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One World with Zain Asher
W.H.O. Presses Russia for Information on Worker's Death; Trump Says He Will Ask Putin About Lab Worker's Death; Protests Over School Conditions Rock France for Another Day; W.H.O. Briefing Amid Questions Over Russian Lab Worker's Death; Israel Marks Third Anniversary of October 7 Hamas Attack; Messi Bids Farewell in His Last Game for Argentina. Aired 11a-12p ET
Aired October 07, 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)
BIANNA GOLODRYGA, CNN HOST, ONE WORLD: Hello, everyone. Live from New York. I'm Bianna Golodryga.
ZAIN ASHER, CNN HOST, ONE WORLD: And I'm Zain Asher, you are watching "One World". Any moment now, the World Health Organization will give an update
on the death of a lab worker in Russia. The W.H.O. is asking Russia to pass on more details about the 28-year-old woman's death from severe pneumonia.
GOLODRYGA: W.H.O. Chief says that Russia has a responsibility as a member of the organization to share clear and transparent information. The woman
who died worked at this plague research laboratory in Siberia. In a social media post, the director general says that he asked Russia to clear up
media reports that a second worker had contracted pneumonia from an unknown cause, and that the first victim died from an accidental lab exposure.
ASHER: For its part, Russia told the W.H.O. it had investigated the incident and put precautionary measures in place. U.S. President Donald
Trump said on Tuesday that he would speak to Russian Leader Vladimir Putin about it. Our Fred Pleitgen is following the story for us and joins us live
now.
So, how concerned is the W.H.O. at this point in time, Fred, about the transparency or even lack of transparency from Russia? And what do we know
specifically about the precautionary measures that are being put in place according to the Russians?
FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yeah, first of all, as far as the W.H.O. is concerned, I think what they're cautioning is
that they would like to see more transparency coming from the Russian Federation. There was a tweet or an X post coming out from the head of the
W.H.O. saying that they expected transparency from the Russian Federation.
Also, as far as those media reports were concerned, the Kremlin actually was asked about this today, Zain, and they essentially tried to shoot that
down and said the W.H.O., as they put it, was informed duly and according to international standards. One of the interesting things that's actually
happened over the past half hour is that the Russian Agency for Disease Control, for control of infectious disease, they put out a statement saying
that essentially the measures that they've put in place are now coming to a close.
I want to read for you part of that statement, and again, this just came out a couple of minutes ago, and they say, quote, as of October 7th, 2026,
medical monitoring has been completed for already 90 percent of contacts. Of course, those being the contacts of that lab worker who died.
No health issues related to infectious disease were detected, and the results of nearly five zero laboratory tests revealed no dangerous
pathogenic microorganisms. They also said that, given the professional activities of this lab work, or obviously working with a lot of very
dangerous pathogens that against which she was apparently vaccinated and should have had antibodies against, that was one of the reasons why the
Russians put these quarantine measures in place.
And to sum things up, they write this is another quote, no incidents involving pathogenic microorganisms were identified. So apparently, the
Russians feel as though this might be coming to a close. But of course, there are still a lot of questions internationally and coming from the
United States.
You mentioned President Donald Trump coming out and saying that he would have a call with Vladimir Putin about the measure. I want to listen into a
little bit of what the U.S. president said.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Have you spoken with President Putin?
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: I have a call scheduled. Yeah.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: When is that call scheduled for?
TRUMP: Very soon. So far, we're in very deep discussions. We'll be able to report about it probably tomorrow.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
PLEITGEN: So, a couple of -- he'll get more information. He said essentially today, and that we have a call with Vladimir Putin. The Kremlin
was actually asked about this, and they said that as of right now, there is no call planned, as far as they know, with the U.S. President.
But of course, it's something that they said could be arranged very quickly. Today, by the way, is also Vladimir Putin's 74th birthday, so he's
going to be getting a lot of calls from world leaders. The Kremlin expects, and certainly could be, that the U.S. President is one of them.
So, there are still questions out there. The Russians are saying all this is coming to a conclusion. Essentially, what we're hearing from folks on
the ground is that some of the concern, or a lot of the concerns that people have been feeling over the past couple of days, seem to have become
a lot less recently.
That life in that area seems to be going on fairly as normal. However, of course, those quarantines were a big cause of concern for a lot of folks
there on the ground, guys.
ASHER: All right, Fred Pleitgen, thank you for that. Appreciate it.
GOLODRYGA: Our next guest is a Professor of Medicine, Global Health, and Epidemiology at Emory University School of Medicine. Dr. Carlos Del Rio
joins us from Atlanta. Doctor, welcome to the program. So, as we await this presser from the W.H.O. It was interesting because yesterday I spoke with
Dr. Ashish Jha and asked him about the W.H.O. putting out a statement earlier this week saying they think the risk of an epidemic in Russia is
low.
