Return to Transcripts main page
Connect the World
Moderna: COVID-19 Vaccine 94.1 Percent Effective; Iran: Weapons Used In Attack Made In Israel; Lavish State Funeral For Top Nuclear Scientist. Aired 10-11a ET
Aired November 30, 2020 - 10:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[10:00:30]
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Moderna releasing new data now says it is 94.1 percent effective.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: And they say is 100 percent effective against severe disease.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BECKY ANDERSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: About as good as it gets. We've got stunning new details on the race for a vaccine. And Iran claims a
remote-controlled machine gun inside his self-detonating car assassinated it's top nuclear mind. But is that really what happened?
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What I can tell you is that the smell of the drugs in this room is completely overwhelming. It's just overpowering. Much if not
all the drugs the Cuban officials say they were covered. We're headed to the United States.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON (voice over): And tonight, we take you inside Cuba's patrols against drug smugglers as Havana looks to the White House for help.
It's your world and we are connecting it. I'm Becky Addison. Hello and welcome to the program. Right now, we are learning some very encouraging
news in the global quest for a COVID-19 vaccine. Moderna just releasing new data showing its vaccine is more than 94 percent effective at preventing
COVID-19 and remarkably it is 100 percent effective at preventing severe cases of the disease and there is more.
The company will apply to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration today for emergency authorization of its vaccine and at the same time it is applying
to European authorities for approval too. We'll have a lot more on what is going on with CNN's Elizabeth Cohen in a few minutes time.
First up though, we do have brand new information coming to us from Iran. There, state media reporting weapons using the apparent assassination of
one of its top nuclear scientists were made in Israel. An official calling the operation new and complex. Mohsen Fakhrizadeh was killed when his
heavily protected car was targeted in a brazen assassination on Friday. Now, you will remember that we broke that news for you as it happened.
He was known as the father of Iran's nuclear ambitions and as you can see was laid to rest with full honors at this lavish state funeral earlier on.
Tehran was quick to accuse Israel on Friday. Israel itself is not commented on accusations it was behind the attack. Well, Tehran as you might expect
once an investigation and there is also condemnation from across the region. And not just those countries typically more aligned with Iran like
Turkey, Syria and (INAUDIBLE) who were calling in to everything from an act of terrorism to openly blaming Israel too.
U.S. regional allies are also joining the fray. The UAE calling it a heinous attack and for all to exercise, "maximum restraint while Jordan is
calling for karma as is Kuwait witch says it rejects all acts of violence. OK. So, a couple of big questions at this point. What do we know and why
does it matter? Well, our international diplomatic editor Nic Robertson tells us where we stand.
(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)
NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: The aftermath of Mohsen Fakhrizadeh today's assassination, indicates a carefully planned attack.
But was it a high-tech killing as Iranian officials claim or sloppy Iranian security?
This Hollywood graphically depicts the technology exists in Breaking Bad the key fob is the trigger just meters from the gun. In the real world in
Iran, hypothetically possible.
JACK WATLING, RUSI RESEARCH FELLOW, MILITARY SERVICES: The challenge is in target acquisition. How does the autonomous device actually work out what
it's supposed to be shooting?
ROBERTSON: Typically, automated machine guns are used as centers like the DMZ between North and South Korea in an assassination, more technology is
needed to confirm the target creating multiple risks.
WATLING: You're putting lots of very expensive communication relay, so satellite up links in this kind of thing into a device like that, then you
are handing that technology to your enemy.
[10:05:06]
WATLING: And you're also creating a signature that could be detected by security services if it needed to be in place and left there for a long
period of time. So, you're more likely to find that it's being controlled from a fairly close proximity. But that could still be a few kilometers.
ROBERTSON: The majority of nuclear scientists assassinated in Iran, and there have been several over the past decade have generally been low tech,
gunmen or bombers on motorbikes. Fakhrizadeh's assassination appears to be an embarrassment for Iran security services. He was a protected and prized
scientist. However, blaming Israel as Iran has claiming sophisticated technology was used in the killing may mollify angry Iranians, but it won't
gain international credibility without evidence.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office will not comment, but at least two Israeli ministers saying they had no idea who killed Fakhrizadeh.
WATLING: We have to be very careful because witnesses are not always reliable in high stress situations. I think we would want the Iranians to
present some more evidence before we made any assumptions.
ROBERTSON: No one is saying it didn't happen as Iran claims, simply Tehran has yet to prove its case. Nic Robertson, CNN, London.
