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U.S. Calls for Yemen Ceasefire Within 30 Days; Trump Stokes Fears Ahead of Midterm Elections; Flight Data Recorder Arrives at the Port in Indonesia; Improving Relations Between Israel and Gulf States; U.N. Special Envoy to Yemen Speaks to CNN; Google Workers Walk Out to Protest Sexual Harassment; CNN Heroes 2018. Aired 11-12p ET

Aired November 01, 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] (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I always want to tell the truth. When I can, I tell the truth.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BECKY ANDERSON, CNN HOST: Telling the truth when he can? Something that's apparently been missing in the run up to the U.S. midterms. What these

elections mean and why they matter, not just for America, but for the global stage. You and me. That is this hour.

Also, a U.S. U-turn in essence on the war in Yemen, and the world's worst humanitarian crisis, signs of a tougher approach to Saudi Arabia after

recent events that shook the region. Analysis from our State Department.

Plus --

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

IVAN WATSON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: I'm Ivan Watson in Jakarta where Indonesian authorities have recovered a black box from the

Lion Air flight 610 which crashed on Monday with 189 people on board.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ANDERSON: All those stories and more this hour. Hello and welcome. You're watching CONNECT THE WORLD. I'm Becky Anderson for you live from

our Middle East programming hub in Abu Dhabi.

Before we get you to Washington this hour, we are bringing you two big stories with shockwaves being felt from Capitol Hill to capital cities

across the Middle East. The fallout over the killing of a Saudi journalist inside the kingdom's consulate in Istanbul more than one month ago

continues with Turkey putting out its first official version of what happened to Jamal Khashoggi. Strangled and dismembered, all part of a

premeditated plan they say. That directly contradicts the Saudi story in a standoff that looks likely to drag on amid a global outcry.

Adding to that, U.S. President Trump's comments on Wednesday saying he doesn't feel betrayed, but that the Saudis may have, quote, betrayed

themselves.

And closely linked to all of this, according to multiple sources speaking to CNN, a U.S. shift in position on the Saudi-led war in Yemen. Long

accused of turning a blind eye to Riyadh's action, Washington now urging a truce and talks within the month.

We're following the regional ripple effects of both of these stories throughout the show as we've been doing for weeks now and keeping a close

eye on the U.S. ties and turns on both.

I want to begin with a new ad that critics are calling desperate, divisive and a sickening new low, even for a President well known for playing loose

with the facts and preying on people's fears. In the final days before Tuesday's elections in the United States, Donald Trump has unleashed a

racially charged, highly inflammatory ad about immigrants to drive home his closing message that Americans should be afraid, very afraid, of dangerous

invaders coming to hurt them. Well a source close to the White House says the ad is clearly working because it is changing the conversation. Well

Democrats say it's a sign of political weakness. But are they doing enough to turn the conversation back to health care and other big concerns they

say that American voters really have? Washington correspondent Abby Phillip has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ABBY PHILLIP, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): President Trump embracing demagogy, tweeting the most racially charged political video in

decades, demonizing immigrants and accusing Democrats of plotting to overrun the country with criminals.

It's reminiscent of the notorious Willie Horton ad, financed by supporters of President George H.W. Bush's 1988 campaign, which played directly into

white fear and African-American stereotypes.

GEORGE H.W. BUSH'S 1988 CAMPAIGN AD: Despite a life sentence, Horton received ten weekend passes from prison. Horton fled, kidnapped a young

couple, stabbing the man and repeatedly raping his girlfriend.

PHILLIP: A source close to the White House describing the video and President Trump's hardline focus on immigration as an effort to change the

argument from family unification to invasion. Arguing that the inflammatory rhetoric is working to change the narrative away from health

care.

TOM PEREZ, CHAIRMAN, DEMOCRATIC NATIONAL COMMITTEE: They have to distract, they have to fear monger and his dog whistle of all dog whistles is

immigration.

PHILLIP: It comes as President Trump makes a number of false claims about the group of asylum seeking Central American migrants making way through

Mexico.

TRUMP: They've got a lot of rough people in those caravans. They are not angels.

You have caravans coming up that look a lot larger than it's reported actually. I mean, I'm pretty good at estimating crowd size. It's a lot of

young people, a lot of young men, and they always -- and they have been doing this -- they're pushing the women up to the front.

