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Ukrainian President Hosts Russian Invasion Anniversary with World Leaders; Pope Francis Shows Slight Improvement as Faithful Storm Prayers for Healing; Podcast Host Dan Bongino Named Trump's FBI Deputy Director; Fyre Festival Returns After a Disastrous Debut. Aired 3-4a ET
Aired February 25, 2025 - 03:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
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ROSEMARY CHURCH, CNN ANCHOR: Hello and welcome to our viewers joining us from all around the world and to everyone streaming us on CNN Max. I'm Rosemary Church.
Just ahead, the U.S. and French presidents smile for the cameras, but behind the scenes, a growing rift between Washington and Europe as Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine passes its three-year mark.
Ultimatums and contradictory messages. Elon Musk's demand that federal workers explain what they're doing or risk termination gets even more confusing.
And the Vatican offers a cautiously optimistic update on the Pope's condition. We are live in Rome with the very latest.
UNKNOWN (voice-over): Live from Atlanta, this is "CNN Newsroom" with Rosemary Church.
CHURCH: Thanks for joining us.
Well, from the White House to the United Nations, the Trump administration is taking a giant step away from Ukraine and siding with Russia. More than three years of support and billions in military assistance for Kyiv are drying up as Donald Trump tries to rewrite history.
On the third anniversary of Vladimir Putin's full-scale invasion, the U.S. joined Russia in voting against a U.N. General Assembly resolution condemning Russia's war against Ukraine. And the Security Council passed a U.S.-led resolution which failed to call out Russian aggression. Five European countries abstained, including the U.K.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BARBARA WOODWARD, U.K. AMBASSADOR TO THE UNITED NATIONS: There can be no equivalence between Russia and Ukraine in how this Council refers to this war. If we are to find a path to sustainable peace, the Council must be clear on the war's origins.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHURCH: Meanwhile, at the White House, French President Emmanuel Macron tried to inject a dose of reality. He urged President Trump to deal with Vladimir Putin from a position of strength and said any peace agreement on Ukraine must be checked and verified. Mr. Trump continued to exaggerate U.S. financial support for Ukraine, again blaming his predecessor Joe Biden for the war and refusing to call President Putin a dictator.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD TRUMP, U.S. PRESIDENT: If you call Zelenskyy a dictator, would you use the same words regarding Putin? I don't use those words lightly. I think that we're going to see how it all works out. Let's see what happens.
I think we have a chance of a really good settlement between various countries. And, you know, you're talking about Europe and you're talking about Ukraine as part of that whole situation. The other side has a lot of support also.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHURCH: In Kyiv, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy welcomed leaders marking the third anniversary of Russia's invasion. CNN's Nick Paton Walsh was there.
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NICK PATON WALSH, CNN CHIEF INTERNATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): They came to honor, mourn in unity with the hope the war could stop in this, its fourth year.
But in truth, the past week has elevated Ukraine's bitter conflict where Russia is still advancing into an unprecedented crisis for all of them, Europe and beyond.
It's also about having skin in the game.
PATON WALSH (voice-over): The words, the pledges of aid and sanctions were familiar.
We need to make sure that might no longer makes right.
KEIR STARMER, BRITISH PRIME MINISTER: The U.K. is ready and willing to support this with troops on the ground.
PATON WALSH: A show of solidarity, but really key here is the absence of senior figures in the Trump administration, the change in that alliance hanging over this key show of unity.
PATON WALSH (voice-over): But then the whiplash that's left U.S.- Ukraine relations in free fall suddenly got a reprieve, perhaps due to this man sidling up to President Donald Trump during a G7 video call. French President Emmanuel Macron, seeking to bring Trump onto
Ukraine's side.
JUSTIN TRUDEAU, CANADIAN PRIME MINISTER: Olaf, good to have you here. I know it was a tough day yesterday.
PATON WALSH (voice-over): A lot of change here. Canada's Prime Minister Justin Trudeau leaving Germany's Chancellor Olaf Scholz voted out too. But this is day by day for Ukraine, who welcomed a chance.
