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Europe Bristles as Russia Places 89 Officials on Blacklist; NSA Data Collection Program Shuts Down as Senate Fails to Pass Extension; Beijing Passes Tough New Public Smoking Ban; 35 Years of CNN; Gaza A Year After War. Aired 11:00a-12:00P ET

Aired June 01, 2015 - 11:00   ET

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

[11:02:03] BECKY ANDERSON, HOST: The black flag of ISIS flies in the distance: Iraqi forces are holding off extremists in Fallujah, but how long

can they keep them at bay? A report from the front line this evening on what's been another troubling day across Iraq.

Also ahead, last summer, Israel and Gaza were near all-out conflict. One rocket attack killed four young boys on a Gaza beach. CNN's Nic

Robertson has gone back to that beach and found wounds that are still raw.

And security versus privacy, U.S. lawmakers struggle to find that balance during a late night session that's saw part of an anti-terror law

expire.

ANNOUNCER: Live from CNN Abu Dhabi, this is Connect the World with Becky Anderson.

ANDERSON: It is 7:00 in the evening here as a sand storm comes in.

We begin in Iraq where in the last hour officials have told CNN that at least 34 police officers were killed, and more than 48 injured in a

suicide attack.

Now they say it happened with an ISIS member drove a tank rigged with explosives into a joint Iraqi security force base near the city of Samarra

just north of Baghdad.

Meanwhile, Iraqi forces continue to fight ISIS in Anbar, hoping to regain control of the province there. The capital Ramadi was taken by

ISIS, you'll remember, last month.

Well, the speaker of Iraq's parliament gave our Nick Paton Walsh a remarkable account of how the city fell to the terror group.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SALIM AL-JABOURI, IRAQI PARLIAMENT SPEAKER (through translator): The military command who was present was speaking about a collapse in morale in

the army and made a decision in a clear way to give the order to pull out. And after that, Ramadi fell.

And even the prime minister -- and he is the general commander of the armed forces -- was not aware of the orders dealing with pulling out. And

that was lead to the big question marks for us. Who has an interest in a direct way in the army pulling foot and not confronting ISIS? And after

that ISIS entered Ramadi and controlled it directly.

NICK PATON WALSH, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Who gave the command?

AL-JABOURI (through translator): Who was there in the command is called the Golden Divison. Who after that withdrew and the collapse

occurred and ISIS controlled Ramadi.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ANDERSON: Well, Nick Paton Walsh is in Baghdad for you tonight with the very latest.

What else did al-Jabouri have to say, Nick?

WALSH: Well, it was start to hear him say that somewhere in the political military machine here, he's not clear where, and that's what a

parliamentary investigation is trying to establish, there was an order for that elite Golden Division, trained by the Americans, in charge of so much

of the security of Baghdad to pull out. And that's what let ISIS in, and that Haider al-Abadi, the prime minister he works alongside, did not know

that that order had been given.

That is going right to the heart of the Sunni-Shia divide here in Iraq. And we saw ourselves how some Sunni tribesmen, locals of a town

called Amiryat al-Fallujah to the southwest of a lot of that violence you were referring to earlier on is occurring, how they oppose ISIS fervently,

ISIS also being Sunni, but these Sunni tribesmen say they lack weapons, basic supplies, basic support from Baghdad to do their job properly.

Here's what we saw.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

[11:05:25] WALSH (voice-over): At these sandbags is exactly what Iraq needs to stay together as a country. Meters away, you can glimpse the flag

of ISIS, extremists from Iraq's Sunni minority. But holding them off here are the men the U.S. says are key to victory, moderate Iraqi Sunnis who

will die to rid their hometown of ISIS.

(on camera): If America is to send help to the Sunni tribes to Anbar here is where it is most badly needed. They have been in combat with ISIS

for months and now the enemy is just across the river.

(voice-over): But they have been without pay for months. Some have Kalashnikovs made of cheap metal and chipboard.

"No one's come to help us," he said. "Government is not help with anything. We buy our own weapons and we're supposed to be (inaudible)."

"Such people like ISIS," another says, "and not Sunnis, no. They're enemies, the ones who destroy and not build."

