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Italian PM Meloni Talks Trade With Trump at White House; France Touts "Excellent" U.S.-Europe Talks on Ukraine; U.S. Senators Visit Taiwan Amid Rising China Tensions; Police: Two Dead, Five Other Shot at Florida State University; Trump Admin Revokes 1,000 Plus Visas for International Students & Graduates. Aired 3-4 am ET

Aired April 18, 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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[03:00:30]

KIM BRUNHUBER, CNN ANCHOR: Welcome to all of you watching us around the world. I'm Kim Brunhuber. This is CNN Newsroom.

Donald Trump wants to make a deal, many of them in a short amount of time, we'll have the latest on his trade war and how markets are reacting to all the developments.

Top-level U.S. and European officials hold talks on reaching a ceasefire in Ukraine. We'll have details on the high-stakes discussions and why an agreement may not be realistic.

And another community in America is grappling with a mass shooting. We'll have the latest on the investigation into what unfolded on one college campus.

ANNOUNCER: Live from Atlanta, this is CNN Newsroom with Kim Brunhuber.

BRUNHUBER: We begin with Donald Trump's global trade war and his prediction that his administration will make deals with everyone in the next three to four weeks. That would be well before his 90-day pause on retaliatory tariffs expires. Let's take a look at how markets in the Asia-Pacific region are responding. A bit of a mixed bag, as you can see there. The Nikkei is up one percentage point. Wall Street is closed today for a good Friday. U.S. stocks were mixed on Thursday, with the Dow losing one and a third percent.

The president's criticism of Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell also weighed on the markets. Trump says Powell's termination can't come fast enough after Powell warned about higher inflation and unemployment from the Trump tariffs.

Meanwhile, the President says he's 100% sure he can reach a trade deal with the European Union. Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni glossed over the thornier issue of the war in Ukraine. Here she is.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GIORGIA MELONI, ITALY PRIME MINISTER: I'm sure we can make a deal, and I am here to help with that. I cannot lock this deal in the name of the European Union. My goal would be to invite President Trump to pay an official visit to Italy and understand if there's a possibility when it comes to organize also such a meeting with Europe. I am sure that together we are stronger. And I have to find the way, I'm here to find the best way to make us both stronger on both sides of the Atlantic.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BRUNHUBER: We have more now from CNN's Jeff Zeleny.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JEFF ZELENY, CNN CHIEF NATIONAL AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT: After upending financial markets and rearranging the global trading economy, President Trump signaled again on Thursday that he's open for business and wants to renegotiate some of this sweeping tariff policy that caused so much chaos in the financial markets. Another world leader visited the White House on Thursday, this time the Italian Prime Minister, Giorgia Meloni. She was representing the European Union, but it was clear President Trump had China and other nations on his mind.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: They're reached out since the 145% tariffs?

DONALD TRUMP (R), U.S. PRESIDENT: Oh yeah, sure. A lot, a lot all the time we're talking. I think that we will make a deal with China. I think we've had some very good talks.

ZELENY: The President repeatedly talking about how China would like to make a deal. There is very little indication that President Xi Jinping has blinked at all. In fact, there is more evidence that the Trump administration has given concessions and exemptions along the way.

The idea of reaching a deal with all of these countries in three to four weeks is something that strikes officials as very optimistic, to say the least. But it is clear that the President said he did believe he could reach some type of a negotiation with the European Union. That's why Meloni was here in Washington.

She was trying to avoid that 20% tariff that was initially scheduled to go into effect two weeks ago. That was put on pause until July 9th or so. But again, all of this tariff policy coming as the President is continuing to lash out at the Federal Reserve Chair, Jerome Powell, giving the markets even more uncertainty.

Jeff Zeleny, CNN, the White House.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BRUNHUBER: I want to go live now to Seoul and CNN's Mike Valerio, so, Mike, President Trump seemingly positive that a deal can be made. So let's get to the response there in Asia. I understand we're actually expecting to hear this hour from Beijing any minute now, as I understand it. So what more can you tell us?

