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What We Know with Max Foster

At Least 83 Confirmed Dead After Hong Kong Fire; Two National Guard Members Shot Near The White House; Putin: Russia Ready For "Serious Discussion" On Ukraine; Pope Leo XIV Warns Of Global Conflicts While In Turkey; Thousands Cheer On Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. Aired 3-4p ET

Aired November 27, 2025 - 15:00   ET

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

[15:00:32]

MAX FOSTER, CNN HOST: The death toll from a massive fire in Hong Kong is rising.

This is WHAT WE KNOW.

In the past few hours, Hong Kong's fire department has confirmed that at least 83 people are now dead after the devastating fire that ripped through

an apartment complex. Firefighters say they expect the blaze to be fully extinguished by the end of the night, but authorities aren't certain how

many people remain missing.

On Thursday, the 16th survivor was pulled from the complex, but his condition is unknown. Residents are saying they have nothing left.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MRS. WAN, RESIDENT (through translator): We bought this building more than 20 years ago. All of our belongings were in this apartment and now that it

has all burned like this, what's left? There's nothing left. What are we supposed to do?

What we hope most is that the government will help us solve this problem. We don't have any other requests. Just hope that the government can help us

resolve it.

JASON KONG, RESIDENT (through translator): I'm devastated. There are so many neighbors and friends. I don't know what's going on anymore. All the

apartments are just burning. I don't know what to do. I hope the government can help us to settle down after this

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FOSTER: Three construction workers have been arrested on suspicion of manslaughter as a debate rages over the safety of Hong Kongs traditional

bamboo scaffolding.

The Hong Kong chief executive laid out his priorities earlier.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOHN LEE, HONG KONG CHIEF EXECUTIVE (through translator): I take this incident with the utmost seriousness. I have instructed all government

departments and units to make every effort on multiple fronts. Our top priority is to extinguish the fire and rescue the trapped residents. The

second is to treat the injured, and the third is to provide follow up support. Afterward, we will conduct a thorough investigation.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FOSTER: Chinese Leader Xi Jinping has designated the equivalent of more than $280,000 to Red Cross rescue efforts in Hong Kong.

Simone McCarthy joins me live from Beijing.

I mean, they're going to need every penny, aren't they? This is a huge project, and lives have been absolutely ruined.

SIMONE MCCARTHY, CNN SENIOR CHINA REPORTER: Absolutely, Max. The scale of the loss here is enormous. It's an incredible tragedy for the city of Hong

Kong. It's the largest fire that the city has seen in decades. In fact, it's the largest fire that the most -- the deadliest fire that mainland

China has seen in over a decade.

Now, we've seen an outpouring of donations, both from within the city as well as mainland China entrepreneurs stepping forward, donating millions of

dollars. Both the government -- Hong Kong government has set up a relief fund in addition to those funds that you mentioned from Beijing. However,

just -- you heard the heart wrenching voices of those who survivors who have lost everything, as well as people who are still waiting anxiously for

news of their loved ones that they believe may still be inside.

Now we are waiting in the coming hours to hear the results of the final hours of that search and rescue operation. So, we're really learn more

about the scale of this tremendous tragedy. But there's so many questions that still remain unanswered. And that's really where the focus is going to

move alongside those relief efforts in the coming days and weeks.

Already, authorities are raising questions, as you mentioned, with regards to a criminal probe related to some of the construction materials and

whether those were up to standard or whether their flammability actually played a key role in enabling this fire to spread from one corner of this

estate rapidly across at least seven of the towers in this -- in this massive estate.

So, there's many questions that we will be paying very close attention to in the coming days. And certainly, right now the focus is on whether there

are more survivors that can still be extracted from those buildings in the coming hours.

FOSTER: And then what to do with those buildings afterwards? Where to rehouse all of these people? Many of them were nurses. I was reading

earlier on, many of them are elderly and there's already a shortage of housing in the city.

MCCARTHY: Absolutely. This is one of the world's most expensive cities for real estate. This was a public housing complex. Many people would have used

a lottery system in order to gain an apartment in this -- in this area. So, this is absolutely something which will be a major focus for the government

going forward, and one that the Hong Kong public will be sure to be watching closely in terms of how the government actually moves forward to

handle this.

We're, of course, going into winter as well, the holiday season here in China.

[15:05:02]

So this is a very critical moment, and the public will be watching very closely how -- how this is all managed in the -- in the weeks and months to

come.