[03:05:02]
VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY, UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT: I mean, that's with Donald Trump, now we had a conversation, it was a very good conversation. Thank you very much, Justin, for organizing this meeting.
PATON WALSH (voice-over): Some minutes later, the world seemed to change again. The key U.S.-Ukraine resources deal close to done.
TRUMP: I think we're very close. Do you have something to say about that, Scott?
UNKNOWN: We are very close. One yard run.
TRUMP: I will be meeting with President Zelenskyy. In fact, he may come in this week or next week to sign the agreement.
PATON WALSH (voice-over): Just add Macron to Trump. Results in minutes.
TRUMP: He's a smart customer, I will tell you that.
PATON WALSH (voice-over): Ukraine urgently needed good news and a brutal fight. A source telling CNN a final draft of the resources deal left the tough staff to later talks, removed the worst parts for Kyiv but also the security guarantees they needed. That might be something for the Presidents to discuss later.
Yes, the madness has one winner. The Kremlin head surely seeing a telenovela plot of a week, leaving the West in panic, trading dictator insults but not at him, and then suddenly healed. Next week could well be different again.
Nick Paton Walsh, CNN, Kyiv, Ukraine.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CHURCH: And I spoke earlier with CNN's European Affairs commentator, Dominic Thomas, and I asked him why Donald Trump is calling Ukraine's president a dictator but not Vladimir Putin.
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DOMINIC THOMAS, CNN EUROPEAN AFFAIRS COMMENTATOR: I think at this moment, Rosemary, we're moving into a just a completely new era of essentially of American foreign policy. And what we're seeing here is the purely transactional nature of it. In other words, it is the United States offering protection for pay.
In the case of Ukraine, it involves minerals. In the case of the relationship with Russia, deals that President Trump is negotiating with Vladimir Putin. And then when it comes to Europe, there is this complex relationship that I think that which Europe we're talking about is, of course, the big question here.
But there are many in Europe, many European leaders who believe that they cannot solve the Ukrainian situation alone, and they need the United States.
That is putting them in a situation of vulnerability vis-a-vis President Trump, because it's creating a kind of dependency and legitimizing his actions. And it's very difficult to disentangle all of this from the actions of Russia in Ukraine and what President Trump is proposing moving forward in terms of establishing a hold over land, over minerals, over territorial spaces in exchange for military protection.
And I think that inconsistency in the message and the lack of unity in Europe when it comes to thinking about these particular questions is the problem moving forward, Rosemary.
CHURCH: Yes, and of course, there was that other stunning moment, wasn't it? The U.S. opposed a U.N. resolution condemning the Russian invasion of Ukraine on the third anniversary of that war, siding with Russia, Belarus and North Korea in that vote. Did you ever think you would see that day?
THOMAS: Well, absolutely, based on what happened in Munich just a week or so ago. And I think that this is precisely the situation is that I'm not sure President Trump automatically has a way of solving this problem.
He wants to take responsibility and credit for achieving peace in the region. The question is, what are those negotiating terms going to be? And what are the red lines going to be for Ukraine, for the different constituencies in Europe? And what will Putin tolerate in this?
And it's not that easy looking forward to see how it's possible to satisfy all of those sides in that and to achieve a sustainable solution moving forward that doesn't somehow reward Russia for its intrusions in Ukraine and leave Europe vulnerable moving forward in a situation in which there is a dependency on the United States and an expectation from the United States that a struggling Europe economically is going to be able to find the financial resources, let alone support from its electorate moving forward to fund an ongoing situation of protecting Ukraine.
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CHURCH: Our thanks to CNN's European Affairs commentator Dominic Thomas.
Well, the Ukrainian president is hailing his country's absolute heroism on this sombre third anniversary. And in Russia, there were rare acts of dissent.
Independent media shared images of people laying flowers at Ukrainian monuments in Moscow that were removed throughout the day. Elsewhere, there was a demonstration dedicated to the peaceful resolution of conflicts.
Activists took to the streets with signs referencing the war. One read, we want to live in peace and harmony with our neighbors.
