Return to Transcripts main page

CNN Newsroom

Sources Say Donald Trump Is Open To Iran Sanctions Relief For Nuclear Deal; OpenAI Pauses Training Until New Safeguards Are In Place; Five Men Released On Bail Amid U.K. Air Base Investigation; FBI Database Hack Exposed Personal Information of Entire FBI Workforce; Kyiv Mayor Says Two Killed in Strike on Science Academy; France's Public Sector to Strike Nationwide Over Pay; Protesters Demand Spanish Government Limit Evictions; at Least 21 Killed in Nepal as Heavy Rain Renews Flooding; Hurricane Polo Makes Landfall in Baja California Sur, Mexico; Pope Leo XIV Completes Four-Day Visit to France; Pope Says Concerns About A.I. Should Be Taken Seriously; Prosecutors Reopen Cornell University Gang Rape Investigation; SpaceX's Starship Returns to Earth After First Orbital Trip. Aired 2-3a ET

Aired September 29, 2026 - 02:00   ET

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

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[02:00:29]

ROSEMARY CHURCH, CNN ANCHOR: Hello and welcome to our viewers joining us from all around the world. I'm Rosemary Church.

Just ahead on CNN NEWSROOM, top A.I. leaders are about to gather at the White House. How Washington and Silicon Valley are trying to find common ground on the race to develop artificial intelligence.

Indirect talks between Iranian and U.S. negotiators resume, with Donald Trump willing to offer sanctions relief for progress on a nuclear deal.

And Mexico's Pacific coast is bracing for impact as Hurricane Polo hits the nation twice. We will get the latest on the storm's path.

ANNOUNCER: Live from Atlanta. This is CNN NEWSROOM with Rosemary Church.

CHURCH: Good to have you with us. U.S. and Iranian officials have renewed talks via mediators as part of another effort to end seven months of war. A U.S. official tells CNN that President Trump is willing to give Iran sanctions relief and release frozen funds in exchange for concrete progress on a nuclear deal, and according to that official, Tehran has indicated they are flexible on nuclear issues, but both sides have not reached an agreement on the timing of the commitments. President Trump, however, is already claiming a win.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: One thing already has happened, it's Iran will never have a nuclear weapon. That's a very big thing. This is something that should have been done for many years by many presidents or other countries. It doesn't have to be us, but we're the -- we're the most powerful country in the world by far, we have the best military equipment in the world, and by the way, we're building more equipment now than at any time in the history of our country. We have no choice but to do that.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: CNN's Kristen Holmes has more from the White House.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KRISTEN HOLMES, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: A U.S. official saying President Trump is open to lifting or giving some sanctions relief to Iran and unfreezing some of those frozen funds if they come to the table for a nuclear deal and make some of their concessions in a final deal.

Now, the big question here is whether or not this actually means anything and if the ball is moving forward because right now Iran and the United States are not talking directly. These are conversations that are happening between Iran and a mediator, the United States and a mediator, and this U.S. official says that things are going very well. It's the same team that's been working on this, Steve Witkoff, Jared Kushner, Vice President J.D. Vance, as well as Marco Rubio, but that the United States is incredibly skeptical for a number of reasons. One, given the fact that Iran has broken every ceasefire, they have attacked ships in the Strait of Hormuz. So, again, a lot of questions as to whether or not there's actually going to be some forward-moving progress here.

Now, again, because this is coming from mediators, there is a larger question as to whether or not those mediators are translating what each side is saying in the way that they are saying it. Just given that mediators also have outside interests, according to U.S. officials, what they've learned in this talk is that Iran is willing to make some concessions to be flexible with some of the components of the nuclear deal, meaning they would go along with some of what the United States is requesting, but that is different from what we have heard the Iranians saying.

So, there's not a lot of hope, but it does seem as though the door has been opened to more negotiations. You at least have this idea that President Trump is open to offering some kind of relief if they can move the ball forward and if they can give what the president wants in terms of that nuclear deal.

Kristen Holmes, CNN, the White House.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHURCH: For more on this, I'm joined now by Iranian journalist Abas Aslani. He's also a senior research fellow at the Center for Middle East Strategic Studies. Appreciate you joining us.