FOSTER: Simone McCarthy, appreciate it. Thank you.

And now new details a day after two West Virginia National Guard members were critically wounded in what's being called an ambush style shooting in

Washington, D.C. Officials say both of these service members remain hospitalized in critical condition. On the left, you see Andrew Wolfe, on

the right, Sarah Beckstrom.

Now police have identified the suspect as a 29-year-old Afghan national. He came to the U.S. in 2021 as part of a program to help people who helped the

U.S. during the war to escape the Taliban. Here's what the D.C. U.S. attorney had to say on the suspect earlier today.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JEANINE PIRRO, U.S. ATTORNEY FOR THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA: He resided in Bellingham, Washington, with his wife, and we believe, five children. And

we're working very closely with our federal partners, especially DHS and the FBI, to review his immigration history and the vetting process itself.

What we know about him is that he drove his vehicle across country from the state of Washington with the intended target of coming to our nation's

capital

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FOSTER: Well, in the aftermath of Wednesday's shooting, President Trump has been calling for even more troops to be sent to the district. He's

asking for 500 more national guard members, a request that will need to be made to the secretary of the army. Trump also wants a reexamination of all

Afghans who came during the Biden administration.

Kristen Holmes live from West Palm Beach, Florida.

I mean, all thoughts, obviously, with the two victims, the two survivors here and how much they dedicated to their roles. But at the same time, it's

becoming hugely political very quickly.

KRISTEN HOLMES, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: I mean, look, Max, you're right, it is. But it also this is something that had become

political. This deployment of the National Guard for the last several months. I mean, we had seen essentially, President Trump ordering these

National Guards into cities that were largely Democratic, and it become somewhat of a political flashpoint. We've talked to a number of these

guardsmen from our colleagues at CNN, have done stories on this where they were getting a lot of insults thrown at them, or people spitting on them.

And, of course, that's not everybody. That's -- but it was happening to these guards, as we know that President Trump had deployed the national

guard to either fight crime or help with immigration, helping ICE agents help with immigration as well. So, this was bound to become political. And

yesterday, when I was hearing from the White House and hearing from administration officials, they were all about trying to figure out what the

motive was, was the motive political?

We still don't know what the motive was, but it is clear from what we're hearing, not just from President Trump, but also from the entire

administration, that they are looking at this through a political scope. You have President Trump really ramping up his policies that are already in

place. The crime policy in D.C., bringing in 500 more national guards.

I had spoken to a number of dc employees, administration officials, who said they thought this was the direction this was going to go. And then

when it comes to immigration, it's not just going to be about Afghan nationals. Of course, he has said that he's going to review everyone's

status who is currently in the U.S. They've also stopped taking any visa requests from Afghan nationals who want to come to the United States.

But in addition, that you even heard President Trump talking yesterday in his speech about Somalians, Somalis in Minnesota, which, as far as we can

tell from every law enforcement source that we've talked to, every press conference that we've heard has nothing to do with this shooting that we

saw yesterday. So clearly, he is going to take this opportunity to ramp up those policies.

FOSTER: Okay, Kristen, thank you so much. Now,

Vladimir Putin says Russia is ready for serious discussion on the conflict in Ukraine. And the Kremlin expects a U.S. delegation in Moscow next week.

Speaking on a visit to Kyrgyzstan, the Russian president also renewed threats to seize more territory by force unless Ukrainian troops withdraw

from territories they occupy.

Clare Sebastian has more on where the peace process stands right now.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CLARE SEBASTIAN, CNN REPORTER: Well, after a week of frenzied diplomatic activity, mainly by the U.S. and Ukraine, this was a detailed rundown of

exactly where Russian President Putin stands and the bottom line. Nothing has changed. Yes, he made positive noises, saying the U.S. peace proposal,

as it stands, can form the basis for future agreements. He even said he's prepared to put in writing that Russia has no aggressive intentions towards

Europe. But on the most difficult issue of all territorial concessions, he had this to say.

VLADIMIR PUTIN, RUSSIAN PRESIDENT (through translator): Once Ukrainian troops withdraw from the territories they occupy, then the fighting will

end. If they don't withdraw, we will achieve this through military means.

SEBASTIAN: To clarify, Ukraine cannot occupy, as Putin puts it, its own sovereign territory. But this suggests, although it's not 100 percent

clear, that Russia still wants the whole of the Donbas, including the part it doesn't occupy.

