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Trump Delivers Commencement Address At West Point; Large-Scale Attacks Hit Ukraine For Second Straight Night; Climbers Cut Everest Ascent Prep Time By Weeks. Aired 3-4a ET

Aired May 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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[03:00:00]

KRISTIE LU STOUT, CNN ANCHOR: Hello and welcome to all of our viewers watching in the United States and around the world. I'm Kristie Lu Stout in Hong Kong.

And ahead on CNN Newsroom, U.S. President Donald Trump addresses West Point graduates and touts his administration's policy of banning diversity, equity, and inclusion programs in the armed forces.

Three mosques are vandalized in the U.S. state of Texas. The Muslim community asks for more to be done to protect their places of worship.

And four British climbers use science to help conquer Everest. We'll take you to base camp at the giant mountain.

U.S. President Donald Trump did not shy away from controversial topics while addressing U.S. Military Academy graduates on Saturday. He delivered the commencement speech at West Point and congratulated the graduates for joining, quote, the greatest and most powerful army the world has ever known.

The president touted his plan for a Golden Dome missile defense system that he unveiled earlier this week.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, U.S. PRESIDENT: We're building the Golden Dome Missile Defense Shield to protect our homeland and to protect West Point from attack, and it will be completed before I leave office.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

STOUT: During his speech, Mr. Trump also praised his administration's efforts to ban diversity, equity, and inclusion programs in the military.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: We've liberated our troops from divisive and demeaning political trainings. There will be no more critical race theory or transgender for everybody forced onto our brave men and women in uniform.

The job of the U.S. Armed Forces is not to host drag shows, to transform foreign cultures, but to spread democracy to everybody around the world.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CNN's Kevin Liptak has more from West Point New York.

KEVIN LIPTAK, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE REPORTER: President Trump's speech here at West Point was in some ways a traditional commencement speech. He offered his advice. He told the graduating cadets to do what you love. In other ways, it was a more political speech, the president using lines that you typically hear at his rallies, talking about his election in last year's contest, talking about the people who investigated him during his time out of office.

It's always interesting to see how those more political lines land outside of the rally setting. The president received a warm reception here at West Point, but certainly not the kind of raucous crowd that he typically delivers those lines to.

I think the real substance of the president's speech though was when he was discussing his attempts to remake the U.S. military, talking about, you know, this trillion dollar budget request that he's just put through. That's about a 13 percent increase from the current funding levels, talking about the Golden Dome, the missile protection system that he has decided to put in place, talking about building ships and planes in the United States. So, that was one area of remaking the U.S. military.

The other area that he talked about was this effort to eliminate what he called were absurd ideological experiments from the Pentagon, but also from the U.S. service academies, like the one we're at here at West Point. The president really talking at some length about, as he said, liberating troops from diversity trainings, talking about getting rid of drag shows, saying that he was getting men out of women's sports.

You know, this has all been something of a controversial topic at West Point. You have seen a number of affinity groups disbanded, a group for black engineers, the Latin Cultural Club at other service academies. You've seen books pulled from libraries that didn't necessarily comport with the president's directives.

You know, I was watching the faculty members specifically when the president was entering this aspect of his speech, they didn't necessarily belie any emotion in their faces, but it has been something of a controversial topic. At least one faculty member at West Point has resigned over all of this.

Now, there had been some protests around the campus here in boats on the Hudson River, no protests inside Michie Stadium, where we were, where the commencement took place.

[0305:03] But the president, I think, in his remarks here, really trying to make the case to the 2,002 cadets who were just commissioned as second lieutenants in the U.S. Army that he would continue to have their back as commander-in-chief, not sending them off to wars of choice but to really uphold what he called peace through strength as they enter that long gray line.

Kevin Liptak, CNN, at the U.S. Military Academy in West Point, New York.

