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Former South Korean President Found Guilty Of Insurrection; Mixed Reaction Follows Latest Round Of Russia-Ukraine Peace Talks; Vatican Will Not Participate In Donald Trump's Board Of Peace; Zuckerberg Testifies About Social Media's Impact On Children; Billionaire Les Wexner Grilled By Lawmakers In Deposition; Bill Gates Pulls Out of Summit AS Keynote Speaker; Multiple People Killed In Deadliest Avalanche In State's History. Aired 2-3a ET

Aired February 19, 2026 - 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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[02:00:33]

ANNOUNCER: This is CNN, breaking news.

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

And we begin with breaking news, a court in Seoul has found South Korea's former president guilty of leading an insurrection. This all stems from Yoon Suk Yeol's short lived martial law declaration back in 2024. He ordered troops to storm parliament and jail his opponents. Then rescinded the declaration a few hours later. Yoon could face the death penalty.

Let's turn now to CNN Senior International Correspondent Ivan Watson, who is following this story live from Hong Kong. Good to see you, Ivan.

So, bring us up to date on all of this breaking news and what it means for Yoon.

IVAN WATSON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Right. Well, we're currently monitoring the senior Judge Jee Kui-youn, who has been reading out the verdict in this historic trial.

And as you pointed out, he has announced his decreed that the former President Yoon Suk Yeol, as well as his former defense minister, Kim Yong-hyun, are guilty of the crime of insurrection.

He went on to explain some of the rationale for that, saying that the core of the case, this, again, is, in the judge's words, is that the military was sent by Yoon to the National Assembly on the night of December 3rd, 2024 after he made a surprise announcement of martial law, and that sending the troops constituted as an act of insurrection, transporting them to the scene by helicopter. Cameras filmed that dramatic arrival of troops, and that the purpose of making arrests there, again, mounted to insurrection. So, we've now got a conclusive verdict. President Yoon is sitting in

the courtroom right now, as well as seven other defendants, a police chief, his former Minister of Defense, who has also been found guilty in this trial. We're still waiting to hear further about this.

But this is really important, because it is about a year and a half ago that President Yoon was the most powerful man in South Korea. He made this startling decision to declare martial law. It prompted spontaneous gatherings of thousands of demonstrators at the gates of the National Assembly, as well as lawmakers who pushed past police and soldiers barricaded the National Assembly, and within a matter of hours, voted down the martial law decree, and then set into motion this real crisis that resulted in the impeachment of the president, his arrest and now he's on trial on a number of different charges.

He was found guilty in January in a separate trial and sentenced to five years for effectively resisting arrest. But this is the most serious charge that he's now been found guilty of, and it comes with very serious potential penalty, according to the Korean Criminal Code, Rosemary, and that is one of three sentences. One would be the death penalty, which has not been carried out in Korea since the 1990s others would be life behind bars with labor or without labor, Rosemary.

CHURCH: We're just getting word, Ivan. We're just getting word, Ivan that a life sentence has been handed down. So, talk to us about that, because he could have been facing the death penalty, but a life sentence we're just hearing has been handed down.

WATSON: Right, a life sentence that's for President Yoon -- former President Yoon and I'm seeing our team reporting a 30 year sentence to President Yoon's former defense minister, who has been accused by an independent counsel of being part of a plot that was mounted a full year ahead of the actual declaration -- the short lived Declaration on December 3rd, 2024, of martial law.

So, already you've had history made here because President Yoon was arrested. I believe it was in January. He was the first sitting president in Korean history to be arrested, and now being sentenced to life in prison.

[02:05:06]

There was a previous head of state who was, in fact, sentenced to death. This is decades ago who was sentenced to death, the former dictator Chun Doo-hwan sentenced to death, but then that was ultimately mitigated, and he was ultimately pardoned for acts of violence that were carried out in the 1980s at the height of his power.

So, I think many experts thought that even if President Yoon -- former President Yoon got a death sentence, it would not likely be carried out in large part because Korea, though it has the death penalty, it hasn't actually carried out a death penalty since 1997.