MIKE VALERIO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, you know, we can give you a preview of the remarks that we're expecting from Beijing. I know that we have a camera. I think it's one of the pool cameras that we're going to take a look at as we await those remarks from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

[03:05:00]

So China is likely to say it's open to talks, Kim, but it needs an adjustment shift, a major adjustment shift from the United States. So, you know, we want to convey to all of our international viewers that we hear President Trump's rosy comments from the Oval Office behind the Resolute Desk. But we are unlikely to hear that from Beijing. We have not heard that kind of language from Beijing. President Trump saying, oh, we're likely going to make a deal. I think we're going to make a deal.

Nobody from Beijing has come out and said that because from their point of view, they need respect, consistency and reciprocity from the United States. And furthermore, you know, they hear comments that the President makes from the Oval Office, but they still have a big problem.

We talked about this in the last hour, Kim, with some of the things that Vice President Vance is saying, calling the populace of China, quote unquote, "peasants" in an interview with Fox News, certainly not helping anything from the point of view of Beijing. Very hawkish comments coming from the Treasury Secretary, same goes for the Secretary of State, Marco Rubio.

But it's a very different story where we are here in South Korea, also where we are in Japan. When we looked at the markets about a minute and a half ago, we can look at them again. Solid gains in the Nikkei, up 1%, about 0.5% gains here at the KOSPI closing at 3.30 p.m. just a couple minutes ago.

And that's because leaders in South Korea and Japan think that their negotiations are on the right track. What we're looking for in the next couple of days, we're going to take a breather over the weekend. And then when we begin anew on Monday, we're going to be looking to see what South Korea's Finance Minister, Choi Sang-mok, is able to pull off, if there are more signs of optimism that the United States is able to make a deal with its Asian allies. And we're also going to be waiting to see, of course, what Beijing has to say in the next couple of minutes for its prospects.

Kim.

BRUNHUBER: Yeah, absolutely. It'll be fascinating to hear what they have to say. Appreciate you previewing them. Mike Valerio in Seoul, thank you so much.

VALERIO: Thanks, Kim.

BRUNHUBER: The U.S. and Ukraine are moving ahead with their deal on critical minerals. On Thursday, they signed a memorandum of intent, getting a step closer to the full agreement. U.S. President Donald Trump says that agreement could be signed as early as next week. Sources say the deal would apply to all of Ukraine's mineral resources, including rare earth minerals, plus oil and gas. The agreement would include a joint investment fund overseen by a board made up mostly of Americans. U.S. businesses would also have the right to make the first offer for a future natural resources project in Ukraine.

Meanwhile, U.S. President Donald Trump says he expects to hear back from Russia this week about his proposed 30-day ceasefire in Ukraine. On Thursday, U.S. and European officials met in Paris to discuss Ukraine and the war, our Nic Robertson reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: So these were important meetings, big meetings, because it was the first time since February senior U.S. officials, senior European officials, leaders even, had met to discuss the ceasefire arrangements that the United States has been calling for, President Trump has been calling for since February.

Of course, Ukraine has already signed up a long time ago now, it feels, to this unconditional ceasefire. The pressure has been on President Putin, and it was the U.S. envoy, Steve Witkoff, who's been meeting face-to-face with President Putin, and the sense has been in Europe that Witkoff is being spun and played by Putin, that Putin isn't serious about getting into a ceasefire right now.

So, Witkoff, Marco Rubio, Secretary of State, meeting with Emmanuel Macron, the French president, the French foreign minister, that was the first sort of big meeting, a lunch, a working lunch for the day. But then there were lots of other meetings, Rubio, Witkoff meeting with European counterparts, British, French, German foreign ministers. Also, those countries had their national security advisors or equivalents in the room, and as well at these meetings, you had the Ukrainian Defense Minister and the Ukrainian Foreign Minister.

So, a lot of conversations, not a lot of detail coming out, but a French official has described the meetings in this way, saying they were very strong strategic opportunity, and actually goes on in quite effusive language to say this, it was an excellent exchanger, high- quality exchanger, substantive exchange that allowed us to converge on the essential goals, which for us is a solid peace for Ukraine, which means a peace for Ukraine and for the Europeans.

So, the French playing this as a meeting that was successful, but we don't know who convinced which side of what. We know clearly that Emmanuel Macron is someone who knows President Putin very well, and he may well sat there and have listened to Steve Witkoff explaining the conversations he's had with Putin, but Emmanuel Macron is the sort of leader who would want to give his input back to the U.S. side.

