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CNN International: Yemeni Forces Attack Houthis Near Key Global Trade Route; Dozens Quarantined After death Of Russian Plague Lab Worker; France Braces For National Day Of School Protests; Clashes With Police Following Mass Protests In Barcelona; Christa Pike Case Sparks Tennessee Death Penalty Scrutiny; Students Protests As Cornell Faculty Weigh No-Confidence Vote. Aired 4-4:30a ET

Aired October 06, 2026 - 04:00   ET

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

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[04:00:34]

LYNDA KINKADE, CNN ANCHOR: Hello and welcome. I'm Lynda Kinkade. Good to have your company. Ahead here on "CNN Newsroom."

Yemen's government says, it's taken back territory around a key global trade route after launching a counteroffensive against the Iranian- backed Houthis.

Plus, infection fears after a lab worker at a Russian plague research facility dies from an unknown infection. How Russia is working to quarantine others.

And the failed execution of a Tennessee death row inmate has sparked heated debate over the death penalty. We'll speak to an expert who's dedicated his career to representing individuals facing capital punishment.

ANNOUNCER: Live from Atlanta, this is "CNN Newsroom" with Lynda Kinkade.

KINKADE: Yemen's Saudi-backed government forces claim to have retaken key positions near the Bab al-Mandeb Strait from the Iran -- Iranian- backed Houthis. Yemen's military spokesperson says government forces have succeeded in controlling the Strait, which has become a vital alternative route since the Iran war severely disrupted traffic to Hormuz.

The Houthi-controlled media denies reports that the Yemeni and Saudi- led forces are advancing.

Yemen's military also claims it's regained control of a key route leading to the port town of Mocha.

CNN hasn't been able to independently verify any of these claims, but if successful, the offensive would loosen the Houthis' grip along the key route along the Red Coast Sea. Officials from Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and Pakistan convened on Monday for what was an emergency meeting when they agreed to deploy military resources to Saudi Arabia as part of the Mecca defense pact.

CNN's Leila Gharagozlou joins me now from Abu Dhabi with the latest on all of this. Good to have you with us, Leila.

So, after months of focus on opening the Strait of Hormuz, we're watching this major battle erupt on another end of the Arabian Peninsula at a key Red Sea port. Just how critical is that waterway and what's the latest on the front?

LEILA GHARAGOZLOU, CNN PRODUCER: Yes, the Bab al-Mandeb Strait is equally as important as the Strait of Hormuz, particularly with the Strait of Hormuz being closed. And throughout the war with Iran, it has often been thought of as an alternative route.

Now, I do think it's important to remember that the Bab al-Mandeb has its own concerns and dangers that predate the war with Iran, namely with the presence of the Houthis. There has often been attacks on any sort of ships and vessels coming through the Strait.

So, it's not the most straightforward part of and upon route to take for vessels. So, it's not a like-for-like alternative, but it is a very vital waterway with the Strait of Hormuz being closed.

Now, when it comes to what is going on in Yemen, things are moving very, very quickly. Just a few weeks ago, we saw the Houthis take large swaths of territory. Now, we're seeing some of that reverse with the Yemeni government forces in Saudi Arabia taking key positions back around the Bab al-Mandeb and across the country.

So, moving very rapidly in Yemen on the ground. Now, the Houthis have also launched and continue to launch attacks on Saudi Arabia and Saudi Arabian oil facilities, which is going to cause quite a lot of issues for the global oil markets if that continues.

So, things are moving very quickly. It's very precarious. One analyst that I spoke to has said that, you know, this is something that cannot be measured in just days and hours. You're going to have to wait to see how things play out long-term in Yemen. So, a lot going on there.

And, of course, Saudi Arabian oil facilities are going to be one to watch because this is ultimately going to be also an economic story.

KINKADE: Yes. No doubt about that we will be continuing to follow this closely. Leila, great to have you with us. Thanks so much.

Well, I want to turn now to the Russian lab plague story. Of course, we're following this closely. The World Health Organization says it's seeking answers from Russian health authorities about the death of a worker at a plague research lab. But they say the risk to public health appears to be low based on the information we currently have.