ABAS ASLANI, IRANIAN JOURNALIST: My pleasure, Rosemary. CHURCH: So, President Trump gave the go-ahead for talks to resume this week between the U.S. and Iran. A move that comes right after he rejected Iran's seven-day plan to reopen the Strait of Hormuz. Why do you think he rejected that plan and then agreed to resume talks?

ASLANI: You know, there have been several issues, Rosemary, on sequencing as well as terms and scope of the talks. The current diplomatic maneuver has been clouded mostly by the Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding in two aspects. One is the terms that, you know, it is a basis for the talks, and you know, Iran believes that the U.S. needs to be back to the reimplementation of the terms.

[02:05:20]

And the second is the experience that is somehow impacting the current atmosphere, and this is somehow fueling the sequencing issue because Iran says that the U.S. needs to somehow implement the terms, and there is no guarantee that if Iran, you know, fulfills the concessions, you know, the other side would do so.

And that's why that is the problem of asymmetric reversibility that comes into calculation. That's why we have been seeing that it is based on sequencing, as I said, as well as the score. Because for Donald Trump, you know, facing the criticism following the memorandum of understanding, he wants to expand the, you know, the scope to include the nuclear issue.

But when you are unable to resolve to the smaller problem, there is no guarantee that the bigger one will be resolved, you know, in a manner that is expected. But for Iran this is something about a durable settlement. But for Trump, maybe this is a victory even on paper, if not implemented, and he's trying to vote to impact voters and the fuel prices.

CHURCH: So, we are also learning that President Trump is willing to give Iran sanctions relief and release frozen funds as part of a final deal with Tehran, but only if Iran offers concrete progress on a nuclear deal, according to a U.S. official who also says Tehran is flexible on nuclear issues. What do you think concrete progress looks like, and how flexible might Iran be do you think?

ASLANI: Well, this was discussed prior to the MOU, and that was when they decided to decouple issues because it was somehow difficult, time-consuming, and complicated to resolve it at that moment.

And currently, yet Iran insists that the nuclear issue needs to come next, but the U.S. is insisting that it needs to come first, and this is among those significant areas of difference. So far, they have not been able to be on the same page to address the issue. Iran says that they will address it once they are able to somehow secure the peace agreement. Iran's sanctions are lifted in accordance to the terms of the Islamabad MOU, and that's why we are seeing that the two sides are still far apart. And Iranian foreign minister just recently held a meeting with the Qatari mediator to somehow communicate further, you know, reservations from the Iran side, and Iran has been trying to bring some adjustments to the memorandum of understanding, bring clarity to that, specifically in terms of the transit in the Strait of Hormuz.

For Tehran, at the moment, it is mostly focused on the Strait of Hormuz, lifting the sanctions and the blockade, and somehow implementing the general the terms of the MOU, and if this is resolved in a short, you know, span of time, they can proceed to other issues, including the nuclear issue and the remaining sanctions. But so far, we are not seeing that agreement between the two sides.

CHURCH: And we are hearing from officials that the U.S. and Iran spoke Monday with mediators as part of this renewed effort to end the war, how likely is it that this could offer a path forward after so many failed attempts that have come before this?

ASLANI: Rosemary, the current talks in New York have not been able to -- you know, to solve the problem, but it has somehow relocated the issue. Now, the question is no more that the two sides are talking through mediators or not, but that is the issue that they are -- they will be able to figure out those remaining differences.

You know, always there is hope, but that hope is not that big this time. It is a glimmer of hope. It's a line at the end of the tunnel. Means that diplomacy is always possible, but so far we are also seeing that the differences between the two sides, you know, remain are in place. Iran has communicated its views on yesterday meeting, and it is awaiting a response from Washington and the U.N. Environmental will be back to Tehran, and once and if there is any response from the U.S. side, this can be discussed in Tehran. But the chances are not that much, you know, big. However, small. But I think we need to wait to see that how the upcoming days will, what the upcoming days will bring to us, and but the -- we cannot be that much optimistic about the process unless, let's say, a change or flexibility is exercised between the two sides, specifically from the U.S.

