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19 Arrested, 350 Questioned During Hong Kong Demonstrations; Hundreds of Thousands March in Hong Kong Against Extradition Bill; 11 Candidates Vying to Replace Theresa May; Palestinians Slam U.S. Ambassadors Comment on West Bank; Former Red Sox Star David Ortiz Shot in Dominican Republic; Two ISIS Militants on Their Role in Terror Group; Indian Court Find Six Guilty in Child Rape and Murder; North Korean Women Forced to Work in Sex Chatrooms In China; Israeli TV series Captivates Viewers Worldwide. Aired 11a-12p ET

Aired June 10, 2019 - 11:00   ET

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

[11:00:00] ROBYN CURNOW, CNN HOST: Hi. Welcome. This is CONNECT THE WORLD. I'm Robyn Curnow here in Atlanta. Great to have you with us this

Monday.

Now fear of China's growing power sparks hundreds of thousands of protesters to jam the streets of Hong Kong. Nineteen people we know were

arrested after Sunday's massive demonstrations over a controversial new bill that would allow criminal suspects in Hong Kong to be sent to mainland

China.

Now protest leaders says more than a million people took part in those marches, that's nearly one seventh of Hong Kong's entire population.

Organizers are now calling for more demonstrations later on in the week.

Meanwhile, China is demanding foreign forces stay out of Hong Kong's legislative issues. Even blaming the U.S. for protests. Beijing is also

making sure to control the message coming out of the city. The government has blocked CNN's broadcasts of the protests and censored social media

posts.

Well CNN's Matt Rivers is live from Hong Kong. Matt, great to speak to you. You've been watching all of this particularly over the weekend. What

else is suspected in the coming days?

MATT RIVERS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, this fight is not going to be over for at least a couple of weeks, Robyn, if not longer. I mean, I think it's

the weekend and the protests that we saw on Sunday was all about that day of action. Today is was all about how is the Hong Kong government led by

the executive, Carrie Lam -- is her name -- how are they going to respond? Were they going to respond to respond to that show of action on Sunday by

walking back this law? But may be being open to repealing it? Or would they stand their ground? And it was very clear that Carrie Lam was not

going to shy away from supporting this bill despite what we saw on Sunday.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

RIVERS (voice-over): Hundreds of thousands of people out on the streets proves democracy is in good hands. Hong Kong's leader claimed on Monday.

CARRIE LAM, HONG KONG CHIEF EXECUTIVE: Rights and freedoms of individuals of journalists, et cetera are fully protected.

RIVERS: But Carrie Lam waved away the concerns of this vast group of people, more than one million organizers say, with fear that her

governments legislation to allow extradition to China would undermine the rule of law here.

LAM: This bill is not initiated by the central people's government. I have not received any instruction or mandate from Beijing.

RIVERS: Please save my daughter was the message for this man who brought his child to Sunday's mass demonstration. Protest organizers say the idea

of being put on trial in the mainland would silence Beijing's critics in what is now China's freest city.

CLAUDIA MO, HONG KONG PRO-DEMOCRACY LEADER: There is no fair trial. There is no humane punishment guarantees on the mainland.

RIVERS: History points to one good reason to worry about political activists being taken to China to face the Communist Party's justice. Five

booksellers who sold work critical of Chinese leaders went missing in late 2015 from Hong Kong, later turning up in mainland China. Where they

confessed to illegally distributing books banned on the mainland. The confessions were widely viewed as coerced.

China's government didn't do much to quell those fears on Monday, when sensors blocked coverage of the massive protests erasing posts from social

media on the mainland. Meanwhile, some state-run media have suggested the United States government has been involved somehow in the protests because

of the ongoing U.S. China trade wars. A U.S. consulate spokesman called the allegations, quote, manifestly absurd.

Beijing could be forced to block news from Hong Kong again on Wednesday, when more demonstrations are planned by those who fear that semi-autonomous

Hong Kong is at risk of being like the rest of heavily censored China.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

RIVERS: And so, what's happening on Wednesday as we're expecting more protests right around 10 a.m. That will coincide with when the Parliament

here in Hong Kong will next meet to debate about this bill. There're dozens of amendments that have been proposed. This will be a long

legislative process, Robyn. And ultimately no one knows how this is going to play out. What the protesters are hoping to is sway the opinions of

those lawmakers inside the legislative chambers here in Hong Kong, to maybe knock down some of the support for this bill. But it's unclear at this

point if they'll be able to do so.

