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Russia Hoping for Renewed U.S. Relations Amid Peace Talks; IDF: 'Professional Failures' Led to Medic Deaths in Gaza; Hegseth Shared Military Plans in 2nd Signal Chat; Portrait of Wounded Palestinian Boy Wins Top Award; Rapper Drake Claims He Was Defamed at Grammys & Super Bowl. Aired 12-12:45a ET

Aired April 21, 2025 - 00:00   ET

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

BEN HUNTE, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: Hello. Wherever you are in the world, you are now in the CNN NEWSROOM with me, Ben Hunte in Atlanta. And it is so good to have you here.

[00:00:37]

Coming up on the show, the U.S. president is hoping to revive peace talks, pushing for another round of negotiations between Russia and Ukraine.

Dysfunction at the Pentagon. Now we know the U.S. defense secretary shared detailed military plans in a second group chat.

And a picture is worth a thousand words. I'll speak to one of the jurors from the World Press Photo Contest about this year's winners.

Welcome. Ukraine is bracing for a return to war as a temporary truce announced by Russian President Vladimir Putin is over, even before it fully took hold.

But the U.S. vice [SIC] -- U.S. president, even, is voicing optimism that both sides could soon agree to a permanent end to the fighting.

On Sunday, Donald Trump posted on Truth Social that he's hopeful a deal will be reached this week. A State Department spokesperson said the U.S. remains committed to reaching a full and comprehensive ceasefire.

But just days earlier, President Trump threatened to walk away from the peace talks, and his secretary of state, Marco Rubio, also warned U.S. involvement could end if there are no signs of progress.

This all comes as Russia and Ukraine accused each other of breaking a temporary Easter truce.

Vladimir Putin made the surprise announcement on Saturday for his forces to stop all military activity for 30 hours, but Ukraine's president said there was an uptick in Russian artillery and drone strikes on Sunday.

Volodymyr -- Volodymyr Zelenskyy said it's clear Russia wants to prolong the war. Still, he's asking that Moscow commit to a 30-day ceasefire on civilian infrastructure as a sign of good faith.

As the West remains wary of any renewed relations between the Kremlin and Washington, CNN's former Moscow bureau chief Jill Dougherty explains the larger designs at play behind President Putin's strategy.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JILL DOUGHERTY, FORMER CNN MOSCOW BUREAU CHIEF: Longer term, it's important to Russia to get back in the game; get sanctions, ultimately, removed, if that's possible; as I said, restore the relationship.

They're trying to entice American business back to Russia. I don't think a lot of companies would actually do that at this point.

But Putin wants a restored relationship. And so, that -- that's why he keeps this going.

And then also, you know, there's another game, I would say, on the other side, which is if you keep it going, then there's a potential of sowing distrust between the United States and its European allies; weakening Ukraine, et cetera; continuing the attacks which have been taking place regularly over the past couple of weeks, really.

So, I think, you know, that's where we are. It's part of the strategy that -- that Putin has.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HUNTE: The Israeli military is blaming professional failures for the deaths of first responders in Gaza last month.

There was international condemnation after 15 people came under Israeli fire, and then they were buried in a mass grave. Most of them worked for the Palestine Red Crescent Society.

Now, an Israeli probe has identified several failures, and one officer has been dismissed. But the military is still standing by those who opened fire.

CNN's Jeremy Diamond has more from Tel Aviv.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JEREMY DIAMOND, CNN JERUSALEM CORRESPONDENT: Well, the Israeli military is acknowledging, quote, "professional failures" in the incident that led --

DIAMOND (voice-over): -- to the killing of 15 paramedics and emergency responders last month at the hands of Israeli troops.

The Israeli military is blaming a, quote, "operational misunderstanding" for the decision to open fire on this convoy of ambulances and a fire truck.

The military concluded its investigation into this incident by dismissing the deputy commander of the Golani Reconnaissance Battalion. This is the field commander who actually gave the order to open fire and was the first to open fire on these ambulances and this fire truck.

The military also issued a letter of reprimand to the commanding officer of the 14th Brigade, which was also involved in this attack.

[00:05:06]

The military said that it, quote, "regrets the harm caused to uninvolved civilians."

DIAMOND: But the Israeli military also stopped short of criticizing the decision-making of the soldiers on the ground who opened fire, saying that they opened fire because they felt an immediate and tangible threat.