STOUT: Rescuers are searching through the rubble after Ukraine's capital region came under a massive attack for a second straight night. Officials say at least three people were killed and more than 20 others injured in new Russian strikes on and around Kyiv overnight. Ukraine's Air Force as Russia used a combination of drones, cruise and ballistic missiles, launched from planes and ships out of the southern city of Mykolaiv was also hit. That came in the heels of massive Russian strikes the night before, which reportedly killed 13 people across Ukraine. But Russia said on Saturday it took Ukrainian drone fire as well, which left three people injured.

Now, all that is happening after a highly emotional day for both sides, as hundreds of prisoners of war finally came home. This is part of the largest prisoner exchange since the war began. The swap is expected to conclude later today.

Paula Hancocks has more.

PAULA HANCOCKS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: We've been seeing some very emotional scenes from some former Ukrainian prisoners who have been released this Saturday, the second day in what is expected to be a three-day phase. It's expected to be the largest prisoner exchange between Russia and Ukraine since the war began back in February 2022.

Now, we have seen some of these former prisoners draped and wrapped in Ukrainian flags being reunited with their loved ones. We've heard from the Ukrainian leader, President Zelenskyy, saying he thanks everyone involved and that all of the prisoners will be released. Let's hear what he said after day one of this exchange,

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VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY, UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT: The main thing of today is that the exchange took place. This is the first stage of the logistic exchange that was agreed upon in Turkey. It was the only significant result of the meeting in Turkey, and the Russians are blocking everything else. They're blocking it for now.

But the return of our people is exactly what we're always working for. We will definitely return everyone, every one of our citizens, every Ukrainian military and civilian, all Ukrainian hostages held in Russia. We must free them all.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HANCOCKS: Now, this was really the one tangible success that could be taken from the meeting last week in Istanbul, where Russian and Ukrainian officials met for the first time since shortly after the war broke out.

We have heard from the U.S. president, Donald Trump, posting on social media saying this could lead to something big, followed by question marks. But what we have been hearing from officials on the ground is that is at a very positive development, the exchange itself. It's not expected at this point, though, to develop into anything beyond this.

This is the 5th exchange that we've seen this year and the 64th that we have seen since the war started. In fact, we have been seeing some renewed drone and missile attacks from Russia into Ukraine overnight Friday into Saturday. We saw, according to officials, some 250 strike drones and 14 ballistic missiles.

Now, many of them were intercepted, but those that were not were deadly. Over a 24-hour period, there were some 13 killed and more than 50 injured. And this was across the whole of Ukraine. There were more than half a dozen districts and regions that were affected. We heard from Zelenskyy saying it was a difficult night for all of Ukraine.

Paula Hancocks, CNN, Abu Dhabi.

STOUT: You're watching CNN Newsroom. We'll be right back.

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STOUT: Welcome back. Now, four British climbers have become the first to ascend Mount Everest after using xenon gas to acclimatize. Usually, climbers, and you just spend time in the mountain, letting their bodies get used to the higher altitudes, and this could take weeks or even months. But this group of mountaineers, they were able to scale the peak less than five days after leaving London.

Now, the organizer of the expedition, Lukas Furtenbach, he joins us now live. From Mount Everest base camp to tell us just how they did it. Lukas, thank you for joining us and congratulations on your record-setting climb. You did it fast, you did it for the veterans. How have you been celebrating?

LUKAS FURTENBACH, MT. EVEREST EXPEDITION LEADER: Oh, thank you so much for having me. Yes, we have been celebrating but remote because the team left base camp about an hour after they came down from the mountain. They had just had a cappuccino, a shower, and then the helicopter was already waiting, picking them up, taking them to the airport. So, we had a video call celebration.

STOUT: Now, a key part of this mission was acclimatization, none of which took place on the mountain, and you used a new method. Could you tell us about it?

FURTENBACH: Yes. We did a combination of hypoxic tents. That's a tent basically at your home, in your bedroom, that simulates higher altitude. You sleep in these tents for a couple of weeks before the expedition. And the second component was a treatment with a noble gas called xenon. That's a medical gas that is used in anesthesia for 75 years. And they get this treatment that we have been developed over the past five years, especially for mountaineering in the clinic in Germany, two weeks before they left they departed for the expedition.

