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Zelenskyy Meets with British Prime Minister at Downing Street; New Polls Show U.S. Senate Race in Texas a Dead Heat; China-North Korea Bridge Opens After Yearslong Delay; Pope Leo Shares First Message After Lung Cancer Surgery. Aired 12-1a ET
Aired October 15, 2026 - 00:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
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ROSEMARY CHURCH, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: Hello, and welcome to our viewers joining us from all around the world. I'm Rosemary Church.
Just ahead here on CNN NEWSROOM, Ukraine's president says he feels betrayed by the U.S. president. His latest message to Donald Trump as he heads to meet E.U. allies. Plus, President Trump says the U.S. may have gone too far with Iran as new polling and high inflation overshadows his campaign blitz for Republicans. And CNN investigates wildlife trafficking across Asia after five baby orangutans are found abandoned thousands of kilometers from their home.
ANNOUNCER: Live from Atlanta, this is CNN NEWSROOM with Rosemary Church.
CHURCH: Appreciate you joining us. Well, Russia is intensifying its attacks across Ukraine, launching missiles and drones on Wednesday from Zaporizhzhia in the southeast to Lutsk in the west, where a Ukrainian official says at least six people were killed when a drone hit a wholesale warehouse. Hours earlier, Russia targeted Ukraine's energy infrastructure. All this playing out as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy says he feels betrayed after President Trump announced a new deal to buy Russian fuel.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY, UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT: It's a pity that we are losing. We are losing strong partner. So this is my opinion. And --
PIERS MORGAN, HOST, "PIERS MORGAN UNCENSORED": You think you're losing America?
ZELENSKYY: Yes, but not because of us. We -- I mean, we can't be weak. Otherwise we can't survive. That's why it's painful when President Trump chooses one side, not our side. But we are OK that he's in the middle. But if you're in the middle, you have to stay in the middle, not on the wrong side. This is not the right side of history.
(END VIDEO CLIP) CHURCH: Zelenskyy is also speaking out about restrictions on the military grade version of Elon Musk's Starlink, called Star Shield. Ukrainian officials say those restrictions, which caught them off guard, are now disrupting operations. Musk took to social media to say Star Shield systems are owned and controlled by the U.S. government, and that any limits are set by the U.S. military and the president. Zelenskyy says it's clear Russia is trying to take advantage of the problem with Starlink.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ZELENSKYY: When we destroy jet, we use drones with Starlink, so it's not about just attack. As I said, we didn't attack the energy. It's not about attack. It's also about defending the lives. So people were killed because not enough destroying, not enough interceptors, including interceptors with Starlink, which didn't work of course.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHURCH: Zelenskyy is set to attend a two-day E.U. summit kicking off in Brussels in the hours ahead. Leaders in the European Council are expected to discuss continued support for Ukraine, which includes operational needs for its infrastructure ahead of winter.
Well, pledges of support also coming from the U.K., where the Ukrainian president met with British Prime Minister Andy Burnham at Downing Street on Wednesday. Zelenskyy also sat down with Britain's King Charles. Burnham had this to say ahead of the meeting.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ANDY BURNHAM, BRITISH PRIME MINISTER: What I have to do in my role is try and repair bridges so that the support comes back. And therefore I should, at this moment in time, be careful in terms of laying the ground to bring people back together. That is the role I intend to play. It's the right role for me to play in this moment. I will listen to President Zelenskyy carefully, but he won't be going away from Britain today empty handed.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHURCH: CNN's Nada Bashir has more on that meeting from London.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
NADA BASHIR, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well ahead of President Zelenskyy's first visit to Downing Street, while Prime Minister Andy Burnham has been in office. We have heard very firm words of support from the British prime minister.
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He spoke ahead of that meeting at Prime Minister's Questions in the House of Commons, with a very clear message. He said Zelenskyy will not be going home empty handed, that the British government is stepping up support in its commitments for Ukraine, and also looking to put a bit of pressure on its allies as well, to also step up that support for Ukraine and also potentially sanctions on Russia, or to further expand those sanctions on Russia.