CURNOW: Yes, and what's interesting is that China is blaming foreign forces for these mass demonstrations. Really? And why do they see it this

way?

RIVERS: It's something that we've seen Beijing do before, when they're looking for a reason for protests.

[11:05:02] They have done it before, let's say, in 2014, talking about the umbrella movement, and a pro-democracy movement in 2014 here in Hong Kong.

Beijing also -- state media in China -- also pointed to external powers, the United States, the European Union, basically the West, as kind of an

excuse to take attention away from the fact that that's probably not the case.

You talk to people here on the street and every single protester you talk to is saying this is a grass-roots movement. This isn't something been

started by the CIA or the U.K. government. This is something that is Hong Kong based, Hong Kong-led. You had a million people in Hong Kong --

according to organizers. And I think if you told any of those protesters, that they weren't there of their own volition. That they were there as

some sort of political pawn by the United States. I think they'd be offended by it, frankly.

But it is a way, it's a tactic that Beijing has used in the past to kind of come up with some other excuse for the cause behind the protest. Something

that isn't, well, maybe people are not happy with the way Beijing is running things in the mainland.

CURNOW: And who is making up these protests? Just talk us through about the people who are come coming out onto the street.

RIVERS: Yes, it's a good question. Because what we're seeing is different than what we seen in the past. So I mentioned the umbrella movement of

2014. That was the last really big protests movement you saw here in Hong Kong. But what organizers are saying is different now beyond the numbers,

just a very large protest, but you're seeing what I think is a bit more of a wider cross-section of society. It's not just young liberal students

that are doing the protesting. It's also people in the business community who are worried about this new law perhaps impacting the business community

and their ability to make money here in Hong Kong. You've got buy-in from older people, younger people, the business community. So I think what

you're seeing in these protests is generally more buy-in from different groups that were perhaps weren't as invested in previous protests.

CURNOW: OK, that's really interesting. Matt Rivers, thanks so much, great reporting there.

So Nathan Law was a standing committee member from one of Hong Kong's pro- democratic parties and he was arrested. You remember his name for his role in the occupying movement of 2014 that Matt was just talking about. So

Nathan joins us now from Hong Kong. Great to speak to you. Great to have you on the show. So why do you oppose this bill?

NATHAN LAW, FORMER HONG KONG LEGISLATOR (via Skype): Well, it is obvious that the Bill will destroy Hong Kong's status as a safe harbor. Because

originally Hong Kong's (INAUDIBLE) and its whole way of life are protected one country treatise and which guarantees us to have a separate system from

China.

But if the bill passed then China can extradite any of us to go back to trial in China. So we are full of fear when we voice against the

government, against Beijing's policy. So that's basically destroying the safe harbor nature of Hong Kong.

CURNOW: And you're hearing, those are your concerns, that Hong Kong's chief executive Carrie Lam says, no, this law is necessary, human rights

are safeguarded, they're in place. Is that enough to reassure you and other people?

LAW: Well for the past few months, the government has been trying to persuade people that their human rights protection and so on, but other

expertise, our legal status says it's wrong. We've got two representation in the legal sector. The one is bar cessation and the other the lawyer to

fight here. They've all released statements saying that the government should shelf the amendment because there's no guarantee we can have fair

trial in mainland China. And all the so-called protection of human rights are all executive measures, but not written in laws. So that China could

overturn it very easily. So basically, we don't have any guarantee that the extraditions are not initiated by political motives, and we can get a

fair trial in mainland China.

CURNOW: OK. And then let's talk about China. And China is blaming foreign forces here for these mass demonstrations. And what you say to

that?

LAW: Well it's absolutely absurd. And is basically trying to while saying all the things initiated by foreign forces and neglecting the wrong doings

that they have been making for the past decades. In Hong Kong, actually I think the special thing about this demonstration is its spectrum is very

wide. There're not only prodemocracy citizens coming out there are also more business camp or even some pro-Beijing very mild citizens are coming

out. Because they think that it is actually destroying Hong Kong's prosperity and stability. And these are the things that people who are

very conservative want. So that I think is important for the government to recognize people are not motivated by foreign forces.

[11:10:03] But actually from that piece of legislation and I think they should shelf it immediately.

CURNOW: So what happens next? More importantly, have you learned lessons from the umbrella movement? How do you go forward? Particularly on

Wednesday. What do you expect?

