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Connect the World

Royal Baby Named; Pope Francis Visits Aparacida; Egyptian Military Calls On Public To Give Them Mandate To Fight Violence, Terrorism; Spanish Train Derails Outside Santiago de Campastela

Aired July 24, 2013 - 16:00   ET

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

BECKY ANDERSON, HOST: Tonight His Royal Highness Prince George Alexander Louis of Cambridge, the name of the third in line to the British throne is revealed as the royal baby puzzle becomes complete.

Also ahead, ahead of Egypt's armed forces calls for nationwide rallies to give the military a mandate to fight what he calls terrorism, but is that setting up the stage for all-out confrontation in Egypt?

And Pope Francis holds mass in a shrine dedicated to Brazil's patron saint as he continues his tour of the world's largest Catholic country.

First up, the baby has a name. Just hours ago, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge announced they are naming their son George Alexander Louis. His official title is now His Royal Highness Prince George of Cambridge.

The happy couple are currently in Bucklebury, Cate's home town, to spend some private, quality time getting to know little George. They were seen leaving Kensington Palace earlier this Wednesday after a visit from the baby's great grandmother, her majesty the queen to you and me and Prince Harry.

Well, joining me now is Roya Nikkhah, a royal commentator. Were you surprised by how quickly this news came?

ROYA NIKKHAH, ROYAL COMMENTATOR: Not really. I think they probably had their short list of preferred names for awhile. And of course (inaudible) a boy. They've just been juggling those few, which order they wanted to get them in. So I think they probably had them.

ANDERSON: It's not - OK, so it's not like they, you know, were thinking sort of overnight, hang on a minute we need three names and we're going to pluck them out of the ether as it were. There is, of course, Roya, a long line of George's in British history. The first King George came to the throne in the early 18th Century, of course. Then came George II in 1727, the last British monarch to be born outside Great Britain.

His grandson, George III ruled while those uppity colonists started the American Revolutionary War. We all know how that turned out, not much more to say about George IV, best known for his extravagant lifestyle.

Fans of Downton Abbey are at least familiar with the era during which George V ruled, shaped by World War I and the rise of Socialism, Communism, and Irish Republicanism.

And finally, George VI, the unlikely monarch, immortalized in the film The King's Speech.

This is a name that Great Granny would love.

NIKKHAH: I think it's a huge complement to the queen, to his grandmother - Williams grandmother. In the absence of having a girl, the queen had paved the way for her to become queen when she was first born. It's a great complement to name their son after the queen's father, a great King. (inaudible) and I think, you know, she'll be very touched.

ANDERSON: You have interviewed William a number of times. You've got to know him relatively well over the years. How would you assess the past 48 hours - his demeanor, the way they've conducted themselves. I mean, they are a new mom and dad. I think they've been terrific to be honest. How would you assess it?

NIKKHAH: I mean, I couldn't agree with you more. I mean, having seen him on several world tours. And you know we've met him a few times as part of the royal pack, he's always been a little bit standoffish with the press, always very close, protective of Kate. And I think when we saw them come out yesterday from hospital, most royal correspondents assumed it would just be him that would take the questions, that he put Kate in the car with the baby.

I have to say, I have never seen him looking more relaxed with the press than I did yesterday when they came out of hospital. He looked so delighted. He was so happy to take the questions. He was so proud to show off his son and his new wife. That was extraordinary, and I think that was really interesting. And I think that has (inaudible) on him.

ANDERSON: What happens next?

NIKKHAH: Well, of course, he's not got two weeks paternity leave. Very interesting to see that they, rather than spend any more than a night in a royal palace, they've gone straight to the Middletons. I think that is a real indicator of just how important the Middletons are going to be in this new child's life, if we doubted that.

And then of course he goes back to work in two weeks time at RAF in Anglesea (ph).

Now, what I suspect is happening is that Kate wants to get in her rhythm with the new Prince George and then see if perhaps in two weeks time she feels ready and comfortable enough to perhaps to go Anglesea (ph) with him in that quite remote bomb house (ph) down there.

ANDERSON: You think that that's a possibility?

NIKKHAH: I have to say I think it's unlikely William will want to not see his newborn son for a long stretch at a time at only two weeks old. I think there is a chance, if she feels comfortable, that Kate may go down with him. And it's very - it's very private there.

ANDERSON: I think it was a really interesting line from him yesterday at the hospital when he thanked everybody. He said he was delighted. They were a new family. And then he said I hope you'll give us some time, give the hospital some space now, and effectively what he was saying was back off, wasn't he? I mean, it was back up.

