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Dramatic Rescues In Nepal; The View from the Hardliners in Iran; Behind the Scenes with Human Traffickers in Libya. Aired 11a-12p ET

Aired April 30, 2015 - 11:00   ET

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

[11:15:57] BECKY ANDERSON, HOST: You're watching CNN International. I'm Becky Anderson. This is Connect the World. We will leave our colleagues

in the States for the moment and carry on with the rest of the news headlines.

And a moment of pure joy amid so much heartbreak and anguish. We begin tonight in Nepal where rescuers who refuse to give up pulled a teenager

alive from a collapsed building five days after the earthquake struck.

You can hear the excited shouts as he emerges on a stretcher. Doctors say the boy is doing, and I quote, surprisingly well given what was his

traumatic ordeal.

Well, the rescue of this girl also giving much needed hope to a country overwhelmed by grief. She spent 90 hours under the rubble, the face of

hope so many other families are praying for similar miracles. But the death toll is still rising, I'm afraid, now topping 5,800.

Well, we can only imagine the terror the people felt when the earth began to violently shake. This surveillance video just in to CNN gives us

another look at the moment the quake hit Kathmandu on Saturday.

People on a busy street begin to run as they realize what is happening as structures around them start to collapse.

Well, rescue teams still haven't reached some of the hardest hit areas so locals are doing whatever they can to keep wounded survivors alive. CNN's

Arwa Damon saw some of these makeshift relief efforts when she trekked to villages near Barpak (ph), the earthquake's epicenter.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ARWA DAMON, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, you're talking about the difficulties in aid distribution and just take a look at where we are.

What you're seeing here is that entirely local civil society effort to try to get assistance to those people that have been trapped in their various

different villages up the mountainsides. And we are now down inside this valley.

This was actually a local paragliding group that started this initiative because they, their friends decided to get aid together and then they have

four-wheel drive, and vehicles that allow them to actually get out here.

They set up a makeshift medical clinic underneath this tent. Just a short while ago, a little baby was being treated because her mother was

dehydrated and therefore the child, of course, the baby suffering the consequences of that as well.

Villagers have been coming down from either side here and from the further remote areas to try to receive this very basic rudimentary assistance.

There are people, however, that are still trapped that need help. We just overheard a conversation happening between two volunteers, one of whom is

an American, Stacy Baker, from Seattle, Washington who happened to be in Nepal on vacation. She's a volunteer former paramedic and firefighter

volunteering here right now.

There's a woman, a pregnant woman, who has sustained some injuries because of the earthquake, but she's in a village about two hours away. The

conversation we overheard was how they were trying to figure out if they could sort of set up a makeshift landing zone for a helicopter because

there's no way she can get down here in the condition she's in and they can't at this stage get up to her.

But again, this is very much a local effort that we're seeing here. People say that they are waiting for the more professionals to show up. They've

been driving these roads in these four by four vehicles ever since the quake first struck, sending information on to the larger organizations

about the situation on the roads.

To give you an idea, though, it took us in total about eight to nine hours just to get to this stage. And there were, of course, those torrential

rainfalls that happened overnight. You do continue to feel the ground tremoring, aftershocks still taking place. And the danger right now is

also coming from landslides.

After the rains, the sun has begun to come out. And these do tend to create ideal conditions for landslides we are being told by some of the

volunteers who are here.

So that's adding to everything as well at this stage.

But as you can see, this is one of the most remote, far flung areas. As you move farther up -- and we can't see them from here -- but as you move

farther up on the other side of these various hills and mountains, those are where the hardest hit villagers are.

Earlier in the day, we saw a stream of people walking past us. We saw little children carrying their even smaller siblings. We saw an older

woman being carried by one of her relatives. They had come down from their village in the mountain. They quite simply had nothing left to eat. There

was no assistance that was reaching them. And so they decided to try to walk out.

But this is the scene as it is at this stage right now.

Moving farther forward, we're being told that at a certain point the road is completely closed off. One has to continue on foot. And it is of

course on the other side of where that road has been blocked off by a landslide where the hardest hit, the epicenter of the earthquake is hours

away on foot still.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

[11:21:09] ANDERSON: Arwa Damon reporting for you from what is a very, very remote area, giving you a real sense of the problems that people are

facing.

