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One World with Zain Asher
Desperate African Jobseekers Duped to Fight for Russia in Ukraine; Former Prince Andrew Moves Out of Longtime Windsor Home; Starmer: "Regret Appointing" Mandelson as Ambassador to United States; Doctors Risk Arrest to Secretly Treat Wounded Protesters; Trump Doubles Down on Call to "Nationalize" Elections; Italian Minister: "We will not See Anything on Italian Soil That Resembles what has been seen in the Media in the United States". Aired 11a-12p ET
Aired February 04, 2026 - 11:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[11:00:00]
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ZAIN ASHER, CNN HOST, ONE WORLD: Africans fighting on the front lines in Ukraine. We've got a brand-new CNN report. "One World" starts right now.
They say they were duped and are being forced to fight in a war zone far from home. It's a CNN report don't want to miss.
And Epstein reverberations, the British Prime Minister grilled on ties between the convict, convicted sex offender, and Britain's Former
Ambassador to Washington. Plus, we are live for you in Rome as well as Italian Leaders try to calm Concerns about ISIS security presence at the
Winter Olympics.
All right, coming to you live from New York. I'm Zain Asher. This is "One World". In just a moment, we're going to bring you a brand-new CNN report
about controversial recruitment tactics being used by Russian agents in their war in Ukraine. Our Larry Madowo got rare access to African men who
say they were duped into fighting for Russia.
But first, let's get an update on the new round of peace talks between Ukrainian Russian and American negotiators in Abu Dhabi. In the days
leading up to the talks, Russia intensified attacks on Ukraine's energy infrastructure. Ukrainian officials say that chooses attack was the biggest
so far this year, a broadside of 17 missiles and 450 drones.
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy accusing Russia of terrorizing the Ukrainian people amid the coldest days of winter. Meantime, the Secretary General of
NATO is warning Ukrainian lawmakers for a peace deal to be reached with Russia. It will certainly require difficult choices.
Fred Pleitgen joins us live now from Moscow. So, the first round of talks in the UAE was certainly constructive, but of course, disagreements remain
obviously, namely the fate of the Donbas region and also security guarantees, to name just a few.
But I think also -- what's also important here is that these talks are coming in the aftermath of Russia relentlessly attacking Ukraine's energy
infrastructure in the dead of winter. Just walk us through how all of that cast a shadow over these talks.
FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, I think that certainly cast a shadow over the talks. One of the things that we
heard from the Ukrainians today, Zain as they said, that just in the beginning, early days of this year, there have already been 217 attacks on
Ukraine's energy infrastructure, obviously causing a lot of blackouts and a lot of people to be in the cold as well.
And the Ukrainians certainly say that affects the way that they approach these negotiations as well. But of course, in the meantime, they are
working towards an agreement. And I think one of the big achievements that we've seen from the U.S. presidential negotiators, from Steve Witkoff and
Jared Kushner, is that this format is taking place at all.
That you not only now have them speaking bilaterally to the Russians, bilaterally to the Ukrainians, but also in that trilateral format with
everybody in the room. And the U.S., certainly says that that's something that's been quite constructive. There are those sticking points.
However, you're absolutely right to mention the security guarantees, where the Ukrainians have essentially signed off on something, but the Russians
are not necessarily on board yet. And then, of course, that big complex of those territorial concessions as well.
The Russians, of course, want the Ukrainians to give up territories that the Ukrainians still control, which obviously would be very painful for the
Ukrainians and also very difficult to sell within the country. On the other hand, the U.S. says that that's something they believe that is going to be
necessary in the end to reach a peace agreement that could then also last.
So those are talks that are still going on. One of the things that we've heard Zain is that apparently, instead of a format where everybody sits
together, they're trying to possibly compartmentalize these things, to have one group speak about security guarantees, another one speak about
territories, another one speak about, possibly the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant to try and get those things to move forward and to create
progress.
The Russians have already said, and this comes from the TAS News Agency of Russia, that the talks are going to continue tomorrow. So clearly, both
sides believe that while these talks are very difficult, and while there's some very difficult topics, that there is a certain degree of progress.
And also, an atmosphere in which they believe they can continue to keep talking to try and reach some agreement, even though both sides also
acknowledge that that is difficult to come by, and it's unclear whether, in the end, this process is going to be successful Zain.
ASHER: Fred Pleitgen, live for us there. Thank you so much. Right now, to a new CNN investigation, rosy promises are being made to African men to lure
them into fighting for Russia. Several African governments are acknowledging the scale of this growing problem. This includes Botswana,
Uganda, South Africa and Kenya.
Larry Woodrow got rare access to the story. He joins us live now from Nairobi, Kenya. So, a lot of these men are being essentially promised that
they're going to get civilian jobs, they're going to be paid super high wages.
[11:05:00]
But instead, they're being duped to go and fight in Ukraine on behalf of Russia. Larry, what more do we know here?