[03:10:22]

So, the exchanges, the details unclear, but the narrative emerging is that this moves in the right direction quite how and at what speed is absolutely unclear. What has been very clear, some of those national security advisors in those meetings with the U.S. officials very firmly believe that Putin absolutely, absolutely not committed to getting into a ceasefire, believes in fact that he can still win on the battlefield. That's what we've been hearing over recent weeks.

So, again, the substance of those meetings not clear, but the French playing it, you know, as a success, moving the ball in the right direction. Again, how much? Unclear.

Nic Robertson, CNN, London.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BRUNHUBER: A Hamas official says the group is fully rejecting Israel's ceasefire offer from earlier this week. Instead, the militants are calling for a comprehensive proposal to end the war. Now, this rejection has prompted calls from the Israeli far right for an escalation of Israeli military action in Gaza.

They're urging the Prime Minister to unleash, quote, "hell." The Israeli plan had called for a 45-day truce when both sides could negotiate a permanent ceasefire, but it didn't guarantee an end to the war. Now, under their proposal, Hamas would release the remaining Israeli hostages in stages.

Houthi officials are vowing to hold the U.S. responsible, quote, "for the repercussions of its escalation" after U.S. airstrikes on an oil port in western Yemen on Thursday. Houthi-run media report at least 38 people were killed and 102 others injured. The strikes are the latest move in a months-long U.S. effort to disrupt Houthi weapons smuggling and revenue streams. Houthi rebels have repeatedly attacked commercial shipping in the Red Sea.

Three U.S. senators are visiting Taiwan as China ramps up tensions in the region. This is the first U.S. delegation to go to the island since President Trump took office in January. CNN's Will Ripley sat down with Senators Chris Coons, who says the trip is all about reassurance.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

WILL RIPLEY, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Three U.S. senators are here in Taiwan, and they say it's a signal of continued bipartisan support for this island democracy in these uncertain times. The delegation includes Democrat Chris Coons and Republicans Pete Ricketts and Ted Budd. They're meeting with top Taiwanese officials.

This visit following the first round of direct U.S.-Taiwan tariff talks impacting billions of dollars in crucial semiconductor trade, and it comes as China escalates military pressure in the region, something that I asked Senator Coons about.

Do you feel like the temperature is higher now on this trip than in previous trips you've taken?

SEN. CHRIS COONS (D-DE): Yes.

RIPLEY: Why?

COONS: There's more PRC assets. They're more active. They're more aggressive. They're more assertive. And I think, you know, look, in the transition from the Biden administration to the Trump administration, there's been some concerns about changes in policy. This is one area where there's no change, where it's important for there to be a bipartisan reassurance of our treaty ally, the Philippines, continued commitment to the security and stability of cross-strait relations and to Taiwan and its prosperity and its success.

RIPLEY: Do you feel like this is a dangerous or challenging time for democracies at large?

COONS: There's a lot of pressure on democracies, mostly coming from the divisions within our own societies, but also coming from the increasing aggressiveness and capability of four countries, China, Russia, the DPRK and Iran.

RIPLEY: The senators also visited the Philippines on this trip. Senator Coons says it was the first time for him flying over the South China Sea in a U.S. military plane and seeing some of that activity firsthand. He believes that stronger economic ties across Asia could help stabilize this region. Senators leave Taiwan on Saturday, but questions about tariffs, security and U.S. reliability remain.

Will Ripley, CNN, Taipei.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BRUNHUBER: Emergency alerts, barricaded doors and students with their hands up. We want the details on the latest deadly school shooting in the U.S.

Plus, Google faces another huge loss in court. Now, the latest ruling could change the way Google does business. Stay with us.

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[03:19:00]

BRUNHUBER: New details are emerging about America's latest mass shooting that's claimed the lives of two men and sent five people to hospital with gunshot wounds. The attack happened at Florida State University in the state capital, Tallahassee.

Now, I just want to warn you, we're about to show video from when the shots rang out that may be disturbing.