We did see a statement from 10 Downing Street on Wednesday morning ahead of that meeting, saying that the U.K. government will stand by Ukraine for as long as it takes. And what that looks like in practical terms, well, according to the government, that would include ramping up military aid packages, fiscal packages, as well as offering and committing to accelerating further previous packages that were agreed upon, including some 45 million pounds worth of surface-to-air missiles in support of the Ukrainian military.
But what is coming in addition as part of this meeting, according to the British government, is not only a commitment to also stand against imposing that ban on the export of Russian liquefied natural gas and so that is the U.K. maritime ban. But the British government has said it will be looking for its allies to implement a similar ban. So looking at other European nations.
And of course, it's important to note this all comes off the back of a tense moment, it has to be said, not only in relations between Ukraine and the United States, but according to the British foreign minister, Ed Miliband, also, a moment of tension in that relationship between the U.K. and the U.S.. also. We've seen President Trump announcing alongside Russian President Vladimir Putin a new deal to allow for Russian diesel on the market.
That, of course, has drawn not only bipartisan backlash in the United States, but real concern as to what this could look like and mean for the United States's further support for the Ukrainian military. President Trump, for his part, over the weekend announcing a energy ceasefire or so-called energy ceasefire between Russia and Ukraine. But of course, it is clear that this hasn't necessarily played out as the U.S. president would have hoped or wished. We have seen overnight yet more attacks carried out by the Russian military, targeting once again Ukrainian energy infrastructure.
According to Zelenskyy, more than 600,000 people now without power as a result. And so Zelenskyy will be looking during his meeting and talks with the British prime minister to further secure those security guarantees put forward by the United Kingdom to bolster that support, particularly in the face of what appears to be waning support on the part of the United States and the Trump administration.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CHURCH: Spending on the U.S. midterm elections has now surpassed $10 billion, making them the most expensive midterms in history. That is according to the tracking group Ad Impact. Meanwhile, a leading Republican super PAC has cut ad spending on battleground House races in Texas, Iowa, and New Jersey. The super PAC is focusing instead on key races in Michigan, Florida, and North Carolina.
Well, one of the closest Senate races is in Texas. Democratic state lawmaker James Talarico is running against the state's Republican attorney general, Ken Paxton. Talarico met with voters in a CNN town hall Wednesday discussing a wide range of topics before turning his aim to Paxton.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JAMES TALARICO, U.S. SENATE DEMOCRATIC NOMINEE FROM TEXAS: You may have noticed that I haven't talked about my opponent at all tonight because I don't want people to vote -- I don't want people --
(APPLAUSE)
TALARICO: I don't want people to vote just against Ken Paxton. I want them to vote for me. I want them to know my values and my vision. But the last thing I will say is that we are running against the most corrupt politician in Texas. We have an opportunity in this race not just to defeat the most corrupt politician in Texas. We have an opportunity to defeat this entire corrupt system.
This election is not about left versus right. It's about whether we will have a senator who puts money in your pocket, or a senator who puts money in their own.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHURCH: Well, President Trump will be back in Washington in the day ahead after campaign rallies in Arizona and Montana. He is focusing on boosting turnout in red states and districts. In Arizona the president suggested he could do anything and not lose support from his MAGA base. But a new FOX News poll shows Trump with his lowest approval rating for either term. 36 percent say they approve of his handling of the presidency, 64 percent disapprove.
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The president made several international headlines earlier in Arizona. He said he never intended to send the U.S. military to take Greenland by force, blaming the media for blowing it out of proportion. He also told the crowd that the U.S. was making a fortune from higher oil prices, and he had this to say about the war with Iran.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Their leaders are gone. That's one of the problems. I might have gone too far. I don't know who the hell to deal with. Their first level leaders are gone. They picked a second level. Their second level leaders are gone. They picked the third level. Half of them are gone. They made me promise not to take out any more, and I did.
I promised them. But nobody wants to be the president of the Islamic Republic of Iran. We hear -- we have conversations. We hear them. Who would like to be the president of Iran? Please raise your hand. No, I don't want to be. So I probably went a little too far.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHURCH: Well, joining me now live from Los Angeles, Dan Schnur is an independent political strategist. He's also a professor of politics, communications and leadership at UC-Berkeley and USC.
