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Hala Gorani Tonight
Police Chief in Haiti Cites 17 Suspects have Been Detained in Moise's Assassination; Pfizer to Seek Emergency FDA Authorization for Booster Shot; Johannesburg Mayor Dies of COVID-19; WH: U.S. Delivering On Promise To Supply Vaccines To World; Cases Of Delta Variant Spiking Across Asia; Taliban Says They Control 85% Of Territory. Aired 3-4p EST.
Aired July 09, 2021 - 13:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[13:00:00]
HALA GORANI, CNNI HOST: Hello everyone, live from CNN London, I'm HALA GORANI TONIGHT. CNN is on the ground in Haiti following the growing turmoil
there with suspects in custody now.
Are we any closer to knowing how and why the president was assassinated in his own home? And the back and forth over a booster shot. Will we or won't
we need another dose of the Pfizer vaccine? We'll explore that question for you. Plus, Richard Branson is about to take one giant leap in the
billionaires space race. We'll preview his historic launch scheduled for Sunday.
The Colombian president says he is sending his intelligence chief to Haiti to help investigate the assassination of Haitian President Jovenel Moise
and the wounding of Moise's wife, Martine. According to Haitian police, more than two dozen Colombian nationals are suspects in this crime. The
nation's police chief says 15 Colombians and two Haitian-Americans are in custody.
You see images of them there, eight other suspects we're being told are on the run. Haiti's acting prime minister says three suspects were killed in a
shoot-out with authorities. CNN's Matt Rivers joins me now live from outside the presidential palace with more on what we know and what the
latest is in this investigation. Matt?
MATT RIVERS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Hala. I mean, it's very much a moving investigation. This is something that is very ongoing at this point. Like
you said, we know that some are detained. Some suspects have been killed, others are still on the run.
In terms of the suspects that we know about -- and let's step forward here and let this car pass behind our cameraman there. But in terms of the
suspects that have been identified so far by the Haitian national police, of the 28, we know that 26 are Colombian nationals. The Colombian defense
ministry saying that at least six of those Colombian nationals have previous experience with the Colombian military.
We know the other two are of course Haitian-American. In terms of the number detained, 17 detained, 8 still on the run, three killed. But that's
all at least. All of those numbers we should preference with at least because this is continuing to go on and to go on. And if there is another
press conference later on tonight with the Haitian authorities, you would expect there might even be another update to this. But that's kind of where
it ends, Hala, in terms of exactly what we know. We don't know the motivate behind this so far. We don't know who financed this operation, who is the
mastermind of this operation?
Why were there so many Colombians involved and seemingly a lack of Haitians involved? And also not just standing on this regular road, right? Because
this is the road where the assailants came in on, and one of the big questions is how did they make it all the way to the presidential
residence?
Down at the bottom of that road, there is always a police checkpoint. We passed it on the way in. Presumably the assailants did too. They come up
this road. They come up to this relatively shabby-looking police checkpoint, made out of plywood, they get past the police that are here,
and then if you follow me this way, just come right to this corner here. We can't go past any further because the authorities here are not letting us
so far.
But if you look down, you can see that's the parking lot. You see a little yellow guardrail there, you can see a truck, there was a parking lot,
that's the parking lot for the presidential resident. It's only about a hundred -- you know, a 100 meters behind me here.
And so that's where it happened. And so the question is how did all of these heavily-armed, trained mercenaries in the words of the Haitian
government get past these police checkpoints, get into the compound where there is more security, and yet somehow no security guards, no one there
was injured except for the president and the first lady. The president of course lost his life, first lady recovering currently in a Miami hospital.
There are so many questions left in this investigation, Hala. Yes, we have some idea of who the suspects are, we certainly don't know yet why they did
what they did allegedly.
GORANI: So, and I know you don't know the answer to this question. But 28 heavily-armed, some of them mercenaries, get past two police checkpoints,
get past the security at the presidential palace, don't wound or shoot any from what you're saying of the security that are there to protect the
presidential residence, and only kill and wound the first lady. I mean, that is just -- I've never heard of an attack like that or an assassination
like that. What does that tell us about how this operation --
RIVERS: No --
GORANI: Unfolded?
[13:05:00]
RIVERS: It tells us that this sounds like a movie. If you saw this in a movie, you probably wouldn't believe that it could happen in real life, and
you might roll your eyes at it. And what this has done is just spawned all kinds of theories here in Haiti about what might be the cause of this.
Who were these people? And of course, it leads you to even speculate that this is some sort of an inside job. I mean, it's probably the first thing
you think. We have zero proof of that. The Haitian government has given nothing public to that effect.
So we're not saying that we know anything concrete about that. But 2 plus 2 equals 4. And that is certainly what a lot of people are thinking here in
Haiti that someone in the presidential security detail and the Haitian national police, all of which have a presence out here of the presidential
residence. Some elements of those groups may be involved.