[11:05:00]
He questioned that statement, saying that he didn't know the basis for which they make that claim, and said that we need more evidence to prove it
and back it up, and thus we haven't had as much this week. Your response? Do you agree with Dr. Jha that was a premature statement from the W.H.O.?
DR. CARLOS DEL RIO, PROFESSOR OF MEDICINE AT EMORY UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF MEDICINE: Well, the problem that we have is we don't know what's going on.
If W.H.O. knows and they think this is plague, and this woman died of plague, then yes, the chance of the spreading to an epidemic, even locally,
it's very, very small. But we don't know.
Russia says that we don't know what this woman. They said she didn't die of pneumonia plague. She died of another pneumonia, and then they isolated 200
people. So, in that sense, Dr. Ashish Jha is correct. We don't have enough information. At least we, meaning me, maybe W.H.O. has information, but the
information that I currently have, I think the lack of transparency is hurting us because it's very hard to make predictions when you don't know
what you're dealing with.
ASHER: Yeah, you and I were talking about this yesterday. Just this idea of some concern about the lack of transparency coming from Russia, just given
the fact that there are a lot of countries that don't necessarily trust what the Kremlin is saying and what other agencies in Russia are saying
about this.
Just in terms of what we should be looking out for or what you want to hear from the W.H.O. today. Give us your take on that.
RIO: I think the most important is we need to know what this young woman died of, what kind of pneumonia she had, and there's ways to figure that
out. And if they tell us, well, this pneumonia was plague or this pneumonia was influenza, this pneumonia was, then we can make more predictions and we
can say how are we better prepared to deal with it.
So, what we need is the index case, the case of this woman, be clear and understand what we're dealing with, and then we can be more prepared and
have the appropriate measures put into place. What Russia has done right now, isolating 200 people, is concerning, right?
And because there, you know, if this was plague, plague when it spreads person to person, one person infects two or three individuals, no more than
that. Compare that to, for example, COVID, where we saw one person infect seven to eight individuals. So, the infectivity is much lower.
But again, we need to know what she died of in order to know what kind of measures need to be put in place.
GOLODRYGA: So, it's reported that nearly 200 contacts are being monitored right now and quarantined hospitals place under quarantine as well. Are
these appropriate precautions and measures if this is indeed the pneumonic plague, or does this suggest to you that perhaps there's concern that it
could be something else?
RIO: I think this is suggesting if there's concern there could be something else because had this been pneumonic plague, as I said, 200 people seems a
little too many contacts for this person to have infected, unless this had been a major laboratory accident in which a lot of people could have
potentially gotten infected.
But in that case, they should have all been started antibiotics, and they should you know something else should have happened. Again, I go back to we
simply don't have enough information, and this goes to the point of dealing with outbreaks. What you need is surveillance to detect them.
And what you need is outbreak investigation to rapidly know what's going on and put the measures in place.
ASHER: So, what sort of precaution? I mean, our reporter Fred Pleitgen was essentially saying that the Russians are saying that some of the
precautionary measures that they have taken are now drawing to a close. What sort of precautionary measures do you anticipate that the Russians
have taken?
And what do you think they should be doing at this point in time, given that there is global concern about this?
RIO: Well, I think they need to be investigating this case, the death of this woman. They need to find out why she died, and then we need to know
what happened in the laboratory. What kind of activities were there? Why did she get? You know, why did this viral with plague break, and who could
potentially be infected?
And I think we need to understand better what they're doing in terms of biosecurity.
GOLODRYGA: President Trump says that he plans to speak with President Putin today about this. If you were advising the president, what questions would
you suggest that he ask of President Putin?
RIO: I think he needs to offer the American cooperation. We have fantastic epidemiologists and fantastic scientists here in the United States at CDC
and at NIH that could go and help in the investigation. I think he needs to ask for full transparency, and I think he needs to know, you know, ask what
are you doing to investigate what this -- why this woman died.
And we need to know better what this laboratory is doing because one of the concerns out there is that this laboratory may be a bio weapons facility.
So, inspecting that laboratory and going over what the procedures are in that laboratory, I think is going to be very important.
ASHER: What are the procedures and what's the process, I guess, for the W.H.O. in a situation like this? You know, obviously they're in contact
with Russian authorities, but they have sort of intimated that there is potentially a lack of transparency here.
[11:10:00]
So, what is the process, and what kind of process would or should the W.H.O. be engaging in in order to gain as much information as possible,
even when there could be an issue with transparency.
RIO: Well, again, what you need is trust, right? Trust is key to transparency, and usually, what happens is a member state will call W.H.O.
and ask for help. There's also communication by the regional office of W.H.O., but at the end of the day, the country needs to ask W.H.O. to come
and help in the investigation.