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BRUNHUBER: Authorities say three guns were found on campus after the attack. Witnesses described the terrifying moments.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) CELESTE HALAVIN, FSU STUDENT: We saw cops running, students running. It was just like complete chaos. Everyone was like running all over the place. And then we saw like a gurney, and then like the gurney came back, and the guy had his arm cut off.

CHRIS PENTO, WITNESS ON CAMPUS TOUR: Went downstairs, and shots started ringing out. People just started running. She got trampled over.

MCKENZIE HEETER, FSU STUDENT: He turned towards the Union, and that's when I saw him shoot a woman in purple scrubs in the back, in her back. And I just started running.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[03:20:06]

BRUNHUBER: The suspected gunman is 20-year-old FSU student Phoenix Ikner, who was hospitalized after being shot by police. We're told he's the son of a sheriff's deputy, and used her handgun to carry out the attack. He also trained with law enforcement in the past.

So we know the who, where, and what, but not the why. No motive for the carnage has been revealed. CNN's Nick Valencia has our report from Tallahassee, Florida.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

NICK VALENCIA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: A heartbreaking tragedy on the campus of FSU here in Tallahassee that has shattered the safety and security of so many here on campus. And a big question remains here, is the motive of this alleged gunman?

And authorities are asking themselves that question. They say that the gunman has invoked his Fifth Amendment right and is not cooperating with investigators. But at a press conference earlier, here are the details that they gave. They say that alleged gunman came on campus here, through this entrance just behind me, and at about 11:50 on Thursday, opened fire. The witnesses that we spoke to said they heard sporadic gunfire in rapid succession. And one of those witnesses is the chaplain at the church here just off camera.

It was a church that ended up being a shelter for hundreds of students as they rushed to safety. And it was that chaplain who said he saw the look of fear on those students that he had never seen before.

FATHER LUKE FARABAUGH, WITNESS: People were coming with faces of terror. And it was fear that I had not seen before. And it was very -- I mean, it really shakes you up. And so as they were coming in, we secured the building and we only had one entrance available so we could see who's coming in. And I was personally concerned about straight bullets because I knew that it was coming from very close by. But we were able to help people and there was a lot of shock.

VALENCIA: While investigators say the threat to the community is over, as of Thursday night, it was still somewhat of an active scene. We spotted investigators on the scene, a biologics team still cleaning up the aftermath of that incident, and a shoe that was just sort of left at random on the sidewalk of the campus, an eerie symbol of what went down here on Thursday morning.

That Catholic church I mentioned had a mass as well on Thursday where hundreds of people showed up. No -- standing room only, there was no room in any of those pews. And they covered those victims in prayer.

Not much is known about the victims, only that the two that were killed were not students at FSU. And as of Thursday night, those injured were listed in stable condition.

Nick Valencia, CNN, Tallahassee, Florida.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BRUNHUBER: The man accused of murdering UnitedHealthcare's CEO last December has now been indicted on federal charges. Those include murder, stalking and a firearms offense. The federal murder charge means suspect Luigi Mangione could be sentenced to death if convicted. And the U.S. Attorney General has said the Justice Department will seek the death penalty. Mangione has previously pleaded not guilty to New York state charges.

Well, after being turned back by soldiers, a U.S. lawmaker finally met with a Maryland man wrongly deported to one of El Salvador's most notorious prisons. We'll share what we know about the meeting next on CNN.

Plus, the Trump administration recently revoked the visas of more than 1,000 international students. We'll hear from one student who fears he's on the verge of losing years of college work with no explanation why. Stay with us.

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[03:28:34]

BRUNHUBER: Welcome back to CNN Newsroom. I'm Kim Brunhuber in Atlanta. Let's check some of today's top stories.

Police say two men were killed Thursday in a mass shooting on the campus of Florida State University. Five others were wounded and another person was injured while trying to run away. The suspected gunman is 20-year-old Florida State student Phoenix Ikner, who is the son of a sheriff's deputy.

Italy's Prime Minister says she's sure she can make a deal with the U.S. on tariffs. Giorgia Meloni met with President Donald Trump at the White House on Thursday. They also discussed military spending and the war in Ukraine. She says her goal is to make the West great again.

