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Vehicle Crashes Into Fans At Liverpool Trophy Parade; U.S. Envoy: Ceasefire-Hostage Deal "On The Table"; Donald Trump Criticizes Vladimir Putin After Massive Russian Air Assault; French President Seeks Deeper Ties With Vietnam; Romania's New President, Nicusor Dan Sworn Into Office; Second Suspect Expected to Surrender to New York Police in the Crypto Trader Kidnapping Case; Lesser Flamingo Sees Breeding Sites Dwindle in Africa. Aired 2-2:45a ET

Aired May 27, 2025 - 02:00   ET

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

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[02:00:31]

ROSEMARY CHURCH, CNN ANCHOR: Hello and welcome to our viewers joining us from all around the world, and to everyone streaming us on CNN Max. I'm Rosemary Church.

Just ahead, a joyous celebration turns into chaos. U.K. police say a man has been arrested after plowing into a parade crowd, but many questions remain unanswered.

No escape. Israel warns of an unprecedented attack in southern Gaza, forcing displaced Palestinians to flee yet again.

And the viral video of the French president that's caught the attention of Russian trolls and the world.

ANNOUNCER: Live from Atlanta. This is CNN NEWSROOM with Rosemary Church.

CHURCH: Thanks for joining us. A victory parade for the Liverpool Football Club took a horrifying turn when a vehicle plowed into fans in the city center. Dozens were hospitalized, two with serious injuries, with several people trapped underneath the vehicle.

Emotions were running high as angry crowds converged on the gray minivan, rocking it and punching at the windows. A 53-year-old British man from the Liverpool area, thought to be the driver, was arrested. No word yet on whether his actions were deliberate. Police have ruled out terrorism, but remain tight lipped about other key details.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JENNY SIMS, ASSISTANT CHIEF CONSTABLE, MERSEYSIDE POLICE: What I can tell you is that we believe this to be an isolated incident, and we are not currently looking for anyone else in relation to it.

The incident is not being treated as terrorism. We would ask that people refrain from sharing distressing footage from the incident online, and please share any information directly with our investigation team.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: The Reds and their supporters had been enjoying an open top bus victory parade to celebrate winning the Premier League Championship and the club's 20th top-flight title. CNN's Nic Robertson has our report from Liverpool.

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NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: What you can see behind me, down the street is an inflatable tent, and that is where the vehicle is that was involved in this incident.

Now, the police are saying it is not terrorism. The emergency services, the ambulance service say 47 people were injured, 20 of them with just light injuries that were treated at the scene on the street down there, 27 taken to hospital. Of those, they say, two are seriously injured. One of those seriously injured, a child, four children total, among the casualties in this incident.

And the fire service describing a horrific scene when their emergency workers arrived on the scene, they say, the fire service say that they got the call that their workers were there within four minutes, but the first thing that they discovered was a vehicle with four people trapped underneath of it, and one of those people trapped underneath was a child, they say.

And that, I think, gives some idea to the horrific nature of this incident. The pictures that have been shared on social media show people literally bouncing off the vehicle. The Liverpool Football Club, the local Everton, the rival club, if you will.

So many other football clubs in the U.K. have been offering their condolences, sympathies and support. The party atmosphere that was being enjoyed in Liverpool earlier in the day, at that moment, didn't come to an abrupt end, because it took a while for people to understand what was happening, but really into the evening now, there is still a sense of the aftermath of a celebration, but not the way that this city typically celebrates.

Hundreds of thousands of people reportedly on the streets here. The second time that Liverpool had won the Premier League, the last time being during COVID, they hadn't been able to celebrate properly. This was a huge moment for the city, for the many football fans who just wanted to come out and celebrate.

And of course, the day not going that way at all. Not clear yet what the motivation was for this incident, that clearly under investigation, a very short press conference. It was late into the evening here, undoubtedly updates to come.

But for now, the police being very clear, one man in custody, not looking for others, and this is not terrorism. [02:05:04]

Nic Robertson, CNN, Liverpool.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHURCH: Police wasted no time calling the ramming an isolated incident. But how could they be so sure so quickly? Steve Moore, a retired FBI Supervisory Special Agent weighed in on that earlier.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

STEVE MOORE, RETIRED FBI SUPERVISORY SPECIAL AGENT: Really, what you're trying to do in just the shortest amount of time humanly possible is to get the driver, the living driver, to a place where you can talk to them, get some kind of indication of their motive. Are they distraught? Are they saying, what happened? I don't know, the car just accelerated on me, or are they saying defiant things or angry things?