Do you think his relationship with the press has changed over this? Can we see a much more engaging young royal family going forward?

NIKKHAH: I think that's unlikely. I think you're absolutely right. That was a sort of we've give you, the press, now back off. I think that's wishful thinking, because you saw the press that moved from the Lindo Wing straight to Kensington Palace, and you know, we're still here. He is so fiercely protective of his family. He'll be even more so now because young son, he is absolutely determined as royal heir has always said to us and keep telling us now, that he is determined to give his children, his child a private life as much as he can?

ANDERSON: Is that possible today? I mean, it's not really, is it?

NIKKHAH: I think William would hope it is. And I think actually the legal action we've seen them take over a couple of cases where the press has overset the mark recently. I think you will see if anyone attempts to take shots of them when they're not supposed to, if anyone goes - crosses that sort of barrier, I think William will move very quickly. And he will be absolutely fiercely determined to give his wife, new mother, and to give his new son a normal and private life as possible, especially in these early weeks.

ANDERSON: Well, thank you.

I know that you've spent much of the past couple of weeks outside royal palaces and hospitals. So on this Wednesday evening as we wrap up our royal coverage now that we have a name, this wonderful new little baby. He's only 48 hours old as we know. I'm going to let you go do something else with your life for a bit.

Roya Nikkhah, thank you very much indeed.

Still to come tonight, Pope Francis leads the first mass of his trip to Latin America. He's getting an enthusiastic reception, but there are still concerns for his safety and fears of increased strife in Egypt. Is the military's call for rallies a step too far? I'm going to bring you the very latest on that. This is a special edition of Connect the World live from Buckingham Palace. I'm Becky Anderson. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ANDERSON: You're watching CNN. This is Connect the World. I'm Becky Anderson for you. Welcome back.

Now Egypt's military is making an unprecedented call for mass rallies Friday, asking for a popular mandate to crack down on, quote, violence and terrorism.

Army Chief Abdel Fattah al-Sisi made the appeal on state television earlier today. Now supporters of ousted President Mohamed Morsy call it a threat, warning the army could be planning, quote, massacres committed under false cover.

More, much more on this story in about 10 minutes time.

Well, it's day three of the pope's weeklong stay in Brazil for World Youth Day. He's returning to Rio de Janeiro. Earlier, he held a mass for tens of thousands of followers at a shrine honoring Brazil's patron saint, the Virgin Mary.

There have been some security concerns. The government has upped its protection level to its highest. Shasta Darlington in Rio joining us now with the latest.

And Shasta, why is security becoming such an issue on this trip?

SHASTA DARLINGTON, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Becky, it really dates back to the first day he got here. Just, people keep - people go over and over what was clearly a snafu on the way from the airport where the pope got mobbed by all of these admirers. There was a lack of communication. There's been a lot of finger pointing. And the problem is, they don't really know how he got in that position in the first place.

They think it was because the pope, to a certain degree, steered his drivers that way into the middle of the crowds.

But the problem is, there's no way they can keep him, really, from doing that in the future. He sets his own agenda.

In fact, the mayor of Rio de Janeiro gave a press conference today where he said the pope himself told the mayor that his biggest sin is not sticking to protocol. So they can put things on high priority, they can put as many men around his car as they want, but this is a man they cannot control, a man who wants to be in among the crowds.

And that is wonderful for all of these hundreds of thousands of people, many of them young pilgrims from around the world who have come here to be close to the pope. But it's just a nightmare for the security detail, Becky.

ANDERSON: It does seem absolutely remarkable, doesn't it?

What's next? What's next on this trip?

DARLINGTON: Well, Becky, he's on his way right now to a hospital here in Rio de Janeiro to visit with recovering drug addict. There have been 10 people, in particular, who he is going to visit with, who he is going to talk to. He'll be giving a speech there. And this is - it's sticking with what we've seen from Pope Francis since he was elected pope. He really directs his message at the neediest, at the lowest levels of society. So he'll visit hospitals. He'll visit jails. And these are people who are coming from the City of God favela or shantytown. You'll probably remember that from the movie City of God. That's where these kids are coming from, recovering drug addicts. And that's because he has less time for all of the most important officials. He really wants to spend his time with the people, he feels, need him the most, need to hear his message of love, of Jesus Chris the most, Becky.

ANDERSON: All right, Shasta. Thank you for that. Shasta Darlington on the story of the pope's trip to Brazil for you.

Well, a series of blasts and gunfire have killed at least seven people and wounded dozens more in an attack on a Pakistani government compound in the southern town of Sukkur. A security official said a suicide bombing was followed by a gun and grenade attack.

