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First Move with Julia Chatterley

Authorities to Arrest Impeached S. Korean President; Investigators Moved Into President Yoon's Residence; New Orleans Attack 100 Percent Inspired by ISIS. Aired 6-7p ET

Aired January 02, 2025 - 18:00   ET

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

[18:00:00]

JEREMY CHAN, SENIOR ANALYST FOR CHINA AND NORTHEAST ASIA, EURASIA GROUP: Constitutional Court has gotten ahead of the other courts proceeding. It

looks like they're going to seek you and the rest imminently.

RICHARD QUEST, CNN BUSINESS EDITOR-AT-LARGE AND CNN ANCHOR, QUEST MEANS BUSINESS: Now, why -- I mean, we're obviously dealing with the minutiae

here of the separation of powers within South Korea and the constitutional question of constitutional issues versus prosecutorial issues. But why

would you think the prosecutors would sort of, I see no evil, I hear no evil, I'm going to proceed regardless of constitutional matters?

CHAN: Well, so there's a political element to this as well, right? Partly the opposition party here, which stands to win the next presidential

election, which will follow 60 months after Yoon is officially removed from office by impeachment, that's led by a fellow named Lee Jae-myung. And Mr.

Lee is facing his own sort of legal issues as well. And he would like to secure that election victory and enter into the presidential office so he

would be immune from those, you know, sort of legal challenges. Otherwise, he may also be invalidated for participating in the next election. So,

there's a bit of a race against time here that's happening on the left to get Yoon out of office as soon as possible.

QUEST: But that assumes that the judges that issued the arrest warrant, well, I don't want to say were biased or one side -- or maybe I am saying

they're biased. I mean, that's exactly what I'm saying, that when push came to shove, they voted -- they granted this warrant for political reasons.

CHAN: Well -- so, there's a political element to this as well. There's also a procedural element. And frankly, the legal standing for what the

Corruption Investigation Office is trying to do by arresting Yoon is pretty solid now. They're allowed to prosecute a sitting president only on one

charge, and that's insurrection.

Well, lo and behold, on December 3rd, what Yoon try to engage in was arguably insurrection by declaring martial law and trying to sort of, you

know, deny normal legislative powers of the National Assembly. So, if you're sitting on the sole municipal court and this case comes before you,

there are pretty strong legal grounds to grant the detention warrant and that's following, mind you, three summonses that were previously issued

over the last two weeks for Yoon to go and cooperate with this investigation and answer their questions in a more sort of civil manner. He

has resisted all those summonses, refused to receive them. Hence, he sort of forced the hand of the CIO to go after him in more aggressive manners.

QUEST: What is his reason for refusing to go in? Because, I mean, if he is still the sitting president, albeit impeached, but not removed, then surely

it's incumbent upon him to cooperate with the authorities.

CHAN: So, Yoon had signaled that he will, when the time comes, go before the Constitutional Court and plead his case and justify why declaring

martial law on December 3rd was within his sort of presidential prerogative. This separate criminal investigation, he believes to be

fundamentally invalid. Why? Because it's being prosecuted by the sort of anti-corruption of high official's office, which doesn't normally have

legal purview over insurrection charges.

So, he says that this office shouldn't have the prosecutorial authority to go after him on these charges. And mind you, Yoon himself is a former head

of the prosecutorial services. So, this is a legal area in which he is deeply steeped and he believes is fundamentally illegitimate that this

action is being brought against him.

QUEST: There is -- there are fears -- and certainly one doesn't want to forecast it, but there are fears that if the police were to move against

Yoon, which would arguably be highly unwise, bearing in mind, you know, there are a large number of people who are likely to take badly and there

could be argy party and there could be fisticuffs.

CHAN: Absolutely. There are currently 2,700 police standing outside of his residence, in additional to what appeared to be at least tens of thousands

of pro-Yoon supporters. So, you have five vehicles that belong to the CIO. Mind you, these are not police officers, these are authorities that work

for the investigatory office, who are trying to detain him and bring him in for questioning. The question is whether they will get access. So, far,

they're being barred from access to the presidential office, and the presidential security services, meanwhile, have vouchsafed to protect Yoon

from this sort of incursion.

So, you really have a sort of unstoppable force about to collide with an immovable object, and we're about to, we're about to see this play out over

the next couple hours.

QUEST: Now, I don't know, you just said something very interesting, well, another way, which is, Yoon is still being protected by the South Korean

equivalent of the Secret Service.

CHAN: Correct.

