fame.
LAH: Were they masked?
ARIAS: They were masked. For the general public, they believe that they're being pulled over by law enforcement and ICE officials, given their bulletproof vest with ICE lettering and police lettering on it.
LAH: Making it all worse now, Councilman Arias says the real ICE doesn't tell the city who they're targeting and when.
ARIAS: So we have no way of knowing whether these are folks impersonating ICE or actual ICE engaging in legitimate enforcement activities.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Going back to Mexico.
ARIAS: It's impostors and moments like these blurring the lines between who has real authority, who is an official agent, and who is looking to take advantage of people's genuine fears.
We reached out to ICE, and a spokesperson tells us "ICE officers and agents always have credentials visible and clearly announce who they are. I strongly condemn the impersonation of its law enforcement officers or agents. This action is not only dangerous, but illegal. Assaults on ICE officers are up more than 1,000 percent since this time last year. The brave men and women of ICE choose to wear masks for safety, not secrecy.
And earlier this week, Ilya Kukhar, the defendant you saw on the Ukrainian market case, was in court. He and prosecutors agreed that the charge against him will be dismissed in two years if he doesn't violate any criminal laws and apologizes to Emish Market.
His attorney also tells us this began as a joke. He's a good kid who did something very politically-charged and regrets how it got interpreted.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SANDOVAL: Our thanks to Kyung Lah for that revealing reporting.
Meanwhile, there's a caravan of nearly 600 migrants that's currently moving through southern Mexico, but this time their final destination is not the United States.
CNN's Gabriela Frias reports that some of those migrants are reporting that they are waiting for over a month to hear back from the Mexican government.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
GABRIELA FRIAS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: A new caravan made up of nearly 800 migrants has left southern Mexico. But unlike previous caravans seeking to reach the United States, this group has a different goal -- to settle legally in Mexico, be able to work and rebuild their lives in this country.
The caravan includes people from Cuba, Venezuela, Haiti, Nicaragua, Guatemala, Honduras and Colombia. All of them will have to walk more than 1,000 kilometers to reach Mexico City.
Once they arrive, they hope that President Claudia Sheinbaum will instruct her cabinet to expedite their immigration procedures because, according to some of them, the waiting time has exceeded the 45 business days set by the National Refugee Commission CONARE (ph) to resolve asylum applications.
[01:39:46]
FRIAS: CNN has requested comment from CONARE regarding the alleged delays and is awaiting a response. As of Thursday, the caravan had already advanced some 45 kilometers.
Gabriela Frias, CNN -- Mexico City.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SANDOVAL: Well, it's already Friday here in New York, which means its sentencing day for Sean "Diddy" Combs. Just ahead, what the music mogul is asking from the court before learning his fate today.
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SANDOVAL: Hip hop mogul Sean "Diddy" Combs, he's set to be sentenced in the day ahead following his conviction on two counts of transportation to engage in prostitution. His lawyers say that Combs intends to address the court. Ahead of sentencing, Combs submitted a letter to the judge pleading for mercy and what he described as a second chance.
He wrote that he is humbled and broken, and that he got lost in the drugs and the excess.
Federal prosecutors, they're asking for Combs to serve more than 11 years. His defense, on the other hand, they want him sentenced to 14 months with credit for the year he's already served.
For some help previewing the day ahead, let's go ahead and bring in civil rights attorney and legal affairs commentator Areva Martin joining us live from Los Angeles.
Areva, thank you so much for staying up late for us.
AREVA MARTIN, CIVIL RIGHTS ATTORNEY: Hi, Polo.
SANDOVAL: So in his letter to the judge, Diddy pleads for a second chance, Areva. In reading the letter or at least excerpts of it, is there anything in the letter that surprised you?
MARTIN: No. We expected him to show some kind of contrition, to show some kind of remorse because he hasn't done so to date. The prosecution points out that he has not expressed any regrets or contrition for the violence that he perpetrated against the victims that we saw testify in his trial.