Also ahead, going undercover to expose Libya's migrant smugglers.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

NICK PATON WALSH, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: A CNN producer stumbles into a tripoli meeting with a smuggler who thinks she is a Syrian looking

to bring more Syrians to across to Europe. She uses her phone to secretly record his offer.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ANDERSON: We'll have exclusive insight into a lucrative but deadly business. Stay tuned.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ANDERSON: This is Connect the World with me Becky Anderson. You're watching CNN. Welcome back.

Now the UN envoy for Libya says it is, quote, difficult to be optimistic, end quote, about reaching a peace deal by mid-June. Bernardino Leon has

been briefing the security council about the ongoing power struggle and lawlessness there. And the failure of talks to produce any deal.

Well, the north African country was recently catapulted back into the global spotlight because of smugglers who are exploiting the power vacuum

and using Libya as a staging ground to send thousands of migrants to Europe.

I raise this issue last week when I spoke to the man now leading the Libyan armed forces, named by the internationally recognized government. In an

exclusive interview, General Khalifa Haftar told me that Libya needs arms and not support nor a lecture or military action.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KHALIFA HAFTAR, LIBYAN GENERAL (through translator): The European Union needs to stand with the Libyan people to solve the crisis instead of taking

such decisions. The migrant crisis affects them, but why don't they see that our problems are also very important? It's important for them to

support us either on the humanitarian front or on the security front.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[11:25:16] ANDERSON: Well, a CNN investigation has laid bare the business transactions behind every boatload of asylum seekers and economic migrants.

Our producer secretly filmed a smuggler offering discounts to desperate migrants.

Nick Paton Walsh has this exclusive report.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

NICK PATON WALSH, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: You've seen where the victims of this continental trade and misery end up: in boats adrift on

beaches drained of life.

But here, we expose how the smuggled find themselves in this hell.

A CNN producer stumbles into a Tripoli meeting with a smuggler who thinks she is a Syrian looking to bring more Syrians across to Europe. She uses

her phone to secretly record his offer.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (SPEAKING IN FOREIGN LANGUAGE)

WALSH: He insists they use satellite phones, GPS, new motors and a pilot who isn't Libyan, but Senagalese.

He's from Mali and drives CNN to the unfinished building their migrants wait in to cross.

To enter, she walks over trash pretending to tell someone in Syria the details on her phone.

Inside, this sick underworld, there are more than the 80 migrants who they were told would be in their boat.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: (SPEAKING IN FOREIGN LANGUAGE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (SPEAKING IN FOREIGN LANGUAGE)

WALSH: Now, may be thees people's last days on dry land.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: (SPEAKING IN FOREIGN LANGUGE)

(CROSSTALK)

WALSH: The TV is always on, the rooms hidden behind curtains. But the trade, so boldly cynical, so patently inhumane.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ANDERSON: Nick Paton Walsh is back from Libya out of Beirut for you this evening where he is based.

Nick, that's what you caught on camera. What did -- what else did you get? What wasn't on the camera?

WALSH: Our producer I think certainly emerged talking about that level of impunity that those African smugglers -- and I should point out so many in

the trade are in fact Libyan, but the ones we met were African -- what level of impunity they seem to operate with, quite how relaxed they were,

very little sense of there being authorities in Libya to prosecute them or intercede in their trade. Obviously that's, I think, well known given the

nature of the failed state Libya is rapidly becoming.

But also, too, it's hard to convey on those snatched frames from inside that unfinished building quite how many people were crammed in there behind

curtains. And I think the sense of apprehension many of them had.

But Becky I should point out, too, for many of those African migrants, and our producer was thought to be Syrian, and they're considered to be the

wealthier clients, therefore offered higher prices.

But those African migrants, they perhaps have endured a worse hell from that which they're enduring in that unfinished building simply by the

journey they had to make from where they hailed, offered in sub-Saharan Africa crossing deserts, fleeing war, famine many of them, to get to that

stage. That final crossing of the Mediterranean, if they do get to make it. And if they do survive it, perhaps for some of them a lesser challenge

from those they have faced in the past, Becky.

ANDERSON: Yeah, I mean this is quite remarkable stuff, Nick.

What else did you learn?

WALSH: There seemed to be consistent allegations that certainly in areas where the government is failing -- and I think that's fair to say that's

across most of Libya's coastline, that there are some Libyan officials involved in that trade, making money from it.

It is a vast enterprise. Some estimate suggesting nearly $200 million roughly made from it.