But it all starts with trust, and I think developing the kind of trust that we need in our agencies, in our colleagues, in our international partners
is really at the core of really dealing with this kind of outbreaks.
GOLODRYGA: Of course, we all are still remembering the impact of COVID in 2020, and the little information that we knew in transparency out of China
at the time, and that Wuhan lab in particular, we did seem to know what that lab focused on. At least experts in this country do and did.
Do we have that same type of information as it relates to this particular laboratory? What does it focus on?
RIO: It's a laboratory that works on plague. This is in a region of Russia, of Siberia. There's a lot of plague, so this is a plague research
laboratory. We don't know what else they do. At least I don't know what else they do.
ASHER: All right, Dr. Carlos Del Rio, thank you so much for that. We are standing by, waiting for this presser, press conference from the World
Health Organization. And we'll have you back as soon as that press conference takes place. Thank you, Dr. Del Rio.
All right, in Tennessee, attorneys for Christa Pike, the death row inmate who survived a botched execution, says she is now conscious and speaking.
GOLODRYGA: Now they say Pike is still handcuffed and shackled to the bed despite damage to her arms from the lethal injections. In the next hour,
her lawyers will be in court as they seek to preserve evidence from the failed execution. It's not clear whether Tennessee might try to execute her
again for the 1995 murder of a classmate.
One of Pike's lawyers spoke to CNN's Jake Tapper earlier.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
STEPHEN FERRELL, CHRISTA PIKE'S ATTORNEY: Nothing that anyone can do will bring back Colleen Slemmer. Nothing that anyone can do will make this right
for May Martinez, her mother. I can't give any better solution than the fact that Christa has been and may very well continue to be severely
punished.
I don't think that attempting another execution is going to bring justice.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ASHER: Yeah, Pike survived two lethal injections last week in a chamber similar to the one in this video. We'll have much more on this story in the
next hour when Pike's attorneys appear in court. All right, still to come here on "One World".
GOLODRYGA: French leaders are promising to listen to students as protesters turn out for fresh demonstrations across the country, we'll have a report
ahead.
ASHER: And in Yemen, fighting between pro-government forces and Houthi rebels is escalating, opening a volatile new front in the Iran war and
threatening a crucial route for shipping.
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GOLODRYGA: Protestors are out on the streets of France again today, chanting, banging drums, and holding signs with messages such as high
schools repressed, universities enraged. University students are joining high schoolers to protest what they see as a dismal state of education in
France. Hundreds of schools across the country are closed.
ASHER: Yeah, Tuesday saw some of the largest protests in France in decades. Thousands of people have been arrested in the past couple of weeks amid
clashes with police. The government is now banning police from using sun grenades. It's also promising to listen to the students' demand. CNN's
Melissa Bell reports from Paris.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MELISSA BELL, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): High schoolers in France angrier than ever, and determined finally to be heard
after more than two weeks of snowballing protests over school conditions, wounding hundreds of policemen and women, teachers and high schoolers in
scenes of unusual violence.
Among those wounded, a teenager who lost his hand after picking up a crowd dispersal grenade, and another who lost the use of his eye. More than 6,000
people have been taken into custody since the movement began most of them minors. With much of the student's anger now directed at what they describe
as police repression.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You strangled me. I couldn't breathe. I'm 14 years old.
MANES NADEL, FORMER PRESIDENT OF UNION SYNDICALE LYCEENNE: The strategy of the government since the beginning, without giving any answer, any
political answer, any real discussion to the social movement, they are just creating violence.
BELL (voice-over): The difference this Tuesday, public sector unions joining the students ahead of marches across the country, saying that they
are there to protect them. Lines of nurses, teachers, and firemen positioned in front of the kids' barricades, and a new strategy from the
police.
LAURENT NUNEZ, FRENCH INTERIOR MINISTER: When there is a peaceful protest, the internal security forces do not intervene. To be clear, law enforcement
intervenes when there is a threat to property or people, or damage to public spaces or the interior of establishments.
BELL (voice-over): For more than two weeks, the students have been demanding more funding, sharing the state of their classrooms on social
media no longer fit, they say, to study in.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
GOLODRYGA: OK, we're going to take you now to the W.H.O. holding its briefing on news reports out of Russia. The latest over a Russian lab
worker's death there. Let's listen in.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DR. TEDROS ADHANOM GHEBREYESUS, W.H.O. DIRECTOR-GENERAL: -- Research Institute in the Russian Federation. The lab worker died after being
hospitalized with severe pneumonia. Initial media reports suggested pneumonic plague following an accidental lab exposure.
W.H.O. is aware that the Russian government held a meeting on the 2nd of October because the suspected a resident of the Irkutsk oblast had
contracted a dangerous infection. On Saturday, W.H.O. asked the Russian Federation for more information in accordance with the international health
regulations.