So, that is the first thing you have to do when you were fortunate enough to have this suspect right then and there. And that they're not -- they're not ruling out that this was a crime. They're just saying it wasn't a crime that was directed -- excuse me, towards social or political change, which means it could be a hate crime, it could be any other type of crime, but they're ruling out terror. So, they apparently have some kind of scope on this.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: NBA superstar LeBron James, who is a part owner of the Liverpool Football Club, expressed shock over the incident. He wrote OMG and sent his deepest thoughts and prayers to those at the parade, adding such a senseless act.

Again, it's unclear if the crash was an accident or intentional. Cross town rivals Everton posted that their thoughts and with -- thoughts are with all those who have been affected by this serious incident in our city.

The Israeli military says it's preparing to carry out what it calls an unprecedented attack on Gaza. It has now ordered Palestinians in most of southern Gaza to evacuate to a very narrow strip of land along the Mediterranean Sea. It's part of Israel's stated plan to take over 75 percent of the enclave in the next two months, which would force more than two million Palestinians into roughly a quarter of Gaza's territory.

And those people are starving as aid trucks carrying flour, oil and canned food wait at the border crossing in Israel to be allowed in. Israel has begun allowing what it calls a basic amount of food to enter Gaza after its 11 week blockade.

But the U.N. says there are not enough life saving supplies getting through, and that Gaza's entire population remains at critical risk of famine. Well, this all comes as U.S. Special Envoy Steve Witkoff says a

hostage release and cease fire deal is currently on the table with a pathway to end the war in Gaza, but Israeli officials say there's been no progress in the negotiations. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says his country's top priority is a hostage release.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BENJAMIN NETANYAHU, ISRAELI PRIME MINISTER (through translator): We will defeat those who seek our lives. We will bring back all our hostages. We will ensure that Gaza no longer poses a threat to Israel. This mission, including the mission of returning our hostages, accompanies us day by day. It occupies us night by night, including tonight. We are not letting go of it. If we don't achieve it today, we will achieve it tomorrow, and if not tomorrow, then the day after tomorrow, we are not letting go of it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: CNN's Jeremy Diamond has more now from Tel Aviv.

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JEREMY DIAMOND, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: U.S. Special Envoy Steve Witkoff is denying claims from Palestinian officials close to Hamas that the militant group has agreed to a new U.S. proposal for a cease fire.

Witkoff told me on Monday that there is a deal on the table, but that Hamas hasn't agreed yet. He says that this proposal from the United States would see the release of half of the living as well as half of the deceased hostages, in exchange for a temporary cease fire, although he didn't specify how long that cease fire would last.

But he did say that during that time, negotiations would unfold to end the war in Gaza, and that he would personally preside over those negotiations. He told me, "The deal is on the table. Hamas should take it."

Now, we are right now witnessing the alternative to a cease fire agreement between Israel and Hamas as Israel escalates its new military offensive in the Gaza Strip with deadly and devastating effect, including for civilians.

Over the weekend, Dr. Alaa al-Najjar went to work at her hospital, leaving her children at home by before her shift even ended, nine of her 10 children were killed in an Israeli air strike. One son survived and is in critical condition.

[02:10:03]

And then overnight, we saw a strike on a school housing displaced Palestinians civilians, killing at least 31 people, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health. Israel says that it was targeting a Hamas command and control center, but the director of a hospital that received the bodies of the dead and the wounded, said that a majority of those killed were women and children.

This latest Israeli offensive is threatening to intensify even further, and it is also drawing concerns from the families of hostages who worry about their loved ones also being killed in this intensified bombardment.

The military also now issuing evacuation orders for almost all of Southern Gaza, including the cities of Rafah and Khan Yunis, where hundreds of thousands of Palestinians are currently living. There will be many more evacuation orders to come. Israeli military -- an Israeli military official now saying that Israel intends to occupy 75 percent of the Gaza Strip within the next two months.