But here we're learning of a life sentence for former President Yoon, only some 65 years old, I believe, and his critics, of which there are many in the country, were hoping for a serious not only a guilty verdict, but a serious penalty as a warning to supporters that President Yoon still -- former President Yoon still has supporters. You can see them outside the courthouse. There are people who are calling for removal of this prosecution and are standing by this man, who, I might add was completely unrepentant in court. He argued that he had to declare martial law because of political gridlock in the National Assembly, and as we're seeing from the judges, that argument did not stand.

And in fact, his lack of repentance may have worked against him, because that is one of the factors that goes into the sentencing. If you see any sign of repentance on the part of the accused, and we certainly haven't seen that at all from him. In fact, when appearing in court, President Yoon -- former President Yoon called this investigation a political conspiracy. He said that there was no other choice but to adopt martial law to wake up the people to the gridlock.

And he said that quote, the shortest martial law in modern Korean history cannot be distorted into an act of insurrection.

Well, the panel of judges have decided against that, and again, handed down a guilty verdict and a life sentence to former President Yoon, as well as 30 years behind bars to his former defense minister, Rosemary.

CHURCH: And Ivan, as you say, these people we're seeing here support Yoon and so, how representative would they be of the country do you think when it comes to what's the -- what's the division of support, or lack thereof, across South Korea?

WATSON: Well, I mean, there is deep polarization in the country, and we did see for a period that supporters of Yoon were staging large rallies, and they were actually adopting some of the iconography and symbolism of U.S. President Donald Trump's MAGA movement that make America great movement, and he, of course, was a conservative -- is a conservative politician.

On the other side of the divide, you have the left leaning demonstrators and politicians among them the current president who was elected, Lee Jae-yong, who filmed himself actually live streamed himself on the night that former President Yoon declared martial law, getting past the security forces, climbing over the walls of the compound of the National Assembly. He live streamed it and got into the National Assembly to participate in the vote to overturn martial law and in the -- in the year after that, was swept to power in an election and still holds a fair amount of approval according to popularity polls in Korea right now.

I would say that there was overwhelmingly, on the part of the political elite, certainly, a rejection of this attempt to impose martial law because members of former President Yoon's own conservative political party voted to overturn martial law in those first decisive hours after he declared it, and dispatched soldiers to the National Assembly and to other locations and sent out orders to arrest opposition political leaders. All of those measures are part of the argument that the judge has

determined to declare former President Yoon and his defense minister guilty on the charges of insurrection, with a life sentence for the former president and 30 years behind bars for his defense minister.

[02:10:00]

CHURCH: All right, Yoon Suk Yeol sentenced to life in prison, the former president of South Korea. Thank you so much, Ivan Watson, bringing us up to date on that breaking news. Appreciate it.

Well, the U.S. at a pivotal moment on a number of international issues. In a moment, we will have an update on the trilateral talks on the war in Ukraine and the latest on President Donald Trump's Board of Peace meeting.

But first, let's start with U.S. tensions with Iran. CNN is learning that the U.S. military is prepared to launch strikes on Iran as early as this weekend. Top national security officials met Wednesday in the White House Situation Room. But sources say President Donald Trump is yet to make a final decision on the issue, and that he has privately argued both for and against military action and polled advisers about it.

According to new satellite imagery, Iran is rapidly fortifying several of its nuclear facilities. Photos show concrete and large amounts of soil being used to bury key sites in recent weeks. The White House press secretary says diplomacy is their first choice, but all options are on the table.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KAROLINE LEAVITT, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: Well, there's many reasons and arguments that one could make for a strike against the against Iran. The president had a very successful operation as commander in chief with Operation Midnight Hammer as you know, as you just said, totally obliterated Iran's nuclear facilities. The president has always been very clear, though, with respect to Iran or any country around the world, diplomacy is always his first option, and Iran would be very wise to make a deal with President Trump and with this administration.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: We are getting a mixed reaction to the latest round of Ukraine peace negotiations. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy says the talks in Geneva that ended on Wednesday fell short of Ukraine's goals, that applies to what he called sensitive political matters and to possible compromises needed for peace.