The U.S. Vice President is expected to meet with Prime Minister Meloni in Rome today. J.D. Vance and his family arrived in the Italian capital a short time ago. Vance is also expected to attend a Good Friday mass at St. Peter's Basilica at the Vatican. I spoke last hour with Amy Kazmin, Rome Correspondent for the

Financial Times, and I asked her about Meloni massaging Trump's ego on a number of issues and how she might leverage that to get a trade deal.

Here she it.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

AMY KAZMIN, ROME CORRESPONDENT, FINANCIAL TIMES: She definitely is trying to position herself as someone who can help, be a bridge between the Trump administration and Europe. Trump administration is not so keen on dealing with the European Union. President Trump has been very reluctant to engage with the European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, who's been seeking a meeting so far to no avail.

[03:30:07]

So Giorgia Meloni has invited Trump to come to visit Italy and suggested that Italy could be the venue for a bigger meeting with other European leaders. But really I think it will be seen in the days and weeks ahead whether this meeting, which was definitely very amicable and friendly, can actually lead to concrete results in terms of pushing along the trade talks between the United States and the European Union.

Giorgia Meloni as leader of Italy is not in position to negotiate a trade deal for Italy with the United States, nor can she negotiate on behalf of the European Union. So that is something that has to be done by E.U. officials. So it's a tricky situation for her, but I think she will be hoping that somehow she can use what sometimes has been called diplomatic good offices to kind of push things along.

BRUNHUBER: Yeah. All right, so while Donald Trump and Giorgio Meloni see eye to eye on many things, it seems Ukraine isn't necessarily one of them. I thought it was fascinating that Meloni referred to Putin as the invader when speaking in Italian, but then when the -- she kind of interrupted the translator who was going to say that in English, then she translated herself without mentioning her comments about Putin. What did you make of that?

KAZMIN: We were laughing in our office as we watched that. It was an incredible moment. I mean, when the Italian journalist asked Meloni in Italian to make a comment on the way that Trump has described the conflict in Ukraine, I mean, there was an intake of breath because we realized that was a very fraught moment for Giorgio Meloni.

Giorgio Meloni has been a very strong advocate of Ukrainian cause. She's met Zelenskyy many, many times. She's been very clear in describing Russia as the invader. This is an invasion. Ukraine is fighting for its liberty and freedom. If you look at her address to the Republican CPAC conference shortly after the invasion in 2022, she's absolutely clear who is the aggressor, who is the aggressed.

She has tried to tone it down publicly since Donald Trump has taken office and talked about peace and seemed to be much more conciliatory towards Putin. But I think in general, she is still quite strong in her support of Ukraine. And that was a very fraught moment for her. And I think people here in Italy thought she handled that very deftly.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BRUNHUBER: U.S. Senator Chris Van Hollen says he has spoken with the Maryland man wrongfully deported to El Salvador. Van Hollen met with Kilmar Abrego Garcia in San Salvador on Thursday. Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele posted pictures of the meeting on social media. He wrote Abrego Garcia gets the, quote, "honor of staying in El Salvador's custody." Speaking before the meeting, Senator Van Hollen criticized the Trump administration's accusations against the man.

Here is.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. CHRIS VAN HOLLEN (D-MD): They're trying to make this case about Kilmar all about MS-13, when, in fact, the judge in the case has said they've not provided substantial or any significant evidence to back up their claim.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BRUNHUBER: Also on Thursday, U.S. appeals court rejected a new Trump request to block an order directing it to facilitate Abrego Garcia's return. The court accused the administration of trying to claim what it called a right to stash away U.S. residents in foreign prisons without the semblance of due process.

As part of its sweeping immigration crackdown, the Trump administration is revoking the visas of more than 1,000 international students across the U.S. Now, attorneys representing some of those students are asking a federal court to step in and stop the administration from changing the immigration status of these students.

The judge in the case didn't rule on the request Thursday, but did say she plans to grant some sort of temporary relief for the affected students. Trump officials are already pushing back, arguing such relief would hamper the executive branch's ability to control immigration.

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio has said some behavior, including joining protests, won't be tolerated from international students. But many of those losing their visas had no part in any protests, and neither they nor their school administrators know what's behind the terminations. Gloria Pazmino has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

GLORIA PAZMINO, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Jayson Ma is months away from completing his mother's dying wish.