We simply do not know at this point. But again, you know, as far as we know, no serious injuries to any of the people supposedly guarding the
president, and yet he loses his life and his first -- and the first lady nearly loses hers. It just leaves you to have to come to certain
conclusions, if not officially, backed up by evidence.
GORANI: All right, thanks very much, Matt Rivers outside the presidential palace in Port-au-Prince. As you heard, Haitian police say most of the
suspects are Colombian. Two of the suspects arrested are American citizens.
Let's dig deeper. Journalist Stefano Pozzebon joins us now from Bogota, Colombia. Kylie Atwood joins us from the U.S. State Department in
Washington D.C. Stefano, let me start with you, what are Colombian authorities, what is the Colombian government saying about the fact that so
many of the suspects in this assassination in Port-au-Prince are Colombian nationals? Some of these Colombian nationals ex-military.
STEFANO POZZEBON, JOURNALIST: Correct, Hala. The Colombian government is saying that they are cooperating to the best of their efforts with Haitian
authorities and with Interpol to find the truth around the alleged attackers up to the point that the director of the Colombian Intelligence
Service and the director of the Intelligence division of the Colombian police have been ordered to fly to Port-au-Prince to follow the
investigations on location.
Just a few moments ago, the chief of the Colombian police here in Bogota, General Vargas, said that preliminary investigations show that several of
these attack group flew to the Dominican Republic before entering Haiti, and they have started to identify some of the people they think have been
involved.
But at the same time, just as Matt was saying, from the Haitian side of the story, here in Bogota, the questions far outnumber the answers. We don't
know who employed these many Colombian nationals, why if it was an operation that started here in Colombian soil, and what links these people
had with the vast galaxy of criminal organizations, drug trafficking organizations, former paramilitary organizations that are still left behind
here in Colombia for more than five decades of civil gorilla conflict. Hala?
GORANI: Stefano. Thanks. Standby, Kylie Atwood is at the State Department. Any theory at the State Department on who might have sent 28 heavily-armed,
most of them Colombian nationals, we understand among the arrested, two Haitian-Americans to kill the Haitian president?
KYLIE ATWOOD, CNN U.S. SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: Yes, well, right now, the State Department is saying that they are aware of those reports, that there
were allegedly two Americans, according to Haitian authorities who were part of this assassination. Now, the State Department says they're
monitoring this.
They're pointing to privacy constraints as to why they're not saying more right now. And frankly, it's also, you know, an unfolding situation. So the
State Department doesn't want to get ahead and say anything that may change as this investigation takes place. Now, we should also note that the State
Department said that they have received request from Haiti, from the police there to provide some additional investigative support.
So, that is one aspect that we're waiting to hear more about. What exactly is the United States going to do to support this investigation? Now, we
know that the U.S. ambassador to Haiti returned to the country just yesterday. And that was a bit of a challenging thing because they closed
down the airport. So she had to get back into the country. She was here in the United States when this took place. But the State Department is clearly
closely monitoring, and they have a lot of questions just like we do.
[13:10:00]
And this investigative support we should note is probably going to come from a body in the United States like the FBI or something like that, and
they would work closely with the State Department to get that up and running. So we'll learn more and we'll let you know.
GORANI: Kylie Atwood at the State Department, thanks very much, Stefano Pozzebon joining us from Bogota. To COVID now, and concerns are growing
worldwide over the dangerous COVID-19 variant known as Delta. The World Health Organization says it's more than a 100 countries now and it is
expected to become the dominant global strains soon. Meantime, in the U.S., the vaccine maker Pfizer-BioNTech says it plans to seek emergency
authorization for a COVID booster shot. But the FDA and the CDC say extra doses are not needed yet.
And the W.H.O. reports new cases in Africa increased for the seventh consecutive week, with less than 2 percent of the population fully
vaccinated there. South Africa has been hit the hardest. The mayor of Johannesburg has died of the virus. CNN has obtained exclusive access to
video from inside one of the city's hospitals overwhelmed by cases. David McKenzie has our report.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DAVID MCKENZIE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): They hoped it would be better. Hoped that COVID-19 had done its worst. But 16 months in and
Mohammed Patel and his paramedic team are in a new more dangerous fight.
MCKENZIE (on camera): What has the Delta variant done to COVID-19 here?
MOHAMMED PATEL, PARAMEDIC: It has caused a whole lot of chaos, there's a whole lot of patients that are suffering. They -- there was a dropping
drastically daily.
MCKENZIE: South African scientists tracking Delta saw it dominate new infections in just weeks. Patel takes us into a home south of the city --
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Hello, good morning --
MCKENZIE: Where Delta is tearing through families, ripping through the country's largely unvaccinated population. Less than 1 percent of South
Africans have been fully vaccinated. The 67-year-old patient has critically low oxygen levels.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We're going to get you to the hospital.