A deadline has come and gone for U.S. federal employees to respond to an email demanding they submit detailed logs of their work or face termination.
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Overseeing the effort is presidential adviser Elon Musk, who's doubling down on the threat and claiming they will have another chance to comply. Musk tweeted this on Monday, subject to the discretion of the president, they will be given another chance. Failure to respond a second time will result in termination.
Well, adding to the confusion are these comments from President Trump.
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TRUMP: The last email that was sent where he wanted to know what you did this week. You know why he wanted that, by the way? I thought it was great because we have people that don't show up to work and nobody even knows if they work for the government.
So by asking the question, tell us what you did this week, what he's doing is saying, are you actually working? And then if you don't answer, like you're sort of semi-fired or you're fired, because a lot of people are not answering because they don't even exist.
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CHURCH: CNN's Rene Marsh has more details.
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RENE MARSH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, the Office of Personnel Management formally notified agencies Monday afternoon that the so- called "what did you do last week" email sent over the weekend is voluntary and failure to respond will not equate to a resignation.
Now that guidance runs counter to what Elon Musk said over the weekend. On X, he posted, quote, "Failure to respond will be taken as a resignation." And the president on Monday afternoon said that anyone who didn't respond to the email was, quote, "semi-fired or fired."
All of this creating a lot of confusion within federal agencies, a Department of Veterans Affairs employee putting it this way, quote, "no one knows who is in charge or who to listen to."
Now, this email also appeared to reveal a rift between Trump appointed agency heads and Elon Musk.
Now, keep in mind, Musk is unelected and not Senate confirmed to run any federal agency. And he was essentially telling employees to report outside of their chain of command to him.
We did see that seven agencies, including the Department of Defense, the State Department and FBI, told employees not to comply.
But Trump is downplaying any rift between his cabinet secretaries and Elon Musk and the power that Musk is wielding in his capacity outside of government, but leading this effort to shrink the federal workforce.
Rene Marsh, CNN, Washington.
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CHURCH: Michael Fallings joins me now. He is a federal employment attorney and managing partner at Tully Rinckey. Appreciate you joining us.
MICHAEL C. FALLINGS, FEDERAL EMPLOYMENT ATTORNEY AND MANAGING PARTNER, TULLY RINCKEY: Thank you for having me.
CHURCH: So Elon Musk has asked federal employees on the weekend and again Monday to submit five bullet points of the work they did last week, announcing that if they don't do that, they will be terminated. Now, the deadline was Monday, 11:59 p.m., but now the Trump administration is backtracking, saying responses to Musk are voluntary.
All very confusing, of course. Who should workers believe in the midst of these conflicting and confusing messages?
FALLINGS: Well, you're right. It is confusing and conflicting. I think the Trump administration backtracked because the threat by Musk was not legal to threaten that employees would be fired for not responding to an email.
It's not legal because federal employees have civil service protections that prevent them from being fired, especially for just not responding to an email. They have due process rights.
I've advised federal employees to speak with their supervisors or union officials to ensure whether they need to respond. You saw the news today and heard from federal agencies that told their employees not to respond to those emails.
So I would advise these federal employees to follow their leadership on whether to respond or not. And I think that's the best advice they could have right now.
CHURCH: Yes. And of course, different departments are having, giving different advice, aren't they? And meantime, the White House is going to the saying that Musk has no authority and is just a presidential advisor, creating even more confusion. What do you make of that? FALLINGS: Yes, it's very confusing because the president himself was
tweeting and urging Musk to take these actions. And Musk then followed suit.
But at the same time, I said that Musk is not an employee. Musk does not have authority to take these actions. And that's why you do see these leaders and different agencies, you know, contradicting what Musk has stated.
And it just leads for more confusion and not knowing what to do for federal employees that are thinking, well, if they don't respond, are they going to be fired? Or, you know, what's going to happen to them?
[03:15:04]
Again, you know, my advice to align with their leadership on what to do. But in my opinion, this Musk's tweet or comments are not legal because he does not have the authority to do so. And nor can you just fire federal employees without due process for not responding to an email.
