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U.S. Synagogue Shooting Reignites Concerns Over Hate Speech; Trump blames Media for Stirring Up Anger and Outrage; Passenger Plane Crashes with 189 People on Board; Fans Mourn Leicester City Football Club Owner; Turkey Says Saudis "Slowly Admitting Everything"; Merkel Will Not Seek Re- Election as German Chancellor; Far-Right Candidate Elected President of Brazil. Aired 11-12p ET

Aired October 29, 2018 - 11:00   ET

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

[11:00:00] BECKY ANDERSON, CNN HOST: You're watching CONNECT THE WORLD with me, Becky Anderson. Hello and welcome. If you're watching us from

Abu Dhabi, the man accused of the deadliest attack against Jews in U.S. history will make his first court appearance just hours from now.

Prosecutors are seeking the death penalty. Eleven people were killed when the gunman opened fire at a synagogue in Pittsburgh, leaving the tight-knit

community and the entire nation in shock.

The suspect has a history of anti-Semitic rants against Jews on social media. He's been charged with 29 criminal counts including hate crimes.

President Donald Trump called for unity after the massacre, but today he's blaming the media for the, quote, great anger in the country. Once again

calling journalists the true enemy of the people. A former President of the targeted synagogue says all hate speech must stop. Here is what she

said to CNN about the gunman.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

LYNETTE LEDERMAN, FORMER PRESIDENT OF TARGETED SYNAGOGUE: We know that he hated Jews. But we also know he was incited to act. We also know that --

we know it's not a random act around the country. We see hate all the time. And, of course, our leaders are responsible. Our leaders have a

responsibility to us to unite us, to bring us together and not to divide us.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ANDERSON: The rabbi at the synagogue says he won't let hate, quote, close down his house of worship. He says they'll rebuild and be back stronger

and better than ever. CNN's Jessica Dean has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JESSICA DEAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The people of Pittsburgh showing they really are a city of steel. Thousands coming together to

mourn those killed so senselessly in Saturday's massacre.

RABBI JONATHAN PERLMAN, NEW LIGHT CONGREGATION: What happened yesterday will not break us. It will not ruin us. We will continue to thrive and

sing and worship and learn together.

DEAN: The crowd at the interfaith vigil spilling outside. The city's mayor declaring that hate is not welcome in his city.

BILL PEDUTO, PITTSBURGH MAYOR: We will drive anti-Semitism and the hate of any people back to the basement on their computer and away from the open

discussions and dialogues around this city, around this state and around this country.

DEAN: Less than two miles away, a memorial has grown outside the Tree of Life Synagogue, where 11 people were shot inside the Jewish house of

worship. Among them brothers Cecil and David Rosenthal, described as having a love for life and for those around them.

SUZAN HAUPTMAN, FRIEND OF VICTIMS: Cecil was tall, David was small. They stood proud at the front door, at the door that was open into the

sanctuary, whichever sanctuary it was. They just stood there. They said hello or they said good Shabbos, or they were like the ambassadors.

DEAN: Dr. Jerry Rabinowitz was a primary care physician. His nephew says he always wore a bow tie and had an infectious laugh.

SUSAN BLACKMAN, FRIEND OF DR. JERRY RABINOWITZ: Dr. Jerry was just somebody who, when you see him, your eyes light up.

DEAN: The oldest victim, 97-year-old Rose Mallinger is remembered as a sweet lady who regularly attended services with her daughter.

ROBIN BLOOM FRIEDMAN, FRIEND OF VICTIMS: When you'd look at her she had a lot of years left. It's not something we'll ever be able to wrap our heads

around.

DEAN: Police racing to the scene Saturday morning after they say 46-year- old suspect Robert Bowers opened fire inside the synagogue.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE, BROADCASTING: Contact. Contact. Shots fired. Shots fired.

DEAN: Police say Bowers targeted congregants until he was encountered by a SWAT team in a shootout, injuring four officers. Authorities say Bowers

was armed with an AR-15 and three handguns and had 21 guns registered to his name. Bowers eventually surrendering after being shot multiple times.

ROBERT JONES, SPECIAL AGENT-IN-CHARGE, FBI: This is the most horrific crime scene I've seen in 22 years with the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

DEAN: According to an FBI affidavit, the suspect told police during the shootout, quote, they're creating genocide to my people. I just want to

kill Jews.