LARRY MADOWO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Zain, I've been speaking to more than a dozen African men fighting for Russia in Ukraine right now, and they tell
harrowing tales. Nearly every African I've spoken to currently fighting for Russia tells me they're desperate to leave because they have met conditions
that are inhumane, sometimes racism from the Russian commanders.
They are being sent to the front lines with little to no training, and they're getting killed in large numbers, by drones, by missiles, every
single day is danger. And if they survive that, some Russian commanders call them used condoms and other unsavory names in the middle of this war.
A lot of these African men were desperate for jobs, and they were promised civilian jobs such as cleaners or drivers or security guards. But they say
when they got to Russia, they were forced into the military. They signed contracts in Russia they didn't understand, with no translation or lawyers
present, and they were quickly pushed to the front lines.
And in some cases, when many of their colleagues die, they've seen their bodies rot on the front lines for weeks, sometimes even months, and even
when they complete their service, many of them have not been allowed to leave. I want to warn you here that the story begins with a horrific video.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What is your name?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Francis.
MADOWO (voice-over): This disturbing video appears to show an African recruit in the Russian army with a land mine strapped to his chest. He is
being ordered to storm Ukrainian positions on the front lines. A Russian speaker hurl to racist insult to the man saying he is being used as a can
opener to breach an enemy bunker.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I didn't see it is so traumatizing. Francis, my is my son.
MADOWO (voice-over): CNN traced the man's mother to Kenya. She hasn't been able to reach her son since October 2025, but she recently received another
video of him from an unknown Kenyan number.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Be careful you guys, because people are being taken there, and you end up being taken to the military.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And you are taken in front line, frontline battle. And there, there is a true killing.
MADOWO (voice-over): Francis is a trained electrical engineer who was promised a civilian job in Russia, but his family says he was forced into
the Russian army and to the front lines in Ukraine.
MADOWO: How long was the training?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Three weeks.
MADOWO: They had only three weeks of military training.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Only three weeks.
MADOWO: Had he ever been in the police or in the army in Kenya?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No.
MADOWO: Do you know where Francis is.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I don't know where he is. I was told he's at in Ukraine, but I don't know specific whether he's there or not.
MADOWO (voice-over): Francis is among a growing number of African men currently fighting for Russia, though exact figures are unknown. Some
Africans in the Russian army glamorize their life on social media, encouraging their countrymen to join.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: For those of you in Africa, in Nigeria, they want to come and join the Russian army. It's very, very easy and very good. No
stress.
MADOWO (voice-over): This Ghanaian man posts dance videos and brags about how much money he makes.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: My salary, go feed your father, go feed your mother, go feed your family for like, two years, three years my salary.
MADOWO: Where are you now? Can you say where you are?
MADOWO (voice-over): CNN spoke to a dozen African fighters currently on the front lines in Ukraine. They described being forced into a deadly war
racism from Russian commanders and unpaid salaries, many say they were made to sign military contracts in Russian without lawyers or translation.
Nearly all told CNN they were desperate to escape, but felt trapped. Patrick Kwoba is one of the lucky few. He has made it back to Nairobi after
escaping the Russian military. He is still carrying shrapnel in his body from a Ukrainian drone ambush.
PATRICK KWOBA, KENYAN INJURED IN UKRAINE: It hit me down here, but my food backpack saved my life. I didn't get burnt in my back because of my armor
vest, but it tore my pants and burnt my buttocks and legs.
MADOWO (voice-over): Patrick is a carpenter who says he was only given basic military training.
KWOBA: I asked my Russian partner for first aid, but he turned hostile.
MADOWO: So, after you've been hit by a drone --
KWOBA: Yes.
MADOWO: -- and the grenade.
KWOBA: Yes.
MADOWO: You asked for help from your partner?
KWOBA: Yes.
MADOWO: And he sent you away.
KWOBA: Yes. He want to kill me. I'd have to run.
MADOWO (voice-over): Patrick fled to the Kenyan Embassy in Moscow while on leave to recover from his injury.
MADOWO: So, the only way to leave is to escape?
KWOBA: You need to escape or you die. It's only two ways.
MADOWO (voice-over): CNN has seen adverts, messages and recruitment documents aimed at foreign fighters. They offer African sign on bonuses of
$13,000 salaries up to $3,500 a month in Russian citizenship, after a year.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They are lying to people the money that they tell people they pay that is not true.
[11:10:00]
MADOWO (voice-over): Desperate for work and with a baby on the way, Photographer Charles Njoki (ph) signed up to the Russian army hoping to
avoid active combat. He believed his skills as a drone operator would keep him at a safe distance.
Instead, Charles says he was pushed onto the front lines and was wounded by Ukrainian drone. He says a rescue team refused to come, forcing him to
drink his own urine to survive.
MADOWO: You feel that the Africans were being sent to the front deliberately.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes.