[03:15:03]

And xenon gas has the effect in the human body that it protects from the effects of high altitude, from a low oxygen environment. So, it helps to protect the body for high altitude sickness and it enhances de-acclimatization.

STOUT: So, you took this special infusion of xenon gas. You also slept in these tents to help you acclimatize. It is extremely dangerous to scale Everest, to go up, if you're not properly acclimatized. And, normally, climbers they just spend weeks or maybe months to adjust to higher altitudes. But you took a big risk here, you know, calculated, but a big risk to do this. So, what gave you this confidence that this new method would actually work?

FURTENBACH: So, from the outside, it looks like we took a big risk, but we are developing these we call it pre-acclimatization protocols for more than 20 years now. So, we worked with the hypoxic tens since 1999. We are very confident with these tens that we can acclimatize people. And we did the xenon protocol that we are working with for five years now with the international researchers and scientists and myself, I have done this for, for five years now, every year, climbed Everest with the xenon protocol. So, we had a double safety. We had the hypoxic protocol and the xenon protocol to make it super safe.

And the goal of this -- all of this seven-day project is not to get a record for the fastest round trip to Everest. It is now 6 days and 13 hours, London, summit and back to London. The goal is to show how the future of high attitude mountaineering could look like, to make it safer.

STOUT: Yes. You showed the future. You made it happen. It is possible. It's safe. But there are also benefits of a shorter expedition, right, you know, benefits in terms of resources and impact on the environment?

FURTENBACH: Yes, exactly. So, less resources are used. Human waste is a big problem here in Everest base camp and also on the mountain. So, of course, obviously it makes a big difference if people spend one week here or eight or ten weeks. There is no impact on the local workers we hire here. So, they are here for the whole season. They get paid for the whole season, so we are not cutting their chops or their salaries. But the benefits for the environment are significant.

STOUT: And in addition to, you know, the xenon gas infusions, the special sleeping tent, you also have military training. How did that help you achieve this record climb?

FURTENBACH: All of these four guys are ex-Special Forces from the British military, so they are very fit athletes. But still they undergo a very intensive training program to be ready for this mission.

STOUT: Yes. And is your protocol, the xenon gas method, one that could work with other experienced climbers, or does it take a particular background for this to work?

FURTENBACH: I would say for the six days record, you need this special background. You need it to be an experienced climber. You need to be a very fit, professional athlete. But the xenon protocol is beneficial for every client in high altitude. So, no matter if you are on a traditional schedule with eight weeks or if you are on a fast track with two or three weeks, the xenon protects the body and makes the climb safer. And we see people dying on Everest every year, and this is maybe one step to improve this situation.

STOUT: And, Lukas, the last question for you, after this record, Everest climb and pioneering a new method, no less, what are you going to do next?

FURTENBACH: I think we develop now the products that we go to the market with the xenon protocol. And then we do what we did since 20 years. We try to improve safety on Mount Everest. We are bringing new out a new oxygen system that is safer and better for the human body. We are still improving the hypoxic and the scene protocols so that the acclimatization process gets even shorter and more comfortable for the client and then all the logistics on the mountain. So, there's still -- it is one of the most dangerous environments on this planet. So, there's always room for improvement on safety.

STOUT: Lukas, you are a pioneer. Bravo to you and your team. Thank you for joining us. Take care.

FURTENBACH: Thank you very much.

STOUT: It is Memorial Day weekend in the U.S. It's a chance for Americans to remember those who died in the military serving their country. The holiday is also a chance to connect with family and friends. But as Jenn Sullivan reports, travel troubles and weather woes are putting a damper on the holiday.

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JENN SULLIVAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): Millions of people are expected to travel this Memorial Day weekend, and many of them are facing the threat of severe weather.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Some of the heavier rainfall here, anywhere from four to six inches of rain locally, so that's a half a foot of precipitation.

SULLIVAN: Expected strong storms and flash flooding could impact parts of the Central Plains and Mississippi Valley. The greatest threats are in Oklahoma and Arkansas, as well as Missouri and Kansas. Areas of those two states were decimated by tornadoes last weekend.