LAW: Well it is expected the amendment will be discuss in the council for two to three weeks, so it will be finished within June. But we've got two-

or three-weeks' time to conduct or assemblies or protests. So I think in the following days there would be more and more protests, and I think the

pro-Beijing camp legislators, they will face not more pressure, because they're (INAUDIBLE) and those protest groups pressure them directly. Also,

I think there will be more and more actions, and there are some like (INAUDIBLE) and so on our ongoing. So I think the atmosphere of Hong Kong

is still very heated, and we've got weeks to go.

CURNOW: OK. Weeks to go. Thanks so much for joining us here on CNN, Nathan Law, in Hong Kong, appreciate it, sir.

So the race to be Britain's next Prime Minister is on. Friday was Theresa May's last day as Conservative leader. She'll stay on as Prime Minister

until the party chooses her replacement. Now 11 Conservative lawmakers say they want the job. This is them. The nomination process ends in just one

hours' time. Only candidates who get the support of at least eight lawmakers will stay in the contest. Which is already full of drama and

accusations of hypocrisy. Nic Robertson joins me now in London. Accusations not just of hypocrisy but also of drug use.

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: Yes, and look, the race to replace Theresa May, if you will, everyone knew this was coming.

And it was even sort of slow-paced in the way that we knew when Theresa May was going to leave, you know, weeks in advantage. We knew weeks in

advantage when the day was going to be when the campaign was launched. But who would have thought in that period over the weekend from Theresa May

resigning as party leader, to the race actually officially beginning essentially in an hour or so that we would have drugs as the big issue

here.

And that's because one of the sort of front runners admitted to taking cocaine 20 years ago when he was a journalist in his 30s. He was on TV

over the weekend, apologized, said it was a mistake. But he was accused of being hypocritical. Because, you know, he didn't go to jail. There's a

seven-year jail term for class A drugs in the U.K. And at the time he was the education secretary and actually signed off on legislate that would

have enforced tougher sanctioning against teachers who'd used class A drugs.

And because this has become an issue, so many of the other 11 candidates have been asked about their drug use. And so far, seven have admitted to

taking drugs, so sort of the core campaign issues have been getting buried in all of this.

CURNOW: There are a number of contenders. I want to bring up that screen up again -- that image up again -- to talk us through who are some of the

front-runners. So we know that Boris Johnson is out there. Is anybody else chopping at his feet, at his ankles?

ROBERTSON: You know if you'd asked me that at breakfast time today, I would have to say his lead looked like a good solid lead. But as of this

afternoon, the foreign secretary, Jeremy Hunt, launched his campaign late this morning, and by lunchtime he has been seen by the bookies at least to

be gaining some significant ground. On Boris Johnson, he's not there yet. It's not a neck-and-neck thing, and the foreign secretary, Jeremy Hunt, has

got the support of the defense secretary, of another senior cabinet member, the pension secretary. This is big stuff at this stage in the campaign.

And when you think about it, that the -- that this goes neck and neck until it's two people left, and then the voting goes out to the party membership.

And right now, if it was the run as it is today with Boris Johnson, the hard Brexiteer, ready to lead and the foreign secretary, although taking a

tough line on Brexit now, was initially a remainer. So this could be the final pairing. We don't know, but as of this afternoon, that's how it's

looking.

CURNOW: OK, Nic Robertson, thanks so much. And is just in the next 45 minutes or so. Let's see in anybody else sneaks in, but at the moment it's

thought 11. Appreciate it.

So the Palestinian foreign ministry says it's considering filing a complaint with the international criminal court against the U.S. ambassador

to Israel. Palestinians are furious that David Friedman told "The New York Times", that Israel has the right to annex parts of the West Bank.

[11:15:02] A move that would kill the prospect of a viable Palestinian state. Palestinian officials say Freidman's remarks justify their boycott

of an upcoming conference in Bahrain that will unveil some economic aspects of the Trump administration's Middle East peace plan.

Well ambassador Friedman says there's a silent majority of Palestinians who would support the U.S. peace plan, but he suggests they're being strong-

armed into silence by their own leaders. Well, Oren Liebermann is following the story and these comments that have certainly raised eyebrows

and fury across the Middle East. What else did he say, Oren?

OREN LIEBERMANN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well if he made only this comment it certainly would have been enough to raise eyebrows here. And it's one of

the words he used that Israel has the right to annex parts of the West Bank, that has raised those eyebrows in such strong terms. Here is the

comment he made. He said -- and it was a short statement on this specific question. Under certain circumstances I think Israel has the right to

retain some, but unlikely all of the West Bank.