But sources are telling CNN that military talks held separately from political ones made incremental but significant progress that includes details of a possible cease fire and laying the groundwork for future agreements. Ukraine's top negotiator expressed qualified optimism.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) RUSTEM UMEROV, UKRAINIAN NEGOTIATOR: There is progress, but no details can be disclosed at this stage. The next step is to achieve the necessary level of consensus to submit the developed decisions for consideration by the presidents.

Our task is to prepare a practical, not merely formal, foundation for this. Ukraine remains constructive. The ultimate objective is unchanged, a just and sustainable peace.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: The formal talks lasted for only two hours on Wednesday, but the Russian and Ukrainian negotiators later met separately behind closed doors.

And for more, we're joined from Kyiv by Alexander Khara, the executive director of the Center for Defense Strategies. He's also a former advisor to Ukraine's Defense Minister. Thank you so much for joining us.

ALEXANDER KHARA, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, CENTER FOR DEFENSE STRATEGIES: Thank you for having me.

CHURCH: So, after two days of trilateral peace talks in Geneva, no breakthrough in ending the war in Ukraine, but instead two very different views of where things stand right now, with Ukraine's President Zelenskyy dissatisfied with what he calls difficult talks, while the U.S. sees meaningful progress being achieved. How to explain such different assessments?

KHARA: Well, it's just diplomatic prolongs. We need to show that there is some progress unless there is no reason to meet with Americans and the Russians. And from the other hand, obviously there is no space for compromise between Ukraine and Russia. Russians wants to subjugate or destroy Ukrainian statehood and our identity and they want to survive. There is no possibility for any compromise.

And Putin showed not a single sign of willingness to stop this war and then, let alone to sign a peace agreement with Ukraine, vice versa. The Russians are beefing up their resources for the spring offensive. So, until autumn, until the -- let's say, time of winter coming, I don't think that there will be any real space for any real talks about stopping this war.

CHURCH: And we are hearing from a source that military to military trilateral talks in Geneva held alongside those political discussions have made, "Incremental but significant progress in determining how a cease fire would work, including finalizing key terms and explanations to help lay the groundwork for future agreements." What does this indicate to you?

KHARA: Well, certainly we can talk about hypothetical things in future, when there is a political decision in the Kremlin to stop this war and then where some troops should be deployed, what type of monetary mission will be there.

[02:15:12]

But the crucial thing that the Russians wants to -- who wants to Ukraine to give up on the territory of Donetsk region, actually my native region, without fighting and without wasting life so far, or let's say, half of million of Russians over there.

And certainly, we are not in position to give this temperature up for several reasons. First of all, we are not going to set the precedent. The president agree on this so-called territorial concession.

Second, we can defend ourselves in those remaining towns. If we give up on them, Russians would have an opportunity to go further into the neighboring regions, and nothing can stop them because of the terrain until the Dnipro River.

So, I don't think that the military are so ignorant of those facts, they possibly are talking about some hypothetical stuff in the future, and certainly we can agree on the way how a ceasefire can be implemented. But the key thing is Donbas a key thing that Russians are not giving up on their maximalist goals against Ukraine. And unfortunately, they have manpower, they have economic resources, and they have China, which bails out Russia.

CHURCH: Let's talk more about that, because Ukrainian President Zelenskyy says the military representatives discussed issues seriously and substantively, but he said that compromises and meetings of leaders have not yet been sufficiently worked out. This has also - he's previously said that the U.S. is expecting more concessions from Ukraine than Russia. What do you say to that?

KHARA: Well, first of all, if we have a look at the opinion polls in Ukraine, majority of Ukrainians, some 70 percent are for diplomatic solution, but at the same time, almost the same number against the territorial concessions.

So, that's why I don't believe that there is a speech for compromise, even for Ukraine's president, and I don't think that he is going to commit political suicide by agreeing with Putin.

The second thing that Putin hates is Zelenskyy for obvious reasons, that he disregard him. He doesn't believe that this legitimate leader. So, that's why I do not believe that there is possibility of direct talks between Zelenskyy and Putin.

