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Connect the World
Netanyahu Warns Israel Ready for "Intense Action" in the North Amid Exchanges Along Lebanese Border; Veterans Return to Normandy to Mark WWII's Allied Invasion; Day Three of Hunter Biden's Federal Gun Trial; Yellen Warns AI in Finance Poses "Significant Risks"; Djokovic Withdraws from French Open Due to Knee Injury. Aired 9-9:45a ET
Aired June 05, 2024 - 09:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[09:00:00]
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BECKY ANDERSON, CNN HOST, CONNECT THE WORLD: Don't change it in the middle of things. Well, this is the scene in France where President Emmanuel
Macron is holding a tribute to French, resistance fighters on the eve of the 80th anniversary of D-Day. It's 3 pm in Normandy in France, its 5 pm
here in Abu Dhabi in the UAE.
I'm Becky Anderson. You're watching "Connect the World". Also happening this hour, police are investigating a shooting outside the U.S. Embassy in
Lebanon as tensions between Israel and Lebanon hit their highest in months. Nearly 10 years after being acquitted of the murder of her roommate in
Italy Amanda Knox was back in an Italian court earlier.
We're live in Rome to find out why. And the Hunter Biden trial is restarting as we speak the son of the U.S. President facing felony gun
charges. And the markets in New York will open in about 30 minutes from now, looking at the arrows on the futures markets at least. Well it is a
positive look all pointing higher which is a change of course after yesterday's sea of red.
We will check back in at 9:30 Eastern time. We begin with news developing in Lebanon that is indicative of a region on edge. A man has been arrested
after shots were fired outside the U.S. Embassy in Lebanon. That is according to officials there who say the suspect was taken to hospital.
We're hearing the suspect's brother has been detained or coincidentally this happened as the Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu made a visit
near the Lebanese border on the southern side. Of course, more than his country is prepared for intense action there. Let's get more details of
that shooting.
CNN's Ben Wedeman has reported extensively from Lebanon over the years. He joins me tonight out of Rome. What do we know about this search shooting at
this point? What are the details?
BEN WEDEMAN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Becky, we understand that it happened around 8:30 in the morning local time, basically a rush
hour and it appears to have happened in or around what is essentially a makeshift parking lot across the street from the main entrance to the U.S.
Embassy which is not in Beirut.
It's in it hilltop near the town of Awkar, which is north east of the Lebanese capital. We understand that small arms were fired in this incident
that didn't involve one gunman. We've seen video he does seem to be wearing body armor. Now according to the Lebanese army, he has been injured and has
undergone surgery.
We don't know anything about the identity of the gunman himself. But we understand according to the Lebanese official, national news agency that
his brother has been detained as well as another individual simply identified as MJ. The brother and this so called MJ are described as Syrian
nationals.
Now Najib Mikati, the caretaker Lebanese Prime Minister has said an intensive investigation is underway into this incident. The U.S. Embassy
put out a statement saying that all staff was well that the Lebanese security forces and embassy security reacted rapidly to this incident.
There was no damage to the facility itself.
Now, it's important to keep in mind that tensions have been running very high in Lebanon since the seventh of October. In the initial weeks of the
war in Gaza, we saw some very chaotic demonstrations at the hill -- at the bottom of the hill, leading up to the U.S. Embassy where there were some
intense clashes between demonstrators and Lebanese security forces.
And of course, the border between Israel and Lebanon has seen almost daily exchanges of fire between Hezbollah, other Lebanese factions and Israeli
forces on the other side of the border, Becky.
ANDERSON: Ben, you've been in and out of Lebanon since October the seventh. I mean, of course, over the years, you've been in and out of Lebanon,
numerous times very specifically since October the seventh, you spent a lot of time up down on that southern border. And on the other side, of course,
it is the Northern Front as it is known by the Israelis.
[09:05:00]
You're right to point out tensions have been extremely high. Now Benjamin Netanyahu is upping the rhetoric Benny said today and I quote here, whoever
thinks that they can hurt us and that we will sit idly by is making a big mistake. We are prepared for very intense action in the north.
One way or another, we will restore security to the north. Some 100,000 Israelis are displaced, who would normally be living in that region. That's
clearly a real problem for the Israelis. They need to resettle those who've been moved out, and they are inclined to talk about doing that.
But it is very dangerous at this point, just explain the regional climate. And you alluded to this, as we've been speaking, this regional climate in
which this shooting took place.