That bucked some 50 years of U.S. policy and international community's position, as well as international law which holds that the West Bank is

Israeli-occupied territory and that's part for what will be part of a future Palestinian state. That Ambassador Freidman -- Ambassador David

Friedman, that is, the U.S. ambassador to Israel, simply said Israel has the right to annex parts of the West Bank.

It's certainly in line with his positions that he's made clear up to this point. He is in favor of Jewish settlements in the West Bank. In fact

he's donated money and has his name on one of the building in Beit El an isolated settlement in the West Bank. So his position on this point has

been clear. He would be on the right, perhaps the far-right of the Israelis political spectrum. But that he came out and said it appears to

give Israel a green light to annex parts of the West Bank if it wants. He was asked what would happen if Israel were to act on those comments and

fulfill by the way a campaign promise of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

And there he hedged. He said simply that it depending on the circumstances. It depends on what would be annexed and for what reasons.

So he did hedge there. But just the fact that he said that Israel has the right to annex parts of the West Bank, that in and of itself was enough to

bring in Palestinian fury.

PLO secretary, Dr. Saeb Erekat, responded on Twitter. Saying of the U.S. administration, their vision is about annexation of occupied territory, a

war crime until international law. For that, for the Palestinians, it's one more reasons to be suspicious of the peace plan the Trump

administration is working on and the Bahrain conference coming up in two weeks where they're trying to bring together -- the U.S. administration

that is -- is trying to bring together a number of parts of the Arab world and others to buy into the economic part before they've revealed any part

of the political aspect of the plan. Robyn, for them that's enough. The Palestinians see them -- that is the U.S. administration releasing the

economic part first as an attempted buyoff of Palestinian national aspirations.

CURNOW: When we look at this so-called peace plan, how are these comments likely to affect support among Arab countries for the conference and how

much support to the Palestinians have here regionally?

LIEBERMANN: There are Arab countries that would like to support a peace plan, that perhaps would like to see relations normalize with Israel for

the economic benefits, for the ability to buy Israeli tech, for example. The Saudis would perhaps like to see it, the Bahrainis, the Emirati's, but

for them they need a Palestinian state, or something at least that the Palestinians will accept. Because the Palestinians have A, outrighted

rejected anything the Trump administration has put on the table, and B, certainly rejected the Bahrain in light of Ambassador David Friedman's

comments. It makes it that much harder to proceed.

What will come of the Bahrain conference? That's an incredibly important question. The answer is, perhaps not all that much. And that's why we're

not seeing too much of a fuss or too much support from the Arab world at this point. There are still two weeks to go. And we'll see how the U.S.

administration maneuvers in the Arab world to try to build support and perhaps to try to build up an outcome from the Bahrain conference, which

they're calling an economic workshops.

CURNOW: OK, Oren Liebermann there in Jerusalem. Thank you so much, Oren.

Coming up. CNN secures rare access to ISIS fighters accused of torturing hostages. We have a rare interview with the infamous jihadi's dubbed the

Beatles.

[11:20:00] (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CURNOW: So turning now to the Dominican Republic where baseball legend David Ortiz is recovering from surgery after being shot outside a club on

Sunday. A CNN affiliate in the Dominican Republic obtained this disturbing security video. It's hard to watch but see here. Ortiz's agent confirms

that the moment Ortiz was shot in the back in Santo Domingo, multiple people we know have been detained in connection with the shooting. The

former Red Sox star is now resting and in a stable condition, we understand. Well journalist Jessica Hasbun joins us now from outside the

hospital where he is being treated. Jessica, hi. So what is the latest on how he's doing? What more have you learned about the shooting?

JESSICA HASBUN, JOURNALIST: Well, Robyn, he's doing very well. He's in stable condition but in the intensive care unit as of last night when he

underwent emergency surgery. A piece of his intestines had to be removed and his colon as well as his gallbladder, but David is in good and stable

condition within his situation.

The authorities have until this moment confirmed to us that they have one man in custody at a local hospital. After the shooting, he was practically

lynched by a multitude of people after those shots were fired to the back of David Ortiz in the local east downtown of Santo Domingo. Police have

identified this gunman as 25-year-old Eddy Feliz Garcia, who like I said, is currently in the hospital. And authorities have been unable to

interrogate him and have not been able to establish a motive. They have said that this is not an armed robbery but is need to establish a motive.

So this is still until investigation.