[11:05:00] Bowers frequently posted anti-Semitic material on the social media platform Gab and blamed Jews for helping migrant caravans in Central

America.

Minutes before storming the synagogue, Bowers posted, quote, I can't sit by and watch my people get slaughtered. Screw your optics, I'm going in.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ANDERSON: Americans also still rattled by the mail bombs sent to top Democrats and this news organization last week. As the U.S. President

continues to attack the media as the enemy of the people, another suspicious package addressed to CNN was intercepted just today. This time

in the Atlanta. I want to bring in our chief political correspondent Dana Bash at this point. President Donald Trump, Dana, called for unity after

the synagogue massacre, but despite calls to dial down his rhetoric, today blaming the media for the great anger in the country. Once again, I

repeat, calling journalists the true enemy of the people. So, we have seen no change in the U.S. President's tone. Should we be surprised by that?

DANA BASH, CNN CHIEF POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: No, no. That's the question, Becky. You nailed the question. Of course, we shouldn't be

surprised. This is who the President is. It is who candidate Donald Trump was, and it is who private citizen Donald Trump was. He is and always has

been somebody who thrives on this kind of rhetoric. And it's not going to change despite, frankly, people like us having even private conversations

with people in his orbit about the notion of the press as the enemy of the people being ridiculous. Because that's not who we are, it's not what we

do. He needs a foil. And unfortunately, there are times, too many times, when those of us who are reporters -- and Becky you've probably been in

this situation as I have -- where you have to correct some falsehoods that you hear from this President or some inaccuracies that you hear from this

President.

That does not make us the enemy of the people. That makes us people who are doing the jobs that the founders of America thought that we should do

as the fourth estate, as people who are going to tell it like it is to the American people and challenge our elected officials on both sides of the

aisle. For him, he sees it as criticism, and that's why he lashes out.

ANDERSON: So, the important question, the really important question, Dana, at this point is not what are the consequences of his rhetoric or the

atmosphere many say his rhetoric creates because many people will say we are seeing the consequences of that atmosphere. So, I guess that begs the

question what happens next. If you and others are in a position to actually speak to those who are around him imploring him to pull back on

the rhetoric and he doesn't, what are the implications? What does happen? What can be done?

BASH: You know, I wish I had an answer to that question. I interviewed the President's campaign manager going into this week. I interviewed him

before what happened on Saturday, but after this man sent deadly packages to 14 people including two of the President's predecessors, as you said,

came to people at CNN, one in our mail room. And basically, the answer was this President believes that it is OK to have a spirited conversation, a

spirited debate about differences of opinion. And I don't think anybody would disagree with that. The disconnect is and will continue to be the

role of a President and the rhetoric that comes from a President because the words are so incredibly powerful.

I think there was an op-ed written by Ronald Reagan, the late former President Ronald Reagan's daughter, Patty Davis in today's paper in the

U.S. and the gist of what she said was, we've got to change our expectations. Because this President doesn't see his role as being

singularly different or as important and having that megaphone to calm the waters, to be a moral compass, to be a leader. And She's not wrong.

[11:10:00] Dana Bash reporting for you from Washington. Dana, thank you.

BASH: Thanks, Becky.

ANDERSON: As we've seen, the U.S. racked by waves of populist antiestablishment anger, feelings that aren't just confined to America.

You are well aware of this. Early this year we saw a glimpse of it in Europe. More on that later.

Right now, we're seeing political shockwaves in Brazil where far right candidate, Jair Bolsonaro won Sunday's presidential election after a bitter

and bloody campaign.

Massive crowds gathered outside his home to celebrate the victory of a man known for making racist, homophobic and misogynistic comments while

opponents took to the streets to protest. Bolsonaro won 55 percent of the vote over his leftist opponent Fernando Haddad who was plagued by a

corruption scandal. Bolsonaro touts himself as an outsider and is often described as Brazil's Donald Trump. Mr. Trump called to congratulate him

late on Sunday. Shasta Darlington is in Sao Paulo for you today. Shasta, a political earthquake this. What are his major first policy steps likely

to be?