[11:05:00] PHILLIP: The Mexican government estimates that the caravan from Honduras has dropped from 7,000 to about 4,500 people. Those that remain

are still about 1,000 miles away from the U.S. border. President Trump admitted last week that he does not have evidence to support the claim that

Middle Easterners are part of the caravan.

TRUMP: There's no proof of anything. There's no proof of anything. But they could very well be.

PHILLIP: Wednesday night, again acknowledging he plays fast and loose with the facts.

TRUMP: I always want to tell the truth. When I can, I tell the truth.

PHILLIP: Nevertheless, the President pledging to send up to 15,000 active duty troops to the border, about three times of the amount currently

fighting terrorists in Iraq.

REP. JACKIE SPEIER (D), CALIFORNIA: Sending 10 to 15,000 troops, which means we're going to spend between $100 and $150 million so that he can

have his -- I guess his surprise, his October surprise.

PHILLIP: The President also doubling down on his false claim that he can end the constitutional guarantee of birth right citizenship, citing

President Obama's executive order on DREAMers that his administration has said is legal.

TRUMP: Certainly, if he can do DACA, we can do this by executive order.

PHILLIP: Mr. Trump, attacking the Speaker of the House for challenging his claim.

REP. PAUL RYAN (R), HOUSE SPEAKER: You cannot end birth right citizenship with an executive order.

PHILLIP: Meanwhile, Democrats attempting to keep the focus on health care.

JOE BIDEN, FORMER U.S. VICE PRESIDENT: You have the President of the United States saying we guarantee -- or whatever his phrase was --

everybody is covered with preexisting conditions is covered. Simply not true.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ANDERSON: Abby Phillip reporting. Well Mr. Trump has also tried to stoke fears about Muslims and CNN political analyst Josh Rogin says that could

present an opportunity for Democrats. Josh, joining us now live from Washington. And before we explore your specific argument, Josh, with five

days and counting before these U.S. midterms. Which in any other year might not have sort of any real implication for our international viewers

in watching what's going on in Washington. The U.S. President doubling down on the rhetoric he believes will help send more Republicans to the

hill. There are many who say that rhetoric is working. Correct?

JOSH ROGIN, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: Well, we'll have to wait until Tuesday to see if it's working or it's not working. Nobody really knows. But what

we've seen in the last weeks and months in the lead up to these midterm elections, is a deliberate strategy by the President and his team to focus

their foreign policy efforts on things that serve their domestic base, their voters. And that's why we see so much talk about immigration,

terrorism, the focus on a pastor in Turkey who happens to be a big priority of the evangelical movement, tariffs, manufacturing, jobs, that kind of

thing.

So right now, foreign policy is being held hostage to the political imperatives of this government. After the election, depending on what

happens, that could all change. Right after the election, the President is going to meet with the President of China. He's going to meet with the

President of Russia. He's going -- the vice President is going to travel to Asia. There's going to be new Iran sanctions. So, we're going to have

a shift back next week towards foreign policy that's more focused on the foreign and less on the domestic.

ANDERSON: Fascinating. All right. Josh, in your column for the "Washington Post" then, called "Trump is alienating American Muslim voters,

can Democrats take advantage." You say right now; many Republican politicians seem to believe their political fortunes lie in exploiting

fears about Muslims. But increasingly the community is imposing costs on politicians who make this cynical calculation.

Explain, if you will.

ROGIN: Sure. Well since 9/11 but especially since President Trump came into office, the Muslim-American community has been realizing, despite the

fact that it has a lot of numbers and a lot of money, and a lot of young people who are active in politics, they're not getting a lot of attention

from either political party. And now because President Trump has campaigned on and made it his policy to demonize Muslims and to stoke the

kind of anti-Muslim bigotry and racism that that community is fearful of, they've turned towards the Democrats for salvation. And they've also

turned towards them to offer them support and money and they're also mounting a lot of candidates -- 100 Muslim-American candidates in 2018, up

from 12 only two years ago.

The question that I raise in my column in "The Washington Post" will Democrats take advantage of that. And so far, the answer is not really.

Michael Avenatti, who has an outside shot to get the Democratic primary nomination for President in 2020, he realized it. He showed up at a

Muslim-American community event, donated $10,000, and told them what they wanted to hear. Which is that he will fight for their issues. Will other

2020 candidates follow suit? We'll have to wait and see.

[11:10:00] ANDERSON: I just want to bring up a map of where the U.S. President is and will be traveling for the benefit of our viewers over the

next five days. This is Trump's campaign blitz as it were. Just remind us very briefly why and where the U.S. President is going matters.