MADOWO: So, you didn't get the money? You didn't get the citizenship?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And I'm here suffering. I have a knee. I have an issue at my spine right now. There is some water. I need to go and be --
(END VIDEOTAPE)
MADOWO (on camera): Russian recruitment networks in Africa have gone underground after recent crackdowns, but despite growing suspicion from
locals, recruits are still signing up.
Those recruits you see there singing a Ugandan revolutionary song. Now the Russian government has acknowledged recruiting foreign fighters, including
African fighters, to fight its war in Ukraine, and has publicized some instances where they received Russian citizenship after their service.
I want to show you a video from state television where some of those African fighters were paraded. They were shown as partners. We have asked
the Russian Foreign Ministry and the Russian Defense Ministry, as well as the Russian Embassy here in Nairobi about the comments and the allegations
that some were coerced or misled into this war, and we did not hear back.
But I've been fielding very distressful calls from many family members who say, I've just heard that my son has died, my brother has died. Can you
please help us find him? And there's no way to find them. The Russians are not helping these families.
And one family showed me messages with a Russian agent when they heard that their son had died, they said, can we get his body back? And this agent
said, we'll get his body to Moscow airport. And then after that, it's up to you guys to find his -- to get his body home. And they didn't even know he
was fighting the first place.
There are so many other families right now who are only learning about the death of their kin from their comrades in arms, and they just don't even
know where to start in terms of trying to retrieve their bodies. And yet, even after our story went live today, there are still Africans in the
comments saying, how do I sign up to join the Russian army?
Because in many parts of the continent, where jobs as cars, people are willing to take this risk, to go to Russia and end up in Ukraine and hope
that they will survive Zain.
ASHER: Yeah. And also, the money that the Russians are offering, even though one of the people you interviewed said that that number simply
wasn't true, I think it was $13,000. I mean, that is an enticing amount of money, especially if you are struggling financially, right? Larry Madowo,
live for us there. Thank you so much.
And you can find more information and new details on Larry's extraordinary reporting on cnn.com. All right, still ahead on "One World", Britain is
facing the heat after the latest cache of Epstein files brings new revelations affecting a well-known politician and a member of the Royal
Family.
Plus, scared on the run and in dire need of medical attention. Ahead, we'll show you how an underground network of medics is treating injured
protesters in Iran amid a violent crackdown on dissent.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[11:15:00]
ASHER: All right, as U.S. President Donald Trump makes a plea for the nation to move on from the Jeffrey Epstein scandal. It's the British Prime
Minister's turn to face a storm of criticism. Keir Starmer is under growing scrutiny over his appointment of Peter Mandelson in 2024 as Ambassador to
the United States despite his well-known friendship with the late convicted sex offender.
Starmer says that he regrets the decision. He says Mandelson, who he fired just after a few months, had repeatedly lied about his ties to Epstein.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KEIR STARMER, BRITISH PRIME MINISTER: Mandelson betrayed our country, our parliament and my party. Mr. Speaker, he lied repeatedly to my team when
asked about his relationship with Epstein before and during his tenure as Ambassador. I regret appointing him.
If I knew then what I know now, he would never have been anywhere near government, and that is why, Mr. Speaker yesterday, the Cabinet Secretary,
with my support, took the decision to refer material to the police, and there is now a criminal investigation.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ASHER: Mandelson, who helped repel Britain's Labor Party to power in the 1990s is expected to quit the House of Lords later today. And he also faces
a criminal investigation over accusations that he leaked government information to Epstein as well.
And the latest files, a man who appears to be Mandelson is pictured in his underwear. There you see the image there, it's unclear when or where this
picture was taken, and the photograph does not, in itself, technically indicate any wrongdoing.
A spokesperson for Mandelson told the British media no one can say who or where this photo was taken. Lord Mandelson has absolutely no idea or
whether it has any connection, actually, to Epstein at all. The saga is also rocking the Royal Family. Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, the Former
Prince Andrew has moved out of his longtime home in Windsor earlier than expected.
His brother, King Charles, stripped him of his lavish house and his royal titles because of his ties to Epstein. Prime Minister Starmer says he wants
Mountbatten Windsor to testify to the U.S. Congress. CNN's Melissa Bell is following the developments for us. Joins us live now from Paris.
So, really a lot of pressure right now on Prime Minister, on Keir Starmer, just because a lot of people are questioning his judgment in appointing
Peter Mandelson to the Ambassador role, given his known ties to Epstein what is Keir Starmer saying about that?
MELISSA BELL, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: That's right, essentially trying to put out this fire storm that really dominated Prime
Minister's questions today at Westminster in London. Understandably, because this is a man who's been at the heart of the labor machine, of
course, now for decades, Zain who was appointed Washington Ambassador in September by Keir Starmer.