SHASTA DARLINGTON, JOURNALIST: Becky, he won on this wave of anger over the corruption and over the rising crime, so he has vowed to make those his

first areas of focus. Again, this is -- it's going to be an uphill climb for him because he doesn't have a huge coalition in Congress. And one of

the things he said is he's not going to do all the horse trading that politicians have done in the past. He's not going to give out cabinet

positions to other parties, for example, to try to bring them on board.

But what he does have is a clear mandate, with 55 percent of valid votes, he can go into Congress and say, I said I'm going to tackle crime, and

they're already looking at legislation that would allow regular citizens to have easier access to guns, for example, also legislation that would make

it easier for police to shoot and kill suspected criminals and to lower the age of criminal responsibility so that teenagers could be tried as adults.

So, those are definitely some of the first steps that he says he wants to take.

The other areas that people will be watching closely are the economy. Interestingly as you pointed out, Bolsonaro and Donald Trump had a

conversation right after. It was apparent he had won the election. It was one of the first tweets that Bolsonaro sent out, I just spoke to Donald

Trump, we're going to work together.

Over the past decade, China has become Brazil's main trading partner. But Bolsonaro and his economic team say they're going to focus back on the

United States. Obviously, Trump and Bolsonaro are coming from similar positions of sort of claiming they're the antiestablishment politicians who

are going to drain the swamp. And Bolsonaro says he also wants to bring the economy more in line with the United States -- Becky.

ANDERSON: The far right elsewhere celebrating his win. The Italian Interior Minister, Matteo Salvini, took to Twitter writing, even in hashtag

Brazil the citizens have sent the left packing.

French right-wing figurehead Marine Le Pen also offering support. Does Bolsonaro see himself and talk about himself as part of what many see as

this global wave?

DARLINGTON: You know, Becky, definitely aligns himself very closely with Donald Trump. Interestingly he was quick to reject an endorsement from

David Duke, for example. What he says is he's got a conservative social agenda, but a liberal economic agenda. What I think draws a lot of

comparisons to some of these far-right wing leaders, however, is his record in the past. He's been a Congressman since 1991 -- even though he likes to

play up his military experience -- and during his period in Congress, he really wasn't known for his legislative accomplishments. Rather for his

out bursts on the Congressional floor where he would defend Brazil's military dictatorship. Where he would attack women and gays and

minorities. And it wasn't until this massive corruption scandal sort of engulfed all the top parties here in Brazil that he was able to reinvent

himself, not as this fringe figure. But as someone who was not tainted by the corruption scandal. So, he could say I'm rude and crude, but I'm

honest. I tell it like it is. I'm this antiestablishment guy who is going to drain the swamp -- Becky.

ANDERSON: Shasta Darlington in Sao Paulo for you today. Shasta, thank you.

We're also seeing one of these global shockwaves. You might describe them as rightly political icons. A big announcement from Germany's Chancellor

who has seen her powerful party weakened.

[11:15:05] Angela Merkel says she is stepping down as the leader of the Christian Democratic Party in December. That is after 18 years. Now she

also announced this will be her last term as Chancellor and she will not seek any political post after the term ends in 2021. Now this move comes

after the CDU party suffered another major loss in a regional election over the weekend. CNN's Fred Pleitgen will join us later in the show for more

on this. And this is an important story out of Berlin for you.

Connecting you this hour to what is surely the darkest fear of any of us who have to fly. As of right now a frantic round-the-clock search goes on

after an Indonesian plane plummeted out of the sky into the sea. Almost 200 people on board the Lion Air flight that crashed just 13 minutes after

takeoff. You can see how little into their flight the plane was on what is this map. Everyone on it unfortunately now thought dead.

So far divers finding six bodies in the water along with smashed parts of the plane which was itself brand new, cutting edge from Boeing, just

delivered. Now the pilots experienced, the weather clear at the time. So, what could have happened? Well let's bring in CNN's Ivan Watson who just

got to the airport where the plane took off from just hours ago. Ivan, what are you learning there?

IVAN WATSON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, the search under water has been suspended for now, Becky, because of poor visibility.

It'll be resumed shortly after dawn. The flight recorder has yet to be found, the main part of the fuselage from the plane has yet to be found.

Though authorities say that nine body bags with remains have been sent for identification. And the teams that are out on the sea, which include two

helicopters and 14 ships and more than 130 personnel, they have been collecting debris that they've been able to get off of the surface of the

sea after the crash.