And there's another big obstacle here. While Putin is ready and willing to receive Steve Witkoff, Trump's special envoy in Moscow next week, he still

says he won't do a deal with Ukraine's leadership because, as he's argued before, it postponed elections, which it can't, of course hold under

martial law and is therefore illegitimate.

So, we have two tracks. Still, Ukraine says it expects to continue work with a U.S. delegation this week, and the U.S. and Russia will talk next

week, but still no clear path to bringing the two together.

Clare Sebastian, CNN, London.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

FOSTER: France, Germany, Italy and the U.K. are condemning the surge of settler violence in the occupied West Bank, saying the attacks sow terror

amongst civilians. They're urging Israel to abide by international law and protect the Palestinian population.

Now, Israeli forces have launched a wide scale new military operation in the West Bank, but it's against what they call Palestinian terrorism.

Palestinian authorities say troops are imposing a siege on the northern city of Tubas, storming homes, making arrests, severely restricting

movement.

Last hour, I spoke with Palestinian lawmaker Mustafa Barghouti.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MUSTAFA BARGHOUTI, PRESIDENT, PALESTINIAN NATIONAL INITIATIVE: There are no military targets here, no military troops. There is no army in the West

Bank. The whole of the West Bank is under Israeli military occupation since 1967. And what the Israelis are doing is they are conducting a war on

civilian population. There is -- no targets mentioned at all.

In my opinion, this whole operation is about encouraging the settlers attacks on Palestinians, which are terrorists, settlers attacks. It's about

encouraging Israeli annexation of Palestinian land and the squeezing Palestinians in the West Bank like was done in Gaza under terrible amount

of collective punishment, destroying economy, destroying health services, destroying everything.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FOSTER: Pope Leo XIV is warning against conflicts on the global level. The pope made his remarks whilst in Turkey on the first overseas trip of his

papacy. He arrived on Thursday for the beginning of a six-day trip.

CNN's Christopher Lamb has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CHRISTOPHER LAMB, CNN VATICAN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A ceremonial welcome for Pope Leo XIV in Turkey. President Recep Tayyip Erdogan received

the pontiff on his first foreign trip. Pope Leo is honoring a promise by his predecessor to visit Turkey and Lebanon, two Muslim majority countries

with ancient Christian communities, carrying a message of peace and unity between different branches of Christianity, as well as the Muslim faith.

POPE LEO XIV, CATHOLIC CHURCH: The particular occasion of my own visit, the 1,700th anniversary of the Council of Nicaea, speaks to us of encounter

and dialogue.

LAMB (voice-over): Peace and compassion are the common values Erdogan says are shared with the pontiff. The two also discuss specifics, focusing on

immigration, poverty and the conflict gripping the world, with nods to the late Pope Francis and his outspoken political views.

RECEP TAYYIP ERDOGAN, TURKISH PRESIDENT (through translator): We have always deeply appreciated the steadfast stance of our esteemed guest and

his predecessors, particularly on the Palestinian issue, as the large family of humanity. A greatest debt to the Palestinian people is justice.

LAMB: Leo's visit to Turkey and Lebanon, a chance for him to exercise the papacy's soft power to meet with world leaders and to address the leaders

of Turkey directly, to emphasize his concern about growing conflicts around the world, the need for countries to talk to each other, to dialogue in the

cause for peace.

LAMB (voice-over): A chance to articulate his own brand of papal diplomacy.

POPE LEO: In the aftermath of the tragedies of two world wars, which saw the building of large international organizations, we are now experiencing

a phase marked by heightened level of conflict on the global level, fueled by prevailing strategies of economic and military power.

This is enabling what Pope Francis called a third world war, fought piecemeal. We must in no way give in to this. The future of humanity is at

stake.

LAMB (voice-over): Before heading to Istanbul, the pope met civic and religious leaders in Ankara, with Turkish culture on display. Paying

tribute to the founder of modern Turkey, Mustafa Kemal Ataturk.

With the trip coinciding with Thanksgiving, the American born pope brought the spirit of the holidays to the plain.

POPE LEO: To the Americans here, happy Thanksgiving. It's a wonderful day to celebrate. It's so important today that the message be transmitted in a

way that really reveals the truth and the harmony that the world needs.

LAMB (voice-over): He received holiday themed gifts, home baked pumpkin pies from American journalists, and a baseball bat from his favorite team.

On this trip, the first American pope acting as a bridge between different cultures.