Jeremy Diamond, CNN, Tel Aviv.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHURCH: Russia is reacting to Donald Trump's remarks after the U.S. president criticized Vladimir Putin for a massive attack in Ukraine. Details just ahead.

Plus, was it a playful moment between a bickering husband and wife, or something more? Why this viral video of the French president has become a target for Russian trolls.

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[02:16:04]

CHURCH: The Kremlin is blaming emotional overload for Donald Trump's critical comments about Vladimir Putin after the U.S. president called his Russian counterpart absolutely crazy. Trump's remarks followed Russia's largest ever aerial assault on Ukraine over the weekend, the Kremlin spokesperson sought to downplay the criticism, and instead said, Moscow is grateful to the U.S. for help in launching the negotiation process with Ukraine.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DMITRY PESKOV, KREMLIN SPOKESMAN (through translator): Of course, at the same time, this is a very crucial moment, which is associated, of course, with the emotional overload of everyone, absolutely, and with emotional reactions we follow this very closely.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said it's clear Trump is increasingly disillusioned with Putin after the continued attacks on Ukraine. He also spoke about the lifting of range restrictions for weapons delivered to Ukraine by Germany and other Ukrainian allies, a move the Kremlin calls dangerous.

CNN's Kristen Holmes has more now from Washington.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) KRISTEN HOLMES, CNN U.S. NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: President Donald Trump having a clear change of public posture when it comes to Russia and Russia's President Vladimir Putin after his phone call with him last week where he described the relationship as good, saying that Ukraine and Russia were going to go straight to the negotiating table. He is growing frustrated with the Russian president, particularly after that series of attacks we saw over the weekend. This is what he told reporters.

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I'm not happy with what Putin is doing. He's killing a lot of people, and I don't know what the hell happened to Putin. I've known him a long time. Always gotten along with him, but he's sending rockets into cities and killing people, and I don't like it at all. OK?

We're in the middle of talking, and he's shooting rockets into Kyiv and other cities. I don't like it at all.

HOLMES: Generally, Donald Trump spends most of his time talking about his good relationship with Vladimir Putin, focusing instead on the actual war in Ukraine on trade deals or potential economic partnerships, should Russia end the war. And it was particularly interesting in this conversation with reporters, is that he was asked if he's considering adding additional sanctions to Russia, and in this conversation, he said yes, because of what he is seeing going on in Ukraine.

Last week, after that conversation between Putin and Trump, it seemed like sanctions were all almost completely off the table, or at least additional sanctions there.

Now, the other thing I want to point out here is that Donald Trump continues to try and back away from this conflict. He once said that he would resolve in 24 hours in series of posts over the weekend, he also said this wasn't his problem. It wasn't his war. He blamed it on Zelenskyy, on Putin and even on Joe Biden.

Kristen, Holmes, CNN, the White House.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHURCH: Jill Dougherty is an adjunct professor at Georgetown University. She's also a former CNN Moscow bureau chief and the author of My Russia: What I saw Inside the Kremlin. Appreciate you joining us.

JILL DOUGHERTY, ADJUNCT PROFESSOR, GEORGETOWN UNIVERSITY: Hi, Rosemary, good to be here.

CHURCH: Wonderful. So, one day after President Donald Trump called Vladimir Putin absolutely crazy for targeting civilians in Russia's biggest aerial attack since the start of the war, the Kremlin is now responding, saying Donald Trump may be suffering an emotional overload.

So, what does this signal to you, and how likely is it that Donald Trump will now respond by imposing additional sanctions on Russia to get Putin to the negotiating table?

DOUGHERTY: Well, that comment by actually, Dmitry Peskov the spokesperson for the President of Russia, was that this is emotional for everyone, that it's highly emotional. Emotional overload, is the word that he used.

So, I think what they're trying to do is, you know, it doesn't look good for the President of the United States to call the President of Russia crazy. It doesn't look good domestically for President Putin to be called crazy.

[02:20:10]

So, I think what they're trying to do, they want to continue to talk with the United States. Putin, apparently, doesn't want peace now at all, but they want to keep talking. So what they're trying to do is kind of smooth down, you know, the edges of those comments by President Trump, and keep the ball rolling, but, you know, not create too many problems in the relationship at this point.

