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U.S., Russia, and Ukraine Set for First Trilateral Talks of the War; Europe Holds Meeting as Trump Touts New Deal; Deal to Secure TikTok's Future in U.S. Finally Sealed; Palestinian Man Searches Remains of Family; Former Special Counsel: "Trump Willfully Broke The Law"; Vance Justifies ICE Detaining Boy After Father's Arrest; CNN Investigates The Military Operation To Capture Maduro; Massive Winter Storm Threatens More Than Half Of U.S. Aired 2-3a ET

Aired January 23, 2026 - 02:00   ET

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

[02:00:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

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

Officials from the U.S., Kyiv, and Moscow about to sit down together in the same room with the hopes of bringing the war on Ukraine to an end with Vladimir Putin already laying down a key sticking point. European leaders holding an emergency meeting amid a fractured relationship with Washington as Donald Trump touts a new deal that he says gives the U.S. total access to Greenland. And CNN investigation reveals the extraordinary risk the Trump administration took to capture Nicolas Maduro.

UNKNOWN (voice-over): Live from Atlanta, this is "CNN Newsroom with Kim Brunhuber."

BRUNHUBER: In the coming hours, diplomats will try something that hasn't been done since Russia launched its invasion of Ukraine. Negotiators from the U.S., Russia, and Ukraine will sit down at the same table to try to close the gaps in the US-led peace plan. The Kremlin confirmed just hours ago the talks will be held in the United Arab Emirates.

That's happening after U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff met Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow and after Ukrainian leader Vladimir Zelenskyy met U.S. President Donald Trump at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.

Earlier, a European official said the only unresolved issue is territory, which could be the biggest sticking point for any peace deal, and the Kremlin is making it clear that any long-term settlement is off the table unless that issue is agreed to. Still, Trump was optimistic on his way home from Davos.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: You know, what has happened here is there were times when Putin didn't want to make a deal, Zelenskyy didn't want to make a deal, and it was like opposite times. Now, I think they both want to make a deal. We'll find out.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BRUNHUBER: Now, according to CNN, Russia has confirmed that a trilateral meeting between Ukrainian, United States, and Russian officials will take place in the United Arab Emirates on Friday. Kremlin foreign policy aide Yuri Ushakov told reporters the first meeting of the trilateral working group on security issues will take place in Abu Dhabi. They said a trilateral working group means representatives of Russia, USA, and Ukraine.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced Thursday at the World Economic Forum that a two-day meeting would take place and a sign that peace talks to end Russia's war in Ukraine are intensifying. Let's listen to him here.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNKNOWN: Thank you so much, President Zelenskyy, for taking our questions. You met with President Trump behind closed doors earlier. First, how did that meeting go? And secondly, he said today that everybody wants this war to end. Do you think that includes Vladimir Putin?

VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY, PRESIDENT OF UKRAINE: No, I'm not sure that Putin wants to finish this war in such situation where he and where his army losses and without goals he wanted to have at the very beginning of this war. He really doesn't want. Their economy is really tired, and their army is very tired. But also, our army is also tired.

So, we are -- but we are honest and we speak about it. We do our best, what we can, with our soldiers, and they do their best. But 35,000 -- as I said today, 35,000 dead Russian soldiers per month. And the number will increase. And this is a big loss. It's up to them to continue the war or not. But we want to stop this war.

And that's why I think President Trump can, he really can, because he has dialogue with Putin. Not everybody has dialogue, just even dialogue. He has dialogue with Putin on the same levels.

I think America is much stronger than Russia. And you can see the result of this war. That's why I think that American army is stronger than Russian army, because of our experience with the war, with defending ourselves. And that's why I think he can do this.

Maybe they want to find compromises. You know, we are open for different steps. And I said that it's two sides compromises, two sides. So, Russians will not win this war. They didn't win, they will not.

(END VIDEO CLIP) [02:04:59]

BRUNHUBER: U.S. President Donald Trump is back in Washington after his two-day trip to Davos, Switzerland. He told reporters on Air Force One that his framework of a deal with NATO will let the U.S. do whatever it wants in Greenland. There are no details yet, but the president says more information will be coming in two weeks.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: We have a lot of great things in the deal. And don't forget, they're also good for Europe because, you know, when we're good, they're good. And if we're not good, that's not very good for them because we hold it all together. We're holding it all together. We're all going to work together. And actually, NATO is going to be involved with us. We're going to be doing in conjunction, parts of it, in conjunction with NATO, which is really the way it should be.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BRUNHUBER: Meanwhile, E.U. leaders are presenting the united front against President Trump's threats to annex Greenland. They're pledging more investment in Greenland to counter potential Russian and Chinese influence.