JAYSON MA, CARNEGIE MELLON UNIVERSITY STUDENT: One of the major factors that I decided to come forward and talk about this is the fact that my mom is sick. [03:35:05]

PAZMINO: Ma, a Chinese national studying electrical computer engineering at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, is one of hundreds of international students across the U.S. whose visas or student status has been revoked in the past month.

MA: Really, it's my entire life at jeopardy.

PAZMINO: He was given no other explanation and has yet to hear from any federal agency. Now he's wondering if he'll have to leave the country, his school, and his unfinished degree behind.

MA: I have my suitcase half-packed, and it's a real possibility.

PAZMINO: Indian and Chinese nationals make up the largest share of all international students enrolled in the U.S. India sent more than 331,000 students in the last academic year. China came in second with more than 277,000 students enrolled across U.S. colleges and universities.

FANTA AW, CEO, NAFSA: ASSOCIATION OF INTERNATIONAL EDUCATORS: These students are the future ambassadors who are going to make significant impact.

PAZMINO: Chinese students are under intense scrutiny as relations between Washington and Beijing deteriorate. China's Ministry of Education issued an advisory this month after the U.S. hit Chinese goods with new tariffs, telling students to quote, "conduct safety risk assessments when choosing to study in relevant states in the U.S."

AW: I would say that the last few weeks have been for many unsettling is a term that we've heard from many of our colleagues, anxiety producing on many levels.

PAZMINO: Dr. Aw's group has been tracking cases of visa revocations in recent weeks and hearing from international students who have yet to see enforcement action but are considering leaving the country. It would be an abrupt shift. International student enrollments were at an all-time record high last academic year. More than 1.1 million international students enrolled at American colleges and universities.

Trump's international student crackdown initially appeared to focus on student activists who participated in demonstrations against the Israel-Hamas war last year. But now it appears to have shifted. Revocations are being driven by small infractions, traffic violations and minor run-ins with police.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There was a DUI two years ago, but he was -- that -- that case was dismissed.

PAZMINO: The State Department has declined multiple times to provide details about the criteria they are using to revoke student visas.

TAMMY BRUCE, U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT SPOKESWOMAN: The department revokes visas every day in order to secure our borders and to keep our communities safe and will continue to do so.

PAZMINO (on camera): Now in speaking with students and academics, all of them pointed out that international students in many ways are easy targets. The federal government has a wealth of information about them provided by the students seeking to maintain their status. The unexplained cancellations have left them feeling like they are being pushed out of the United States as part of an effort to make the country less diverse and less welcoming to people from certain nations.

Gloria Pazmino, CNN, New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BRUNHUBER: A U.S. judge has ruled that Google violated antitrust laws by having a monopoly over online advertising. The judge sided with the Justice Department in a landmark case that could reshape Google and the power it has over the internet. The company's Vice President of Regulatory Affairs says they disagree with the judge's decision, writing, quote, "Publishers have many options and they choose Google because of our ad tech tools are simple, affordable and effective." Google could face sweeping penalties, but the appeals process will likely take years to play out in court.

E-sports and mobile gaming are booming across Africa. According to gaming publisher Carry1st, the continent's gaming market was worth $1.8 billion last year, with nearly 350 million gamers driving the sector's rise. Connecting Africa's Victoria Rubadiri reports that through local innovation, gaming is becoming one of the fastest growing sports sectors in Africa.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

VICTORIA RUBADIRI, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): From South Africa to Morocco to Kenya and Nigeria, the sport of gaming is taking hold across the continent. Among them is one of Africa's top female gamers, Sylvia Gathoni, better known as QueenArrow.

(On camera): You have to literally, like, direct me and guide me on what we're doing.

RUBADIRI (voice-over): This Kenyan-born professional e-sports player, law student and content creator, plays Tekken, a popular fighting game.

SYLVIA GATHONI (QueenArrow), SPORTS PLAYER: Africa is a blank slate. The fact that it hasn't developed as many other regions means that there is opportunity, ironically enough.

[03:40:00]

RUBADIRI (voice-over): Research carried out by game publisher Carry1st found that in 2024, there were 349 million gamers in Africa, 87% of whom were playing on their mobile phones.

