Return to Transcripts main page
CNN Newsroom
U.S. Hits Iranian Coastal Sites after Shooting Down Drones; Lebanon's President Reprimands Iran; Federal Judge Strikes Down Trump Administration's Asylum Limits; Tech Stocks Lose Ground; Trump Visits Wisconsin; Experts Alarmed at Dismantling Ocean Monitoring; Sherpa Rescued after Six Days on Everest. Aired 4-5a ET
Aired June 06, 2026 - 04:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[04:00:00]
(MUSIC PLAYING)
LYNDA KINKADE, CNN ANCHOR AND CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Hello and welcome to our viewers joining us here in the United States and all around the world. I'm Lynda Kinkade. Great to have your company.
Just ahead, a shaky ceasefire; the U.S. and Iran again, exchanging strikes in the Gulf as CNN sits down for an exclusive interview with a top Iranian official. We'll have the latest in a live report.
The man temporarily in charge of America's vast intelligence community gets the green light to make cuts. Why it's not sitting well with even some Republicans.
Plus, the search grows for the American college student who vanished in Japan. Details on his family's latest plea for help.
(MUSIC PLAYING)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (voice-over): Live from Atlanta, this is CNN NEWSROOM with Lynda Kinkade.
KINKADE: A fresh wave of strikes across the Gulf is testing the fragile ceasefire between the U.S. and Iran. The U.S. military says it struck surveillance radar sites on Iran's coast and shot down four attack drones aimed toward the Strait of Hormuz.
U.S. forces also intercepted a wave of ballistic missiles fired toward Kuwait and Bahrain, which triggered air raid sirens.
Iran claims it was targeting enemy bases in the region. Nearly 100 days since the war began, president Trump is insisting that he is moving very fast. But in an exclusive interview with CNN's Frederik Pleitgen, the senior military adviser to Iran's supreme leader, said negotiations are at a deadlock.
We should note CNN operates in Iran only with the permission of the government but maintains full editorial control of its reports
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Are the negotiations right now blocked, or do you think that a memorandum of understanding can be reached quickly?
MOHSEN REZAEE, SENIOR MILITARY ADVISER TO IRAN'S SUPREME LEADER (through translator): In my opinion, the negotiations are at a deadlock, and Trump must break this deadlock.
PLEITGEN: They are waiting for an answer from Iran.
REZAEE (through translator): Iran has openly stated that our assets have been frozen, and you must release them. The Americans are not telling the truth in this regard.
PLEITGEN: So the frozen assets are the big problem right now?
REZAEE (through translator): This is a sign of trust building. If Trump takes the negotiation seriously, $24 billion is not much to America.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KINKADE: For more let's bring in CNN's Barbie Latza Nadeau, joining us live from Rome.
Barbie, good to have you with us. So Iran fired missiles toward what it called enemy bases in the region.
What's the latest?
BARBIE LATZA NADEAU, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes. You know, and the United States intercepted this barrage of missiles, as you mentioned, that were heading toward the Strait of Hormuz, which, of course, has just these economic repercussions all across the world, really.
And so as long as these -- the talks, these promises of negotiations keep going forward, you're still seeing a lot of tension on the ground. As you mentioned, too, the air raid sirens going off in Bahrain and Kuwait with people there taking shelter.
You know, that doesn't do a lot to calm nerves and calm fears in the region. So while the negotiators may be negotiating, the activity on the ground certainly tells a different story, Lynda.
KINKADE: Yes. And, of course, a top Iranian official told CNN that a potential peace deal hinges on the Trump administration agreeing to release the $24 billion in frozen Iranian assets.
So where do those peace talks currently stand?
NADEAU: Well, it depends who you ask, really, because when you listen to that interview with Fred, you know, it sounds like it all hinges on these frozen assets. But when you listen to president Donald Trump, he tells an entirely different story. Let's listen to what he had to say.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: We're at a point where we're going to come out of Iran very quickly and it's going to be very strong one way or the other, whether it's a piece of paper or the very tough way. OK. The very tough way is maybe the easier way.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
NADEAU: And you know, Lynda, it's hard to understand exactly what the harder way/ easier way/piece of paper, what all of that means in real life.