We get more now from CNN's Claire Sebastian.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CLARE SEBASTIAN, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, E.U. leaders emerged from their emergency summit in the early hours of Friday morning with a clear sense that while they avoided the worst this week with Trump taking his tariff threat off the table, they do need to be ready to act if something like this should happen again.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ANTONIO COSTA, PRESIDENT, E.U. COUNCIL: The European Union will continue to stand up for its interests and will defend itself, its member states, its citizens, and its companies against any form of coercion.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SEBASTIAN: Well, that is extraordinary language for an E.U. Council president to use when referring to the United States, which for decades has, of course, been one of Europe's closest allies. But this is a measure of the extraordinarily difficult position that the European Union finds itself in. Can it still trust the U.S. after it threatened tariffs against European allies for opposing its plan to take over Greenland, sovereign territory belonging to NATO ally, Denmark? That is, of course, something that Trump has now walked back.

But can it afford not to trust the U.S. when so much is at stake when it comes to trade, when it comes to collective defense under NATO, and when it comes to the war in Ukraine whose leader has reiterated this week how vital U.S. engagement is, he believes, for the peace process?

So, this was a week that may have left permanent scars on the transatlantic relationship and reinforced the urgency for Europe to increase its independence from the United States. E.U. leaders now will be hoping that calmer heads prevail. And if they don't, well, the lessons they learned over the past week may prove useful.

Clare Sebastian, CNN, in Brussels.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BRUNHUBER: With more on this, I want to bring in Matthew Karnitschnig, who's the editor-in-chief of the European news website Euractiv, and he joins me now from Brussels. Good to see you again. Thanks so much for being here with us.

So, President Trump says he's getting everything he wants on Greenland without actually owning it. The Europeans are calling this a win as well. But, as we heard, there's nothing signed, nothing in writing. How confident should anyone be that this is actually resolved?

MATTHEW KARNITSCHNIG, EDITOR-IN-CHIEF, EURACTIV: Well, good morning and thank you for having me. I think, as we just heard, nothing is really resolved because it's not at all clear what is going to be in this supposed deal. And even the Danish prime minister, Mette Frederiksen, didn't seem to know anything about it after Trump came out and said that he had secured this arrangement with Mark Rutte, the secretary general of NATO.

So, it looks more like a case where we're seeing a lot of smoke and mirrors here. Trump was looking for a graceful way out of the corner that he had painted himself into with all of the threats to annex Greenland. And when it became apparent to him and everybody else that the Europeans weren't going to back down, as he probably hoped, he needed to go to a quick plan B.

So, something might emerge out of this. But, as we've heard before, the United States has had a longstanding agreement with Denmark that goes back to 1951 that essentially allows the U.S. to build whatever basis it wants to there. It can also explore for rare earths, minerals, whatever it wants to do there, the Danes have said again recently.

So, I think they'll try to dress this up as he has done, as some kind of breakthrough, when it really is just an attempt to extract himself from a very uncomfortable situation.

BRUNHUBER: Yes, that's what it looks like. I mean, coming out of this, the German vice chancellor warned that Europe shouldn't just sit back and think that everything turned out fine. So, looking at where things sort of go from here, what do you think the E.U. actually does differently going forward because of all of these?

KARNITSCHNIG: Well, as we know, the E.U. has been very divided over how to handle the United States.

[02:10:00]

There are some countries that remained very committed to the transatlantic relationship. I think most countries would like to have good relations with the United States.

But, again, this Greenland episode has been something of a reality check, I think, even for the staunchest allies of the United States because it has shown many that, you know, they just cannot rely on the U.S. to be there for them, whether it's on trade, whether it's on security, as much as they would like for that to be the case. So, it is really, I think, you know, forced a rethink of the long-term strategy.