Good to have you with us.
DAN SCHNUR, PROFESSOR, UC-BERKELEY AND USC: Thank you so much for having me. I appreciate it.
CHURCH: Of course. So with the midterms less than three weeks away, Republicans are in panic mode with previously safe seats looking vulnerable. One of the tightest contests being Texas, where two new polls show Democrat James Talarico statistically tied with Texas Republican Attorney General Ken Paxton, meaning Talarico could change that state blue for the first time in more than 30 years.
So what's your reading of where things stand right now with the midterms in some of these toss-up states?
SCHNUR: Well, the fact that we are talking about the state of Texas less than three weeks before midterm election is extraordinary in itself. As you mentioned a moment ago, Texas has not elected a Democratic senator since 1988. And earlier this year, I would say the Democrats' wildest dreams showed Talarico potentially pulling up an upset in this race. The fact that he's running slightly ahead, or perhaps even, despite being dramatically outspent by his Republican opponent, is really remarkable.
And the fact that both Trump and his vice president, J.D. Vance, have been visiting Texas and spending their precious time before the election in that state, indicates how concerned they are about losing what has been a very, very safe Republican seat for many, many years.
CHURCH: And on the biggest issues for American voters, affordability and the economy, President Trump keeps telling voters he's bringing down oil and grocery prices along with inflation. But that's not what people are seeing at the pump and the checkout counter. And now, of course, the latest inflation figures show it's actually rising faster than expected, to 3.7 percent due to the war in Iran.
How are those mixed messages going to impact how people vote, do you think?
SCHNUR: That has been Trump's and the Republicans' single greatest challenge is voters simply do not believe that prices are coming down. And the so-called affordability debate over gasoline prices, over grocery prices, over housing prices have become without any doubt Trump and the Republicans' single biggest obstacle in this election.
Not just keeping them from winning over swing voters, the undecided voters at the middle of the political spectrum, but it's increasingly clear that Trump's most loyal supporters, his MAGA base, are extraordinarily unmotivated. These are voters who never supported a Democrat for office under any circumstances. But more and more, it appears that they might simply just stay home on election day, which could at least potentially lead to very, very large Democratic gains.
CHURCH: And even as President Trump's approval ratings are at historic lows, with just 33 percent of voters in recent CNN polls, saying they believe he's doing a good job, he's traveling to states he won in 2024, hoping to convince voters to stick with him, telling them to pretend he's on the ballot. But is that helping or hurting Republicans, given his approval ratings?
SCHNUR: Well, if you've noticed the states that Trump has visited, states like Texas, states like Kansas, where he's going on Monday, a state that has not elected a Republican senator since the 1930s, Kentucky, Alaska, Montana, he's visiting the deepest red states and the most conservative areas. Once again, not to persuade his supporters from switching sides, but just to convince them to vote.
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A presidential election in our country is usually determined by which campaign is more successful at persuading undecided voters in the political center. But in the midterms, because turnout is so much lower, the imperative instead becomes turning out and motivating the most loyal supporters. Right now, Trump's base is simply not nearly as motivated as the Democrats, and affordability is one of the main reasons for that lack of motivation and enthusiasm.
CHURCH: All right, we'll see how it all turns out.
Dan Schnur, thank you so much for joining us and sharing your political analysis and perspective ahead of the midterms. Appreciate it.
SCHNUR: Thank you.
CHURCH: Of course.
Well, days after U.S. Representative Ilhan Omar's D.C. area home was searched in an immigration fraud probe, sources tell CNN that the search the Trump administration wanted was unusually aggressive and involved prolonged arguments with the judge. Multiple people familiar with the investigation say the judge went back and forth with prosecutors for days, ultimately limiting how they could access the Minnesota Democrat's documents.
D.C. courts have traditionally upheld expansive protections around legislative work under the Constitution's speech or debate clause. Well, Monday's search was unusual because the DOJ generally avoids investigative activity that could affect an election within 60 days of election day. Omar has denied any wrongdoing and has not been charged with a crime.
