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Olympics Hit By Rising COVID Cases; Europe Floods Described As Terrifying And Surreal; Jeff Bezos Set To Rocket Into Space Tuesday. Aired 10-11a ET

Aired July 19, 2021 - 10:0   ET

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

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[10:00:30]

BECKY ANDERSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: An uninvited guest to four days before the start of the games. COVID appears at the Olympic Village, and

the number of infected athletes is rising. Germany's Chancellor called the flood devastation surreal. Hundreds of people in Western Europe have lost

their lives and livelihoods. And now the cleanup begins.

And countdown to launch. Jeff Bezos prepares to join the ranks of billionaire astronauts.

3:00 p.m. in London, it's 6:00 p.m. in Abu Dhabi. I'm Becky Anderson. Hello and welcome to CONNECT THE WORLD. We begin with the sports' greatest show

on earth. Starting in just days under a shout of COVID concerns as the athletes arrive by the thousands. So world of worry is descending on demand

on the organizers of the Tokyo Olympics.

At least 61 confirmed cases are related to the games including our ultimate in the world's U.S. women's gymnastics team. A member of the Czech beach

volleyball team and two players and an official from South Africa's football team all tested positive after arriving in Japan and now there is

word a second alternate American gymnast is in isolation. The officials admit they can't guarantee the event will be risk free at the same time.

They insist the Olympic Village is "A safe place to stay." On top of all of this, some big players in business and politics are skipping the games

including the head of Olympic sponsored Toyota. Japan's biggest company and the president of South Korea. Let's connect you to Tokyo and to CNN's

Selina Wang. What's the committee saying about the rising numbers of infections, Selina?

SELINA WANG, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Becky, the organizers here are playing down the number of infections. Saying that it's expected

and actually potentially lower than what they thought they're saying that considering more than 20,000 Olympic participants have already arrived at

the case numbers are extremely low, and it shows that the layers of COVID restrictions are working.

But, Becky, the games have not even yet begun. And in total, more than 80,000 Olympic participants will be descending upon Japan. Games are only

going a bit far more complicated once when these competitions start and athletes lose their chance to play if they test positive right before these

games begin. Now for that U.S. female athlete, that is the first case of a U.S.-Olympic athlete testing positive for COVID-19 here in Japan bringing

the total number of cases in Japan linked to these games up to 61.

You've got athletes, officials and contractors all testing positive for COVID-19. And Becky, these Olympic officials are also saying that they're

confident they can keep these Olympic participants separate from the population here in Japan. But experts say that just isn't possible with

something the size and scale of the Olympic Games. And there's a lot of concern as Tokyo is in a state of emergency reporting more than 1000 COVID-

19 cases a day, just 20 percent of the population here fully vaccinated, Becky.

ANDERSON: Let's just talk about the logistics here. I hear what you say about what the organizers are convinced will happen. But could contacts who

are forced to isolate from athletes who are positive find themselves out of the competition. How does that work?

WANG: That is certainly a possibility, Becky because it's not just about testing positive for COVID. It's also potentially being a close contact of

someone who has tested positive. We know that in the case of the two South African athletes that have tested positive in the Olympic village that 21

members of the South African team are now in isolation. So this brings up huge challenges for training leading up to these games as well as actually

playing during competition.

So extremely challenging for these elite logistics that when it comes to the Olympic Village these athletes are asked to arrive only five days

before and leave two days after. Now the IOC has come up with some changes for these medal ceremonies and what could happen to these medals if a team

has to drop out last minute. Becky?

ANDERSON: A story in Tokyo for you. Thank you. Of course these Olympic Games officially kicking off on Friday. Well, in a move criticized by

scientists is as dangerous, even reckless. The U.K. Government has lifted nearly all coronavirus restrictions in England. Supporters of the decision

call today Freedom Day. Fallen all capacity limits on nightclubs, restaurants and other venues. Mosques are no longer mandatory in the vast

majority of places.