Now, in the short term, Europe is not going to be able to extract itself or to really lessen its reliance on the U.S. in terms of either the trade relationship or the security relationship, but I do think that this will have long-term implications because if you think about it, Denmark itself is the most reliable ally the United States has had in continental Europe, anyway. You know, more people per capita in Afghanistan and Iraq, I think, than any other country in Europe. So, if Washington is going after this ally and threatening to annex some of its territory, then no one is safe.

So, I think that, you know, this is certainly the tenor that we've been hearing here, that countries are realizing that, you know, they really need to think about the long term, how to achieve what President Emmanuel Macron in France famously called strategic autonomy some years ago. Now, that's a difficult task, but I think that there's no question now in anyone's mind here that this is the direction things need to go.

BRUNHUBER: On a slight tangent, I guess, but still talking about partnerships with the U.S., President Trump invited European leaders to join his "board of peace," which looks like it's sort of meant to operate outside the U.N. France, Sweden, Denmark already said no. What do you make of the composition of this "board of peace" so far and kind of what it says about that changing transatlantic relationship?

KARNITSCHNIG: Well, at least from a European perspective, it doesn't look like there's much enthusiasm for it. France has essentially ruled out joining. We haven't seen much enthusiasm from other countries. I believe only Hungary and Bulgaria have agreed to join. Albania has signaled that it will join. Kosovo, I think, is in there. But you're not seeing any major European power such as France or Germany or the U.K. sign up to this.

And I think you would really need one of these big countries to do so to give it also the international credibility because, you know, the Europeans play an outsized role in international diplomacy, if you will. They sort of punch above their weight. And I think that if a major European power were to sign on to this, it would give it kind of a seal of approval that would help Trump, and we're not seeing that so far.

So, it's looking like, you know, a bit of a -- a bit of a sideshow so far. But we'll see. I mean, the Russians have also kind of signaled ambivalence about it. And certainly, Vladimir Putin is probably enjoying, watching everything unfold in Greenland and Trump's defeat on that front. So, he's -- he's probably unlikely to give Trump a victory here by joining this "board of peace."

BRUNHUBER: Yes. We shall see. Really appreciate getting your analysis. Matthew Karnitschnig in Brussels, thank you so much.

KARNITSCHNIG: Thank you.

BRUNHUBER: TikTok once faced a precarious future here in the U.S., but it's now increasingly clear that the wildly popular app isn't going anywhere. The video sharing platform has now established a major American-owned joint venture to run its U.S. business. The arrangement was revealed just one day before President Trump's deadline for the app's American assets to be spun off from Chinese parent company, ByteDance.

CNN's Kristie Lu Stout picks up the story.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KRISTIE LU STOUT, CNN ANCHOR AND CORRESPONDENT: TikTok is officially staying in the United States. The popular Chinese app has sealed a deal for a new majority U.S. joint venture.

And U.S. President Donald Trump lauded the deal. In a post on Truth Social, he thanked his vice president, J.D. Vance, his administration, and the Chinese president, Xi Jinping, saying this -- quote -- "I would also like to thank President Xi of China for working with us and ultimately approving the deal. He could have gone the other way, but didn't, and is appreciated for his decision" -- unquote.

This comes after years of uncertainty. It comes after Trump tried to ban the app back in 2020 over national security concerns and after a law was passed and signed by then President Joe Biden in 2024 that required the U.S. version of TikTok to be spun off from ByteDance, its Beijing-based parent company, or face a U.S. ban.

[02:14:55]

Now, in a statement that was released on Thursday, the new group said this in regards to national security: It said -- quote -- "The majority American-owned joint venture will operate under defined safeguards that protect national security through comprehensive data protections, algorithm security, content moderation, and software assurances for U.S. users."

The joint venture plans to retrain TikTok's algorithm on U.S. user data. The U.S. tech giant, Oracle, will oversee storage of Americans' data. So, the user experience on the app is not likely to change for Americans, but the algorithm which controls what videos are served, that could shift.

Now, TikTok is one of China's biggest high-tech success stories. It has over 1.5 billion users worldwide. In the U.S., it is used by more than 200 million people. And the core of its success is its AI-powered algorithm that keeps users hooked to their smartphones.