PATEL: There are patients that are suffering at home because they aren't able to get hospital beds. There is no spaces in hospital. There is no
ventilators available. They -- it's completely a chaos.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The third wave has really been far more devastating and far more overwhelming.
MCKENZIE: For months now, CNN has requested access to hospitals but we were denied. So the true impact of this brutal Delta wave has been largely
hidden from view. But CNN obtained this disturbing video from the emergency room at a Johannesburg hospital.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Patients are waiting, they're on stretchers, they are in cubicles, doctors are overwhelmed. Nurses are overwhelmed.
MCKENZIE: Not enough beds, and what does that result in these waiting areas of the hospital?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's chaos.
MCKENZIE: The senior doctor wanted to speak out, reveal what they call war-zone-like conditions. We agreed to hide their identity because they
were afraid of reprisals from the government. In recent days they said, the bodies couldn't be wrapped fast enough to make space for the sick.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There are patients who are dying while they are waiting to be seen, while they are waiting to go to the ward because the resources
have just been overwhelmed by the onslaught of patients.
MCKENZIE (on camera): how does that make you feel?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: A sense of helplessness, but then also almost a blunting. A de-sensitization that we're doing everything we can, but it's
still not enough.
MCKENZIE (voice-over): Patel's team is often diverted from hospitals with critically ill patients. They search for hours to find a bed. So a charity
called Gift of the Givers constructed this 20-bed field clinic staffed with volunteer doctors and nurses in less than five days. Every single bed could
give a sick patient a chance.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
GORANI: And David McKenzie joins me now live from Johannesburg. David, why is the percentage of South Africans, vaccinated South Africans so low?
MCKENZIE: Well, as our reporting has shown of the last few months, Hala, part of the problem was the South African government didn't do bilateral
deals with vaccine companies quickly enough to protect its population.
But at the same time, South Africans president has called it a vaccine apartheid. Something you and all of us at CNN have been reporting on for
many months now, that there really is an inability to get equity in the vaccine supply around the world for a whole host of reasons. That it must
be said at this point that vaccine rollout in South Africa is getting better.
And I do need to stress that we put a question to the Department of Health of the conditions in hospitals, they didn't answer those questions, but
they said they have tried to increase the bed capacity. But this wave is really brutal, Hala.
[13:15:00]
GORANI: And overall in Africa, vaccine uptake is low. I mean, there are many reasons, one of them is logistical, it's getting too hard to reach
places. Another reason as we were discussing and we've discussed many times, David, is storage of certain vaccines that require very low
temperatures. But there's also a certain amount of vaccine hesitancy in some parts of the continent. Can you explain why that is?
MCKENZIE: I think it's very hard to pin down one reason for that. And I do think it's important to stress that yes, vaccine hesitancy is an issue and
it may be an issue down the road. Right now, by far, the biggest issue is supply. Not a hesitancy to get vaccines. But you're right. There is this
sense that people are nervous for all the same reasons people might be nervous around the world. Unsure whether vaccines are safe. There is a
nervousness about the fact that maybe they haven't, the people who are hesitant don't know someone who got sick with COVID.
But as the story shows you, and we have been reporting on from all over the world from all of our reporters, COVID is serious, COVID can kill you and
scientists say the vaccines are the best protection both for you individually but for communities at large.
GORANI: OK, David McKenzie is live in Johannesburg, thanks very much. And we continue our world tour. Asia is also on high alert. The Delta variant
is surging across the region prompting tough new restrictions. Kristie Lu Stout is in Hong Kong.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
KRISTIE LU STOUT, CNN CORRESPONDENT (on camera): Across Asia, the Delta variant is fueling a growing wave of new COVID-19 cases. In Thailand,
coronavirus deaths are climbing. The country has ordered new restrictions in the capital Bangkok and surrounding provinces starting on Monday
including more closures as those limits on travel and social gatherings. Cases are also spiking in Vietnam, both the capital Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh
City have tightened restrictions to contain the virus. Indonesia has reported a record number of deaths fueled by the Delta variant.
Save the Children is warning that many more children will die there. Its humanitarian chief in Indonesia says this, quote, "the health system is on
the verge of collapse. Hospitals are already being overwhelmed. Oxygen supplies are running out and health services in Java and Bali are woefully
ill-equipped to handle this surge in critically ill patients."
South Korea is raising its pandemic restrictions to the highest level in and around the capital. So, from Monday, a health ministry official said
that the country is in a quote, "dire situation". But the Delta variant detected at an increasingly fast pace in the greater Seoul area.
Only 11 percent of the country's population is fully vaccinated. Japan has also been hit with a sharp rise in infection. Following a new state of
emergency in Tokyo, Olympic organizers on Thursday said that they would ban all spectators from Olympic venues in and around the city, just over 15
percent of Japan's population is fully vaccinated.