That's despite the fact that these ambulances were clearly marked; that they had their emergency signals on, headlights on --

DIAMOND (voice-over): -- and no weapons were found in any of these vehicles. All of these individuals were, in fact, wearing their uniforms, whether as paramedics or as civil defense first responders.

DIAMOND: The Israeli military also praised the officer that it dismissed as a, quote, "highly respected officer" whose story, they say, reflects the, quote, "spirit of combat volunteerism and great dedication."

I also was in a briefing with the major general Yoav Har-Even, who oversaw this investigation. And he also told me that he believes that commander who ordered troops to open fire, quote, "acted reasonably." And he said that there was no evidence, in his view, of any unethical or immoral conduct by the forces, repeatedly calling it a mistake.

And that is what he seemed to focus on, this idea that they opened fire based off of something that they felt; preconceived notions that ultimately turned out to be false. But he did not fault them, in the end, for the decision to open fire.

He said that he is not recommending any changes to the IDF's rules of engagement or its combat policies in order to prevent another incident like this from happening again.

I was also able to see aerial surveillance video from the Israeli military of this incident. They showed this video to us, but they have declined to release it publicly.

This also shows that, in addition to the attack on a first ambulance and then that convoy of ambulances and a fire truck several minutes later, a United Nations vehicle actually drives by. And in this video, you see this vehicle drive by quite slowly as it passes the vehicles that had been fired upon. Several Israeli soldiers standing behind that U.N. vehicle then opened fire.

The Israeli military has said that that part of the incident was, indeed, a breach of the Israeli military's rules of engagement, and the U.N. worker who was in that vehicle was indeed the 15th fatality resulting from this incident.

Now, the findings of this Israeli military internal investigation have now been sent to the military's advocate general. It will be up to that office to decide whether to file any charges. It's not clear whether or not that will happen.

Jeremy Diamond, CNN, Tel Aviv.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HUNTE: The Palestine Red Crescent Society, whose workers were killed, now claims there were a lot of, quote, "contradictions" in Israel's account of the killings.

Multiple sources tell CNN, U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth revealed detailed military plans in another Signal chat. This all comes weeks after it was revealed that Hegseth shared details about a strike on Houthis in Yemen on a separate Signal chart that included a journalist.

CNN's Kevin Liptak reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KEVIN LIPTAK, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: This new Signal group chat that we are just learning about included people inside Hegseth's personal circle, including his brother --

LIPTAK (voice-over): -- personal attorney, and his wife.

Now, Hegseth's brother and attorney both work at the Pentagon. It's not clear whether they have security clearances. But his wife is not an official employee of the Defense Department, although she has attended meetings with foreign officials, which has raised eyebrows --

LIPTAK: -- among officials over at the Department of Defense.

Now, all of this, I think, calls into question some of Pete Hegseth's decision making as he prepared for this attack on the Houthi rebels.

And it comes after a period of chaos, really, in his inner circle, in his front office, essentially --

LIPTAK (voice-over): -- at the Pentagon. There were the dismissals last week of a number of senior Pentagon officials who were accused of leaking information. They deny that.

LIPTAK: And we have also now heard from the former press secretary to Pete Hegseth, John Ullyot, who was until recently his top post -- spokesman at the Pentagon, sort of decrying this period --

LIPTAK (voice-over): -- of chaos, saying that it has been "a month of total chaos at the Pentagon. From leaks of sensitive operational plans to mass firings, the dysfunction is now a major distraction for the president -- who deserves better from his senior leadership."

Ullyot went on to say, "Even strong backers of the secretary, like me, must admit: The last month has been a full-blown meltdown at the Pentagon, and it's becoming a real problem for the administration."

LIPTAK: Now, the Pentagon has not officially responded to these latest revelations about the Signal app.

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Although you'll remember the last time that the administration was accused of sharing these attack plans, the White House and the president denied that they contained any classified information, although that drew plenty of skepticism from almost every national security analyst that CNN spoke with.

It should also be said that this sort of tumultuous period is coming at a fraught moment for the U.S. national security space. It comes as the Pentagon is beefing up resources in the Middle East in preparation for a potential Israeli strike on Iran.

Of course, it's a fraught moment in Asia. It comes as Secretary Hegseth is working on President Trump's plans to somehow take back the Panama Canal.

All of this potentially a distraction at a moment of heightened tensions around the world.