And that question of his judgment, of course, hugely embarrassing now, and one that the Conservative Party intends to make political hay with. Now,
what we heard there was Keir Starmer announced that the inquiry is now in the hands of the Metropolitan Police.
But he also pledged to Parliament today that he would make all that he had within his possession available to fully understand what we knew, or the
British government knew about Peter Mendelsohn.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
STARMER: I intend to make sure that all of the material is published Mr. Speaker, the only exemptions are national security prejudice national
security, though my first duty is obviously to keep this country safe. When we drafted humble addresses, we always put an exemption for national
security.
But also, anything will prejudice international relations I should also disclose that the Metropolitan Police have been in touch with my office
this morning to raise issues about anything that would prejudice their investigations.
We are in discussion with them about that, and I hope to be able to update the House, but I do think I should make that clear to the House at this
point, because those discussions are ongoing.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BELL: So, it is likely Zain that a lot more will come to light regarding Peter Mandelson.
[11:20:00]
What he did when he was the Business Secretary back in 2009? We've learned so much over the course of the last few days about his relationship with
Jeffrey Epstein. And this has been something that we've seen with a number of different people who have been involved or named cited in these
documents, Zain.
Is that it is death by 1000 cuts. It was the initial revelations from the Epstein files that had caused Peter Mandelson to lose his job as Ambassador
to Washington back in September. The latest series of documents suggest that the nature of his relationship with Jeffrey Epstein was more complex
still than anything he'd admit it.
So, little by little, we find out these increasingly damaging things about his relationship, and there is likely to be a lot more to come to light
Zain.
ASHER: Yeah, absolutely. Melissa Bell live for us there. Thank you so much. All right, let's take a closer look at how the Epstein scandal is
reverberating in Britain. Martin Farr, is a Senior Lecturer in Contemporary British History at Newcastle University. Martin, thank you so much for
being with us.
One of the things that Keir Starmer is trying to do right now is sort of trying to be more transparent by ordering the release of additional
documents, barring any that sort of has any national security implications as a way to sort of get out in front of this scandal. He's hoping that by
doing that, it's going to draw some kind of line in the sand, will it?
MARTIN FARR, SENIOR LECTURER IN CONTEMPORARY BRITISH HISTORY, NEWCASTLE UNIVERSITY: No because everything is done to try and assuage these concerns
have been almost at gunpoint. He has decided to release documents, but under great pressure in the debate in the comments, which I have on at the
moment, which is going until seven o'clock this afternoon, the fury across the House is palpable.
It was clear last night, for example, his own back benches. And it must be understood; the government has an enormous majority. The Prime Minister has
an enormous majority in the House of Commons, and yet they knew last night they couldn't get this measure through because of the amendment the
government placed on the documents that anything relating to national security would be redacted.
That was not sufficient for their own MPs or for opposition MPs. And in the last half an hour, the prime minister or the government has allowed the
Intelligence and Security Committee of the House of Commons to adjudicate which documents can be released.
So essentially, everything is boiling down to trust, and trust in terms of what people are -- the documents which are released to the public and to
MPs in the course of the week. Trust is at the heart of this crisis for the prime minister.
ASHER: So, what is Keir Starmer's excuse? What has it been so far? You know, obviously Mandelson, at the time, was working in the private sector.
He'd been working in the private sector for about a decade, and Keir Starmer essentially plucked him out of that.
I mean, obviously Peter Mandelson is, of course, a household name and a huge operative within the Labor Party. Been part of the labor machine for
decades, since the 80s, at least. And giving him this job, knowing full well that this is a man that did have ties to Jeffrey Epstein.
What is Keir Starmer's excuse been? How are conservatives reacting to that? How is the British public reacting to that?
FARR: Nobody knows. Starmer is something of an enigma. He's not terribly forthcoming. He's not very expressive. No one can really understand how
Peter Mandelson wove his magic on another politician, one with whom he had no history.
The reason this is such that it's hard to overstate how potentially important this crisis could be for the prime minister? And the flavor of
the House of Commons in the last hour or so has been very much pointed towards him.
He admitted in prime minister's question time, under three or four questions from the opposition, Kemi Badenoch that he knew about Mandelson's
ongoing relationship with Jeffrey Epstein when he appointed him ambassador to the United States, I.E. the UK's number one diplomatic position gasps
around the House.
So why did he? Other politicians, Tony Blair, for example, had a long history with Mandelson, but Starmer didn't. And Starmer and Mandelson are
very different politicians, and yet one of the connected threads is the way in which many of the government's ministers, and particularly the Chief of
Staff for the Prime Minister, a man called Morgan McSweeney, are protests of Peter Mandelson.
And more and more information is coming out about the extent to which they pressed for Mandelson's appointment over those of other less risky
candidates. So, this fundamental question at the heart of it is a question that many people are asking.