And possibly Zelenskyy plays this card. Because for us, all this diplomacy and this diplomatic track with Americans is to keep Americans at least neutral, rather than on the fully on the Russian side, and that's why we need to show our willingness to compromise, our willingness to talk to Russians and things like that.

But in reality, I don't think that Zelenskyy believes that it's possible to meet with Putin and agree on something.

Actually, Zelenskyy was naive when he was elected that it's possible to settle everything with Putin while meeting him, according to the so-called Minsk arrangements. From the other hand, Putin believed that Zelenskyy is so inexperienced that he would undermine Ukrainian statehood. It didn't happen, and that's why Russians attack us for the second time. And I don't think that anything can change by just talking to Putin.

CHURCH: Alexander Khara, thank you so much for talking with us. We appreciate it, and we'll be right back.

KHARA: Thank you for having me.

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[02:22:56]

CHURCH: Welcome back, everyone. President Trump is expected to convene the inaugural meeting of his Board of Peace on Thursday, a U.S. official says the president will run it like one of his cabinet meetings, but the details are still unclear.

Officials from dozens of countries are expected to be there, either as members or observers, but several major U.S. allies have already rejected membership. President Trump has previewed big announcements for the meeting, including billions of dollars toward rebuilding Gaza and personnel for an international stabilization force.

The Vatican will not be joining President Trump's Board of Peace. That decision comes even though Pope Leo is the first American pontiff. CNN Vatican correspondent Christopher Lamb has our report.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CHRISTOPHER LAMB, CNN VATICAN CORRESPONDENT: Pope Leo has made peacemaking a central part of his pontificate, but the Vatican does not see participating in President Donald Trump's Board of Peace as furthering that work.

The Holy See was invited last month to participate in Trump's peace board, but Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Vatican's top diplomat, telling reporters Tuesday that the Vatican would not be joining, insisting that the United Nations should be handling global crises.

Parolin said that there were elements of the plan that had perplexed the Vatican and that certain critical issues needed to be resolved. He added that the Vatican also wouldn't participate because it is different to other states. It is, of course, a tiny sovereign entity and doesn't have military or economic power.

Nevertheless, Leo XIV is the first U.S. born Pope. So, if the Vatican were to join, it would have been especially significant.

He's made repeated appeals for Gaza and for a two state solution since his election, but as Pope, his approach on the world stage has contrasted with that of President Trump. Leo has emphasized the role of the U.N. which some would say would be damaged by the Trump Board of Peace initiative, and on Ash Wednesday, the start of Lent, when Christians prepared for the celebration of Easter, Leo talked about the ashes of international law and justice among peoples and a world that is ablaze and being destroyed by war.

[02:25:10]

Trump, meanwhile, has previously dismissed international law, saying his authority can only be constrained by his own morality.

Fundamentally, it appears that Leo sees institutions such as the U.N. formed Following the Second World War as the way for peace building, rather than Trump's Board of Peace initiative.

Now, the White House Press Secretary has said that it's unfortunate that the Vatican is not joining the Board of Peace, saying that peace is not partisan political or controversial.

Christopher Lamb CNN, London.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHURCH: Danish King Frederik is visiting Greenland for a second time in less than a year. The monarch went there amid implied threats from U.S. President Donald Trump to seize the island, a Danish, semi- autonomous territory possibly by force.

The move caused fears on both sides of the Atlantic that it could collapse NATO, but Mr. Trump backed off after meeting NATO's Secretary General in Davos, Switzerland last month. Trump said they reached the framework of a future deal on Greenland, but Denmark's Prime Minister says the U.S. president's desires have not changed.

Lawmakers in Peru have elected Jose Maria Balcazar as the country's new interim president. He is the eighth leader Peru has seen in nearly a decade of political upheaval. The former Supreme Court judge is replacing Jose Jeri, who was ousted this week after being censured by Congress. He's accused of holding unofficial meetings with Chinese business people, allegedly wearing a hood on one occasion.

Mark Zuckerberg on the hot seat, this time, in front of a jury. His company accused of harming children. We will take a closer look at his unprecedented social media trial. Back with and more in just a moment.