[02:10:15]

CHURCH: Abas Aslani, appreciate your analysis and perspective on the issue. Thanks so much.

ASLANI: My pleasure.

CHURCH: President Trump is set to host the CEOs of top A.I. companies on Tuesday for a meeting at the White House. It comes amid increased calls for A.I. regulations and recent threats to government security. The heads of Anthropic, Nvidia, Palantir, OpenAI, and Meta's Mark Zuckerberg are among those expected to attend. Sources say the meeting is meant to get the government and top tech officials on the same page in regards to A.I. oversight. House Speaker Mike Johnson is also expected to attend the meeting.

Well, meanwhile, industry leader OpenAI now says it will not release its latest model because it doesn't meet the bar for safety. Company executives say the model, called ChatGPT 6.1 Astra, wasn't doing enough to stay within its scope and authorization. The product's cancelation comes after the company announced just days ago it would pause training and evaluation for its most capable models. CNN's Hadas Gold has more on the issues OpenAI is facing. (BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

HADAS GOLD, CNN A.I. CORRESPONDENT: This is the second time in just about three months that OpenAI has paused its training and testing for its most advanced models after incidents where its agents went rogue and were misaligned, meaning that they took action that the human handlers did not want them to actually take.

We're learning of more and more incidences over the last few months as OpenAI is, you know, doing extensive checks and reviews into what their agents' activity is actually going on. Some of these have involved OpenAI models trying to gain access to U.S. government websites. We've heard already about the Australian healthcare system

But what I think is the most notable that we've learned in the last few days from OpenAI is an incident that occurred very recently, where one of its agents managed to once again escape testing environment and gain access to the open internet when it wasn't supposed to, and this happened after OpenAI hardened its security protocols in the wake of that Hugging Face incident, where OpenAI agents, while being tested on a cybersecurity exam, decided to cheat on the exam by escaping their testing environment and hacking into a completely different company's systems, where they believed they would find the answer.

And so, this new incident of an OpenAI agent going rogue, escaping, finding a way to access the open internet happened after OpenAI did their first pause and hardened their security protocols.

Now, OpenAI is saying once again it's pausing its training, saying in a statement, people want to know A.I. is being developed safely, and that starts with what companies like ours do ourselves. On Friday, we announced we've paused training our most capable models, and will resume training them only when we are confident that we have additional safeguards and alignment improvements in place, which we are working on now. This is not the first time we have hit pause to take such measures, nor do we expect it will be the last, as A.I. capabilities continue to advance.

Meantime, as this is happening, Nvidia, which is of course one of the biggest A.I. chip makers around. They also have open source software as well. They say they're launching a new software platform that will help companies test and deploy these A.I. agents in a more secure way to keep this exact scenario from happening. In fact, Nvidia claims that if OpenAI had used their software platform in their testing and training, the Hugging Face attack would not have occurred. Nvidia says this is essentially a browser for agents because you don't want to allow agents while they're being tested and trained to have kind of free access to the internet, but you still want them to have access to some sort of safe environment where they could test out their capabilities and be trained.

And so, OpenAI says that they have now created this platform that allows for better quarantining of the models, better monitoring them, and overall better safety for these models.

Hadas Gold, CNN, New York. (END VIDEOTAPE)

CHURCH: Joining me now is Yonathan Arbel. He teaches at the University of Alabama School of Law and directs the A.I. Legal Studies Initiative there. Appreciate you being with us.

YONATHAN ARBEL, ROSE PROFESSOR OF LAW, UNIVERSITY OF ALABAMA SCHOOL OF LAW: Thank you for having me.

CHURCH: Of course. So, after most tech titans set off alarm bells, warning of the existential dangers associated with A.I. advances and calling for guardrails, they're now making sure that they have a seat at the table when those regulations are made, Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei met with President Trump Sunday night and will meet again at the White House Tuesday, along with several other top A.I. executives. What needs to come out of that meeting?