CHURCH: Musk and Trump are also suggesting the dead people are on the federal government payroll. Where's this coming from? And what are the facts on this?
FALLINGS: I don't know if there's a lot of facts behind it. I think, you know, there's been investigations by DOGE into who's receiving payments through Social Security and whatnot, and tax payments and whatnot.
But I think they may have just seen figures and not necessarily delved into it and just tweeted out, you know, what the information is based on. But I'm not sure where exactly they're pulling that information from yet.
You know, I'm not sure if they're entirely sure other than just, you know, seeing some information and deciding to publish it out to the world. And you've seen, you know, already in this administration and publishing, you know, specific numbers, you know, to the public to say this is what the prior administration was doing, which turned out to be not entirely true.
So, you know, I think this this may end up being another instance where, you know, there's claims of false payments or payments made to people that aren't living that aren't entirely happening.
CHURCH: And Michael, why do you think Trump and Musk are going in with a chainsaw when they could downsize the federal government in a more measured and professional way through auditing and get better results probably in the end?
FALLINGS: Well, I mean, Trump ran on reducing the size of the federal government and, you know, he won the election. And, you know, I think his thinking is, well, let me do this as quickly as possible.
In my opinion, he's probably thinking back to his last time in office where, you know, he did try to take efforts to reduce the size of the federal government or change the federal landscape, but did so years into his presidency.
So I think now he's thinking, well, let me do so as quickly as possible. And I think he thinks he has the authority to do so. I think he thinks as the executive, he has the authority to remove employees or take any action he deems necessary.
I don't agree with that position. I think that will be decided upon by the Supreme Court. And there's cases that may be decided upon to determine what authority the president does have.
But I think, you know, Trump and Musk have decided, well, let's do so as quickly as possible. And we think we have the authority to fire these employees. We don't have to wait, we don't have to do so through the proper methods.
CHURCH: And what impact do you think all these cuts to federal jobs and services will have in the end?
FALLINGS: Well, I mean, right now it's causing a lot of confusion amongst federal employees. I think, you know, you've already seen lawsuits filed by multiple federal employees, multiple unions and agencies that I think, you know, a lot of these jobs that are being taken away may be reinstated just so the administration can go through the proper channels.
But ultimately, I think it will come down to how the Supreme Court rules on the authority the president has. Does the president have the authority to do whatever he pleases to remove federal employees without due process and to terminate employees because they don't align with the political agenda of the president?
That's for the Supreme Court to decide. And, you know, that will determine how this all shakes out.
CHURCH: Michael Fallings, many thanks for joining us. I appreciate it.
FALLINGS: Thank you for having me.
CHURCH: Still to come, a slight improvement for Pope Francis, who remains in hospital fighting a serious illness for 12 days. We'll have an update on his condition.
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CHURCH: The Catholics filled St. Peter's Square Monday as the Vatican held its first nightly prayer service for Pope Francis, who is fighting double pneumonia in hospital. This is now his 12th day there, the longest hospital stay of his papacy.
But the Vatican says the 88-year-old is showing slight improvement. He's still working, even though he's on oxygen, and he's said to be mobile, eating well and in good humor.
So let's go to CNN's Ben Wedeman, who joins us now from Rome. Good morning to you, Ben. So what's the latest you're hearing on the Pope's condition?
BEN WEDEMAN, CNN SR. INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Rosemary. Well, we got a one-line statement from the Vatican press office saying that the Pope rested well all night.
No details about whether he had breakfast, what he had for breakfast, but certainly what we heard yesterday evening from the Vatican press office was that even though his condition remains critical, he is showing what they describe as a slight improvement, that his kidney issues do not raise much concern at this point, that as you mentioned, he continues to receive oxygen, but at a lower level and a lower concentration.
[03:25:03]
So it does appear that there haven't been any dramatic changes in his health within the last 24 hours.