ROGIN: Well, he's going to Florida, Montana, Arizona, places where Republicans are in trouble, OK. There are a bunch of senate races that are

safe. These are the ones -- senate races and governor races where Republicans are losing ground. These are all states he won. These are all

states where he has a base. So, he's not going to the places where moderate Republicans and moderate Democrats are fighting each other. He's

going to the places where there is far right and then there's a far left and he's betting if he can turn out the far-right vote with the rallies, as

he did in 2016, then that can overpower the far left. And that's the strategy.

ANDERSON: The graphic on the right-hand side of your screen, viewers, reminding you it is five days and counting to what are these increasingly

important U.S. midterm elections. Josh, thank you.

On this program, we've often shown you images that are truly distressing. They can be scenes from war zones or natural disasters or sometimes

pictures like these that might seem ordinary at first until I tell you what is actually happening. You are looking at officials in Indonesia using

shoes to identify passengers who were on the Lion Air plane that crashed on Monday. An unimaginable challenge they can only rise to with the help of

the passengers' loved one.

There is at least one key break through. Search teams have recovered the plane's flight data recorder but its answers may take some time to uncover.

Ivan Watson at a port near Jakarta with the so-called black box has arrived. What can you tell us, Ivan?

WATSON: Yes. It arrived a couple hours ago to some fanfare where the Indonesian authorities brought it out in a transparent plastic case,

immersed in water, they say to help protect the records, the almost priceless records inside. They say it will be a slow process of drying it

out and then extracting the information.

It took days to find this, Becky. Because the impact of the plane smashing into the Java Sea early on Monday morning, some 13 hours after takeoff, it

shattered the brand-new Boeing 737 Max 8 into pieces. Some of which are laying here that have been recovered from the surface of the ocean. And

then it took cases to first hear the beacon which was pinging underwater at a frequency of 3.7 kilo hertz every second. And then to dive through the

murk and the rapid currents underwater to a depth of some 35 meters beneath the sea and then divers still had to dig in the mud to pull this out of the

seabed. They've recovered this.

The investigators say it could take weeks to get all the data and then analyze it, though we're hearing perhaps a preliminary report could come

out at the end of November. We still haven't heard anything about the cockpit voice recorder which would have had the last words exchanged

between the pilot and co-pilot during what data -- flight data has indicated was a very erratic and probably quite frightening 13 minutes that

the plane was in the air, and that has not come out.

We know that the cockpit crew requested to return back to the main airport in Jakarta soon after takeoff, but they never had time to issue a mayday

signal, an emergency signal. Meanwhile, the ministry of transport here has ordered that the number of key executives in Lion Air -- the low-budget

airline that operated the plane -- that they be relieved of their duties as well as members of the board of directors as well, as part of this

investigation.

A delegation has come from the U.S. that includes members of the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board, the FAA, and the manufacturers,

Boeing and General Electric, which is involved in helping build the plane's engines, all trying to get to the bottom of why a brand-new plane tumbled

out of the sky -- Becky.

ANDERSON: Ivan Watson on the story out of the ports there in Indonesia, thank you, Ivan.

[11:15:01] Still to come this hour in Yemen, U.S. made bombs have helped add fuel to a brutal three-year civil war, but now America demanding a

cease fire. The details on what appears to be a dramatic U-turn.

And a handshake with a lot of meaning. What Benjamin Netanyahu's visit to Oman could say about relations between Israel and the Arab world. Stay

with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ANDERSON: Well New York police are still trying to figure out if t wo Saudi sisters who drowned in the Hudson River were the victims of foul

play. "The New York Times" reporting the girls had applied for asylum in the United States and investigators say it is clear the girls did not want

to return to Saudi Arabia. Authorities say they suspect the sisters died, though, by suicide. The investigation is ongoing. That's a story we will

follow as it develops.

You're watching CNN. This is CONNECT THE WORLD with me, Becky Anderson. Welcome back.

To a story now that we've tracked exhaustively here on CONNECT THE WORLD. The world's worst humanitarian catastrophe. Yemen's ongoing war. The

country -- Saudi-backed government has just said that it welcomes calls for peace talks after a major diplomatic U-turn, it seems, from the United

States, calling for a cease fire within 30 days. But the Yemeni government's statement did not directly mention that call to end

hostilities.