WEDEMAN: Yeah, it takes place at a time when, for instance, resentment against the United States because of its diplomatic and military support
for Israel and its war in Gaza is quite intense. And the situation on that border is getting more, tense by the day. Now, you mentioned the Israelis
who have been displaced and almost similar number of -- 94,000 Lebanese civilians have been displaced from the southern area of Lebanon.
More than 400 people have been killed. That includes fighters as well as Lebanese civilians as since these hostilities began. Now the United States,
France, Egypt, Qatar, are trying to work out some sort of arrangement on the border to end these hostilities. But we've heard warnings that the
Israelis are running out of patience if these hostilities continue.
The pressure is mounting on the government of Benjamin Netanyahu to do something decisive which many people in Lebanon are reading is an attack, a
large military offensive, Becky.
ANDERSON: So it's good to have you Ben. Thank you very much indeed, Ben Wedeman on the story for you. Well, meantime, Central Gaza is the latest
fast point in Israel's war on Hamas. The Al-Aqsa Martyrs hospital saying 65 people were killed in Deir El-Balah. Women and children are said to be
among the victims.
The strike said to have come overnight as people slept. Israel says it targeted Hamas military facilities. This is the U.S. CIA Chief and Middle
East Envoy head to the region to give a new push to these ceasefire efforts. Mediated Qatar says it's waiting for Hamas to respond to that
proposal outlined by President Joe Biden, last week.
CNN's Nada Bashir joins me now with more. And look, we've got two faces on the screen. So we've got Brett McGurk and Bill Burns, these are two storage
diplomats. These are people who, you know, from the U.S. administration probably know this region of the world better than anybody.
Biden is got his big guns out around the region, once again, trying to affect, trying to use the U.S. heft to affect a ceasefire deal, at present.
But I have to say all of us who are talking to our sources around the region, are well aware that from the Hamas side, they see no guarantees
that this proposal provides a permanent ceasefire.
And that is what they want and from the Israeli side, despite this being sold as an Israeli proposal. Ultimately, we don't have word from the
Israeli side that they are also in any way signed up to this. Aware to things, how much closer if at all, are we to a deal at this point?
NADA BASHIR, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, look, we continue to hear mixed messages from all parties involved with these ongoing negotiations with
officials, of course, in Doha where these talks are continuing to take place. Before last week, President Biden announcing this peace proposal,
this peace plan, as you mentioned, framed in a way that it was an Israeli proposal.
But of course, we have been hearing different statements from Israeli officials, including the Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, no firm
words of support for a lasting and full ceasefire as outlined by the U.S. President. And that is something that Hamas for months now over the course
of this negotiation process has been pushing for that.
They want to see guarantees from the Israeli side, that there will be a lasting ceasefire an end to this war. That is the crucial sticking point.
[09:10:00]
At this stage, we've heard from Israeli official statement there can be no agreement on any kind of prolonged truce or ceasefire without first the
full return of all Israeli hostages held captive by Hamas in Gaza now, under the terms outlined by the U.S. President, there would be three
phases.
And it is during that first phase that we would see some hostages returned in exchange for hundreds of Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli jails.
And that would, the hope would be that that could then lead negotiators to move on to, phase, two. But throughout this process, according to President
Biden, there would be a ceasefire upheld.
And that seems to stand in contrast at this stage to what Israeli officials want to see. And of course, President Biden is facing pressure from
multiple sides, not just the international community where we continue to hear calls for a ceasefire.
And of course, he is also facing criticism and opposition from hardliners within his own cabinet who have said that they will withdraw if the Israeli
Prime Minister agrees to a ceasefire at this stage. They will see the full destruction of Hamas and for a continuation of this war until that point.
ANDERSON: Good to have you. Thank you. Joe Biden clearly upping the ante on efforts to try and secure a ceasefire and hostage deal. He has an awful lot
on his plate. Of course, at present, not least the fact that world leaders today converging on France to mark the 80th anniversary of D-Day on
Thursday, the Allied invasion that led to the defeat of Nazi forces in World War Two.
This hour French President Emmanuel Macron paying tribute to, French resistance fighters and paratroopers. Next hour he will give a speech
honoring the civilian victims of the war, ceremonies over the next two days happening in the shadow of another current war in Europe and that is of
course in Ukraine.
