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Diplomatic Push in Syria's Ease of Transfer of Power; Search for Missing Family in Killed by Assad's Regime; More than a Million People Displaced in Syria; Cautious Optimism as Negotiations Resume for Gaza Ceasefire; Trump Opens NYSE, Time Magazine's Person of the Year Again; Three Search Warrants Conducted in New York Against Luigi Mangione; Drones Flying Over New Jersey Concerns Lawmakers. Missing American Travis Timmerman Found In Damascus; Children Suffer As Toxic Smog Blankets Delhi; Taylor Swift Makes History As Most Decorated Artist. Aired 2-2:45a ET
Aired December 13, 2024 - 02:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
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KIM BRUNHUBER, CNN HOST: Welcome to all you watching us around the world. I'm Kim Brunhuber. This is "CNN Newsroom." Millions of Syrians need food, shelter and health care after the collapse of the Assad regime and years of a brutal civil war. I'll speak with a doctor from the Syrian American Medical Society.
The White House appears cautiously optimistic about an Israel-Hamas deal even as President Biden's time in office winds down. And Donald Trump discusses everything from the Middle East to potential pardons for insurrectionists as he's again named "Times Magazine's "Person of the Year.
It is 10:00 a.m. in Damascus, Syria, where the effort to form a new government is getting a diplomatic push from around the globe. Jordan will host a weekend summit with foreign ministers from Western and Arab nations after the fall of the Assad regime. U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken is in the region meeting with Turkey's president and foreign minister. He's stressing the need for unity among rival factions to prevent a resurgence of ISIS. Here he is.
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ANTONY BLINKEN, U.S. SECRETARY OF STATE: We want to avoid sparking any kinds of additional conflicts inside of Syria at a time where we want to see this transition to an interim government into a better way forward for Syria. Part of that also has to be ensuring that ISIS doesn't rear its ugly head again. And critical to making sure that doesn't happen is the so-called SDF, Syrian Democratic Forces.
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BRUNHUBER: A joint delegation from Turkey and Qatar has arrived in Damascus for talks with the caretaker government. Syria's information ministry says the goals include engaging with Arab and international partners and reviving the country's economy. They're meeting with rebel commander Mohammed al-Jolani, the de-facto leader of the new administration and caretaker prime minister Mohammed al-Bashir.
Meanwhile, the Free Syrian Army, which is backed by Turkey, has announced a four-day ceasefire in the northern Syrian city of Manbou. Rival Kurdish forces have now withdrawn from the area.
So, many people in Syria are searching for their missing loved ones. CNN's Clarissa Ward visited a morgue in Damascus where the bodies left behind reveal signs of the cruelty inflicted by the Assad regime. Now we just have to warn you, you may find the following report disturbing.
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CLARISSA WARD, CNN CHIEF INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A woman wails on the floor of the Mujtahid Hospital. My mother, she's been missing for 14 years, she says. Where is she? Where's my brother? Where's my husband? Where are they? Dr. Ahmed Abdullah shows us into the morgue, where about 35 bodies have been brought in.
Discovered in a military hospital days after the regime fell, they are believed to be some of the last victims of Bashar al-Assad. Take a look, this is the crime of the regime, he says. Even in the Middle Ages they didn't torture people like this. Another man points to their tattered clothing. Evidence says that most were detainees at the much feared Sednaya prison. Even in death, they are still only identified by numbers.
Everyone here heard about the horrors that took place in Assad's notorious prisons, but to see it up close is something entirely different.
(On camera): A lot of them have bruises, have horrible wounds that seem to be consistent with torture. I just saw one woman retching as she came out of the other room. Families are now going through trying to see if their loved ones are here.
(Voice-over): There's not enough room for all of them in the morgue, so a makeshift area has been set up outside. More and more families stream in. The light from their cell phones the only way of identifying the dead. My only son, I don't have another. They took him for 12 years now just because he said no, 12 years, my only son, this woman shouts. I don't know anything about him. I ask Allah to burn him, she says of Assad. Burn him and his sons like he burned my heart. A crowd swarms when they see our camera. Everyone here has lost someone.