Meantime on Thursday, the Houthi rebel's leader said only the U.S. can stop the war. Multiple nations at play, as you are well aware here, but America

at the helm. Let's connect it all for you. Elise Labott is live from the U.S. State Department. And, Elise, it's clear the U.S. has for some time

been facing growing pressure to end its support for the coalition in the war in Yemen. Why these calls, though, now for a cease fire?

ELISE LABOTT, CNN GLOBAL AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT: Well, Becky, you know, officials are saying the time is right. The U.N. envoy, Martin Griffiths,

is making a real push. And you've seen the humanitarian disaster in Yemen really growing.

[11:20:00] The U.N. really pushing to ease that humanitarian situation and get the parties to the table. But I have to say, Becky, this can't be

taken in a vacuum to what happened in the wake of the murder of Saudi journalist, Jamal Khashoggi, and the U.S. disaffection with the way the

Saudis handled it.

Now the Saudis have -- you know, we've talked about the investigation and that Saudis have rounded up what they say are 18 suspects, but the U.S.

does see the Saudi government right now, you know, a bit of a pariah in a weakened state and it's using what leverage it thinks it has right now

because the Saudis really need the U.S. to stand by its side to make a push to end the war in Yemen. As well as, you know, ease the conflict between

Saudi Arabia and the Gulf states and Qatar. Which is really putting the U.S. in a bind in the region.

Officials tell me that in diplomatic sources that they realize these won't be solved by the end of the year, but they think that the time is right to

try and get some progress on both fronts.

ANDERSON: Right. The call for this cease-fire is for within 30 days. We're going to talk with the U.N. envoy, Martin Griffiths, live on this

show in less than ten minutes time. The Houthi leader saying only the U.S. can stop the war. Is that true, Elise? What sort of leverage does the

U.S. really have at this point?

LABOTT: Well, I think the U.S. has tremendous political leverage. I mean, it's really the U.S. that has said that the Saudis have, you know, taken

efforts to try and minimize civilian deaths. I mean, there's really no relationship that the Saudis hold more dear than the United States. But

it's not just political leverage. It's also that arms deal, $1.2 billion. President Trump has made clear he doesn't want to touch that because the

affects the American economy and American jobs. But Congress has really been pushing. Senator Bernie Sanders is looking to put a resolution

forward to end U.S. support for this war. The House is looking to put forward a war powers resolution which would, you know, give Congress a

bigger role and U.S. involvement. And I think all that together, the U.S. has a chance right now to go to the Saudis and say, we need to see some

progress on this, not only because of Congress, but because, you know, look, you need our political support and we're prepared to give it to you,

but you need to serve our interests as well.

ANDERSON: Elise Labott, live for you from the State Department. Elise, thank you for that. Viewers, a reminder, the U.N.'s man in charge of

trying to sort out Yemen -- as Elise was just reporting there -- on this show in about ten minutes time, it's extraordinarily complicated. You

won't want to miss what he has to say, his first time on CNN, that is just ahead.

Another story that could have a huge impact on this region. There are growing public signs that Israel is developing closer friendly relations

with several Arab nations. The Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, just got back from a visit to Oman -- a neighbor of the UAE -- where he met

with the sultan there. It's the first high-level official meeting between Israeli and Omani leaders in two decades.

And Israel's culture minister also paid a visit here to Abu Dhabi in the past week. Our Oren Liebermann following these developments from

Jerusalem. And the optics on these images that we have seen important here. How do you explain the significance of these moves at this point?

OREN LIEBERMANN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, we've always known this is essentially the tip of the iceberg and that the vast majority is under

water. That is, it is hidden from plain sight, it is hidden from the public. In fact, that trip from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to Oman

to meet the Omani sultan was a secret visit. It was only announced after Netanyahu had returned to Israel and then announced the meeting there.

Both an announcement from the Israelis and Omanis.

Yet that's not the only meeting we've seen here. As you point out, Israel's cultural minister was in Abu Dhabi for a judo tournament.

Israel's communications minter is now in Dubai. And Israel's intelligence minister next week is going to Oman for an intelligence conference where

he's going to put forward an idea of a railroad from Israel through Gulf to Oman. That's sort of his dream for a wider regional cooperation.

That's been what Netanyahu has preached, sort of backwards of the way we had always thought about it, that the world had thought about it. First

you would see normalization and a peace agreement with the Palestinians and only after that, would you see peace agreements and normalization with the

other Arab states. Netanyahu has always tried to flip it, saying first the other Arab states and then we'll come to the Palestinians. For right now,

Becky, it looks like that is working for Netanyahu.