CNN's Frederik Pleitgen tells us what we know.

[04:05:00]

FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Russia is facing a possible plague scare. And all of this comes after a 28-year- old female lab worker working at a lab dedicated to combating the plague died of what Russian authorities call pneumonia with an unknown cause.

Now, the Russian agency for combating infectious diseases is cautioning and saying it's completely unclear whether or not this lab worker died of the plague.

In fact, in a statement, they say, quote, "No microorganisms associated with the employees' professional duties were detected in samples taken from the patient."

However, the governor of the neighboring province did say that possibly the patient died of the plague. And the head of Russia's Agency for Infectious Diseases also rushed down to that region.

The Russians have also started what they call anti-epidemic measures. That includes, first and foremost, quarantines and that means isolating people who had contact with this patient.

They also say that they've essentially shut down the hospital where the patient died. And that as of right now, inpatients in that hospital are not being allowed out, and of course, no new patients are being admitted to that hospital. Some other hospitals in that area apparently also in a state of quarantine.

Now, the Kremlin also has commented on all of this. They said they didn't want to say too much, but they did caution against believing what they call rumors and speculation. And the World Health Organization says they believe, as of right now, the risk of all of this spreading and becoming a bigger problem is low.

Nevertheless, folks that CNN spoke to in that region said they were somewhat uneasy.

Fred Pleitgen, CNN, Berlin.

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KINKADE: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy appears to be following through on his plans to escalate attacks on Russian oil refineries.

Earlier, an oil depot in Moscow was engulfed in flames after Ukraine reportedly launched about 650 drones towards the region. It comes as Russia continues to strike Ukraine's northeastern city of Kharkiv.

The regional governor there says three bombs hit different parts of the city Monday, killing at least five people, injuring more than 50 others. A government workshop seen here was among the buildings struck.

The French government is calling for calm as students prepare for a nationwide day of protest. A local newspaper reports one teenager lost his hand and part of his arm Monday after picking up a police disposal grenade that detonated.

It's the third week students have been demonstrating against teacher shortages, overcrowded classrooms and rundowns of schools. More than 4,000 teenagers have been arrested since the protests began. Students say the protests will continue until the government meets their demands.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): Today, we're here trying to demonstrate in support of all public high schools, the ones with fewer resources, the ones that are disadvantaged. We here are privileged. We have more resources. We still have our share of problems. We're trying to show that we're here, too, to support everyone in disadvantaged communities, the suburbs and so on.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KINKADE: Joining us now is CNN European Affairs commentator Dominic Thomas. Good to have you with us.

So, these protests, of course, began with students complaining about overcrowded classrooms, missing teachers, crumbling, you know, schools and budget cuts. A few weeks in, hundreds of schools have been disrupted, some have been torched, thousands of people have been arrested, and, of course, a teenager sadly has lost his hand.

How badly has the system deteriorated? And why has it reached this breaking point now?

DOMINIC THOMAS, CNN EUROPEAN AFFAIRS COMMENTATOR: Yes. Well, all of this has got to be placed in -- in the broader context of what is now almost 10 years since President Macron came to power.

And as extraordinary as it sounds, it was eight years ago that we were having these conversations about the Yellow Vest movement, which was similar really in -- in size and -- and scope. It was about cost of living issues, grievances, feeling like they were being left behind in a presidency that started off very quickly with favoring the wealthier segments of society with tax cuts and -- and so on here too.

And the students joined a protest here that was already there in the guise of strikes in the -- in the public sector and it has burgeoned. And what has characterized this particular crisis, pension reform, and then the Yellow Vest movement, is the particular police brutality and pushback that has characterized the state response to this, which has led to -- to escalation.

And at this particular juncture, there's no end in sight to this particular social uprest, social upheaval, particularly given the fact that we're just a few months away from a general election. And individuals are taking to the streets in a -- in a long age old French tradition to express their discontent with the way things are going in French society, Lynda. [04:10:03]

KINKADE: Yes. So, and it's not just teenagers anymore protesting. Unions have said they're going to join them.

You're suggesting that this student protest is much larger. It's really a revolt against the French state.