CHURCH: And Jill, President Trump appears shocked that Putin is targeting civilians with deadly aerial attacks, shooting rockets into Kyiv and other cities while in the middle of peace talks, is what he observed, but most other world leaders already knew what Putin was capable of. Why did it take so long for Trump and his administration to realize who they're dealing with?

DOUGHERTY: Well, you know, it might be that there is a difference between his administration and the president himself, because the administration has, in some cases, sounded a little bit harder, but President Trump, actually, I believe, thought that he could get a deal with the power of his personality and that personal relationship with Vladimir Putin, it hasn't happened, and it must be intensely frustrating. And you can hear it, you know, in the president's comments, calling Putin crazy, he sounds angry and he sounds frustrating.

But the question is, Rosemary, and you ask is, will he do anything about it? Will he follow through on what he said? I'm, you know, open to or considering sanctions, but he didn't say what kind of sanctions, and he said this before. He said it numerous times that, you know, he's not happy, we should do this, etcetera. But he has not actually pushed for new sanctions. And that's -- that is the crux. And it could be sanctions, it could also be military aid for Ukraine, and he's not doing that either.

CHURCH: And meantime, European leaders are reaffirming their support for Ukraine and renewing cease fire calls after Putin's aerial assault on Ukraine and after Trump called Putin absolutely crazy, they are hoping that this signals that Washington will now take a harder line in pressuring Putin to the negotiating table.

But as you've pointed out, we're not seeing any signs of that right now. So, what do you expect might happen next?

DOUGHERTY: Well, you have the Europeans now saying that the Ukrainians can use weapons that they get from the Europeans to actually attack Russia, you know, long range. That's something that President Biden did not want to do. He was very concerned that that would create even more problems and even lead to some type of war.

But the Europeans are now apparently moving ahead on that. And the Russian Spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said that that could be dangerous. That would be a dangerous step.

So, I think the war right now is, you know, continuing full force, in fact, perhaps even more full force than before. And then the peace negotiations, it's always very hard to say what President Putin -- what President Trump will do next, but he could still walk away.

You know, there's still that possibility, even though he continues -- he threatens to walk away, but then he doesn't, and he's back in the game again, but he could walk away and finally say, look, you know, Putin's crazy, Zelenskyy. And he had criticism for Zelenskyy as well. Zelenskyy creates problems every time he opens his mouth, and therefore I am walking away.

It's almost as if he is talking to two school children, there is that castigating tone, and we'll just have to see where that leads.

CHURCH: Jill Dougherty, many thanks for your analysis. Appreciate it.

Britain's King Charles, who is Canada's head of state will begin the final day of his two day visit to Ottawa in the coming hours. He will deliver an address to Parliament, and is expected to reinforce the message that Canada is not for sale.

The King arrived in Ottawa with his wife, Queen Camilla on Monday, they greeted Canadian officials and members of the public. They also met with community organizations at an Ottawa Park and later planted a tree on the grounds of the royal residence.

There, King Charles met with Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, as well as Canadian Governor General Mary Simon. The short trip to Canada by the monarch who is undergoing treatment for cancer, is highly symbolic amid tensions between Canada and U.S. President Donald Trump over Canada's sovereignty.

[02:25:13]

And on Memorial Day here in the United States, the sights and sounds from Arlington National Cemetery as the nation's leaders paid tribute to the men and women who gave their lives for their country.

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GEN. DAN CAINE, U.S. JOINT CHIEFS CHAIRMAN: Welcome to this most hallowed ground on this most special day.

PETE HEGSETH, FOX NEWS CHANNEL HOST: Let us rededicate ourselves to God and country. To our Great Republic 249 years on, we stand on the shoulders of great men and on the shoulders of those great men in those graves, and may we live worthy of it. J.D. VANCE, VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: To the families who

have lost a son, a daughter, a husband or a wife, to every child here who misses your dad or your mom, know that your loved one to us, is a hero.