Police, like I said, are under hunt, looking for that second man, who is believed to be the driver of the motorcycle, who transported Eddy Feliz

Garcia. Up until this moment, authorities have told us that they have had about six people under investigation, but none of those people are under

arrest. They are looking at video cameras. They are looking at information that is coming into them with videos of other people that

worked at this discotheque at around 9:30 p.m. when the incident occurred.

Authorities have been adamant about saying that they will do everything in their power to get this man into custody by the end of the day. The

manhunt is underway in the Dominican Republic at this time. Like I said, David Ortiz is in good health. He is stable. And we will be here

following up on his situation throughout the day. This is all I have for now. I return to you to the studios -- Robyn.

CURNOW: OK, and just before we go, I do want you to just give us a sense of what kind of legend he is. He's a hometown hero. How are people

reacting to this?

HASBUN: People are in complete shock. People are in complete shock. This is our Big Papi. We love our Big Papi here in the Dominican Republic.

He's really made the Dominican Republic stand out in baseball and around the world. So the Dominican Republic is grieving.

[11:25:00] The Dominican Republic is angry and we're searching for answers right now. We want answers. We want to know what's going on. Authorities

are on this manhunt for this man, this second person, the suspect that has not yet been identified.

CURNOW: Jessica Hasbun there in the Dominican Republic. Thanks so much for joining us. Appreciate it.

So you're watching CONNECT THE WORLD. Coming up, we'll go behind the scenes of a blockbuster Israeli TV series and see why it's becoming a

worldwide hit. There's that story and also --

It was a horrific crime that triggered protests in India. Now a court has just sentenced six men in the rape and murder of a young girl. A new

report from New Delhi, that's just ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CURNOW: It's been several months since the collapse of ISIS in Syria, but this question remains -- what to do with these men? Hundreds of fighters,

many of them foreigners. So far European countries have been reluctant, very reluctant to take back their citizens, leaving their fate in the hands

of Syrian and Iraqi force who have captured them. So ISIS's dream of a caliphate has crumbled, but as the people who once made up the terror group

look back, how will they view it's pretty sorted, devastating legacy and their role in it. Well we sent a camera crew into a prison in northern

Syria for a rare interview as Nick Payton Walsh spoke by video link with two Britains who were once part of an infamous foursome known as the

Beatles.

[11:30:04] (BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

NICK PATON WALSH, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Their bravado gone, broken and begging to learn their fate. This is what's

become of the widely reviled British ISIS fighters known as the "Beatles" in captivity in Syria.

EL SHAFEE ELSHEIKH, FORMER ISIS FIGHTER: I consider my role in this whole scenario, this whole episode as one of my mistakes. Yes, I would like to

apologize for.

WALSH (on camera): Who would you like to apologize to?

ELSHEIKH: Everybody involved. Everybody who was affected directly or indirectly.

WALSH (voice-over): They're accused of torture in ISIS'S network of prison cells, which they deny, but now they do offer a rare confession. They

tried to arrange ransoms for some of ISIS'S European hostages.

ALEXANDER KOTEY, FORMER ISIS FIGHTER: I was a fighter extracting from them e-mail addresses for communications.

If it was a proof of life question, something that only they would be able to answer.

WALSH: Why did you agree to that role?

KOTEY: It just so happened that way.

ELSHEIKH: Same as what Alexander just explained. Initially just liaising between the foreign prisoners and people dealing with their negotiation

process.

WALSH: With their families to try to extract a ransom?

ELSHEIKH: Yes. Yes.

WALSH (voice-over): Kotey admits too to helping via remote from Syria to get a firearm for an ISIS assassination plot that failed in London in 2016.

KOTEY: I was responsible for his acquisition of a firearm. As far as the details of any plot or what he then went on to do, I had no involvement in

that.

WALSH: The grins they had when I met them a year ago in person were long gone.

KOTEY: Yes, I might miss fish and chips.

WALSH: Now ISIS'S so-called caliphate has been defeated. There too are thousands of ISIS prisoners held in northern Syria who don't know what will

happen to them. The U.K. doesn't want them back, so they will stay here or face the death penalty in Iraq or more likely in the United States.

(on camera): I don't understand why are you doing this now? Are you trying to avoid being sent to the United States?

ELSHEIKH: If anything, I think that confession will maybe hasten our extradition or rendition to the United States. I don't think this is

something that will prevent me from going to the United States at all. I don't see how that could be possible. I don't know where this goes from

here on, I just know that I want this period, this portion to just be over. I know -- I know this is what needs to be done. The truth has to come out.