[02:15:02]

ARBEL: So, the hope is that we will reframe what it means to win the A.I. race, we win the A.I. race when we're building systems that are safe, that are powerful, and that ensure American interests. Systems that we know will not lead to catastrophic harms. That will not result in hacking government servers. We need to understand what winning is, and to realize that we only win when we build systems that are robust and reliable.

And when we build those systems, every country in the world will come to buy American A.I. because they trust it to be safe and reliable.

CHURCH: And as A.I. rapidly advances, we are seeing many governments being left behind, and that gap between technology and policy making is widening, leaving a global policy vacuum. How do we fix that, and what does the U.S. government's role need to be in setting up these guardrails for A.I., even as President Trump insists regulations are not necessary?

ARBEL: So, America definitely has a leadership role in deciding the future and influencing the future of A.I. development. The truth of the matter is that we need more time. A.I. capabilities have basically exploded over the last couple of years. It is very difficult for us to keep up with the technology, with all the new capabilities. The breakthroughs in mathematics surprise many people, even sophisticated observers. The cybersecurity capabilities of these systems are amazing. They're terrifying, and we need time to work through and develop standards to make sure that the systems we build today will be safe for us tomorrow.

This is not an easy enterprise. We're starting a bit late. We've not invested enough effort, time, attention, resources into building the science of A.I. safety, but we have an opportunity to do it now. The labs are willing to cooperate on slowing down or pacing some of the pace of development, and we should take this opportunity to build better, safer systems.

CHURCH: So, how confident are you that controls on A.I. advancements could be put in place in a timely manner, and what do you see as the biggest A.I. risks lying ahead?

ARBEL: So, the ability to create an international governance system depends a lot of on how seriously we take the risks and understand what is at stake here, because if we think of those risks as being small-scale things we can fix later on, then we might not have the proper motivation to truly pursue the international agreements necessary to ensure safe development and pacing down the international race.

But we can do it, and the risks are very significant. And I think a lot of people are waking up to the possibility that these very powerful systems are not just going to be useful in developing medicine or creating breakthroughs in mathematics, but can also impose catastrophic harm.

CHURCH: And just very quickly, it is worth noting that the government already evaluates some A.I. models through a federal agency called the U.S. Center for A.I. Standards and Innovation. Does this agency have the capabilities, perhaps, to take on the task, or is it too limited because it is based on A.I. models being submitted voluntarily?

ARBEL: That's exactly right. CAISI is a very small unit within the Department of Commerce. They have a small budget. They're thinking about maybe doubling the budget, but that still is going to be a drop in the bucket. And CAISI is doing a very important job, testing and evaluating models to make sure they don't present cybersecurity risk or they don't present the risk of allowing people to build bio weapons.

But CAISI is not the A.I. police. It's not a law enforcement agency. It's very limited to what the labs choose to show it, and we need for effective oversight a much more powerful agency.

CHURCH: Yonathan Arbel, thank you so much for joining us and sharing your perspective on this issue, appreciate it.

ARBEL: Thank you so much for having me.

CHURCH: The U.S. and China have agreed to slash tariffs on $60 billion worth of goods. The announcement comes just days after a highly anticipated meeting between President Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping in Washington last week, the tariff relief extends to a wide range of products. The U.S. has agreed to lower tariffs on 77 Chinese goods, including toys, car seats, fireworks, and a number of household items.

Meanwhile, Beijing has agreed to lower tariffs on more than six. 1,500 U.S. goods, including meat, seafood, agricultural products, just to name a few. U.S. soybeans were not included, which comes as a major blow to struggling American farmers impacted by the trade war.

[02:20:13]

Attorneys for CNN, MS NOW, and Politico are asking a federal judge to stop President Trump from reviving his White House ban. A new court filing says the administration's retaliatory actions prove that its motive is to punish and chill journalism it doesn't like. The administration has tried to claim reporting by the outlets threatens national security, but the judge issued a temporary restraining order last week rejecting that argument and restoring their White House access.

Well, there's much more to come here on CNN NEWSROOM. Five men arrested near a U.K. airbase have been released on bail. We will bring you President Trump's reaction to that decision.