[11:25:00] ANDERSON: If part of the warming of these relations -- and we saw this way back in May of 2017. We heard talk of this when Donald Trump

visited Riyadh on what was his first leg of his first international trip, then going on, of course, to Israel. If this is all part of the warming of

relations and providing support for this U.S./Kushner-led Middle East peace plan, then the first question is, when do we see that -- the details of

that? And secondly, let's just discuss the significance of warmer relations between Israel and the Sunni Arab state, should that be what we

are seeing, with regard to Iran at this point?

LIEBERMANN: Iran is to an extent where this recent wave of sort of warming relations began, a united front against Iran. We saw that from the Sunni

Arab states and, of course, saw that led by Prime Minister Netanyahu who has always fought against Iran, has always opposed the Iran deal, and seen

a new opportunity to fight that with President Donald Trump. He even mentioned it. That is Netanyahu mentioned it in his United Nations General

Assembly deal. Thanking Trump for fighting Iran and giving Israel the opportunity to align themselves with so many of these Arab states against

Iran.

But it has certainly gone beyond that at this point in terms of Arab states wanting surveillance technology and other technology Israel has to offer.

And there would be a very big aspect of that to normalization, economics, trade, technology and beyond that.

To your first question. When will we see Trump's peace plan? I think there might be five people on earth who know the answer to that. We're all

still waiting for it. But we knew from the beginning for it to work it would take the other Arab states, in particular for example, the Saudis,

putting pressure on the Palestinians to accept it. And that may be part of what's happening behind the scenes here.

The U.S. grows closer to these states. Israel grows closer to the states in the hope that when Trump puts this on the table the Palestinians will be

forced to accept it because the other Arab states have accepted it at this point. For their part the Palestinians have not only rejected whatever the

peace plan is and whenever it comes out. But we've also seen some statements, for example, from Hamas today criticizing these other states

growing closer to Israel and reminding them of the Saudi-led Arab peace initiative which said peace with Palestinians first and then normalization,

not the other way around.

ANDERSON: Oren Liebermann out of Jerusalem for you on the shifting tectonic plates of this region, the Gulf and wider Middle East. Oren,

thank you for that.

Presidents, kings, princes, ayatollahs, rebel leaders as we've heard, they are all trying to claim Yemen for themselves. But up next up, we speak to

the U.N. envoy trying to navigate all of this and bring peace to the country. A rare interview for you up next.

[11:30:00] (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ANDERSON: Welcome back and those who are just joining us, you are more than welcome. You're watching CNN and CONNECT THE WORLD with me, Becky

Anderson.

I want to get you back to a story we know that many of you really care about, as we watch what's being described as perhaps the biggest and most

important movement in Yemen since the devastating war there began three long years ago. America, by far the biggest supplier of military hardware

to what is the Saudi-led coalition, now seemingly in the mood to push for peace, demanding a cease-fire.

But you can't put out a fire just by snapping your fingers, especially when you've been throwing so much gas on it. In many ways this region's full-

blown, all-out geostrategic troubles ramming into Yemen like a congested funnel of turmoil. Creating a tragedy that no one seems able to end and

everyone able to lose.

Here's how we got here. This is footage from the start of the war. Saudi Arabia launching into action after the overthrow of Yemen's internationally

recognized President by Iran-backed Houthi rebels. Riyadh, seeing the Houthi action as very definitely a national security threat, part of a

wider plan from its arch rival in the region, Iran, to secure a colony of sorts just across the board in what the kingdom considers its own backyard.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ABDRABBUH MANSUR HADI, YEMENI PRESIDENT (through translator): I say to the puppet of Iran and those who are with him, you destroyed Yemen with your

immature politics and creating internal and regional crisis.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ANDERSON: Well internal, regional and now global. Still the adage holds, these Houthis, while one man's terrorist will be another man's freedom

fighter. Here's their side.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MOHAMMED ALI AL-HOUTHI, HOUTHI ASSIGNED ACTING YEMENI PRESIDENT (through translator): Our dearest, free, proud, resilient and steadfast Yemeni

people will surely move forward in facing the suppressive, sinful, shameless enemy.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ANDERSON: That is the Houthi line. And that's the politics. Life on the ground, well, an awful manmade near famine has decimated the people and

bullets and bombs have been devastating. These pictures from the United Nations on the ground there and across this in every way. And the U.N.'s

man handling the Yemen foul, Martin Griffiths coming to you now live from Oman, in Jordan. A common pitstop as he travels in and out of Sana.