The local mayor of the town of Amriyat al-Fallujah, around which ISIS swarms and fires mortars daily, sees his enemy on the TV screen. This long-

distance camera shows their mortars slamming into ISIS positions, and was paid for by locals themselves. They say Baghdad, whose officials are often

Shia, and distrust Sunnis, has ignored months of their pleas for help. Now, they arm themselves.

"We buy them," he says, "there are lots of weapons for sale on the Iraqi market, whether it's from the previous army or what ISIS took from

this army as they put it up for sale through a third party. Even some things come from Iran and are sold directly."

Here is where local volunteers are trained and armed. But again, we're shown the chipboard, 500 of them, they say. This man was trained by the

U.S. nine years ago, then to help them fight al Qaeda here. Now, they want America's help again.

"We want the Americans to arm us directly," he says. "If they give it to the government, they'll take what they want and give us the tired

weapons. The good stuff they'll keep."

Outside the hospital, you can see the help they are getting, an ambulance from Sunni Saudi Arabia. Inside, three injured from a mortar that

hit off duty young fighters playing football the day before. Another died. This town endures, yet feels abandoned despite broad recognition it is

vital they win.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WALSH: Well, that is Anbar.

Nick, elsewhere in the past hour or so, news of another alarming development, a suicide bomber using a tank rigged with explosives killing

more than 30 security forces and injuring dozens more. What more do we know, Nick?

WALSH: Well, this appears to have been ISIS again using an armored vehicle, perhaps one they obtained from the military stores they plundered

as they move across territory formerly held by the government, using that vehicle -- and in fact, I have to apologize, we're in a similar sand storm

here to you -- using that vehicle to try and get in to Iraqi military base.

Now despite the fact that their penetration to its center seems to have been stopped, they still were able to detonate enough explosive that

you -- as you mentioned, that staggering death toll of 34 and 82 people injured, occurred.

This is to the southwest of Samarra, north of where I am standing here in Baghdad, on that pretty volatile front line that heads up a main road

towards Tikrit. ISIS consistently trying to penetrate it. And it shows you that in conditions like this, too, how fluid that front line is, and

how it is for the Iraqi security forces.

You heard there, and in the interview we did earlier, how it seems that command structure is fluid it seems at best, for them to hold ground

and retain it. And perhaps also how reliant they are on Shia fighting groups -- the Hashd al Shaabi who have done a lot of the tip of the spear

work when it comes to this operation.

I should point out one more thing that the Iraqi Speaker of Parliament Salim al-Jabouri said to us. And his key point was that it's going to be,

he hopes, Sunnis who retake Anbar for themselves, and that a lot of the import and the success of these operations is what happens afterwards. Do

people who live there feel safe when those Shia fighting groups move in to those Sunni areas? That's a key point here, and one that he raised is

perhaps a reason why it's hard to get ISIS out of these areas, Becky.

[11:10:02] ANDERSON: Nick Paton Walsh is in Baghdad in Iraq for you this evening.

Well, people in Gaza are struggling to rebuild their lives almost a year after the last extended conflict between Israel and Hamas. Tension

began building last June, you'll remember, when three Israeli teenagers were abducted and found dead. Well, their killings helped trigger new

fighting between Israel and Hamas weeks later.

The UN says more than 2,200 Palestinians were killed, including many civilians. 71 people died on the Israeli side.

Well, CNN's Nic Robertson met a Palestinian boy who survived and Israeli shelling. I want to warn you, Nic's report contains images of this

child just after he was wounded.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL: Summer has come to Gaza again. With his friends, Muntasa Bakar (ph) in the green vest appears to be

enjoying it, liberating then launching a fishing boat, splashing around in the waves, smiles aplenty. But all is not as it seems.

Ten months ago, on this same beach, this was Muntasa (ph), bloodied by an Israeli shell, his closest brother and three cousins he'd been playing

football with were killed.

Can you show us the places that you got hurt when the bombs fell?

He is quiet, points to his elbow, says his back hurts too.

But it's not just his body in pain, his mind, too.

Do you remember that day? What do you remember happening that day?