U.S. President Joe Biden arrived earlier in Paris. He's going to meet Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy there while both leaders are in
France. Melissa Bell is in Normandy for us this. What are you seeing there today? And what can we expect, Melissa?
MELISSA BELL, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: As you suggested, Becky, this series or commemorations the 80th anniversary of D-Day that are
likely to be very much tied in with what's happening in the world today and Ukraine because of the presence of Presidents Zelenskyy. For now though,
when we expect President McConnell here shortly to begin his speech.
He began the day earlier in Brittany, Becky, paying homage to the resistors, all sorts of parachutes', who played such an important role in
the success of Operation Overlord, not just coming behind enemy lines, as the Allied Forces made their way on the beaches, but also getting the way
of things like German communication centers and German supply lines up to the coast once D-Day had actually happened.
Of course, also the civilian toll that was borne by France 50 to 70,000 civilians who were killed as a result of the allied bombings that allowed
D-Day to be the success that it was. So of course, these commemorations mean an awful lot to this part of the world. The town that I'm standing in
signed over McConnell due to speak so huge casualties on the night.
Of the 5th to 6th of July, the local population had been worn through leaflets that were dropped by the air but it failed to arrive. Some 2000
civilians were killed in a town that became known as the town of ruins and stayed that way for some four years. These commemorations mean a lot to
people here, but also Becky, to those few surviving American World War Two Veterans who've been able to make the trip.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BELL (voice-over): From the other side of the Atlantic, they returned to the continent they liberated a lifetime ago, some of the last living
American World War Two Veterans struggling with the steps, but not with their memories of June 6, 1944.
ARLESTER BROWN, WORLD WAR II VETERAN: I felt that mankind had lost its way.
BELL (voice-over): 80 years old, the veterans arrived to a hero's welcome and with a distinct twinkle in their eye.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Beautiful day. Nice girls like you, we are satisfied.
BELL: These are the shores where the men landed, taking the first faltering steps towards the liberation of France and of Europe, the very youngest
veterans expected here this week, or 96, which means they were just 16 at the time, and had to lie about their age in order to be allowed to fight.
BELL (voice-over): The first of the more than 100,000 men that landed in Normandy on June 6 came by air, fairy through the darkness into the
unknown.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We took off at 2:30 in the morning, completely blackout takeoff. You remember things like that.
BELL (voice-over): The paratrooper's planes still fly today. The memories of the men who've now passed kept alive on recordings like these.
[09:15:00]
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Everybody was very quiet, no conversation, no jocularity nothing.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I was thought God was with me.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: When the green light went on, we went out right then.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: 18 men are going out that door in 11 seconds.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: -- in my mind.
BELL (voice-over): But even for those who survived, the cost has been unimaginable.
NEAL MCCALLUM, WORLD WAR II VETERAN: My mother and father gave -- my four elder brothers. We lost one and he's buried in Lorraine.
BELL: Beyond those few returning here this week, the last living witnesses of what happened here, the 80th anniversary of D-Day is mainly about those
who never left.
BELL (voice-over): Their memory honored with -- taken from the beaches where they landed and died, for the freedom of people they'd never met in a
country they'd never seen.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BELL (on camera): Now Becky, we're going to hear from President Biden himself, of course, at the ceremony tomorrow at that cemetery you just saw
in that piece, and what we expect to hear from the President is very much reminder of the historical line that is to be drawn between what happened
on D-Day, the Cold War and what is now being done in Ukraine, Becky.
ANDERSON: Thank you, Melissa -- good to have you. Well, their murder trial gripped to the world's attention nearly two decades ago, and in the last
few hours, Amanda Knox was back in an Italian court where a slander conviction stemming from that same murder case was upheld.
This time, Knox was charged with falsely accusing her former boss of killing her roommate, Meredith Kercher in 2007. Now, you may recall, Knox
herself spent four years in an Italian prison after she was found guilty of murdering Kercher before later being acquitted. CNN's Barbie Latza Nadeau
is live in France.
And it takes me back. I remember being there covering that story all those years ago, and now she was back in court once again, what does this ruling
mean for Knox? And does this potentially mean? She could spend more time in prison.
BARBIE NADEAU, CNN REPORTER: Well, that's one thing. We do know that she will not go back to prison on this particular charge. She's already served
for three years they sentenced her, when she served four years for her original conviction that was, as you mentioned, overturn.
What it does, though, was very disappointing for her because she was hoping to clear her name of all charges related to the murder of Meredith Kercher.