But what you've got, I think, is what's very clear here is the United States president and the administration have grown very weary of this war going on and would like it to come to an abrupt end, if possible, or a negotiated end, if plausible.
And so as the peace talks go on, I think everyone in the region, probably all around the world, are hoping that it does come to a quick end, like the president was just saying there, Lynda.
[04:05:02]
KINKADE: Yes, we've heard it before. So hopefully, it happens soon. Barbie Nadeau in Rome, thanks so much.
(MUSIC PLAYING)
KINKADE: We're getting word on new Ukrainian strikes on St. Petersburg, just as Russia is wrapping up a major economic forum there. Russian officials say the city came under a large-scale attack in recent hours. Air defenses have shot down more than 140 drones and the debris fell in several places.
Officials say the operations are still underway. This is the final day of the city's economic forum, which is a showcase event for President Putin. And speaking at that forum Friday, he rejected the idea of direct talks with his Iranian counterpart.
He said there's no reason to meet because the two countries should let experts come up with solutions first before the leaders agree to sign a final agreement. Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy had proposed a face-to-face meeting to negotiate the end of the war.
Well, president Trump says he is interviewing five candidates for the permanent position of Director of National Intelligence while Bill Pulte serves in the role temporarily. Pulte is currently the director of Federal Housing Finance Agency.
He's been an influential part of the Trump's retribution campaign against perceived political foes. Democrats have questioned his appointment this week. He has no experience in national intelligence and didn't even have security clearance before being appointed to the top intel job, an issue lawmakers have been concerned about.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) REP. BRIAN FITZPATRICK (R-PA): The guy's got no national security experience. I've had zero interaction with him and that's a concern.
SEN. JOHN CORNYN (R-TX): I see no evidence of any qualifications for that job.
SEN. THOM TILLIS (R-NC): I don't know of any national security experience he has.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KINKADE: Well, even though Trump says Pulte is only serving as a temporary interim intel chief, the president suggested that he could shrink the agency as well as fire employees.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: He'll do a very good job. He'll watch it closely but Bill Pulte is very good. He's very talented.
QUESTION: And you want to cut a number of people working there.
TRUMP: I wouldn't mind. I've heard that's way too high for way too long. I wouldn't mind if he cut. I wouldn't mind that.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KINKADE: The Trump administration has put in writing that its anti weaponization fund is dead. Acting attorney general Todd Blanche said earlier this week that the Department of Justice was abandoning the controversial program.
Then on Friday, the DOJ told two federal judges that the $1.8 billion fund had been killed. It was meant to compensate people who claimed that they were victimized by the government but critics called it a slush fund for Trump's allies and it could have been used to pay off Capitol Hill rioters who assaulted police officers.
These court filings come after senators tried and failed multiple times to pass legislation to kill the fund.
California is still counting votes after Tuesday's primary. CNN's decision desk is projecting that Democrat Xavier Becerra will advance to the general election in the governor's race. It's not yet clear whether he will face Republican Steve Hilton or fellow Democrat Tom Steyer in November.
California has more than 23 million registered voters and a reputation for being slow to report election results, in part because of the high percentage of people who like to vote via mail.
Friday morning, the Justice Department says that it sent one of its attorneys to observe ballot processing in Los Angeles. And also on Friday, the Republican who leads the L.A.-Based U.S. attorney's office described fraud investigations on social media and accused the state of stonewalling efforts to ensure that only U.S. citizens vote. It comes after president Trump claimed several times that, without
evidence, the slow pace of California's count meant that Democrats are cheating. He said this on Friday.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD TRUMP, U.S. PRESIDENT: You're going to be waiting weeks to get these votes. It's corrupt. Somebody said it's incompetent. I said, no. Just the opposite. It's unbelievably competent if you happen to be a Democrat politician. Because with their policies, the only way they can get elected is to cheat.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KINKADE: But the L.A. County DA's office tells CNN that it hasn't received any complaints from the government about criminal misconduct related to vote counting or fraud.
Still to come, an American student remains missing in Japan. His family says they're trying to get extra help for their -- in their desperate search. We'll explain next.
And later how a weakness in artificial intelligence stocks is impacting tech stocks. Richard Quest will explain.
(MUSIC PLAYING)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[04:10:00]
(MUSIC PLAYING)
KINKADE: Welcome back. I'm Lynda Kinkade.