He can't speak about it, struggles even to concentrate. His father Ehab (ph) tells me the attack changed his son. He is angry, can't sleep,

has nightmares. The doctor gave him pills to calm him down, he says, but no one here can make him better.

At his family's graveyard overlooking the sea, Ehab (ph) shows me where his son and grandson, Muntasa's (ph) brother and cousin killed in the

attack, are buried. For six generations, the Bakar (ph) family have laid their kin here, all fishermen. They are used to hardship. But this is

different, a parent's pain loosing a child.

"I die 100 times every day when I see Muntasa (ph) here in front of me, and I can't do anything for him. We can't forget the incident. It's

as if every day, every minute, every second I see my children cut up in front of me."

Within a day of those rockets striking the beach here, the Israeli military said there would be a careful inquiry, and that a preliminary

investigation had determined that the intended target was Hamas terrorist operatives, and the fact that there were civilian casualties was a tragic

outcome.

Today, Israeli patrol boats are still just offshore, and the investigation is still ongoing.

In the harbor, Ehab (ph) shows me some of his family's fishing boats. They are one of Gaza's biggest fishing families.

He was telling me the family have about 1,000 of the smaller type of boats here, and perhaps 20, 25 of the larger boats on his extended family.

Since the attack, he's lost heart in fishing. His own boat is idle. He blames Israel for the shelling that shattered his family, but he also

blames Palestinian leaders for not making peace.

"Everyone in power here looks after their own interests," he says. "We are stuck with nothing. Is this a life?" He adds.

His son, Muntasa (ph) wants a better future, too.

Are you going to be a fisherman like your dad one day?

He nods, yes.

It's a dream. But if he is to realize it, someone must first rid him of his nightmares.

Nic Robertson, CNN, Gaza.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ANDERSON: Well, the U.S. National Security Agency has fewer teeth right now because lawmakers have allowed provisions of the PATRIOT Act, or

PATRIOT Act to lapse. At this moment, the NSA cannot collect the telephone data of millions of Americans.

Now if the agency launches an investigation today, officials cannot secure what's called a roving wiretap. Instead, they must have a warrant

for each phone a terror suspect is using.

Well, Athena Jones is live in Washington where a political showdown allowed this disruption.

Athena, so those calls are now completely gone, correct?

[11:15:07] ATHENA JONES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Becky, the NSA has stopped that bulk data collection, the metadata of phone records, last

night at about 7:44. So that program is halted. It is shut down. It would take about 24 hours to restart it once this is resolved, if it is

resolved as it is expected to be.

You mentioned that the roving wiretaps would not be able to be used in any new investigations.

Now the FBI, NSA, they can still use some of those programs in ongoing investigations, but one that they were to start today, they wouldn't have

access to it.

Another provision is the lone wolf surveillance using the national security apparatus to surveil (ph) a person who is a non-American citizen

who is suspected of having terrorist links, but not to a specific known terrorist group.

But I'll tell you that officials have admitted that they haven't actually used that provision. They still want to have it in their quiver.

And they don't have it right now, but it's not something that has played a big role in the past.

So, that's what's going on right now. As of midnight, all of those provisions expiring. And now the Senate is hard at work trying to pass a

reform bill, a bill that would put these provisions back in place with some reforms.

It's looking like that's going to happen mid-week. Earlier today, an aid for the Senate majority leader told me that it could happen as soon as

tomorrow.

But an aid to Senator Rand Paul, who we know opposes -- has a lot of problems with domestic surveillance programs, told me that he's planning to

force the use of all 30 hours of time under Senate rules that can be used, and that would push a vote in the senate to Wednesday.

So, it's still a little uncertain, because here we are in the Senate. You never know exactly how things are going to shape up -- Becky.

ANDERSON: Athena Jones is in Washington.

It is just after a quarter past 11:00 there in the morning, quarter past 7:00 in the evening here in the UAE. You're watching Connect the

World with me, Becky Anderson.

Still to come tonight, if you were thinking of lighting a cigarette in a Beijing mall or a bar or an airport, well think again. We'll have that

story in about 20 minutes time.