China has reported its highest daily tally of infections since January with all local cases from Ruili, it's a city in Yunnan Province which borders
Myanmar, parts of the city are in full lockdown. According to local officials some patients were infected with the Delta variant.
In Australia, the state of New South Wales on Thursday reported its biggest daily rise in locally-acquired cases this year. The outbreak began with an
unvaccinated driver catching the Delta variant from a flight crew member. Just over 9 percent of the population in New South Wales has been fully
vaccinated. The Delta variant is also ravaging the Pacific island nation of Fiji.
The mortuary in Fiji's main hospital is already filled to capacity. Earlier on, countries across Asia have managed the coronavirus with some success,
but the highly contagious Delta strain, along with the slow pace of vaccination in countries like South Korea, Australia and Indonesia have
given rise to a devastating new wave of the pandemic. Kristie Lu Stout, CNN, Hong Kong.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
GORANI: So, that's a look at Asia now. Now, let's get more on Pfizer's effort to develop that booster dose. Will we need it? For those of you who
have had two Pfizer shots where you need a third, no one is looking forward to that. Senior medical correspondent Elizabeth Cohen is live in Atlanta
now. Pfizer says that potentially, a booster could give us the best shot at protection against COVID, but the CDC, FDA are saying maybe not. So what
are we learning?
ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN SENIOR MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: So, first of all, Hala, I want to give the bottom line here before I get into sort of this ping-
pong game between Pfizer and the federal government. The bottom line is that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, the Centers for Disease
Control, other experts say there is no reason to be getting a booster right now. The two shots that are out there work just fine.
[13:20:00]
The one exception might be if you are immune-compromised because you take certain drugs, for example, organ transplant recipients take drugs to
suppress their immune system. Maybe you should get a third shot, but that is it. For the vast majority of us, you do not need a third shot. Now I'll
get into sort of the drama that unfolded since last night. So, last night in the United States, Pfizer put out a statement, saying we're going to
apply to the FDA for emergency use authorization for a third shot as a booster. So the same shot is the same as the first two.
But just a third shot because they said our immunity is waning. And that left experts scratching their heads. Pfizer gave no new studies. They
didn't say oh, we did this study that show it's waning. And there are plenty of studies that show that it's not waning.
All Pfizer did was point to this Israeli data. And so take a look at this data because it's very interesting. The Israeli data shows that the vaccine
now -- so we're talking about current, you know, numbers -- is 64 percent effective against infection. But more importantly that it's 93 percent
effective at keeping you from getting very sick, which is the point of a vaccine.
It's to keep you from getting very sick, 93 is an excellent number. Why would Pfizer point to that as waning immunity, 93 percent is an amazing
number. So again, the bottom line from the FDA and the CDC is this. This is the statement they put out after Pfizer put out its information.
So the CDC and the FDA say Americans who have been fully vaccinated do not need a booster shot at this time. Couldn't be more clear. Now, Hala, is it
possible that in the future a booster might be needed? Maybe. But with the CDC and FDA and others are saying not now, not necessary.
GORANI: OK, that's good news. We've seen on another note the two is enough. We've seen other evidence recently though that immunity to COVID -
19 could be long lasting and that would be good news. Right?
COHEN: That is. There are several studies out there that show that antibodies last for a long time. And also studies showing that B cells,
these B cells have a memory and that they also are giving you immunity, and that, that lasts for quite a while. Its been almost a year since the first
patient was given a dose of Pfizer in a clinical trial. So they have almost a year's worth of data, and there are lots of studies out there showing
that these vaccines do quite well over time. So again, part of the mystery as to why Pfizer is saying that it's waning.
GORANI: OK, Elizabeth Cohen. Thanks very much as always --
COHEN: Thanks --
GORANI: Still to come.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (SPEAKING IN FOREIGN LANGUAGE)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GORANI: That's what the Taliban are up to right now. They're seizing key border crossings in Afghanistan, expanding their offensive, just hours
after U.S. President Joe Biden defended his troop pullout. We'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[13:25:00]
GORANI: The Taliban are pressing ahead with a lightning offensive in Afghanistan, now claiming they control 85 percent of the country. The
militants overran two key border crossings today just hours after the American President Joe Biden defended his troop withdrawal, saying America
had quote, "achieved its goals." CNN's Anna Coren is in Kabul.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ANNA COREN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (on camera): The Taliban continues to make sweeping gains across Afghanistan, seizing one of the country's main
trading gateways with Iran. The militants took control of the dry port of Islam Qala in the western province of Herat where millions of dollars worth
of fuel and supplies cross.
The Taliban also claimed another border crossing bordering Turkmenistan. The government says security forces are attempting to recapture these key
areas. It comes after President Biden vigorously defended his decision to withdraw U.S. forces and end America's 20-year war in Afghanistan.