Martin, did the announcement from Washington on a cease fire within 30 days catch you by surprise?

MARTIN GRIFFITHS, U.N. SPECIAL ENVOY TO YEMEN: Thank you for having me on the show. Not entirely. I was in Washington last week and we had meetings

with Secretary Mattis and leaders in the State Department and NSC. And we talked a lot about the need to resolve this conflict. And one of the main

reasons for that, as you have just pointed out, is the threat of famine. It's a very real threat and it risks doubling the numbers of people in

Yemen who are at risk of dying of hunger or famine.

[11:35:00] So, that's the urgent factor here. So, I wasn't entirely surprised, but I certainly found it welcome news when I woke up on

Wednesday morning to see the statements made in Washington.

ANDERSON: Ok, let me just push you on this point. I wonder then how you explain the timing. Because the talk of a near famine has been a narrative

that has been widely discussed now for months and months. I wonder then if you think this is more about U.S. scrutiny of Saudi involvement in Yemen in

the wake of the Jamal Khashoggi murder, U.S. midterms, what do you think the explanation is, sir?

GRIFFITHS: I think it's a mixture of all the things you mentioned. I think that there was already, to be honest, from my own knowledge, the

beginning of a very strong desire to move from war to peace in Yemen. But I think things have catalyzed -- the issues that you mentioned have

catalyzed interests in these countries, and not just in the U.S. and the region, but in Europe as well where I was earlier this week. You know,

will take help from any quarter to move this file forward.

ANDERSON: Let's talk about whether the U.S. has any leverage here. What does it have so far as leverage is concerned to set this deadline? Because

without any leverage, we are talking just rhetoric and optics, which, Martin, I think you and I will agree helps absolutely no one.

GRIFFITHS: No. I think the challenge -- exactly what you say -- the challenge now is to turn this call into action. I think to answer your

question. The U.S. does have leverage. Particularly in the coalition which it supports, which supports the government of Yemen. But it also has

activism. One of the striking features I've noticed for many, many years of U.S. public engagement is activism. Secretary Mattis and Secretary

Pompeo, they're on this day and night, and we found it now in Europe as well. But as you point out, calls are one thing. Action is another. And

what we now urgently need to do is to see what are the first steps that we can make on deescalating this conflict to give some space for the political

process.

ANDERSON: All right. And that's important. Let's talk about that. Because, of course, the U.K. supports this call certainly. The British

Prime Minister, Theresa May, backing Washington's calls, but with a caveat. Cautioning -- and I quote -- we certainly back the U.S. call for de-

escalation in Yemen. But a nationwide cease-fire will only have an effect on the ground if it is underpinned by a political deal between the conflict

parties.

Let's have a look and see what's been said at this point. We've had reaction from the Houthi leader dismissing America's calls for a cease-

fire. Because, quote, we consider it an informal demand, he said. An attempt to abandon their previous statements after the world knew the

horror of their aggressive crimes.

We've reached out, Martin, to the coalition for a response, all parties in this coalition, to calls for a cease-fire. We are as yet to get a

response. We will continue to push.

Of course, there is a framework for a political solution in resolution 2216. I don't want to get stuck in the weeds, but it's important our

viewers know this, resolution 2216 in particular calls for and I, quote, all parties in the embattled country in particular, the Houthis,

immediately and unconditionally end violence.

So, what do you want to see happen next? And as far as you are concerned, I know you are in constant contact with these stakeholders involved here.

What has been their response behind closed doors and what do you want to see happen next?

GRIFFITHS: I want to see us move forward. I don't want to see us getting stuck on things that are difficult to put together. I think a nationwide

cease-fire is obviously a marvelous and wonderful thing and must be the aspiration of all those who worry about the humanitarian situation in

Yemen. Any Yemeni family would want that to happen.

But I don't want to make that a precondition for consultations and talks which we hope to hold later this month. So, I think the urgent need at the

moment -- and I do think this is understood in all the stakeholders as you say that I keep contact with.

[11:40:00] The urgent need now is to do something on the issue of downing the temperature of the war while we move towards talks. And there are

ideas that have been put out by the U.S. which I think are urgently being considered now in Sana --

ANDERSON: Like what? Like what, Martin?