The head of the search and rescue saying that it's very unlikely that anybody would have survived this crash that took place. We're at the

crisis center where some of the relatives that have been flown from the destination, Banka Island, they are here being helped by authorities during

what is just an agonizing vigil right now to find out more about this.

It was supposed to be a 70-minute flight and just some 12 nautical miles into the flight, just minutes after takeoff really, air traffic control say

the crew requested to come back here to the main airport here in Jakarta, and then shortly after that they lost contact, radar contact with the

plane.

I just spoke with a 14-year-old girl named Kaysha who told me her mother was on that flight that left early this morning, would had been flying to

see an uncle who had been injured in a motorcycle accident. The whole family here gathered for support and just wanted people to know that her

mother was a kind and loving person. And perhaps this was something having to do with heaven really, the way this tragedy has unfolded.

But it's an effort here -- the President of the country has been to this location and has instructed everybody to do hard work to try to figure out

what could have gone wrong. We do have reports that this very aircraft had some malfunctions the night before on a previous flight, but that those had

been repaired and the plane was declared fit for flying -- Becky.

ANDERSON: Ivan Watson at the airport there. And to connect to your world we will have a lot more on what is this tragedy in Indonesia.

Coming up, we'll speak with a former pilot and aviation consultant about search and rescue efforts and what could have caused that plane to go down.

That's in about 15, 20 minutes time from now.

Still to come. English football fans mourning an off-the-field hero. The popular owner of the Leicester City football club died in a helicopter

crash outside the stadium shortly after a match over the weekend. We look at how he is being remembered.

[11:20:00] (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ANDERSON: A man of kindness and generosity, devoted to his family and those he so successfully led. That is how the beloved owner of Leicester

City Football Club is being remembered. You are looking at players of the club walking by the floral tribute to Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha, the Thai

billionaire who died when his helicopter crashed and burst into flames in the parking lot just outside the Leicester Stadium, not far from this

vigil, incredibly close in fact. It happened just after Saturday's Premier League match. Four other people were aboard the helicopter. They were

also killed.

Let's go live to Leicester now, to CNN's World Sports, Christina MacFarlane. As we look at the pictures of those players, just explain how

the club and how its fans are mourning this man.

CHRISTINA MCFARLANE, CNN WORLD SPORT: Becky, it's sad and surreal day, week, really, to be here two years on from when Leicester City were

celebrating winning the Premier League. The fans are back today as they have been all weekend, paying tribute to their chairman, Chairman Vichai

and four others who lost their lives here on Saturday.

And as you mentioned a short while ago, we witnessed some powerful, emotional scenes here with the senior club coming out in a line surrounding

the tributes you can see over my shoulder here and standing in silence and just looking at the messages, the hundreds of messages that have been left

here. In fact, standing just in front of me here was one of the key players in that side, Jamie Vardy, alongside Chairman Vichai's son,

Aiyawatt Srivaddhanaprabha. They stood just in front of me. I could almost hear what they were saying. Vardy was pointing out to him exactly

what people were saying in the tributes. And alongside of them the manager had tears in his eyes. In fact, many of the players had tears in their

eyes.

And then earlier today, another extraordinary scene with the young Thai footballers rescued from a cave in Thailand in July, actually came here to

the left of our live position and stood in a line with their heads bowed, again, coming to pay tribute to what has happened. They are, in fact, in

the United Kingdom because they were in Manchester this weekend watching Manchester United play Everton the night that that fateful accident

occurred. They came here quietly. They left quietly.

Today everyone paying tribute to a man who they say was more than just a chairman of this club.

ANDERSON: Let's talk about his legacy. Just remind people, if you will, Christina, who he is and what sort of impression and impact he has had on

what is -- this is a club which has got a great history, but it hasn't had a history at the stop of English football until a couple of years ago.

Just explain, if you will.

MCFARLANE: For many of us, Becky, he remains the man who masterminded one of the greatest sporting achievements of all time. When he came to the

club in 2010, the club was looking like they were going under financially as well as the football world as well. He not only poured money into the

club but he brought with him a belief that they could do better. And it was that belief that he is still -- not just in the players, but in the

fans as well, that made them love him because he cared just as much about the fans as he did about the finances and running of the club. He didn't

treat the fans here as customers. He treated them as supporters. And we've heard stories here from the fans today how he would also give away

scarves, doughnuts, free beer on match days and during his birthday.