He said the decision was overdue that America did not come here to nation build, and that it was up to the Afghan government and its security forces
to defend its people. Meantime, a delegation from the Taliban meeting with the Russian government Moscow gave a press conference, stating that it had
claimed 85 percent of Afghan territory, a figure denied by the government.
It also said that humanitarian groups should keep operating that schools and hospitals must stay open and that the border crossings and customs
offices which have been seized will remain operational.
But attempts to portray the extreme Islamist group as an alternate governing body is not convincing anyone. The fighting continues to rage on
the battlefield with tens of thousands of people being displaced, while those who can plan for an exit strategy out of this country. Anna Coren,
CNN, Kabul.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
GORANI: A former police officer in the U.K. Wayne Couzens pleaded guilty today to the murder of Sarah Everard. The 33-year-old woman disappeared in
March while walking home in south London. Her body was found 80 kilometers away in southeast England. The killing -- you'll remember, and we covered
this, sparked widespread protests around women's safety. She was after all simply walking home at 9:00 p.m. The Met police chief had this to say.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CRESSIDA DICK, METROPOLITAN POLICE CHIEF: All of us in the Met are sickened, angered and devastated by this man's crimes. They are dreadful.
And everyone in policing feels betrayed.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GORANI: A judge has set Couzens sentencing hearing for late September. Still to come tonight, the U.N. Security Council avoids what some say could
have been a catastrophe for Syria. Another one. We speak to the Estonian ambassador, the country that just held the Security Council's rotating
presidency. We'll be right back with more on an important vote in New York.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
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GORANI: The U.S. says it's delivering on its promise to be an arsenal of vaccines for the world. The White House press secretary just gave reporters
an update, saying that this week, the U.S. has sent nearly 15 million doses to countries including Guatemala, Uruguay, Afghanistan, and Vietnam. Let's
get more now on global vaccination efforts. We're joined by Lloyd -- Loyce Pace. She's the Director of the Office of Global Affairs at the U.S.
Department of Health and Human Services. Thank you very much for being with us.
LOYCE PACE, DIRECTOR, DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES: Thank you for having me, Hala.
GORANI: At the G7 -- yes. At the G7 in Cornwall, the U.S. President, Joe Biden, pledged half a billion doses. How is distribution going so far?
PACE: Well, it's going well, as you just said to your audience, we were able to deliver 15 million doses just this week, that's making good on a
promise that the President has made to deliver millions of doses through the end of next year. So far, we've gotten about 80 million out the door,
or at least allocated to about 50 countries. And so I'd say that's going well, but we certainly have more to do. The President did commit an
additional 500 million doses, hundreds of millions of which we will be getting out the door still this year. And so I expect our efforts to ramp
up over the next several weeks and months.
GORANI: What are the biggest challenges for you?
PACE: Well, we definitely are working day and night, week by week, really trying to understand what the readiness is in countries where we're trying
to send these vaccines. Certainly, there's also regulatory hurdles and other logistical circumstances that we have to consider. So it's more than
putting products on planes. We have to dot all the i's and cross all the t's, as they say, to ensure that it's really reaching the people that we're
trying to serve.
GORANI: And where -- which regions have been tougher than others and why?
PACE: Well, I think that's a bit of a hard question. I think if we look at humanitarian or other settings where there are ongoing challenges, I think
that we will find there, the hurdles are a bit higher, perhaps in those circumstances.
I think also in countries where we have variant circulating, where the health systems are being challenged, where government authorities are
certainly focused on the very real time response, that also can prove challenging, because while they're trying to, of course, receive these
vaccines and ensure that they can receive them and distribute them, they're also battling a very real crisis, real time in their countries.
GORANI: Yes, I mean, the Democratic Republic of Congo a few months ago even sent back 1.3 million doses to COVAX because they said they wouldn't be
able to distribute them before they expire. We have correspondence in across -- Africa and Asia, some countries where they have issues, with
distribution with registration systems, with storage of vaccine doses as well.
I mean, it's not, as you say, just putting the vaccine doses on planes and landing at an airport. You then have all these logistical hurdles ahead of
you. Has this job been tougher than you thought it would be in terms of distributing these doses to the world?
PACE: Well, the good news is that we have some experience doing this working hand in hand with institutions like W.H.O., as well as UNICEF, or
Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance to distribute vaccines in countries, let alone these partnerships that we have with governments and ministries of health.
And so that that does help us but certainly no one has done this before, at least not in this past century, right? And so while we've been able to work
towards discrete vaccination programs in certain regions or countries, this is now a global vaccination effort. So in the same way we have had face
those challenges here at home, we're now facing them abroad.
GORANI: Yes. And if you had to -- you've been doing this now for quite some time. So if you had to --
[13:35:01]
What's a way to increase speed? I mean, now that you've kind of ironed out, I'm sure, some of the teething problems of the operation, what's a way to
distribute these doses faster?