TARYN DICKMAN, LOST HOME TO TORNADO: We've had to move out of our house. It's going to be under construction for a long time.

SULLIVAN: Taryn Dickman's family is just one of many who lost everything last weekend when an EF-3 tornado battered the northwest Kansas town of Grinnell.

Another area in the line of this weekend storms, Laurel County, Kentucky. The town of London, entire neighborhoods wiped out last weekend. And now that same area could get pummeled with rain.

SHERIFF JOHN ROOT, LAUREL COUNTY, KENTUCKY: Just keep London, Laurel County in your prayers. Because right now, I'm telling you there's people that really need it.

SULLIVAN: Meanwhile, the northeast and parts of the Mid-Atlantic are dealing with a rare May nor'easter that's bringing cooler temperatures and heavy rain. All of this coming as AAA estimates a record 45 million people are expected to travel 50 miles or more this holiday weekend.

AIXA DIAZ, AAA SPOKESPERSON: You want to leave as little the chance as possible because there are so many things you can't control when you're on the road, other drivers, construction, the weather.

SULLIVAN: I'm Jenn Sullivan reporting.

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STOUT: Now, Sunday marks five years since the murder of George Floyd. The black Minnesota man was killed when a white police officer knelt on his neck for nearly ten minutes. And his death sparked a wave of protests and federal efforts to reform policing.

But on Wednesday, the Trump administration said it was ending oversight of city police reforms. CNN spoke to people in George Floyd Square, Minneapolis on Saturday, and one man told us, much remains to be done.

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MARQUISE BOWIE, MINNEAPOLIS RESIDENT: Today is a great celebration and uplifting George Floyd, but day-to-day, it seems like nobody really cares. This is five years later and we haven't got any new program. We haven't gotten any new resources and funding for the people that are out here on a day-to-day basis, seems like a struggle specifically for the black men that own property and businesses right here.

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STOUT: CNN Senior U.S. Correspondent Sara Sidner has this report.

SARA SIDNER, CNN SENIOR U.S. CORRESPONDENT: Five years after the murder of George Floyd Square looks a lot the same, there are some differences. One thing to note is that people come here and volunteer from the neighborhood to make sure this is pristine kept so that people can come and pray here and remember what happened here, and also demand the changes that they want for the police department in this community.

If you look here, this is exactly where his body was lying when then- Officer Derek Chauvin had his knee on his neck and George Floyd was begging for his life, begging for his breath. Back then, this store here was called Cup Foods. Now, they've changed the name to Unity Foods.

But there is some contention in the neighborhood. The contention being there are some folks in this neighborhood who really would like to see this street closed off for good because it is currently closed off now and has been for five years. But some of the people living in this neighborhood and some of the businesses operating in this neighborhood who have given back to this neighborhood, say they need it to open up. They want the memorial to stay here. They're okay with this, but they are having trouble surviving without any traffic flow here. And they're trying to work all this out.

But on this day, people are coming from all over the country to remember what happened and to hope that change happens even as they are concerned with what they are seeing from the Trump administration as it rolls back federal oversight on police department.

Sara Sidner, CNN, Minneapolis,

STOUT: Coming up later this hour, Israel's assault on Gaza continues with entire families paying the ultimate toll. The horrifying story of an emergency room doctor's incredible loss, ahead.

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[03:25:00]

STOUT: Welcome back. I'm Kristie Lu Stout in Hong Kong. And let's take a look at today's top stories.

Ukraine is reeling from a second wave of massive strikes in as many days. Officials say that at least 11 people were killed and 43 others injured in Russian attacks on the Kyiv region and other parts of Ukraine overnight. Later today, Russian and Ukraine are expected to conclude their largest swap of prisoners of war since the war began.

Vandals hit three mosques in Austin, Texas. A video of one attack showed a man wearing a face covering spray, painting the house of worship. The mosques were marked with the Jewish Star of David in different areas. The Council on American Islamic relations called it a, quote, hate motivated incident.

U.S. President Donald Trump delivered the commencement speech at the U.S. Military Academy in West Point, New York on Saturday. He said that by banning diversity initiatives and transgender people from serving the military, he was helping liberate the troops.