Yesterday, the Russian Federation responded, saying that no case of plague had recently been reported in the Irkutsk Oblast, and that they had placed
about 200 contacts in quarantine. However, W.H.O. has requested further information on the lab tests conducted on the individual who died and the
contacts, more detail on what prompted the public health measures, and details about the health status of the contacts.
We have also sought verification of media reports of a second employee with pneumonia of undetermined cause. W.H.O. has offered technical support
related to plague and lab biosafety and biosecurity.
[11:20:00]
And we don't yet have the full picture of this event, and we are not able to conduct a full risk assessment. Timely, complete, and transparent
information sharing under the international regulations is essential to clarify conflicting reports and enable an accurate assessment of potential
public health risks.
Now, to the Ebola epidemic in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the number of confirmed cases has now reached 8,665 with 4,178 confirmed
deaths. In some areas, there are clear signs that the epidemic is slowing down, although in others it's continuing to grow.
Since the outbreak began, contact tracing has improved significantly. Around 2,000 alerts are reported every day, and about 5 million people have
been reached through community engagement activities. Clinical trials of therapeutics are progressing, with more than 600 people enrolled.
A vaccine trial is expected to start later this month, and we're working on ensuring access to these products should they prove efficacious in trials.
These advances are the result of hard work over many months by communities and partners under the leadership of the government.
But we continue to face significant challenges. The majority of deaths still happen in the community instead of in treatment centers, and contact
tracing is still not at the level needed. And we cannot forget that this epidemic is unfolding in an area beset by prolonged humanitarian crisis.
While transmission is going down overall, new hot spots continue to appear, including in areas close to the border with South Sudan. And as you know,
Kenya yesterday reported a case of Ebola in a Kenyan citizen who fell ill in DRC and was treated at several facilities there.
Then traveled to the Kenyan capital Nairobi via the Ugandan capital Kampala. Immediately upon arrival in Nairobi, he was taken to hospital
where he was isolated and Ebola was confirmed. He received care but died on Monday this week. Kenyan authorities are monitoring 55 contacts, including
passengers and crew who were with the patient on the flight from Kampala to Nairobi.
Yesterday, I spoke to the cabinet secretary to discuss the case and the measures that Kenya had taken to prepare for an event like this. I commend
the Kenyan government for its prompt action and for reporting the case to W.H.O. under the international health regulations in a timely way.
W.H.O. advises against blanket travel or trade restrictions, which are less effective than screening, contact tracing, and other measures. Transparency
should be rewarded, not punished. As you know, today marks three years since the horrific attacks by Hamas and other armed groups on Israel.
I recognize and respect the deep and continuing grief over those attacks, especially for those who lost someone they loved that day, or who was taken
hostage and did not return alive, and I have met families a number of times. This Saturday marks one year since the ceasefire between Israel and
Hamas took effect.
A year later, the health situation in Gaza remains critical, and the needs of almost 2 million people are overwhelming. W.H.O. calls for a constant
and uninterrupted flow of supplies at scale, for health services to be restored and medical corridors to be opened, and for the ceasefire to be
respected and maintained, and for lasting peace and a political solution.
Today, W.H.O. released its first guidelines addressing the sharp rise in obesity among children and adolescents. In the past 25 years, the
prevalence of obesity among children and adolescents has quadrupled from 2 percent to 8 percent. More than 170 million children and adolescents
globally now live with obesity.
[11:25:00]
In the new guidelines, W.H.O. strongly recommends structural changes to diet, behavior, and physical activity for children and adolescents with
obesity. The guidelines also include advice on pharmacological treatment, bariatric surgery, and weight loss devices. The guidelines stress that
obesity management should go beyond weight loss and aim to improve health, functioning, and well-being.
As always, prevention is better than treatment. W.H.O. continues to call for policies and measures that make healthy diets and physical activity
more accessible and affordable. Also today, W.H.O. and partners are launching a new global road map on hypertensive disorders in pregnancy,
including pre-eclampsia.
Hypertensive disorders account for about 16 percent of maternal deaths globally, resulting in 42,000 deaths and more than 500,000 stillbirths and
newborn deaths. In many countries, women still lack reliable access to basic blood pressure measurement, and access to testing and essential
medicines.
Weak referral systems, shortage of trained health workers and limited emergency obstacle services can further delay life-saving care. The new
global roadmap aims to address an innovation gap between the scale of the problem and the availability of medicines to prevent or treat pre-
eclampsia.
The roadmap aims to accelerate coordinated investment action to ensure that proven interventions and future innovations reach the women and babies who
need them most. Finally, this Saturday, the 10th of October, marks World Mental Health Day. This year, our focus is on the lived experience of
people with mental health conditions, especially those who have received institutional care.