TRUMP: They gave everything, and we owe them everything and much much more.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

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[02:30:39]

ROSEMARY CHURCH, CNN ANCHOR OF "CNN NEWSROOM": French President Emmanuel Macron is scheduled to depart Vietnam for Indonesia in the coming hours. Macron has been looking to expand French influence in Vietnam, a country grappling with the threat of U.S. tariffs. He met his Vietnamese counterpart on Monday. The two countries signed deals worth more than $10 billion, covering everything from Airbus jets to vaccines.

Vietnam is rapidly expanding as a manufacturing hub and is dependent on exports, leaving it vulnerable to President Trump's threatened tariff of 46 percent. It's the first trip by a French president to the former colony in almost a decade. But it was what happened at the very start of Macron's trip that attracted the most attention, the French president apparently being shoved in the face by his wife just as he arrived in Vietnam. CNN's Saskya Vandoorne explains why Russian trolls have seized upon the viral video.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SASKYA VANDOORNE, CNN SENIOR PRODUCER: This short video of President Macron and his wife, Brigitte, pushing his face as they land in Vietnam is going viral and has caught the attention of Russian trolls. Later, Macron appears to offer his arm, but France's first lady opts to hold the railing instead. The Elysee Palace initially denied anything unusual had happened, calling it a moment of togetherness and playful teasing in a statement. Macron later told journalists he was surprised by the attempts to twist the moment.

EMMANUEL MACRON, FRENCH PRESIDENT (through translator): There is a video now which opens we're in the middle of bickering and rather joking with my wife. And I'm surprised by how this becomes a kind of geoplanetary catastrophe.

VANDOORNE: French officials say the moment will likely feed the mills of conspiracy theorists and Russian trolls. It's already become a target for pro-Russian accounts and Russian state media, who viewed it as a possible opportunity to spread misinformation. And this isn't the first time. Earlier this month, prominent Kremlin officials claimed Macron was using cocaine on a train trip to Kyiv with British Prime Minister Keir Starmer and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz.

French officials that say a crumpled tissue was mistaken for a bag of drugs. Macron's office debunked the rumor with humor, tweeting this is a tissue for blowing your nose. Officials say these efforts are part of a wider Kremlin campaign to undermine Europe's steadfast support for Ukraine in the war against Russia.

Saskya Vandoorne, CNN, Paris.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHURCH: At a ceremony in Romania's parliament, President-Elect Nicusor Dan has been sworn into office. The 55-year-old former mayor of Bucharest is considered a centrist and favors both E.U. and NATO membership, and says support for Ukraine is vital for Romania's own security in the face of a growing Russian threat. Dan thanked Romanians both at home and abroad for their support and concern for the country's direction, before heading to the presidential palace.

New York Police are investigating a violent scheme to kidnap a wealthy Italian crypto trader. Coming up, what the alleged criminals were willing to do to get the victim's Bitcoin password. Back with that and more in just a moment.

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CHURCH: Welcome back, everyone. Authorities could soon learn more about an alleged torture scheme involving an Italian crypto currency trader. A senior law enforcement source says a second suspect considered a person of interest, is expected to surrender in New York this week. Police say the alleged victim was kidnapped and held hostage for several weeks, tortured into giving up his Bitcoin password. He escaped and flagged down a traffic officer on Friday. Police have arrested one suspect now charged with kidnapping and assault. He is being held without bail.

The lesser flamingo, a near-threatened species of bird, has now lost one of its few remaining breeding sites on the African continent. The Kamfers Dam was the only body of water in South Africa where those flamingos would gather to breed. But raw sewage has been spilling into the dam for years and the water is now so toxic, the birds have left. Experts say the collapse shows just how fragile wetland ecosystems can be.

[02:40:00]

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TANIA ANDERSON, FLAMINGO EXPERT: For wildlife to survive or any of our water birds or any species associated with wetlands to survive, we need a good balance of nutrients in the water and the water needs to be of a good quality, and they need to have all the food resources available to them. So, if we are getting more pollutants into the water or they become eutrophic, which is too much nutrients, it changes the whole balance of a wetland.

(END VIDEO CLIP) CHURCH: The damage isn't just ecological. The flamingos also draw tourists. And without the birds, there are fears the tourism money will dry up too.

I want to thank you so much for joining us. I'm Rosemary Church. "World Sport" is coming up next. Then, I will be back at the top of the hour with more "CNN Newsroom." Do stay with us.

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