The president's commencement speech comes amid his escalating battle with some of the nation's top colleges and universities, most notably Harvard. On Friday, a federal judge temporarily halted the Trump administration's ban on the school's foreign students, which make up more than a quarter of the student body. One of those students spoke to CNN describing an atmosphere of pure panic.

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ABDULLAH SHAHID SIAL, STUDENT BODY CO-PRESIDENT, HARVARD UNIVERSITY: The Trump administration wants us to think as if Harvard can get out of the situation by giving in all the names when that never really was their motive to begin with. They began with a bunch of different attacks and their entire end goal is just to make the Harvard administration, the probably the most prestigious university and in their entire world, to bend to the Trump administration as well. And if they're using the threat of kicking out international students right now to make sure that Harvard complies, tomorrow, they can wake up and use the same threat again and again to make sure that if, right now, they're asking us to send records of disciplinary record -- disciplinary records, tomorrow, they can wake up and, you know, be like, okay, can you kick out this professor, or can you kick out this researcher who has a sort of a left-leaning stance on certain issues?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

STOUT: Asa Hutchinson is a former governor of Arkansas and executive in residence at the University of Arkansas Law School. He is also a former resident fellow at the Harvard Institute of Politics, and he joins us from Rogers, Arkansas.

[03:30:00]

Sir, thank you so much for joining us.

FMR. GOV. ASA HUTCHINSON (R-AR): It is great to be with you. Thank you.

STOUT: Now, let's talk about first Trump's battle with Harvard. They are fighting over international enrollment. Harvard is also fighting the White House in court over its freeze of over $2.5 billion in federal funding. And I got to ask, why Harvard? Why is Trump targeting this university in particular?

HUTCHINSON: Well, you know, that's a good question. Whenever you look at Harvard, which has a global reputation of excellence, of research, of working with international students as well as the U.S. students, it's hard to understand what Donald Trump is doing. But, in fact, he's targeting a lot of higher education, not just Harvard, although Harvard is on the point of the sphere because Harvard took a stand and said, we're not going to acquiesce in the intimidation of the administration. And we're going to stand for the freedoms that we have as a private institution. And so that's set up the conflict.

Other higher education has folded and has said, we'll do whatever you tell us to do. So, Harvard has taken a stand and that puts them in enmity with the president of the United States.

STOUT: Yes, Harvard is taking a stand. Trump is trying to hit Harvard where it hurts. And we've heard from Harvard's president saying that Trump's move on international enrollment, quote, serves as a warning to countless other colleges and universities throughout the country. So, is there going to be a wider battle here beyond Harvard?

HUTCHINSON: Well, I believe so. I think this is the beginning point. He's going after the lead American private educational institution and then he will target others. And I think his objective is a couple fold. First of all, I think he does want to reduce the international exchange of educational ideas with the United States of America. It further isolates the United States, but he wants to limit the international students. And, secondly, I think he just wants to point a finger at someone who he believes, or an institution that he believes is not in his corner. And so I think those are a couple motivations that he has.

Let me make it clear, I was on Harvard's campus. I don't agree with a lot of some of the things that they do, but it is a private institution. And the government should not be dictating to the private institution what to teach or how to run their institution and should not penalize them by taking away research grants that are really important to medical advancement in our country.

STOUT: Let's pivot to tariffs now, and Trump is floating new tariffs on the E.U. and also on products made by Apple. Now, that's interesting because Apple, obviously, not a country, but it's a big American company. It's a big American employer. How do you see all this playing out politically?

HUTCHINSON: Well, first of all, there's always the big question as to whether Trump is bluffing. He's got a long-term strategy that he will just start at a high point and he'll come back to a medium level and he will accomplish some of his goals. The other possibility is that he doesn't know exactly where he's going with his tariff war.

Obviously, when you talk about iPhones and the manufacturer of technology that's important to every American and the cost potentially going up dramatically, that gets people's attention. And, obviously, the stock market responded to it not favorably. It's potentially hurting each individual American.