But also, too, in the nature of the failed state that Libya is now with two competing government claiming legitimacy in cities divided between those

and ISIS controlling increasingly stretched at the coastline as well. It is increasingly hard for the authorities to circumvent this trade. The

Libyan coastguard and navy themselves lacking in resources only saying they can respond in extremist cases and doing their very best, I think, to stop

what is seemingly an insurmountable trade -- Becky.

[11:30:12] ANDERSON: Nick Paton Walsh reporting for you tonight out of Beirut.

The latest world news headlines are just ahead, plus the tragedy of Nepal's earthquake through the eyes of sherpas, the mountain guides whose

livelihood depend on tourism at Mount Everest.

You're watching Connect the World with me Becky Anderson. Back after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ANDERSON: This is Connect the World. I'm Becky Anderson. The top stories for you this hour.

Survival against all odds. Crews in Nepal pulled a teenager alive from a collapsed building five days after the earthquake struck. His rescue

giving hope to so many families still praying for a miracle for their loved ones. More bodies, are, I'm afraid being recovered by the hour. The death

toll now exceeds 5,800.

French President Francois Hollande says he will show no mercy on any French soldier found guilty of sexually abusing boys in the Central African

Republic. A judicial source tells Reuters as many as 14 French peacekeepers could be implicated. They were stationed in the Central

African Republic between December 2013 and June of last year.

Police in Germany say they have thwarted a planned terror attack. Local officials say a married couple with suspected links to Salafist militants

was arrested in a town near Frankfurt. German media say they were arrested on suspicion of planning a bomb attack on a bicycle road race.

Ten people have been sentenced to life in prison for their roles in the attack against Pakistani activist Malala Yousafzai. Malala was shot in the

head by the Taliban in 2012. She recovered and later went on to win the Nobel Peace Prize.

You can get the very latest images from our crews in Nepal at any time from the website. This is a special section that we have set up featuring

photographs and brief descriptions of our social media. Some are coming in from our own colleagues like Ivan Watson, others from iReport contributors.

You'll find all of it at CNN.com/Nepal-Quake.

Well, the quake in Nepal triggered a series of avalanches that killed 19 people on Mount Everest. You are looking at footage now of one of those

avalanches. Just days after the disaster we're learning that Nepal plans to reopen the mountain to climbers as soon as next week.

Well, earlier we spoke to climber Alan Arnette who called that plan premature.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

[11:35:14] ALAN ARNETTE, CLIMBER: Well, you know, the governor is going to -- he is going to make that a priority in order to preserve the income and

also preserve the reputation.

My personal opinion is that the mountain is too dangerous right now going through the Kundu (ph) ice ball, which is a 2,000 foot moving glacier, is

really a bit pile of loose ice blocks the size of cars and houses that was created not only naturally, but this year because of the earthquake and the

aftershocks, it is very, very unstable.

So I think it's going to be very dangerous to go through it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ANDERSON: Well, few in Nepal will feel the long-term affects of Saturday's earthquakes as profoundly as the country's sherpa community. These

mountain guides were already reeling from a deadly avalanche on Mount Everest that you may remember last year. And the latest disaster will only

fuel fears in the tourism industry that is their lifeblood of course.

Jamling Tenzing Norgay is a guide and also the son of the sherpa who accompanied Sir Edmund Hillary to the summit of the world's highest

mountain. And he has spoken to CNN about the trials of the job. Have a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JAMLING TENZING NORGAY, SHERPA GUIDE: Just a back a week from last year, we lost 16 Sherpas on the ice wall with an avalanche, and this year, this

one week later after that day we lost I think about seven or eight Sherpas died and a total of around 18 people have died because of the avalanche

that came off of (inaudible) and basically wiped out base camp.

This year, you know, they said they have raised the salaries a little bit and the life insurance has been raised also a little bit. But I think more

important than that is that the families and the children need to be secure. You know, if the Sherpa goes up on the mountain at least knowing

that if anything happens to me on the mountain, then my family and my children will be taken well care of.

I've lost two cousins on the mountain myself, more relatives we've lost. We have a small community, you know, but most of them are climbing. These

days they climb because they don't want their children to climb. They want to give their children the best education and they take the risk.

We are the sort of the unsung heroes of the Himalayas. They do all the work on the mountain. They risk their lives a lot more than anybody else,

any other western guides or any other climbers. And it's a dangerous profession, but you know they choose to do it because it pays them well.