But at the same time, the Delta variant has changed the entire trajectory of the pandemic in the U.K. as it has elsewhere. Since its vaccination

program began yet the government banking on case numbers getting quite a lot worse before they get better. Those words spoken by Prime Minister

Johnson as he confirmed the decision on Sunday. Mr. Johnson himself is in self isolation because he is in close contact with the health secretary who

has tested positive for COVID-19.

International diplomatic editor Nic Robertson standing by at Trafalgar Square in the center of London. Phil Black's live from Liverpool Street

Station. And I want to start with you. That is or certainly should be a bustling station. A main station here in London where four of the tube

lines intersect for example. The Mayor of London has said face masks are still required on public transport. What's the situation? Are people

obeying the rules?

PHIL BLACK, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes. On the transport network this morning, Becky, based of what I saw, yes, most people are wearing

masks. I think not everyone. But then again that hasn't been the case throughout the pandemic really. They've always been, people who've taken a

more casual attitude. At the moment. Yes, technically, people are still supposed to wear masks when traveling on the London underground.

That is, as you say, enforced by the Mayor of London. Transport for London, not the central government. This, however, is just one piece of life here

in this city as you know. Here's another example of a piece of life we said a team to a London nightclub that was enthusiastically opening just minutes

past midnight as soon as it could, as soon as the rules disappear. And there are teams who are very different to see.

Big crowds of people that are confined environment dancing vigorously for hours on end, no mass, no limits on sizes, no rules, really and no need to

prove that you've been vaccinated or tested negatively recently. A very different situation. And I guess I make this comparison to make the point

that the England isn't so much losing rules as it is losing consistency of rules. It now comes down to individual businesses and organizations and

indeed individuals to decide just how cautious they're going to be, how cautious they want their employees to be, how cautious they're going to

demand customers be.

And they're also responsible for enforcing these rules without the wave of law behind them. So it is on the whole a much more complex situation where

critics say there is much greater vulnerability in terms of allowing the Delta variant to surge even further than it has done already. And that is

why some scientists, as you say a calling this reckless and unethical because they believe that you could see such a surge in cases that you

still end up with numbers in hospital that potentially are greater than England has seen at any point in the pandemic up until now.

So, there is a great deal at stake. Critics call it a gamble. At the very least, it is an experiment. No one else has tried to do this before.

Reopening in the middle of a surging wave. And there is just tremendous uncertainty about how this is going to go, Becky.

ANDERSON: Yes, absolutely. Yeah. And it's a -- stands in stark contrast to many countries, of course, who are certainly not opening up completely and

in some countries there is the reinstallation of COVID restrictions. Thank you. Our international diplomatic editor Nic Robertson is at Trafalgar

Square. Supporters for this Freedom Day, there's the argument that that is good for the economy, leaving it up to individuals and private businesses

to protect themselves, Nic.

And those who support the reopening, the entire reopening of the English economy say going forward pretty much the idea is that one will have to

live with COVID. I think it's important to point out this -- at this stage that the Prime Minister himself is isolating today after the health

secretary tested positive. This is the health secretary who has had two doses of the AstraZeneca vaccination.

And there has been some criticism about the way that Boris Johnson went about deciding to self-isolate. Just explain if you will.

ROBERTSON: Yes, sure. The Health Secretary did a lateral flow test. He tested positive. He had a PCR test and then when the results of that PCR

test came in that said he was positive. Therefore, that meant anyone that had met in the previous couple of days for an extended period which

included the Prime Minister, which included the Chancellor of exchequer would by the rules of this government, of Boris Johnson and his cabinet

have had to self-isolate for, you know, for about 10 days.

[10:05:07]

ROBERTSON: Well, Downing Street on Sunday morning announced that actually that they were part of a new trail scheme, that would mean they could

continue to work. And they would just do tests every day. Well, within a couple of hours, they completely reversed that the Prime Minister and the

Chancellor of the Exchequer, both saying that they were going to self- isolate for the required period, because that was the right thing to do.

But the idea for so many people here that the product can be one set of rules for the -- for the Prime Minister for his cabinet. And another set

for the people is absolutely incendiary here. So a lot of anger and frustration spent in over the weekend about that. And of course, now Boris

Johnson, as opposed to a couple of weeks ago was talking about this sort of Freedom Day is now talking about it.