Plus, Russian drones hit Ukraine's National Academy of Sciences building in the heart of Kyiv. We will have the latest on casualties. That's just ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[02:25:32]

CHURCH: Welcome back, everyone. U.K. authorities have released on bail five men arrested on suspicion of terrorism and explosive offenses. The men have not been publicly identified. All are between 23 and 25 years old. They were initially detained near an airbase used by U.S. long-range bombers for missions in the war with Iran. President Trump criticized the decision to release the men and suggested Iran might be linked to the alleged plot. Iran denies any involvement. CNN's Nic Robertson is in Fairford, England, with the latest on the investigation.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: Early Sunday, they were cuffed in police custody. Now, the five men arrested on suspicion of terrorism and explosive charges outside a U.K. base used by the U.S. Air Force are out on bail.

ASSISTANT COMMUNICATION LAURENCE TAYLOR, HEAD OF U.K. COUNTER TERRORISM POLICING: To be very clear, this does not mean that the investigation is

over. They are subject to stringent conditions on their movement and contact with others. They absolutely remain under investigation as we explore multiple lines of inquiry.

ROBERTSON (voice-over): Police, after searching their vans, appear to lack evidence for now to support their suspicions.

TAYLOR: Those vehicles have been subject to extensive examination with the support of military assets and forensic experts.

ROBERTSON (voice-over): It was finding those vehicles that triggered this farmer, who took pictures of them to raise the alarm.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: First thing I noticed was there's a vehicle on our farm drive, and then I realized there's three of them, and they're parked in a really strange formation. Say --

ROBERTSON (voice-over): Right after she spotted the now released men. UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's such a flash moment of seeing them, but there were definitely more than five. We think maybe between eight and 10 of them were there at that point, and a lot of them were -- had their faces covered.

ROBERTSON (voice-over): She called the police hotline, 999, and then her friends.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I now put a message on our village WhatsApp group just saying, because I didn't want people to be scared, I just said, just to let you all know, something very odd has happened today in our -- in the -- or tonight in the village, and told them what I'd seen. Literally, within five minutes of that, everything sort of kicked off and armed police arrived.

ROBERTSON (voice-over): After them, the bomb squad showed up. Next, several hundred local residents, including the farmer, evacuated. But the circumstances leading to the short-lived arrests are raising concerns.

ROBERTSON: Local residents, including the farmer who called the police, have questions. They say over the past week, the base appeared to put in place what looked like additional security measures, big vehicles, concrete blocks blocking the gates giving access to the airfield.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I just can't process how that base was on such high alert and that the men were even there, never mind how many and how many they caught. And they reacted very quickly to the 999 call, but before that, where were they?

ROBERTSON (voice-over): The area's local lawmaker has questions too.

ROZ SAVAGE, BRITISH LIBERAL DEMOCRAT MP: -- in their homes, but I have so many questions that I really want to ask the Secretary of State for Defense, even the Prime Minister, about who knew what and when. If there was advanced intelligence, then it seems that a lot of people who should have known that didn't know that.

ROBERTSON (voice-over): For now, more unknown than known. The U.K. counter-terrorism chiefs leaving the possibility open. The men acted wittingly or unwittingly working for a foreign state.

Nic Robertson, CNN, Fairford, England.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHURCH: Back here in the United States, the FBI is grappling with the fallout from a massive data breach. The bureau says they're now operating under the assumption that hackers stole data on all current FBI employees, that includes home addresses and other sensitive personal information. Thousands of former employees could also be affected. The breaches raising national security concerns, with data on units focused on China and Russia among the information stolen.

[02:30:00] One former FBI official says the uncertainty is causing deep concern, leaving agents wondering whether they're exposed

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GREG EHRIE, FORMER FBI SPECIAL AGENT IN CHARGE, NEWARK FIELD OFFICE: Incredibly disturbing to hear this, and hear about a leak and not knowing the extent of that and the obvious question retirees, current agents are all asking, am I involved? Is information about me out there in the wild? Talking to my former colleagues and current colleagues, that's a matter of concern.