GRIFFITHS: -- in Riyadh and Abu Dhabi. Well, I think it's interesting to think about, for example, should there be a freeze in Hodeida, that's one

idea, to ensure that humanitarian pipeline. The second one, could we ask Ansar Allah to suspend their long-range missile and drones' program? Could

we ask the coalition to suspend air strikes on civilians in particular? These things have to be worked out. It's easy to say that, but it's

difficult to actually define exactly what needs to be done.

ANDERSON: The UAE will say that before the summer, they enacted a freeze, certainly from their side on the action against the Houthis in Hodeida.

The Houthi's didn't stick to the agreement. So, there is a massive deficit in confidence, certainly from the coalition's side.

GRIFFITHS: Well, everybody has their own narrative of events in a war, as you know. Perhaps even more so than in -- under any other circumstances.

It's absolutely true, absolutely right and to be honored that there has been no direct assault on the city or port of Hodeida and that's good news

for the people living there, that's good news for the humanitarian program. We must hope that continues. And we're grateful to the coalition. And,

you know, we honor also the fact that the Ansar Allah forces haven't provoked it. But Hodeida is a very, very volatile frontline and it's very

easy, without planning, just out of incidents happening, for the war there to flare up. This is exactly what we hope will not happen at this time.

ANDERSON: So, you're calling to --

GRIFFITHS: It's important to preserve the chance it is.

ANDERSON: Calling for all parties to get involved -- go on. Please continue.

GRIFFITHS: I think what -- from my point of view as a mediator, I just want there to be no incident which upsets the path that Secretary Mattis

and Pompeo and others have called for. We would like to get to consultations during November, the end of November. I need to go see

President Hadi to get his agreement to that. And as I said once to the Security Council, the problem about the path for peace is war. War takes

peace off the table. I think everybody must focus on not allowing that to happen in the coming weeks.

ANDERSON: Martin Griffiths, when will this potential meeting between stakeholders be, where will it be, and why, when the Geneva talks failed,

should any further meeting be a success?

GRIFFITHS: I'm hoping to have -- we haven't got a definite date or place, but we're in talks. Sweden has been mentioned as you know. I was talking

to their representatives today. That's quite likely towards right at the end of the month is the likely target. Again, as I say, I need to see

President Hadi before we go firm on this.

And as to your last point. We're doing all we can and we've made a lot of effort in the past week since Geneva, to make sure that the logistics -- if

I could just describe it in those terms -- allow Ansar Allah, and the delegation from Sana, to get to the talks in a way they find secure and

doesn't rob them of their confidence. We have things in prospect which I think will deal with that issue.

ANDERSON: What is the prospect for peace in Yemen and what is the alternative?

GRIFFITHS: Well the alternative is devastating. It's famine, of course, which is, as you know, a viral disease which is completely different in

scale from hunger. That's the first problem. The first horseman of that apocalypse. Secondly, it's terrorism which flourishes in chaos. Thirdly,

it's threats to the stability of the region, the trade routes which come up through the Red Sea into Europe. Yemen is positioned in a way which

affects us all, not just the people of the region. And that's what we need very urgently to stop -- we see wars the other countries, Syria and others.

If you allow them to go on they get much more difficult to resolve. This one has gone on far too long. But we know from previous negotiations,

between the parties in Yemen.

[11:45:00] We know the outlines of an eventual settlement which will allow for a government of transition to bring the parties together or the people

of Yemen back to peace. We know the elements of it. We know that it needs to include political inclusion and disarmament of militias and return to

the state of the monopoly of force. As usual, the solution is not the problem in ending a conflict. The problem is getting the confidence, as

you refer to earlier, for the people to take a gamble on each other's promises. And that's I guess my job is to provide that opportunity.

ANDERSON: And when there are existential threats on all sides, clearly that is when there will be massive confidence deficits.

GRIFFITHS: Exactly.

ANDERSON: Martin, thank you. Martin Griffiths, the U.N. special envoy to Yemen, charged with undoing what is this Gordian knot there. Thank you so

much for coming on to the show and do stay in touch and let's speak again soon.

Live from Abu Dhabi, I'm Becky Anderson, this is CONNECT THE WORLD.

Coming up, you don't have to google anything to see how these people feel. Why the company's staff are walking out around the world.