Christopher Lamb, CNN, Istanbul.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

FOSTER: Coming up, U.S. President Donald Trump is vowing a further crackdown on immigration after the shooting of two National Guard soldiers

near the White House.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

FOSTER: A sprawling investigation underway into the suspect accused of critically injuring two U.S. National Guard members in Washington.

President Trump calls Wednesday's shooting an act of terror.

Earlier, the FBI director confirmed the suspect had connections to U.S. forces in Afghanistan.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KASH PATEL, FBI DIRECTOR: There is confirmation now that the subject had a relationship in Afghanistan with partner forces. We are fully investigating

that aspect of his background as well, to include any known associates that are either overseas or here in the United States of America

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FOSTER: Well, Mr. Trump is now vowing a further crackdown on immigration after the shooting, claiming former President Joe Biden let millions of

unknown and unvetted foreigners into the United States.

[15:20:00]

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We must now reexamine every single alien who has entered our country from Afghanistan under Biden. If

they can't love our country, we don't want them.

(EN VIDEO CLIP)

FOSTER: So, what we want to know is, are stricter immigration controls justified after the D.C. shooting?

Joining me now is CNN national security analyst Juliette Kayyem.

I mean, there's obviously a problem here, isn't there, in that someone who wasn't in the country has been allowed in, and they've carried out this,

this crime. But it's also very easy to generalize from that.

JULIETTE KAYYEM, CNN SENIOR NATIONAL SECURITY ANALYST: That's right. It's -- what is happening now, or at least what the Donald Trump has said is

this sort of what the actions of one individual from Afghanistan will now implicate the anyone of that background or from that country. This is a

very unique case. And what we know now and what we are reporting now is quite -- is quite specific to this to the defendant.

He is clearly at some stage working or assisting the CIA. The CIA has verified this sometime during the Afghan war. That relationship with the

CIA is not public, and he is assisting with CIA-backed Afghan groups.

He's then vetted when he comes into the United States about four years ago. So that's the second vetting. He's vetted again in 2025 this year, when the

Trump administration granted him asylum status. That's not green card status, but that's sort of the entryway into citizenship.

And then there is annual review. He clearly didn't go through that at this stage. So something happened in the vetting process across a lot of years

or something radicalized or made him a killer of the National Guard in just the last few months. That's where the investigation should focus, rather

than that the immigration system is broken.

FOSTER: How confident are you in the CIA vetting process, for example, and the other ones that you say followed? How good are they? Are they generally

seen as credible?

KAYYEM: Yeah, they are, but let me just tell you the distinctions, the ones that are sort of generally known to people in the law enforcement,

homeland security world, like me, are sort of the NCTC, National Counterterrorism Center, FBI vetting, obviously, what we call USCIS, which

is which is the homeland security vetting, when they come here and asylum vetting, those are public. Their standards public in the sense we know

what's being judged and people are brought to an office and they're interrogated that way.

The CIA process, which was fast -- it was in war. It was being done, you know, as we were getting -- as the United States was getting more desperate

for assistance in its -- in its fights in, in its long war in Afghanistan. Those were done secretly by standards that only the CIA would know. But

they were done under very different circumstances, than you would say a normal, a normal informant in civil society.

War required the CIA to get a lot of assets. And he was quite young when he started to assist the CIA.

FOSTER: So, I mean, is it your feeling everything, looking at something that radicalized him whilst he was in the U.S. and had gone through that

vetting process? Because clearly, he would have worked with many you know, security forces who have quite a high level of clearance, in his work in

Afghanistan.

KAYYEM: Yes.

FOSTER: And nothing seems to have been alerted from that.

KAYYEM: That's right. So if I'm looking at this without all the politics behind it, what I'm looking at is what has happened since early 2025 to now

that, that might explain why he gets into a car and drives cross country, buys a weapon and kills -- excuse me -- and shoots and seriously injures

two National Guard members. That -- that's what I would look at from the perspective of radicalization.

Then you go backwards and you say, okay. Were there hints earlier that were missed in the vetting process? And might we tighten the vetting process?

But as far as we know, he was -- he was assisting the CIA. He comes to this country because the CIA wanted him to come to this country, because he had

been so good at what he was doing.

And then DHS, through its asylum process, also determines that he will be a meaningful member to the United States society. So, something is happening,

you know, personal, professional, mental. We don't know relatively recently that would explain this.

FOSTER: So, President Trump sending another 500 troops or trying to, to D.C. And then this further crackdown on immigration, is that going to help

--

KAYYEM: Yeah.