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(On camera): All of the people are asking us to take the names of their loved ones to help them try to find them.
(Voice-over): It is a mark of desperation. Such is the need for answers. But finding those answers will not be easy. At the military intelligence facility known as the Palestine branch, officers burned documents and destroyed hard drives before fleeing. But their terror was on an industrial scale. Troves and troves of prisoner files remain. It will take investigators years to go through them. Below ground, more clues etched on the walls of cells that look more like dungeons.
(On camera): So you can see this list of names of -- it looks like 93 prisoners here. There's also a schedule for keeping the cell tidy and just graffiti everywhere, people trying to leave marks for someone to find.
(Voice-over): Down here, insects are the only life form that thrives. It's clear that anyone who could survive this will never be the same again. The cells are empty, but the doors are finally open. The quest for answers is just beginning.
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BRUNHUBER: The United Nations reports more than 1.1 million people have been displaced across Syria since the fall of the Assad regime. Refugees are streaming into and out of the country as some minority groups fear they might be targeted by the new Islamist government. The UN says recent hostilities have made an already dire situation worse. The World Food Program is asking donors for $250 million for food assistance over the next six months as winter sets in.
Millions of Syrians have sought refuge in other countries since the civil war began in 2011. The majority, nearly 3 million, settled in Turkey. More than 7 million people were internally displaced.
All right, joining me now is Dr. Bachir Tajaldin, the Turkey country director for the Syrian American Medical Society. Thank you so much for being here with us. I really appreciate it. So your organization provides health services for millions of people in Syria. Recently, you have to suspend services in several health facilities and evacuate nine Syrian-Americans who were volunteering. So what's the latest there? Are they able to go back?
BACHIR TAJALDIN, TURKEY COUNTRY DIRECTOR, SYRIAN AMERICAN MEDICAL SOCIETY: Hi everyone, thank you for hosting me in your program. Actually, I just came back from a field visit in Syria yesterday. I spent almost the last week in Syria moving around different governorates. Now the main thing that it's relieving a little bit that there is no airstrikes. So that's one of the security measures and one of the main threats to the Syrian population during the last 13 years.
I did see a lot of people are moving around, going back from the (inaudible) to their homes, but mostly they are just checking the situation and planning to go to their hometowns. Still, there are some security challenges and as I see the situation is getting better day after day, but it still needs some time.
Actually focusing on health services and the health system itself, unfortunately the health system is very affected. I had met with many healthcare workers in public sector and private sector in different governorates during my visit. Unfortunately, the corruption was very dominant in those governorate-controlled areas. The public hospitals are -- their infrastructure needs a lot of rehabilitation.
The lack of the medical supplies, medical commodities. Come to imagine that when I met with the many (inaudible) facilities managers and some -- or many of the healthcare workers, usually the public hospitals and public health facilities are just providing the accommodation while everything around is paid (ph) and the (inaudible) break.
BRUNHUBER: So, the need doctor is so great. What are the priorities immediately right now?
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TAJALDIN: Yes. Currently what we are trying to cover during the short term is providing medical supplies, medical communities (ph) to the facilities, trying to communicate with the medical staff, mainly the nurses in different areas to go back to their work because there is lack of healthcare provider mainly in the public facilities. I mean, due to the fear from reporting to the hospitals, the security on the road, but also the availability of the transportation for those staff.
Even the private facilities are functioning right now in a good situation, but most of the population cannot afford the cost of the public hospitals. So --
BRUNHUBER: Let me just jump in because doctor -- let me just jump in because we only have a minute left but I did want to ask you this because you were talking about convincing doctors and nurses to go back. With the regime having fallen, many Syrian expatriates say they want to come back to the country to help rebuild. Are you speaking with many medical professionals specifically who want to go back, especially from Turkey, which has taken in millions of Syrian refugees?
TAJALDIN: For sure. There are a lot of medical professionals who are willing to go back to Syria. But to be frank and clear with you, there are millions of people in the surrounding countries as refugees, but they cannot go back without stabilizing the situation, providing the essential services. And that is the priority in the coming period. We establish the basic services, mainly health and education, and that will help a lot of the majority of the Syrians in the refugee countries to go back to Syria, in addition to controlling and maintaining the safety and security situation.