[18:05:00]

QUEST: Now, their job is to -- their -- I'm just -- I'm making this up as I go along, with the same logic and argument that we had with President

Trump, with his Secret Service. Their argument will be, well, we are here to protect against somebody harming the president. But if the corruption

people come up and say, well, we have a warrant here for his arrest, we need to take him in, and we will do so come what may, they would be -- I

mean, you know, we're entitled to take him in. It would be putting both sides in an impossible position.

CHAN: Absolutely. And it's President Yoon who's really forcing this issue by not cooperating. So, you're absolutely right. If you are on the

frontlines right now, and you are one of the members of the equivalent of the Secret Service for Yoon, you have two competing and conflicting orders

here. One is to protect the President from, you know, unlawful search and seizure. The other is a search warrant or a detention warrant that was

issued by the Seoul Municipal Court.

So, how are they going to adjudicate those competing claims? You'd think the Supreme Court at some point would rule on this, but I've not seen any

reports in South Korea that a ruling such as that is imminent. Hence the constitutional crisis that we're finding ourselves in.

QUEST: Stay with me, Jeremy, because I'm just going to go back to our Mike Valerio, who is in Seoul at the moment. And, Mike, we're hearing reports

that they are -- they have entered the house, or at least the authorities have entered the house. Are you hearing -- local media is reporting this,

we can't confirm. But I mean, they usually write on these sort of things, so tell me what you know.

MIKE VALERIO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It's coming from Yonhap News, which is the equivalent of the Associated Press here in South Korea. And they're saying

that investigators from the Corruption Investigation Office have now moved into the residence. But Jeremy and you are absolutely 100 percent correct

to lay out and set the table as you did.

We still have the open question of whether or not the presidential guards will allow suspended President Yoon to be taken into custody by a different

law enforcement agency. This is the first time this has happened here in South Korea. And there was a cryptic note that was put out by the

Presidential Guard Security Service, which said earlier in the week that they will follow procedures through due process, yada yada, very much

paraphrasing, especially the yada yada.

But it was very much a note that conveyed that they were going to wait and see and not definitively committing to handing over the suspended

president. So, it seems as though, Richard, police overnight, as protesters seem to dwindle in number, set up a new perimeter, somehow, around the

residents of suspended President Yoon Suk Yeol and are now having the Corruption Investigation Team go in through that way.

So, what we're waiting to see in the next few minutes, if we get the shot of suspended President Yoon coming out to the nation in handcuffs or held

by corruption investigators on route to a couple minutes south of the city to a detention center to answer questions about why he declared martial law

a month ago tonight.

QUEST: This is -- the way this would normally be done, of course -- I mean, and again, I'm going to draw on the experience that we had with President-

Elect Trump during his criminal -- sorry, during his trial where there were issues -- or during the hearings where there were issues of if convicted

the arrangements that would need -- and imprison, the arrangement that would need to be made and were being discussed between the various

corrections officers and the Secret Service.

You would have thought this would have been happening here at the same time. You know, we're going to need to take him in. You're going to have to

let us take him in. We understand you've got security requirements but it's got to be done.

VALERIO: But it seems as though, from our reporting and our institutional knowledge being here in Seoul, that the people who are guarding South Korea

suspended president, many of them are loyal to him, Richard. So, they're not going to perhaps so easily say, OK, corruption investigators, you're

here. Here's Yoon.

When you have people who are charged with guarding South Korea's elected president, albeit a suspended one, we could see tension and this dragging

on for hours about whether or not they're going to give him up. We don't have any reporting and there is no understanding as far as we can tell

between these law enforcement buckets of how to hand over suspended President Yoon.

QUEST: Stay with me. Absolutely. Mike, I just want to go back to Jeremy for one quick question. Jeremy, senior analyst at Eurasia Group. I realize this

might sound like a question of the bleeding obvious, but I want you sort of to get a real feeling for it.

[18:10:00]

How much of a crisis is this in South Korea? Bearing in mind people are going to go to work, people are -- the trains are going to run, money will

spit out of the ATM, the movies will -- shall be shown in the cinemas, groceries will still be bought. So, how much of a crisis is this in South

Korea now?

CHAN: I mean, in South Korea's modern history, we're still at somewhere near 9 or 10, 10 out of 10. I would say the crisis is slightly lower than

it was when Yoon declared martial law for those six hours on December 3rd. Insofar as we now actually have an acting president, it's not Yoon, his

powers have been suspended and the direction of travel is pretty clear. He will be removed from office. He will likely serve a lengthy term in prison,

and there will be follow on presidential elections, institutions will survive and the longer-term political trajectory for South Korea remains

relatively neutral, but the short-term trajectory is incredibly unstable.