Iran's top diplomat is responding to CNN's exclusive interview with the Lebanese president. Chief international anchor Christiane Amanpour sat down with Joseph Aoun in Beirut. He delivered a stinging rebuke to Iran, saying Tehran's actions were against the wishes of the Lebanese people
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOSEPH AOUN, LEBANESE PRESIDENT: IRGC, the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps, that they don't agree with -- they don't approve this agreement, what happened.
It's not your country, it's our country. It's our obligation. It's not your job to interfere into our country.
I reject the statement totally, because our people being killed, our people being, our houses being destroyed. They are using Lebanon as a bargaining chip in their negotiation with the United States. It's unacceptable. And here also, Hezbollah must understand that. Hezbollah must understand that no other way but to sit and talk.
No other way to solve this problem and to save what's left, except through negotiation and diplomacy.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KINKADE: Responding to the clip, Iran's foreign minister, quote, "Save Lebanon from your real foe, Mr. President," an apparent reference to Israel, which has been conducting an intense military operation targeting the militant group, Hezbollah. Aoun said that diplomacy is the only way forward.
[04:15:00]
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CHRISTIANE AMANPOUR, CNN CHIEF INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Here we are in the presidential palace, one of the areas of Beirut that have been struck. You can feel it here in this palace. You told me, when the bombings happen, you can see it from your balcony here.
Are you powerless?
JOSEPH AOUN, LEBANESE PRESIDENT: As I said, nothing is impossible. My duty, my duty -- and I'm committed to save the country. I'll do whatever it takes. When there is a
will, there is always a way. I'm not saying that it's very easy. It's easy.
Can you imagine or have you ever seen a 40 years conflict or 50 years conflict end in one day or overnight?
So but we have to struggle in order
to save what's left of the country. And again, allow me to repeat that. They can flatten the whole country. They can destroy the whole country.
They can invade the whole country but they will never be able to achieve their objective.
On the contrary, Hezbollah can drag the country into a protracted war but they will never be able to achieve their objective as well. So it's about
time for both sides to sit and talk.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KINKADE: For more analysis, we're joined by HA Hellyer, a senior associate fellow at the Royal United Services Institute for Defense and Security Studies. He joins us live from Cairo.
Great to see you.
HA HELLYER, SENIOR ASSOCIATE FELLOW, ROYAL UNITED SERVICES INSTITUTE FOR DEFENCE AND SECURITY STUDIES: Thank you so much, Lynda. Always a pleasure to be on the program. KINKADE: So president Aoun told my colleague, Christiane Amanpour,
that Iran is effectively using Lebanon as a bargaining chip in talks with the U.S.
In your opinion, is that a fair reading of what's happening or is that political messaging from Beirut?
HELLYER: It's less about it being a correct reading as much as it's the framing, I suppose. So, of course, Iran is deeply involved in Lebanese affairs. There's no other way to put it. Hezbollah, is, is part of Iran's quote-unquote, "axis of resistance."
It centers Iranian interests on a regular basis and took Lebanon to war. It exposed -- I'm sorry; it took -- yes, took Lebanon to war. It exposed Lebanon to an Israeli onslaught.
Now I want to make it clear the fault for the onslaught are the ones who actually perpetrate the onslaught. The Israelis are not conducting, quote-unquote, "an operation in Lebanon" as much as they've invaded, occupied and destroyed large swaths of Lebanon.
They're not simply targeting Hezbollah militants, which is not something that would justify this onslaught anyway. They're targeting civilians. They have killed thousands of civilians. So all of that is true.
And I think you saw the Lebanese president, actually, you know, draw attention to that. I think his point -- and I think this point is correct -- is that Lebanon ought to be under the control of the Lebanese government. There shouldn't be any armed force on Lebanese soil that does not answer to the Lebanese government.
Hezbollah should come under the control of Lebanese government or simply disarm. I think, in that regard, he's correct that the nature of the Iranian regime in the region means that it has this influence over Hezbollah, very strong one.
It's part, as I said, part of this network or axis of resistance. And that needs to end. It shouldn't have to be ending as a result of, again, this Israeli onslaught. It should be happening anyway. But this is where we're at.
KINKADE: Do you still think that Iran sees Hezbollah as operating fully under its control, like its strategic control?