Kevin Liptak, CNN, the White House.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HUNTE: El Salvador's president says he wants to let hundreds of Venezuelans in his notorious mega prison go back to Venezuela. We'll explain his offer, just ahead.

Plus, striking images from the World Press Photo competition and the stories behind them. That's after the break.

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HUNTE: Hundreds of Venezuelans deported from the U.S. to El Salvador could soon be on their way back to Venezuela as part of a proposed prisoner swap.

El Salvador's president is pitching the idea to Venezuela's Nicolas Maduro.

Nayib Bukele says he'll exchange 252 Venezuelans deported from the U.S. for political prisoners in Venezuelan jails. Bukele says Maduro has imprisoned journalists, human rights lawyers, and relatives of opposition leaders.

Bukele is facing international criticism for accepting deportees from the United States. Many are in the CECOT mega prison and haven't been charged with a crime.

A U.S. lawmaker is sharing more about his visit to El Salvador to meet with Kilmar Abrego Garcia, the man who was wrongfully deported from the U.S.

President Trump claims Abrego Garcia is a criminal. Here's what Senator Chris van Hollen tells CNN about that.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DANA BASH, CNN ANCHOR, STATE OF THE UNION: Can you say with absolute certainty that he is not, nor has he ever been a member of the MS-13 gang? And did you ask him point-blank?

SEN. CHRIS VAN HOLLEN (D-MD): Well, Dana, what Donald Trump is trying to do here is change the subject. The subject at hand is that he and his administration are defying a court order to give people -- to give Abrego Garcia his due process rights. They are trying to litigate on social media what they should be doing in the courts. They need to put up or shut up in the courts.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HUNTE: U.S. Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito is criticizing the court for its emergency order blocking the White House from deporting a group of Venezuelan migrants in Texas.

The Trump administration has used the controversial Alien Enemies Act to deport migrants. Lower courts are hearing cases on the issue. In the meantime, that group of immigrants in Texas cannot be deported.

In his five-page dissent, Alito criticized the order for being issued, quote, "literally in the middle of the night and without providing any explanation."

Justice Clarence Thomas joined Alito in the dissent.

The Trump administration may close some 30 American embassies and consulates around the globe. That's according to a State Department document obtained by CNN.

It also recommends reducing American diplomatic missions in Iraq and Somalia.

The document outlines closing ten U.S. embassies and 17 U.S. consulates, many in Europe and Africa. The move would significantly change American diplomatic relationships abroad.

No comment from the State Department.

Still ahead, the World Press Photo Contest announces its top prize winners of the year. I'm going to be speaking with a juror from the annual competition and hear the stories behind some of these wild images.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) [00:23:18]

HUNTE: Welcome back. I'm Ben Hunte. Let's take a look at today's top stories.

U.S. President Donald Trump is hopeful that Russia and Ukraine will strike a deal this week to permanently end more than three years of conflict.

This comes as fighting on the front line resumes, after both sides accused each other of violating a temporary Easter truce.

We're learning that the U.S. defense secretary shared military plans about strikes on Houthis in Yemen in a Signal chat that included his wife and brother. That's according to multiple sources.

Pete Hegseth is already facing an investigation into another Signal chat about military plans last month, in which the editor of "The Atlantic" was mistakenly included.

And the Israel Defense Forces are blaming professional failures for the killing of first responders in Gaza. Last month, 15 people fell under IDF fire and were buried in a mass grave.

The military says their investigation has found the incident was based on a chain of mistakes but no ethical gaps (ph).

A portrait of a young Palestinian boy who lost boy his arms in an Israeli air strike in Gaza has been named World Press Photo of the Year.

Photojournalist Samar Abu Elouf first met 9-year-old Mahmoud Ajjour in Qatar three months after the boy and his family were evacuated so he could receive medical treatment.

The photo was selected from nearly 60,000 entries, more -- from more than 140 countries. This and other images from the World Press Photo competition can be seen in an exhibition that will travel to dozens of locations, worldwide.

[00:25:00]

Let's dig deeper into the 2025 World Press Photo winners with juror Nina Berman.

Nina, how are you doing?

NINA BERMAN, JUROR, 2025 WORLD PRESS PHOTO CONTEST: I'm good. How are you?

HUNTE: I'm good. Thank you so much for asking.