And so I see this as a very risky strategy on behalf of the president. I don't see how it works the long-term because he will listen to the voters when they start telling him it's hitting our pocketbook. We're an international community. We don't need to stop the flow of international commerce.

STOUT: And, finally, I want to get your thoughts on the big, beautiful bill. It extends the Trump tax cuts, but it also slashes Medicaid and food stamps. What does this bill say about the Republican Party and its priorities right now?

HUTCHINSON: Well, first of all, there's a lot of good things in that bill. I'm in Arkansas, Middle America, farming community, but it's also a place of commerce. And whenever you look at the tax cuts that are extended in that bill, that's something that helps really every American, and so we like that.

[03:35:02] And then he's added also help for low income, which are the service workers where the tips are exempt. He's given something to blue states so that they can have relief on some of their local taxes. And so there's a lot in the bill that's good.

Now, the challenge is not necessarily that he's going after Medicaid, which is simply work requirements, but the challenge is that the entire bill and the cost of it is not being paid for. It adds to our debt, and that has been a response negatively with the stock market as well.

STOUT: Yes. Should it become law? This will impact billions of Americans in the fate of a nation.

Asa Hutchinson, thank you so much for joining us.

HUTCHINSON: Thank you. Good to be with you.

STOUT: Back now to the story we're following in Ukraine. Officials say Russia has launched its second major wave of strikes in as many days, killing at least 11 people across the country overnight. 43 others were injured after Russia fired close to 70 missiles and 300 drones.

It's happening as the two countries prepare for the final day of their largest prisoner swap since the war began. About 300 prisoners of war on each side are expected to be exchanged on Sunday.

And for more on the prisoner exchange, we're joined by Oleksandra Romantsova, the executive director of the Center for Civil Liberties in Ukraine. She joins us from Kyiv. Oleksandra, thank you so much for joining us here in the program.

OLEKSANDRA ROMANTSOVA, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, CENTER FOR CIVIL LIBERTIES: Thank you that you have me.

STOUT: Now, hundreds of Ukrainian captives have been released in this swap with Russia. Can you please give us a sense of what the POWs go through when they're freed and reenter society?

ROMANTSOVA: First of all, I need to add that it's not only POWs, but it's illegally detained civilians. You know, that 10,000 of such people was defected, kidnapped from occupied territory, even from this territory, which was temporary occupied the north of Ukraine at the beginning of 2022. They just stolen people and they put them at the jail without any accusation or charging, and keep there without any opportunity to have a connection with lawyers, for example, or with relatives or International Red Cross Committee.

So, what we have, we have exhausted, we have really bad health condition, people who just, you know, crying because they feel their native land under their need, under their food. And a lot of relatives come to there, not only welcome them, but ask about other, the forcibly disappeared people, which exactly that's how we traditionally track them. Because Russia exactly don't give any, like, you know, truly information about what kind of people they have. And that's why only one way how you can figure out is it true that your relative at captivity or at like prisoner support or illegally detained person, it's only ask people who exactly come out from there. And like five people who, before that, Russian never confirmed, comes back yesterday. And that was, as you understood, like stress, emotional, but happiness of their family in that moment stay at the Maidan. It's a main square of Kyiv. And, you know, just remind about their names, their list.

So, now we have 10,000 to such people, and we are really glad that such, you know, like disappearance person, figure out that they just a part of this exchanging. But that means that we have much more people still there. That's why we allowed campaign, which is called People First, about these people, about illegally detained civilians, about prisoner support, about children, you know, kidnapped the fact from territory of Ukraine and put in the territory of Russia Federation.

And last one, it's prisoners of war, which political prisoners. It's Russian citizens who are trying to stop all this mess from Russia's side, but they put them at the jail sometimes only because, you know, some post at social net or something there.

So, we -- what we are doing, Center for Civil Liberties, exactly because we have this international recognition, like a Nobel Peace receiver, we exactly launched together with Russian Nobel Peace receiver this campaign to remind that negotiation can -- you know, they can be about economy, about limitation of weapon or something.