It's also why TikTok was threatened with a ban in the first place. U.S. lawmakers have been concerned that China could use TikTok to spy or conduct influence operations on Americans. TikTok in the U.S. will still have links to China. Beijing-based ByteDance will still manage the TikTok shop, as well as advertising and marketing.

Kristie Lu Stout, CNN, Hong Kong.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BRUNHUBER: The U.S. president appears to be taking a stick-and-carrot approach as he considers his next move in Iran. Still ahead, possibility of talks and an implied threat of military action against Tehran. Plus, a Palestinian father lost all five of his children, his wife, and their unborn baby during the war in Gaza. Just ahead, he explains how sifting through the rubble for their remains is helping him grieve.

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[02:20:00]

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BRUNHUBER: U.S. President Donald Trump is sending a mixed message about Iran following a brutal crackdown on anti-regime protesters. He said on Thursday that Iran wants to talk and he's ready to engage, but he later added this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: You know, we have a lot of ships going in that direction, just in case. We have a big flotilla going in that direction, and we'll see what happens. It's a big force. We have a big force going toward Iran. I rather not see anything happen. But we're watching them very closely.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BRUNHUBER: Trump has threatened to strike Iran over its crackdown on protesters as the death toll reaches more than 4,600 people. That's according to a U.S.-based activist group. Iran has warned any U.S. strike would trigger what it called a devastating retaliation. Meanwhile, Britain says it's sending fighter jets to Qatar amid the rising regional tension.

President Trump is rescinding his invitation to Canada to join the "board of peace" for the reconstruction of Gaza. Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney fired back at recent threats and insults from Trump, saying Canada doesn't live because of the United States. President Trump signed the charter for the "board of peace" at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland on Thursday.

The master plan shows areas designated for coastal tourism, parks and sports facilities, data centers and manufacturing, and residential housing.

Now, despite those grand plans, the humanitarian situation inside Gaza remains dire. We're hearing aid is reaching only about 40 percent of the nearly 1,000 displacement sites across the territory. Lingering obstacles are hindering the delivery of humanitarian assistance. That's causing severe consequences.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

STEPHANE DUJARRIC, U.N. SPOKESPERSON: The Office of the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs says that people across the Gaza Strip are struggling to meet the needs as the humanitarian scale up remains restricted.

Yesterday, the U.N. Population Fund tells us that there are increased risks of gender-based violence, child marriage, and exploitation of women and girls. It says that damage to health facilities, to safe spaces and clinics, all of that, combined with a displacement that we've been seeing and movement restrictions, and not to mention the flooding that we've also been seeing, all of that has sharply limited access to psychosocial support and medical care.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BRUNHUBER: At least four Palestinians were killed by Israeli tank shelling in Gaza City Thursday. Now, this comes a day after 11 people were killed by Israeli fire. In that case, Israeli military sources said a drone operated by the group who were hit was affiliated with Hamas, but no evidence was provided. More than 480 Palestinians have been killed since a ceasefire came into effect, including the entire family of a man who now sifts through rubble to find the remains of his loved ones.

CNN's Jerusalem correspondent Jeremy Diamond has his story.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JEREMY DIAMOND, CNN JERUSALEM CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Mahmood Hammad is determined to keep digging. Bone by bone, he is recovering the remains of his wife and children. Hammad and his friends have been digging for three months since a ceasefire took hold. On their hands and knees using shovels and sieves, searching for pieces of those most precious to Hammad.

This sieve, its function is that we use it to sift the flour and make food and drink, he says. And today, what am I using it for? To sift the remains of my wife and children. The latest bones he has recovered are those of his wife and unborn child. She was nine months pregnant when the Israeli military struck their home. We have been working continuously day and night. I use the street lighting at night.

Gaza's civil defense estimates more than 8,500 bodies are still buried beneath Gaza's rubble. But the search and rescue group can't make much progress.

[02:24:58] Israel is blocking the entry of most of the heavy equipment they need to excavate Gaza's ruins. It's a process that could take years, and Hammad couldn't wait. He is his family's sole survivor. All of his children were killed during the war.

Worry and sorrow overwhelmed me, so I started with simple tools, a shovel and a pickaxe. I brought a demolition hammer, something like that, and began.

He identified the ruins of his apartment based on pieces of tile and the color of the walls. He has been finding bits of bone ever since.

