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Thousands Flee War-Torn Areas Of Ukraine; South Korea Elects A New Leader; Hawaii Drops Its Mask Mandate; Large Spiders Take Over The American Southeast. Aired 4-4:10a ET

Aired March 10, 2022 - 04:00:00   ET

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


CARL AZUZ, CNN 10 ANCHOR: From Eastern Europe to Eastern Asia, and from the Pacific Ocean to Paris, France, we`re going globetrotting in today`s

show. I`m Carl Azuz and we`re glad to have you along for the ride.

Let`s get started. Civilian casualties are increasing in the war in Ukraine. On Wednesday, a maternity hospital in the Ukrainian port city of

Mariupol was bombed. Police in the area initially reported that 17 people were injured. The two sides fighting in the war, the Russian and Ukrainian

militaries, each blamed the other for the attack.

A few hours before the bombing, a Russian government spokeswoman said Ukrainian forces had moved workers and patients out of the hospital and put

combat units in it. But video recorded after the attack showed civilian patients and staff members emerging from the wreckage. The Mariupol City

Council and the Ukrainian president say Russia bombed the hospital.

Strikes were reported on Wednesday at other civilian locations in Ukraine, as well as at military sites. NATO, an alliance of U.S. and European

countries, has been looking at ways to send more weapons to help the Ukrainian military. What NATO doesn`t want to do though is to get directly

involved in the fight against Russia. They don`t want the conflict to extend beyond Ukraine which is not a member of NATO.

So when it comes to enforcing a no-fly zone to keep aircraft out of Ukraine, or to giving the nation fighter jets as its government has

requested, NATO countries have been reluctant because Russia has said those actions would make them direct participants in the war.

Along with the international sanctions, the penalties on Russia`s economy placed by other governments, numerous American and European businesses are

suspending some or all of their operations in Russia in protest over its invasion of Ukraine.

These companies include Apple, Disney, Exxon, IKEA, McDonald`s, PayPal, Visa and Warner Media which owns CNN.

In the parts of Ukraine where the fighting was suspended yesterday, there was gridlock on the roads as thousands of people tried to get away from

areas of conflict.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MATTHEW CHANCE, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: You can see there are thousands of people now in their own cars streaming out through these

safe corridors that have been set up by the Russians and the Ukrainians, to give these people a chance to escape the ferocious bombardment that they`ve

been suffering. Some of the cars have got children written on them.

There`s one over here with the word getting written on, and they`ve all filled with their own children, other people`s children, children of

neighbors that they`ve taken with them, just anything they can do to get them out into the relative safety of Kyiv, and onward towards the west.

Many of them heading towards Poland, to the west of Ukraine.

You see here as well there`s been some effort set up as a sort of reception for the people because a lot of the people we`ve spoken to inside these

cars so that they`ve spent days without any proper food, without any water, without any light. It`s been really, really difficult for them.

And so, you know, even though this isn`t perfect, it is at least a chance for these people to about to save their own lives.

Matthew Chance, CNN, on the outskirts of Kyiv.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

AZUZ: Up next, what`s been called South Korea`s unlikable election. According to the "Reuters News Agency," both of the major candidates for

the country`s next president had high disapproval ratings going in. South Korean leaders are limited to one term lasting five years, and anyone who

gets elected has instant geopolitical challenges to deal with.

South Korea is an ally of the United States, a status it shares with Japan, which is less than 200 miles east. But in the other direction, at roughly

the same distance is mainland China and across the border is North Korea, both of those countries are U.S. rivals -- managing all that is only part

of the challenge for prospective South Korean leaders.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

PAULA HANCOCKS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Now it has been a particularly tight race between these two leading contenders for president of South Korea, one

liberal, one conservative. They are ideologically opposed, the two men, and whoever takes power in May as president of this country will have some

significant foreign policy issues to deal with.

It is worth pointing out that neither one of them actually has any foreign policy experience to speak of.

For example, you have Lee Jae-myung on the liberal side. Now, he is a former mayor, he`s a former governor.

And then on the conservative side, you have from the People Power Party, Yoon Suk-yeol, who is effectively a political novice. He`s a former state

prosecutor.