FOSTER: -- prevent events like this in future happening?

KAYYEM: No, I don't -- I mean, I just wrote about this in "The Atlantic".

[15:25:00]

Look, I mean, the problem with troop readiness, where, you know, where the national guard ready to be the subject of something like this really goes

to -- do they do we know what their mission is? And the White House has changed from the beginning. At first, it was -- it was against crime, then

it was about immigration.

And then when you -- when you go to D.C., you see the National Guard members from other states picking up trash. They called it mission

beautification. That's not what the national guard should be used for.

So, I feel very strongly that you can't -- you can't fix an unclear mission by just adding numbers. You -- we have to figure out why are they there?

That is meaningful for the National Guard to be doing and do they have metrics, standards of operations? Do they, do they have meaningful rules of

engagement? All of it matters for the National Guard.

Right now, they appear to be pawns in sort of a political debate, but that's not what they're built for. And honestly, that's not what we should

be asking them to do.

So, in this assessment of what's going on, not only is it about the perpetrator, but it's also about looking at, well, well, you know, what can

we learn from this about the deployment of the National Guard under circumstances they've never been under before for a very vague and loose

and often political deployment. And I think we owe it to the -- to service members who are still struggling for their lives right now.

FOSTER: Yeah. Obviously, thoughts primarily with them today.

Juliette Kayyem, thank you.

Still to come, the exact cause of the Hong Kong deadly inferno is still unknown. But the horror for the thousands affected is extremely clear. More

details of what's being done now when we come back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[15:30:14]

FOSTER: Buildings are still smoldering more than a day after the deadliest fire in Hong Kong since World War II. The death toll has climbed to at

least 83 people. Crews are working to rescue those who may be trapped after the blaze raced through several high-rise buildings in the apartment

complex. Amid the grief, more questions are being raised about whether the disaster could have been prevented.

CNN's Hanako Montgomery has the latest from Hong Kong.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

HANAKO MONTGOMERY, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A public housing complex in Hong Kong charred with pockets of fire, still burning more than

24 hours after catastrophic blaze left dozens dead and hundreds more missing in what is the city's worst fire disaster in decades.

Emergency officials laid out the herculean task that is facing them as they desperately try to find survivors.

WONG KA WING, HONG KONG DEPUTY DIRECTOR OF FIRE SERVICES: The temperature is very high in the fire ground, and the inside layout is very complex

because the scaffolding is collapsed.

MONTGOMERY (voice-over): That bamboo scaffolding and safety netting were encasing the eight residential towers which were under renovation.

Those structures were already on fire by the time firefighters arrived on the scene on Wednesday afternoon. And while the exact cause of this deadly

inferno that left from building to building has yet to be determined, the city's chief secretary for administration was quick to acknowledge the

questions swirling around the bamboo scaffolding, saying that the government is working on fully switching to metal scaffolding.

A criminal investigation has been launched, and a police spokesperson said that three men who worked for a construction company have been arrested on

suspicion of manslaughter in relation to the fire.

Many of those who were able to escape looked on in disbelief as the place they used to call home went up in flames.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: As for my feelings, honestly, I don't even know how I feel right now, just taking things one step at a time. Now I'm just

thinking about where I'm going to sleep tonight, because I probably won't be able to go back home.

MONTGOMERY (voice-over): They're now having to take refuge in temporary accommodation and start over.

MONTGOMERY: We're at one of the nine shelters that have now popped up across Hong Kong. And according to the local authorities, at least 500

people are using the shelters because, again, they don't have any homes to return to. These volunteers are collecting a lot of food and also water and

heat protections to give out to these individuals who lost their homes.

MONTGOMERY (voice-over): And as shock turns to grief, the search for answers goes on.

Hanako Montgomery, CNN, Hong Kong.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

FOSTER: Let's bring in David O'Neil. He's the CEO and co-founder of the institute of search and rescue and work for the London fire service for 30

years, where he led recovery operations following the Grenfell Tower fire.

Thank you so much for joining us. And this must have horrible echoes of the past for you.

DAVID O'NEIL, LED THE RECOVERY OPERATION AFTER GRENFELL TOWER FIRE: Oh, absolutely. The sites that we're seeing here in the U.K. are absolutely

bringing those memories back. So, you know, our thoughts at the institute and all of the U.K. fire family are with all of those affected by this

terrible incident.

FOSTER: Is there anything obvious here that went wrong for you? You know, in terms of what you can see?