But what this will be resolved by will be the extent to which the prime minister knew of Mandelson's past. His point is that Mandelson lied
repeatedly. He said in House of Commons this afternoon, very starkly, I was lied to repeatedly by Mandelson.
So, we don't know yet what Mandelson said about the relationship, or whether indeed he was obfuscated. But even if Mandelson was lying, why was
the vetting procedure so sub optimal? Why did he get through what should be even a cursory search of the internet will provide enough material which
will disqualify somebody from being an ambassador?
ASHER: Yeah. And Mandelson has said repeatedly that actually the British government knew a lot about his relationship with Epstein before offering
him the job.
[11:25:00]
So, if Keir Starmer essentially releasing these additional documents, if that's not going to do anything to sort of assuage concerns by the British
public, what will and what could the possible fallout look like for Keir Starmer when all of us are said and done?
FARR: This is the most serious crisis of his Premiership. It's been a very rocky Premiership. He's been rather a hapless prime minister. Unfortunate
in many respects, but also lacking direction, political profile, lacking ideas. He's quite bad at appointments. Mandelson is the most spectacular of
those.
And the only one which actually was not a safe appointment. Usually, he points rather safe people which who are not very dynamic. This was the one
time he took a risk, but the risk far outweighed any possible reward that Mandelson could deliver.
So many people are gunning for the prime minister his own back benches have wanted to find a pretext for challenging him. This is the pretext. The
complication to that is that the most likely person to replace him by steering is also a Mandelson protege.
The opposition party is also keen to bring down a prime minister, as they would, and this seems to be the issue that they've fixed on. The public
view of politicians and the elite. There was a famous scandal in Britain in 1960s called the Profumo Affair, and it had enormous ramifications, because
it suggested to the public that the elite were out of touch, living a decadent lifestyle.
And of course, they were, and this is very similar, and we have a by- election at the end of this month in the Manchester Constituency, which is a really seismic moment, a defining moment for this Parliament, which will
see two insurgent parties, one from the left, one from the right, challenging a safe Labor government seat.
One of those two insurgent parties will win, and it's been made much easier for them by the fact they've got this material on the doorsteps about the
type of people you've been electing. Only someone like Reform UK from the right or the Green Party from the left can clean up the stables, clear the
swamp and the other motifs and notions we've had about populist parties.
Across the West actually, this is the British version of it, and it's most acute this afternoon that's been ever.
ASHER: Yeah. And I think what's really interesting is the extent. I mean, obviously you talked about the fact that it was probably the Chief of Staff
that may have persuaded Keir Starmer to appoint Mandelson. But what's really interesting is the extent and the sort of depth of the relationship
between Mandelson and Epstein.
It wasn't just like a personal relationship. There was also financial gain that Epstein was getting from some of the information market, sensitive
information that Mandelson was provided, not to mention the $75,000 that was deposited by Epstein into Mandelson's account, allegedly as well.
Martin Farr, we have to leave it there. Thank you so much. We appreciate it.
All right, as we told you earlier, President Donald Trump tells CNN, it is time for Americans to move on from the Epstein scandal. CNN's Kaitlin
Collins asked the president if he thought there were too many redactions in the 3 million plus files released by the Justice Department.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KAITLAN COLLINS, CNN CHIEF WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: A lot of women who were our survivors of Epstein are unhappy with those redactions that came
out. Some of the entire witness interviews are totally black out. Do you think they thought they should be more transparent?
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: I heard that, and you tell me something else. I think it's really time for the country to get
onto something else. Now that nothing came out about me, other than it was a conspiracy against me, literally, by Epstein and other people. But I
think it's time now for the country to maybe get on to something else.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ASHER: Another person mentioned in the Epstein files is Microsoft Co- Founder, Bill Gates. There are draft email messages in Epstein's email account referencing Gates and marital discord, among other things, it's
unclear who wrote those emails. And a spokesperson for Bill Gates says the claims are absolutely absurd and completely false.
In a new interview with CNN Affiliate Nine News Australia, Gates expressed regret about ever associating with the convicted sex offender.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BILL GATES, CO-FOUNDER, MICROSOFT: I met Jeffrey in 2011. The focus was always he knew a lot of very rich people, and he was saying he could get
them to give money to global health. You know, in retrospect, that was a dead end. And I was foolish to spend time with him.
I was one of many people who regret ever knowing him. You know, it's factually true that I was only at dinners. You know, I never went to the
island. I never met any women, and so, you know, the more that comes out, the clearer it'll be that although the time was a mistake, it had nothing
to do with that kind of behavior.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ASHER: Meantime, his ex-wife, Melinda French Gates, tells NPR she's filled with unbelievable sadness over Bill Gates inclusion in those files. She
adds that she hopes the victims find justice. Bill Gates has not been accused of any wrongdoing related to Epstein.