CORDEL ROBBIN-COKER, CARRY1ST CEO: The first thing is just core demographics. So we have 1.5 billion people. The second is the age. So the median age in Africa is about 19 years old. That compares to, like, 43 in Western Europe. And so if you're thinking about people who are keen to adopt new technologies, new forms of media, and who are highly, highly social and digital native, the rise of mobile real-time unlocks gaming in the region.

RUBADIRI: But this burgeoning industry faces many challenges, among them how to pay for games.

DOMINION EROMOSELE, CARRY1ST LEAD GROWTH MANAGER: On the global sphere, people can go into their Play Store or their App Store, slot in their credit card, and they can easily make purchases. On the African continent, it's not that easy, because cards aren't exactly our primary way of payments and transactions across the continent. Not only is the card usage low, but the payment methods are also fragmented, which means what is used in Nigeria is not what's used in Kenya. What's used in Kenya is not what's used in South Africa. We are not helping them pay for content that they like with their local methods. So you're doing bank transfers in Nigeria. You're doing M- Pesa in Kenya, MoMo in Ghana. You know, all these things are not working for these people.

RUBADIRI: Making it easier for young Africans to make it into the growing sport of gaming.

(On camera): This was fun. Yeah, I've learned quite a bit.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

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[03:46:24]

BRUNHUBER: Major changes to infrastructure in Paris appear to be yielding major air quality improvements. Air Paris, an independent group that tracks air quality in Paris, says harmful pollutants in Paris have been cut in half since 2005. Now, over the years, Paris has implemented a series of changes to improve air quality.

Among them, the city closed hundreds of streets to cars and eliminated thousands of parking spots to make room for pedestrians and bicycles. The results have been remarkable. Air Paris says premature deaths linked to air pollution fell by a third between 2010 and 2019. And from 2023 to 24, a stunning 84% fewer people have been exposed to air pollution above regulatory limits.

Joining us now to discuss this is Vincent Thorne. He's a Researcher with the Paris School of Economics.

Thank you so much for being here with us. A fascinating case study here. So, I understand you moved to Paris fairly recently. So, before we get into all the numbers, just from a field point of view, you've described the feeling now of riding your bike around Paris, of eating outside these days. What's it like since these changes were implemented? VINCENT THORNE, POSTDOCTORAL RESEARCHER, PARIS SCHOOL OF ECONOMICS: Yeah, thanks, Kim. So, the first change, I would say, is really lots of road work. So, every couple of months, there's a new street being fitted with a new bike lane or a new intersection being remodeled.

So, first, there's a little bit this disruption feeling, but very fast after the remodeling is done, there's really a feeling of, like, increased safety as a cyclist. And there's a big shift also in how cyclists are perceived by others. There's really this feeling of, like, you're not an intruder now anymore in a car-dominated environment. You're really felt like cyclists are welcome and expected.

So, that's very important on the psychological side, especially for folks who historically haven't cycled that much. So, yeah, it's really great to see people gradually taking over the infrastructure. There's really, like, an increasingly diverse population riding bikes, and that's really a sign that the policy is working. If it's able to attract new cyclists, aside from the athletic and brave types. So, yeah, it's been really enjoyable having less traffic in Paris.

BRUNHUBER: So, you're describing a huge kind of realignment in terms of the society there. So, let's talk about the effect all this has. I discussed this earlier, air pollution has dropped by about 50% over the last 20 years, but it has to be said, many other cities have seen drops in air pollution, too.

Here, for instance, in the U.S., air pollution from vehicles has decreased dramatically because cars have become better rather than fewer. So, in Paris, much of this pollution drop, do we know how much of that can be attributed to these new bike-friendly policies?

THORNE: So, of course, all these policies come as a bundle. So, it's always very difficult to precisely pin down what every policy in particular has as an effect on air pollution. So, I would say it's important for cities to implement these policies as a bundle.

On the other side, in New York City, in my research, I find direct effects of bike share improvements on air pollution concentration. So, here, I'm able to pin down the effect of a reduction in air pollution concentrations. I would say in Paris, it's a bit harder. There's, like, not exactly the same data, but it's pretty clear that these policies have had a tremendous effect, and I think most of the effect comes from probably taking space away from cars, so making car not as good a mode of transport as before.