First up, though, a short break. Back after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ANDERSON: This is CNN. Connect the World with me Becky Anderson. Welcome back.

Now Egypt's national council for human rights says that 2,600 people have been killed in violence since the 2013 overthrow of President Muhamed

Morsy, nearly half were Morsy supporters. The government has waged a fierce crackdown on Islamists since the coup, jailing protesters and

banning the Muslim Brotherhood as a terrorist organization, while courts have sentenced hundreds to death at mass trials.

As Ian Lee now reports, many judges now fear for their own lives after radical imams declared them a target.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

[11:20:06] IAN LEE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: ISIS-aligned militants in northern Sinai killing hundreds of security personnel at times in audacious

raids. But now they have a new target: Egypt's judges.

Last month, militants murdered three in the northern Sinai town of Aresh (ph), spraying their vehicle with automatic gunfire.

In another incident, a judge, who is unable to talk to the media, provided pictures to CNN that he says shows the aftermath of his house

being bombed. No one was home at the time.

Judge Abdullah Fati (ph) represents the country's judges. He tells me, all Egypt's judges have been targeted since the trials of terrorist

groups and their members began. But there are specific people that confronted the Muslim Brotherhood regime, and these were the ones initially

targeted.

Tensions between Islamists and the judiciary emerged during Morsy's presidency. He tried to forcibly retire many senior judges, claiming

reform.

A popular military coup ousted Morsy after only a year in office, a turning point in the violence came when security forces cleared two camps

of Morsy supporters. Hundreds of people were killed.

Militants attack the police and army on a daily basis. But recently, they urged followers to go after judges. Security forces have cast a wide

net, arresting anyone belonging to, or accused of working with, the Brotherhood, a group designated as a terrorist organization.

Judges have handed down heavy sentences, a times in controversial mass trials that include the death penalty.

The judiciary has been accused of taking the government's orders, but Fati (ph) maintains they're independent, saying, "defending my home

country, defending my people, and standing up to any potential harm, this is pure patriotism."

Egypt's new justice ministry responded to the threat by creating a new unit to secure the country's courts, a monumental task with thousands of

judges.

But when militants can strike outside Egypt's high courts like they did last March killing two civilians, how safe will judges truly feel?

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ANDERSON: Well, Ian joins us now live from Cairo with more on this.

And we are hearing that the Muslim Brotherhood has issued a statement that is being interpreted as a call to arms. What can you tell us about

it?

LEE: That's right, Becky.

On the Muslim Brotherhood's official website, they issued a statement calling their supporters to, quote, resist the coup by all means until the

fall of the regime.

The key words there being resisting the coup by all means, which have many people interpreting this as a call to arms.

Now I put this to one -- experts here in Cairo who follows the developments of the Muslim Brotherhood. And he told me that really this

statement is to appease the two different camps within the Muslim Brotherhood. On one side, you have those who are calling for still

peaceful resistance, but on the other side you do have people who want violent resistance to the government. And he says that while the Muslim

Brotherhood is not yet on the path of full-scale insurgency, he says that definitely the signs are there that could lead it to a more violent

approach to the government, and very worrisome for many people here in Cairo, Becky.

ANDERSON: Sure, all right, meantime Egypt's national council for human rights, Ian, released a report about the violence between June 2013

to just December 2014, an 18 month period. What stands out in this report to you?

LEE: Well, the numbers do. First you have 2,600 people being killed, over half of them are members of the Muslim Brotherhood. You have 700

security personnel also killed during this time as well as 550 other civilians. So very bloody time for Egypt.

Also, we look at Egypt's prison system. You have over four -- roughly 400 percent over capacity in the jails, in the police stations, that is

very worrisome for the council, as well as the prisons are at 160 percent capacity as well. These are prisons and jails that are stuffed with

people.

On the other hand, you have the deaths of people who have been -- who have died while in detention. The ministry of interior puts that number at

36, but the council has that number a lot higher, from 80 to almost 100 people have died while in police custody, Becky.

[11:25:01] ANDERSON: Ian Lee is in Egypt for you this evening.

It is 25 past 7:00 here in Abu Dhabi. You're headlines at the bottom of the hour.