People should exercise extreme caution. But that's angering another side of his own party, the more right-wing side who accused him of not being the

libertarian that he'd always profess to be, not to be the person who doesn't want the rules of the nanny state inflicted upon the population.

So, at the moment, you know, his treading that line between the critics on his right within his own party, the opposition who say that he's taking

great risks.

And the general public who think that this is a government that just looks after themselves or not the people. So there's a lot riding on the line for

the Prime Minister right now. And he's hunkering down not even in the center of London and his country retreat checkers away from the sort of

heat and noise of it right now.

ANDERSON: To both of you, thank you. That's the story in the U.K. It is as its supporters suggest Freedom Day.

Well, to a nation that is handling COVID very differently from the situation here in England, Israel has announced strict new measures to keep

people in quarantine from spreading the disease. Police will begin tracking people who test positive for the coronavirus to ensure that they do not

violate quarantine or plans to use telephone tracking apps to ensure no one breaks quarantine and those who do could face indictments. Hadas Gold is

live for us in Jerusalem, Hadas?

HADAS GOLD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Becky, the reason behind these new measures is just because the officials are looking at the numbers and

there's a lot of concern about the rising rates of infection. On Friday, Israel notch more than 1100 positive cases. That's the highest rate it's

been in four months. Yesterday, there are more than 800 new cases recorded there. There is a glimmer of good news in these numbers though.

And that's the rate of hospitalization for serious cases which experts say right now is lower. If you look at the percentage compared to at a similar

point in previous waves. But Prime Minister Naftali Bennett warning the country on Friday that it's clear the vaccines alone cannot conquer the

Delta variant, that the vaccines are shown to be significantly less effective against the Delta variant than previously hoped.

There are now talks about potentially offering a third dose of the Pfizer vaccine. Something that Israel is already doing to people with compromised

immune systems like people who have had organ transplants. But the restrictions are starting to come back into force in Israel. Already the

masks are required back on indoors. There are travel restrictions. There were plans for to open the country to tourists.

First is going to be July 1st, then it was August 1st. Now that has been pushed off completely with no new date in mind. It's very difficult for

non-citizens actually to even enter the country now. The Prime Minister has also said he wants to flood the country with home testing kits to make it

easier for everybody to get tested. They're also going to up the enforcement of all the coronavirus restrictions.

Everything from issuing fines, if you're not wearing a mask indoors to also having the police do bigger checks on people who are supposed to be under

quarantine, under isolation orders including possible criminal charges to anybody who is found to have had a positive coronavirus test but broke

those quarantine rules. And there are now plans to potentially use telephone tracking apps where essentially people could be sent a text

message with a link which would then allow them to be tracked by GPS.

So the officials could make sure that they're actually staying in quarantine, if they don't respond, that could trigger a visit by police.

But there was a lot of concern here by the officials about those rising numbers. So far though there have been no talks of those very, very strict

complete lockdowns that Israel saw in the past. Prime Minister saying that they want to do everything they can instead of having another lockdown

hoping that with the mask mandates and these increased quarantines that will help -- somehow help them avoid those further lockdowns. Becky?

ANDERSON: Hadas Gold is in Jerusalem. That's your wrap as it were on COVID this hour. Coming up. Western Europe beginning a massive cleanup effort

after its worst flooding in 100 years. The German Chancellor calling the enormous destruction surreal. What she says needs to be done in our fight

against climate change. And we are on the scene in Belgium also kicked hard by these floods here. How some survived the rising waters as the search for

those still missing continues.

[10:10:03]

ANDERSON: And later, a fierce fight to stop illegal mining in the Amazon. What indigenous tribes are doing to protect their lands and how the

Brazilian government is responding.

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ANDERSON: All right. You're watching CONNECT THE WORLD. I'm Becky Anderson for you today out of London. Days of historic flooding in Western Europe

has now claimed at least 195 lives. Just take a look at some of the devastation. Homes have been destroyed, roads washed away hundreds of

people remain missing. How the authorities fear more bodies will be found. Now parts of Western Germany, Belgium and the Netherlands were hit with

extreme flash flooding after unprecedented rainfall.