The compound includes security offices and housing for judges and police.

Moscow's airport hotel could be set to lose one of its longest staying customers as Edward Snowden may soon be allowed to venture out. The U.S. intelligence leaker is awaiting official documents that will grant him temporary asylum in Russia.

Our Phil Black has the details.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

PHIL BLACK, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Edward Snowden's application for temporary asylum in Russia is being processed and that could take up to three months. It is possible he would be allowed to leave the transit side of Moscow's Sheremetyevo Airport before then, but at the moment it does not look likely.

Wednesday afternoon Russian media reported that Snowden had already received the necessary documents to cross the immigration zone and into Russia to wait here while his request is being considered. Snowden's lawyer Anatoly Kucherena traveled to the airport and met with him in a secure transit zone but emerged from that meeting to say no, those reports are not true. He has not yet received those documents, and he does not know when he will receive them.

Kucherena says normally by now under neutral process an asylum seeker would be allowed to enter the country, explained the delay in this case by saying, it is an exceptional case.

ANATOLY KUCHERENA, RUSSIAN LAWYER (Through Translator): I have to tell you the matter has not yet been resolved. That means nobody has rejected anything coming from Edward, but unfortunately the situation we have now is indeed unusual for Russia. You have to take our bureaucracy into account. Therefore his papers are still being considered.

BLACK: The lawyer brought Snowden a change of clothes and some classic Russian novels. He says Snowden is studying Russian culture. He now wants to stay here long term, much longer than the one-year temporary asylum he has asked for.

Phil Black, CNN, Moscow.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ANDERSON: Well, tensions escalated Tuesday night in Bulgarian when hundreds of demonstrators trapped several government officials inside parliament. Protests have been going on for more than 40 days in the capital Sofia in an attempt to ouster the left leaning government that came into office in May.

The trapped officials were escorted out by police in the morning.

Our New York mayoral candidate Anthony Weiner is again apologizing for some inappropriate behavior with women on the internet. This week, an online gossip site posted recent lewd exchanges said to be between him and another woman. He resigned from Congress over a similar scandal two years ago. He apologized Tuesday. And his wife says she is standing by him. And he says voters aren't necessarily interested in his personal life.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ANTHONY WEINER, NYC MAYORAL CANDIDATE: At the end of the day, citizens are more interested in the challenge they face in their lives than anything that I have done embarrassing in my past. And, you know, I'm fine. I've got an amazing wife and child upstairs. I have a comfortable life. This is not about me.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ANDERSON: Well, four people, including two children, have died after a boat believed to be carrying asylum seekers capsized off Indonesia. At least 160 people were on board. And survivors have been taken to temporary shelters. It's not clear where the boat set off from or where it was headed.

Indonesian officials say they think the boat was trying to make it to Australian waters. Well, last week Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd announced asylum seekers arriving by sea would no longer be resettled in the country.

We have got some news coming to CNN. I'm just going to bring you what I have on this. A Spanish train has derailed near the city of Santiago de Compostela in northern western Spain.

I want to bring in our Madrid bureau chief Al Goodman, who I believe is on the line with me. Al, can you hear me?

OK, I'm hoping that we've got our Madrid bureau chief. Al Goodman...

AL GOODMAN, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: I can hear you.

ANDERSON: What are the details as you know them?

GOODMAN: I cannot hear.

ANDERSON: All right.

Let's fix that. I'm going to bring you just a couple of other news stories and we will fix that and get you to it.

A story just coming into CNN, a Spanish train derailment near the city of Santiago de Campostela in northwestern Spain. As I say, promise that we'll get you those details as we get them.

Well, a judge is in Britain has ruled that a man accused of ordering the murder of his wife can be extradited to South Africa to face trial. Shrien Dewani seen here on the extreme right and his wife Anni were on honeymoon near Capetown in 2010 when armed men stopped their car. Anni was found later shot dead.

Dewani has denied paying the assailants to kill her. He has been under treatment in Britain for psychiatric issues since the incident.

Let's get you back to Spain and to our Madrid bureau chief Al Goodman.

Al, what do you know of the details of this Spanish train derailment.

GOODMAN: Hi, Becky. Well, we have confirmed with government official in the northwest region of Galifia (ph) that there was a train derailment near the town of Santiago de Campostela, that's the political capital of that region. Now Spanish media are reporting there may be 10 to 15 people dead as a result of that incident. We have not confirmed that. Spanish media reporting there may have been a couple of hundred people on this train. This is a passenger train, according to reports, that was going between Madrid and the town of Ferrol in the north of Galicia (ph). That would be about a six hour trip. And this would have just been close to the end of this trip.