Up next, though, Budapest transformed from rundown neighborhood to a modern capital. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's known as the Pearl of the Danube, Budapest, capital of Hungary exudes an old world European charm. But not far from

the river lies the city's eighth district, Joseph Town, long considered a slum.

Decimated during World War II, and scarred by the 1956 Hungarian revolution, this was a neighborhood plagued by crime and poverty. Up until

15 years ago, half the apartments had no toilets.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This area in the eighth district was the Harlem of Budapest.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: But today, this neighborhood has become one of the trendiest areas of the city.

GYORGY ALFALDI, URBAN PLANNER: Our vision was to bring new life of this territory and create a new spaces with green and create new offices

and create new flats.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Funded by private and public investment, the Corvin Promenade is the largest inner city urban regeneration project in

central Europe, valued at almost a billion euros.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The biggest challenge was to make people believe in it, really, that was -- that was the toughest part of it. We had to

change the people's mind how they look at this area.

Our slogan was from the early beginning to -- that it will be good to live here, work here, to shop here and relax here, which at that time was

really unbelievable, and there were hardly no one who could imagine it with us and dream with us.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Strategically located close to the airport, important transport junctions and the Danube, this area now boasts new

spaces for the community.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is the biggest investment today in Hungary. And it's ongoing.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: 60 percent has been completed so far, and EPAM Systems, a software outsourcing business, was one of the first tenants to

move in.

ATTILA BOZSO, EPAM SYSTEMS: We wanted to have a location where we can actually gradually grow over the years. We moved over here when it was a

construction site.

It's really funny to make joke because actually Google moved over here just over there, and naturally it is our own influence (inaudible)

qualifying our decision back then in 2008 to move over here.

UNIDENITIFIED MALE: Upgrading this quarter is expected to last until 2020, but it's already quite clearly a neighborhood reborn.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[11:32:30] ANDERSON: Welcome back. This is Connect the World with me Becky Anderson. The top stories for you this hour on CNN.

And officials in Iraq tell us at least 34 police officers were killed and at least 48 were injured in a suicide attack. Now they said it

happened when an ISIS member drove a tank rigged with explosives into a joint security force airbase near Samarra just north of Baghdad.

Five senior Taliban members released in a U.S. prisoner exchange must stay put for now, at least. Qatar has temporarily extended travel bans on

the men who were handed over a year ago in exchange for Sergeant Bowe Bergdahl. The U.S., Qatar and Afghanistan continue negotiations on their

long-term fate.

The U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry is heading back to the United States for medical treatment. He left a hospital in Geneva just moments

ago. He broke his right leg during a cycling accident in Switzerland, forcing him to cut short a European trip. A military aircraft is taking

him to a hospital in Boston.

And the Solar Impulse has successfully landed in Japan after bad weather prevented the plane from making it all the way to Hawaii. It

landed in Nagoya about a half hour ago. the experimental aircraft is attempting to fly around the world powered only by the sun.

Well, Russia and the European Union are locked in a war of words over a travel ban. Moscow has barred 89 EU politicians and military leaders

from entering Russia. EU officials slam the ban as unjustified.

Well, now Russia is responding, accusing the European Union of breaching confidentiality by revealing the names on the list.

CNN senior international correspondent Matthew Chance has more for you from Moscow.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MATTHEW CHANCE, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, a very angry reaction from some of those individuals, the 89 people who have found

themselves on that Russian travel ban list, a couple of their remarks here we've got from social media.

The Belgian member of the European parliament Mark Demesmaeker tweeted this, "Putin puts me on his blacklist, not welcome in Russia. This is too

much honor for me, Mr. Putin." So Mr. Demesmaeker actually proud of the fact he's made the list.

The Swedish MEP Gunnar Hokmark had this to say about being blacklisted, "worth to note that Putin regime fears dialogue and freedom of

speech. The blacklist is not a show of strength, but of weakness."

So, European officials condemning the list, of course, calling for greater transparency from Russia and clarification as to why these

individuals in particular were identified to be sanctioned and not others.