Or is it more like an ally that influences it but doesn't fully command it?
Or something in between?
HELLYER: I think the latter framing that you just put makes it a bit too loose. I think that the former just removes agency from Hezbollah. Hezbollah does have agency in this regard. But it is -- I would call it the jewel in the crown of Iran's axis of resistance, regionally speaking. And it has very significant influence in that regard. And when you
consider what's happened over the past few years, Hezbollah did not take orders from the Lebanese government before embarking on actions that were bound to give an excuse to the Israelis to come back into Lebanon in a really, really maniacal fashion.
Quite frankly, you've had Israeli ministers say, what we did in Gaza, we're going to do to certain parts of Lebanon.
[04:20:00]
And, of course, what they did in Gaza, they're in the dock at the International Court of Justice on genocide charges. So, very reckless, irresponsible behavior. But as I said, the blame for the destruction shouldn't be laid at Hezbollah's feet. It needs to be laid at those who actually carried it out.
KINKADE: So considering the lay of the land, how important is Lebanon to Iran's regional strategy today, compared to just a few years ago?
HELLYER: I think very important.
I mean, you have the loss of the Assad regime in Syria, right?
That was a very important part of the axis of "resistance" -- in quotation marks -- resistance. And, you have the Houthis, who are probably the most distant in that regard. And you have the Iraqi militias and Hezbollah in between, as well as smaller groups that exist elsewhere, particularly in South Asia.
But, I think Hezbollah is really incredibly important in that regard. Again, they're not, they're not purely an Iranian militia on Lebanese soil or something like that. I think that overstates the case. But to say that they don't have tremendous influence from Tehran, I think would be foolish.
KINKADE: HA Hellyer, always great to get your analysis. We appreciate your time. Thank you.
HELLYER: You're very kind. Thank you, Lynda.
KINKADE: Well, Cuba's former leader Raul Castro has appeared in public for the first time since his indictment on murder charges by the U.S.
The former Cuban president attended a celebration at the interior ministry on Friday, just days after his 95th birthday. The Trump administration indicated -- indicted Castro last month, accusing him of ordering the Cuban military in 1996 to shoot down planes operated by Cuban exiles.
The indictment marks one of the major escalations in Washington's pressure campaign against the Cuban government.
The family of an American student missing in Japan says police have finished searching the dense forest he was spotted walking toward more than a week ago. His parents are now leading their own search for the 20-year old. Hanako Montgomery reports that Japanese civilians are joining the effort.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
HANAKO MONTGOMERY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Deep in Japan's forests, a search is underway. For Weston Higginbotham, a 20-year-old college student from Alabama who vanished during a family vacation.
So this is the type of trail that the Japanese police have been investigating to search for Weston.
He's known as an avid hiker, so they think that maybe he might have disappeared into the woods when he went missing on May 29th. Police are relying on K-9 units to sniff out any trace of Weston. But the forest search ends for now with no answers. Just more anguish for a family still waiting for news.
NANCY HIGGINBOTHAM, MOTHER OF WESTON HIGGINBOTHAM: There are so many possibilities that we have thought through because as a parent, you don't want to think the worst. And you keep seeing these sightings here and there. It's like, well, maybe I don't know. I don't know.
MONTGOMERY: The day Weston disappeared, the Higginbotham's were vacationing in Kyoto, Japan, a major tourist destination in one of the world's safest countries.
But after a small disagreement with his mom, they agreed to give each other some space. Nancy, his mother, tells me it's not unusual for Weston to clear his head in nature. But when he seemingly turned off his phone location, panic set in.
HIGGINBOTHAM: Well, it was scary because that's not Weston. I mean, we're just -- we don't do that in our family. Even when we're mad, we don't do that in our family.
MONTGOMERY: Since then, Nancy has posted daily appeals on social media asking anyone with information to come forward.
HIGGINBOTHAM: He has a heart of gold and we all want him to come back safely.
MONTGOMERY: Strangers have answered her call, sharing Weston's photo and distributing flyers to help find him.
MANAMI NAKAGAWA, VOLUNTEER (through translator): The search ends when people stop looking. For as long as it takes. I'll keep doing everything I can until he's found.
MONTGOMERY: The police have told us that until they find Weston, they won't stop looking. And as the search continues, so does a mother's hope.