O'NEILL: Well, we've connected with our member base in, in Hong Kong to try and find some, some more detail. And it appears that the fire was first

reported starting on the -- on the outside of the building. And the bamboo structure, as your report has just sort of referred to that was covered in,

in what appeared to be flammable netting and flammable sheeting.

And we also understand that the buildings were under significant renovation and in fact, Styrofoam was being used, to fill window voids, perhaps as

windows were being replaced. But, we've had these reports from the ground that there was a fair amount of flammable material all the way up the

outside of these buildings, which, of course, would lead to rapid fire spread. And it's inviting the fire directly into people's homes with the

fire and the poisonous gases, of course.

FOSTER: Yeah. I mean, that's very much the focus of the investigation as we understand it. But from the fire crews perspective, showing up -- I

mean, describe what it was like showing up for you at Grenfell Tower, then what it must have been like for them when they saw seven Grenfells

effectively.

O'NEILL: Yeah, it's exactly what it is.

[15:35:01]

And I've got to say, you know, I arrived at Grenfell when the fire was at its peak, really.

And to me it looked very similar to this kind of netting on the outside. That was the first thing that sprang to my mind was, was that building

Grenfell tower covered in scaffolding netting, because it was almost it was such a shock to the senses to see a building entirely ablaze. That would

have been the same sight that greeted, you know, the 280 firefighters that attended this incident in Hong Kong.

FOSTER: It does. I mean, a lot of people are making the point. You can see a hose there. You know, these are big, powerful hoses, aren't they? But

they don't reach nearly high enough. You know, I'm not an expert in this. I mean, obviously, you can't get a fire engine that goes that high, but

there's a problem here, isn't there, when you -- there's no equipment available that can go high enough for blocks that people live in.

O'NEIL: Not for an external fire attack. So, you know, nowadays, with these buildings are getting taller and taller, we are globally reliant on

internal systems for fire prevention and to fire suppression to stop the spread and allow people to evacuate. The long reach, aerial appliances that

you'll see there, you know, a comparable to the ones we have here in the U.K. at 64 meters, they're hard enough to get in close to buildings as it

is.

You know, with buildings going higher and higher, that's never going to be a final solution. An external attack. We have to be reliant on engineered

solutions within the building to protect the people that live there.

FOSTER: I know that you also led the body recovery, didn't you? After Grenfell, which I'm sure you find difficult to talk about. But that's what

-- that's the next mission, isn't it, for the Hong Kong firefighters?

O'NEIL: Yes.

FOSTER: But before they get into that, you know, there is a chance of survivors, right? For quite a while, if they were lucky.

O'NEIL: Yeah, I've got to say, you know, there's 83 I think the latest reports have confirmed dead a further, you know, 280 unaccounted for. Youve

got to think, you know, the blessing was if there could be a blessing, there's the time of day that this fire occurred. So many people have been

at work.

But of course, in these residential blocks, I think it's been reported a third of the residents are over the age of 65, who may well need you know,

assistance to escape an incident like this.

So, my fear is that death toll will rise. Yes, when the fires out and the fires are still burning. The structural integrity of the building will have

to be assessed before you can commit people. You know, the fire service, the police service to undertake that painstaking forensic recovery of those

unfortunate victims of this incident.

FOSTER: David O'Neil, thank you so much for joining us.

O'NEIL: Thank you for inviting me.

FOSTER: Okay. Business news. No trading on Wall Street today for the Thanksgiving holiday, but European stocks finished broadly higher.

This is our business breakdown.

As some of Chinas biggest companies are donating money for the victims of the Hong Kong fire disaster. The tech giant Xiaomi has pledged more than $1

million to the rescue efforts, while Tencent says it will donate money towards essential supplies and counseling for those affected.

Asahi says that the personal information of nearly 2 million people have been exposed in a recent cyberattack. The Japanese beer company said the

attack in September was done via network equipment used at its own offices. The company's chief executive has apologized.

And no spoilers, but there were a few unexpected shocks from the new season of "Stranger Things". Netflix users reported a spike in outages just as the

fifth and final season went online on Wednesday night. Luckily, the problems soon resolved. The final episodes will go onto Netflix on

Christmas day and New Year's Eve.

Now, food insecurity touches every part of America and often has no clear face. Singer and actress Leighton Meester stopped by a food bank with

Feeding America to help make sure that families have a meal this Thanksgiving.

CNN's Stephanie Elam is there with stories

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I need a turkey.