99 percent of the expeditions in the Himalayas is not possible without the help of the Sherpas. They fix the ropes, they carry all the supplies, food,

all the sleeping bags, oxygens, everything for the client. And I think the important thing here is that the government needs to put certain

restrictions on who can climb this mountain and limiting the number of people that climb every year.

I climbed Everest once in '96. And the Sherpas climb because it's their living. And for me, climbing this mountain was more of a pilgrimage for

me, more of a way to pay homage to my father.

Throughout the whole climb, you know, I felt very close to him.

When my father and Hillary climbed, they were, you know, explorers. You know, they were pioneers. And today, you know, from that it has become so

commercialized. Everybody is climbing this mountain.

Everest is sort of a prize for people, you know, the overnight mountaineers, wealthy people that want to climb this mountain this put it

on the bucket list saying that I've climbed this mountain. And I don't think my father or Hillary would have been very proud to see what was going

on in today's climbing community.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ANDERSON: Moving on for you tonight, and Iran's foreign minister says that talks will take place today in the United States and on Monday in Europe as

all sides try to finalize this nuclear deal. Mohammed Javad Zarif told an audience in New York that Tehran wants a solid agreement by the end of

June.

Iran and world powers reached a tentative deal earlier this months, of course.

Now, CNN has been speaking to religious hardliners in Tehran about their take on a deal and what it means to them.

And while apart from a majority in the country, they do wield considerable power. Our Fred Pleitgen has this report.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

FRED PLEITGEN, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Death to America, death to those who don't believe in the supreme leaders, these religious

conservatives chant at Friday prayers.

Many of them can't imagine improving ties with the country they call The Great Satan.

"For the point of view of Islam, and the Koran, there can't be good relations between the oppressor and the oppressed. They won't be

repaired," this cleric says.

And this man adds, "the United States follows the policy of the devil. They interfere in our internal affairs and we want them to stop."

[11:40:12] (on camera): It's clear to see how deep the distrust towards the United States is here. There's many people who don't even want to talk

to America, let alone negotiate any sort of restrictions to their country's nuclear program.

(voice-over): During the sermon, red lines often drawn by Iran's hardliners are repeated. The Islamic Republic, the prayer leader says,

will never allow inspections of its military facilities.

"This is a blatant aggression against a nation," he says. "The countries who have disrespected us. How dare they expect us to allow them free hand

to inspect anywhere in our country at any time they want."

As talks to try to hammer out a final nuclear agreement continue, a majority of Iranians say they want a deal and sanctions relief as fast as

possible.

The conservatives here remain skeptical, willing to continue living with sanctions if their demands aren't met and unwilling to trust the U.S.

"If Americans make an agreement in one room and then go to another room and say something different, then there's no logic in the United States," this

cleric says. "I really don't understand how they run their country."

And he adds, "the Koran says they will not reach an understanding. Do not trust the promises of the infidels."

As negotiators spar over terms for a final deal, Iran's conservatives are speaking loud and clear. Their voices could be highly influential for the

success or failure of the talks.

Fred Pleitgen, CNN, Tehran, Iran.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ANDERSON: Well, Iran's foreign minister is touching on what is a simmering spat between him and U.S. senator Tom Cotton. Have a listen to this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MOHAMMED JAVAD ZARIF, IRANIAN FOREIGN MINISTER: If we have an agreement on the 30th of June, within a few days after that we will have a resolution in

the security council under article 41 of children 57, which will be mandatory for our member states, whether Senator Cotton likes it or not.

(LAUGHTER)

ZARIF: I couldn't avoid that.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'd have to say you'll pay for that, but you already know that.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ANDERSON: Well, Senator Cotton, the author of the infamous letter to Iranian leaders now known as the 47 Letter didn't take that little jab too

well. He sent out a barrage of tweets calling on Zarif to debate the constitution with him in Washington, D.C. and talking about what he called

Iran's record of tyranny.

He went on to question the foreign minister's courage during the Iran-Iraq war.

But it was Zarif who had the last word in this latest round of the Twitter feud between the two. And he took the moral high ground denouncing smear

politics and even congratulating the young senator on his newborn baby.

I'm Becky Anderson, that was Connect the World. From the team here and those working with us around the world it is a very good evening. Thank

you for watching.

END