Well, Colombia's president is facing opposition on the streets just two months into his term. Opponents of far-right leader Abelardo de la Espriella rallied across the country on Wednesday to push back against his policies. That includes his plans for the minimum wage and a new decree that tries to regulate protests. Some analysts say the opposition held the rallies to set the stage for next year's regional elections.
Well, protesters clashed with police in Albania's capital on Wednesday as nationwide demonstrations over education issues and corruption turned violent. Video shows protesters throwing stones and police using water cannon just a day before police detained several protesters amid a similar demonstration. Albania is the latest of a growing number of countries to see a rise in student-led protests.
Members of India's opposition parties, students and youth groups marched in New Delhi on Wednesday, speaking out over allegations of police brutality against protesters. They have been protesting nearly every day, calling for India's top election official to resign over changes to voter lists they say favor Prime Minister Narendra Modi's party. Take a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This protest will go longer. This will be stronger and Ganesh Kumar will have to resign. Narendra Modi, he will have to be answerable to everything what is happening with the people of India. We are the people of India. We are the youth. We are the future of India. You cannot do these things with the future of India.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHURCH: We can now show you the aftermath of a strike that sank a Singaporean ship in the Strait of Hormuz. Videos verified by CNN show the vessel taking on water before sinking, with a plume of smoke billowing over it. Officials say the container ship GFS Pride was hit by an unknown projectile. Its crew members were safely evacuated. And this satellite image appears to show scattered containers and a small oil slick. Another Singaporean vessel, GFS Giselle, was struck on Wednesday, but it managed to reach safety.
An international maritime tracking group says Iran has hit at least 18 ships over the past two weeks. Analysts say the attacks are part of Tehran's effort to keep oil prices high through the U.S. midterm elections.
Well, there's so much more to come here on CNN NEWSROOM. A new bridge between China and North Korea has finally opened. What the crossing could mean for future ties between the two countries. We're live in the region next.
Plus, Pope Leo shares his first message since having lung cancer surgery. The latest on the pontiff's health, next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
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CHURCH: Incredible images there. Major floods swept through Istanbul on Wednesday after heavy rains across the country. This video shows the flood waters were so powerful a woman fell while trying to cross the street. And bystanders rushed in to keep her from being swept away. In other parts of the city, floodwaters were so high that parked cars became submerged and only the top of the vehicles could be seen.
The floods were caused when a major creek in Istanbul overflowed after heavy rain, causing roads to collapse in two districts in the city. There have been no reports of serious injuries, according to the Associated Press.
And in the U.S., severe weather sparked a huge tornado in west Texas on Wednesday. These are images from Fort Stockton in Pecos County. And you can see the scale of the twister as it looms over homes, fields and businesses.
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An Air India flight from Frankfurt to Delhi was diverted to Jaipur International Airport on Wednesday following a hijack threat. Reports say the passengers left the plane safely and the flight was searched. The incident comes two weeks after an Indian pilot was stabbed by his co-pilot in an alleged attempt to crash a Flydubai plane from Dubai to Tel Aviv.
A long delayed bridge linking China to North Korea opened on Thursday, according to Chinese state media. The two countries held a joint opening ceremony for the New Yalu River Bridge. China completed its side of the bridge in 2014, but North Korea left its side unfinished amid souring relations following Pyongyang's nuclear testing and U.N. sanctions.
Well, joining me now from Seoul is CNN's Gage Goulding.
Good to see you again. So, Gage, what could this bridge mean for future ties between the two countries?
GAGE GOULDING, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes. I think to understand the full concept of this bridge, it's more than just transportation. It's more than just trade. This is a big sign of another trend of warming between Beijing and North Korea. The bridge there, it's been done for more than a decade, but North Korea, not that they weren't able to complete the infrastructure on their side, but rather dragging their feet. We only saw after a state visit to North Korea over the summer that North Korea really accelerated their construction progress on this bridge.