Until the last soil, I will keep sifting with this sieve, until I find all the bones and weigh them. He says it is the least he can do to honor his wife, Nima (ph), and her unborn child.

Jeremy Diamond, CNN, Jerusalem.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BRUNHUBER: Still ahead, controversy and public outrage after U.S. federal agents detain a five-year-old boy and his father in Minnesota. We'll share what we know about the incident and their whereabouts next. Plus, CNN gets an inside look at the capture of Venezuela's former leader, Nicolas Maduro. Look at how it unfolded. That's coming up next. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[02:30:43]

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

The former U.S. special counsel is defending his investigations into President Trump during his return to Capitol Hill. Jack Smith at times made cases that he never got the chance to make in court, since they were dropped after the presidential -- president won reelection. But Smith asked for this opportunity to publicly testify, insisting President Trump willfully broke the law and engaged in criminal activity.

Here he is.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JACK SMITH, FORMER SPECIAL COUNSEL: Our investigation revealed that Donald Trump was not looking for honest answers about whether, there was fraud in the election. He was looking for ways to stay in power. And when people told him things that conflicted with him staying in power, he rejected them. Or he chose not even to contact people like that who would know if the election was done properly in the state.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BRUNHUBER: Of course, much of his testimony is centered on President Trump's role in efforts to overthrow the 2020 presidential election and the January 6th attack on the U.S. Capitol.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SMITH: Our investigation revealed that Donald Trump is the person who caused January 6th, that it was foreseeable to him, and that he sought to exploit the violence.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BRUNHUBER: Smith also pushed back hard against claims that he was a crooked prosecutor. He's repeatedly come under attack from Republican allies of the president and from the president himself, who called Smith deranged while he was testifying and called for him to be prosecuted.

We're learning more about the case of a five-year-old boy who was taken from the driveway of his Minneapolis home by federal agents. The boy is being held with his father at an immigration facility in Texas. U.S. Vice President J.D. Vance addressed the controversy during the visit to the city on Thursday. Here he is.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

J.D. VANCE, VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I see this story, and I'm a father of a five-year-old, actually, a five-year-old little boy. And I think to myself, oh my God, this is terrible. How did we arrest a five-year-old? Well, I do a little bit more follow up research, and what I find is that the five-year-old was not arrested, that his dad was an illegal alien. And then they went when they went to arrest his illegal alien father, the father ran.

So, the story is that ICE detained a five-year-old. What are they supposed to do? Are they supposed to let a five-year-old child freeze to death? Are they not supposed to arrest an illegal alien in the United States?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BRUNHUBER: The boy and his family, originally from Ecuador, and the family's lawyer, says they came here legally presenting themselves to border officers to apply for asylum in December of 2024. Here he is.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MARC PROKOSCH, ATTORNEY REPRESENTING THE FAMILY: This family was not eluding ICE in any way. They were following all the established protocols, pursuing their claim for asylum, showing up for their court hearings and posed no safety, no flight risk and never should have been detained.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BRUNHUBER: School district officials say Liam Conejo Ramos is one of four students being detained by ICE in the last few weeks. The school board chair, who witnessed Liam's detention, rejected the vice president's justification. CNN's Priscilla Alvarez has a closer look at the incident.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

PRISCILLA ALVAREZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: All the same, however, both the child who's five and the father are now at an ICE facility in Texas for families. So, they were detained at the end of the day. And this is something I've been covering at length, is these children who have been living in the interior of the United States, they have lives in schools, as was the case here, and then they are suddenly put into these detention settings, and it just completely changes everything for them.

And the reason that's so striking is because generally with family detention, when it is used, when families are crossing the U.S.-Mexico border so they don't have roots here necessarily, they're going there and then they're going through their proceedings and they may be released. And the Biden administration had paused family detention, of course, but it's now back.

I do, however, want to take a step back, because we should note the tone of the vice president during this. It was a strikingly different tone than two weeks ago or so at the White House podium here, there was an attempt to try to get to the middle ground here, and I didn't count how many times he said chaos, but it was a lot. And we have seen that there is polling to show that there are fractures within the American public about how immigration enforcement is happening, and that is exactly what he appeared to be speaking to there.