And, in fact, if you juxtapose that letter where he's asking for leniency with the -- against the letter from Cassie Ventura, you see a very different narrative.
She says that she is afraid that if he is released that he's going to come after her. She's fearful of her life. She believes he hasn't changed and that he will continue to use acts of violence against those that he perceived to be enemies. And she considers herself one of his enemies at this point.
SANDOVAL: Yes, I'm so glad you mentioned Cassie because he specifically mentions her in that letter and makes a reference to that absolutely awful security camera footage that shows her -- that shows him beating her.
He specifically writes, "the scene and images of me assaulting Cassie play over and over in my head daily. It was -- I was dead wrong for putting my hands on the woman that I loved. I'm sorry for that and always will be."
I mean, how much will the court consider any sort of acceptance of accountability? And that's if the court sees it as that.
MARTIN: Well, I think the court's going to weigh that. But you have to also take into consideration that after the horrific beating of Cassie that we all witnessed on that videotape, he actually used violence against the other witness, key witness in this trial, the woman who used the pseudonym of "Jane".
So it's not as if he used violence against Cassie and then had some kind of revelation about, you know, how horrific that was and changed his behavior.
He continued to engage in violent behavior even when he knew he was under investigation by federal law enforcement. So, I don't know how much weight that statement will carry with the judge.
And look, the point of sentencing in our criminal justice system serves a couple different purposes. One, obviously, to punish you for criminal activity. And then for deterrence. And it's questionable as to whether the judge
will believe that the 12 months or near 12 months that he spent in jail to date constitutes the kind of punishment that fits the crime that he's been convicted of.
SANDOVAL: Areva, you're an attorney, so just observing this case through the legal lens, from your expert perspective -- the prosecution, they're asking for at least 11 years. The defense arguing that, you know, they want him released potentially by the end of this month.
In your view, from what you've seen play out in court, I mean, what do you believe to be an appropriate sentence in this case?
MARTIN: I think the upper limits of the federal guidelines would be appropriate, given everything that we know about the conduct, given the testimony that we heard, and given the very powerful letter from Cassie talking about her fear today.
She talked about those 11 years that she spent with him being the most horrific years of her life. Talk about how degraded she was, how humiliated she was, the forced nature of the sexual encounters that she had to have with male prostitutes.
And it's very clear that that testimony from Cassie Ventura has resonated with this judge. This judge has denied Sean Combs the motion for acquittal, the motion for a new trial. He's denied him bail, even though his lawyer has made multiple attempts, have offered upwards of $50 million as bail.
And the judge continues to make reference to the violence -- the violence that was testified to during this trial.
[01:49:43]
MARTIN: So I think if we take our cues from what this court has already done, it's unlikely that the 14-month sentence that the defense is asking for will be granted by this judge.
SANDOVAL: These are complicated cases, Areva. But as always, we're so grateful that you're there to help us better understand the process.
Again, his lawyers say that Combs intends to address the court. I know you'll be watching. So will we.
Thank you so much as always.
MARTIN: Thank you.
SANDOVAL: Still to come. This Friday morning, Britain's Prince William, he opens up about the challenges of fighting cancer in his family. We'll have that in a report from London on the other side of the break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK) SANDOVAL: Well, we're now getting a rare glimpse into some of the private thoughts of Britain's Prince William, the future king of England. He spoke candidly with Eugene Levy, the host of "The Reluctant Traveler", about his -- about history, his grandmother, Queen Elizabeth, and also the recent cancer diagnoses of his wife and father.
Here's CNN's Max Foster with the report.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MAX FOSTER, CNN ROYAL CORRESPONDENT: At Windsor Castle, history and ceremony are everywhere. But for the Canadian actor Eugene Levy, the royal encounter that awaited him was anything but traditional.
EUGENE LEVY, ACTOR: This is your mode of transportation.
WILLIAM, PRINCE OF WALES: It is right here.
LEVY: On the grounds.