WALSH (voice-over): ISIS slowly executed foreign hostages gruesomely, yet the pair insists they had no role in these murders or torture. Several

former hostages have, however, said they were tortured by British accented men matching their appearance.

The fate of a dozen French prisoners, some seen here in these old ISIS propaganda videos, has been swiftly decided in the past weeks, sent from

northern Syria to Iraq. There an Iraqi judge has sentenced them to death by hanging, often after only 10 minutes' deliberation and representation by

lawyers, many have not met before the trial.

Responding to claims U.S. forces arranged the transfer, a coalition spokesman said U.S. forces have taken custody of a small number of ISIS

fighters from the Syrian Democratic Forces from transfer to the government of Iraq but provided no details.

SAMANTHA EL HASSANI, ISIS SUSPECT: We want to eat McDonald's.

WALSH: American ISIS suspects like Samantha El Hassani have been sent back to the U.S. for trial. But to those left behind, their fate unclear or

possibly with an Iraqi hangman serve as a deterrent or a sign some nations don't want to finish the task of bringing them to justice.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CURNOW: Nick Payton Walsh joins me now from CNN London. So, Nick, why are these men speaking out now? And critics might say there's a dangers of

them being turned into folk heroes by these very public statements.

WALSH: I don't quite know what kind of folk hero they could become. I mean, these are men who are accused of torture, various forms of

psychological abuse. And you heard and that interview and accepting that they had been behind kidnap ransom negotiations. There's very little

really apart from their mission for ISIS that could appeal to those individuals who are already attracted to ISIS's ideology, and that's a

particular set of a particular group of people with a particular mindset.

I see I think what you mean by that, Robyn, and why by them speaking out, do they perhaps become high profile to some degree and therefore attract a

degree of celebrity that amplifies they're bids to try and get some kind of sympathy.

Well I have to say, that interview was very different from the last time we spoke to them.

[11:35:00] Which was the first time a year ago we managed to hear from some of these individuals. This time they were clearly broken. And you might

ask why now? Why are they suddenly coming forward with these confessions, these apologies? Well it's perhaps to try and alter their fate. Because

they've been stuck in limbo in isolation for a lengthy period of time here now. And that's clearly had an impact on their psychology to some degree.

And whether you believe them are not at all on anything that they actually say, it's quite clear these confessions are designed to change some part of

the calculation maybe in the mind of prosecutors, either in the United States or even in the United Kingdom. Where I have to say it's highly

unlikely, they will probably end up.

You confess perhaps partially to some of the crimes or all, depending on how you perceive what they been saying there. Does that make a prosecutor

thinks they have a better shot of bringing someone to justice in the U.S. or another country? We simply don't know what's going on in the dark

corner of their already troubling minds. But it's certainly what's clear there is they want to change the balance. They want to try and influence

the limbo. And I think we certainly got the feeling from talking to them that they do for once no longer feel arrogant symbols of what ISIS felt it

could do with impunity. But very much lost, perhaps, as people's interest frankly in the group deteriorates and their following begins to wane

certainly in that region if not perhaps as an ideology as well -- Robyn.

CURNOW: Yes, and those men made very clear choices, which they are going to have to suffer the consequences for. But what about children born to

ISIS fighters? I mean, we're just hearing today that the French foreign ministry confirming that 14 children born to ISIS fighters have been handed

over to authorities in France and the Netherlands by Syrian Kurdish officials. So the big question is, what happens to these children?

WALSH: Well it's clear in France that there is a lengthy procedure that's been established to try to get them back, a small number at the state that

could be a substantial or possibly more that they need to assist. And of course they will be then part of the state's care for individuals.

We've seen, for example, in the United States where people have been brought back there, adults with their children. The children have been

basically given to the social services there to try to work out what their future could be. Foster care, obviously some sense of rehabilitation, some

psychological assistance, too. These children have viewed extraordinary horrors in terms of the violence and squalor of ISIS in his closing days,

and frankly at its height, too. This is a lot that they will have to be dealing with themselves and they'll be doing it without the family

structures they've previously grown up amongst. When you consider that to have been obviously a boon or a bane, given the fact they were actually

brought to ISIS's so-called caliphate.

So a lot still to be done in northern Syria. ISIS has lost its territory, but the broader fight of how do you begin to make sure the sort of devil in

its midst isn't propagated around the world by the poor handling of detainees, or of orphans who feel abandoned. That's an enormous task and

one that the Syrian Kurds in northern Syria feel they've somewhat been left to on their own here. Although we are beginning to get the idea.