But of course the reason for it is pretty clear, Russian officials have come out and clarified it saying that this is purely a response to the

European blacklist, which has 151 Russians on it, preventing them from traveling to Europe and even freezing their assets over their association

with the annexation of Crimea last year, and the ongoing conflict in Eastern Ukraine.

So, I think we can very much see this as a tit-for-tat move by the Russians. The Europeans have their list, now the Russians can say, well,

we've got ours as well.

Matthew Chance, CNN, Moscow.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

[11:35:43] ANDERSON: Well, Beijing is rolling out a new -- a tough, new smoking ban on Monday. The new law targets smoking indoors, affecting

places like restaurants, offices and airports while a number of outdoor areas will also be smoke free.

China is the world's largest tobacco consumer. One in every three cigarettes worldwide is smoked there. And this new ban is expected to

affect up to 4 million smokers in China's capital.

David McKenzie filed this report from Beijing.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DAVID MCKENZIE, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: This is Gulo, a popular party and tourist spot here in Beijing. And it's just the kind of

place where the smoking ban will be in force, they say, because they're trying to ban smoking in public places, indoors and also the sale of

cigarettes near schools. This smoking ban is the strongest yet here in the capital of Bejing.

In China, more than 300 million people smoke cigarettes. They say it caused more than a million deaths just last year.

Smoking is truly ingrained here in China. In fact, you can buy local cigarettes for less than $1. And it's also part of the culture here.

People give packs of cigarettes to each other. And they say that some of the things you see in other countries like warning labels on cigarettes,

like this on a foreign brand here in China, they say that's just not appropriate. Who wants to give a gift to someone if it says smoking can

kill you.

There have been attempts before to ban smoking like this, but now the younger generation is pushing for it.

"Smoking affects the air," she says, "and it also affects our health. We are supporting the smoking ban."

"I think so, too," says her friend. "It's not only bad for yourself, it's also not good for others around you, especially for the air."

The key, of course, is how they will enforce the smoking ban. Other than the fines, the government says it's going to name and shame people

online. They say they're going to start here in Beijing. And if it works, move it across the rest of the country. The World Health Organization is

saying it's a quantum leap forward.

David McKenzie, CNN, Beijing.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LU STOUT: Well, just like in China, smoking is popular here in the Middle East, but it's not just cigarettes. Smoking water pipes, or Shisha,

also part of the culture as Amir Daftari explains.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

AMIR DAFTARI, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: In the Middle East, smoking is on the rise. Here in the UAE, one study finds that at least 26

people died due to smoking each week.

The country is putting measures in place, banning smoking in public places, taxing tobacco. No smoking day this week was taken seriously, too,

with a total ban on tobacco sales.

But it's not just cigarettes that are the problem, shisha smoking is part of the culture in this region.

The use of these water pipes are largely unregulated, yet they're thought to be 70 percent more toxic than cigarettes.

The reason being is that they release higher level of toxic metals into the air.

While progress is being made across the Emirates, officials say more steps are needed to meet the WHO's target of 30 percent reduction in

tobacco use in each country by 2025.

Amir Daftari, CNN, Abu Dhabi.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ANDERSON: All right.

Well, that's China and the UAE. Let's get more on the smoking epidemic around the world, shall we?

Let's bring in Edouard Tursan d'Espaignet from the World Health Organization who is in London for you this evening.

Let's start with Beijing, sir. How significant is this smoking ban?

EDOUARD TURSAN D'ESPAIGNET, WHO: Thank you very much for your question. This is very, very important. And WHO welcomes this new

arrangement being put into place by the authorities in China. This change will lead to lives saved, and will lead to a reduction in the number of 1

million deaths that we have approximately among the Chinese population every year.

Globally, we have 6 million deaths, that's one death every second -- one death every six seconds -- and therefore having China put its weight

into tobacco control is highly overdue, and is the most welcome piece of news that we have this week.

[11:40:16] ANDERSON: Yeah, and we would absolutely expect you to say that.

I want to read out some stats from your very latest fact sheet for our viewers. The tobacco epidemic, one of the biggest public health threats

that the world has ever faced, killing nearly 6 million people a year, you say, nearly 80 percent of the more than 1 billion smokers worldwide live in

low and middle income countries where the burden of tobacco related illness and death is the heaviest.