Often, these people are left out of decisions about how mental health systems are designed and reformed. Many are kept in psychiatric hospitals
involuntarily for months, years, or even decades, isolating them from the outside world. This week, W.H.O. will launch a practical guide to support
countries to shift away from institutionalized care towards person-centered care in communities that respects people's rights and choices. Christian
(ph), back to you.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Thank you very much, Dr. Tedros, and I see two hands here in the rooms. I will start with Spedrio (ph) please.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes. Thank you for taking my question. It's a question concerning the alleged plague in Russia. You mentioned that there are some
media reports of a second employee with pneumonia of undetermined cause. I would like to ask you to what extent these reports are credible?
And do you have other source of information concerning the second case? And one question also on that matter more globally, did you ask -- did W.H.O.
ask Russia to be able to send a team in Russia in its courts to help to investigate? And did you receive more information from Russia since
yesterday around noon, when you -- early morning when you received something? Thank you.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Thank you very much, and I start with Dr. Maria Van Kerkhove.
MARIA VAN KERKHOVE, DIRECTOR OF W.H.O. EPIDEMIC AND PANDEMIC MANAGEMENT: Yeah, thank you very much. So yes, there's quite a lot of attention to
this. So let me start with what we know. We are aware of reports of a potential case of suspected pneumonic plague in Russia.
We have reached out to our colleagues in Russia from the Ministry of Health to obtain further information and what we call verification. So, it's
verification of the death, but also verification from a media report of this second case that has been that has been mentioned, and this is an
important step.
So, we do reach out to them to ask very detailed questions about what tests were done, the results of those laboratory tests, the specifics around
that, what further analysis is being done if the cause is not yet known. What contacts were put under quarantine or under follow-up?
What did that involve? If the quarantine period is over, et cetera, et cetera. So, we don't have a full picture yet, as the DG has said.
[11:30:00]
What we have been told is that they had no case of plague registered in this area, and that no high threat pathogens were detected. So clearly, we
would like more information to understand which laboratory tests were conducted, which pathogens were evaluated, and if this individual didn't
die from plague, then how did she die?
I would, if I may, just ask for media. Please stop using this person's name and picture. I see it in a lot of different media right now, and we do. We
should respect everyone's privacy and patient privacy. It's just an ask. I know you follow you know the protocols there, but please, if I may ask
that.
So, we don't have that full picture, and I think for us having a full picture of what has been conducted by Russian authorities, and yes, there
are different ways that we verify information. We reach out to our technical counterparts in countries as well to cross verify.
But until we have that information, it's hard for us to do a full risk assessment. So, we have reached out again, asking further questions. We
expect further answers from Russia. We did get some reports back from them following the IHR verification request, but not yet everything has been
provided to us.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Thank you and this looks like a follow-up.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes. And did you ask for sending a W.H.O. team on the ground?
KERKHOVE: So, through our -- thank you. Sorry, you asked the second question. So, we have offered support through our regional office and our
country office in different areas. One is in infectious diseases, particularly on plague, but we have people who have expertise in high
threat pathogens.
She was working in an anti-plague lab, and so we do know the type of materials that she was working with. We've also offered support in
laboratory biosafety and biosecurity, because some of the initial media reports suggested an incident at the lab. So, we want to follow up.
We are following up on those two technical areas, and if that is requested from the Russian authorities, of course, we will send people to support.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Thank you. Next question goes to Jamie Keaton.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Thank you, Dr. Van Kerkhove, Jamie (ph), Associated Press. Just to be clear, on what you just said, you talked about an
incident in the lab. If you could kind of elaborate on that, what you know so far about that, just to bounce off what you just said.
But more broadly, just to be clear, to boil it down to a very simple question, you know, is this, by your understanding, a typical respiratory
viral infection, or is it pneumonic plague, or do you simply not know based on the information that you've received? Your statement today calls on
countries to follow IHR.
Could Russia have been more transparent up to now and in the future? And haven't we been here before in some ways. This recalls for a lot of people
the situation with China, and the COVID outbreak. What similarities, if any, are you seeing between this situation and the one involving COVID in
China?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Looks like we're starting with Dr. Van Kerkhove.
KERKHOVE: Yeah, I can start. We also have colleagues online from our Euro office related to IHR, so they could maybe mention on the timeline. I mean,
the simple answer, Jamie (ph), is we don't know exactly how this person died. We know that she had pneumonia. We know it was a fatal case.
We understand that some laboratory tests have been done. They haven't found the causative agent what we know, and so this is why we need more
information. So typically, when a lab will look, and this person worked in a high threat lab. So, there are a lot of provisions in these labs related
to biosafety, biosecurity.