[02:35:09]

Yes, he placed the onus on local law enforcement, but there is an element here of the administration that he himself is acknowledging that is going astray and is potentially hurting their overall campaign here that Americans originally or a good share of them originally did want to see executed.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BRUNHUBER: Health care workers in Venezuela marched through the streets of Caracas on Thursday, condemning the detention of their former leader, Nicolas Maduro. The workers marched to the United Nations office to deliver a letter demanding an end to sanctions on their country. They're also calling for a formal statement recognizing military aggression against Venezuela.

At one point, Maduro's son and lawmaker joined in on the march, demanding his father and mother's release from U.S. custody.

A new CNN analysis shows that extraordinary risks were taken to seize Maduro. Katie Polglase takes a deep dive into how the capture unfolded.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KATIE POLGLASE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): These ghost-like figures are U.S. helicopters on a mission to capture Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro. Now, CNN has found the operations success came down to two critical minutes of extremely high risk, according to a review of eyewitness videos from the scene. Two minutes in which experts say U.S. forces were effectively sitting ducks landing in and lifting off from Maduro's compound.

We modeled out the area, analyzed helicopter flight paths and synchronized key videos to understand how the U.S. successfully infiltrated a heavily fortified military compound despite the danger involved. First, you can see Chinooks, a U.S. helicopter used to transport troops flying into the area from the south. Their arrival is met with a barrage of Venezuelan anti-aircraft fire within seconds, more helicopters, this time Black Hawks and attacking aircraft are seen arriving and circling overhead.

They release intense fire. U.S. General Dan Caine later described this as multiple self-defense engagements at least 100 people died in the overall operation. Venezuelan authorities have since claimed an aftermath. Pictures hint at the deadly cost. Blood on the ground, large burnt areas and blown out cars.

Two of the riskiest moments of the U.S. operation are visible in the videos were going to show you next, a Chinook coming in to land a point when U.S. forces are at their most vulnerable. Then you see a Chinook taking off. You see it again in this video as its gaining altitude. Then a second Chinook takes off around 20 seconds later.

We then searched for exactly where these helicopters were taking off from, using identifiable geographical features like this building in the foreground and this dark hillside behind. Our analysis indicates it took off from this location. It's within Fort Tiuna, one of Venezuela's biggest military complexes. Satellite imagery taken the day after the operation reveals minor damage to these roofs, too minor to be a direct attack, but possibly the result of a helicopter hovering overhead where Maduro stayed in Fort Tiuna was previously undisclosed, but CNNs analysis gives the most definitive picture yet of where he was that night, and is likely residence.

Past videos show the former president seemingly at home at this location. He was inside a building here in 2024. That building was converted into a large white complex last year, and he was over here in July sitting outside having coffee.

As the Chinooks take off from this location, attack helicopters can be seen circling overhead and firing to protect the Chinooks as they depart. We spoke to a former member of the U.S. Air Force's elite special warfare team, Wes Bryant, about this critical fighting.

WES BRYANT, FORMER U.S. AIR FORCE MEMBER: Clearly, you know, I think I think this was the best move to land right on the compound because the key here was, of course, speed and surprise. But it was also the timing, they needed to get in and out as quick as possible.

POLGLASE: How many of the helicopters in this operation would be landing right on the compound?

BRYANT: I would say likely up to two.

POLGLASE: So if it's just one or two helicopters, is there a chance that Maduro could be on board?

BRYANT: There is a chance, absolutely. I mean, he would have been on board one of those Chinooks.

POLGLASE (voice-over): Bryant believes the operation was ultimately quite lucky.

BRYANT: I think it largely had to do with the element of surprise. It's not going to happen again. You know, this seamlessly by any means. And it could have gone entirely differently. Just one, one small factor could have -- could have flipped the coin on this.

POLGLASE (voice-over): As he awaits trial, Maduro's fate still rests in American hands, a fact both extraordinary and intensely controversial.

Katie Polglase, CNN, London.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BRUNHUBER: Now, in response to CNN's findings, U.S. Southern Command said they had nothing further to add beyond General Dan Caine's comments on January 3rd.

[02:40:05]

All right. Still to come, more than half of the U.S. is bracing for a severe winter storm. The latest forecast after the break.

Plus, the academy awards make history as a blockbuster movie breaks the record for the most nominations ever.

Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BRUNHUBER: More than half of the United States is staring down a menacing winter storm this coming weekend. The long-lasting system has the potential to bring historic levels of snow and ice.