THOMAS: Yes. I think it is -- it has to be characterized in that particular way. And you can see the response from the French state that the -- the one political movement really that has spoken out to this is the far-left movement run by Jean-Luc Melenchon.

Now, they've been very careful in terms of positioning themselves on the use of violence. They'd rather see this be a peaceful demonstration. But there's tremendous fear on the French political landscape of the left. We see this play out in other European countries as we move to this election. And Emmanuel Macron's party legacy is very much sort of up in the air.

We see that the -- the solidity of - of the far-right. And the left here is really sort of positioned to be the voice that is speaking to those that feel left behind in French society. So, this has taken on a particular political inflection, given the fact that the elections are -- are just down the road.

And also, let's not forget that Emmanuel Macron's second term was characterized by the fact that immediately after winning the presidency, he was unable to secure the legislative. He lost the parliamentary majority that he had.

So legislating, dealing with reforms and so on has been particularly difficult for him. And he's also, though, having said that, targeted these areas of society with that pension reform, change -- attempting to change the retirement age and so on.

And when it comes to public sectors, the budget that is about to be passed in parliament, which is actually unlikely to be passed, is targeting yet again a whole range of budget cuts to schools, to public sectors, to teacher pay, to pensions and so on.

And so all of this is coming together in society. It's not just students that are protesting, it's the parents as well. And many of these teachers, of course, are also the parents of children going to school. And they're on the frontlines observing the ways in which this educational system has been gradually crumbling over the past 15 years, Lynda.

KINKADE: Yes, no doubt. Budget cuts, big trigger for these nationwide protests.

In terms of the violence that you mentioned, the government says legitimate student grievances are being hijacked by violent groups, while protesters and riots groups say the police response in itself is excessive. What do we actually know about who's driving the violence? THOMAS: Yes. Well, of course, these are the kind of breeding grounds where there are going to be individuals groups elements that will benefit from these circumstances.

But I think what we're looking at here is a situation that is -- that is, you know, really out of -- out of control that the kind of level to which the police respond with and what they're firing at students and the -- the use of, you know, horses, batons and so on too, is designed really to provide a context in which this can easily flare up.

We see this in any kind of particular context where there's a standoff with the authorities. Now, the streets in France are very particular. This is the place in which individuals go to express their discontent with policies and so on.

It's part in so many ways of the -- of the DNA and of the -- the ways in which the political system operates. But unfortunately, this does lead so often to escalation.

And in this particular case, we're seeing this playing out in this particular system, particularly around education and all the certainty that characterises that, Lynda.

KINKADE: Dominic Thomas, as always great to get your analysis. Thanks very much.

THOMAS: Thank you.

KINKADE: Well, I want to turn to Spain now where clashes broke out in Barcelona following a mass protest demanding housing reform. The unrest comes after parliament rejected emergency housing decrees last week.

Now, Spain's prime minister has called a snap election hoping to secure a broader majority in parliament.

CNN's Pau Mosquera has the story.

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PAU MOSQUERA, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): After two days of deliberation, the much anticipated outcome.

PEDRO SANCHEZ, SPANISH PRIME MINISTER (through translator): I have decided to convene an extraordinary cabinet meeting this very morning to dissolve the Spanish parliament and call a general election to be held on Sunday, November 29.

MOSQUERA (voice-over): Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez cornered, forced into the decision after right-wing parties in parliament struck down a last ditch effort on Friday to tackle the country's housing emergency.

The face of that crisis is Maria del Carmen Abascal, or just Maricarmen, as she's known across Spain. An investment fund bought her flat, more than quadrupled her rent. And at 87, Mariecarmen was kicked out from the place she called home for more than 70 years.

For many, after years of price hikes and rent rises, that was the final straw.

[04:15:01]

Sanchez is hoping to capitalize on the anger and frustration over a housing crisis, the measures he tried to pass, and the economy where his party has done well.

That would shift the gaze away from the corruption scandals that have plagued some of his close allies.

And migration, which exploded this summer when thousands streamed across the border in Spain's northern Africa exclave of Ceuta. But it's still a gamble. He trails the center right popular party in opinion polls.

ALBERTO NUNEZ FEIJOO (through translator): Finally. Finally, Spain will speak its mind.