And now neighboring countries are helping with what our search and rescue operations. CNN reporters on the ground in the two worst affected

countries. Sam Kiley is in the North Rhine-Westphalia in Germany and Chris Burns is in neighboring Belgium. Sam, let's just start with you. These are

floods, the likes of which most people will never have seen. Just what is going on on the ground.

SAM KILEY, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, you say the likes of which people haven't ever seen before, down in the Netherlands, where I

was just a few days ago, they had the highest levels of water as a result of this inundation that they've seen since 1911. I think it's similar

statistics will apply right across Germany. But look at the devastation here behind me, Becky, here in Schult.

This has been in a sense become the kind of symbolics, town for the whole of the devastation that has been visited in Germany. It has been the

country that's been worst affected with some 160 or more casualties. Many hundreds of other people and accounted for not necessarily missing but

communications are down. It really was a devastating series of flash floods, not rivers necessarily swelling.

Although they are of course did flash floods as a result of gigantic amounts of water pouring off the hills here. I've been in the woods here, I

measured it up to my hips on almost perpendicular slopes, really, really frightening. And on top of that, of course, there's been fears that dams

might burst and downriver from where I'm standing down today this was the scene.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KILEY (voice-over): A business ruined, slung away almost as quickly as it was washed away. Flash flooding in Gulf to his Vietnamese restaurant, Pho

68. Have to film the rising waters in our excursion. It's one of the many towns in Gulf by floods that have killed at least 158 people across Western

Germany.

TUI, OWNER, PHO 68 RESTAURANT: A lot of friends, they have restaurant, a house is completely destroyed. I have a lot of friends. They are in which

as (INAUDIBLE) near of water which the house is not standing.

[10:20:12]

KILEY: Tui's restaurant had only been open two weeks since the most recent COVID-19 restrictions were lifted. Now she's dependent on friends and

former diners to help clean up. The violence of the flood is visible everywhere.

(on camera): The disaster that engulfed this town wasn't the result of a swollen river bursting its banks. It was the result of flash flooding of

massive amount of rainfall coming in an incredibly short period of time and created torrents that swept through the streets. Often, this high.

(voice over): Swollen rivers drain the floods eventually. But looming over the area has been the future of the (INAUDIBLE) dam. Parts of it collapsed

and several villages below evacuated. Engineers were rushed in to bring its levels down before it burst. Scenes like this and much worse are being

repeated across Western Germany and in neighboring Belgium. Unseasonal rainfall has also hit the Netherlands and Austria and the Czech Republic.

While many are grieving there is an energetic sense of community as cleaning up starts.

SETFAN, VOLUNTEER: I don't know from who, where all the generators come from, where all the pumps come from. I don't know the people around here

but everybody is helping each other.

KILEY (voice-over): The costs of this disaster are almost incalculable. But there will be a reckoning, when the history of what happened here comes to

be written amid the climate change crisis, it's likely to say this was a warning.

(on camera): Now Becky, since that piece, we've been speaking and we've seen a statement from Hannah Coles (ph) who is a British Academic Reading

University, part of the group in charge of issuing warnings against exactly this kind of disaster across Western Union Europe, and she has said that

the failure of governments to respond to the warnings that they were given has been inexcusable, Becky.

ANDERSON: Well, certainly, Angela Merkel calling these scenes surreal. Thank you, Sam. Let's get to Chris who is in Belgium. More than 160 people

there remain unaccounted for. What are authorities doing to narrow the search and for those who are now in the throes of a massive cleanup? What

is going on to support them, Chris?

CHRIS BURNS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Becky. The search does go on. It is a complicated by gas leaks which we were evacuated from in one search. And

here we're looking at a massive, massive cleanup efforts that the government is doing, that individuals are doing. And they're also living

with what happened last Thursday night. In fact, let me bring you over here to this bit -- one of these buildings over here.

We talked to one of the people who evacuated at the last minute, she saw the water. Some neighbor tapped on her window and told her this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

AURELIE GARALF, FLOOD SURVIVOR (through translator): I was sleeping. It was my neighbor who tapped on my window to warn me because the water was up to

my window. So after that, I took the initiative. I warned my other neighbors and took refuge with my neighbor on the second floor that night.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (through translator): How did you feel? You must have been terrified, looking out the window in the water rising? How did it

feel?