Now, last night, according to the Vatican press office, he did have a phone call with the parish priest in Gaza, something that he's been trying to do on a daily basis since the beginning of Israel's onslaught in Gaza, something that certainly is appreciated there, certainly for a leader of his stature to continue to express concern over the situation in Gaza, considering his health situation certainly is something that brings morale up, at least in that corner of the world.
So his situation seems to be stable at the moment, but the press office has been very cautious in trying not to raise too much hope, but to give just a hint that perhaps his situation is stabilizing.
CHURCH: And Ben, what is the mood there among the faithful?
WEDEMAN: Certainly here in Italy, everybody is sort of keeping a very close eye on the situation of the Pope.
As you saw, a large crowd was in St. Peter's Square yesterday evening, for these prayers for the Pope. This is a Pope who many Italians certainly have a lot of affection for. He is seen at this time when politics has become so ugly and nasty that he is a figure of genuine kindness and humanitarian concern for his fellow human beings.
So people are very concerned. Oftentimes when, I mean, for instance, my wife's Italian, she wakes up in the morning, the first thing she asks is, what's the latest with the Pope? And certainly that is what leads the news every day here in every broadcast is the Pope's health.
So certainly it is a prime concern of many people here in Rome, at least.
CHURCH: Totally understandable. Ben Wedeman, joining us live from Rome with that report. I appreciate it. Still to come, as the fighting in Ukraine enters its fourth year, a look at how Russians and Ukrainians are marking this milestone.
Plus, a sight not seen in two decades, Israeli tanks deployed to the West Bank amid the intense military operation there. All that and more just ahead.
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ROSEMARY CHURCH, CNN ANCHOR: Welcome back to "CNN Newsroom." I'm Rosemary Church. Let's check today's top stories for you.
Elon Musk says U.S. federal employees will have a second chance to submit reports on their job responsibilities. It comes after a mass email was sent to federal workers on Saturday, asking them for bullet points on the work they've done and threatening termination if they didn't comply. On Monday, the Office of Personnel Management contradicted Musk, saying workers' responses were voluntary.
The Vatican says Pope Francis is showing slight improvement as he fights double pneumonia. The Pope has been in hospital for 12 days now, the longest such stay of his papacy. On Monday, he was said to be in good humor, though his condition is still critical.
Ukraine is marking three years of what Russia calls its special military operation. We now know it was meant to be a three-day dash to Kyiv to topple Volodymyr Zelenskyy's government, but Russia's invasion stalled in the face of unexpected defiance, which Ukraine's president praised as absolute heroism.
CNN's Matthew Chance has our report from Moscow. A warning though, it contains images you may find disturbing.
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MATTHEW CHANCE, CNN CHIEF GLOBAL AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Three years into this bloodshed, and the front lines remain hellish and brutal. There may be talk of peace, but every day in the war zone, the ultimate sacrifice is being paid.
Across Russia, cemeteries are now burgeoning with fresh graves. The grim reality of the Ukrainian meat grinder can no longer be hidden or denied.
This monument was put up so people would know there is a war going on, says Victor, the head of a local veterans' organization. It's not just some kind of operation, he says. People are dying.
It wasn't meant to be this way.
CHANCE: These are Russian forces, you can tell they're Russian, I've spoken to them already. CHANCE (voice-over): Back in 2022, as the full-scale invasion began,
CNN encountered Russian troops sent on what became a suicide mission to capture the Ukrainian capital.
[03:35:02]
The Kremlin still calls its special military operation was meant to be over in a few days.
Instead, Russian troops were forced to withdraw, leaving behind them a trail of devastation. And in places like Bucha, on the outskirts of Kyiv, allegations of human rights abuses too, all denied by the Kremlin.
Now, President Putin is still pinning medals on veterans before toasting their fallen comrades at the tomb of the unknown soldier.
How many unknown soldiers there have been, no one even knows, Putin says. But thanks to their efforts, courage and extreme hard work at the front, we have Russia today, he adds.
And after three years of fighting, Russia also has the Ukrainian territories it's captured and occupied, like the ruins of Pisky and countless others where former residents are now returning to their destroyed homes and trying to claim compensation from the Russian authorities now in charge.