QUEST: The charge will be insurrection, correct?

CHAN: Yes. I mean, there might be additional charges as well, but that will be the principal one, correct.

QUEST: But he -- what is -- and, Mike Valerio, I've lost him. He could come in on this as well. If he was president, what is fundamentally the

accusation that he did not have the right or authority to do to declare martial law because that is something that had to be done by parliament, is

that basically it?

CHAN: No. So, the president has the authority to declare martial law, but it's meant to be used in the event of a national security emergency, an

attack by North Korea, some sort of -- you know, some sort of natural disaster, et cetera. What he tried to do was use that as a justification to

go and send military helicopters to essentially lock the National Assembly, forbid lawmakers from entering and voting to invalidate the measure and in

the process, essentially make a power grab and potentially imprison some of the opposition leaders.

QUEST: Mike, how did he think he was going to get away with it?

VALERIO: I don't know. I mean, to be frank, I don't know. And there is the subtext or the subplot I could add to Jeremy's analysis that in the event

of a declaration of martial law here in South Korea, if you're the president, you're supposed to notify the entire cabinet. And that night,

when we were on the streets in front of the National Assembly, Richard, there were members galore of the cabinet saying, I don't know what's going

on, I didn't hear about this.

QUEST: Right.

VALERIO: So, that is one of the subplots of both investigators, prosecutors, and members of the Democratic Party opposition saying, this

guy was nuts, and he absolutely declared this in an illegal fashion.

QUEST: So, if you take the scenario we are in now, and it's a question, firstly to you, Jeremy, and then again to you, Mike, who is the person who

can pour the necessary oil on the waters here? Who can de-escalate, who can bring this down to a manageable level, do you think? First you, Jeremy, and

then, Mike, just pick up.

CHAN: I would say there's multiple folks who could do that. One would be acting President Choi Sang-mok, who's the finance minister and wields the

acting presidential authority. He could come out and definitively put his thumb on the scale and say, I support the detention of President Yoon given

his -- you know, his inability to respond to previous summonses.

You could also see action by the opposition leader, Mr. Lee, who I referenced earlier, who could also come out and give a more unifying

message to the country and say, everybody, we need to call on stability until we can hold a legitimate presidential election. You also finally

could see the Supreme Court rule on the sole municipal court ruling to say, in fact, this is the law of the land and President Yoon does need to give

himself over to the authorities.

QUEST: Mike?

VALERIO: I would agree with Jeremy. If I may, Richard, I think that Choi Sang-mok, the acting president here in South Korea, could position himself

to be a unifying figure, especially -- I mean, he's only been on the job since Friday, which is crazy to say in the context of all that's happened.

And when we're looking at Muan, the site of the horrible plane crash which claimed 179 lives, so many across South Korea have given him relatively

high marks for throwing all of these resources at the crash site.

When we were there two days ago, you saw members of the military combing the field for body parts no resource spared, bringing in the United States,

for example, to figure out what exactly happened. And I think that a lot of people here understand that Choi Sang-mok, the acting president, never

expected that he was going to be in this position.

[18:15:00]

He's not exactly a political figure in the sense that he's kind of a technocrat. So, not somebody who people would expect to launch a campaign

for his own, you know, rise in political fortune. So, I would say him and maybe not Lee Jae-myung, who Jeremy was talking about, for the second

contender, because he's the leader of the opposition and a lot of people see him as a criminal, their words, not mine. He's been under

investigation. He still is under investigations of some sort. So, I would think the current acting president or perhaps the speaker of the National

Assembly could position themselves as unifying figures in this moment.

QUEST: So, in the next hour or so, I believe the markets will open in South Korea unless you're going to tell me it's a holiday of some sort that I'm

not aware of, and one would imagine that -- Jeremy, that investors are looking at this and wondering what on earth happens.

CHAN: Yes, correct. Yes, I think that you're going to see the markets sell off. I think you're going to see the currency weaken. It's already at 15-

year lows. The business confidence obviously is going to plummet as well. With that said, I think once you get past the short-term disruption, I

actually think there's relatively smooth sailing.

QUEST: How easy is it, Mike, for the North to really start kibbutzing, to you to mix my metaphors, and to really start, you know, causing mischief?

VALERIO: It could be easy, but they're not, which is a fascinating point. And I'm so glad you brought that up. When December 3rd happened into

December 4th, the six-hour period of martial law, there were a lot of concerns that North Korea would shell Yeonpyeong Island like they did in

December 2010 or November and December 2010, create some ruckus.