BRUNHUBER: Yeah, stability --
TAJALDIN: So, we're looking for returning, and the health sector is one of the main priorities, along with the education sector.
BRUNHUBER: Yeah, absolutely. As you say, stability is the key. Unfortunately, it seems so elusive for so many people still. Dr. Bashir Tajaldin in Turkey, thank you so much for joining us. Appreciate it.
TAJALDIN: Thank you.
BRUNHUBER: The U.S. believes the new reality in Syria could open the door for a ceasefire and hostage deal in Gaza. More than 100 hostages are still believed to be held there, most of them since Hamas launched its rampage in Israel more than 14 months ago. All diplomatic efforts to set them free have failed so far, but as Jeremy Diamond reports, a top U.S. official is cautiously optimistic things could be different now.
JEREMY DIAMOND, CNN JERUSALEM CORRESPONDENT: Well, with just over a month left in President Biden's term in office, his national security adviser Jake Sullivan sitting down with the Israeli prime minister to see if a hostage and ceasefire deal can be reached before Biden leaves office. And Sullivan struck a tone of cautious optimism, saying that he believes that there is optimism in the air, that there is cause to believe that a deal can indeed be reached, and that he believes the Israeli prime minister is indeed ready to reach a deal.
He gave a number of reasons for why things have changed, for why there is more optimism in the air. He said that following the ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah in Lebanon, that Hamas seems to have changed its negotiating posture somewhat, recognizing that it was no longer receiving the support of Hezbollah and that perhaps other actors that it had hoped would come into play in its defense ultimately will not.
At the same time, he also indicated that there were changes on the Israeli side as well, noting that Israel has killed Hamas's leader Yahya Sinwar and that some of its other military successes in Gaza may have made Israel more willing to reach for an agreement. Now at the same time, Sullivan did caution that the United States has said that a deal was close, that a deal was at hand before, and ultimately it didn't happen. So here was that more cautious side that he voiced.
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JAKE SULLIVAN, U.S. NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISER: We have been in a place before where American officials have stood before podiums and said we are close and we were close but we didn't get there. I believe we are close again. Will we get there? It is not yet clear whether we will or we won't, but we are determined to try to drive this across the finish line.
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DIAMOND: And I asked Jake Sullivan what new concessions Israel and Hamas have made at the negotiating table so far. He refused to confirm or comment on any specifics about the negotiations, making clear that they are trying to keep this close to the vest at this critical juncture.
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But at this critical juncture, he is now headed to Doha Qatar and to Cairo, Egypt, where of course, the two key mediators in these negotiations are based, as he said it, to try and quote, "put us in a position to close this deal this month."
And so that is ultimately the aim here of the U.S. administration to get to a deal potentially as soon as in the coming weeks. And of course to get the Americans who have been held hostage in Gaza out as well. He actually confirmed tonight that of the seven Americans who are in Gaza, we know that four of those have already been confirmed dead. The three other American hostages, Sullivan said, are indeed believed to be alive. Some hope perhaps now for their families that they can get out as part of this deal, if indeed it can be reached. Jeremy Diamond, CNN, Tel Aviv.
BRUNHUBER: So as diplomats talk ceasefire, Israel's deadly strikes are showing no signs of slowing down. Palestinian officials say more than 40 people were killed in multiple strikes Wednesday night and Thursday morning. Now this video shows the panic and chaos after two attacks in southern Gaza where 15 people were reportedly killed. Palestinians say they were guarding humanitarian aid, but Israel says they were Hamas members who wanted to steal it.
At least 33 others were killed in a separate attack on this residential block in central Gaza, including nine children. More than 80 others were injured or are missing. In a statement a short time ago, Israel says it targeted a senior terrorist who led attacks against Israeli troops and civilians.
Meanwhile, a British-based surgeon says food shortages are starting to show visible signs among children in Gaza. She says some children's hair color is starting to turn lighter, which she attributed to protein malnutrition.