She went all the way up to the European Court of Human Rights, who ruled that Italy violated her rights, which is why this case was opened up again,
which is why we had the hearing that ended today.
And she gave really, you know, heartfelt testimony in Italian. You know, she hasn't been in Italy now, since 2012. But in Italian, she spoke to
those judges today in her testimony, saying that she was just a young woman with an existential crisis, going through incredible stress.
She was you know, her home she had become homeless because of the crime scene was in her home. She had all of these things going on. And so that is
why she falsely accused her boss of the murder. She was under the stress. She had written a hand written sort of memorial or a diary entry in which
this particular jury and to judge panel considered to see whether or not she really didn't mean to accuse him of the murder.
You have to remember Patrick, remember the man she accused spent two weeks in prison. Innocent man was released them because there was absolutely no
evidence against a really good day. A man from the Ivory Coast ended up being convicted of the crime serving 13 years. He's out of prison already.
And yet the case of Amanda Knox still goes on. She has the right to appeal and her lawyers hinted that that's exactly what they'll do, Becky.
ANDERSON: Remarkable stuff. It's good to have you. Thank you. Well, still to come on CNN President Biden son Hunter is back in court for day three of
his federal gun trail and we'll get you there live to Delaware after this short break. Stay with us.
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[09:20:00]
ANDERSON: Well, on the Biden's federal gun trial is picked up again this hour in Wilmington in Delaware. Right now jurors are listening to cross
examination of FBI Special Agent Erika Jensen. And Biden's ex-wife Kathleen Buhle is expected or is likely to take the stand today.
On Tuesday, prosecutors and defense attorneys laid the groundwork for both sides of the case whether Biden illegally purchased a gun while addicted to
drugs. Well the U.S. President's son has pleaded not guilty to all three federal charges against him. CNN's Evan Perez joins us from outside the
courthouse in Wilmington. We've had a couple of days of this, just sort of -- can you just give us a sense of what we've heard and what we can expect
as the trial enters day three?
EVAN PEREZ, CNN SENIOR U.S. JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT: One of the things that we're seeing, Becky, is that prosecutors are trying to overwhelm the jurors
with just the voluminous evidence really that they have to show that Hunter Biden was struggling with drug addiction that he bought drugs.
They showed his infamous laptop, they introduced evidence of text messages with people who they say sold him drugs, him talking about drugs, photos,
of drug paraphernalia, and of course pictures of the gun.
And one of the things that the prosecution is trying to do is to show jurors that Hunter Biden knew he was struggling with addiction and
therefore lied when he filled out the form in order to buy -- to go through the background check in order to buy the firearm back in October of 2018.
What they don't have is any evidence to show that on the day he bought the gun on October 12, 2018, that he was on drugs that day.
And that's where you have the defense at this moment -- the trial just began again this morning. And the Defense Attorney Abbe Lowell, he's
driving home the point that there is no evidence to show that on that day, he was on drugs that a lot of the evidence that prosecution has is from
text messages that are months before months after and of course, he was struggling with drug addiction.
We've seen of course, some -- a lot of emotion with them playing on hour of Hunter Biden's own audiobook and trying to use his own words against him.
And the point there is to show for -- is to show that jurors that Hunter Biden knew all along that he had been struggling with the sickness
obviously.
We expect as you pointed out that his ex-wife, Kathleen Buhle, will take the stand at some point today. What prostitution is going to use her
testimony just to show that she found drugs -- that she found drugs in the home while they were married, perhaps in the presence where their children
might be able to find them.
And again, that is to drive home the point that he is someone who knowingly broke the law when he bought this firearm. We expect that she is the first
of three exes with women he was involved when during this period who will take the stand again that should happen later today, Becky.
[09:25:00]
ANDERSON: Thank you, sir. Well, new immigration, new restrictions ordered by U.S. President Joe Biden and are in effect is executive order, bars
migrants who cross the Southern U.S. border illegally from seeking asylum. Mr. Biden is trying to get an upper hand on the issue of immigration just
weeks away from the first presidential debate.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: Today, I'm moving past Republican obstruction and usually the executive authority is
available me as President to do what I can on my own to address the border.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON: This shows the millions of migrant encounters that the Southern U.S. border since the President took office. Arlette Saenz joins us live
from the White House. What's been the reaction to this executive order so far? After all, many of his critics are saying you're just taking a leaf
out of what is ultimately Donald Trump's immigration playbook here.