[11:26:00] He was an incredibly popular figure. You just don't see this kind of emotion, this love for football owners often, if at all, in English

football. Let me stand to one side, Becky, and show you some of the tributes you can probably see over my shoulder. I've taken the time to

read some of them this morning. They say thank you for the memories. We are absolutely devastated. You talk about legacy, Becky. They are

determined to honor his memory here. You can see to the left a picture has been erected overnight of Chairman Vichai, as he's fondly referred to here

by fans. Also, we know that tomorrow a commemorative book is going to be left here outside the front of the king power stadium where fans can come

and leave their messages.

The fans have been talking to me about the fact that they want to erect possibly a statue to him outside the King Power Stadium. Everyone here

wanting to continue his legacy. No one talking about the football, the fact that we are still in the midst of a busy football season. We know

that game scheduled for Tuesday night for now has been postponed. Everyone simply wanting to remember what an incredible owner and leader he was for

this club.

ANDERSON: Remarkable. Christina, thank you for that.

Coming up, search and rescue efforts are under way in the waters off Indonesia after a passenger plane went down just minutes after takeoff.

I'm going to speak to a former pilot about what could have happened. That is up next.

Plus, the Turkish foreign minister says Saudi Arabia is slowly admitting everything about the death of journalist Jamal Khashoggi. We are live in

Riyadh for you and indeed in Istanbul. That is next.

[11:30:00] (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ANDERSON: You're watching CONNECT THE WORLD. I'm Becky Anderson. It's 7:30 in Abu Dhabi. Welcome back.

Returning to the deadly plane crash in Indonesia. Family members anxiously awaiting news of their loved ones after a Lion Air jet went down in the

Java Sea just minutes after takeoff from Jakarta, 189 people were on board including three children. So far divers have recovered six bodies along

with debris and some personal belongings. Alastair Rosenschein is an aviation consultant and former pilot who joins us now from London. Another

aviation tragedy. What do you make of this so far from what little information we have at this point, sir?

ALASTAIR ROSENSCHEIN, FORMER PILOT: You put your finger on it. It's very little information. What does appear to happen is that the aircraft took

off, climbed up to about 5,000 feet and then there seems to be some change in their vertical speed. They seem to have been maybe having a control

problem, and the pilot's primary responsibility is to fly the aircraft and then navigate it. They had time to make a radio call. I don't know the

contents of that radio call, but shortly after that the aircraft plunged into the sea. So, this remains at this point in time a search and rescue.

But it is almost impossible to say just what happened.

ANDERSON: This plane does seem to have gone down in shallow waters. Will investigators at least be hopeful that they will find out fairly quickly

what happened? I guess there are still hope they could find people alive at this point?

ROSENSCHEIN: Well, that will be their primary concern, as I say, search and rescue. But they'll also be looking for the flight -- the cockpit

voice recorder and the flight data recorder. Both of those should be relatively easy to find in shallow water. Although, I understand that the

electronic location beacon is not actually working, so it makes it somewhat harder. But the airline -- Boeing will be able to inform the searchers

just which part of the aircraft the boxes are kept in.

So, once they're recovered, they can remove the little microchip and then they'll be able to hear what happened on the flight deck, the voices of the

pilots and any noises on the flight deck and also the various parameters of the aircraft. There are about 700 of them, flight controls, fuel rate,

engine power, so on and so forth.

ANDERSON: So, we do know one thing, where there doesn't seem to have been a big factor here. An expert telling CNN just earlier, it's just one of

what they described as four very big areas to look into. The others being mechanical, such as a fault with the plane. It could be human, perhaps

pilot error or even criminal, perhaps terrorism. Based on what we are seeing and learning, what might you expect likely to have happened here?

Is that a fair question at this point, or is it just too early to put that question to you?

ROSENSCHEIN: Well, all you can do, Becky, is go on percentages. Some sort of mechanical failure is probably the most likely. But, you know, this is

purely speculative.

[11:35:00] However, given the fact that the aircraft diverted from its normal profile -- that's the climb profile. One would assume that it's

most likely to have been something on the mechanical side, the electrical, mechanical, maybe control, something of that order. But really, we're not

going to know until they get these two boxes back, what the laymen call black boxes. Once those are recovered, they'll know pretty much exactly

what had happened. It's very important that they find out as quickly as possible, especially with a new model of aircraft. Because what happened

here could possibly affect the same model of aircraft flying in other parts of the world.