But North Korea hasn't done anything. They have perhaps published one, maybe two editorials that some people see in their English language and

Korean language newspapers saying that everything is a mess down here in democratic South Korea. But in this moment, Richard, North Korea is trying

to position itself as the grown up on the Korean peninsula, which, again, is a crazy thing to say. And yet, here we are in 2025 saying it.

They are newly aligned with Russia. Kim Jong Un is trying to position himself on the international stage as a credible world leader, somebody who

is involved in the conflict with Ukraine, who is backed by Russian money now. So, they are trying to position themselves as an adult figure on the

Korean peninsula when all this craziness is happening.

So, to answer your question, it could be easy for them to start kibbutzing and making fun of South Korea, but they're not really doing it.

QUEST: All right. We will take a break. When we come back, we'll get more on this and work out exactly where this is going in a moment.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[18:20:00]

QUEST: Extraordinary events to bring to your attention. It's morning in South Korea. It's coming up 20 past 8:00 in the morning. And there in

Seoul, the capital, the authorities are reportedly trying to arrest the impeached President Yoon on charges of insurrection and abuse of power.

We'll understand how, why, and what.

But first, Mike Valerio, who's in Seoul, brings us up to date on the very latest. Mike, what is happening?

VALERIO: Well, Richard, we are waiting to see whether or not suspended President Yoon will cooperate with this detention warrant. And why this is

so important for all of our viewers around the world to know is that this has never happened here in this bastion of democracy in East Asia. There's

never been somebody sitting as president who has been detained or arrested by law enforcement.

So, there would be so many people who would say this is democracy functioning, holding an elected leader accountable for a martial law, which

was declared a month ago tonight in the 10:00 p.m. local time hour of December 3rd, six hours later into the early morning hours of December 4th.

What we're seeing right now is directly related to that, with South Korea's Corruption Investigation Office, different branch of law enforcement from

the regular police, bringing -- trying to bring in the suspended president for questioning related to why he declared martial law, was he trying to

initiate some sort of power grab?

We have reporting here at CNN saying that based on the indictment of his former defense minister, the now suspended president, Yoon Suk Yeol, whose

residence we see in these live pictures, ordered the potential for shots to be fired if lawmakers here in Seoul, South Korea did not accede to his

demand that the functions of parliament be suspended. So, the functioning of democracy is very much on the line right here.

But why this is so contentious, Richard, and for all of our viewers just joining us, this may not be just investigators go in and arrest the

suspended president who the assembly has voted to impeach. This could be so many supporters of Yoon trying to block the detention of South Korea's

suspended president.

It looks like, based on reporting from Yonhap News, which is analogous to the Associated Press here in South Korea, has said that corruption

investigators have entered the property, but we are waiting, Richard, wrapping up here, for the shot of Yoon Suk Yeol, the elected president of

South Korea, albeit suspended, coming out held by investigators en route about an hour south of here for questioning and to be detained.

QUEST: All right. I just want to clarify one point. When President Park Geun-hye was arrested and I assume she was out of office by then and all of

that took place afterwards. She was, of course, was arrested, convicted, retried, served a sentence, then pardoned, and actually, attended the

inauguration of President Yoon.

VALERIO: Yes, that's right. And to add more symmetry to that tableau, President Yoon was one of the people who called for that impeachment

investigation. So, that is one of the more surprising storylines that we have. Somebody who was a rising prosecutor who found himself at the top of

law enforcement ranks in South Korea coming to power on that platform of holding the powerful accountable, and now, he finds himself here. That is

one of the crazy tributaries of where we find ourselves here in South Korea.

QUEST: We're going to talk to Sydney Seiler, but you'll come back the moment there's something to report, or the moment there's a development.

Please come back to me immediately, Mike, and we'll take you straight away.

[18:25:00]

Sydney Seiler is with me from the Center for Strategic and International Studies. Sydney I won't go through your bio other than to say you've spent

the last 40 years studying one bit of career or another bit of career. So, you're certainly the man for the moment. What do you make of what you're

seeing at the moment?

SYDNEY SEILER, CENTER FOR STRATEGIC AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES AND SENIOR ADVISER, CSIS KOREA CHAIR: Well, the developments over the past few hours

were somewhat expected. We've heard this, you know, preparation for delivery of the summons and for -- by the Corruption Investigative Office

to bring President Yoon in for questioning.

I think what -- you know, having been in Korea for the 2017 events when Park Geun-hye was impeached and that was sustained, there was a process

which somewhat is mirrored with what's going on now. In other words, people in line -- at that time, there was just simply one acting president. They

didn't go ahead and impeach that other acting president. And there was a methodical moving through a constitutional process. This is a little

different this now.