(END VIDEO TAPE)
ANDERSON: Washington Post journalist Jason Rezaian spent 544 days unjustly imprisoned by Iranian authorities until he's released in January of 2016.
He says the current scenario will test the man who was America's vice president when the Iran deal was inked and who is now headed for the top
job. Rezaian writes, Iran's political establishment faces a serious test of will. So will Joe Biden.
Jason joining us now. Let's start with the very latest details on this assassination. I don't want to back into the whys and what happens next. A
high-tech killing as Iranian media claim or sloppy Iranian security, Jason, and if it was a high-tech targeted assassination, what do you make of these
new details reported by local media of a remotely operated machine gun and a remotely detonated car?
JASON REZAIAN, GLOBAL OPINIONS WRITER, WASHINGTON POST: Well, Becky, it's a great question. And as somebody who spent a year and a half sitting in
Iranian prison, being accused of most fabulous crimes imaginable and continuing to be the target of the same propaganda apparatus that puts out
this information. I think the likelihood of some very sophisticated never before seen drone type weapon being the culprit in this case is pretty
farfetched.
If you look at other Iranian state media reports, this week, they claimed to have a COVID vaccine that's coming out just in a matter of days that
they're going to name after this nuclear scientists, Mohsen Fakhrizadeh because they say that he was the key engineer and helping to create this
vaccine. We cannot take Iranian media proclamations at face value. And I think that the reality here is that this is another embarrassing moment for
Iran security apparatus that has not been able to secure their own soil.
ANDERSON: Fascinating, and it's great to have you on. Your insight is invaluable for all the reasons that you just pointed out. Jason, the head
of Iran Strategic Council on Foreign Relations pointing out the "the Islamic Republic of Iran will give decisive answers to the criminals who
took our martyr from the Iranian nation." What happens next in the short term?
REZAIAN: Becky, I think that in all likelihood, we won't see any grand displays of Iranian retaliation in the short term. I think that they'll
focus on cyber attacks which is something that they're getting, you know, increasingly better at. But, you know, in this moment where there is, you
know, such a short period of time between now and the inauguration of Joe Biden, and competing factions within the Iranian regime want to see
different outcomes.
You know, one faction, the Revolutionary Guard Corps would like to see Iran retreat further and not engage with the West. But the current president who
still has another six months before the next election. Would like to reengage with the U.S. and the rest of the world because Iran's economy is
on the brink of collapse.
[10:10:05]
ANDERSON: Let's talk about then where we are at and what it is that Joe Biden takes on as far as the Iran file is concerned. The American senator
and one of the most powerful people in Washington on foreign policy, Chris Murphy tweeting today, and I quote, "When Trump came into office, Iran's
breakout time to a nuclear weapon was 12 months. Today, it's two months. When Trump came into office, Iran had 300 kilograms of enriched uranium.
Today, they have 2400 kilograms. That says, Chris Murphy is the definition of failure."
You though have just pointed out that Iran's economy is on its knees, which to the Trump administration is the definition -- the definition of a
successful maximum pressure campaign. So, what is the bottom line here for Joe Biden and any future negotiations?
REZAIAN: You know, I think that the fact is that, you know, we've learned that bringing the Iranian economy to the brink, has not succeeded in
curtailing their other activities. And in fact, it's encouraged them to do more defensive action and increase their nuclear output, as we've seen over
the last two years.
So, I think that the real tricky calculation here is how do you engage Iran, pressure Iran through measures that that hurt their top officials
while at the same time encouraging them to modify their behavior, be more open to the outside world and more transparent.
Better to their own citizenry, the human rights record in Iran is deplorable, stop taking foreign nationals hostage and using them as
leverage in your political negotiations with the rest of the world. Essentially, to act like other countries do if you want to be treated like
the rest of the world act like the rest of the world. At the same time, the rest of the world led by the United States has increasingly treated Iran as
some kind of a pariah.
Very different than it does other nations. And I think we just need to throw out the double standards, start fresh, understand that there are
issues that need to be addressed. The most important one being that Iran can never have a nuclear weapon. But under the 2015 deal, that was pretty
much a foregone conclusion that they would never get one. So, you know, we're kind of back at point zero.