But the 737 itself, there are over 10,000 of them made. It's the most common airliner in the world. No other aircraft has had quite this many

made. I, in fact, used to fly a very early model of the 737 in the 1980s. It's a very robust and safe aircraft.

ANDERSON: Sir, it's good have you on, your insight is very important to us. Thank you.

ROSENSCHEIN: Thank you.

ANDERSON: To a story that has dominated the headlines for weeks now. Turkey's foreign minister says Saudi Arabia is, and I quote, slowly

admitting everything about the killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi. He also warned the Saudis against stalling in the probe and said the

investigation needs to be concluded soon.

Well this all comes with the Saudi prosecutor in Istanbul, where he's meeting one of the Turkish officials four weeks after Khashoggi's death

inside the Saudi consulate there. CNN's Sam Kiley is in the Saudi capital in Riyadh. Ben Wedeman is in Istanbul. Let me start with you, Ben.

Another step in this investigation. What came out of this meeting, if anything?

BEN WEDEMAN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: As far as we know, nothing. They met for an hour and 15 minutes. This was the Saudi public

prosecutor with the prosecutor of Istanbul who is leading this investigation. But a very brief meeting when you consider, that of course,

everything has to be translated. Certainly, we did hear the Turkish foreign minister saying that Saudi Arabia is slowly admitting to

everything. But they haven't put out any information as far as we know about the two things the Turkish officials want to hear about most. That

is where is the body and who ordered the killing of Jamal Khashoggi as opposed to who actually carried it out.

Now the Turks were expecting to receive the testimony of the 18 Saudis who have been detained back in Saudi Arabia. That's the 15-men hit team plus

three members of the Saudi counsel. But to the best of our knowledge that information was not shared and we do not believe that the Turks shared with

the Saudis that infamous audio recording that supposedly contains the torture, murder and dismemberment of Jamal Khashoggi -- Becky

ANDERSON: Sam, how is all this being portrayed in Riyadh at present?

SAM KILEY, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: It's either being ignored in the local press almost entirely or continued to be blamed on

those who wish the nation ill. That's sort of in the right-wing media, if you like. In the softer, more liberal press, the story is being eked out.

But privately the Saudis -- like everybody else in the world -- have been consumed with bemusement as to how it is possible from the Saudi

perspective to have gone from the position that Jamal Khashoggi left that consulate a free and healthy man through to he died during an interrogation

that went wrong. Now the prosecutor here in Saudi Arabia is saying there was a plot to murder him, but that the ordering -- the order to go on this

operation, who gave the order remains a mystery.

But equally, we've also seen Abel al-Jubeir promise to former general Mattis, the Secretary of Defense, that there will be a completely

transparent investigation. That rather commits the Saudis ultimately to a full exposition or to leave a mystery.

ANDERSON: Sam Kiley's in Riyadh, Ben is in Istanbul continuing to cover the story for you. Gentlemen, thank you.

To Germany now where it seems to be the beginning of the end for Angela Merkel's chancellorship. Earlier today she announced she will not seek re-

election once her current term is over in 2021. She will also give up leadership of her Christian Democratic Union party, CDU, in December after

18 years in the role now. The move comes as support for the CDU party continues to weaken with another significant loss in regional elections

over the weekend.

[11:40:00] CNN's Anna Stewart on the story out of London for us. Anna, beyond the technicalities of this move, is this essentially a step by a

weakened, very weakened leader at this point?

ANNA STEWART, CNN REPORTING: It was, and she took responsibility actually right in the beginning of her press conference friend. Saying that these

weak results over the weekend in the Hesse regional election is her responsibility, and it's time to start a new chapter.

[11:40:05] Now, she's really faced difficulty since the last general election. She's been struggling to recover political ground since then.

That was last year. This was the second regional election in a month where her party and her coalition parties have done rather badly. Losing out to

the Green Party and the far-right party, the AFD.