There was a sense of -- different this time. There's a sense of urgency in trying to push this process ahead. Part of it is driven by domestic

politics, wanting to rush the election before the opposition leading candidate, likely leading candidate gets arrested and would therefore be

ineligible for running for president. So, there's this investigation on top of the other process.

QUEST: Can I just take that tributary for one second? So, the lead of the opposition is also under investigation for, what, corruption? What's his

problem?

SEILER: There is -- you know, in Korea, I mean, there's a saying, you shake any blanket and dust comes out, right? So, everybody's got a little bit of

dirt on them that they share. And they've been pursuing these corruption charges and these even possible violation of sanctions in terms of actions

that Lee Jae-myung took well. He was at the provincial governor of the province that surrounds Seoul, essentially in some of the things he was

trying to do with North Korea at the time.

So, there's a number of these accusations, and the trial is still underway, and it's unclear. You know, it's like a race for time. If they can get

President Yoon out of office quickly, then Lee Jae-myung, the candidate, can run for president. If the Constitutional Court is -- drags its feet

any, they could lock up the opposition leader before an election is held, and that seems to be the purpose of, you know -- go ahead.

QUEST: Is it -- yes. i mean, I'm glad you've just got to the bottom of that. Are you saying it is as naked and blatant and brazen? I mean, whether

or not Yoon was going to be arrested for this -- for insurrection and the martial law, are you saying that it is being prosecuted with the rapidity

with a view to getting him out so the deadlines for elections start to kick in so there can be an election where the opposition would win, thus putting

the opposition leader as president and therefore, he can't be arrested? Is that the gist of it?

SEILER: Sure. In all fairness, let me argue their position, which is Korea is in a state of chaos and uncertainty and instability, political

situation, economic situation, and maybe even vulnerability to some maneuvers by North Korea. We can talk about that a little bit more if you

wish. And so, they want to make this process move quickly because President Yoon is clearly showing he's not cooperating.

I actually think there's a variety of these motivations in play. There is a process. It's in the Constitutional Court. The Constitutional Court now has

gotten two more members, so they're closer to -- they're now closer. They don't have all nine, but they're prepared to handle the case. This arrest

seems to be designed to expedite the whole process out of a -- maybe in part of frustration. The Constitutional Court may take longer than the

opposition would like it to take.

QUEST: We'll come back to you in a moment. There's much more to talk about. And certainly, we're going to watch and wait and see what happens to the

suspended and impeached president. We'll be back in a moment. This is CNN.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[18:30:00]

QUEST: Welcome back to "First Move." I'm in for Julia. The top story, it's morning in South Korea, where investigators are moving to arrest the

suspended President Yoon, according to various local medias. Mike Valerio is in Seoul as well, and has been watching events. What is happening, sir?

VALERIO: Well, we have the Corruption Investigation Office, Richard, that has said, we have arrived -- paraphrasing their statement to the press

here, we have arrived and we are executing a detention warrant for suspended President Yoon Suk Yeol.

So, why this is so important, this has never happened before in South Korea's history. A bastion of democracy in this corner of the world has

never had somebody elected to the presidency, while they are in office, detained by law enforcement.

So, for all of our viewers who are no (INAUDIBLE), as you say, Richard, with South Korean politics and everything is going on over here, this

suspended president doesn't have any of his real powers anymore because a month ago tonight, he declared martial law to try to better move his agenda

through the National Assembly.

It was a plot that has been ridiculed, condemned by whole multitudes of people. Didn't work. It only lasted for about six hours. And what we're

seeing now is a direct result of his actions a month ago by the Corruption Investigative Office to hold the suspended president accountable on

criminal charges, which is separate from his political impeachment, Richard.

QUEST: Sir, you'll watch, you'll report, and you'll come back when there's some developments to tell us about. Thank you, sir.

Now, in just a moment, an attacker, 100 percent inspired by ISIS. That's how the FBI describing the man who drove into a crowd in New Orleans on New

Year's Eve Day. More about 42-year-old Shamsud-Din Jabbar in just a moment. This is CNN.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[18:35:00]

QUEST: Now, to update you on the various matters and events happening around New Year's attack in the United States. The FBI says the man who

killed 14 people in New Orleans in Louisiana was 100 percent inspired by ISIS, in their words. Bourbon Street in the city's famed French Quarter has

now reopened to the public with new safety barriers in place. A group of religious leaders marched down the street to mark the occasion.