All right still to come, from Istanbul to Oman, Iran called for changes in both the venue and the format when its foreign minister meet with the U.S.
team on Friday. The latest on the diplomatic discussions just ahead.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[11:30:00]
ASHER: All right. Welcome back to "One World". I'm Zain Asher in New York. Here are some headlines we are watching today. The fallout from the Jeffrey
Epstein scandal is rocking Britain. Keir Starmer face questions in Parliament today saying he regrets appointing a veteran labor politician in
2024 as Ambassador to the U.S.
The prime minister says that Peter Mandelson betrayed his country and lied repeatedly. Criminal investigation has been launched into the Former
Ambassador. The U.S. Department of Homeland Security says it's withdrawing 700 personnel from Minneapolis. White House Border Czar Tom Homan made the
announcement a short time ago. Homan was sent to the city following the killing of Alex Pretti last month.
In Abu Dhabi, a new round of peace talks underway between Ukraine, Russia and the United States. It comes after Russia intensified its attacks on
Ukraine's energy infrastructure. The Kremlin says the war will continue until Ukraine makes what it calls appropriate decisions. Ukrainian
officials say chooses attack was the biggest so far this year, consisting of 70 missiles and 450 drones.
The U.S. and Iran are set to hold nuclear talks in Oman on Friday, the first negotiations between both sides since America's attack on three of
Tehran's nuclear sites last summer. It comes after Iran requested a change of venue from Turkey and asked that regional participants be excluded. Iran
also says it will not make concessions on its ballistic missiles program.
Iranians, meantime, are still reeling from the regime's bloody crackdown on anti-government demonstrations, even now badly wounded protesters are
targeted for arrest if they go to a hospital for treatment. CNN's Jomana Karadsheh spoke to a doctor in Iran who's forced to care for patients in
secret while also trying to avoid arrest himself. And he's certainly not alone. And warning that Jomana's report does contain some very graphic
images.
[11:35:00]
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JOMANA KARADSHEH, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It was a night of horror, the gun fire, chaos and fear captured in this video, a scene that was
replicated across Iran. Many of those who barely escaped the regime's onslaught are still on the run, with security forces hunting down the
injured and those who ate them.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What happened on January the 8th and 9th, the scenes at the hospitals were like those end of the world Hollywood movies.
KARADSHEH (voice-over): This doctor we're not identifying for his safety is part of an underground network of medics treating injured protesters inside
Iran.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Government hospitals were controlled by security forces and monitored by cameras. If injured people went there and were identified
as protesters, staff on duty had to report them and they would be arrested.
KARADSHEH (voice-over): Never have the wounded needed their doctors more than they do right now. With activists reporting more than 11,000 injured
in the most violent regime crackdown in the history of the Islamic Republic, with the widespread use of live ammunition and military grade
weapons. It's also extremely dangerous being a doctor in Iran right now.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The doctors who didn't cooperate were detained, or the next day, security officers would summon them, or they were thrown out.
KARADSHEH (voice-over): Images like this have emerged showing injured protesters too scared to go to hospitals being treated in secret, some so
desperate have also been reaching out to Iranian doctors abroad for help. Hospitals are no sanctuary in the Islamic Republic. Security forces have
raided facilities like this one in the City of Elam.
And that was even before the most vicious and bloody clamp down on the protests began on January 8th. Since then, the doctor and others say it was
the feared revolutionary guards who took control of hospitals searching for injured protesters. Reports of security forces detaining protesters from
hospitals are widespread. The UN and rights groups have also raised concerns about the arrest of doctors.
KARADSHEH: Speaking with us could mean prison for you, or even worse, why did you agree to speak with us?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I've locked the door with five different locks. I expect that at any moment as I give this interview, they could break in and arrest
me. I have chosen to put my own safety second and make sharing information about the injured and the war crimes that have occurred my first priority.
KARADSHEH (voice-over): The risks he's taking, he says, fighting back tears are nothing compared to the young protesters who paid the ultimate price.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I promised myself to be a voice for the injured and for those who have been killed. I promised myself to make sure the voices are
heard by the world.
KARADSHEH (voice-over): Voices like that of 16-year-old Arbin's (ph) family. He was shot in the head. They killed him this relative, cries as
they try to speak out at the hospital, they are silenced. These are the voices the regime doesn't want the world to hear.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ASHER: Thanks to CNN's Jomana Karadsheh for that report. All right, breaking news out of Nigeria, where at least 170 people have been killed in
a remote village. Local officials say the attack by armed men happen in Central Nigeria's Kwara State. This marks the deadliest assault so far this
year.
It happened in an area that continues to be targeted by gunmen. Several people remain missing. All right coming up, digging in and doubling down.