And today, the search is getting extra help. Citizen hikers are now heading to the mountains after Higginbotham's family organized a search and rescue party of volunteers -- Hanako Montgomery, CNN, Kyoto.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KINKADE: A federal judge has struck down a series of Trump administration limits on asylum and immigration applications last year.
The White House has suspended parts of the asylum process and froze immigration applications for people subject to the administrations travel ban. The judge accused the White House of harboring, quote, "anti-immigrant animus."
[04:25:00]
The Department of Homeland Security general counsel blasted Friday's ruling, saying the animus claims of sabotage dressed in legal clothing.
U.S. authorities have released video of a boat that broke down near a set of tropical islands. Officials say the wooden boat in this video was carrying 240 migrants from Haiti on Thursday. The 50-foot vessel began taking on water south of the Turks and Caicos Islands.
The U.S. Coast Guard reported that the boat's engine had failed. Authorities deployed four rescue boats and saved everyone on board. Turks and Caicos authorities took the migrants into custody.
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention say the current Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo has the potential to become the largest on record. It's already the fourth largest on record, with at least 60 confirmed deaths.
Researchers say it could quickly surpass other historic outbreaks if strong public health interventions are not implemented rapidly. They say it could become as large as the 2014 to 2016 outbreak in West Africa that infected more than 28,000 people and left more than 11,000 dead.
A second case of screwworm has been found in livestock in South Texas. The ugly parasite was detected in a month-old calf less than 10 kilometers from another infected animal, which is being treated and reportedly doing well.
These are the first cases of the flesh-eating fly found in the U.S. livestock in decades. The only way to control the screwworm outbreak is to release sterile flies that mate with females, which then can't reproduce.
Teams are releasing millions of sterile flies and have set up 20- kilometer quarantine zones. Officials say the food supply is safe since screwworms do not infest meat and other food.
We're going to take a quick break. For our viewers in North America, I'll have more news in just a moment. For our international viewers, "CNN CREATORS" is next.
(MUSIC PLAYING)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[04:30:00]
(MUSIC PLAYING)
KINKADE: Welcome back to our viewers. Joining us here in the United States and Canada. I'm Lynda Kinkade, coming to you live from Atlanta.
Strong gains in the U.S. labor market are good news for the economy. But it could also mean higher interest rates for longer periods, which is bad news for the stock markets. U.S. markets fell in the red for the week as Wall Street wrestled with weakness in AI stocks. CNN's Richard Quest explains.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
RICHARD QUEST, CNN HOST AND CNN BUSINESS EDITOR AT LARGE: It was an unpleasant end to the stock market week with the Nasdaq, the S&P and the Dow all losing ground and, in some cases, the worst sessions for many months.
But today's accident didn't just happen on a Friday. The warning signs had been there for several days, particularly when Broadcom announced its results and the market gave it a thorough beating up. It simply wasn't good enough.
And then as the week continued, so the rot set in; by the time you get to Friday, where we're seeing some impressive losses -- Nvidia down 6.25 percent, Broadcom down another 7.9 percent, Intel off 11 percent -- and the reason is the same.
The market is coming to the realization that the sheer amount of money being plowed into AI by these companies simply will not bring the returns in the short to medium term.
They are worried that huge sums are being spent and the path to profitability, whilst certainly the businesses are making money, can't justify those levels of investment.
But here's the conundrum. Everybody knows that AI is the only game in town. Therefore, if you are one of those companies, you have no choice. You have to find the money and you have to keep spending. And yes, the market will exact its wrath -- Richard Quest, CNN, New York.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KINKADE: Well, the U.S. has extended its labor market rebound, the economy adding 172,000 jobs in May, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
The numbers shattered expectations, as economists had anticipated employers would add about 105,000 jobs. The latest report provided some reassurance that the U.S. labor market may be stabilizing after a year of weak job growth. Unemployment held steady at 4.3 percent, while employment gains topped
100,000 for the third consecutive month. That pattern has not been seen since 2024.