A sign, perhaps, that people really did not like her stance on immigration back in 2015. That was a real pivotal moment I think in her career. Now

she wants to stay on as chancellor until the next general election, but that's three years away. Plenty of speculation about whether her successor

-- if it's a critic -- might try and oust her before then. And of course, whether this coalition which has had a lot of infighting can survive three

years or whether it will fall apart before then. We just heard actually from the SBD chairman who says that they will continue in this coalition,

but there is plenty of speculation that that won't be the case in the coming months.

ANDERSON: What does this mean for Germany, do you think? You've talked about how critical it is at this stage, that she can hold this coalition

together. But the Germans, front and center, of course, in Europe at a time when things are tough, not least with the sort of shadow of Brexit.

Angela Merkel, a stalwart when it comes to keeping the sort of European project together. What do you think the ramifications might be?

STEWART: In the broader European picture this is fascinating because it really follows a trend. You can look at Italy, where we have a populist

coalition government which is causing huge amounts of pain and stress over a budget it wants approved. You look to the U.K. with Brexit negotiations

on going and not going very well, I would say. And now we have this rise of the far right in Germany. And you know, you also have to picture that

Angela Merkel isn't the leader in terms of her party and in terms of Germany. She is a European leader. She has been chancellor since 2005.

You know, she has seen EU leader come and go from the EU leader table. She's been stability for the EU. And now there's a lot less certainty for

sure. And you can have a look at the euro today it's under pressure because investors are a bit worried by this move.

ANDERSON: Anna, how significant was the Merkel immigration policy to what has happened in Germany since and to her as a leader?

STEWART: In 2015, when she decided she didn't want to restrict migrants coming into the country, it's hundreds of thousands were coming into the

months and eventually over a million. That caused huge controversy at the time. And of course, that only got worse as they try and deal with welfare

issues, particularly in a place like Bavaria, and in that state election, her sister party lost their lead there. So, you can see there's certainly

social issues that have come about as a result of the immigration policy, it hasn't gone away.

I think when you look back at Angela Merkel's legacy, this will be that moment that her career went from sky high to suddenly it started to fall.

And she does have an incredible legacy, Becky. I mean, if you look at Germany's economy in the years that she's been chancellor, it has rocketed.

It is the engine of Europe. But unfortunately, the immigration policy will be seen I think in a legacy of Angela Merkel as a bit of a sore spot.

ANDERSON: Anna's in London, the story there in Berlin for you today. You're watching CONNECT THE WORLD live from Abu Dhabi connecting the world

for you. Lots more ahead. Stay tuned.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

NEIL CURRY, CNN REPORTING (voice-over): This is the Rub al Khali desert known as the empty quarter. It's the largest continuous sand mass in the

world. It stretches across Saudi Arabia, Oman, Yemen and the United Arab Emirates. While some view it as a harsh and barren terrain, this man

couldn't live without it and calls it home.

AMRO AHMAD ABU AFFA, ACTIVITY MANAGER: If you like to be away from the city and from the noise, you can have the peace over here. Because when

you go out in the desert, you can't hear anything, no cars, no airplanes, no noise, no nothing. You just you can hear yourself while you are

breathing.

CURRY: Nestled within the desert is the Qasr Al Sarab and Amro is the activity manager there.

AHMAD ABU AFFA: I love the desert because the people they think it's empty, there is nothing here. But there is a life, and especially on the

night. It's a challenge to live, that's true. But for me as a person I love challenges and I love to be on the desert.

My favorite activity here is to do is dune bashing. For me as a person, I love -- enjoy that picture and I love driving.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Whoo!

AHMAD ABU AFFA: I'm working with them and the guests are shouting. And dune bashing that means they're enjoying.

If you look at this, you think it's empty and there is no life here. But in fact, there's a big life. There's a wildlife even.

You see, this is the very camel I told you about. This is actually our own camel farm where we have around 30 camels. They are mixed between male and

female. The current (INAUDIBLE) because while he's walking on the sand, he doesn't get stuck on, he doesn't think, he's like floating on his hoof

flat. And the second thing, to climb the dunes, the camel has three knees, not one. It has three.

CURRY: As the sunsets on the Rub al Khali desert, Amaro takes his guests on a camel trek. Invites them to enjoy the magic of the dunes at dusk.

AHMAD ABU AFFA: If you would like to have the experience and the culture of Abu Dhabi, you need to go to the desert because the Qasr Al Sarab is

part of almost all the Arabic countries and it is our culture.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[11:50:00] ANDERSON: Well from "The Lord of the Rings" to "The Hobbit," Peter Jackson has filmed some of Hollywood's most iconic battle scenes.