ANDERSON: We all know that Israel has encouraged Donald Trump over the last, what? 3-1/2 years and his regional allies to put Iran squarely in the
crosshairs. I just want our viewers to take a step back and listen to this. This is Benjamin Netanyahu speaking, almost 20 years ago. Have a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BENJAMIN NETANYAHU, PRIME MINISTER OF ISRAEL: There is no question whatsoever that Saddam is seeking and is working, and is advancing towards
the development of nuclear weapons, no question whatsoever. And there is no question that once he acquires it, history shifts immediately. If you take
out Saddam, Saddam's regime, I guarantee that it will have enormous positive reverberations on the region.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON: And that claim, of course, was discredited. And the reason I play this is because that is a position that Benjamin Netanyahu has consistently
taken and will take through the back end of his leadership in Israel. Your thoughts when you listen to those words 20 years ago and consider where we
are at?
REZAIAN: Well, I think it's pretty incredible that he's been able to recycle these talking points with multiple countries over a period of two
decades and have other countries buy into his storyline. I mean, it's been proven more than once that he's like the boy that cried wolf. I understand
that the Iranian regime has been very combative and aggressive in their actions and their rhetoric towards Israel.
But the bottom line, Becky, is that Iran could never defend itself against a full onslaught by Israeli forces and their allies. Whether it be the
United States or in in the Gulf. Their military arsenal more advanced, they have nuclear weapons. They have the best technology in the world while Iran
still flying around fighter jets from the 1970s. So, realistically, while Iran is not a good actor or a reliable nation, in the ways that that we'd
like to see it to be, the truth is it doesn't pose the same kind of threat as it's been attributed over these recent decades.
[10:15:09]
ANDERSON: And that is not to dismiss, as you rightly point out the significant concern that people in this regional U.S. allies in this
region, half of the ballistic missile program and malign behavior around the region. But your points very well made as ever. Jason, always a
pleasure. Thank you very much indeed for joining us, busy times.
REZAIAN: Good to be here, Becky.
ANDERSON: Well now, more on the extremely promising news on a COVID-19 vaccine. Moderna applying to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the
European Union today for emergency use authorization of its vaccine. And just have a look at this newly released data from its clinical trials. It's
more than 94 percent effective against COVID-19 and incredibly 100 percent effective in preventing severe disease.
Our senior medical correspondent Elizabeth Cohen has walked us through every step of this global pandemic and indeed of the vaccine development.
She's here to share with us today. Thoughts on this news from data and what happens next. What do these new numbers tell us firstly, Elizabeth?
ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN SENIOR MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: So Becky, let's talk about why these new numbers are so important because you and I talked a
couple of weeks ago about Moderna data. This is different. This data set is twice as big as the one that you and I talked about on November 16th. So,
that was really good data. This is even better data. There's twice as much data which makes scientists feel more sure of it.
So, let's take a look at the numbers that you just said. I think it's worth kind of reading them in black and white. What this data shows is that the
Moderna vaccine is 94.1 percent effective against coronavirus and 100 percent effective against severe coronavirus. In other words, it -- nobody
in this trial who got the vaccine, nobody got severely ill, nobody ended up in the hospital.
Let's talk for a minute about how they came up with this number because it didn't just come out of the clear blue sky. What Moderna did was that they
took tens of thousands of people, some of them got the vaccine and some of them got a shot of sailing. That's like a shot of nothing basically. It
didn't do anything, then all those people went back to their homes, live their lives. Some of them got COVID, some of them didn't.
Let's take a look at what those numbers look like. So, 11 out of the 15,000 people who got the vaccine got COVID-19, just 11. 185 of the 15,000 people
who received the placebo got COVID-19. So you can see equal numbers got vaccine versus placebo only 11 people got sick when they got the vaccine.
185 people got sick when they got the placebo. So, there you can see. There's that 94.1 percent number. That's where they got it from, Becky?
ANDERSON: That's remarkable stuff. Elizabeth, I saw that Medorna says it's designed its vaccine in just two days. That seems incredibly quick.
COHEN: Right. I think it sort of depends on where you start from. I think that obviously many, many years of research went into designing this
vaccine. What's important to know is that this vaccine it's made with something called mRNA. That's messenger RNA that's a piece of genetic
material that goes into your immune system, basically tricks the immune system, the immune system -- immune system thinks that it's confronting
actual coronavirus when it's not.
And so, the body says oh, I'm going to learn how to fight this. And so, your body learns how to fight it when you were never actually infected. So
that's the trick here. Pfizer also uses messenger RNA. So, what we're seeing is two different vaccines with about 94, 95 percent effectiveness
that use the same technology. That really is a good sign that two different companies working totally independently ended up with around the same
number.