President Trump has returned to the campaign trail ahead of the midterm elections on Friday. He visited Wisconsin, one of the biggest battleground states in the country, to talk about the plight of the farmer. That topic didn't seem to be the top of Trump's mind, as our Jeff Zeleny reports.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JEFF ZELENY, CNN CHIEF NATIONAL AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT: It was a rare return to the campaign trail for president Donald Trump, who visited western Wisconsin on Friday, appearing at this rally where it says "Fighting for American Farmers."
But his talk about farm policy really took a back seat to many of the projects he's been working on in Washington.
Now this is one of the biggest battleground districts in the country. Republican congressman Derrick Van Orden is in a very tough race. Even Republicans acknowledge that. The president laughed at the fact that he's even campaigning at all after winning his own election.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: As president, I fought for the American farmer like no one has ever fought before. Nobody's like, I'm up here today. I don't need this. I got elected, I don't know what the hell do I have to be here for?
I got elected, I'm here because I like the farmer. I mean, when you think about it, I guess there's a lot of truth to that, right?
I could be home right now in the beautiful White House, enjoying watching somebody else on television talking. You wouldn't want my life, believe me. You don't want it. Your life is much better than my life. I will tell you, your ear wasn't pierced over here. You didn't get pierced.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ZELENY: The president did talk about farm policy a bit, acknowledging the high prices of fertilizer and diesel because of the war in Iran. But he said that was something that was worth it.
Now the president also talked about a variety of things here but he really did not focus on some of the substantive issues that farmers have been concerned about and that is the impact his trade policies and tariffs have had on the American farmer. The owner of this farm bluntly said it's been very difficult for farmers to sell their own goods.
[04:35:00] Now there's no doubt this is the beginning of the president's return to the campaign trail. Over the next five months or so, Republicans are fighting to keep hold of the House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate.
But it's less clear how interested president Trump is being on the road like this. He urged his roundtable participants to move quickly so he could get back to the East Coast.
Now there's no doubt Republicans are in a difficult fight here to maintain that narrow House majority and perhaps even hold the Senate. But president Trump is trying to rally his base. That, of course, is key.
But the bigger question, does he also fire up Democrats, also eager to win control of the House and possibly even the Senate? -- Jeff Zeleny, CNN, Chippewa Falls, Wisconsin.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KINKADE: These are live pictures of Pope Leo arriving in Madrid for a six-day tour of Spain. You can see him there with king and queen of Spain. He's going to spend four days in the capital city before he stops in Barcelona and the Canary Islands.
And the Vatican confirmed that the pope will meet with victims of clergy abuse during his visit but he'll begin the trip with a longer meeting with the royal family before holding an evening prayer vigil with the Catholic youth in Madrid.
And later in the week, Pope Leo will travel to Tenerife, where he'll meet with migrants and the organizations that support them. Well, covering the pope's visit is CNN correspondent Pau Mosquera. He joins me now from Madrid.
Great to see you, Pau. So a busy schedule for the pope in Spain.
What are the key objectives this trip?
PAU MOSQUERA, CNN SPAIN CORRESPONDENT: Well, right now the pope intention is to strengthen the faith within the Spanish society. And the latest we can say about his journey is that he has just landed into Madrid Barajas airport.
He has just been received by the King Philip and Queen Leticia. They were waiting for the pope on the tarmac. We just saw them shaking hands.
So from now on, Lynda, Pope Leo XIV has a busy schedule ahead of him. During the next six days, he will be traveling around three different Spanish regions. This is beginning here in Madrid, continuing to Barcelona and its surrounding areas and then concluding in the Canary Islands.
This means that in total, pope will cover a distance of 2500 kilometers. And during this week there are 21 events scheduled. And the pope is expected to actively participate in 17 of them with speeches and homilies.
And the first time that we're expecting to hear him is going to be within an hour once he arrives at the Palacio Real, Madrid's royal palace that you can see behind me.
This is the place where the king will host an official welcome ceremony, a ceremony where around 250 guests will attend, including people from different branches like the government and the different Spanish institutions.
And from all these events, at least four of them are expected to draw particularly large crowds. This is the prayer vigil with the young people that will take place tonight at Plaza de Lima in the north of the city and the three different masses that will happen from tomorrow and on.
This is the one in Madrid on Cibeles (ph) Square that will happen tomorrow, Sunday. And the two other ones that will take place in the Canary Islands. So having in mind this busy schedule, Spain will be placed at the center of the Catholic world for at least one week.