I have been on this train many times.

And we are seeing pictures here in Spanish media of the train jackknifed with one car burning and there was a pronounced curve where this seems to have occurred - Becky.

ANDERSON: All right. As we get more on this, we will, of course, bring it you here on CNN. The details as we know them at present.

Spanish media, as Al suggests, certainly reporting deaths on this train derailed on the line to Madrid. But as I say, as we get more details, we'll work those for you and bring them to you.

Stick with CNN for that.

This is CNN live from London. Connect the World coming up, the Muslim Brotherhood says it's nothing short of a call to civil war. We'll tell you about the Egyptian military's highly unusual appeal to the people.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LU STOUT: You're watching Connect the World live from Buckingham Palace. Welcome back. I'm Becky Anderson.

Just a reminder of the story from here today. We have a name for the royal baby, which wraps up the end of that jigsaw puzzle. His royal highness George Alexander Louis of Cambridge. So, the story is complete.

More now on the unprecedented call for mass rallies by Egypt's military. Army chief Abdel Fattah al-Sisi is looking for popular support for the military's plan to, quote, secure protests across the country. The Muslim Brotherhood calls that a threat and says it won't be intimidated into call off its ongoing demonstrations. It fears the military is planning a crackdown on Islamists.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GEHAD EL-HADDAD, MUSLIM BROTHERHOOD SPOKESMAN: The threats made by al-Sisi, leader of the military coup, is nothing short of a (inaudible) of civil war. And a warning that massacres, widespread massacres, will be held under a false cover of popular support.

And we also assert that such terror mongering calls will not scare or terrorize the Egyptian people.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ANDERSON: Well, the military denies any sinister intentions, saying it's aiming to restore stability. Well, clashes between supporters and opponents of ousted President Mohamed Morsy have killed more than 100 people in the last few weeks. The crisis has led U.S. President Barack Obama to delay shipments of F-16 fighter jets to Egypt. The Pentagon says it wouldn't be, quote, appropriate given the current situation.

Well, some Egyptians are welcoming the army's announcement today saying it's about time the military restored order, others fear the violence will only get worse. Reza Sayah is in Cairo tonight with more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

REZA SAYAH, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Becky, Egypt's armed forces clearly escalating its rhetoric by making these dramatic statements that many here are probably going to perceive as ominous threats and warnings to the Muslim Brotherhood and supporters of the ousted president Mohamed Morsy.

It's not clear at this point what the outcome of these statements are going to be, but clearly they're already fueling the tension and drama in this political conflict.

The statements made by General Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, the top military official here in Egypt, he was speaking at a military graduation ceremony, dressed in uniform and sporting dark sunglasses. He essentially called on mass protests, on Friday, and called on Egyptians to come out and give him a mandate to fight terrorism and violence.

GEN. ABDEL FATTAH AL-SISI, COMMANDER-IN-CHIEF, EGYPTIAN ARMED FORCES (through translator): I ask the Egyptians that next Friday, all honest and trustworthy Egyptians have to come out.

But why would they come out? To give me the mandate and order me to confront the violence and potential terrorism.

SAYAH: In his speech, General Sisi did not name names. He didn't make any specific references to any political movement, but many are going to view this as a veiled warning to the Muslim Brotherhood and supporters of the ousted President Mohamed Morsy. And you have to wonder is this the armed forces signaling a more aggressive strategy towards the Brotherhood. And if that's the case, is it going to be effective or is it going to make this conflict worse?

For their part, leaders of the Muslim Brotherhood have condemned this speech, calling it an open threat that's going to divide this nation. They have called for mass protests, too, on Friday. And yet again, the stage is set for a showdown where the armed forces is now playing an increasingly critical role - Becky.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ANDERSON: All right, well let's get some perspective now on this crisis in Egypt. We're joined by Omar Ashour, a senior lecturer at the University of Exeter's institute of Arab and Islamic studies.

You heard Reza's report there, sir. How do you read what we have heard out of Egypt today?

OMAR ASHOUR, UNIVERSITY OF EXETER: It's very dangerous situation. I think it is whenever you have an elected institution that gets removed by military coup, you - the outcomes are one of four. You either have a civil war scenario, a civil unrest scenario, a military domination of the political scene with a civilian facade or an outright military dictatorship, or a mix of all of these things. And today's declaration is I think leaning towards the probability of a civil - further civil unrest and probability of descending into a very dangerous, violent situation.

And the thing is, Egypt saw this scenario before...

ANDERSON: A violent situation - hang on, sir. I want to pin you down. How would you describe it, are we moving towards a military dictatorship? Is this now something we ought to be calling a military coup, for example. Let's get specific here.