PACE: I think working through COVAX is certainly helpful and a very efficient way that we can do this work. They've already run the traps on a
lot of these issues, as I said, whether they're around legalities or logistics or other considerations, that -- that's very helpful to countries
like the U.S. who are trying to share or otherwise distribute these vaccines to sort of send them through this centralized clearinghouse and
not need to sort of do that work country by country, but rather work with one institution, one place to distribute those vaccines. That's something
that we're doing with the Pfizer vaccine, for example.
GORANI: And what part of the world is next? I mean, we mentioned as -- a list here of countries that the Press Secretary updated us on, what --
what's the next part of the world that you will be focusing on?
PACE: Well, we acknowledge that there are countries around the world that still have very low vaccination rates. And I think you're able to look to
that data. Looking at the continent of Africa, for example, we know that the vaccination rates there are incredibly low, falling in the single
digits in terms of their percentages.
And so it's important for us to keep an eye on those places, as well as regions where these variants are starting to circulate and so that we had
some sense of things following what India face. And so we weren't surprised, unfortunately, to see that affect Indonesia in the way that it
has or countries like Nepal. And so that's what's driving our allocations. We're certainly letting the science guide us though.
GORANI: All right, Loyce Pace, thanks very much. The Director of the Office of Global Affairs at the Department of Health and Human Services. Thanks
for being with us on CNN.
Asian countries are also racing to curb the spread of the Delta variant. Many of these places had been able to keep the virus at bay since the onset
of the pandemic but are now at major risk because of low vaccination rates. We were just discussing that with Loyce Pace. Kristie Lu Stout has the
latest from across the Asian continent.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
KRISTIE LU STOUT, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Across Asia, the Delta variant is fueling a growing wave of new COVID-19 cases. In Thailand, Coronavirus
deaths are climbing. The country has ordered new restrictions in the capital Bangkok and surrounding provinces starting on Monday, including
mall closures as well as limits on travel and social gatherings.
Cases are also spiking in Vietnam. Both the capital Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City have tightened restrictions to contain the virus. Indonesia has
reported a record number of deaths fueled by the Delta variant. Save the Children is warning that many more children will die there.
It's -- Humanitarian Chief in Indonesia says this, "The health system is on the verge of collapse. Hospitals are already being overwhelmed. Oxygen
supplies are running out and health services in Java and Bali are woefully ill-equipped to handle this surge in critically-ill patients."
South Korea is raising its pandemic restrictions to the highest level in and around the capital, Seoul, from Monday. Health Ministry officials said
that the country is in a "Dire situation" with the Delta variant detected at an increasingly fast pace in the greater Seoul area.
Only 11 percent of the country's population is fully vaccinated. Japan has also been hit with a sharp rise in infection. Following a new state of
emergency in Tokyo, Olympic organizers on Thursday said that they would ban all spectators from Olympic venues in and around the city. Just over 15
percent of Japan's population is fully vaccinated.
China has reported its highest daily tally of infection since January, with all local cases from Ruili, it's a city and in Yunnan Province, which
borders Myanmar, parts of the city are in full lockdown. According to local officials, some patients were infected with the Delta variant.
In Australia the state of New South Wales on Thursday reported its biggest daily rise in locally acquired cases this year. The outbreak began with an
unvaccinated driver catching the Delta variant from a flight crew member. Just over nine percent of the population in New South Wales has been fully
vaccinated.
The Delta variant is also ravaging the Pacific island nation of Fiji. The mortuary in Fiji's Main Hospital is already filled to capacity. Early run
countries across Asia have managed the Coronavirus with some success but the highly contagious Delta strain along with the slow pace of vaccination
in countries like South Korea, Australia, and Indonesia have given rise to a devastating new wave of the pandemic. Kristie Lu Stout, CNN, Hong Kong.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
[13:40:00]
GORANI: You heard there that organizers have banned fans from the Olympics because of a spike in COVID cases but some, like journalists, are still
heading to Tokyo to report. CNN's Will Ripley shows us the logistical challenges of traveling to Japan.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
WILL RIPLEY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: The first thing people ask when I say I'm going to the Summer Olympics, "Is that still happening?" The second thing
they ask, "Is it safe?" My team and I are traveling to Tokyo to find out. Our journey begins four days before we fly. Two tests for COVID-19 96 and
72 hours before departure.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
RIPLEY: Already, there has been tons of paperwork to fill out, lines to wait in just to get to this point.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
RIPLEY: We can only go to testing centers approved by the Japanese government.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
RIPLEY: This is by far the most documentation I've needed just to get on a flight.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
RIPLEY: Processing my pile of paperwork takes nearly an hour at the airport.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
RIPLEY: This is the moment of truth. They're checking my documents. I think I prepared them correctly. They have now brought in a man in a Yukata.