President Donald Trump makes it very clear he wasn't kidding. We suggested the U.S. federal government should get involved in state run elections that
story after the break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[11:40:00]
ASHER: All right, Fulton County, Georgia has filed a motion in Federal Court seeking the return of all documents from the 2020 election that was
seized during an FBI raid just last week. The County is also trying to obtain the unsealing of the affidavit filed in support of the search
warrant. During a news conference earlier, one top official warned just how much is at stake.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ROB PITTS, FULTON COUNTY COMMISSION CHAIRMAN: I committed to the voters of Fulton County and the world, for that matter, that we will use every
resource at our disposal to fight for their vote, and that we will fight using all resources against those who seek to take over our elections. Our
Constitution itself is at stake in this fight.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ASHER: Fulton County has long been the target for Trump's baseless claims of widespread voter fraud ever since he lost the election to Joe Biden
there in 2020. Meantime, it remains unclear why the nation's top Spy Chief, Tulsi Gabbard, was at the scene during the raid. She says the president
directed as a go under her authority to analyze intelligence related to election security.
Meantime, it's not just Fulton County Donald Trump is attacking the entire U.S. electoral system and casting doubt on its legitimacy, as Democrats
warn the president is trying to interfere with the midterms. On Tuesday, Trump doubled down on his calls to nationalize future elections.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: Take a look at Detroit. Take a look at Pennsylvania. Take a look at Philadelphia. You go take a look at Atlanta. Look at some of the places
that horrible corruption on elections and the federal government should not allow that. The federal government should get involved.
These are agents of the federal government to count the votes. If they can't count the votes legally and honestly, then somebody else should take
office.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ASHER: Constitution, of course, requires states to run their own elections. It comes just days after Democrats flipped a seat in the notoriously
conservative Texas State Senate, and as the president's approval ratings remain under water.
It's also worth noting that House Speaker Mike Johnson, who voted to overturn the 2020 presidential election result, defended Trump's call to
federalize elections, but he suggested it was unlikely to happen. Sky Perryman is the President of Democracy Forward. She joins us live now from
Washington.
Sky, thank you so much for being with us. I mean, when you think about the fact that the federal government has no legal authority over elections in
this country. Just walk us through what you think that Trump actually meant by saying that this country should nationalize election and how unlikely
that is to happen? Is there any mechanism at all whereby that even could happen?
SKY PERRYMAN, PRESIDENT, DEMOCRACY FORWARD: Unfortunately, if President Trump has read the Constitution, and it's unclear if he has. He certainly
doesn't follow the Constitution, and so the statements that he is making here are there's no legal basis for them. There's no basis in our
Constitution. There's no basis in our federal, state or local laws.
But we do have to take what the president is saying so seriously, because what we have seen unfold over the past months and weeks is an accelerated
attempt by the president and his allies who have lost public support in the United States because of so many of the campaigns that they are wielding
against the American people themselves, in places like Minneapolis in Chicago, Illinois, and other places.
[11:45:00]
Because they are losing that support. They are coming straight for our election system in the United States. So, we have to take what he is saying
incredibly seriously. There are things that can be done. Congress can step in and help protect our elections.
There will be litigation that will be filed. There is litigation that has already been filed, but the main thing that we're going to need to see
across the country, and you see it in the state, in the streets of Minneapolis as we speak, is people and communities across the United States
making it clear that, in no uncertain terms, that we value the right to vote and that we are not going to let a president that is operating outside
of his constitutional authority steal the election.
And so that's the type of mobilization that we are working that so many people are working to enable in the United States.
ASHER: Right. Because it's not just about the comments to nationalize elections. It's also the fact that just last week, the FBI, along with
Tulsi Gabbard on scene, who apparently put the president on speaker phone, was with FBI agents who raided this election office in Fulton County and
sees a lot of voter rolls, and the election officials there have said they have no idea what's happened to that sensitive private information.
But also, on top of that, you have the Justice Department suing at least half the states in this country, asking for voter rolls, also offering to
throw some of these states, like Minnesota, a bone. I will reduce the number of I.C.E. agents in your in the streets in Minneapolis if you in
turn provide me with voter roll information.
So, all of this put together, Sky, what does this do, just in terms of undermining or weakening public confidence in elections in this country on
a year, in a year when you have the midterms coming up?
PERRYMAN: Well, the president does want an election by extortion, and that's exactly what you saw in Minnesota. That is what you see in Fulton
County, where, by the way, there was a federal court order that demanded that the federal government not remove original documents, original
ballots.
They have done that, and so that's why you see Fulton County back in court today. But as you put it all together. What this means is that this is an
all-hands moment for the United States and for individual Americans across this country. It is going to take every lever of power, the courts,
Congress, individual voters, state and local governments, every lever of power to protect the American people and their votes against this
administration.
And as you said, part of this is the questions around the election are part of the point. This is an administration and a president that has tried, by
the way, since 2017 when President Trump lost the popular vote to Hillary Clinton, to place doubts in our election system, to claim that there is
election fraud that has never, ever been found in, you know, at all across the country.
And to cast doubt in the minds of people in order to undermine the very foundations of our democracy. So, this is an all-hands-on moment. We do
believe that the American people are up to the task, but it is going to take every single one of us.