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[02:30:45]

CHURCH: Mark Zuckerberg has been testifying in a social media trial that could lay the groundwork for hundreds of other cases. The Meta CEO was grilled for hours about tech addiction, how social media affects children, and whether platforms are deliberately trying to get kids hooked. But Zuckerberg was a witness, not a defendant, and said, he believes he's handled the safety of young users in a reasonable way.

Meta owns Instagram which is one of the defendants in the lawsuit along with YouTube. Some of the parents in the courtroom accused the platforms of preying on and exploiting their kids in the name of profits. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JULIANNA ARNOLD, FOUNDING MEMBER, PARENT'S RISE!: Seeing him was kind of surreal, to be quite honest.

The things that came up were that he really didn't have very good answers and very clear answers as to why the internal documentation stated that they were targeting under 13 year olds. Actively targeting under 13 year olds that are not supposed to be on their platform anyway.

We can't say definitively that something will change, but I think what has changed is the whole world now knows what's really going in -- on, you know, in Meta. And that anything that they say or do, we cannot trust.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: The suit was brought by a young woman who says she became addicted to Instagram as a child causing all sorts of mental health problems.

Joining me now is Dan Ives, global head of tech research at Wedbush Securities. Good to have you with us

DAN IVES, GLOBAL HEAD OF TECH RESEARCH, WEDBUSH SECURITIES: Great to be here.

CHURCH: So, Meta CEO, Mark Zuckerberg, took the stand to testify in a landmark social media trial in L.A. Wednesday, responding to accusations that his social media platforms are intentionally designed to be addictive to children and teenagers. It was heated at times.

What stood out to you as he tried to defend his company's practices and strategy in front of a jury and under oath?

IVES: Yes. It's an important moment for Zuckerberg and Meta. You know, because talking in front of Congress is different than when you're under oath.

Well, good thing for him it's trying to show the safeguards are in place for Meta. That -- that this was not intentional around addiction. And yet, this is a company that makes obviously billions of dollars because of social media. So, it's a balancing act, a very fine balancing act that I think Zuckerberg is trying to navigate in the court.

CHURCH: And the mother of one teenage victim attended that trial. And she said that Zuckerberg failed to answer why the internal documentation of his company states that they were targeting under 13 year olds while the app technically requires users to be 13 to sign up.

How significant was that moment?

IVES: Look, safeguarding especially for children, like, that's front and center in the trial. And I think that's something that, you know, Zuckerberg and Meta really need to get across in terms of the safeguards they have in place, and obviously, that's what they're going to speak to.

But then it also why there's so much scrutiny on this trial, because of everything they've seen social media over the decades relative to, you know, children and addiction and some of the tragedies we've seen, but that's why, you know, this is in court and that's why Zuckerberg is testifying.

[02:35:02]

CHURCH: And how much has Zuckerberg actually done to protect young kids and their access to Meta social media platforms? Has he done enough?

IVES: Look, Meta's done, I --I think, a pretty strong job in terms of, you know, safeguards and, obviously, to make sure that this is an evolving process. That they try to safeguard. They have, you know, a lot of focus in terms of protecting children.

And I think, look, this is -- it's an evolving industry. It's not just Meta, it's all social media. It, obviously, is a big problem that we've seen and you want to protect.

And, look, the goal is that this is something where there's more safeguards that come out of here. It continues to be an evolutionary process, but that's going to be definitely front and center in this court.

CHURCH: And worth noting, of course, that this is the first of about 1,500 similar lawsuits to go to trial. How likely is it that this particular trial will lead to any meaningful changes? And what does Congress need to be doing, considering Australia has gone so far as to put bans in place to protect young kids from harm associated with social media platforms and other nations are considering taking similar action?

IVES: Yes. Look, Zuckerberg is no stranger to, you know, testifying in front of Congress. And this continues to be an issue. I mean, I've seen it front and center, you know, meeting with, you know, members of Congress.

And this is -- it's not going away. It's going to continue to get, I think, more and more of a focus, especially given how many, you know, kids and how many adults and just how many people are spending time, you know, on social media.