How does the Middle East compare with the rest of the world, sir, in terms of smoking?

D'ESPAIGNET: Look, I think all countries in the world are trying to make headway against the tobacco industry. The tobacco industry is a very

powerful industry, whether it is so in the Middle East as it is in many other parts of the world.

In the Middle East, and specifically there are some good measures being taken by some countries, such as Yemen and the United Arab Emirates,

for example, who have now got strong measures to protect their population against tobacco smoking.

However, as you just -- as was just pointed out in your presentation earlier, the issue of shisha is very much also a very -- a big issue in

that region.

ANDERSON: What's the WHO, then, doing in terms of trying to raise awareness about the dangers of smoking?

D'ESPAIGNET: Well, the first -- the first thing that the WHO did back in 2003 is to agree with countries on the implementation of a world treaty,

the framework convention on tobacco control, which has been one of the fastest adopted treaties in the world, and which tries to halt the tobacco

epidemic, reverse it, so that we can save people's lives.

That treaty has now been followed by another treaty, which is a treaty on illicit trade, which WHO is working with countries to try to bring that

into being as well.

Currently, we have about eight countries that have signed the illicit trade treaty, then we need another 40 countries -- another 32 countries,

because we need a minimum of 40 countries to have this treaty in place.

ANDERSON: All right, sir, and with that we're going to leave it there. We thank you very much indeed for joining us this evening.

Let's get a closer look at why smoking has become so popular, for example, in China. Do use the website. You're going to find out how

cigarettes have become a form of social currency in the country. And we're going to break down there the popularity of tobacco by the numbers. See

where other nations rank with their smoking rates.

You can find that on our website CNN.com. That is CNN.com if you are a regular viewer of this show or of the network you will know that. I'm

sure you use the network widely anyway.

Live from Abu Dhabi, it is 43 minutes past 7:00. This is Connect the World with me, Becky Anderson.

Coming up, an ordinary walk home from school is anything but ordinary in Gaza. That is a little later in the hour.

And Israel this videotaped beating ignited protests among Ethiopian Jews. We'll show you how those protests are affecting change. Do stay

with us. This is CNN.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[11:45:59] ANDERSON: You're watching CNN. And this is Connect the World with me Becky Anderson. Welcome back.

Now, we want to revisit a story we brought you a little earlier when this video of an Ethiopian-Israeli soldier being assaulted surfaced a few

weeks ago, it sparked outrage over the treatment of Ethiopian Jews in Israel.

So, has anything changed since then?

Well, Oren Liebermann has this.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

OREN LIEBERMANN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Decades of frustration boiled over on the streets of Tel Aviv and across Israel, as thousands of

Ethiopian Jews protested against discrimination. It wasn't the first time this community has taken to the streets, but now they have the country's

attention, following a viral video that showing two Israeli police officers beating an Ethiopian-Israeli soldier in uniform. Both officers were fired.

But the video was a tipping point, a symptom of a much bigger problem. Ethiopians say they are treated like second-class citizen.

MEHERETA BARUCH-RON, DEPUTY MAYOR TEL AVIV: Those young people were born in Israel and they feel Israeli, but still they are in many points

people see them as Ethiopians

LIEBERMANN: Mehereta Baruch-Ron is the deputy mayor of Tel Aviv, Ethiopian Jew who came to Israel when she was 10 years old, escaping

Ethiopia on foot before she could fly to Israel.

BARUCH-RON: The Ethiopian Jews dreamed for 2,000 years to get to Jerusalem

LIEBERMANN: Baruch-Ron is a success story for the Ethiopian community, from an illiterate immigrant to a city and community leader.

Many of the 140,000 Ethiopian Jews living in Israel today came over in two massive airlifts in the late 80s and early 90s. The Ethiopians were

welcomed with open arms, but the dream gave way to new challenges. The government set up absorption centers throughout Israel to help Ethiopians get used to a new country. The trouble is, too often, Ethiopians

say, they struggle to find acceptance.