The New Yalu River Bridge costs China about $33 million U.S., and it's a 1.9 mile long bridge, four lanes traveling. And it replaces a bridge that has been around since the 1930s. And at this point is a rail bridge with only one lane of alternating traffic. So this bridge is anticipated to carry roughly 70 percent of bilateral trade between China and North Korea. And by the way, China conducts about 95 percent of all of North Korea's trade.
So this is a very vital area. But some experts warn that this could show two things. The first being that China itself may not really be willing to enforce U.N. sanctions against North Korea. And it could be as kind of tensions rise in the relationship between the U.S. and China and the China and the West is strained more so. So there's that. But also there could be the transportation of sanctioned goods across this bridge.
It's, again, a mega transportation way where China is hopeful that it will increase trade and exchange amongst the two countries, but also amongst the two people and the two cities there of Dandong and Sinuiju, North Korea. So again, this bridge has been more than a decade in the coming, and it just opened officially today, but more so than just trade and transportation. More so a potentially a look at how China and North Korea are cooperating and working together as the relationship continues to blossom.
And I must mention that this is one of more than a dozen bridges across the 1400 miles of border between North Korea and China. But just earlier this month, the first bridge between North Korea and Russia opened.
CHURCH: All right. Our thanks to Gage Goulding for that live report. Appreciate it.
Well, Pope Leo thanked fellow Catholics for their prayers in his first message after undergoing surgery for lung cancer in Rome. The Vatican says the pontiff is recovering as expected and will remain in the hospital for a week. In his message, the pontiff wrote, "I thank you warmly for your prayers and for the work you have done together. Your sharing of experiences and attentive listening are indeed a gift to the whole church. I ask you, please to pray for me as I pray for you."
Well, more now on the Pope's recovery from CNN Vatican correspondent Christopher Lamb.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CHRISTOPHER LAMB, CNN VATICAN CORRESPONDENT: So it's a waiting game here at the Gemelli Hospital as Pope Leo continues his recovery. The crucial thing is the results of the tests that will determine what treatment Pope Leo may need for this lung cancer diagnosis, also if the cancer has spread, and I think that is what everyone is waiting and focused on. The signs, though, are encouraging around Pope Leo's recovery from that surgery that removed part of his right lung and led to that revelation that he has the cancer diagnosis.
He did take part in a celebration of mass here at the Gemelli Hospital on the 10th floor, where the Pope has a special set of rooms. But the bigger picture here is that the news of the Pope's diagnosis has come as a real shock for people in the Vatican. You know, one cardinal said it's like a bolt from the blue. It's something that people are still processing and of course, has alarmed across the Catholic world.
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Pope Leo is expected to travel to Latin America early in November from the 6th to the 17th of the month. But that trip is facing a number of questions. And also, I think the view in the Vatican is this is worrying. I spoke to an Archbishop outside of St. Peter's Square today who'd been in the Vatican for a big meeting that the pope had convened but then couldn't really take part in because of the health problems.
He said he was concerned about it. There's also hope that the pope can recover. He is still relatively young. He is someone in good shape.
So a lot of uncertainty, but also hope that the pope's recovery is progressing well. Christopher Lamb, CNN, Rome.
CHURCH: Investors seem to be growing more skeptical about how long the AI boom will last. U.S. stocks dropped on Wednesday after a hot inflation report fueled concerns that the Fed could raise interest rates again soon. Wall Street was down across the board with the S and P 500 and NASDAQ each posting their worst day since July. Investors are also concerned with China's development of advanced memory chips, which could give Beijing a leg up in the AI race.
OpenAI is facing a new lawsuit from eight U.S. states alleging the company deceived parents about the safety of teens using ChatGPT. The suit, filed in Iowa, claims the chatbot is dangerous to vulnerable users like children. The states are seeking financial penalties and court-ordered safeguards to the platform.
Individual families and other states have previously filed lawsuits against OpenAI. The company rolled out ChatGPT for teens in August with additional protections, but it has already faced criticism from some online safety researchers.