But what comes out of this case, I think it's important to see what the rulings are, to see what this means going forward, but I do believe that there will be more and more safeguards. This is not something that falls in deaf ears.

CHURCH: Has Congress shown that it's even capable of keeping up on this issue, do you think and -- and giving those -- those safeguards? IVES: Look, I think Congress has definitely made traction. Look, obviously, Australia is on the other side, you know, of the sort of coin relative to how they've come very strong in terms of under 16 and under age, in terms of what they're trying to go after.

But look, this is something that Congress hears from their constituents. And this is definitely a growing and growing issue that's out there. And it's something where I think many are watching this case, not just in tech, but in the beltway.

CHURCH: All right. And is this the particular case to do it? Or do you expect to see changes come out of those other 1,500 that will really be the point of all of this?

IVES: Well, I think this is definitely a -- a potential watershed moment, but I mean, it's definitely going to cause changes.

It's an evolving industry. And I think we've seen that from Meta. But, you know, when you have the court cases piling on, they're going to have to continue to kind of make sure that this platform is safeguarded.

And, you know, the addictive nature of it is something that, you know, is obviously becoming more and more of a growing concern, not just in the U.S. but globally.

CHURCH: Dan Ives, thanks so much for joining us. Appreciate it.

IVES: Thank you.

CHURCH: U.K. police are assessing claims that Jeffrey Epstein trafficked women on flights that went through London's Stansted Airport.

Former British Prime Minister Gordon Brown says the latest release of the Epstein files shows a paper trail of visas, payments, and transportation records. Brown suggests women were trafficked on private flights, including Epstein's private jet.

The airport says all private operations are conducted through independent terminals where they have no visibility of passenger arrangements.

And here in the United States, lawmakers grilled billionaire Les Wexner about his relationship with Jeffrey Epstein. Wexner says Epstein conned him, but some Democrats are skeptical.

CNN's Kara Scannell has more on his deposition.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KARA SCANNELL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Les Wexner, the billionaire who was the primary source of Jeffrey Epstein's wealth, sat for a deposition on Wednesday in Ohio at his home. And he told lawmakers that he was conned by Epstein. He said that he had no personal relationship with him. And he explained that he had no knowledge of any of Epstein's wrongdoing. He said that he was introduced to Epstein in the 1980s by sophisticated financiers and hired him to manage his money, even giving him power of attorney.

Wexner testified that he had broken off his relationship with Epstein in the late 2000s when Florida officials began investigating Epstein's relationship and interactions with young girls, and when Wexner said that he learned that Epstein had stolen hundreds of millions of dollars from him.

REP. ROBERT GARCIA (D-CA): Most important information for us is really about the money. We know that Wexner was Jeffrey Epstein's single largest benefactor. Wexner, of course, is incredibly wealthy. A billionaire, obviously very well known, not just here in Ohio, but across the country.

And when you think about Epstein's wealth, whether it was the plane, the island, the amount of money he had, his homes, much of that came directly from Wexner.

[02:40:26]

SCANNELL: But some of the Democratic lawmakers who attended the deposition in person in Ohio said that they were skeptical of his answers. They didn't find all of them credible. They said they wanted to continue to follow the money more and follow the allegations that were made from some of Epstein's survivors about Wexner being at the center of this.

So, some Democrats said that they hoped to subpoena Wexner's financial records, that though would require the buy-in of Republicans on the committee. It remains to be seen if that will happen.

Wexner's testimony is done. The committee is expected to depose former President Bill Clinton and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton at the end of next week.

Kara Scannell, CNN, New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHURCH: Billionaire Bill Gates has pulled out of India's A.I. Impact Summit just hours before he was set to deliver its keynote address.

It's the latest blow to the event, which has experienced organization challenges and complaints. And it comes just weeks after Gates' name appeared in draft emails in the Epstein files.

The Gates Foundation says he won't give his address to, quote, ensure the focus remains on A.I.'s summit's key priorities. No reason was provided for his withdrawal.

CNN's Hanako Montgomery is in New Delhi and has this report.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) HANAKO MONTGOMERY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Bill Gates is in India for high- level meetings and an A.I. summit, but just hours before his keynote speech, he's pulled out.