[03:40:00]

But, first of all, it needs to be about people.

STOUT: Now, Oleksandra, and I'm not too sure if we still have you in the line -- yes, we do. We've been looking at video of, you know, happy and joyful reunions on our screens. But as you said, these are individuals who are exhausted, stressed, traumatized. Could you tell us what were they forced to endure? What were the conditions like for Ukrainian captives held by Russian forces?

ROMANTSOVA: After they will have rehabilitation, that medicine rehabilitation -- medical rehabilitation, and after, their psychological support. After this, we can speak with them. And we do that with previous group, which was much more less.

But when we speak with them, first of all, it's physical torturing. You need to understand that the Russian Army have a tradition through Chechnya wars. They never care about war crimes when we speak about, for example, ban to torturing of people sometimes because of you're a soldier. You will be tortured because they want -- they're trying to crush you. They want to have information. And all the people who release from there, they speak about torture.

It's -- we have 87 percent from 2014. You need to understand, it's not only started now. Now, they just have more people from 2022 because 22 percent of our territory that previously in 2014, that absolutely same happened and at Donbas and at Crimea, which was the first land which was occupied by Russian forces. And everywhere, torturing, everywhere, emotionally pushing any contact with your own state, your relatives, or international mission. And trying -- previously, Red Cross Committee trying to be accessed, U.N. mission trying to be accessed, OEC mission trying to be accessed. But Russia don't care about this totally.

And they don't give any information that you don't know what happened. Are you soldier relatives? Are they staying at the battlefield or like dying or they're there, we never know about that. And they told about that. It's a risk of soldier, but it's not only for soldiers. It's same situation with civilians.

STOUT: Absolutely. There is very much a lack of transparency.

Oleksandra Romantsova, thank you for supporting this vulnerable population and thank you for joining us to talk about it. Take care.

Now, you're watching CNN Newsroom. And up next a deadly Israeli airstrike hits a family home in Gaza. The horrifying story of an emergency room doctor's incredible loss is ahead.

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[03:45:00]

STOUT: A new sign of the tragic toll that war in Gaza is taking on Palestinians. Gaza's Ministry of Health says an Israeli strike killed nine children on Friday, all members of the same family. And a warning, this next video is graphic.

The strike happened at a family home in Khan Younis. The children's father and one sibling survive, but both are badly injured. And the mother of those children is an emergency room doctor. She was at work when their bodies were brought in.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ALI AL-NAIJAR, UNCLE OF CHILDREN KILLED IN ISRAELI STRIKE: One of the civil defense workers was handing me one of the bodies, Dr. Jalal ([h), who was standing next to me, recognized it. She said, this is Rival (ph), give her to me. Look at her instinct as a mother, as if her daughter we're still alive. She asked to hold her in her arms. She's a pediatrician. See the subconscious reaction. She wanted to embrace her daughter, forgetting that her daughter was burned in front of her eyes.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

STOUT: Now, the Israeli military tells CNN that its aircraft, quote, struck a number of suspects who were identified operating from a structure adjacent to IDF troops. Israel says it's reviewing the claim that civilians were killed.

The Israeli military's increased strikes in Gaza over the past few weeks as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says he wants to take full control of the territory. Multiple provinces in Pakistan are struggling with sweltering heat, with temperatures soaring to above 50 degrees Celsius in some areas. As Ben Hunte reports, people are doing anything they can to cool off and to stay out of the sun.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CNN BEN HUNTE, CNN ANCHOR (voice over): A splash of water, even when fully dressed, is a welcome cool down to escape the scorching heat in Pakistan. Some residents giving more advice on how to get through the day.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The heat is so intense in Lahore at the moment that it's difficult to go out. People should take caution, wear caps soaked in water, and they should drink plenty of water.

HUNTE: Even though it's still spring in Pakistan, temperatures are soaring in some regions of the country topping 50 degrees Celsius in some areas. The Pakistani meteorological office is advising people to stay hydrated and avoid prolonged exposure to the sun.