Donald Trump's inauguration is just over five weeks away, and sources say a senior Chinese delegation is expected to attend the swearing-in. It appears the officials will be there in place of Chinese President Xi Jinping, who Trump personally invited.
Meanwhile, Amazon is set to donate $1 million to the inauguration. Founder Jeff Bezos is expected to visit the president-elect in the coming days as he and other tech leaders seek closer relations. And you have to remember Bezos' paper, "The Washington Post," was thrown into turmoil after the billionaire withheld its presidential endorsement in the 2024 race. The move was seen by some as anticipatory obedience.
The U.S. president-elect stepped away from inauguration preparations to accept two big honors Thursday.
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That of course is Donald Trump ringing the opening bell at the New York Stock Exchange accompanied by family members and the Vice President-elect. Now the appearance was coordinated with "Time Magazine," which on Thursday named Trump its Person of the Year for a second time. In his sit-down interview with the magazine last month, Trump addressed a number of issues, including the Middle East.
He declined to say whether he supports a two-state solution to help resolve the Israel-Hamas war while saying there were alternatives. Domestic problems were mentioned as well. Trump says groceries will soon become more affordable, but he notes that progress could be difficult to achieve. And the president-elect says he'll begin reviewing January 6 pardons within his first hours in office. He says he will go, quote, "case by case."
All this comes as a new report into the 2021 U.S. Capitol riot has been released. CNN's Evan Perez has that.
EVAN PEREZ, CNN SENIOR U.S. JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT: The Justice Department's watchdog says that there were no undercover FBI employees at the U.S. Capitol during the January 6th riot, rejecting claims from allies of President-elect Donald Trump who have for years suggested that the violence that day was provoked by federal agents. The Justice Department's inspector general issued a report on Thursday finding that there were 26 people who were paid FBI informants who came to Washington with Trump's rally seeking to overturn the 2020 election results.
Of those 26 people, three had specifically been tasked by the FBI to report on specific domestic terrorism subjects who were set to attend the Trump rally on January 6th. And one of those informants actually entered the Capitol itself, while the other two were outside on the grounds near the Capitol. The findings are part of a long-awaited report from the Inspector General, who launched an investigation into the Bureau's preparations just days after the 2021 attack from Trump supporters who are trying to stop the confirmation of Joe Biden's presidential victory.
Republicans on Capitol Hill have repeatedly clashed with top officials at the Justice Department and the FBI over the riot, most notably over suggestions that the FBI informants or employees actually helped instigate the attack. FBI Director Christopher Wray has flatly rejected the claim that the Bureau orchestrated the violence.
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The Inspector General also found that the FBI did not gather intelligence from all of its field offices. Some of that intelligence from informants could have helped the U.S. Capitol Police and other law enforcement agencies be better prepared for the protests that day. And the Bureau actually, inaccurately told the Congress that it had actually done that. No informants have been charged with any crimes, according to the Inspector General. Evan Perez, CNN, Washington.
BRUNHUBER: Concern is growing over mysterious objects that people have seen flying in the skies over New Jersey for weeks. We'll look at what federal officials are now saying about those apparent drones and whether they pose a threat. We'll have details after the break. Stay with us.
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BRUNHUBER: The man accused of gunning down UnitedHealthcare's CEO isn't a member of the insurance company, according to their spokesperson, and neither is his mother. Sources tell ABC News that prosecutors in New York have started presenting evidence against Luigi Mangione to a grand jury. CNN's Brynn Gingras takes a closer look at the evidence investigators have already gathered. BRYNN GINGRAS, CNN U.S. NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, sources telling
Kara Scannell and myself that at least three search warrants have been conducted in New York as part of this investigation. Some of these search warrants happening on evidence we've actually known about, one of them being the burner phone that was found in the getaway route that police say the suspect took after this killing happened. If you remember, there was a partial fingerprint lifted from that burner phone and the police commissioner now saying that fingerprint matches their main suspect, Luigi Mangione.
It's unclear what sort of evidence they've been able to get from that burner phone, getting into it with that search warrant, but certainly that is a continuing effort by police. Another one of those search warrants we've learned was conducted on that book bag that was found in Central Park. Police, of course, going to use that evidence to try to connect Mangione to the crime as well. We know inside that backpack, according to sources, was Monopoly money and some clothes.