But they will have some significant issues to deal with. For example, Russia`s invasion of Ukraine, both candidates have had to apologize during

the campaign for either statements or tweets they have done to -- during the campaign stage but they both say that they do support the sanctions

against Russia.

And of course, when it comes to North Korea, they will be dealing with the North Korea who is far more concerned at this point with testing weapon

systems and launching missiles than actually talking to the United States, let alone to South Korea.

Now, Lee from the liberal side is saying that he would follow what President Moon Jae-in has been doing in the fact that he wants engagement

with North Korea. He would have a step-by-step process towards denuclearization. Yoon Suk-yeol on the conservative side is far more hard-

line, saying he would only ease sanctions once there is complete denuclearization.

For voters coming to the polls, they are looking at the economy. They are looking at the extremely expensive housing market here. That is a big

consideration, and also gender issues have really played in to this year`s election.

Paula Hancocks, CNN, Seoul.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

AZUZ: The two South Korean candidates had been neck and neck in the polls. But after the votes had been counted overnight, the president-elect was the

conservative candidate Yoon Suk-yeol. He won 48.5 percent of the ballot, while the liberal candidate Lee Jae-myung won 47.8 percent.

The U.S. government congratulated Yoon and said it looked forward to expanding the close cooperation between America and South Korea.

The last American state to have a mask mandate plans to get rid of it but not until later this month. Hawaii has had some of the strictest

coronavirus rules in the country. Its governor says because COVID cases and hospitalizations have been decreasing there, like they have been in the

vast majority of the U.S., Hawaii will end its mass mandate on March 25th at 11:59 p.m. That`s also when people who travel there won`t have to show

proof they`ve been vaccinated or a negative COVID test in order to avoid spending five days in quarantine.

Compared to most other states, Hawaii has had a relatively low number of COVID cases and deaths blamed on the disease. But its governor says mask

requirements could still be reinstated if there`s another surge of coronavirus. And Hawaii`s Department of Education says students will still

be required to wear masks in public schools so they can take them off when they`re outside.

Like other states and countries around the world, Hawaii has seen protests over its COVID restrictions.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

AZUZ (voice-over): Ten-second trivia:

Which of these options is not the name of a real spider?

Hercules baboon spider, Face-sized tarantula, Brazilian salmon pink birdeater, or Mothra huntsman?

Though they frequently eat moths, no spider has yet gotten the name Mothra huntsman.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

AZUZ: The not-so itsy-bitsy spider has climbed all over the American southeast, will it be headed north? That is the question concerning the

Joro spider, a multicolored arachnid that can grow larger than the palm of your hand. This species is not native to the United States. It`s from

southeastern Asia, and no one knows how it got to America.

But in recent years, it`s spread rapidly in the warm southern climate and while the Joro spider is venomous, it poisons the insects it eats,

biologists say it`s not considered a threat to humans. They also don`t think it`s a threat to the environment even though it`s an invasive

species. But scientists say more research needs to be done on that to be sure.

They`re also uncertain about whether these large spiders will crawl or travel in the wind to locations farther north. Some say they can withstand

colder climates but that the northern and western U.S. are too cold for these creature`s comfort.

(MUSIC)

AZUZ: This year`s agriculture fair in Paris, France, had a pretty grand finale, sheep on the Champs-Elysees. Two thousand twenty-two sheep along

with herders and hundreds of artists ambled along the acclaimed avenue. But, Carl, you may be asking, why?

One breeder said it`s to show the city slickers in Paris that there`s a large economy that depends on farming in the mountains. Various animals and

performers strolled for one kilometer down the Champs-Elysees.

That`s not just a yarn. We`re not trying to pull the wool over your eyes. Maybe it took a little herd mentality, but that close-knit community was

able to blanket an entire street covering crosswalks and cross-stitch like there was mutton to it.

I`m Carl Azuz. Today`s shout-out takes us to Jacksonville Lighthouse Charter School. It is located in Jacksonville, Arkansas. Come on back

tomorrow for Friday`s awesome edition of CNN 10.

END