I don't think there'll ever be a peace agreement, Ekaterina says. How can they agree on who will fix all of this, she asks.
Three years on, and there are doubts buildings or lives can ever be rebuilt.
Matthew Chance, CNN Moscow.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CHURCH: So let's take a closer look at the scale of the conflict three years on and how it's reshaped Ukraine and the world.
According to the U.N. Refugee Agency, nearly 7 million Ukrainian refugees have been recorded worldwide since Russia invaded in 2022. The vast majority, around 6.3 million, have remained in Europe.
It's believed another 3.7 million Ukrainians are internally displaced. That means all in all, more than 10 million Ukrainians have been forced from their homes since the fighting began. That's around a quarter of Ukraine's population prior to the Russian invasion.
According to the U.N. Human Rights Office, more than 12,000 civilians have been killed in Ukraine during that time. About half of them adult men and nearly 700 children. More than 29,000 civilians have been wounded by the fighting.
And then there's the land grab. Here we see Ukraine before 2014. Then Russian-backed separatists begin controlling Crimea, Luhansk and Donetsk.
And Ukraine today is a much more complicated picture. Russia occupies about 18 percent of the country. 11 percent has been lost since 2022.
Well cities across Europe showed solidarity with Ukraine on the third anniversary of Russia's invasion.
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In the German capital, protesters marched through the city, stopping at the Russian embassy to give speeches and chant against the conflict in Ukraine.
In Warsaw, protesters held up signs calling for Russian President Vladimir Putin to be jailed. With some criticizing the United States and President Donald Trump. Ukrainian refugees in Poland are calling for strength and unity.
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UNKNOWN (through translator): We must be strong and not give in to propaganda. And we cannot spit in the face of all the heroes who defended and have defended Ukraine.
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CHURCH: And Paris showed solidarity with Ukrainians by lighting up the Eiffel Tower in blue and yellow.
Meanwhile, Russia and China's presidents held their first phone call since the U.S. began warming toward the Kremlin. And Xi Jinping wants the West to know that China's relationship with Russia can't be shaken. CNN's Kristie Lu Stout explains.
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KRISTIE LU STOUT, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin pledged long-term strategic ties in a phone call on Monday. Their first phone call since U.S. President Donald Trump made his significant pivot toward Russia as he pushes for peace in Ukraine.
Now the call took place on Monday, on the third anniversary of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. And it underscored the durability and long-term nature of the Sino-Russia alliance.
Now, according to a Ministry of Foreign Affairs readout of the call, Xi Jinping, the Chinese president, said this quote, "Our bilateral relationship has a strong internal driving force and unique strategic value. It is neither targeted at any third party nor affected by any third party," unquote.
[03:40:03]
Now the Chinese readout noted that the call was initiated by Putin. Now, the Kremlin described the call as, quote, "warm and friendly,"
while adding this quote, "the two leaders emphasized that the Russian- Chinese political ties are an essential stabilizing factor in global affairs. This relationship is strategic in nature, not subject to political bias and not aimed against anyone."
Now, the call comes as both China and Russia navigate a new American foreign policy. On Monday, in a stunning shift, the U.S. joined Russia to vote against a U.N. General Assembly resolution to condemn Russia's invasion of Ukraine. China abstained.
Now, China may have declared neutrality in the conflict, but it has supported Russia during its campaign economically by buying Russian energy, thus softening the impact of Western sanctions, and politically by repeating Kremlin talking points and refusing to condemn the invasion. Now, Trump's courting of Putin has raised questions whether the U.S. could be a wedge between China and Russia.
Now, the Chinese foreign minister, Wang Yi, has attempted to put that to rest. At a recent G20 gathering, he told his counterparts this, that "China supports all efforts dedicated to peace, including the recent consensus reached between the U.S. and Russia," unquote. And he added that quote, "a window for peace is opening."
Kristie Lu Stout, CNN, Hong Kong.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CHURCH: Turning now to the Middle East. This weekend marked a new escalation in Israel's operations in the West Bank, with the military deploying tanks to the area for the first time in two decades.