We also know there were searchers that have been conducted as part of this investigation of that hostel where police say the suspect stayed, Mangione, prior to the killing, according to police. And also, we know Brian Thompson, the victim in this case, stayed at a hotel room across the street from where he was killed. So that search was conducted as well. Now, all of this, according to ABC, this is evidence that's going to go in front of the grand jury.
We know a felony arrest warrant was issued, but now the next procedural step is for the Manhattan District Attorney to get indictment in this case. So they're going to have to present evidence in front of a grand jury. It can include some of this evidence that we've talked about, the ballistics of the gun, the surveillance video. It could even possibly be a witness who saw the murder happen. If you remember from that alarming video, we saw someone leave the frame. It's possible that person could go in front of the grand jury. It's very unclear.
What we do know, though, is that the next step as far as court is concerned is a court date set for this hearing about extradition and that is now set for December 30th.
[02:25:06]
So just in a couple of weeks we'll learn if Mangione will be extradited back to New York. Brynn Gingras, CNN, New York.
BRUNHUBER: Lawmakers on both sides of the aisle are expressing growing concern over mysterious drones that people have seen in the skies over New Jersey for about a month. The U.S. Department of Homeland Security and the FBI say there is currently no evidence that the drones pose any threat to national security or have a foreign connection. The White House says the objects may actually be manned aircraft operating lawfully, but lawmakers and residents in New Jersey want answers now. Details from CNN's Omar Jimenez.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) LISA ROSSETTO, WITNESSED DRONES: What are they? Who's sending them up there? What are they doing there? Why doesn't anybody know what they are? You know, and why New Jersey?
JANET MOSNER, WITNESSED DRONES: They actually flew in a circle around our building, both of them, and then it crossed and then disappeared.
OMAR JIMENEZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The FBI is now investigating weeks of reported drones over New Jersey. That's according to a document given to state and local officials, as a growing number of people report seeing drones. Some described as six feet in diameter, flying in the skies.
NICK TECCHIO, STUDENT WHO WITNESSED DRONES: You see like red and green, like flashing lights on the like the corners. They'll just change direction, like go from like 90 to like 270 degrees just like fly different directions and planes obviously can't do that.
JIMENEZ (voice-over): There have been questions about when these drones first started popping up. Reports seem to vary but the Picatinny Arsenal, which is a military installation in northern New Jersey, has confirmed sightings in the area going back to November 13th. And public officials are starting to get frustrated.
UNKNOWN: They're creating so much fear and uneasiness in the public.
MICHAEL MELHAM, MAYOR BELLEVILLE TOWNSHIP, NEW JERSEY: They appear to actually avoid detection by traditional methods. So when our helicopter, our state police helicopter has gotten close, lights go off and they go away.
JIMENEZ (voice-over): So far, authorities have stressed there is no known threat to the public. That's not enough for some.
BRIAN BERGEN, NEW JERSEY STATE ASSEMBLY: It's really concerning. And quite frankly, it's not acceptable.
JIMENEZ (on camera): Now the Department of Homeland Security and the FBI are pouring a little bit of cold water on this. They released a joint statement saying that they have no evidence that the reported drone sightings pose any national security threat. And they're continuing to investigate whether these reported drone sightings are actually drones at all or if they are really manned aircraft. And they have said some of the cases they've looked into to this point haven't actually been drones.
They've been manned aircraft operating legally. That said, they are continuing to investigate what has been a flood of reports from this area to this point. And while they don't have a definitive answer to all of the cases, that lack of definitive answer is leaving a lot of people here with questions in the meantime. Omar Jimenez, CNN, Denville, New Jersey.
BRUNHUBER: And we'll be right back with more news here on "CNN Newsroom." Please do stay with us.
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KIM BRUNHUBER, CNN ANCHOR: Welcome back to all of you watching us around the world. I'm Kim Brunhuber. This is CNN NEWSROOM.
U.N. Secretary General Antonio Guterres is expressing his deep concern that Israel's military actions are a violation of Syria's sovereignty and territorial integrity. Here's his spokesperson.