MOSQUERA (voice-over): And one crisis after another has left the far- right Vox party as potential kingmakers.

SANTIAGO ABASCAL, LEADER OF VOX PARTY (through translator): We must reverse the migrant influx, which is having so many negative consequences for Spaniards' parties.

MOSQUERA: But for those who have been camping here at the heart of Madrid, it's been a bit of a mixed feeling. Some do like Sanchez, others would prefer a new leadership.

But what everyone really wants is a quick solution to housing emergency. And with this election, that feels a long way off.

Pau Mosquera, CNN, Madrid.

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KINKADE: Well, there's much more to come here on "CNN Newsroom," including growing fallout in Tennessee after the failed execution of Christa Pike. We'll get some perspective from a Capitol defense attorney with more than two decades of experience representing death row inmates.

Also, new details in the investigation of an alleged gang rape at Cornell University. Secretly recorded cause is shedding new light on the night in question. And scrutiny grows over how the case was handled.

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[04:20:46] KINKADE: Tennessee is facing new questions over its execution system after the failed lethal injection of death row inmate Christa Pike, the second botched execution by the state this year.

The state's corrections chief, Frank Strada, is resigning as a result. In his previous role as a prison official in Arizona, he oversaw several executions that failed to meet the state's protocols.

Now, according to -- that was according to administrators. Christa Pike remains hospitalized, unconscious, and on a ventilator after receiving two doses of the typically fatal drug pentobarbital last Wednesday.

State lawmakers considering whether Tennessee should turn to alternative execution methods.

Earlier, CNN spoke with Tennessee House Speaker Cameron Sexton about the failed execution and how the state might address the growing concerns regarding its protocols.

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CAMERON SEXTON, SPEAKER OF THE TENNESSEE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES: I do know when we went through this last time, we have someone to come in independently and look at the process and procedures.

Obviously, the governor's taking another look at that. Now, we're going to start investigating it from the legislative side to see what issues there were.

My understanding is, is they had a hard time finding the vein. My understanding is she did not eat the last meal.

You have people on death row. This is the second one where they have refused food and they have tried to dehydrate their body to make it very tough to find a vein or what you need. That's why maybe you start looking at putting in a central line somewhere else a little earlier than the last meal or the -- or as they go in.

But, you know, we're going to look at it. We're going to see. Maybe we keep lethal injection, maybe we don't in the state of Tennessee and move in another direction, but all those things are on the table.

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KINKADE: Well, joining me now is Richard Bourke. Richard has spent two decades representing individuals facing the death penalty in Louisiana, Texas, and Mississippi. He's an ambassador for the Capital Punishment Justice Project and Director of the Louisiana Capital Assistance Center. Good to have you with us.

RICHARD BOURKE, DIRECTOR, LOUISIANA CAPITAL ASSISTANCE CENTER: Thanks very much.

KINKADE: So, when you look at what happened during Christa Pike's execution, what immediately stands out to you? BOURKE: Well, I think the thing that stands out is that this is the American death penalty. This execution and failed execution has captured public attention and international attention, but it's not the first failed execution. It's not the first case where there are doubts about whether the death penalty was the appropriate punishment.

And it's not the first case where death penalty proponents have doubled down after this sort of shocking failure and said they're only going to become more concerned to carry out death penalties with increasingly cruel methods.

KINKADE: And, of course, even this year, this is the second botched execution in Tennessee. At what point does this start looking like an isolated mistake?

BOURKE: Well, I don't think it is an isolated mistake. It's the second in a year for Tennessee, but it fills a long line now of botched lethal injections. And we've seen the invention of this new gassing people to death with nitrogen that Alabama and Louisiana have done that promised to be a painless, almost instantaneous execution. And that's ended up being a lie. And that has been a torturous method to kill people as well.

And so it's not an isolated incident. It's a fundamental flaw in the idea that we can carry out a death penalty and kill people humanely and without that risk of torturous pain.

KINKADE: Of course, Tennessee is defending the execution process. From your experience -- from your experience representing death row prisoners, what questions would you want answered before the state carries out another lethal injection?