ARLETTE SAENZ, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Yeah, Becky, the reaction to President Biden's executive action relating to the border really has been
mixed. Yesterday, he was joined here at the White House by some Democrats, mayors who represent cities along the U.S. southern border, as well as
other Democratic lawmakers, including Senator Mark Kelly, who's from Arizona, a key border state.
They were issuing praise for Biden's order. But then there you have Republicans who are essentially saying that this is too little too late.
You also have seen progresses within President Biden's own party who have said that he is simply adopting the same policies that former President
Donald Trump tried to use when he was in office.
It's worth noting that the Biden administration is trying to tap into a preexisting authority that Trump had tried to use back in 2018. Democrats
decried it at the time, and it ultimately was struck down in the courts. But President Biden yesterday basically said that he had no choice, he
needed to act. And this is the response he gave to his critics.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BIDEN: For those who say the steps I've taken are too strict. I say to you that, be patient and good will of the American people are going to we --
are wearing thin right now. Doing nothing is not an option. We have to act.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SAENZ: Now the Biden administration is also well aware that there could be legal challenges a senior administration official yesterday said that they
weren't prepared for those types of challenges across the political spectrum. Yesterday, you have an ACLU say that they plan to sue the Biden
administration over this executive action.
But ultimately, administration officials argue that they do believe they have the legal standing to ensure that this plan can continue in the months
to come.
ANDERSON: This is a real hot button issue for the United States and we expect to hear more on it as the days and weeks go by. Thank you. In the
most populous country on the planet Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi wins a rare third term in office but with a much smaller margin than he had
hoped for.
The final results from India's election show Mr. Modi's BJP secure 240 seats falling short of the number needed to secure an outright majority in
parliament. That means he is now reliant on long standing local coalition partners to keep him in government. Well, still to come as investors
scramble to cash in on the artificial intelligence boom.
U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen is poised to deliver a new warning about the technology on our financial systems, more on that coming up.
Plus, fingers crossed at Cape Canaveral after two failed attempts the Starliner mission preps for a blast off. We will go live to that and these
are live pictures as we speak at 28 minutes past 9, local time, after this.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[09:30:00]
ANDERSON: Welcome back. I'm Becky Anderson in Abu Dhabi. You're watching "Connect the World" wherever you're watching you're more than welcome.
Let's have a look at the opening numbers then on Wall Street. We are couple of minutes in the bell has sounded and this is the state.
The market some relatively strong earnings numbers set out today propping up these markets. It's still a really sort of mixed view as to what the Fed
does next on interest rates. But today some very specific news helping prop up these markets. And we are closely monitoring new warnings about the
artificial intelligence in the financial sector.
U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen says AI offers tremendous opportunities. She also worries it could introduce new dangers and
significant risks to our financial systems. She will address those concerns in her most extensive remarks to date on the subject at a conference on
Thursday in front of banking and tech executive.
CNN's Matt Egan joins us now from New York. And Yellen's speech excerpts were shared first with CNN. So what do we understand to be her position
here, just explain?
MATT EGAN, CNN REPORTER: Well, Becky, this technology is evolving so rapidly, we've got these tech companies locked in an AI arms race, Wall
Street firms, they are embracing and adopting AI and regulators. They're worried about what could go wrong. And so Janet Yellen, in this speech on
AI, she does plan to discuss how this technology does offer, quote, tremendous opportunities, but also significant risks in terms of AI in the
financial sector.
She's going to lay out some of her major concerns, including what's known as a black box risk, which is that we don't really know how a lot of these
AI models work, which makes it impossible to know how safe they are and how safe they'd be when they're introduced into the financial system.
Another concern is crowded trades. If a lot of players are using the same AI data models, we could have a situation where everyone's reacting the
same way in the financial markets, and that could really amplify moves up and down. There's also this risk about bias models that she plans to
address, which could obviously be concerned when it comes to decision making.
And then it was interesting that the excerpts don't say that Yellen will address this problem where some AI models have a tendency to make stuff up
in a really believable way. It's known as hallucinations. It's a problem that has gotten some lawyers in trouble because they've cited case law that
just did not exist.
Now, regulators including Yellen, they recently designated AI as an emerging vulnerability to the financial system. Yellen tomorrow plans to
say that AI has moved toward the top of the regulatory agenda. But she's also going to talk about some of the positives, some of the opportunities
here.