The Gates Foundation says the move was to, quote, ensure the focus remains on the summit's key priorities. And when we ask for more details, the foundation declined to comment.

His absence comes as Gates is facing renewed scrutiny over his past ties to the late convicted sex offender, Jeffrey Epstein. Last month, the U.S. Department of Justice released emails showing repeated contact between Epstein and Gates Foundation staff after Epstein's prison sentence.

The documents also reveal more meetings between Gates and Epstein to discuss expanding philanthropic projects. But Gates has said those meetings were a mistake and strictly about philanthropy, and he has not been accused of wrongdoing in connection with Epstein.

But his absence is another hit to a summit already plagued with traffic chaos, congestion, and NVIDIA's Jensen Huang's last-minute cancellation. Just days ago, the billionaire's foundation had brushed off rumors insisting Gates would attend.

So, this is a tough moment for India's tech industry as it tries to position itself as a global A.I. powerhouse.

Hanako Montgomery, CNN, New Delhi.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHURCH: Still to come, multiple people were killed after a massive avalanche near California's Lake Tahoe. We will have details of the tragedy after the break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[02:45:40]

CHURCH: Multiple people have been killed in the deadliest avalanche in California's recorded history. A tour company that organized ski trips says six of its clients and three guides were killed.

And the Sugar Bowl Academy, a private school and U.S. ski and snowboard club, says multiple members of their community died.

CNN Stephanie Elam has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

STEPHANIE ELAM, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It was the final leg of a three-day cross-country skiing trip when the avalanche hit.

Eleven skiers and four guides were traversing the back country at Castle Peak, a more than 9,000-foot summit in the Sierra Nevada Mountains near Lake Tahoe when catastrophe struck. SHERIFF SHANNAN MOON, NEVADA COUNTY, CALIFORNIA: There were nine women and six men. We were able to rescue one man and five women.

ELAM (voice-over): Eight people died on the mountain.

MOON: So all six were rescued off of the mountain. Two of the six were not mobile. They could not walk. One was a Blackbird Mountain Guide and five survivors were clients on that tour.

ELAM (voice-over): According to the Sheriff's Department, the survivors said the group was trying to get out when someone saw the deluge of snow and yelled avalanche. An avalanche of snow, ice, rocks and debris about as long as a football field according to the U.S. Forest Service.

The local Sheriff's Office received a 911 call around 11:30 Tuesday morning saying much of the party was trapped.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Castle Peak, reported as nine to 10 people buried, three others attempting to dig them out.

ELAM (voice-over): There were storm warnings to avoid the area as early as Friday. The National Weather Service in Reno issued a haunting forewarning. Will you be able to make it home with forecasters predicting that the storm would drop several feet of snow when all is said and done?

And on Sunday, the Blackbird Mountain Guides, the company leading the trip, forecasted a week layer of snow that could create unpredictable avalanches.

Then on Monday, the powerful winter storm began pummeling the Sierra's before Tuesday's tragedy struck.

Now, as recovery efforts continue and urgent plea.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Please avoid the Sierras.

ELAM (voice-over): Stephanie Elam, CNN.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHURCH: And we'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[02:50:15]

CHURCH: Top American skier, Mikaela Shiffrin, has ended her eight-year Olympic medal drought in triumphant fashion. She took her own gold in the women's slalom on Wednesday with the largest margin of victory in any Alpine skiing event since 1998.

Shiffrin was just 18 years old when she won her first slalom gold at the 2014 Olympics. She has failed to reach the podium in her signature event ever since, but now at age 30 Shiffrin is both the youngest and now oldest woman to win Olympic Alpine gold. Congrats.

Well, American figure skating phenom, Ilia "Quad God" Malinin, was the favorite in the individual men's free skate at the 2026 Winter Olympics, but he had a lackluster performance, falling twice and failing to medal, but that doesn't appear to have tainted his Olympic experience so far.