Certainly understand that the Bureau wants to understand the extent of the leak and the information that may be out there before they start notifying people. There's a certain what we call a due diligence that if somebody's information is possibly out, you need to contact that person.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: In Ukraine, the mayor of Kyiv says at least two people have been killed in a Russian attack on the National Academy of Sciences. Dramatic video shows smoke billowing from the building with people trying to climb out of upper-storey windows. Ukraine's president says his military is testing new interceptors to neutralize conventional and jet-powered drones.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY, UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT (through translator): There have been Shahed attacks throughout the day. Many of them were jet- powered. More than 120 drones have been launched, 90 of them jet- powered. Unfortunately, there have been hits and, sadly, casualties. As of now, we know that nine people have been killed in different regions of Ukraine. My condolences to their families and loved ones. More than 80 people have been injured.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: Still ahead on this hour of "CNN Newsroom," an 87-year-old woman make it to stay in her home after her eviction sparked widespread protests in Spain. Now, Spain's government is responding to calls for housing reform. That's next.

Plus, Hurricane Polo is battering Mexico's Baja California Peninsula. We will have the latest on its path and the flood threat.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[02:36:34]

CHURCH: Welcome back, everyone. France is bracing for a major nationwide strike from public sector workers today. Teachers, health care workers, railway workers and firefighters are among those expected to take part. The walkouts could disrupt some rail services and cause some schools to close for the day. Workers are protesting plans to freeze their base pay as the cost of living continues to rise. The strike comes days before the government is set to submit its draft 2027 budget.

Officials say an 87-year-old woman will get to stay in her home after her eviction sparked widespread protests in Spain. Last week, police carried Maricarmen Abascal out of her home on a stretcher after an investment fund bought her apartment and evicted her. Abascal's lawyer says her client will be allowed to stay in her home after reaching an agreement with the landlord.

The Spanish prime minister says his cabinet will meet in the day ahead to approve some relief measures.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MARICARMEN ABASCAL, 87-YEAR-OLD EVICTED TENANT (through translator): I want what happened to me to help ensure it doesn't happen to other people. I wanted to lead people to fight so the unfair laws that allowed for my eviction can be changed.

That is why on Tuesday, Maricarmen's Law must be approved so they can take a first step to end with this.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: At least 21 people have been killed as heavy rain triggers new flooding across Nepal. This video shows the scale of destruction as a massive landslide crashes into a river near a northern mountain village.

Authorities warned of possible flash flooding in dozens of districts as river levels continue to rise. And downstream, floodwaters are also spilling across Nepal's southern border into neighboring India. Nepal is still recovering from last month's catastrophic floods.

The United Nations says at least 1,450 people were killed with more than 5,000 still missing. Homes and infrastructure were destroyed, displacing thousands of families. An estimated 2.2 million tons of debris still needs to be cleared.

Hurricane Polo has officially made landfall along the coast of Mexico's Baja California Sur. Communities there are facing life- threatening winds and widespread flash flooding. Polo is expected to remain a hurricane as it makes a second landfall in mainland Mexico.

Forecasts show the storm system will rapidly weaken on Tuesday as it tracks farther inland. But the National Hurricane Center warns increased rainfall could produce mudslides in areas with steep terrain. CNN's Valeria Leon has the latest on how communities are preparing for the harsh conditions.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

VALERIA LEON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hurricane Polo could hit Mexico twice after crossing the Baja California Peninsula, home to resort destinations including Los Cabos. Officials say the storm could make a second landfall on the central coast of Sonora on Tuesday.

LAURA VELAZQUEZ, NATIONAL CIVIL PROTECTION COORDINATOR (through translator): We expect a second impact on Tuesday along the central coast of Sonora.

LEON (voice-over): Authorities are restricting movement in vulnerable areas.

[02:40:00]

In Baja California Sur, residents are stacking sandbags outside their homes. Also, businesses have shut their doors and covered their windows. At restaurants, the chairs are up on the tables, and owners say they've had to pack away almost everything.

JORGE ALTAMIRANO, RESTAURANT OWNER (through translator): We have to take the whole business apart and then we have to come back and set it all up again.