Hello.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
RIPLEY: He tells me I need to download an app, fill out an online health questionnaire.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
RIPLEY: I have never been more grateful to get a boarding pass.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
RIPLEY: Only a few dozen passengers on my trip from Taipei to Tokyo. Many airlines are canceling empty flights or suspending service altogether.
Athletes from Fiji have to fly on a cargo plane that usually hauls frozen fish. I'm just grateful to have a window seat. This is my first trip back
to Japan since the start of the pandemic. Tokyo's Haneda Airport, eerily quiet.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
RIPLEY: As you can see, I don't have much company.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
RIPLEY: A handful of passengers. A small army of health workers poring over my paperwork, scanning my QR code, ordering me to spit in a cup.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
RIPLEY: So gross.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
RIPLEY: The first of many daily COVID tests. Social distancing? Not a problem as I wait for my results.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Negative.
RIPLEY: Negative.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
RIPLEY: Being here for the Olympics feels surreal and sad. Japan invested billions to host the games, banking on a tourism boom. This is not what
anyone had in mind. The pandemic makes you appreciate life's little victories. Like the moment I get my Olympic credentials.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
RIPLEY: Wow, there it is. It's official. Okasan.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
RIPLEY: I clear customs and see an old friend. Our longtime Tokyo bureau driver, Mr. O'Connell.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
RIPLEY: Mr. O'Connell was the very first face I met in Tokyo.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
RIPLEY: As we leave the airport and head to the hotel, it finally feels real. We made it to Japan. The process, surprisingly smooth overall, even
as the Japanese capital fights a fresh surge in COVID cases. Will Ripley CNN, Tokyo.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
GORANI: Wow. That isn't -- and it -- that is a very high number of -- one thing's for sure, Will Ripley does not have COVID. We know that now after
watching him take all those tests. Still to come tonight, does less work really lead to more productivity? Researchers in Iceland are putting that
theory to the test. Details on what they learned in just a few minutes.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[13:45:56]
GORANI: The Taliban are pressing ahead with a lightning offensive in Afghanistan, now claiming that they control 85 percent of the country. The
militants overran two key border crossings today, just hours after U.S. President Joe Biden defended his troop withdrawal, saying America had"
achieved its goals." CNN's Anna Coren is in Kabul.
ANNA COREN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: The Taliban continues to make sweeping gains across Afghanistan, seizing one of the country's main trading gateways with
Iran. The militants took control of the dry port of Islam Qala in the western province of Herat, where millions of dollars worth of fuel and
supplies cross. The Taliban also claimed another border crossing bordering Turkmenistan. The government says security forces are attempting to
recapture these key areas.
It comes after President Biden vigorously defended his decision to withdraw U.S. forces and end America's 20-year war in Afghanistan. He said the
decision was overdue, that America did not come here to nation build, and that it was up to the Afghan government and its security forces to defend
its people.
Meantime, a delegation from the Taliban meeting with the Russian government in Moscow gave a press conference stating that it had claimed 85 percent of
Afghan territory, a figure denied by the government. It also said that humanitarian groups should keep operating, the schools and hospitals must
stay open, and that the border crossings and customs officers, which have been seized, will remain operational.
But attempts to portray the extreme Islamist group as an alternate governing body is not convincing anyone. The fighting continues to rage on
the battlefield with tens of thousands of people being displaced, while those who can plan for an exit strategy out of this country. Anna Coren
CNN, Kabul.
GORANI: Still to come tonight, just days until blast off for billionaire Richard Branson. We look ahead to the launch.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[13:50:00]
GORANI: Well, as companies try to figure out what their post-pandemic future is going to look like, there are growing conversations about what
the workday will look like. Will you work full-time? Will you work from home? Will it be a hybrid model?
A little bit of home, a little bit of office? Well, Iceland did some research, public sector employees took part in two large trials working
thirty-five to thirty-six hours per week, instead of around forty hours for the same pay. The result? Guess what? Worker wellbeing increased
dramatically.
Clare Sebastian joins us from New York with more. So Clare, it's not surprising that what worker wellbeing will increase if you lower the number
of working hours, but what about productivity?
CLARE SEBASTIAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, so the study shows, Hala, that was either unchanged at the various workplaces that the study looked at, or it
actually improved. This is according to the data that was collected by those two studies run by the Reykjavik City Council and by the Icelandic
government over quite a large period of time between 2015 and 2019, those two studies.
And this study is actually unique because of the wealth of data that we had, they did surveys of the workplaces, they talked to the people
involved. And they found that that overall, both on the side of the employees and on the side of the workplaces themselves, there was a
positive net benefit of this.