This individual would have had training, would have had vaccinations related to some of these pathogens. This is the type of information that
we're seeking further information on. And unfortunately, there are people that do die of pneumonia of what we say unknown cause.
But there are methods now in the lab that we can look at, or they can look at to find out and determine what was the causative agent, whether it's
through PCR testing or whether it's through genetic sequencing or metagenomics. There's a whole area of work on this.
So, we work with our member states, including in Russia, but if Russia needs support from other labs, we are more than happy to make those
connections. But there is a good global connection between labs, I will say, around support for this. So, if they ask us for technical support, we
are more than happy to provide that.
And you know, your question around should more have been provided. I think the simple answer is always yes, and we need transparent and timely
reporting from all of our member states. It is really important not only for information sharing, but for risk assessment, and then we alert the
rest of the world, all of our member states, and our IHR national focal points through a system, which we did today.
We reported on this incident to all of our member states and the NFP focal points, and then we will be publishing a dawn, a disease outbreak news,
which is public. Plus, of course, having these. So yes, we do need more information, and we're hoping that that will come in a timely way.
[11:35:00]
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I asked you a number of questions just about the incident in the lab. Can you have -- what do you know about that?
KERKHOVE: I know what you know from the media of the of a test tube breaking and exposure. But again, somebody working in a lab in a high
threat pathogen lab will be wearing PPE. So, we were following up on you know what type of PPE personal protective equipment excuse me, would be
used under which conditions?
What were they doing with these pathogens? So, we have laboratory biosafety, biosecurity experts here. We work with a number of them around
the world to obtain further information. But I don't have details on what that might be. Incident sounds like a scary word. I do know that.
And I do know we are all reflecting on let's say past events. We as an organization want to make sure that we are not overconfident in the
information that we have, that we are actively following up with Russia, and that we don't have the full information yet.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Thank you, and I think we had the part of the IHR timeline, and we want to go to Dr. --
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ASHER: Press conference with the World Health Organization, essentially updating viewers around the world as to what is taking place right now in
Russia. Obviously, there is a fear, some sort of scare, given the death of this 28-year-old young woman who was working in a lab where she potentially
might have been exposed to the pneumonic plague.
One of the most concerning things that was said during that press conference was the fact that they don't necessarily have full confidence in
what they're being told by the Russians. The Russians have repeatedly reiterated time and time again that there is no case of the plague in that
area of Irkutsk in the Siberian region of Russia.
And that it is very difficult for them to verify what they are being told by the Russian. Also, they did address these rumors, these media reports
that there could be a potentially second person who might have also been infected. But she just said at the very end there that you know she knows
simply what we know based on media reports.
I want to bring in our Fred Pleitgen, joining us live now from Berlin. Fred, it's interesting. We did get a little bit of clarification, but I
think one of the things that is quite concerning is that the W.H.O. does not necessarily have confidence in what they're being told by the Russians,
that there isn't much detail, and they're calling for more transparency.
Walk us through what stood out to you from that press conference.
PLEITGEN: Yeah, yeah, certainly. The W.H.O. is saying that they want more transparency. They quite frankly said they always want more transparency in
these cases from all of the member states, but specifically, of course, right now they certainly want to go into more details, especially as to the
measures that were taken after this 28-year-old lab worker died of that pneumonia of an unknown cause.
They said they want to know what kind of testing was conducted, sort of framing this testing was conducted, and what other measures were taken.
Also, what the quarantines were like, what sort of testing was done in those quarantines as well. I think the main thing that stood out to me,
Zain, was that the W.H.O. is saying, as you pointed out, that they have exactly the same information that we have that this lab worker died.
What they want to know is that if this was not the pneumonic plague, what was it? What was it that killed this lab worker? And they say right now, at
this point in time, even after the testing that was done, or certainly from the information that they've been getting from the Russian Federation, they
still don't know what exactly this person died of.
And that certainly is, of course, something that they want to be looking into and want to be getting more information about. They also said that if
the Russian Federation requests from them, they do have experts who are ready to help if any more gear, for instance, is needed.
If specialized people are needed there to help on the ground as well. That is certainly something that is in the cards, but you're absolutely right.
It certainly seems as though they are asking for as much transparency as possible in this case, and I think the main thing for them is to get to the
bottom of why this person died.
Because of course, this was someone who was handling some probably pretty severe agents in her regular work, she said, or the W.H.O. said that in
these types of labs, this is a very modern lab that they do have very strict safety procedures, that they have very strict and elaborate training
for these people.
That the Russians also saying this person would have had immunity for most of the things that she would be working with, and yet this still happened,
and they still don't know what the cause of death was. They know it was pneumonia, but they don't even exactly know what caused that pneumonia and
why this person died.
ASHER: All right, Fred Pleitgen, live for us there. Thank you for that.