BOURKE: I think the first thing we have to do is strip the secrecy around execution methods and how all of that's being managed. I'm someone who believes government does its best work out in the open where the public can see it.

But the execution methods in Tennessee and around the country are shrouded in secrecy. We don't know where they're getting the drugs. We don't know the quality of the drugs. We don't know the training of the staff. And this independent review is most certainly not currently going to be an open process.

[04:25:10]

So, the first question I would ask is, why does this have to happen behind closed doors? If the government is going to kill its own citizens, let's have some public scrutiny and make sure that we're satisfied with how that is happening.

KINKADE: So, at what point, Richard, can a failed execution lead to a legal argument that the state should not be allowed to try again?

BOURKE: Well, there have been failed executions before. And, in fact, 70 years ago, the United States Supreme Court said that the state can try again, killing a young black teenager in Louisiana whose execution by electrocution the first time had failed.

But that was on the idea that this was a one-off accident. Once we've seen these continued failures in the execution method, it becomes harder and harder to argue that it's not known to be a cruel and unusual punishment because of this risk of torturous death.

KINKADE: And, of course, you know, you've represented capital defendants in Louisiana, in Texas, in Mississippi. You've argued in front of the Supreme Court. Should there be national guidelines rather than this be left to the state?

BOURKE: Well, matters of criminal law are normally matters for states. And you would hope that state governments could manage that responsibility, but it's obvious that that is a problem.

What there should be is a national moratorium to deal with a national nationwide problem of these failures and a real look at how we're doing this. And along the way, whether we should keep doing this.

KINKADE: Yes. You raised some good points.

Richard Bourke, we appreciate sharing your perspective with us. Thanks so much for your time.

BOURKE: Thanks for having me.

KINKADE: Students and faculty at Cornell University demanding change over the school's handling of an alleged gang rape by several fraternity members in 2024. Members of Cornell's Faculty Senate are introducing a resolution to take a vote of no-confidence against the school's administration.

CNN has reached out to Cornell for comment.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Shame.

ALL: Shame.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KINKADE: This Monday chanting "shame" and "resign" in reference to university administrators, amid a seven-hour sit-in is planned Wednesday in solidarity with the alleged victim.

A newly obtained document show Cornell University police drafted request to preserve cell phone data and records about a week after the accuser reported the alleged assault. But the local district attorney says his office never received any phone records.

CNN's Jason Carroll has more on the new evidence emerging in this case, including secretly recorded calls between the alleged victim and one of the accused fraternity members.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) (CHANTING)

JASON CARROLL, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Protest across Cornell's campus today over how the university handled the investigation of an alleged rape case at the Chi Phi fraternity house two years ago.

This as secret audio recordings of a phone call between Jane Doe, the woman who said she was raped, and a fraternity member she went to see the night of the alleged attack were obtained by ABC News.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You want me to give my recollection of the entire night?

CARROLL (voice-over): According to ABC, the call was recorded by Jane Doe three weeks after the alleged assault where she told the fraternity members she spent time in the emergency room and in therapy because "There's so much damage on my body and my brain. If I just know what happened, then I can feel a little bit better and move on and maybe be able to stay at this school."

In the recorded call, she also said, "What y'all did would be classified as gang rape." And "You already knew when I came in, I was 10 shots deep." The fraternity member recounted it differently.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You did tell me you were sober, by the way. You did. You said you hadn't been anywhere.

CARROLL (voice-over): ABC reported that Jane Doe pushed back, saying, "That is not true. I never would have said that."

And she wanted to know how they ended up in a threesome with another fraternity member.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: So you -- you come in, say hi. We start dancing for like maybe three to five minutes. And then I pop the question. You say yes. Then I remember, like, we didn't know who else to bring, so I go up (BLEEP) who was on the dance floor too. And I pop the question and he's like, yo, and then we go upstairs.

CARROLL (voice-over): Jane Doe continued to ask how so many people ended up in the room.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I have racked my brain for this mystery. But, you know, it's possible that both of us, like, remember this and it's not true.

CARROLL (voice-over): According to ABC again, Jane Doe pushed back saying, "No, no, because I remember looking up and being, like, that is too many.