Certainly with the French taking their orphans back, and with the decision for the French male fighters to be handed over to Iraq, where many have

faced death sentences, that perhaps things are beginning to speed up. And as these high-profile cases like those two men who would like to be

referred to as part of the group called the Beatles. That really, I think the litmus test comes as to whether there is a universal solution for those

foreign fighters or it seems more ad hoc as time goes by. We'll have to wait and see in the months ahead -- Robyn.

CURNOW: OK. Thanks so much. CNN international correspondent, Nick Paton Walsh, there. Thanks, Nick.

A court in India has convicted six men in the kidnapping, the rape and murder of an 8-year-old Muslim girl last year. Handing down life sentences

for three of the men. The horrific and high-profile case has sparked widespread protests across India last year. A police investigation found

the men determined were trying to scare the victim's Muslim nomadic tribe out of the area. Joining us for now from New Delhi is India correspondent

for "The Washington Post", Niha Masih. Good to have you with us. So was this verdict expected?

NIHA MASIH, INDIA CORRESPONDENT, WASHINGTON POST (via Skype): It's always hard to say about court cases, especially a controversial case like this.

The police charged he has claim to find irrefutable evidence that links these men to the crime, including DNA evidence and so on. So the police

were confidence about I case.

But given the nature and the tone. If you looked on the case there was always a worry about whether it would be enough. Because most of this

evidence was circumstantial. The girl, of course, was murdered, so there was no first-person account of what happened. The accused were obviously

denying any connection.

The fact that locals in the area had come out in support of the accused had muddied the waters further and made the job of the investigators very, very

difficult.

[11:40:00] So much so that the Supreme Court of the country had finally to transfer the case outside the state in order to make sure that the trial

was fair.

CURNOW: And this is not the only case we've talked about involving children, and rape and murder, and just even women's rights within India.

It's one of a string of brutal rapes. So the Indian government has introduced a new law, for the introduction of the death penalty to those

convicted of raping a child under 12. What else has it helped change? Has there been real change?

MASIH: The new death penalty criminal amendment that was passed last year has, of course, again been contentious with a lot of women's rights

activists and death penalty activists arguing that that's actually not the solution. And the problem is much more deeply increased. Sexual violence

has been on the rise. The number of rapes reported have increased by over 60 percent between 2012 to 2016, which is a very, very high signal.

But we also have to remember that that figure has been rising not only because the rapes have risen, but also the reporting of these rapes has

risen. Which earlier were much, much more underreported. Just one law, several people last year were convicted under the same law, that has not

changed or made a difference to the problem. And until as a society there is a social change within the society, this problem is not going to go away

by simply introducing the death penalty.

CURNOW: No, certainly isn't. Niha, thank you for joining us there. We appreciate it.

As part of CNN's "FREEDOM PROJECT", we are exploring the dangers North Korean women face after making a bold choice to flee their homeland.

Thousands of women have made the perilous journey over the border into China in search of a better life. But they soon find themselves subjected

to human trafficking, many in the sex trade. Two of those women were kept in a building in northeastern China for years but managed to make a

dramatic escape, as CNN's Paula Hancocks now explains.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

PAULA HANCOCKS, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A dramatic escape from a fourth-floor window. Two North Korean defectors flee a tiny

flat they've been held captive in for years.

TEXT: It's done. It's OK.

HANCOCKS: When I was climbing down a rope, says a woman -- we will call Lee Yumi -- I knew I could die if I fell. I also knew it would be worse if

I got caught. Because then I'd be sent back to North Korea and my whole family would be punished for what I did.

We are hiding her identity for her own safety. Lee says a broker who helped her escape from North Korea, then sold her to a cybersex operator.

Who she says, kept her in this building in northeastern China for five years. She and other traffic defectors were forced to work long hours,

sometimes sleeping only a few hours a day. She says she was beaten by her captor. He allowed her to leave the apartment with him once every six

moons.

When I was working for the chatroom, she says, I had to do everything the customers asked me to do. I saw so many perverts. It's a story shared by

thousands of North Korean girls and women who escaped North Korea to what they believe would be a better life.

London-based nonprofit organization, Korea Future Initiative, published a report last month estimating as many as 60 percent of female North Koreans

refugees in China are trafficked into the sex trade.

A spokesperson for the Chinese government said in a statements to CNN -- I want to stress that the Chinese government pays high attention to foreign

citizens' legitimate rights according to law, and also combats activities of human trafficking women and children.