And note that AI is already been used by investors and others and finance for forecasting for fighting fraud, also to power customer support.
[09:35:00]
And then in the future, some of these advancements in AI could help lower costs and make finance even more accessible. Janet Yellen herself uses and
has experimented with some of these AI ChatBots. That's according to a Treasury official. And we know that Treasury and the IRS, they've turned to
AI and tomorrow, Yellen plans to say for the first time.
The Treasury officials are working with the private sector to understand how AI could be used to address sanctions evasion, money laundering, and
even terror financing, Becky.
ANDERSON: This is all such important stuff. And we sort of hover around the outsides that we waiting for those who are supposed to know to protect us
on the one hand and to allow this technology to do its stuff for good going forward. It's always good to have you Matt, thank you. We are about and I'm
sure Matt keeping an eye on this as well.
An hour or so away from a history making space launch after a series of delays. NASA will try for a third time to launch Boeing's Starliner space
craft with a crew onboard. Now these two astronauts are headed for the International Space Station where the conditions 90 percent favorable were
told for this morning's launch.
This has been 10 years in the making as Boeing developed a spaceship to compete with Space X. Well CNN's Space and Defense Correspondent Kristin
Fisher joins me from Florida. Kristin, let's just start with how this is looking. Are we on time for a launch at this point?
KRISTIN FISHER, CNN SPACE & DEFENSE CORRESPONDENT: So far Becky, all systems are going for launch. You can see the countdown clock just behind
me where exactly 1 hour and 15 minutes away. The weather looks good. 90 percent favorable, none of those high winds that we saw during that second
scrub attempt on Saturday.
And then in terms of the rocket itself, I think it's important for everybody to remember that even though this is a Boeing Starliner
spacecraft. I've got a little model here though, model here that will help explain things. It's a slightly outdated, Becky, so bear with me, but this
is the only part that's made entirely by Boeing.
This is the Boeing Starliner spacecraft. This is where the two NASA astronauts Suni Williams and Butch Wilmore are right now the hatches just
closed. There were no problems with the Boeing Starliner spacecraft on Saturday during that second scrub ordering the first scrub back in early
May.
This is the United Launch Alliance's Atlas V rocket, different company. This is what propels the Boeing Starliner spacecraft in this space. There
was an issue with this part of it called the Cygnus. And there was an issue with this part back in May during the first scrub but what happened on
Saturday, Becky, had nothing to do with any of this.
The hardware was perfectly fine. The issue was with a troublesome ground computer. They have since fixed it and they say they are going for launch.
So Becky, as of now all systems go.
ANDERSON: We are back to you in the next hour. So it was good to have Kristin in the house and it is on a regular basis that we say just got the
best job in the business. Stay right where you are. We'll come back to you. Still ahead, it was a tough decision but Novak Djokovic unfortunately was
forced to take it or fortunately for him. We'll tell you why the tennis champion is out of the French Open.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[09:40:00]
ANDERSON: Well, it is a huge disappointment for French tennis fans. But one of the crowd favorites is out. Novak Djokovic was aiming to win his 25th
Grand Slam title but that is now not going to happen. He has knee trouble. It's kind of been an easy decision for him. Amanda Davies joining us now,
what do we know at this point?
AMANDA DAVIES, CNN WORLD SPORT: Well, I think, Becky, I think what we've come to realize it's a decision that wasn't a decision. It was taken very
much out of his hands and reports suggesting that Novak Djokovic is undergoing surgery on his right knee on Wednesday after tearing his
meniscus.
He said in his fourth rounds encounter that he'd been struggling with his knee for some time. But as you saw from those pictures there, he's slipped
and made things worse. He was taking medication that helps him get through the match. But he walks off court and said he was very much going to need
to assess the situation.
Scans showed that it was far more serious than he initially thought. And so what it means is there are now serious question marks about what happens
next. Will he be fit for Wimbledon? Will he be fit for the Olympics, which we know is an event that means so much to him? He's very boldly said he
wants to get that gold medal around his neck.
So really disappointing news for him and his fans, brilliant news though, for Jannik Sinner, who as a result has become Italy's first ever men's
tennis world number one. He's booked his place in the semifinals, but of course still looking to go that step further.
ANDERSON: More than that, coming up in "World Sport" of course with Amanda, I'll be back in about 15 minutes time. Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[09:45:00]
(WORLD SPORT)
END