Unemployment in the Ethiopian community is 13 percent, nearly three times the national average, and Ethiopians earn a third less than Israelis.

According to Tebeka, an Ethiopian advocacy group, less than 2 percent of Israelis are Ethiopians, but Ethiopians make up nearly 20 percent of the

youth prison populations.

Ethiopians have been protesting discrimination for years, especially in 2013 after the government admitted to coaxing Ethiopian women into

taking birth control before moving to Israel.

But this time, the protests made a difference, the prime minister promised to end racism in Israel, while the chief of police is working to

end police discrimination.

FENTAHUN ASSEFA-DAWIT, TEBEKA: He admitted there is a problem, there is police violence against the Ethiopian community and that, by itself, is

I think a good starting point.

LIEBERMANN: Community leaders say these changes are a major step in the right direction, but they say they have to work fast while they still

have the country's attention.

Oren Liebermann, CNN, Jerusalem.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ANDERSON: Well, a man beaten by Sepp Blatter in last week's FIFA presidential election says he would have resigned if he had been in

Blatter's position.

Jordan's Prince Ali bin al-Hussein talked exclusively to CNN's Christiane Amanpour about the scandal that has engulfed world football's

governing body. Have a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PRINCE ALI BIN AL-HUSSEIN, JORDAN: He's responsible. And I hope that at some stage he actually does take responsibility for actions because he

is the president of a governing body of the most popular sport in the world.

Obviously, if I was in Sepp Blatter's position, I would have immediately resigned and probably more so ages ago because, at the end of

the day, this happened under his watch.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ANDERSON: And you can watch Christiane's full interview on Amanpour coming up a little more than two hours time right here on CNN, of course.

Well, live from Abu Dhabi, this is Connect the World with me Becky Anderson. Coming up, a big birthday for us here at CNN. We turn 35 years

old today. And we will look back at one of the big stories that help define our coverage. Back after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[11:53:00] ANDERSON: This is CNN and Connect the World with me Becky Anderson at, what 52 minutes past 7:00 here in the UAE.

Nearly a year after the devastating conflict between Israel and Hamas, many parts of Gaza still look like a war zone. Well, we've got a rare

aerial view of the Palestinian territory as a group of children headed home from school. Have a look at this.

(MUSIC)

ANDERSON: Remarkable.

You can always follow the stories that the team is working on throughout the day here at CNN. And do feel free to send us your own

video, photos, your stories, use the Facebook page, Facebook.com/CNNConnect. You can always tweet me, you know, that,

@BeckyCNN. We're on Instagram as well, search for Becky and CNN.

Well, in tonight's parting shots for you, Monday marks what is a very special anniversary here at CNN. 30 -- 35 years ago today, the world's

first 24 hour news network began broadcasting. And to mark the occasion, here is a look back at one of the major breaking news stories that helped

define this network.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

[11:55:48] UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: A powerful hurricane appears to be setting it site to the central gulf coast.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: This is maybe the easy side of the storm but it does not feel very easy right here on the banks of the Mississippi river, I

just want to show you a little bit...

ANDERSON COOPER, CNN ANCHOR: It's a very strange feeling covering a hurricane particularly one that was this size.

I was in a Wal-mart earlier in the day, and people just come up to you at the Wal-mart and they're like, have you heard about my town?

A woman at the Wal-mart said to me, you should to gulf coast of Mississippi because we haven't able to touch with our relatives in Waveland

and no one is reporting from there.

When I got to Waveland, that was unlike anything I've seen before.

I want to just show you a few shots around me. Just the complete devastation.

I went out with this FEMA body recovery team. We went to the house of a family; their last name was Bane (ph). Once you stepped on their porch,

you could smell them. Everything was ripped apart and things are on the floor, and it was very chaotic, and there was mud everywhere. And then

they found them.

These four people a man and wife, and two children, have died in this home.

They had drowned in their living room and it was a husband and a wife, and two of their kids were special needs kids. But there were really

nothing they could do. They mark an X on the door and they put the number four for the number of bodies on the door that were inside and then they

close the door and they left.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ANDERSON: I'm Becky Anderson, that was Connect the World.

END