But for laborers working outside, hauling bricks and making plaster, there's little relief from the blazing temperatures.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What can a poor man do to protect himself from the heat? He will drink water. So, we drink water every 15 minutes or half an hour. What else can we do?

HUNTE: Even for people staying indoors, the heat is hard to escape. Some cities are cutting power at certain times to conserve electricity and stop the grid from overloading. But that means no air conditioning. And some local hospitals are filling with heat-related illnesses.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The women and elderly people who go out to bazaars for daily routine work fall prey to heat stroke. They have not established any heat stroke centers at bazaars and streets. They should do it so that people can get first aid and their lives can be saved.

HUNTE: Heat waves in South Asia have been happening sooner, more frequently and more intensely in recent years, a troubling and potentially life-threatening trend where it's not just hot, but dangerously hot.

Ben Hunte, CNN.

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STOUT: Instead of smelling roses, scientists are taking little time to smell Egyptian mummies. Coming up, the unexpected discoveries researchers have made since they let their noses lead the way.

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[03:50:00] STOUT: Welcome back. Now, it is in game three of the NBA Western Conference Finals and the Minnesota Timberwolves, they set a franchise record for the most points scored in a playoff game, crushing the Oklahoma City Thunder 143-101.

Now, star shooting guard Anthony Edwards of the Timberwolves with 30 points, while the thunder still control the best of seven series two games to one, Edwards said that Timberwolves are ready to carry their momentum into Monday's game 4 matchup.

And in the National Hockey League, the Florida Panthers now have a commanding leading in the Eastern Conference finals. Now, the defending Stanley Cup champs, they overwhelmed the Carolina Hurricanes last night 6-2. Florida scored five of those goals in the wild third period.

Now, the Panthers now lead the best of seven series, three games to one, leaving the Canes on the brink of elimination.

Now, a woman in Texas is suing the state's Lottery Commission for not paying out a jackpot of $83.5 million. She purchased a ticket with numbers matching those drawn back in February but she did so using a lottery courier service, which allows customers to buy tickets virtually via an app. A week later, the Texas Lottery Commission executive director announced that these courier services would be banned with the law coming into effect on May the 19th. A spokesperson told CNN that the commission does not comment on pending litigation.

Now, researchers using their eyes to make a new find, that's nothing new. But now scientists say a discovery about ancient Egyptian mummies is helping them explore the idea of using the nose as a diagnostic tool.

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Isabel Rosales explains.

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ISABEL ROSALES, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): This air is ancient and it's giving scientists a glimpse into the mysteries of the past, or rather a sniff.

DR. CECILIA BEMBIBRE, UNIVERSITY COLLEGE LONDON LECTURER: Our nose is a fantastic tool to learn more about the past, so we decided to explore this idea of a nose as a diagnostic tool in the case of mummified bodies,

ROSALES: researchers from University College London and University of Ljubljana will tell you a mummy's scent isn't as haunting as its looks. The spicy, woody and even sweet smells give us insight into what materials embalmers used thousands of years ago.

BEMBIBRE: This is a gas chromatograph mass spectrometer. Basically, it enables us to separate each of the chemicals present in that air and identify them chemically, but also it allows us to experience the smells as humans and describe the qualities.

ROSALES: The study of nine mummies from the Egyptian Museum in Cairo conducted with Egyptian conservators revealed sense of plant oils and wood, gum resins, like frankincense and myrrh, and even cinnamon. The research also helped determine which of these materials were part of the original embalming process, and which were added later to help preserve the bodies.

This approach takes ten liters of air through a sampling tube, which not only helps keep the mummy safe and intact, but reveals how scent can be just as informative as sight or sound, and could even be incorporated into museum experiences.

BEMBIBRE: One of the innovative contributions of this study is to the emerging field of olfactory heritage and this studies how, using our nose, we can learn more about history and heritage.

ROSALES: A study proving that thousands of years into the future, our noses of all things will be a window into the past.

Isabel Rosales, CNN.

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STOUT: And that wraps up our coverage from Hong Kong. I'm Kristie Lu Stout.

There is more CNN newsroom with Brian Abel in Atlanta right after this.

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