CNN meteorologist Chris Warren has the forecast.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CHRIS WARREN, CNN METEOROLOGIST: This is a high impact, far reaching, widespread winter storm going from essentially New Mexico to Maine and about 2,000 miles right here. Just in terms of the alerts go. And that's in one direction. You think of how far to the north and the south were dealing with high impact winter weather and the cold air that is in the arctic is spilling down through Canada and into the U.S. throw in the winds.

Next couple of mornings, it's going to feel like it's 40 to even 50 degrees below zero. That cold air essentially sets the stage for what's to come. So cold air dropping down from the north, an area of low pressure working across the south will mean the combination of the two will produce serious amounts of snowfall and catastrophic amounts of ICE. Remember the freezing rain? That's the pink here where you have very cold air at the surface temperatures in the teens to around 30 degrees in the Dallas-Fort Worth area. Moisture coming up goes up and over that cold air and then rain falls still in the liquid form.

And when it hits something, sidewalks, roads, trees, power lines, it freezes and it accumulates on those power lines and the trees, and they can weigh those branches down, the power lines down. And with that cold air in place, power outages could last for several days. So, very dangerous situation for multiple reasons with this winter storm and of course with several inches of snow in the northeast and throughout the mid-Atlantic and the mid-south. Travel will definitely be impacted on the road and through the air.

Here's the amount of snow, potentially a foot of snow on the ground for about 1,500 miles from Oklahoma to New England, with the highest of elevations of foot and a half, possibly even more than that. But it is this ice, this ice that is so dangerous. Dangerous just walking out the front door or the extended power outages that can last for days.

To the south, what we're going to continue to watch over the next couple of days will be this track, because the farther north it goes, the less ice to the south, the farther south it goes. More areas seeing the ICE. So, stay tuned. A lot to follow right through the weekend.

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BRUNHUBER: The blockbuster genre defining film "Sinners" has broken records at the Academy Awards, earning 16 Oscar nominations

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BRUNHUBER: Ryan Coogler's vampire horror and period drama surpassed the previous record holders for most Oscar nominations for a single film, and "Sinners" wasn't the only movie racking up nominations. Paul Thomas Anderson's "One Battle After Another" scored 13, setting up a very competitive race for best picture. The winners will be revealed when the Academy Awards air on March 15th, with returning host Conan O'Brien.

I want to go live to Los Angeles now to Sandro Monetti, editor in chief for "Hollywood International Film Magazine".

Good to see you again.

He's also a film producer, writer and director. Thanks so much for being here with us. Appreciate it. Love the jacket,

by the way.

So, 16 nominations for "Sinners". I mean, that shatters the all-time record held by "Titanic," "La La Land". I saw it. I have to say, I'm a little surprised. Are you?

SANDRO MONETTI, EDITOR-IN-CHIEF, HOLLYWOOD INTERNATIONAL FILM MAGAZINE: You know, this is why I love Oscar nominations day. The history, the heartbreak, the snubs, the surprise you referred to.

"Sinners" has been surprising people from the start. Nobody thought it would make $386 million at the box office, but it did. No one thought it would get 16 Oscar nominations. It did.

I'll tell you what will be the ultimate surprise if it also breaks the record for the most Oscar wins, it'll need 12 of those 16 to do that.

BRUNHUBER: Well, putting you on the spot now.

MONETTI: No, I think it'll be -- I think it'll probably get four or five. You know, I think back to when "The Color Purple" got 11 back in 1985 and ended up with zero wins.

Hollywood continues to surprise us. Look at what happened to "Wicked" last year. The first "Wicked" film got 10 nominations. This year, nothing. Keeps it all interesting, I suppose.

BRUNHUBER: Yeah. I mean, that was a, I guess, a bit of a surprise. Although it didn't have great reviews. You talked about snubs. I mean, was there anything that surprised you in terms of films, performances that were overlooked.

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MONETTI: In terms of performances, I think it's an absolute outrage that Adam Sandler who's given some incredibly great dramatic performances, the best ever in J. Kelly this year. He was by far the best thing about that movie wasn't rewarded for best supporting actor. And I will die on that hill. Adam Sandler is not just a great comedian. He's a great dramatic actor, too. He's won nine Golden Raspberry Awards. Surely, there's room for one Oscar.