Hasn't he? But the Oscar winner now turning his attention to a real-world conflict. CNN's Neil Currie, my colleague, on how Jackson's new

documentary aims to transform the way that we see the first world war. Have a look at this.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

NEIL CURRY, CNN REPORTING (voice-over): London's Imperial War Museum was founded in 1917 while the first world war was still continuing to record

what is becoming one of the bloodiest episodes in history. More than 8.5 million soldiers were killed and a similar number of civilians.

The tragedy was documented in art, literature and in a relatively new medium, film. But in the century since then, there's been a growing

disconnect between the great war and the modern world.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I think for the younger generation, I think the difficulty of seeing the world in black and white has been an increasing

challenge, and the idea that you can con sign anything that's black and white to being history and not really connected to you has been one of the

challenges that we faced.

CURRY: As century of the war arrived, the museum needed a war hero of its own and found one in film director Peter Jackson. The triple Oscar winner

demonstrated his cinematic skills bring to life Tolkien's "Lord of the Rings" and "Hobbit" books with the command of intimate storytelling and

epic battle scenes. Jackson was prepared, though, to put Hollywood on hold, to pursue a personal passion, a fascination with the first world war.

PETER JACKSON, DIRECTOR, "THEY SHALL NOT GROW OLD": I mean, I dealt with a single soldier in the first world war, could have given you any explanation

as to why they were fighting and what they were fighting for.

CURRY: That fascination led Jackson to collect and construct a number of World War I planes. Some of which have been set up in dramatic scenes by

his production team at the Omaka Museum, back home in New Zealand. On the other side of the planet, London's Imperial War Museum was able to benefit

from Jackson's knowledge of both the war and film.

MATT LEE, IWM HEAD OF FILM: All they have here was a short sequence from the Battle of Passchendaele which shows a trench crossing quite rough

terrain. And what the Peter Jackson project was able to do is really bring out the colors, the camouflage that you actually see on this tank in black

and white.

JACKSON: The purpose of the film was to try to use modern technology -- not modern film. I mean, we could easily go out and shoot reconstructions

and all of that. But we didn't do that. We used strictly having seen the regional footage, but we used computer fire power.

LEE: There would be scratches, embedded blemishes in the film. They adjust the speed of it, they color grade it as well. Also, the three-

dimensional nature of the film gives it a greater depth and immediacy, a more immersive viewing experience.

JACKSON: It does makes all these cliche black and white kind of figures that we don't pay much attention to anymore. It suddenly turns them into

human beings.

LEE: The sound as well. I think that's quite important here. It actually creates sound effects from the period. They use lip readers to do the

sound as well. Of course, the film itself was silent, but actually the soldiers would often say things towards the camera because they were

conscious that these films were being screened back in cinemas on the home front.

JACKSON: It's changed my perception of what it was like to be a soldier in the war. The film is about the people. And I was very appreciative I

guess, and surprised and appreciative of self that these guys have.

CURRY: In a twist of fate, Peter Jackson reveals he wouldn't be here without the action of a German machine gunner.

JACKSON: My grandfather was wounded on the first day. Within the first minutes and then I did some research in the South Wales border is the

second Battalion were virtually obliterated within minutes, on July 1st. And I found a German machine gun map and found there was about 32 German

machine guns all aimed at where my grandfather was advancing. And so, he's wounded and goes back to England -- wounded quite badly. He meets my

grandmother and gets married there. So, if that German machine gunner had missed or hadn't hit him, I probably wouldn't exist today.

CURRY: The director hopes it will leave a legacy of its own.

JACKSON: What I hope, that it will inspire as children, to younger people to go and explore their own family history.

[11:55:00] CURRY: And in a personal gift, Peter Jackson's team have transformed a further 80 hours of footage which will be donated back to the

Imperial War Museum for the benefit of future generations. Neil Curry, CNN, London.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ANDERSON: I'm Becky Anderson. That was CONNECT THE WORLD from the team here in Abu Dhabi, those working for us in Atlanta and in London, thank you

for watching. The news continues on CNN. "THE EXPRESS" is next. And Fred Pleitgen will be on that out of Berlin with more on Merkel's next moves.

Do stay with us for that.

END