At the Superdome, a few blocks from the crime scene, the Sugar Bowl Football game is underway. It had to be rescheduled from New Year's Day. A

moment of silence was held for the victims. President Biden has spoken about the investigation.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOE BIDEN, U.S. PRESIDENT: As I said yesterday, the attacker posted several videos just several hours before the attack indicating his strong support

for ISIS. Federal law enforcement and the Intelligence Community are actively investigating any foreign or domestic contacts and connection that

could possibly be relevant to the attack.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

QUEST: Today's events have been many, particularly the news and announcement that the authorities now say that the man involved was acting

on his own as a lone wolf. CNN's Ryan Young brings us up to date.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CHRISTOPHER RAIA, DEPUTY ASSISTANT DIRECTOR, FBI COUNTERTERRORISM DIVISION: This was an act of terrorism. It was premeditated and an evil act.

RYAN YOUNG, CNN SENIOR NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A change in theory and a brand-new timeline laid out one day after the deadly attack on

Bourbon Street.

RAIA: We do not assess at this point that anyone else is involved in this attack, except for Shamsud-Din Jabbar.

YOUNG (voice-over): The FBI now saying they believe the suspect acted alone after initially saying Wednesday, they believed he was not solely

responsible for the deadly attack. Shamsud-Din Jabbar first rented the white pickup truck in Houston, Texas on December 30th.

RAIA: He then drove from Houston to New Orleans on the evening of the 31st, and he posted several videos to an online platform proclaiming his support

for ISIS.

YOUNG (voice-over): Dark details also revealed about Jabbar's Facebook videos the morning of the attack, his last one posted at 3:02 a.m. just

moments before he plowed down crowds on Bourbon Street.

RAIA: Jabbar explains he originally planned to harm his family and friends, but was concerned the news headlines would not focus on the, quote, "war

between the believers and the disbelievers," end quote.

YOUNG (voice-over): The FBI also sending an important message to the public.

RAIA: So far, we have received just over 400 tips from the public, whether you know Jabbar personally, worked with him, served in the military or saw

him in New Orleans or Texas, we need to talk to you.

YOUNG (voice-over): Investigators revealed that two laptops and three phones were recovered, linked to the suspect and are being reviewed for

leads and more evidence was released about the reported explosives found nearby the site of the attack.

[18:40:00]

RAIA: FBI bomb technicians also recovered two IEDs in coolers. One from the cross section of Bourbon and Orland Street and the second at an

intersection approximately two blocks away.

GOV. JEFF LANDRY (R-LA): You can't go out there and say, oh, I'm going to put this in place and that in place and hope that evil doesn't show up on

your doorstep because it will. You have to crush it.

YOUNG (voice-over): A ubiquitous message being sent by all those investigating the attack.

YOUNG: What message are you trying to send?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Presence and making sure that people know that we're confident that we can keep them safe.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

QUEST: Omar Jimenez is now with me from New Orleans. Explain where you are, sir, and what is the situation now on Bourbon Street.

OMAR JIMENEZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Richard. So, we are on Bourbon Street right now. And one of the things we were looking for was to see now that is

reopened for the first time since this attack actually happened, what the scene would actually look like.

Well, for starters, there are a lot of law enforcement that are out. Typically, there are a lot in this particular area, just given the amount

of bars and the amount of attention this area gets, but clearly making their presence known. And just to give you perspective, as you look over my

shoulder this way, down this area where you can likely see the truck that is blocking that intersection, that is where the white truck on the night

of the attack actually made its way into the French Quarter where I'm standing, down Bourbon Street, this road here.

As we understand from surveillance video that we've seen, that truck went around onto the sidewalk and then made its way down here where people were

still celebrating the New Year just hours into it. And one thing you also might notice as well, just aside from this guy here is, on the sidewalks,

these are new barriers that were added. You might be able to see these yellow types of barriers now on top of the vehicles that are blocking these

roads. So, clearly some added precautions tonight.

But once this opened, life kind of went back to normal here. People walking up and down, businesses back reopened, seating people, people eating,

drinking like normal. There is a pretty big American football game going on right now. Once that is over, this is likely where they will come. But

people walking along completely normally.

And we were talking to some folks a little bit earlier today about how they felt, if it felt weird being back here. Some started with that, yes, but

one bar owner here told me, we can't let them win. And for that reason, he wants this to go back to normal as soon as possible, as strong as ever.

QUEST: Yes, I get that. I get the sort of the principle and the philosophy, but it still must feel a bit strange that it is a street where 14 people

were essentially murdered in the last 48 hours.