Lee's try to escape came on a customer recognized she was North Korean and being held captive. And put her in touch with Chun Ki-Won a South Korean

pastor. He was able to contact Chun online to plan her escape. Chun says his Christian aid organization, Durihana, has helped around 1,200 defectors

reach Seoul since 1999.

In these cases, he says, the best option is to talk to the person holding the woman and ask them to release her or for her to pick the lock and run.

Using a rope from a fourth floor is the last option we take.

[11:45:00] The roots through China and onto a third country like Laos or Myanmar is incredibly risky. If caught China sends defectors who they see

as illegal economic migrants, back to North Korea. Activists say they then face punishment, imprisonment, or in some cases even death.

A woman we will call Kwang Ha-Yoon, was held prisoner for eight years in the same room as Lee. They escaped together. They traveled for five days

and nights through China, managing to evade detection. They arrived in a third country we're not naming for security reasons and enter the South

Korean embassy.

They were very nervous in the embassy the pastor tells me. In North Korea they'd learned South Koreans are bad. They were filled with such mixed

emotions. This is a journey thousands have taken before them, seeking asylum in South Korea, a journey an unnamed number can only dream of, still

trapped in China's multimillion-dollar sex industry.

Paula Hancocks, CNN, Seoul.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CURNOW: Thanks, Paula, for that report.

You're watching CONNECT THE WORLD. Coming up, some praise it, others criticize it for the ways it depicts Palestinians. But no one can dispute

the huge popularity of an Israeli tv series that's really become a hit worldwide. We'll explain that, next.

[11:50:00] (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CURNOW: You're watching CNN. Thanks for joining us. This is CONNECT THE WORLD. Welcome back.

A team of undercover Israeli commandos have captured TV viewers worldwide. And now the hit Israeli series is coming out for a third season. But some

have criticized the depiction of Palestinians. CNN's Oren Liebermann goes behind the scenes to see how the show tackles some of the toughest issues

in the Palestinian/Israeli conflict.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

LIEBERMANN (voice-over): In an abandoned power plant under the streets of Tel Aviv, the third season of the hit series "Fauda" is unfolding. The

show was already a big hit in its native Israel. Netflix turned it into an international sensation. The show centers around an undercover unit in

Israeli military operating in the Palestinian territories, showing two sides of one conflict. The half Hebrew/half Arabic show's titles means

chaos in Arabic.

The show is based on real-life experiences of one of the writer, who served in that undercover military unit.

This is not reality. It's fiction. So it's not really what's going on, on the ground. And what's really going on the ground is even more complicated

than what we have in the show. But I think that the show does allow you to have kind of a look, a small window in what's going on over there between

Israelis and Palestinians.

AVI ISSACHAROFF, WRITER, FAUDA: This is not reality. It's fiction. So, it's not really what's going on, on the ground. And what's really going

on, on the ground is even more complicated than what we have in the show. But I think that the show does allow you to have a kind of a look, a small

window in what's going on over there between Israelis and Palestinians.

LIEBERMANN: Fauda is not a political series, but anything to do with the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is inherently political.

SHANY LITTMAN, CULTURE WRITER FOR HAARETZ: It doesn't show the context in which this -- the events are happening. It seems as if everything is very

personal, you don't see the occupation. You don't understand why is this happening. You know you don't see the context of things.

LIEBERMANN: The gritty often brutal show has been praised and criticized for its portrayal of Palestinians. Even so, main actor Lior Raz, says the

show has fans in the Arab world.

LIOR RAZ, ACTOR: I was in Abu Dhabi, I was filming a movie there. Hundreds of people from all over the Arab world, Syrians, Kuwait, Lebanon,

Egypt, just came to me and talked with me about the show. How they loved it, how they -- how they understanding now the situation in Israel because

it -- because we brought them another point of view that they didn't have.

[11:55:06] LIEBERMANN: With season three in production questions inevitably turn to what's in store for the viewers? The Fauda team is mum.

YAAKOV ZADA DANIEL, ACTOR: This is the season. A lot of surprise, a lot of action.

LIEBERMANN: There is only one hint to the show's future, they've already started writing season four.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Cut. Cut, moving on.

LIEBERMANN: Oren Liebermann, CNN, Jerusalem.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CURNOW: Thanks Oren.

So I'm Robyn Curnow and that was CONNECT THE WORLD. From the team here in Atlanta, in London, and in Abu Dhabi, thanks so much for watching.

END