ANDERSON: Yes, remarkable stuff. Now, look, we know that Moderna is seeking emergency approval from the FDA in the U.S. and from the European Union
today, Monday. So, what do we know about when people can actually start getting hold of this new Moderna vaccine?
COHEN: So, right now, we know more about the timeline in the U.S. So, I'm going to go over that one, Becky. So, we know that the Food and Drug
Administration along with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control that they need to look at Moderna's application. Also at Pfizer's application because
they're applying as well. So, they'll take a look at those applications in this next week for Pfizer and then the week after from Moderna.
So, the bottom line is, is that Dr. Anthony Fauci at the NIH. He thinks that Americans will get there -- the first round of shots will be in the
second half of December. So, he thinks America Will start being vaccinated in the second half of December.
[10:20:06]
ANDERSON: And we will continue to efforts more information for those who are watching outside of the states because of course, a vaccine cannot come
soon enough for any of us wherever we live in the world. Elizabeth, always a pleasure. Thank you. Right now hospitals in America --
COHEN: Thanks.
ANDERSON: -- are taking care of more than 93,000 people. That is the highest number so far. This graph doesn't quite tell the story though. This
photo does. Shared by millions of people online, it shows the Chief of Staff of a hospital in Texas, holding one of his intensive care patients in
his arms on Thanksgiving. The doctor told CNN, he has worked for more than 250 days straight. And this isn't the end. It's far from it. Not for that
doctor, not for America.
But right now it's top experts are warning we've not seen anything yet and that it could be about to get much worse. Take a listen to why.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DR. DEBORAH BIRX, RESPONSE COORDINATOR, WHITE HOUSE CORONAVIRUS TASK FORCE: So if you're young and you gathered, you need to be tested about five to 10
days later, but you need to assume that you're infected and not go near your grandparents and aunts and others without a mask. If you're over 65 or
you have comorbidities and you gathered at Thanksgiving, if you develop any symptoms, you need to be tested immediately.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON: Right. Sort of way from the States is a similar picture in Germany. Its lockdown measures haven't really worked in the countries. Now
reporting more deaths than ever before. Elsewhere in Europe, though, there is a brighter picture visiting.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
FRED PLEITGEN, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: I'm Fred Pleitgen in Berlin as Germany saw a record number of COVID-19 related deaths over the past
week. Now, over the past seven days, the country recorded more than 2100 deaths related to the novel coronavirus and Germany has also acknowledged
that the measures that they've put in place so far have essentially failed to bring down surging numbers of new coronavirus infections.
The Germans have both extended those measures and tightened them in certain areas as well to try and bring those surging numbers down.
MELISSA BELL, CNN PARIS CORRESPONDENT: I'm Melissa bell in Paris. A very different feel on the streets of France from this weekend with many non-
essential shops like hairdressers and closed shops for instance allowed to open once again. And yet, the restrictions on people's movements remain in
place since the partial lockdown that was brought in on October 30th will stay in place until December 15th.
Only then will it be lifted if the figures allow just to give you an idea the target of the French authorities is no more than 5000 new cases a day.
On Sunday the latest figures we have, that figure was just below 10,000.
SALMA ABDELAZIZ, CNN REPORTER: I'm Salma Abdelaziz in London where Prime Minister Boris Johnson is fighting off rebellion from his own party over
new coronavirus restrictions that are supposed to go into place this week. Now the Prime Minister wrote a letter over the weekend to members of
parliament to try to convince them that his three-tier regional restriction strategy is the best way forward and that it could be eased by Christmas
time.
But is it enough to convince dozens of lawmakers who oppose this idea? We'll find out on Tuesday when there's a vote in Parliament.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON: That's the team for you. Boris Johnson's argument for these new restrictions could be backed up by new research which shows a 30 percent
drop in COVID cases in England during its second national lockdown and that is excellent news until a vaccine can fix the situation for everyone.
Pitching in and following the guidelines can make a real difference. It is great to see that happen.
It's been called the most violent direct attack against civilians in Nigeria this year. Innocent farmers in Nigeria murdered as they worked in
their fields. The U.N. is weighing in. We have a live report up next.
And an extraordinary claim with no way to fact check what Ethiopia's Prime Minister has alleged amid its ongoing conflict.
But as a Formula One driver walks away from an horrific crash in Bahrain. Now he is hailing safety technology for saving his life. That is ahead in
your World Sport update.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[10:26:43]
ANDERSON: A gruesome massacre of innocent villages. That is how the United Nations is describing an honorific attack in northeastern Nigeria. The U.N.
is condemning Saturday's attack in which it says at least 110 people were murdered in a farming community near the capital of Borno State. A warning
some of what you are about to see is disturbing. Funerals for many of the victims were held on Sunday, Boko Haram militants are suspected in the
attack.