[03:50:12]

BRUNHUBER: Let's talk about the concrete effect, then, for Parisians. Air pollution, as you know, often called the silent killer. So, how important and how quickly do you think can residents notice health benefits from this improved air quality?

THORNE: So, this can be very fast. Local air pollution, as you said, is directly felt by residents. It severely impacts, especially, people with chronic respiratory disease. So, they will be the first ones to notice that there are fewer higher peaks of air pollution, and this will drastically improve their life.

Just, like, to give a couple of numbers, it's expected that about 200,000 people die every year of excessive air pollution in the U.S. alone, and this has massive economic effects also on cognitive performance, on productivity, and decision-making abilities. So, these effects are going to be felt directly on the economy, because these people are going to be able to be much more productive right away.

BRUNHUBER: Now, as I mentioned earlier, Paris has closed and will close hundreds of streets to cars and remove tens of thousands of parking spots. So, you wonder, you know, what effect that might have on businesses, and the ramifications of this sort of make me think, I mean, not every city will be able to replicate what Paris has done. You need, as you sort of talked about earlier, a culture of biking, you need great public transport, so many other things there, but what do you think other cities can take from this Paris experience?

THORNE: Yeah, so just a little bit on local businesses. I think, yeah, on average, local businesses are initially very reluctant to see their car -- their street become car-free, and this is a good -- like Barcelona, where I'm in today, is actually a very good example of this, where they pedestrianized a 3.5 kilometer street in the CBD, and during the planning construction phase, there was a lot of complaints from businesses, which culminated into a court case, and what is funny is that six months after the pedestrian street was completed, these business owners decided to drop the case. So, I think this is a very clear point that slowing down people increases footfall, people are more likely to stop by your shop, or spend much more time on your terrace if you're a restaurant.

So, I think for local businesses, there is a little bit of this readjustment that is needed, and I think, as you said, yeah, different policies are going to work in different places. I think the arsenal of policies for reducing traffic is the same across the world. So, you got, for example, what was implemented in New York City, the congestion charge, which is, for economists, the most efficient way of dealing with traffic, and this has had very positive impacts, has been measured, for example, in London, and so this is a great policy to implement. But as you said, so I think it's a comprehensive package that cities need to implement with a bike infrastructure plan, maybe also subsidizes to convert your car or give away your car in exchange for a bike, and these kind of things. I think these are very effective and can be implemented in many cities around the world.

BRUNHUBER: Yeah, it's a fascinating case study. As I say, Vincent Thorne, thank you so much, really appreciate it.

THORNE: Thank you, Kim.

BRUNHUBER: And we'll be right back.

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[03:56:11]

BRUNHUBER: Today, Christians around the world are observing Good Friday. The Vatican will mark the day, although Pope Francis isn't expected to attend. The pontiff did make a surprise appearance at a prison on Thursday. The 88-year-old has been recovering after a five- week spell in hospital battling a severe illness. When asked about his current condition, Pope Francis gave little away. Here he is.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translator): Your Holiness, how are you?

POPE FRANCIS (through translator): I feel seated.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translator): How are you doing this Easter after your hospitalization?

POPE FRANCIS (through translator): How can I? I live it how I can.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BRUNHUBER: The Pope was greeted with applause at the prison and offered well wishes to inmates ahead of Easter. Francis has visited prisons regularly during his papacy, especially on Holy Thursday.

An airport in southwestern Japan has officially changed its name in honor of a lovable cartoon character. Oita Hello Kitty Airport is now welcoming fans and tourists. The rebrand includes new signs and posters all over the airport, including Hello Kitty dragging a suitcase and riding a miniature plane. It coincides with the World Expo in Osaka and will only last for six months. Organizers are hoping the airport will offer a fun alternative destination to the already congested ones as Japan grapples with record numbers of tourists.

Well, that wraps this hour of CNN Newsroom. I'm Kim Brunhuber. The Amanpour Hour is next, and then stay tuned for Early Start with Rahel Solomon starting at 5 a.m. in New York, 10 a.m. in London.

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