Malinin opened up about Olympic pressure, his current mindset and his future with our Coy Wire.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

COY WIRE, CNN WORLD SPORT: I played nine years in the NFL, covered athletes for the last 10 years at CNN. You handled yourself after the skate better and with more class than most athletes could ever dream of. So kudos for that.

How tough was that moment?

ILIA MALININ, U.S. OLYMPIC FIGURE SKATER: It was definitely a hard moment just being, you know, once the competition finished and realizing it didn't go the way I wanted to. It was very devastating in the moment, but I knew that it was in the past. It already happened. There's nothing I can change to have a different outcome. So I just had to, you know, realize what happened and move forward from it.

WIRE: Sometimes when competing, we can kind of blackout. Was there a moment when you knew something was off? Or was it all just kind of like a blur for you?

MALININ: Usually, most of the time when I'm on the competition, I feel like everything is in control. I almost feel like I have control of time and, you know, everything is moving a little and it's more in slow motion, but this time, it felt like everything was kind of running away from me.

So, I did not understand why would that happen. But again, it's something that maybe it wasn't prepared for, for the Olympic pressure. And just looking back on to where I think it's something that I'll have to, you know, change my mindset going into the future.

WIRE: You know, I love the saying that you never know what someone else is going through. And you posted a lot of wisdom on your Instagram. You said, those who appear the strongest may still be fighting invisible battles on the inside.

What type of battles have you had to take on, Ilia?

MALININ: Honestly, just so many more battles to handle, of course, being the Olympic gold hopeful and really just having a lot of the eyes, attention, and pressure on you. It might seem like I was doing very well, but, of course, there's a side that not everyone gets to see and it's really hard to deal with all of that.

[02:55:02] And, you know, at some point, you're going to have to release it because sometimes it's just too much to handle all at once. So it's, you know, something that all of us athletes, I think, struggle with and, you know, have to put up with, especially now with, you know, social media and the attention we get, just the environments that we are in, it's not really a pleasant experience, but it's really what makes us human and what makes us truthful to ourselves.

And that's something that I really want to push out as my message to all the athletes and all the people that we're still human beings. We are pretty similar to you guys than you think.

WIRE: None of the greats have ever become great without overcoming adversity. I cannot wait to see what you have come in next. Do you find yourself chomping at the bit to get back out there?

MALININ: I'm definitely looking forward to what's next. I mean, I'm ready to give in my all and I'm ready to just come back better than ever and, you know, see where my career takes me, honestly.

WIRE: Now, I am so jealous of your luscious locks, man. If your hair had a difficulty score, what's the base value?

MALININ: I don't know. It took a little bit to get this kind of hair. I mean, a lot of coloring, a lot of products. So, let's say maybe, you know, seven out of 10.

WIRE: Hey. On a scale of one to 10, that head of hair is Quad God. And I am really jealous. It's been so awesome to talk to you. You've got the flow. I've got the glow. Together, we are covering all these services. I can't wait to watch you get out there and shine again, brother. And show me that gold medal.

MALININ: Thank you so much. Yes. I mean, it's such an honor to be here. And I'm looking forward to what's there to feature.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHURCH: Well, American-born freestyle skier Eileen Gu, who is competing for the Chinese team, extended her medal tally at the 2026 Winter Olympics. She has won silver in both the big air and sloped style events. Gu still has one more competition left, but she's already the most decorated woman in the history of freestyle skiing.

And she reminded a reporter of that very point when she was asked about coming in second place. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Do you see these as two silvers gained or two golds lost?

EILEEN GU, CHINESE OLYMPIC SKIER: I'm the most decorated freeskier, female freeskier in history. I think that's an answer in and of itself. How do I say this? Winning a medal at the Olympics is a life-changing experience for every athlete. Doing it five times is exponentially harder, because every medal is equally hard for me, but everybody else's expectations rise, right?

And so the two medals lost situation, to be quite frank with you, I think is kind of a ridiculous perspective to take. I'm showcasing my best skiing. I'm doing things that quite literally have never been done before. And so I think that is more than good enough. But thank you.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: She said them straight. Thanks for your company this hour. I'm Rosemary Church. I'll be back with more "CNN Newsroom" in just a moment. Do stay with us.

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