Well, meanwhile, a former OpenAI employee is accused of stealing intellectual property and sharing it with Apple. The company says he used to work for Apple, then joined OpenAI for six months, downloaded more than 100 confidential files to his personal accounts, then went back to Apple and gave a presentation on an unreleased device to Apple's senior leadership.
OpenAI revealed this just a day after announcing that another former employee was arrested and accused of planting a recording device in one of its conference rooms. Apple tells CNN it has not found any evidence that the company was given stolen data and that it's willing to work with OpenAI and on a resolution.
Well, still to come on this hour of CNN Newsroom, an escalation in fighting with Houthi rebels and warnings of a humanitarian crisis in Yemen. Back with that and more in just a moment.
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CHURCH: Now to CNN Exclusive reporting. The White House is considering using the largest non-nuclear bomb in the U.S. Arsenal against Iran. That is according to multiple who spoke exclusively with CNN. They say the so-called mother of all bombs could be used to strike Iran's nuclear sites and energy infrastructure. But multiple sources say it's unclear whether the weapon would achieve the stated U.S. strategic objectives or tip the balance of the war.
One source told CNN President Trump has ordered military leaders to develop options that could include using the bomb. But the source also says the phrasing of the order indicates the admin try to use those strikes to declare victory and pull out of the war.
We're now to Yemen, where the internationally recognized government says it won't negotiate with Houthi rebels or agree to a ceasefire but will instead press ahead with its dawn of Yemen offensive. The country's foreign minister said there can be no lasting peace as long as the Iran-backed Houthis still have weapons. Houthi media posted footage on Wednesday showing what appeared to be military vehicles burning near the Red Sea coast.
Well, the World Food Program warns the renewed fighting and shifting front lines are preventing some 800,000 people from getting humanitarian assistance. And the agency warns more than 18 million Yemenis face acute food security.
Meanwhile, Saudi Arabia is also trading fresh strikes with the Houthis, who have targeted Riyadh and are now claiming responsibility for the recent attack on the Aramco headquarters. The long-running conflict intensified last month after years of relative calm. More now from CNN's Nic Robertson.
NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: If you look at Saudi, big country can't protect everything all the time. Deep pockets, big defense resources can protect a lot, a lot of the time. They do seem to have shifted their focus defensive against incoming Houthi missiles, be they ballistic, cruise or drones. And put more of that emphasis around Riyadh.
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Example, this morning, Riyadh came under ballistic missile attack. All appear to have been intercepted. Debris did fall on the city. There was a civilian injured. There was a house damage. There was a vehicle damage. But it wasn't missiles coming crashing down as appeared to happen at the King Khalid Airport the other day or last night.
However, Aramco, Houthis said they would attack Aramco buildings in Dharan. And this is a very large Aramco facility again, so big place, hard to defend all of it. Houthi missile did appear to get through there.
So I think that speaks to what the Saudis are trying to do. Reorient their defensive mechanisms. Understand that the Houthis are using a sort of a layered approach.
They might use drones ahead of the cruise missiles, ahead of the ballistic missiles, tactics like that, to get through. But what we're hearing from the Houthis, and this is -- and we're going to play a quote here from the military spokesman of the Houthis. They're taking credit for these attacks, and they're vowing more of them. This is what he said.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
YAHYA SAREE, HOUTHI MILITARY SPOKESPERSON (voiceover): The Yemeni armed forces carried out, with God's help, a major military operation targeting Aramco in Dahran, in the eastern area, King Khalid International Airport, and Aramco refinery in Riyadh, using a large number of ballistic and cruise missiles as well as drones. The strikes were accurate, by God's grace, causing destruction and fires at the targeted sites. The Yemeni armed forces confirmed that their operations deep inside
Saudi territory will continue in the coming days by targeting the Saudi enemy's airports and oil facilities. And its consequences on it will be severe, God willing.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERTSON: So I've just listened to a press briefing given by Yemen's Foreign Minister, Afrah Al-Zouba, their first-ever female minister. And she spoke about how the international community is now becoming aware that there's not just a danger inside of Yemen, but a regional danger. Selling weapons into --into the horn of Africa, blocking the Bab al-Mandab, hitting critical shipping in the waterways there. And she was saying that the Yemeni government, the internationally backed Yemeni government, is calling on the international community, be it the United States, be it the Europeans, be it the Japanese whomever, to provide assistance. Assistance with equipment, with training, military training, and with intelligence.