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STEPHANE DUJARRIC, UNITED NATINS SPOKESPERSON: In this period of rapid change, the secretary general underscores that while maintaining public order, it is imperative to support credible, orderly and inclusive transitional arrangements in Syria.
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BRUNHUBER: The Israeli military said this week it had carried out nearly 500 strikes across the country, hitting weapons stockpiles, the naval fleet and other military targets. It also deployed ground troops into and beyond a buffer zone for the first time in 50 years.
U.S. national security adviser Jake Sullivan calls the moves legitimate actions of self-defense. U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken says Israel is destroying equipment abandoned by the Syrian military to make sure it doesn't fall into the wrong hands.
The U.S. says it's working to bring home an American man who spent the past few months in a Syrian prison. Travis Timmerman was found wandering barefoot around Damascus on Thursday.
CNN's Alex Marquardt has the details.
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ALEX MARQUARDT, CNN CHIEF NATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: As American officials have ramped up their search for journalist Austin Tice in Syria, it was another American who was surprisingly found on Thursday. His disappearance inside Syria was not known, but Travis Timmerman, a 29-year-old from Missouri, was found apparently walking barefoot in a neighborhood south of the capital, Damascus.
One Syrian activist who spoke with CNN said that Timmerman had appeared to walk around 13 miles from where he'd been held in captivity at what's known as the Palestine branch of Syrian military intelligence. Timmerman told NBC News that he was on a pilgrimage that his lord had sent him to Damascus, and that when he was captured, he was crossing from Lebanon into Syria illegally. Take a listen.
TRAVIS TIMMERMAN, FOUND IN DAMASCUS: I crossed the mountains between Lebanon and Syria, and I was living in that mountain for three days and three nights. And I was seen by a border guard, whilst I did that. And then that's when I was arrested. I was sent to a Syrian prison called Palestine. MARQUARDT: Timmerman had actually been reported missing in Hungary
earlier this year, far from Syria. He had last been seen in a church in Hungary. That's according to authorities there.
The U.S. secretary of state, Antony Blinken, who is in the Middle East, said that they are working to bring Timmerman out of Syria and help bring him home.
Meanwhile, the search for Austin Tice does continue. U.S. authorities have been communicating with different groups inside Syria, chasing all the evidence that they can find and what they have told CNN is a full court press.
One U.S. official telling me that U.S. intelligence agencies are following all the leads they can.
Alex Marquardt, CNN, Washington.
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BRUNHUBER: All right. To Ukraine now, where the Biden administration is trying to beat the clock and send as much military aid to the nation while it still can. That's from a senior administration official who spoke as the White House announced half $1 billion in new aid on Thursday, and the official says there will be more help in the coming weeks while President Biden is still in office to put Kyiv on a strong footing in its war with Russia.
Donald Trump takes over as president in January, but he's giving no guarantees to continue sending the aid. In an interview with time magazine, he criticized the recent decision to allow Ukraine to use U.S. made missiles for strikes deeper inside Russia. He says that will only make the war worse.
Toxic smog is choking parts of India and seriously harming its poorest and most vulnerable. In Delhi, life threatening pollution has become a regular occurrence during the winter, and children are particularly at risk.
CNN's Hanako Montgomery has our report.
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HANAKO MONTGOMERY, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): For 3-year-old Shahar (ph) and his baby sister, clean air is a luxury that their parents can barely afford.
MUSKAN, MOTHER (through translator): I feel scared that my children might die. I'm filled with regret when I think about what might happen to them.
MONTGOMERY: Delhi's air is so toxic that Muskan says her kids have needed a nebulizer since birth.
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She spent months saving up for this machine, rag picking the very trash that's also poisoning her children, earning just a dollar a day.
MUSKAN: During the winter months, their ribs start to hurt. Mucus freezes in their chest, they vomit too. We're so worried. I have three children. They keep falling sick in this dust.
MONTGOMERY: But her children are the lucky ones.
DEEPAK KUMAR, FATHER (through translator): The doctor asked us to buy a nebulizer, but we don't have that kind of money.