The Israel Defense Forces launched Operation Iron Wall in northern West Bank last month, just two days after the Gaza ceasefire began, killing dozens and displacing thousands of residents.
CNN's Jeremy Diamond has the latest.
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JEREMY DIAMOND, CNN JERUSALEM CORRESPONDENT: For the first time in more than two decades, the Israeli military deploying tanks into the occupied West Bank. This video taken from Jenin in the West Bank shows several of those tanks that entered that refugee camp, which has been the focus of a major Israeli military operation over the course of the last month and a half.
But now the Israeli military is further expanding those military operations in the West Bank, which have already resulted in the displacement of some 40,000 Palestinians, not only from Jenin refugee camp, but also from Tulkarem and Nur Shams.
The expansion of Israeli military activity in the West Bank comes following those three bombs that exploded on buses in the suburbs of Tel Aviv. While no one was aboard those buses, they were parked at depots in the suburbs of Tel Aviv. It certainly jolted the Israeli public, taking them back to the bus bombings of the second Intifada and prompting calls, including from the Israeli Prime Minister, for an expansion of military operations in the West Bank.
And now Israel Katz, the defense minister of Israel, saying that Israeli troops should be preparing for a, quote, "prolonged presence" in those Palestinian refugee camps for the coming year and saying that those 40,000 Palestinians who have been displaced from those very same areas will not be allowed to return until the conclusion of those military operations.
We know, of course, that the Israeli military says they are going after Palestinian militants in these three refugee camps and the surrounding area. But already we know that at least 27 people have been killed in Jenin, 70 across the West Bank, many of whom are not militants, but rather civilians.
As all of this is happening, still questions over whether or not the ceasefire in Gaza will be extended. Israel has been delaying the release of some 620 prisoners who were set to be released on Saturday following the last release of living hostages from Gaza.
Four bodies of hostages are scheduled to be released on Thursday, but Hamas for now says that it will not engage in negotiations over the second phase nor release those bodies until Israel releases those 620 prisoners, calling it a violation of the deal so far.
We know that Steve Witkoff, the U.S. special envoy for the Middle East, he is set to arrive in Israel on Wednesday and travel throughout the region to see whether or not a deal can be reached to extend phase one and get into phase two of this fragile ceasefire between Israel and Hamas.
Jeremy Diamond, CNN, Jerusalem.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CHURCH: The Prime Minister of the Democratic Republic of Congo says some 7,000 people have been killed in the fighting since January. She also told a high-level meeting of the Human Rights Council that hundreds of thousands of people are without shelter as the long- running conflict in eastern Congo accelerates.
The rebel group M23 has advanced capturing territory in the east. Rwanda has rejected allegations it supports the rebels with arms and troops. The Prime Minister is urging the world to act.
[03:45:09]
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JUDITH SUMINWA TULUKA, PRIME MINISTER, DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO (through translator): It is impossible to describe the screams and cries of millions of victims of this conflict. Women, girls raped, children forcibly enrolled, displaced people, orphans. In addition, human rights defenders, journalists, artists witnessing
this tragedy in the east does not have the right to tell the story. We call on the international community to strengthen its humanitarian support.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHURCH: There's been mounting criticism of the military strategy in the DRC after back-to-back losses in two provinces since the start of the year.
Donald Trump has picked a right-wing podcaster for a key post at the FBI. A closer look at Dan Bongino just ahead.
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CHURCH: Former Secret Service agent turned right-wing podcaster Dan Bongino has now been tapped to serve as the next deputy director of the FBI. It's an unconventional choice by President Donald Trump for a post traditionally held by a career FBI agent. Bongino's lack of experience at the FBI and his media background are now raising concerns.
CNN's Brian Todd has details.
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BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): President Trump now has two of his most loyal MAGA champions heading the FBI. Kash Patel as director, and now 50-year-old Dan Bongino, a former Secret Service agent turned right-wing podcaster as deputy director.
DAN BONGINO, NEWLY-NAMED FBI DEPUTY DIRECTOR: I got a call from the president and it couldn't have been nicer. Folks, it's a lot to walk away from.