Let's get straight into this. Can you talk me through this amazing winning image? Mahmoud Ajjour, age 9. What made this image -- we've seen it now -- the winner?

BERMAN: Well, it's an unforgettable portrait. And I think it's a picture that, once you've seen it, you cannot unsee it.

Great pictures are both specific to the individual and the moment, and also talk about bigger issues. So, is this a new kind of warfare that we're seeing, one where we have so many child amputees?

As a photograph, it's just also so striking. I remember when I first saw it, I thought, oh, it almost looks like a statue on a pedestal.

HUNTE: Yes.

BERMAN: Is this real? Is this really a little boy? And yet there's tremendous tenderness in the picture. The photographer herself is a refugee from Gaza, having had to flee with her family amidst an Israeli bombardment. And so, she was able to make connections with other refugees in Doha and produce this image.

HUNTE: We're seeing so many amazing images from this year's contest, including a photo of a little migrant girl sitting next to her father -- we're going to see it now -- in one of the world's most dangerous migrant crossings.

When you judge these photos, how much of your decision is based on the visual quality versus the actual story that these images tell?

BERMAN: Right. So, that's a great question, because this is a photography contest. And so, the picture has to be strong in the sense of its visual impact and its composition, its construction, its use of light. You know, if it's a color picture, color. And -- but it's also -- we look at the photographer's commitment.

So, this particular picture we're talking about was part of a long- term project by Colombian photographer Federico Rios, who we felt has made the most comprehensive work from this epic migration path known as the Darien Gap.

And this was a moment that, you know, as another one of these very unforgettable moments where usually it's the parent who's looking with concern on the child. But in this case, it is the child looking, you know, with concern on the parent, who just seems so devastated and exhausted.

And what's so special about this work, too, is that the photographer, he knows the names of the people in his pictures. It's not like he just swooped in, you know, photographed this, you know, the action or the scene. But he knows their names. He knows where they're from. He knows their ages.

And so that dedication and intimacy was -- was something that was really noted by the jurors.

HUNTE: Wow. Wow, wow, wow.

There's a growing trend in photos being taken during major climate events. And two of them for this year were in Brazil. They are drastically different but tell quite similar stories. Can you just tell us more about those images? BERMAN: Right. So, we saw a lot of climate work from Brazil, and it

was almost like a world turned upside-down. The -- the Amazon River and its tributaries, you know, became sort of rivers of sand.

So, people have to walk where they could have navigated before in the waters.

HUNTE: Wow.

BERMAN: And so, this is a completely topsy-turvy situation.

And then we had floods in places, you know, like streets turning into rivers. And in the case of a picture of the Boeing 727 stranded on a runway, it's -- it's so surreal, because you don't know, is this plane in the sky? But then you see the reflection, and you're like, no, it can't be in the sky.

So, it's another one of these pictures that forces the viewer to, you know, ask, how did this happen?

HUNTE: Yes.

BERMAN: What is going on? What is it I'm looking at?

HUNTE: When it comes to good photography, how much is it about acting on instinct and just being in the right place at the right time?

BERMAN: Well, I think good news photography such as, you know, the attempted assassination of Donald Trump or the picture of the -- the surfer in the Olympics. You know, these are really seasoned news photographers. So, you know, they're not worried about their camera settings. This is all, like, muscle memory for them. And so, they are working on pure instinct and speed.

HUNTE: Yes.

BERMAN: And, you know, and through years of experience. And so, you can take especially with the Trump attempted assassination picture, you know, these are scenes of total chaos.

And also, the photographers not knowing, you know, are they under fire themselves? And to make a picture so well-composed, where everyone is in focus, where you see all their expressions, we have all these details -- from the hat to the gun to the blood on Trump's face -- you know, is really extraordinary testimony to the skill of these photographers.

[00:30:06]

And the same with, you know, completely different situation, but the same with the surfer picture. You know, from what I had read, from that photographer, is that they knew that the surfer, you know, tended to do this move. But it's also being able to anticipate that moment and be ready if it happens.

HUNTE: Absolutely incredible stuff. Well, for now, Nina Berman, thank you so, so much for joining me and showing us this work. Really appreciate it.

BERMAN: Thank you for having me.

HUNTE: Rapper Drake has raised new allegations in a defamation lawsuit against his own record label. Ahead, I'll dig deeper into one of the music industry's most talked-about cases.