This is what they need. She was also asked a question about are you in talks with the Houthis? And she said, we're not. Right now, we're in a military operation.
The dawn of Yemen to try to take back control the whole of Yemen, she said. The Houthis have shown before that if you don't get a durable, lasting peace, UN Security Council resolution to that point, the war will continue, she said. We don't want to become like Lebanon, where the Houthis become a Hezbollah estate within a state.
So I think we're beginning also to hear now from the internationally recognized Yemeni government making themselves known to the international community what they stand for at this time.
CHURCH: And we have much more coming up on the show, including a look into the world of animal trafficking and why five baby orangutans were found abandoned in India. Back with that and more in just a moment.
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CHURCH: Welcome back, everyone. Authorities in India are investigating possible connections to animal trafficking after five baby orangutans were found abandoned last month thousands of kilometers from Indonesia. CNN's Rhea Mogul has details on how the global wildlife trade is affecting endangered species.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
RHEA MOGUL, CNN SOUTH ASIA REPORTER: A few weeks ago, this image shocked India. Five baby orangutans were found in a forest in Odisha in eastern India. They were thousands of kilometers from home, and they were all alone.
Authorities immediately suspected trafficking, which raised the question who was behind it and how did these animals get here? UNIDENTIFIED MALE: If you find early morning orangutans in Balasore in Odisha, there is no suspicion about trafficking. It is trafficking.
MOGUL: Our investigation showed that the story of these five baby orangutans is one of many in the incredibly lucrative and abusive wildlife trafficking trade.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You gave me the money, I gave you the animals, and yes, that's it.
MOGUL (voiceover): The rainforests of Sumatra and Borneo are the only places on earth where orangutans still live in the wild. But these ancient forests are also often the starting point of a global wildlife trafficking industry. One that rips these animals from their habitat and takes them to markets like these, where they're sold as pets or advertised online in public groups on platforms like Facebook.
CNN spoke to several wildlife sellers online who offered to ship the animals across Asia. One seller said they could deliver a monkey to Mumbai within seven hours. Mehta told CNN it will the groups we found to be selling wild animals against their own policy.
After weeks of searching, we tracked down a former wildlife trafficker whom we'll call Budi (ph), who was willing to tell us about the inner workings of the industry.
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MOGUL: What role did you play in the wildlife trafficking trade?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I do have a role as a seller. I just getting animals from Java, and then the golden cat and the gibbons from the Sumatra.
MOGUL: What's the furthest country that you've sold an animal to online?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: To the United States?
MOGUL (voiceover): Budi says he ran a network of poachers across Indonesia.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The main factor that drives me is yes, it's easy money, right.
MOGUL (voiceover): He paints a picture of a well-oiled machine that he says funnels animals from the jungles of Indonesia to mansions in the Gulf and private zoos in Asia, lining the pockets of corrupt officials along the way.
LIONEL HACHEMIN, GLOBAL DIR. OF WILDLIFE CRIME PROG. INTL. FUND FOR ANIMAL WELFARE: Wildlife Crime is an organized crime, which means there is corruption at every stage. Like any other crimes that is happening. Drug, weapons trafficking, human trafficking.
MOGUL (voiceover): Investigators have been documenting these trafficking routes for years, taking animals on a terrifying journey across several countries.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Some of the animals just died. Yes, many happens in the -- in the transportation, right? We just get rid of the sick and the disease one.
MOGUL (voiceover): After years in the trafficking industry, Budi now works as an informant for a conservation NGO, helping track down the very people he once worked with.
MOGUL: Were you surprised when these five orangutans were found in the forest in India?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What makes me surprised is why these smugglers just leave the baby orangutan there, right? So, I think there is some something maybe happened.
HACHEMIN: It's like if you had some drug traffickers just leaving 500 kgs of cocaine in the middle of the forest in plain sight.