BRUNHUBER: Yeah, I you know, I can't argue with that in terms of people who were recognized, at least with the nominations. I mean, Emma Stone, the one of the youngest women ever to reach seven Oscar nominations. I mean, what do you think about sort of the way her career has progressed? Not just an actor, actress, but a producer as well? What does that say about how she's building that career?

MONETTI: It says she knew this from the start. When she was a kid, she made a PowerPoint presentation to her parents, persuading them that they should move to Los Angeles and back her career and really go for it.

How well she's done. Now, she's overtaken Meryl Streep to become the youngest person with seven Oscar nominations, not just for acting, for producing as well.

Let's look at Timothee Chalamet. He has now three best actor nominations, the youngest since Marlon Brando to hit that mark. People say there's no movie stars anymore. Yes, there are. Chalamet, Emma Stone, you know, these are the new greats.

BRUNHUBER: Michael B. Jordan finally getting an Oscar nomination as well. Sort of sort of circling. Yes. Sort of circling back, I guess, to, you know, maybe the bigger themes. But looking at you know, at "Sinners" in a way, I mean, its success and some of the other sort of, horror pictures.

I mean, what does that say about the way that Hollywood might be looking at, at genre pictures right now?

MONETTI: Well, "Sinners" is so much more than just a horror film, you know, it's an incredible blend of historical drama, along with vampire lore. It's made with real depth and dynamism. It's visually stunning.

And you've got Ryan Coogler, its writer, director, and Michael B. Jordan, its star, certainly one of the most dynamic double acts in Hollywood in recent years. And so, yes, what an incredible achievement is. Whatever else happens from now, they've gone down in history with "Sinners". It's a -- it's a stunning achievement. But I still think it's going to lose to one battle after another.

BRUNHUBER: Interesting. It'll be a good battle between those two blockbusters. In terms of sort of the --

MONETTI: Bring it on, Kim.

BRUNHUBER: I can't wait for it.

So listen, looking big picture with our last minute that we have left here, any sort of trends or themes emerging from those nominations, anything that we can read from those nominations? Tea leaves?

MONETTI: Interesting. Two things that have happened. So many foreign films are included here, including in the acting categories, you know, and blockbusters in there as well, like sort of "F1". They haven't forgotten the big crowd-pleasing movies as well.

You know, we've got the 100th Oscars on the horizon just a couple of years away. Then the Oscars will go to YouTube. Will it ever be the same again? Let's cherish these moments. It's very special. I love Oscar season and so do so many millions of others around the world.

BRUNHUBER: Yeah, I miss being there in L.A. for that. Listen, your energy is infectious. Maybe well chat again in March before this happens.

Sandro Monetti, thank you so much. Really appreciate it.

MONETTI: Thank you.

BRUNHUBER: All right. Well, staying in the world of culture here, family, friends and lovers of high fashion will gather in Rome in the coming hours for funeral services for the designer known simply as Valentino. He died Monday at his home at the age of 93, a full name Valentino Garavani. He learned his trade in Paris before founding his own house, which featured elegant designs for glamorous women from Elizabeth Taylor to Audrey Hepburn. He often dressed them in scarlet shades known as Valentino red.

We'll have more CNN NEWSROOM just ahead. Stay with us.

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BRUNHUBER: Well, if you want to see Harry Styles upcoming tour here in the U.S., you'll have to go to New York. The much anticipated "Together Together" tour includes 50 shows, but only in seven cities, and all 30 U.S. states will be in New York's Madison Square Garden. The other stops will be in Amsterdam, London, Sao Paulo, Mexico City, Melbourne and Sydney. The tour to support Styles' upcoming fourth solo album kicks off in May, and ticket sales start later this month.

BTS is going back on tour and fans are racing to snap up seats. The K- pop boy band is scheduled to kick off a global concert tour in April. It starts in South Korea, of course, and the group will make stops across Asia, North America and Europe. On Thursday, tickets dropped for the tour. BTS took a break, you remember in 2022, so band members could complete South Korea's mandatory military service.

Along with the new shows, BTS will also release their first new album in over three years.

That wraps this hour of CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Kim Brunhuber. I'll be back in a moment with more news.

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