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[00:35:28]

HUNTE: Rapper Drake is doubling down in his legal battle with Kendrick Lamar.

This past week, Drake added new allegations to a lawsuit he first filed back in January against the record label for both artists.

He now claims he was defamed by Lamar's Super Bowl halftime show and at the Grammy Awards. At both events, Lamar performed his notorious diss track, "Not Like Us," which includes lyrics claiming Drake is a pedophile and has targeted young girls.

Well, you know, I want to dig into this. So, joining me from L.A. is attorney and legal affairs commentator Areva Martin.

Areva, thank you so much for being with me. How are you doing?

AREVA MARTIN, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: I'm well, Ben. How are you?

HUNTE: I'm good, I'm good. Let's get into this. If Kendrick Lamar had said these things about Drake instead of rapping them, it would seem like a clear case of defamation. So, what makes this so different?

MARTIN: Well, you have to look at this context -- You have to look at the content -- the context, I should say, in which this is happening.

This is classic rap diss. Dissing that happens between all rappers, at least a lot of those at the top of the game.

And what's ironic, Ben, about this lawsuit is that Drake himself is the initiator. He started this diss battle with Kendrick Lamar, and he has used this platform, or his platform to engage in this kind of conduct with many other artists.

So, that's what makes this case so unique. Drake is basically saying, I dissed you. And then when you diss me but your diss becomes the record of -- of, you know, the century and become so incredibly popular. A lot of folks say that Drake is just complaining because he lost this diss battle.

HUNTE: Wow, wow. Why is Drake suing the record label, though, instead of Kendrick Lamar directly? That's -- it's something that's quite confusing to me, because surely, you'd want to go after the person who actually said it, rather than the label.

MARTIN: Yes, that's an interesting point. And it appears that he's going after the label. Obviously, the label has the bigger bank roll, the deeper pockets of the label, more so than either even Kendrick Lamar himself.

But he's claiming that the record label is trying to get leverage in contract negotiations with him. Drake -- part of what he's arguing is that his contract was up for negotiation with the same label that represents Kendrick Lamar, and that they were using this diss tape, this diss song, in order to gain some kind of leverage to get a better contract.

So, it seems like Drake is going after the record label, because he himself is trying to get in a better negotiating position.

HUNTE: Interesting. We all saw the Super Bowl performance, and Lamar skipped over the certified pedophile line in his song. Drake says that's because he knew it was defamatory. Does Drake have a point there or potentially not?

MARTIN: Well, I think it depends on how you look at it, and a court is going to have to decide this. Because the word "pedophile" may have been excluded, because this is Super Bowl. It is a family viewing event, and lots of words are excluded. If you listen to that song, there are a lot of words, like the "N" word, that weren't used during the performance.

So, I don't think you can just isolate that one word. There are lots of curse words that are used in rap music that also have been excluded, or were excluded from that very popular song.

So, Drake has a really big legal hurdle to overcome in trying to establish this case. Obviously, he's a public figure, so he's got to prove malice. He's got to prove that there was intentionality on the part of this record label; that they purposely engaged in conduct to defame him.

And again, given his participation in diss battles, not just with Kendrick Lamar but with other artists, he's going to have a very difficult time, I think, establishing his claims before a court of law.

And it's important to note that June, the court is going to decide if this entire lawsuit should be dismissed, because the record label has filed a motion to dismiss that the court will consider, or will hold arguments on, in June of this year.

HUNTE: Wow. And if this lawsuit succeeds, what could the impact be on performers and on labels and future rap battles?

MARTIN: Could be -- could be catastrophic, Ben. Look, we're talking about First Amendment rights. We're talking about creative control that all artists, not just rap artists. And this whole diss battle is a part -- so much a part, intrinsic part, big part of hip-hop music.

[00:40:03]

So, it begs the question about other artists and the chilling effect that it can have on other artists, if this lawsuit is successful.

So, there's a lot at stake here, not just between these two popular artists, but this could potentially impact the entire hip-hop industry.

HUNTE: Well, we shall see. For now, though, Areva Martin in L.A., thank you so much for being with me, and see you again soon.

MARTIN: Thank you, Ben.

HUNTE: OK. That's all I've got for you. Thanks for joining me and the team. I'm Ben Hunte in Atlanta. It's been so real. Join me again very soon. WORLD SPORT is up next. See you in a bit.

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