JIMENEZ: It's strange with the proximity of it, where just a day ago corner vans were coming in here, literally pulling out people's bodies. We were on

the other side of the street looking from the outside and seeing those vans come in and out and less than 24 -- or about 24 hours later, you've got

kids playing the drums right here and likely some of the very same spots where there were bodies just a short time ago.

The only indication really, I'll say, Richard, is that there are 14 yellow roses at the entrance to where this truck actually came in. But outside of

that, there are no real reminders of what had happened outside of maybe the added security presence.

QUEST: It's -- you know, it is good to hear the child there playing the drums on the -- well, thank you, Omar, for joining us, from Bourbon Street.

And whilst we reflect on just what we were talking about, we're now learning the names and seeing the faces of some of those who were killed in

the attack. CNN's Danny Freeman with more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CHRISTINA BOUNDS, COUSIN TO MATT TENEDORIO: My grandma, grandpa, everybody's just crying, wailing together and yesterday my grandma cried

nonstop for eight hours, like we just can't believe it.

DANNY FREEMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): 25-year-old Matt Tenedorio was from Slidell, Louisiana. The youngest brother of three loved working

with his dad at the Superdome. Matt had dinner with his family earlier on New Year's Eve, and his cousin said Matt was not hit by the truck that

night, but died from a gunshot. Matt's mother devastated.

BOUNDS: She wanted people to know that he was so lovable and kind and that he liked skateboarding, you know, and he loved his niece and nephews. And

yes, and that they're heartbroken.

FREEMAN (voice-over): Matt is just one of 14 who were killed in the New Year's Day morning horror on Bourbon Street.

[18:45:00]

LATOYA CANTRELL (D), MAYOR OF NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA: They mattered, the families matter, it matter to the city of New Orleans.

FREEMAN (voice-over): 37-year-old Reggie Hunter was a father of two, an 11- year-old and a one-year-old. He was from Baton Rouge, Louisiana.

TRAVIS HUNTER, COUSIN OF REGGIE HUNTER: Reggie was a beautiful person inside and out. To know Reggie was to love Reggie.

FREEMAN (voice-over): Reggie survived the initial attack, but passed away at the hospital from internal injuries.

HUNTER: He changed the environment in the room. Always smiling, just a pure person. Good, pure hearted person.

FREEMAN (voice-over): Tiger Bech was 27 years old, the former Princeton football player from Lafayette, Louisiana. According to his sister,

Virginia, Tiger was walking back to his hotel with his best friend on New Year's Eve when they were both struck. His friend survived, but Tiger

passed away at the hospital. Tiger's sister, Virginia, telling CNN, she's heartbroken, but evil will not prevail.

21-year-old Hubert Gauthreaux was killed in the attack as well. His high school in Marrero, Louisiana, asking the community to pray for the repose

of Hubert's soul, his family, and friends during this difficult time.

Drew Dauphin graduated from Auburn University in 2023. Words cannot convey the sorrow the Auburn family feels for Drew's family and friends during

this unimaginably difficult time, wrote the university's president Christopher Roberts.

The University of Alabama confirmed student Kareem Badawi was also one of the victims. The president of that school writing, I grieve alongside

family and friends of Kareem in their heartbreaking loss.

We're still learning more about the 14 people lost and the dozens injured on New Year's Day. Parents, siblings, students, locals, and tourists, loved

and not forgotten.

Danny Freeman, CNN.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

QUEST: The FBI says the driver, Shamsud-Din Jabbar, also had an ISIS flag in the truck. CNN's Nic Robertson has more on the potential resurgence of

this terrorist group.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR (voice-over): 2024 saw ISIS attacks spike this massive concert hall attack in Moscow, killing more

than a hundred people in March. Their deadliest claimed by their most active franchise ISIS-K or IS-KP in Afghanistan. A month later, this bloody

attack inside a Russian jail, four guards killed. A stabbing attack followed in Germany. They attacked in Afghanistan and Iran. Another of

their estimated 10 franchises or provinces fought Nigerian troops.

AARON ZELIN, SENIOR FELLOW, WASHINGTON INSTITUTE FOR NEAR EAST POLICY: We've seen a huge increase in tempo over the last year or two. It's in

2024, there were like 14 or 15 arrests related to the Islamic state in the U.S.

ROBERTSON (voice-over): It's a far cry from five years ago, when ISIS appeared to be on the back foot. Their short-lived Iraq and Syrian

caliphate beaten by U.S. and coalition partners into a seeming surrender. But not anymore, according to MI5's intelligence chief.

KEN MCCALLUM, DIRECTOR GENERAL, MI5: After a few years of being pinned well back, they've resumed efforts to export terrorism. We and many European

partners are detecting IS connectivity in our homelands, which we're moving early to disrupt.