ASHOUR: Sure. The - what you saw is a military coup. It's a text book military coup as I teach it in the classroom. You had in Egypt, the military domination of politics. That was there for awhile. That was since the military coup of June 1952 that many also consider a revolution.

The figures, the mix here is that when you have a coup that is supported by segments of the society. That happens - you have popular coups, supported by segments of society. You had it in Turkey in 1980 you had a coup supported by segments of the Turkish society. In Chile in 1973, (inaudible) coup was supported by segments of Chilean society, 1936 the Franco's (ph) coup against the leftist government was supported by segments of the (inaudible) and so on.

So you can have popular coups.

We had a popular coup in 1952. That was supported by segments of the society, but it ended the democratic process. They were - back then, the coup (inaudible) led by Nasser, would not want any elections back, because if elections had happened, then, they would bring in the secular liberals, the left party, which was the most popular. So they banned elections. They banned parties. And there was a protest against that. They demanded the return of the parliament, but Nasser promised them elections if the demobilized. They never saw elections, but saw since '52 since 2011 a domination by the military of Egypt's politics.

ANDERSON: All right, let me stop you there, you brought up Nasser and I want - and the early 1950s in Egypt. And I think it's important now at this stage and this entire story, that we start looking at whether we should be drawing comparisons now to 1954 or not. Should we?

ASHOUR: Oh, it is - there are quite a few elements, but there are also quite a few similarities and quite a few differences as well compared to '54.

In '54, you had a public that was divided, partly a public that was saying we should return to the political process, the democratic process, the constitution despite all the corruption of the political parties and their pettiness and their failure to solve Egypt's problems.

And there was another part that was saying, no, we need a strong man sort of a military leader, one with Nasser's charisma. That side supported him.

But in '54, and this is the main difference, is that the army itself was divided in '54. Part of the army was saying no we don't want a military dictatorship, we want a civilian leadership, an elected civilian leadership. And that side lost the fight. And interestingly, the Muslim Brothers was mobilizing on that side. But when that side, six of the Muslim Brother's leaders were executed, were hanged by Nasser. And I think they have this image in their heads right now they don't have any - they have '54 in the background. They see Sisi as a new Nasser. And there is no credible guarantor that guarantees the safety or inclusion after they demobilize. So they believe that the lifeline is sustained mobilization.

ANDERSON: Draw this conversation to a close. Fascinating stuff. We'll have you on again, sir, as this story develops. Thank you.

All right, we're going to take a very short break at this point. I've got the headlines coming up for you, including more news on that Spanish derailment and Santiago de Compastela. And we will bring you what we know on that after this very short break. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ANDERSON: This is CONNECT THE WORLD. The top stories for you this hour. News coming into CNN of a Spanish train derailed near the city of Santiago de Compostela in northwestern Spain. Local news reports say several people have been killed. The train traveling from the capital Madrid to Ferrol in the northwest of the country.

Al Goodman, our Madrid bureau chief, on the story for you and on the line. What do we know, Al?

AL GOODMAN, CNN MADRID BUREAU CHIEF (via telephone): Becky, these are very dramatic photos that we're starting to see on social media coming up also in Spanish -- some of the main established Spanish newspaper websites right across their front pages.

Shows a car burning on a train that went off the track on a pronounced curve at the town of Santiago de Compostela. Now, Spanish media are reporting there are dead and injured, possibly 15 dead. CNN has not confirmed that yet.

We have confirmed with a RENFE spokesman, that's the state railway, RENFE, that there was this train crash and that there were about 200 people aboard this train, which was a high-speed, not a bullet train, capable of reaching speeds of about 250 kilometers per hour. It was heading from Madrid to a town a bit further north in Galicia when it went off the tracks. Becky?

ANDERSON: Do we know what happened at this point?

GOODMAN: No, we don't. It appears from the pictures that some of the cars at the rear of the train, according to media reports and according to what I'm seeing on pictures, may have been the ones hardest hit, but we see pictures of cars sort of tumbled over, sort of cars jackknifed down a ravine, and just a Dantesque situation, there, for what is normally a very placid train ride. I myself have been on that train many times, including recently, Becky.

ANDERSON: All right. Well, these the first images coming in of what sounds like a deadly train derailment at Santiago de Compostela in northwestern Spain. A train traveling from Ferrol, I believe, to Madrid and quite remarkable and disturbing images here at CNN, working this story for you. And as we get more on it, of course, we will bring it to you.

All right. Stay with us for what is now a special CNN documentary, "The Royals: A New Prince," starting.

END