STEPHANIE ELAM, CNN CORRESPONDENT: You need a turkey!

ELAM (voice-over): The L.A. rain couldn't stop Elba Escobar (ph) from being first in line for a free holiday meal. Although it did briefly pause

our interview, Escobar was 10 hours early for one of more than 500 turkeys and nearly 1,000 hot meals.

ELAM: Happy Thanksgiving.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Same to you.

ELAM (voice-over): From turkey and potatoes to milk and eggs, some served by a special guest.

ELAM: Do people recognize you?

LEIGHTON MEESTER, ACTRESS AND ADVOCATE FOR FEEDING AMERICA: No.

ELAM (voice-over): But Leighton Meester recognizes what many families are going through.

[15:40:00]

She might be a Hollywood star known for "Gossip Girl" and HBO's "I Love L.A.", but here, fighting food insecurity takes center stage.

MEESTER: When I was growing up, we definitely struggled with food insecurity. We relied on food stamps. Even to this day, when I check out at

a grocery store, there's always like a part of me that thinks about that and has made me maybe just more aware and all the more grateful.

ELAM (voice-over): That's why she volunteers with the nonprofit Feeding America. For the last decade, she's helped at food pantries, schools and

women's shelters, often with her husband, Adam Brody.

MEESTER: You connect with people. It's just is, the face to face contact that's giving a face to the cause.

CLAIRE BABINEAUX-FONTENOT, CEO, FEEDING AMERICA: Hunger in America looks like each of us.

ELAM (voice-over): Feeding Americas CEO says every county and parish in America has people going hungry, and that she used to be one of them.

BABINEAUX-FONTENOT: I get a chance to give back. So many people experiencing hunger. Volunteer at pantries and food banks. So many of them

just need a little lift up. And when they get there, they give back to their communities.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I went without a Thanksgiving for many, many years.

ELAM (voice-over): Rosie Lopez says taking care of her physically disabled husband limits her income.

ELAM: What does that mean to someone like you who can benefit from this, that people are so caring?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's a blessing. It's a Thanksgiving Day every day to me.

ELAM (voice-over): By the end, the L.A. sun returned and this community had not only food, but hope and thanks.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: God bless this place and God bless America.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

FOSTER: Now, controversy surrounding the Miss Universe pageant still to come tonight, the accusations against the pageants president and claims

Miss Mexico isn't the rightful winner.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

FOSTER: Accusations of favoritism, a false winner, illegal drug running all surrounding the Miss Universe pageant. Now it involves the pageants co-

owner and president, Raul Rocha Cantu.

[15:45:05]

The attorney general's office in Mexico says it's investigating him for an alleged link to a drug-related organized crime network, and there are

allegations of rigged results for this year's contest. Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum was asked if she or someone in her government board off

the organization to crown Miss Mexico the winner.

Valeria Leon joins us now from Mexico City.

So, what did she say to that?

VALERIA LEON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Max, we just received last minute information. The government of Guatemala has revoked the honorary consular

title from Mexican businessman Raul Rocha Cantu. Rocha is currently under formal investigation in Mexico by the attorney general's office, and he's

accused of participating in a cross-border criminal network dedicated to arms trafficking, drug trafficking and the smuggling of illicit fuel from

Guatemala into Mexico.

And these allegations that investigators say involved the movement of fuel through river routes and storage sites in southern states, have raised a

serious national security concerns. Rocha has been serving as an honorary consul for Guatemala, a post he was awarded back in 2022. But Guatemala's

foreign ministry has now revoked this designation. Officials say the decision began after authorities discovered that Rocha had changed the

address of the consulate without prior authorization, a violation of diplomatic protocol, but the move was accelerated once the criminal

investigation in Mexico became public.

So, to be clear, Raul Rocha is no longer recognized by Guatemala as a consul. His honorary post has been revoked, reflecting both procedural

violations and the gravity of the allegations he now faces in Mexico. In a statement, Mexico's attorney general's office said they are still in the

evidence gathering stage and have not issued an arrest warrant for Rocha. But this case dates back to 2024.

But its timing has intensified and already turbulent Miss Universe controversy. Just days after Mexico's contestant Fatima Bosch won the

crown, accusations of corruption spread, fueled by pageant judge Omar Harfouch, who claimed the competition was rigged by Rocha due to his

alleged ties to Bosch's father. Bosch's father previously worked at Pemex, Mexico's state-owned oil company. At the same time, Rocha held an 11-month

contract there, a detail now drawing additional scrutiny given the fuel smuggling allegations.