And authorities are searching for dozens of people still missing (INAUDIBLE) Nigeria grief. CNN's Arwa Damon is connecting the facts for us.
What do we know at this point about what happened, Arwa?
ARWA DAMON, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: It's a hair raising, Becky. According to eyewitnesses and members of a local vigilante group that CNN
has spoken to these militants arrived on motorcycles, some people were killed on the spot. Others were dragged away and beheaded. Many more are
still missing. Several women may have been kidnapped as well. all indications are that Boko Haram was behind at this attack. But here's how
one villager described what he witnessed.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
USMAN ISMAIL, WITNESSED ATTACK (through translator): There were six of us in the bush yesterday, we headed back into the village and split ourselves
into two, three of us fold the raised part of the path while two others and myself fold the lower path. We were shocked as we reached them. We found
their corpses. And that was where the main killings took place. So, we changed our route and went through a nearby village called Godo.
We met so many people fleeing from our village without knowing where they were going to, somewhere even unconscious. Some huge quantity of harvested
rice was set on fire. We really need prayers and it's only God that can save us.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
DAMON: Becky, as you know, for years, Nigeria, Chad, Cameroon, Nigeria have been fighting Boko Haram and there have been individual successes against
the terrorist organization and its various different offshoots. But one of the main challenges has been a lack of cross country coordination, which
has meant that Boko Haram has been -- relatively speaking of course, fairly easily able to regroup and just divert its main areas of operation.
Now Borno State where this massacre took place. Also the same state where the Chibok school girls were kidnapped back in 2014. Incidentally, around
100 of them are still missing. But this is one of Boko Haram strongholds in Nigeria. And recently, the Nigerian government, arguably in an effort to
cut its own battlefield losses established what are loosely known as the super camps, where it's consolidating the bulk of its armed forces.
And in doing not, yes, suffering less casualties among its military, but at the same time, leaving these kinds of civilian populations extraordinarily
vulnerable. They are vulnerable and their livelihoods are vulnerable. All they really have to protect themselves are these local vigilante groups
that are very poorly equipped, very poorly trained.
[10:30:06]
DAMON: And so, what these villagers do is they try to cut their own deals with Boko Haram exchanging food. In return, Boko Haram agrees not to attack
them. And this very much, it seems, according to at least one person that CNN spoke to, to have been a similar deal that then went entirely south.
ANDERSON: Arwa Damon on the story for you. Arwa, thank you. Well, tens of thousands of Ethiopians who fled across the Sudanese board. After the
break, one woman seeking refuge tells us what she left behind in Tigray. And tens of thousands of people take to the streets in cities all over
France as a controversial new security bill reignites the debate so that holding officers, police officers accountable for police brutality.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ANDERSON: We'll get you the very latest on a war that we have been covering for you for the last few weeks. In Ethiopia, it is tough going to bring you
the very latest as there is a media blackout in the place, making it extremely hard for CNN's teams to get a full picture of what is going on.
But we are working extremely hard. And here is what we know at this point. Tens of thousands of ordinary people are grabbing what they can and running
if they can into neighboring Sudan.
That as the Tigray people's Liberation Front, a rebellious movement in the north of Ethiopia, claims that they are still fighting despite the central
government's forces gaining control of the region's capital. Amid it all, the Prime Minister set out an extraordinary claim.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ABIY AHMED, ETHIOPIAN PRIME MINISTER: Under no circumstances in three weeks (INAUDIBLE) not even a single person was killed in these cities. No
countries are making sure such a performance.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON: CNN's senior international correspondent Nima Elbagir connecting us to this story this hour. Three of her sources on the ground. What are
you learning at this point?
NIMA ELBAGIR, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, we just -- we're hearing, Becky, from humanitarian sources and eyewitnesses on that
border between Sudan and Ethiopia and what they're telling us is that part of the reason that we're not able to get up to date information is because
refugees who stories we were trying to verify and get out to the world, they are being blocked36 from crossing that border by Ethiopian defense
forces.
[10:35:18]
ELBAGIR: Eye witnesses say that they themselves heard Ethiopian soldiers along that border trying to usher refugees back into Ethiopia. And you see
the images that we're showing you there. That's the main (INAUDIBLE) river between Sudan and Ethiopia. There was something like 40, 50 boats a day
crossing that. Now over the last couple of days, there have been maybe one or two a day bringing over maybe 10, 20 people.