LEON (voice-over): But there are crowds at gas stations, where drivers are lining up to fill their tanks. Some supermarkets have also seen rushes for supplies.

JOSE LUIS HERNANDEZ, RESIDENT (through translator): We have a baby, so diapers, milk, everything that's basic.

LEON (voice-over): Officials say the first residents have arrived at temporary shelters. And for those staying home, the priority is keeping their families safe.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translator): Protect yourself, protect your children. Get your documents out.

LEON (voice-over): Black warning flags are flying along the coast. And Mexico's President, Claudia Sheinbaum is urging people whose homes may not withstand the storm to seek shelter.

CLAUDIA SHEINBAUM, MEXICAN PRESIDENT (through translator): If there are issues due to the type of housing they have, they should go to the shelters.

LEON (voice-over): The government has set up 169 temporary shelters across Baja California Sur, with space for more than 24,000 people.

JOSE LUIS GARCIA, LOS CABOS RESIDENT (through translator): We hope the storm loses strength as it moves along and calms down a bit.

LEON: For now, residents are being told to follow official alerts and stay away from the water.

Valeria Leon, CNN, Mexico City.

(END VIDEOTAPE) CHURCH: For his next international trip, Pope Leo will visit several South American countries. And Peru is already anticipating his arrival in November. Sculptors in Lima are carving a 14-meter tall likeness of the pontiff in clay. The trip will be something of a homecoming.

Before he became Pope, he spent nearly two decades serving in Peru as a missionary and then a bishop. And Pope Leo just wrapped up his four- day visit to France. On the trip, he spoke about the dangers of artificial intelligence, warning that it poses a threat to humanity.

It's not a new topic for the pontiff. He addressed the ethical and moral concerns about A.I. in his first major theological document this year. CNN's Christopher Lamb has more about that and the rest of the Pope's trip to France.

CHRISTOPHER LAMB, CNN VATICAN CORRESPONDENT: Well, I think it is a very significant visit by Pope Leo because France, despite it being a highly secularized culture, there were really very big numbers turning out for the pope. A mass with 800,000 people in the center of Paris, 150,000 people turning out in Lourdes, a major pilgrimage site, for the pope. And I think it was really striking to see the numbers of young people who also were there for Pope Leo.

The Catholic Church in France, despite having years of declining numbers going to church, has seen an increase in conversions among young people. Pope Leo mentioning that on the way back from Metz to Rome, saying that he was there to encourage young people who he said he felt were searching for something. So that was a really important part of his visit.

On board the plane, he also addressed A.I., which is something he talked about in France. And he was asked about the threats of A.I. to humanity, and this is what he had to say.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

POPE LEO XIV, HEAD OF THE CATHOLIC CHURCH: If someone were to ask me, am I in panic mode? No, I'm not. I sleep at night. I do think that the concerns raised by many of the experts, specialists in A.I., should be taken seriously.

I don't think that that is fake news, as some have said, to try and cause whether financial or some other kind of benefit.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LAMB: Well, Leo also cited the head of the A.I. company, NVIDIA, who he suggested was not taking it seriously enough in terms of the risks of A.I. That's very unusual for the pope to do that.

He also said the Vatican has set up a special commission to look at the risks and benefits of A.I. This is something that Leo has devoted a lot of attention to during his pontificate. But I think broadly speaking, the trip to France was a success for Leo.

He was able to connect with people, to draw really big crowds, and to deliver a number of important political messages.

CHURCH: And we have much more coming up here on the show, including a re-launched criminal investigation into an alleged gang rape at a Cornell University frat party.

[02:45:00]

Why the university's handling of that case is now under scrutiny, that's after the break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CHURCH: Welcome back, everyone. Well, prosecutors in New York are re- opening their criminal investigation into the alleged gang rape of a former Cornell University student after she filed a civil lawsuit earlier this month.

[02:50:00]

The suit alleges seven fraternity members drugged and raped her in October of 2024. And Cornell is accused of not responding properly after she reported the incident to University Police. None of these seven frat members has been criminally charged.