The other really interesting thing about this is what we've seen since those studies ended, so people went back to their regular hours. And then
we suddenly saw a surge in union activity. I spoke to Will Stronge from Autonomy, U.K., he's one of the directors of that organization who co-
authored this study. This is what he had to say about what happened next.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
WILL STRONGE, DIRECTOR OF RESEARCH AND POLICY, AUTONOMY: Trade Unions agreed new working contracts, basically for 86 percent of the country's
workforce, and those working contracts included reductions of hours, there could be one to three hours reduced so not a huge amount, but it's
basically a roadmap towards a much shorter working week.
Or those contracts allow for new mechanisms for negotiating shorter working hours. So, the whole working culture in Iceland really has seen a huge
shift in the conversation around what is good work, what's best practice work.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SEBASTIAN: And that doesn't mean that all is rosy during this sort of transition period where they're moving according to these new union
contracts to a shorter work week. There was an interview this week, Hala, with the head of the police union on a local news station.
And he said that they're waiting for -- the government promised them more funding for -- to add new jobs to make up the shortfall and hours. They're
still waiting for that funding. He said in the meantime, there's more stress on the force because fewer police officers on the shift. So clearly
there is a sort of tricky transition period in some of these jobs.
GORANI: All right. Clare Sebastian, entering -- interesting results from this experiment in Iceland. Thank you. Well, Virgin's Richard Branson is
launching the billionaire space race this weekend. He's going first, as he blasts off aboard Virgin Galactic's rocket-powered jet in New Mexico on
Sunday. He'll be accompanied by a group of pilots and Mission Specialists.
The trip is taking place just nine days before Amazon founder Jeff Bezos makes his own journey to the stars. Joining us now is space correspondent
Rachel Crane who's in New Mexico where Sunday's launch will take place. Hi, Rachel.
RACHEL CRANE, CNN SPACE CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Hala. I got to tell you, I am pretty pumped right now. That's because we are actually behind the gates at
Spaceport America. This is the facility where the spaceflight will take place Sunday morning. And, you know, there -- it is a flurry of activity
here. You can see from our Mastcam the runway here at Spaceport America. It's 12,000 feet long. That is the runway that this rocket powered space
plane will take off Sunday morning.
It will be mated to its mothership called Eve. Now that mothership will transport the spaceship around 40,000 feet into the air before it drops it
and then the space plane will fire its rocket and blast off to the very edge of space. And nobody is more excited about this upcoming journey than
Richard Branson himself. I had an opportunity to speak with him just a few days ago. Take a listen to what he had to say.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CRANE: Richard, you are finally going to space in a matter of days. Tell me, how do you feel?
RICHARD BRANSON, CEO, VIRGIN GALACTIC: Well, I've managed to avoid getting excited for 17 years since we've started building spaceships and
motherships and spaceports and all these things.
[13:55:03]
And it had to get through the test programs. And then yesterday, I finally got the call from our chief engineer saying that every single box are being
ticked on the safety aspect and that I was -- would I like to go to space and I hit the roof. I was so excited. So -- and obviously, yes, never been
more excited in my life and the wonderful team who are coming up with me are equally excited.
CRANE: You talk about excitement, but tell me, are you nervous at all?
BRANSON: I'm not nervous. I'm -- obviously always -- you're always nervous of letting the rest of the team down. I'm going up, you know, as someone
there to test the customer experience, and I'm just going to enjoy every single minute of it. It's something that, you know, I think millions and
millions of people out there would want to take my seat.
And I'm going to enjoy every second from the beginning to the end. And so excited that this is the start for thousands of people who can become
astronauts in the future years and, yes, looking forward to seeing a lot of those people off in future years to come.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BRANSON: Now, Hala, Virgin Galactic says that their commercial operations will begin in the beginning of 2022. That's when some 600 passengers who
have already plopped down around $200,000 for a ticket to fly on this system will begin to start to have their chance to take flight, Hala.
GORANI: And how will this flight be different from Jeff Bezos's flight?
CRANE: Well, let me tell you, social media is abuzz about just that point right now. And there's a particular sticking point that people are focusing
on, that's about how far these rockets, these spaceships go into space. Now Jeff Bezos's New Shepard, which is set to make its first crewed launch on
July 20th, Bezos announcing that he will be on that maiden-crewed flight.
They are a fully autonomous vehicle and they go 60 -- above -- 62 miles above Earth. Now 62 miles is important here because that's what is the
internationally designated boundary of space. It's called the Karman Line, but Virgin Galactic system, they only go about 50 miles above Earth. Now 50
miles here in the U.S., that's what NASA recognizes as the edge of space, same with the Air Force.
So here in the U.S., Richard Branson, and the future astronauts, they will be getting their astronaut wings, but all around the world, unfortunately,
they will not be classified as astronauts, Hala.
GORANI: All right. Well, Branson is first, but Bezos will go higher. We'll follow both. Thanks so much, Rachel Crane. I'm Hala Gorani. QUEST MEANS
BUSINESS is up next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
END