And Fatima Bosch became the fourth Mexican woman to win Miss Universe. She's now being harassed online, facing posts accusing her of buying the

title. And on Wednesday, Mexico's president, Claudia Sheinbaum, defended the beauty queen, insisting the Rocha's investigation is unrelated to the

legitimacy of Fatima Bosch's crown -- Max.

FOSTER: It's extraordinary how it's escalated. Valeria, thank you for bringing us all of that.

Now, Ukrainian and U.S. delegations will meet at the end of this week to discuss the latest plan to end the war with Russia. That is according to

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, in his nightly address to the nation, Mr. Zelensky said there will also be what he called important

negotiations the following week, which will be significant for him personally.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY, UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT (through translator): Already this week, at the end of the week, our team, together with American

representatives, will continue to translate the points we secured in Geneva into a form that puts us on the path to peace and security guarantees.

Next week, there will be important negotiations, not only for our delegation, but also for me personally. And we are laying solid groundwork

for those talks.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FOSTER: The Winter Olympics just a couple of months away, and the possibility of peace deal between Russia and Ukraine could mean the Russian

Olympic team gets to return to the world stage.

CNN's Amanda Davies spoke with Ukraine's sports minister about that.

(BEGIN VIDEO C,LIP)

MATVII BIDNYI, UKRAINIAN SPORTS MINISTER: It's too early to talk about the just being achieved. We have a lot of issues with the preparation to

competition. We have a lot of killed coaches and athletes with a lot of loses because of the war, because of the Russia.

AMANDA DAVIES, CNN SPORTS CORRESPONDENT: What needs to happen, in your opinion, for the reintegration of Russian athletes into the international

sporting community?

BIDNYI: Athlete, I think we must have a strong ceasefire. We should have. I think the final agreement and the killing every day attacks and the

killing and murdering the Ukrainian citizens should be stopped. I think, in a in a terms of recovery, we must have some understanding about the finding

Ukrainian rebuilding from the assets of the Russia, from the European Union and USA, and maybe next we can talk about the negotiation, about the coming

back, the Russian athletes into international sports area.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FOSTER: Still to come, a giant video game characters floating down Eighth Avenue. It can only mean one thing. That is Thanksgiving Day in America.

We'll take you there.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[15:53:44]

FOSTER: Well, it's a time for family, American football and the truly epic amount of food. Americans are celebrating Thanksgiving today and all eyes

are on New York, certainly, where this morning for the annual Macy's parade. And the weather wasn't too bad either.

It's the traditional curtain raiser for the whole day, including marching bands. Got dancers, the famous balloons featuring familiar characters like

SpongeBob. Super Mario. No Thanksgiving would be complete without some turkey, though.

And CNN's Harry Enten isn't messing around.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

HARRY ENTEN, CNN CHIEF DATA ANALYST: This has been quite the adventure for me. I started at the top of the parade in the upper 70s at Central Park

west here in Manhattan. I have walked well more than a mile. I think I've walked now two miles. I've walked basically the entire parade route.

I'm at West -- where am I? I'm at West Fifth and Sixth Avenue. My goodness gracious, I'm right near Times Square. Look, we've seen a ton of great

floats that have come by. We've seen Snoopy, we've seen Mario, we've seen Tom the turkey, of course.

We have seen, I mean, all of the ones that just kind of come to mind. They're all just so nuts.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FOSTER: Yes, that was a real turkey leg, by the way.

It's also a time for Americans to give thanks to their military personnel serving overseas. This was the scene of the base in Germany with plenty of

food, games and turkey hats there.

CNN's Fred Pleitgen spoke to one service member

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: What's so special for you serving on a day like this? Serving abroad?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Well, I mean, it's special just because, you know, there's some people who can't serve, some people who, would like to. And

whereas I get the chance to be able to serve my country and be able to make a difference.

PLEITGEN: What do you miss most?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: My mom's cooking. My mom's cooking --

PLEITGEN: It's not bad here, though, is it?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No, no, it's not bad. It's not bad. But I like to annoy her in the in the kitchen. Maybe help. But, you know --

PLEITGEN: It's those family moments, isn't it?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yeah.

PLEITGEN: You want to say hi to your folks there.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Hi, mom. Hi, dad.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FOSTER: Hope you're watching.

I'm Max Foster. That's what we know. Stay with CNN.

More after the break.

END

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