And during this time, the pope will focus his messages on three specific groups. This is the young, the poor and the migrants. And we're expecting to him to hear of these three groups in the different speeches that he will give, particularly the one that he will be addressing in front of the deputies this Monday at the Spanish parliament, Lynda.
KINKADE: Pau Mosquera, a very busy schedule there for the pope in Spain. Appreciate you joining us. Thanks so much.
Well, the Trump administration plans to dismantle a critical ocean monitoring system. After the break, I'm going to speak with an expert about why that's a bad idea. Stay with us.
(MUSIC PLAYING)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[04:40:00]
(MUSIC PLAYING)
KINKADE: Welcome back. I'm Lynda Kinkade.
Environmentalists and experts are sounding the alarm over the Trump administration's plan to dismantle a critical deep sea monitoring system. The Ocean Observatories Initiative was put in place 10 years ago.
It's made up of some 900 instruments in the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans, collecting data to track major changes. Climate experts warn the move comes at a particularly risky time as ocean temperatures continue to reach record highs.
And an environmental advocacy group says it's documented 500 so-called anti-environment measures taken by the Trump administration, which is about one for every day the president has been in office.
Sabrina Speich is a professor of oceanography and climate sciences at the Ecole Normale Suprieure in Paris and the chair of the expert panel on ocean observations for physics and climate with the Global Climate Observing System. She joins us from Milan, Italy.
What a mouthful. Good to have you with us.
SABRINA SPEICH, PROFESSOR OF OCEANOGRAPHY AND CLIMATE SCIENCES, ECOLE NORMALE SUPRIEURE: Thank you very much for having me.
KINKADE: So just talk to us about this proposal in the U.S. to scale back or dismantle parts of this deep sea ocean monitoring system.
In simple terms, what does that system actually do for us day to day?
SPEICH: OK. So it is a system; as you might know, maybe, the ocean is completely opaque to any satellite observation. So satellite observers, just the surface and some variables -- temperature, salinity, the sea level. But it cannot -- they cannot access what is in the subsurface.
So we need really to go into the ocean with sensors or collecting water to really understand what, how it works. And this Ocean Observatories Initiative has been deploying different instruments. We talk about 900 instruments over five arrays that are located for the essential, really very close to the U.S. coast.
This means that they are sampling the waters, in most cases the coastal waters around the U.S. And this is very important to anticipate to, first of all, understand but also anticipate what can be events like extreme heats but also ocean acidification that impact marine ecosystem, for examples.
[04:45:02]
Or they also observe the interaction between the ocean and the atmosphere, which is very important to understand or to improve weather models, for example.
KINKADE: So it can potentially predict, you know, heat waves, storms, long-term climate change.
So what happens if that climate model, if you lose that long-term, continuous ocean measurements, does it become less reliable immediately or gradually over time?
SPEICH: No, if you don't provide ocean observations and Earth observation to numerical weather forecast or climate models, the way they will provide early risk assessment or El Nino, for example, prediction or continental, even continental heat waves or flash floods, it will decrease enormously.
So the errors or the uncertainties, what we call in science, will increase. And therefore there will be less skillful predictions. And this is in nowadays where extreme events are increasing in intensity and in many ways also in frequencies.
This is really a problem in terms for societal issues. And in this case in particular for the U.S., because this networks is really around the U.S. and measure also major currents that are set to change and provide a very different status of the climate.
KINKADE: And Sabrina, just finally, an environmental group says it's tracked around 500 environmental policy changes that they describe as anti-environment, which is roughly one per day since Donald Trump has been in office in the second term.
From your perspective as a scientist, what does the pattern like that signal about the direction of environmental protections?
SPEICH: Well, I think the fact that, when we take out the monitoring of the environment, whatever it is, the private sector or essentially what the -- what we do in the environment is not monitored. It's not controlled.
And this, for example, if there is a leak of oil or a leak of pollutant in a river, there will be no measure to say that this is happening. And so this will affect, of course, every human being around this river, for example, or coast.
And there will be nothing to say, well, attention; don't drink that water or don't go and bathe in this water. Or for aquaculture or fisheries or collecting shells, for example, they will not know that there is a risk in that moment. So it is very dangerous for society to not monitor the environment.