MOGUL (voiceover): A month into an investigation led by a special Indian task force. It's still unclear how these five animals ended up in India. Indonesia has requested the animals be returned to their rightful home.
For now, the babies are at a zoo in India learning the life skills their mothers should have taught them.
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CHURCH: And now, thanks to CNN's Rhea Mogul for that report. Coming up here on CNN Newsroom. An ancient find at the bottom of the Mediterranean. What archaeologists say they have discovered off the coast of Turkey. That's next here on CNN.
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CHURCH: Welcome back, everyone. Well, New York City Council is expected to vote this month to ban horse drawn carriages. Concerns about rider safety and animal welfare are driving the initiative. CNN's Brynn Gingras has the story.
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GRACIE THRASHER, FORTH WORTH, TEXAS: I just like the idea of a carriage. It's like a princess. It's like princess treatment all around the big city.
BRYNN GINGRAS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It's an iconic New York City moment. A horse-drawn carriage ride around Central Park.
AHMET BILICI, CARRIAGE HORSE DRIVER: Are we ready, ladies?
GINGRAS: But now, it's on track to be part of the Big Apple's past. With New York City set to ban the attraction for good. BILICI: This is very popular attraction is one of the best things for New York City.
GINGRAS: Ahmet Bilici has been holding the reins for more than two decades. He, along with other drivers are furious about the ban that would force their horses into retirement and take away the only jobs they know.
BILICI: I don't have a house, I don't have a car, I don't have.
I have only horse carriage and horses over here. This is my life over here.
GINGRAS (voiceover): The clash over carriages is new. They've drawn the ire of animal rights activists for years, and the ban has been considered by the city at least a half a dozen times before.
The most recent attempt comes after an 18-year-old tourist died after being thrown from a runaway horse-drawn carriage last summer. It's believed to be the first known death associated with a carriage ride since the tours began.
GINGRAS: Was that the catalyst for actually making this seem like it's going to move forward this time?
CHRISTOPHER MARTE, NEW YORK CITY COUNCILMAN: I think it put a spotlight on what has been happening. There's been a lot of close calls. There's been horse collapsing. There's been carriages that have been tipped over and drivers being taken out on a stretcher. But that was just a realizing moment of saying enough is enough.
JULIE MENIN, NEW YORK CITY COUNCIL SPEAKER: To have 42 million people a year visit this great park in our wonderful city. But in a very crowded area, these horse carriages were operating and it just is not sustainable anymore.
GINGRAS (voiceover): The proposal supported by Mayor Zohran Mamdani, set to be voted on next week, promises to help the concerned drivers find new work.
ZOHRAN MAMDANI, NEW YORK MAYOR: I think that we have a civic responsibility to ensure that we are not leaving anybody out to drive.
GINGRAS: But you don't trust.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I mean like, yeah, well, the city doesn't follow their own mandates all the time. This is how I've chosen to spend my life is with these magnificent horses.
I love horses. I love history, you know, but then to say like, oh, we'll plug and play, we'll find you, we'll refer you to jobs somewhere. It'll be fine. You know, it's like, no, it's not fine.
GINGRAS: If passed, the ban will take effect in June 2028.
THRASHER: I think I'd be really sad if it was something I wanted to do. And then we came, and it was gone, you know. So I'm glad that I'm getting to do it.
GINGRAS (voiceover): So for now, tourists are still capturing that classic New York City moment. Brynn Gingras, CNN Central Park.
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CHURCH: Archaeologists have found the world's oldest shipwreck off the coast of Turkey. The wreck was found at depths of around 100 feet or 30 meters and dates back about 4,700 years.
Well, a number of ancient storage vessels would be recovered during the excavation. The vessels are thought to have mainly been used to transport olive oil or wine. But distinctive holes suggest some could have been used to make cheese or butter.
Turkey's culture minister says the find is of great importance for understanding ancient trade networks in the region.
I want to thank you so much for your company this hour. I'm Rosemary Church, and we'll be back with more news after a short break. Just stay with us.
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