GOLODRYGA: Let's bring back Dr. Carlos Del Rio at Emory University School of Medicine. So, as we've just summed up, Doctor, no real definitive
information, additional information, was heard right now in this briefing, other than what the Russian Health Ministry has said.
[11:40:00]
And that is there have been no cases of the plague, and no high threat pathogen had been detected, but they have not invited the W.H.O. or given
more evidence or shared any of the results of their tests with the W.H.O. in. So, what questions still remain for you?
RIO: I mean, there are a lot of questions. Let's start by saying again that I wish we were told this was the plague because you know the plague is a
pathogen, we know it's something that occurs globally. There are more than 1000 cases annually throughout the world that we know of.
Even in the U.S. there are 10 to 15 cases per year. So, it was the plague. We would know what to do. We would know how to deal with mobilized
antibiotics, et cetera. The biggest concern is if it's not the plague, what is it? And as the W.H.O. official said, we have techniques today with PCR,
with genetic sequencing, that we could have determined what this woman died of.
And getting blood samples, getting tissue samples from her, would be critically important because knowing what she died of, to me, that she died
of a pathogen of unknown name, is very concerning because are we dealing with something new? This is, for example, if you go back in time and you
remember, this is what how the first COVID one started.
Not the COVID that we all remember, but the Coronavirus outbreak that happened started with you know in China, then started with somebody getting
sick in Vietnam, and then went to Hong Kong. If you remember that outbreak, you know it took a while to figure out what it was.
But it was scientists at the CDC that eventually were able to figure that this pathogen was a Coronavirus, and that allowed us to do the things we
needed to do in order to control that outbreak. So, knowing what this is, it's I think the most important question we all have.
GOLODRYGA: Yeah, and Russia's health watchdog said in a statement today that it was winding down precautionary measures it had put in place after
concluding there was no risk of an epidemic, and that it had shared its latest information with the W.H.O. But as we heard from the W.H.O., they
have a lot of questions left outstanding.
Never reassuring when they say they get their news reports from the news. Doctor, thank you so much. Appreciate you taking the time to join us.
RIO: Happy to be with you.
GOLODRYGA: We'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ASHER: Right with less than one month until election day in the U.S. panic is apparently growing among Republican operatives. With one White House
ally telling CNN, there is fear the party could see what's described as a bloodbath.
[11:45:00]
GOLODRYGA: Yeah, we're told some are resigned to losing the House and feared the Senate could also be in play. This as the GOP faces severe
political headwinds coupled with the president's dismal approval rating.
ASHER: Yeah, Trump travels today to San Antonio, his third trip to Texas in less than a month. He's campaigning for Senate Republican candidate, excuse
me, Ken Paxton. He's locked in a tight race with Democrat James Talarico.
GOLODRYGA: Yeah, today's stop comes just after a leaked audio recording obtained by Axios was released. In it, Paxton privately blamed the Iran war
and gas prices for his campaign troubles. Take a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KEN PAXTON, CANDIDATE FOR UNITED STATES SENATOR: It's not tariffs. It's the war, its gas prices, it's diesel. When it's over $6 a gallon for diesel, I
mean it's -- put money, they have a lot of trucks that are diesel. People are feeling the pinch.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ASHER: All right. Let's bring in Toluse Olorunnipa. He's a Staff Writer for "The Atlantic". Tolu, always good to see you. I mean, you know, it's clear
that Republicans obviously fear the worst here. Their resources are stretched thin. You'll also have Trump on the defense by traveling to
several ruby red states, which tells you that there is the fear of God in the Republican Party right now about what is going to happen next month.
But a month is a long time, right? A month is a long time. We've talked about this idea of an October surprise in the past. What miracle, or what
would have to happen? What would have to go wrong for Democrats for the inevitable? What appears to be the politically inevitable right now not to
happen?
TOLUSE OLORUNNIPA, STAFF WRITER FOR "THE ATLANTIC". Well, I would say that it is important to note that this is still a very polarized country. There
are still some issues with the Democratic brand that may make it difficult for some Republicans or Independents or even former Democrats to vote for
Democrats.
And Democrats are still facing a tough map. They are trying to win in states like Texas and Iowa and Ohio, where Republicans have dominated for a
long time. Now that said, Democrats are feeling like the wind is at their backs. They are feeling very bullish about where things stand right now.
And yes, there is a long time to go before the election, several weeks, and a lot can change. But it doesn't appear that the president, who is the one
who can make a lot of these things change, seems to be interested in changing whether his standard of his approach to the Iran war, or trying to
bring down gas prices, or trying to address the broader cost of living, which has been impacted by things like his tariffs and efforts to take away
subsidies for health care.