KINKADE: Sabrina Speich, we appreciate your time today. Thanks so much for joining us.
SPEICH: Thank you very much and take care.
KINKADE: Six days and no resources on the highest mountain in the world. Coming up, how one man beat the odds in a miraculous story of survival
(MUSIC PLAYING)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[04:50:00]
(MUSIC PLAYING)
KINKADE: Look at those massive waves just happening there in Hawaii. Officials say the waves are up to six feet high but witnesses say they were even higher. The big waves began on Tuesday on the western coast of the big island of Hawaii.
Meteorologists say the strong waves were generated by a stormy weather system south of New Zealand last week.
A Sherpa climbing guide has been discovered alive after officials believed he died on Mt. Everest. The guide crawled back to a base camp after spending almost a week alone on the mountain known for its dangerous conditions. CNN's Derek Van Dam reports.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DEREK VAN DAM, CNN METEOROLOGIST (voice-over): Missing for almost a week on Mount Everest, Nepali climbing guide Hillary Dawa Sherpa beat the odds, surviving six days without food or bottled oxygen on a mountain known not only for its brutal conditions but the number of lives it's claimed.
But Hillary Dawa miraculously isn't one of them. Frostbitten and exhausted, he was found alive by a cleaning crew on Thursday. Crawling near the Khumbu Icefall just above Everest Base Camp. He was airlifted to a Kathmandu hospital where he is stable and recovering. His family, thinking he was dead, had already begun funeral rites for him.
MENDO LHAMU SHERPA, HILLARY DAWA SHERPA'S DAUGHTER (through translator): At first, when we received the information, we weren't sure if it was him or not. Later, they sent the photos and it was confirmed that it was indeed him. And we felt happy.
VAN DAM (voice-over): Hillary Dawa's group was one of the last to descend the mountain, just as climbing season came to a close.
Other climbers say they last saw him on May 29th, just above Camp 3, located at around 23,000 feet, an area near the infamous death zone, where oxygen levels are so low, it's difficult to sustain human life for any extended period.
Search helicopters were deployed this week but couldn't locate the missing Sherpa. His family says they should have begun searching when he was first reported missing.
KARMA GELJE, HILLARY DAWA SHERPA'S NEPHEW (through translator): If he had been a foreign climber, the rescue would definitely have been organized much faster and prompt.
VAN DAM (voice-over): The family has filed a complaint with Nepal's Department of Tourism in a police case against Hillary Dawa's employer, the Himalayan Traverse Company, which has so far not commented.
Not much is known about how he survived for so long, alone on Everest's notoriously inhospitable slopes.
[04:55:00]
That survival story for now is between him and the mountain -- CNN meteorologist Derek Van Dam, Atlanta.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KINKADE: Well, a big night for New York after the Knicks won game two of the NBA championship series over the San Antonio Spurs. New York led for most of the game but the San Antonio's furious
comeback in the second half saw the Spurs tie it in the fourth quarter and the final seconds of the game saw Spurs star Wemby missed a last ditch shot that would have put his team ahead, breaking some hearts in the stands in San Antonio.
Ultimately, it was the Knicks who came out on top by a final score of 105-104. They now lead the series two games to none heading into Monday's game three in Madison Square Garden, New York.
Security of the game is expected to be extra tight after president Trump announced he'll attend the game. Officials say fans should arrive early as Secret Service screening measures and additional security checks will be in place.
Chimpanzees at a California zoo are warming up for the upcoming FIFA World Cup. Flags and soccer stickers decorated their enclosure on the at the Oakland Zoo on Friday, so officials saw the day as an opportunity to celebrate the World Cup and raise awareness about animal conservation.
Zoo keepers provided the animals with soccer-themed bags filled with goodies that fit their diet.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TATIANA RASKIN, OAKLAND ZOOKEEPER: It is a fun enrichment but I did make sure that all of these items have some kind of a purpose as well, so they have lots of choice for enrichment today, things that have made with their regular produce diet as well as some extra fun stuff.
Some hay forage mix, there's some dried fruit, maybe some popcorn, sunflower seeds. And so we're just trying to encourage lots of movement.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KINKADE: Well, that does it for this edition of CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Lynda Kinkade. Great to have your company. I'll be back with another hour of news in just a moment. Stay with us. You're watching CNN.