And those that are coming over, Becky, tell a story that really doesn't line up with Prime Minister Ahmed's claim that not much damage was done to
the cities that his armies were in. Take a listen to this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translator): We put our homes behind us and fled. Our food and drink and our brothers and sisters, our homes were
destroyed. The homes that were bombed and destroyed too many to count, only a few are left standing. We left our crops in the fields, the sesame crop,
all of it. When the bombardment started we were sitting down to it and out of fear we left leaving the food still on the table.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ELBAGIR: And even the humanitarian agencies that we've been speaking to who like us are listening to Prime Minister Ahmed's claims that the war is over
and victory has been announced. They say, Becky, that they still do not have access to take aid into those people that you see climbing over into
Sudan, with very little -- many of them crossing just with the clothes on their backs they told us. The U.N. continues to call for unrestricted
unimpeded access. And it's not getting it, Becky.
ANDERSON: Yes. Tens of thousands have fled as you rightly point out, fled Ethiopia into Sudan during what has been this now three-week conflict. You
are right to point out the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, Filippo Grandi, who is in Khartoum at present and said that humanitarian
access is not being granted to Tigray yet. He says it will hopefully develop in the coming days. Is that likely at this point?
ELBAGIR: Well, very little is clear. All we know right now is what we don't know. We don't know how many people are going hungry inside Tigray. We
don't know what the situation looks like. And now with these huge concerns regarding refugees, even being allowed to take safe refuge in Sudan which
by the way, is a basic humanitarian right under the U.N. Charter.
There is very little sense that Prime Minister Ahmed is being honest with the international community and with aid organizations and it is the
Ethiopian people it is the people of the Tigray region that are on the frontlines of all this and are suffering because of that dishonesty.
ANDERSON: We will continue to report as best we can, despite the media blackouts, despite the difficulty on the ground, as you can hear from them.
Humanitarian organizations also finding it extremely difficult to get information. But what those sources then will continue to plug away at that
because we must continue to tell this story. Thank you, Nima.
Let's get you up to speed on some of the other stories that are on our radar right now. More than 130,000 people protested across France this
weekend after lawmakers passed a controversial new security bill that critics say will make it more difficult to hold police accountable for
illegal actions protest in Paris began peacefully but erupted into violence as the night went on.
There have been no claims of responsibility following a deadly car bombing in Afghanistan. Official say the blast head of security base in the Ghazni
Province on Sunday killing at least 40 Afghan troops, 24 others were injured. Explosion came one day after a deadly rocket attack in Kabul.
Jordan's King Abdullah and the Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas hope America's President-elect Joe Biden will revive peace talks over
a two-state solution. Now the two leaders met in Jordan over the weekend. Palestinians cut off ties with the Trump administration. You will remember
after it sided with Israel on several key issues in the Israeli- Palestinian conflict.
Well, it is 20 to 8:00 also here in Abu Dhabi. We will be right back after this quick break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[10:41:43]
ANDERSON: Just want to show you some incredible footage from the F1 race in Bahrain this weekend after a driver's car burst into a fireball as it
plowed into the barriers at the racetrack. The driver thankfully mercifully walking away from the crash.
CNN's World Sport's Amanda Davies with is now joining me for more on what happened. I've seen these videos. I've seen these pictures so many times
now and I still cannot believe he walked away with pretty much scrapes and bruises. Right? I know he's hospitalized but tell us what happened.
AMANDA DAVIES, CNN WORLD SPORT ANCHOR: Ye, Becky. It is absolutely incredible, particularly when you see the state that his car was left it
and you have to remember just a few years ago, the ending to this story could have been very, very different. Very tragic. And, you know, within
hours, Romain Grosjean was posting a video on social media smiling saying he's doing OK other than some burns to his hands and ankles.
We understand he's set to leave hospital tomorrow. And it is huge testament to the strides that Formula One have taken in recent years in terms of
safety measures, in particular with the introduction of the Halo, which was really controversial. A lot of people including Roman didn't want it to be
brought in as a head protection device on the front of the cars protecting the cockpit. Roman has said, you know, he credits that for saving his life.
And his team principal Guenther Steiner I was able to speak to him just an hour or so ago. He echoed those thoughts. A really fascinating interview
with him coming up from Bahrain in just a couple of minutes.
ANDERSON: Good stuff there. That's World Sport just after this short break. I'll be back after that. Thank you.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
END