And so, a lot of these cost-of-living issues are self-inflicted by this presidency, by this administration, and he does not appear to be changing
his tune. And so, I don't expect there to be any significant changes policy-wise. Now, there's always the chance for an October surprise that's
an act of God or a terrorist attack, and God forbid anything like that would happen and change the political dynamic.
But based on just sort of the general policy that this administration is putting forward, they don't appear to be changing it in any significant
way, in any way that would cause there to be a change in the dynamic between now and November.
GOLODRYGA: So much of this is based on the quality of the candidate as well. When it comes to voter enthusiasm, where are Democrats in particular
right now relative to past elections in terms of what we can expect to see for turnout?
OLORUNNIPA: Well, if you talk to Democratic campaign operatives, which I do from time to time, they feel bullish. They feel like their voters are very
enthusiastic. Some of them are enthusiastic about the Democratic candidates, but mostly they're enthusiastic about being able to have a sign
of protest against this administration and have a way to show their distaste with the way President Trump has run his government over the last
two years.
And so that enthusiasm is not necessarily because everyone is in love with their candidates, but they are looking to send a message to this president.
A lot of independents are also looking to send a message to this president, and even some Trump voters who voted for him and don't believe that he's
delivered on what he said he was going to do two years ago are looking to send a message either by staying home or even by holding their nose and
voting for a Democrat.
Or in some cases, in some states, there are independents running against Republicans that may be able to win some votes from former Republicans. And
so, Democrats feel like the enthusiasm is on their side. They say that the enthusiasm is highly lacking among Republicans.
And so that's part of the reason they feel bullish about states like Iowa and Texas and Ohio, North Carolina and Georgia, places that Trump won just
two years ago, and in some cases won handily by double digits, even places like Kansas are now competitive, and now Democrats feel like they have a
shot.
ASHER: Just in terms of what establishment Democrats have sort of feel, we've been talking about that since various primaries.
[11:50:00]
This idea that even though certain progressives, we talk about El-Sayed in Michigan, some progressives were elected or voted for rather, that there is
concern about among establishment Democrats that those progressives won't be able to make the cut when it comes to November. What is your take on
that?
OLORUNNIPA: That is a big concern. Democrats are looking to hold the seats in places like Michigan, in places like Maine, in places like New
Hampshire, where they already have those seats, and they are hoping that voters will not be put off by the fact that, in some cases, like in
Michigan, the nominee is more liberal, more progressive than the person who's leaving the office, the person who is the incumbent who is not
running for re-election.
And so, there is a sense that Republicans may have an opening to win in a place like Michigan or to hold on to the seat in Maine, because of the
candidate being seen as too far left for the population in those states, and they're trying to bring the party together.
It's why you see Former President Obama going to Michigan and saying he's going to campaign with Abdul El-Sayed to try to coalesce the party around
the nominee and try to have both the progressive wing and the establishment wing and more moderate independents feel like they can vote for someone who
is a progressive or someone who's endorsed by the Democratic Socialists of America?
That is something that is new and something that Democrats have not had to deal with quite as much, but they are trying to bring the party together.
And there's nothing more unifying for Democrats than the idea of being able to have a protest vote against Donald Trump and say that we do not support
what's happening.
And so, a lot of Democrats are going to hold their nose or hold their disagreements to the side and say, for the sake of sending a message to the
president, we're going to vote for someone even if we feel like their policies are too far left. And that's what Democrats are hanging their
hopes on that they will be able to win, even in states like Michigan, where Democrats did not do so well in the presidential race.
Now they're hoping that even with a progressive candidate, they're going to be able to put together a coalition of Democrats, moderates, independents,
and even some disaffected Republicans be able to win in November.
ASHER: All right, Toluse Olorunnipa, thank you so much. We appreciate it. All right, a horrific day forever, leaving a scar onto Israel's history.
GOLODRYGA: Yeah, you're looking at live pictures from Re'im in southern Israel, where people have gathered for a memorial. This is where the Nova
Music Festival took place on that fateful day in 2023. Three years ago, Hamas-led terrorists stormed Israeli communities across the border from
Gaza.
More than 1,200 lives were lost, and 251 people were taken hostage. That day plunged Israelis and Palestinians into war. We'll have much more on
this in the next hour on "One World". We will be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[11:55:00]
GOLODRYGA: All right, soccer legend Lionel Messi bid an emotional farewell to Argentina in his final match for the national team.
ASHER: Yeah, he ended on a high note with Argentina winning three-nil in a friendly against Benin after a slow first half and some narrow misses.
Messi signed off with a penalty kick goal and two assists.
GOLODRYGA: And Messi himself said he was grateful, proud, and at peace as he drew a line under his international career. There are the goat, ladies
and gentlemen. All right, stay with us. We'll have more "One World" after the break.
ASHER: We just love him.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
END