FOSTER: It was meant to be part of a bucket list filmed for his travel series on Apple TV+. They were looking for someone to give them a tour. They aimed high and got a yes from the future king, who, it turns out, has seen Levy's classic movie "American Pie". Who knew?
The tone was set in a way, wasn't it, by Prince William turning up on a scooter. Then you go on this tour and he admits he doesn't really know his way around.
And then you go into the history part, and what follows is a vulnerability the prince rarely shows in public.
LEVY: Do you Ever get overwhelmed just by the sheer history of the place?
PRINCE WILLIAM: When you say it like that, it sounds like I should say yes.
LEVY: Ok.
PRINCE WILLIAM: But I wouldn't say history overwhelms me. Other things overwhelm me, but not history. No.
Because I think if you're not careful, history can be a real weight and an anchor around you. But also, I think if you're too intrinsically attached to history, you can't possibly have any flexibility. And I like a little bit of change.
LEVY: I guess what you're saying is you want to open up some --
PRINCE WILLIAM: I want to question things more.
LEVY: That's it.
PRINCE WILLIAM: That's what I'm saying. LEVY: Ok.
Do you miss your grandmother?
PRINCE WILLIAM: I do actually, yes, I do miss my grandmother and my grandfather. Yes. It's been quite a bit of change. So you do sort of -- you think about them not being here anymore?
LEVY: Yes. And particularly being in Windsor. For me, Windsor is hurt, so. She loved it here. She spent most of her time here.
Showing you around today is very much a case. I'm trying to make sure I'm doing it the way she'd want you to see it.
FOSTER: Inside the nearly 1,000-year-old castle, William spoke of the late Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, his school days, and his children racing through its halls. But also the stresses that come with being a father and a husband.
It does take this turn into something I'm not sure if you expected it to go there. He talked about being overwhelmed by the family stress, and then you go deep. You talk about the princess's cancer diagnosis and how last year was the worst year of his life.
LEVY: Yes.
FOSTER: Do you think he's changed coming out of that?
LEVY: It changes what's kind of truly important. And he seemed to indicate that it did kind of alter his --
FOSTER: Yes.
LEVY: -- his way of thinking.
[01:54:49]
FOSTER: We learned the prince and princess juggle their jobs with the daily school run and kids waking up in the night.
The conversation turned more personal still at a Windsor pub, over a pint, talking about learning that his wife, Catherine and father King Charles III both had been diagnosed with cancer.
PRINCE WILLIAM: I'd say 2024 was the hardest year I've ever had.
LEVY: Are you optimistic?
PRINCE WILLIAM: I am optimistic. I'm generally a very optimistic person, especially when I'm with someone like you, Eugene.
You know, life is sent to test us as well. And it definitely can be challenging at times. I'm, you know, I'm so proud of my wife and my father for how they've handled all of last year. My children have managed brilliantly as well.
LEVY: Well. I'm hoping every other prince I run into is as nice, open and human as you.
FOSTER: A remarkably candid glimpse into life behind castle walls and the very relatable pressures that its inhabitants experience.
Max Foster, CNN -- London.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SANDOVAL: All right. Swifties rejoice. That eagerly awaited moment is finally here with Taylor Swift's 12th studio album.
It was released just in the last hour. "The Life of a Showgirl", it features 12 songs that Swift said she wrote while on her massively successful Eras Tour last year.
It's about her experiences during the tour and also her life with her fiance, future husband Travis Kelce.
Fans showed that they are more than ready for the music. Thousands of Swifties, they flock to this Spotify pop up experience here in New York City the last several days, in the last hour.
The Harvard professor who taught a course really focusing on the artist and her lyrics, said that this is in fact her biggest stage yet.
So again, the world now streaming Taylor Swift's latest studio album.
And with a lot of happy tunes (ph), we want to thank you for joining us here on CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Polo Sandoval.
CNN NEWSROOM continues with my colleague Kim Brunhuber right after the break.
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