TODD (voice-over): And a lot to walk into, according to former FBI officials who spoke to CNN who believe the hiring of Bongino will be controversial.
STEVE MOORE, RETIRED FBI SUPERVISORY SPECIAL AGENT: And putting somebody in who's never been an FBI agent is potentially troublesome. I have no problems with Dan Bongino's intelligence or the fact that he had served with the Secret Service as a bonus. But this is going way out of the line of what the FBI has done in the past.
TODD (voice-over): That's partly because Bongino has spent considerable time on the air slamming the FBI for its investigations of Donald Trump.
BONGINO: Folks, the FBI is lost. It's broken. TODD (voice-over): Irredeemably corrupt at this point. Bongino, who served as a New York City police officer in the 1990s, later joined the Secret Service and served on President Barack Obama's protective detail.
I interviewed Bongino when he left the Secret Service in 2011 to run for the Senate as a Republican from Maryland, asking him about his newly revealed political loyalty on the opposite side from the president he'd guarded with his life.
BONGINO: I want to say personally that I have enormous respect for him, but I just disagree with the ideology. It's a simple ideological play.
That's it. The country's going on the wrong path.
TODD (voice-over): Since that failed bid for the Senate, Bongino's media profile has skyrocketed, becoming a star and a regular on Fox News, hosting his own hugely popular radio shows and podcasts.
While he did scold the January 6th rioters, he's also supported President Trump's false claims that the 2020 election was stolen.
BONGINO: We had an election with unbelievably suspect behavior.
TODD (voice-over): All the while earning admiration from President Trump.
DONALD TRUMP, U.S. PRESIDENT: Bongino. How about Dan Bongino?
BRIAN STELTER, CNN CHIEF MEDIA ANALYST: Bongino's been promoting far- right views on his podcast, promising retribution, saying that Trump is going to get revenge against his enemies, and saying that Trump should just ignore court decisions that he doesn't like.
TODD (voice-over): Now, as the hands-on official handling the Bureau's daily operations, Bongino has a unique challenge.
MOORE: The one thing you do not want to do, day one, is lose the loyalty of the FBI. When they see their own management appearing to go off the rail, you lost them.
TODD: As for how the FBI's rank and file feels about Dan Bongino, according to a mass email obtained by CNN that was sent to its members just before Donald Trump posted that Bongino had been selected as deputy director, the FBI Agents Association, representing thousands of agents, said it had been told by Kash Patel that the new deputy director would come from within the ranks of the FBI.
Contacted by CNN, the Agents Association declined to comment on the appointment of Bongino.
Brian Todd, CNN, Washington.
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CHURCH: And we'll be right back.
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[03:55:00]
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CHURCH: Legendary hip-hop group Wu-Tang Clan will set out on their final tour later this year.
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UNKNOWN (voice-over): Do you know what forever means? It's no beginning or ending, babe. It doesn't stop, okay? The future is now.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHURCH: Wu-Tang Forever, the final chamber, kicks off June 6 in Baltimore, Maryland. The group will perform shows in a number of U.S. and Canadian cities through the end of July.
Stops include Atlanta, Los Angeles, Chicago, Toronto and New York. Tickets are available starting on Friday and there will be no pre- sale. Rapper RZA says the group will be playing songs they've never played before with a stage production unlike anything you've ever seen.
The notoriously disastrous Fyre Festival is getting a sequel. After a scrapped reboot attempt in 2023, Fyre Festival 2 is now set to be held on a Mexican island between May 30th and June 2nd.
While performers have yet to be announced, the festival is set to include daytime excursions with artists followed by beachside concerts at night. It also promises quote "world-class accommodations."
The first Fyre Festival was promoted across social media in a similar fashion back in 2017. Attendees who spent thousands to take part in the event were met with chaos. The Bahamas getaway was plagued by mass disorganization, bad tents and off-putting food.
I want to thank you so much for your company. I'm Rosemary Church. Have yourselves a wonderful day. "CNN Newsroom" continues next with Christina Macfarlane in London.
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