Police in Ithaca, New York, where the school is located, say they were never contacted by the University and only learned of the allegations recently through media reports. We get more details now from CNN's Gloria Pazmino.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

GLORIA PAZMINO, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): New York prosecutors are re-launching an investigation into an alleged gang rape at Cornell University. The new review after a former student identified as Jane Doe filed a civil lawsuit claiming seven members of the Chi Phi fraternity drugged and sexually assaulted her in October 2024.

While no criminal charges were filed then, Tompkins County District Attorney, Matthew Van Houten says he will now present new evidence to a grand jury. Van Houten told CNN his office didn't bring charges in 2024 because Jane Doe's initial statement, quote, "did not allege that she was drugged against her will or gang raped."

On the contrary, Jane Doe's statement described her participation in drug use and sexual conduct as voluntary, conscious and consensual. His office released only partial statements from her original 2024 statement. Van Houten told CNN his office does not independently investigate crimes.

MATTHEW VAN HOUTEN, TOMPKINS COUNTY DISTRICT ATTORNEY: We rely on the police to investigate those crimes and this -- the statement, without blaming her, she told the police candidly what she remembered and maybe she remembers more now. And if she does, then we want to put that in front of the grand jury.

PAZMINO (voice-over): The civil lawsuit also states that after arriving at the frat house, she was visibly intoxicated and that she had consumed about 10 standard drinks within the past three hours. The lawsuit also includes a screenshot of a group chat where other fraternity members were allegedly invited to join the assault.

The D.A. said the screenshot included in the complaint was not provided to his office at the time.

VAN HOUTEN: The text messages were completely vulgar and disgusting, but they had nothing to do with her consent.

PAZMINO (voice-over): CNN has reached out to Cornell University Police for comment. It's unclear what other evidence police may have collected. According to the civil complaint, Cornell expelled two of the seven accused fraternity members, while the others received lesser punishments, including suspensions and written assignments. The frat was also barred from campus.

In a statement, Cornell University said, quote, "None of the individuals charged were offered the opportunity to write essays as a sole consequence of their involvement. The complainant and respondents had the opportunity to testify and present evidence. At its conclusion, the hearing panel issued a range of sanctions, which included expulsions and suspensions from Cornell."

Ultimately, her attorney says she wants accountability.

THOMAS P. GIUFFRA, ATTORNEY FOR JANE DOE: Her life has been destroyed. She's a woman who comes from a small town. She was not somebody who was a legacy or somebody who was from a wealthy family. This was her dream, and it was taken away from her at a young age and in just a horrific fashion.

PAZMINO (voice-over): Gloria Pazmino, CNN, New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHURCH: And we'll be right back after a short break. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[02:56:08]

CHURCH: SpaceX Mission Controllers -- SpaceX Mission Controllers erupted in cheers on Monday as the company's so-called Starship returned to Earth. The rocket made its first trip to orbit and deployed 26 new Starlink satellites.

Starship's original 10-hour flight plan was cut short due to an engine issue. It splashed down in the Pacific Ocean and burst into flames after just three hours in space.

We are getting our first look at China's pandas, Ping Ping and Fu Shuang, who are now in their new home at Zoo Atlanta. We have new video showing the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Services inspecting the pandas after their arrival on Sunday. Both are part of Beijing's long tradition of panda diplomacy. According to China's state media, the pandas are on loan to the Atlanta Zoo for 10 years, during which time the two are meant to breed to boost panda populations.

But visitors will have to wait to officially meet them as their routine quarantine period ends in about a month from now.

Well, pop queen, Celine Dion helped close L'Oreal's star-studded runway show in Paris on Monday. And she wasn't alone. The show also featured models Kendall Jenner and Heidi Klum, actors Andie MacDowell and Philippine Leroy-Beaulieu. Dion, who is in Paris for a series of concerts, was a L'Oreal Paris brand ambassador in 2019. And she recently made a return to the stage despite an ongoing battle with Stiff-Person Syndrome.

I want to thank all of you for your company this hour. I'm Rosemary Church. "CNN Newsroom" with Polo Sandoval is next, after a short break. Do stay with us.

[02:58:02]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[03:00:00]