ASHER: So, when FBI agents sees voter records and voter rolls in, for example, the selection office in Fulton County related to the 2020,
election. And also, you've got the Justice Department suing a lot of these states for voter information to what happens to that information? What do
they do with that information do you think Sky?
PERRYMAN: There's a number of things that it appears that this administration is trying to do. One, they want to just intimidate voters.
They want you to think that it doesn't matter because they're going to steal the election anyway.
We're seeing people across this country defy that in every election that's happened over the past year, where the president and his allies have been
losing because they're losing public support. But that is one thing, is an intimidation tactic to just scare people away, to make people give up.
The second thing is, it is clear that this administration wants to remove valid voters from the voter rolls. That is why they are seeking to extort
places like Minnesota. That is why the Department of Justice is trying to get their hands on voter rolls.
Cases are being litigated around that issue right now, but it is clear that one of their -- one of their -- one of their goals is to seek to eliminate
valid American voters from the voter rolls. The next thing that we think and we don't know entirely what is happening is the administration may be
seeking to manipulate certain personal data.
At Democracy Forward we are litigating a case where, just two weeks ago, the government came into federal court and admitted that when DOGE
officials were at the Social Security Administration, which has some of our most sensitive personal data as Americans, that they removed data from the
Social Security Administration, that it was exfiltrated to third party servers.
And that an unnamed DOGE team member signed a voter an agreement with a quote voter advocacy organization. We are actually to the bottom.
ASHER: We actually have to leave it there on we are so out of time. It's not even funny, but Sky, thank you so much. We appreciate your perspective.
[11:50:00]
And we'd love to have you on the show again. Thank you.
PERRYMAN: Thank you.
ASHER: All right, still to come, concerns in Italy over U.S. immigration enforcement agents at the Olympic Games, hear what officials are saying
just ahead.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ASHER: All right, the countdown is on just two days to go before the start of the Winter Olympics. The opening ceremony is this Friday in Milan, and
for the first time ever, two Olympic Cauldrons will be on the list, one in Milan and one in the Town of Cortina, up in the Dolomite Mountains.
The action has already started up first curling Italian Leaders as well are giving reassurances that there's nothing sinister about the U.S. sending
Immigrations and Customs Enforcement agents to the Olympics. There has been a chorus of criticism in Italy over their presence and the presence of
I.C.E. officers at the game. CNN's Barbie Latza Nadeau is in Rome for us with more.
So, what we understand is that these I.C.E. agents, Barbie actually going to be operating within the U.S. diplomatic missions. They're not going to
be operating in any kind of operational capacity, in any kind of sort of security capacity. They have no executive function. So, the question is,
what is the purpose of them going explain that to us?
BARBIE LATZA NADEAU, CNN REPORTER: Yeah, you know, I mean, this really does feel like, in many ways, that it is about far more than I.C.E. being at the
Olympics. There is just so much anger here. And we saw these demonstrations last week in Milan, and you saw a lot of anger, and I think that the
Italians just are fed up.
And this was the last draw. We're talking about Greenland and all sorts of tariffs and all these-sort-of-things that they're mad about the United
States about this gave them something to really protest about. I don't think anyone here in Italy really thought that we'd be seeing masked agents
with guns on the streets of Milan or in Cortina.
But it has really become a political issue here, so much so that the interior minister had to address the Senate today, let's listen first to
what he had to say.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MATTEO PIANTEDOSI, ITALIAN INTERIOR MINISTER: I.C.E. does not and will never carry out police operations on our national territory. Security and
public order are insured exclusively by our police forces, and this principle is not contradicted by the fruitful investigative collaborations
that are usually activated at an international level in such circumstances.
[11:55:00]
During the Milano Cortina games, the members of this agency will only be involved in analyzing and exchanging information with the Italian
authorities.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
NADEAU: And you know Zain when you listen to that, of course, that's talking about surveillance. So, they're looking at threats, whether its
local organization -- threats are part of the delegation that tries to look into this and listens in and watches video to try to determine if there are
any threats.
Now we've got J.D. Vance coming on Friday for the opening ceremony. The U.S. Ambassador to Italy has been speaking out as well, saying that they're
not going to be on the streets. There's no police force.
And they've also tried to underscore that these agents are been very much involved in a number of arrests recently when it comes to drug trafficking
between Italy and the United States, when it comes to some internet surveillance and paedophilia and pornography and all these sorts of things.
So, the minute -- the Maloney -- Georgia, Maloney, who is a very strong ally of President Donald Trump, has been trying to say, this is standard
business and nothing to worry about here. So that's what people are hoping for Zain.
ASHER: All right. Barbie Nadeau, live for us there. Thank you so much. And stay with CNN, then there's much more "One World" with my colleague, Bianna
Golodryga, after the short break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
END