And people who inspire us. We're going to reveal CNN's top ten heroes of the year and tell you how you can get involved and help us pick the best of

the best. A good news story for you. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ANDERSON: For 12 years CNN heroes has shined a spotlight on everyday people changing the world, and we are shared inspiring stories with you all

year long. Anderson Cooper, my colleague, revealing the top ten CNN heroes of this year and now showing you how to vote for your favorite. Have a

look at this.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ANDERSON COOPER, CNN CO-HOST, "HEROES: AN ALL-STAR TRIBUTE": I'm Anderson Cooper. All year long we've been introducing you to some truly remarkable

individuals. We call them CNN heroes, everyday people changing the world. Now it's time to announce the top ten CNN heroes of 2018.

From Lagos, Nigeria, programmer Abisoye Ajayi-Akinfolarin. Her coding program gives disadvantaged girls the skills and confidence to transform

their lives.

In Washington, D.C., college student Maria Rose Belding created an online platform that prevents food waste and fights hunger.

From Basalt, Colorado, Amanda Boxtel, she was paralyzed in a skiing accident and technology helped her walk again. Today she helps others

follow in her footsteps.

11:50:00] Frustrated by the violent injuries he saw in the emergency room, Dr. Rob Gore now helps young people in Brooklyn stay safe and resolve

conflict peacefully.

From Twin Falls, Idaho, Luke Michelson helps kids in need rest easy by giving them free beds.

In San Diego, California, Susan Munsey, she survived sex trafficking. Now she gives women housing and hope to start a new life.

Eighty-seven-year-old Florence Phillips was born to immigrant parents. Now she provides free English language and citizenship classes in Carson City,

Nevada.

From Lima, Peru, Ricardo Pun-Chong. This doctor provides free housing and support to seriously ill children and their families while they receive

medical treatment.

High school English teacher Ellen Stackable helps incarcerated women in Oklahoma find their voices and heal from trauma.

And finally, from Kansas City, Missouri, veteran Chris Stout, whose tiny homes help homeless veterans rebuild their lives.

Congratulations. The top ten CNN heroes of 2018. Now it's time for you to decide who will be named CNN hero of the year and receive $100,000 to

continue their work. Just go to CNNheros.com to learn how to vote for the CNN hero that inspires you the most. And be sure to tune into CNN heroes,

an all-star tribute, once again I'll be co-hosting with Kelly Ripa, as we celebrate all the honorees live from New York, Sunday, December 9, at 8:00

p.m. eastern.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ANDERSON: It is absolutely your show, so please do get involved.

Still ahead, searching for answers and change. Google's staff calls out the company over sexual harassment cases. The story on that up next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ANDERSON: Right now, if you google words like outcry, solidarity, or the #metoo, you won't get much further than Google itself. You're looking at

what Google's staff are doing at this moment across the world, walking out. Why? Because they think the way the company deals with sexual harassment

cases needs to change. This comes after a "New York Times" investigation detailing how Google protected executives accused of sexual misconduct.

Well, Hadas Gold is outside one of Google's offices where there has been a walkout, it's London, tell us, what's going on?

HADAS GOLD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: So, as you noted, right now in New York, there is a walkout. Around the world in every time zone when the hour

struck 11:00 in the morning there were walkouts. They started in Asia and made their way across Europe.

[11:55:00] Here in London at 11:00 a.m. we did see around 50 Google employees physically come outside of the offices just behind me and they

said there were more inside who are gathered in one of their largest meeting rooms. There are images from all over the world, cities from all

over world, of Google employees walking out and protesting how the company has handled sexual harassment cases. As you noted in the aftermath of the

damming "New York Times" report. And They're saying they want more transparency and accountability from Google. Including a full audit of

sexual harassment cases that have happened at the company. We spoke to one employee who walked out. Take a listen to what he told us earlier today.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SAM DUTTON, DEVELOPER ADVOCATE AT GOOGLE: There was a walkout from some members of the staff and we're walking out in support of those who have

been harassed anywhere in the workplace, and to ensure that perpetrators are not rewarded and are not protected.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GOLD: So, the Google CEO did send out a note to employees telling them they would be supported if they wished to participate in the walkout and

they were accepting the criticism and are listening to the feedback and working on new ways to change. But the employees that I spoke to today,

they want to see action now and questioning what Google will do in the coming weeks and coming months to address this -- Becky.

ANDERSON: Just before 4:00 p.m. in the afternoon there in London, Hadas Gold for you on the story. It is nearly 8:00 here in the UAE. I'm Becky

Anderson. That was CONNECT THE WORLD. From the team working with me here and around the world, thank you for watching. Same time, same place next

week.

END