ROBERTSON (voice-over): Taylor Swift and her Eras Tour in Vienna, beneficiary of the heightened safeguarding. An ISIS inspired plot forcing

her to call off her show. What has changed, Zelin says, is that ISIS is centralizing, learning from its mistakes in Syria.

ZELIN: They integrated a lot of their provinces together under this general directorate of provinces. So, there's a bit more coordination on the global

level within its network.

ROBERTSON (voice-over): In the Mideast, the ISIS brand is apparently still attracting supporters like these three Amanis in one of many such ISIS

propaganda videos the terror group posts. Their bloody bounce back began several years ago, gaining temporary global attention, killing 13 U.S.

troops as coalition forces pulled out of Afghanistan in 2021.

But since then, most of ISIS's recovery has not sparked massive global attention. 2025 might be the year that changes.

ZELIN: If they can do something in the U.S., if they can do something in Europe, if they can do something in Russia, Turkey, Iran, Central Asia, if

they can do it, they'll do it. Because for them, it's a global war.

[18:50:00]

ROBERTSON: And success for ISIS in this context could be as simple as an attacker like Shamsud-Din Jabbar claiming as he has to have acted in ISIS's

name when he may not have had any physical contact or support from them.

Nic Robertson, CNN, London.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

QUEST: This is CNN. I'll be back in a moment.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

QUEST: As you're aware, we are closely watching South Korea in Seoul, where the authorities are reportedly at the residence of the impeached and

suspended president, Yoon Suk Yeol. Now, they're there to carry out an arrest warrant. At the same time, there are protesters in favor of Yoon who

are facing off with the police.

It all follows his brief declaration of martial law last month. Sydney Seiler is from the Center for Strategic and International Studies. He's

with me. Sydney what's North Korea likely to be doing besides this, besides watching with either concern or amusement?

SEILER: Well, first of all, North Korea, no doubt, like all of us, were caught off guard by the events back in December with the martial law. And

North Korea has a history during times of uncertainty and controversy in South Korea to kind of avoid playing into a stereotype or presupposed, you

know, intent to intervene and rather sit and watch things unfold. Right now, things are unfolding in a way very favorable to North Korea.

QUEST: What do you mean by that? What do you mean by that, favorable to them? How is this favorable to them other than just it's chaos and

confusion?

SEILER: OK. Any weakness in South Korean body politic is seen as a negotiating leverage for North Korea in terms of its inter career

relations. Right now, it has sworn off inter career relations with a statement at the beginning of 2024, we're no longer interested in

reunification. We're not talking to these guys. It doesn't matter, progressive, moderates, et cetera. They had written off dialogue with the

union government, surely. And they've been waiting to see what Donald Trump might bring into play once the inauguration takes place in about three

weeks.

If the power shifts through this whole process to progressives who want to return to a Moon Jae-in era like approach to North Korea, a softer

approach, no military exercises, no flaunting of strategic bombers, et cetera, things could be favorable to Pyongyang.

QUEST: Do you think the bromance between Trump and the North continues?

SEILER: I believe when President Trump says he sees value in talking to leaders of all ideological ilks, you know, authoritarian, democratic, it's

good to be talking to your adversaries rather than not talking to them. I do believe that expresses an intent, but I don't think Donald Trump is a

fool when it comes to Kim Jong Un, his unwillingness denuclearize his unwillingness to negotiate sincerely. That was the lesson that I think

President Trump took away from Hanoi in 2019. And that's a lesson he brings to this issue today.

[18:55:00]

QUEST: Let's finish talking about what we're seeing now. How does this play out in your view? I mean, it's going to -- well, I suppose, Yoon eventually

is going to be detained, but how does it play out?

SEILER: You know, so it's interesting this -- as I mentioned earlier, you know, there's a constitutional process by which to adjudicate the actions

taken already to impeach President Yoon. This new Corruption Investigation Office inquiry for which the arrest warrant has been issued is something

new.

Yoon is declaring it illegal and he's refusing to comply with it. The Presidential Security Service, their Secret Service equivalent, has said

they will protect the president in accordance with the law. And so, we might end up with a standoff here, and they might walk away with not having

successfully arrested Yoon.

Yoon will fight to the end. Yoon, as I mentioned earlier, this struggle for time to prevent the leading opposition candidate from being arrested versus

-- yes, go ahead. Sorry.

QUEST: No, no, no. I'm saying we are -- I'm grateful for your time and attention, sir. Thank you for joining us. And that is our report for this

hour. I'm Richard Quest because the news never stops, neither do we.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[19:00:00]

END