MONTGOMERY: When Deepak's daughter struggles to breathe, they rush to a nearby clinic where he says each breath costs more than his daily wage. Nights are his worst fear. No doctors, just balms and thoughts of mounting medical costs.
KUMAR: I want to leave Delhi, but I can't because I need to pay off a debt for my daughter's health.
MONTGOMERY: Every winter, toxic smog blankets Delhi, a deadly mix of smoke from crop fires, coal plants and traffic. Officials block cars and close schools as air pollution can hit 60 times. The World Health Organization's air quality guidelines. But like winter, the smog returns every year, and its biggest victims are the tiniest lives.
MANJINDER SINGH RANDHAWA, PEDIATRIC INTENSIVE CARE UNIT CONSULTANT: The human lung also develops till about 8 to 10 years of age. It's not in its mature form until that time, and a developing lung, if it's exposed to all these pollutants, that is when it causes long term trouble.
MONTGOMERY: While India's poor are bound to these slums, the wealthy rushed to hospitals.
UNIDENTIFIED BOY: Mama, I want to go home.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: But I don't think so that this kind of severity he has. So it might be very painful at that time for me.
Ready, please take it.
MONTGOMERY: He wants to send his three year old son hospitalized with bronchitis, hundreds of miles away from Delhi to his hometown. But even money can't save these children from the silent killer.
When winter ends in Delhi, the smog will lift. But the impact on India's children permanent and lethal.
Hanako Montgomery, CNN.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BRUNHUBER: An 11-year-old girl is apparently the only survivor after the migrant boat she was on sank off the Italian coast. It's thought 45 people, including her brother, were on board. Italian media says she's from Sierra Leone and was fortunately wearing a life jacket. Yasmine, as she's being called, told rescuers the metal boat she was on capsized in a storm. She was found clinging to tire tubes three days later.
We'll have plenty more news when we come back. Please stay with us.
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BRUNHUBER: Taylor Swift has shattered yet another record. At Thursday's Billboard Music Awards, the singer/songwriter took home 10 trophies, including top artist, top female artist and top Billboard 200 artist. Swift is now the most decorated Billboard music artist in history, with 49 career wins.
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Now coming into the night, she and Drake were tied. He took home three awards Thursday. Swift, who turns 35 on Friday, said this was the nicest early birthday present she could have received.
Hollywood honored British actor Jude Law on Thursday with a star on the walk of fame. He won a BAFTA Award for best actor for "The Talented Mr. Ripley", as well as an Oscar, Tony and Olivier Award nominations, and his movie ventures include "The Fantastic Beasts" franchise of the Harry Potter universe, and Guy Ritchie's "Sherlock Holmes" series.
The producer of the Walk of Fame says Jude Law, quote, incredible talent and dedication to his craft have captivated audiences around the world.
The New York Mets are showing off their new multi-million dollar man. The team introduced their incoming outfielder, Juan Soto, at a news conference on Thursday. The baseball superstar recently became the highest paid player in professional sports history. He signed a 15- year, $765 million deal, according to several reports. Soto told reporters he was won over by the team's leadership and impressed by their dedication to future wins series.
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JUAN SOTO, NEW YORK METS OUTFIELDER: That was one of the things that opened my eyes more, was how hungry they are for to win a championship and to want to make a dynasty on the New York Mets.
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BRUNHUBER: The left handed hitter is expected to bat second and play right field for the Mets next season. Ahead of last season, Soto was traded to the New York Yankees from the San Diego Padres and had one of the best campaigns of his seven-year career.
Well, there's a new champion in the world of chess. Have a look. Indian teenager Gukesh Dommaraju was becomes the youngest ever undisputed world champ in classical chess after beating his Chinese rival in a grueling best of 14 final in Singapore. The 18-year-old is four years younger than the previous record holder, the legendary Garry Kasparov, who won his first world title in 1985. Gukesh broke into tears as the emotion of his victory sunk in, telling reporters he's living a dream he's had for more than a decade. And back in India, celebrations broke out for the hometown hero.
That wraps this hour of CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Kim Brunhuber. I'll be back with more news at the top of the hour.
"WORLD SPORT" is next after a quick break.
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