GARALF: I was all confused. I didn't know what to do. My priority was to save my neighbor. Like my neighbor saved me. I had to save my neighbor on

the floor above two.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BURNS: So Aurelie live -- and others here, 40 -- only 40 percent of the city here in Verviers Val VA has electricity. They can't drink the water.

And there's growing anger about the fact that perhaps officials could have warned them a bit earlier. And even the mayor here told us in an interview,

we hope to play you that next hour that if they had gotten proper warnings, they could have evacuated and avoided a lot of deaths. Becky?

ANDERSON: Chris, are people satisfied that enough will be done or certainly is being done at present to ensure that they can, for example, get

insurance, claims executed. What the story on the ground?

BURNS: Yes. That's a -- that's a huge question. The government has set aside a few million for the cleanup, set aside millions for small business

loans for people to rebuild their lives but it's not going to be nearly enough. It's probably going to have to be a much bigger budget on that. And

that's what we're going to have to see. And about this blame game there are calls by the mayor and others that there should be a national inquiry, a

parliamentary inquiry to figure out why there was this communication breakdown on warning people to get away from this tsunami that crashed

through here Thursday night -- Thursday morning.

[10:25:07]

ANDERSON: Sam, just finally with you, you talked about the fact that there has been much criticism that these governments should have -- there was

enough warning from forecasts as these governments should have known and more might have been done to warn people. There is, of course, also a great

connection being made to climate change at this point. What are you hearing on the ground?

BURNS: Well, yes, absolutely.

KILEY: Well, anybody who -- I haven't simply spoken to anybody on the ground who is a victim of this, who doesn't believe it's a consequence of

climate change. They don't live in a bubble. They live on the globe, they can see what's going on in Canada. I spoke just 10 minutes ago, to Nicholas

Peters. And he said, look, who's just here in Schult, cleaning up his parents' devastating house. He said, look, when you see 50-degree

temperatures in Canada in midsummer, don't be surprised if we see these events happening in Europe.

By the way, of course, there have been mass flooding events in central Western Europe and in the United Kingdom frequently over the last 10 to 15

years. And again, Professor Coles at Redding University responsible for studying this sort of stuff has drawn an absolutely direct line -- red line

between what happened here and what's going up -- going on in the wider climate change debate.

I don't think anybody's interested in debating whether or not this is result of climate change. It would just be considered foolish here in this

town of Schult at least.

ANDERSON: Fascinating. Sam, Kylie's there and to Chris burns as well. Thank you. Well, these floods, as we've been reporting did actually catch many

citizens in Europe off guard but unlike Germany and Belgium, the Netherlands avoided having fatalities. Cnn.com is where you can learn about

just how prepared the Dutch work and the blueprint that they can offer the world on how to handle floods.

Well, officials in India say at least 31 people have been killed by landslides during heavy rain in the Mumbai area. The landslide set to

houses in two suburbs of the city. India's National Disaster Response Force says the recovery effort has now been called off. Prime Minister Narendra

Modi has offered his condolences and announced that aid will be provided for the victims. Well, Mimabi is in the midst of its annual monsoon season.

But the rain over the past few days has been especially heavy. The city got 250 millimeters of rain from Sunday morning into Monday morning. Well, it

is Eid, almost, Eid Mubarak to those of you who are celebrating. We'll show you how the pandemic is changing the biggest pilgrimage of the year.

And the King of Jordan meeting with Joe Biden. We'll you what issues the two leaders will be discussing in Washington in just a moment.

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[10:30:32]

ANDERSON: We are right at the start of Eid al-Fitr. Let me start that again. Eid al-Fitr celebrations right now. Thousands of Muslim pilgrims who

scattered in Mecca for the second harsh of this pandemic era. But it is going to be a muted holiday in much of the world as the pandemic of course

continues to spread. Only 60,000 Saudi residents were allowed to take part in this year's pilgrimage and they were all required to be vaccinated

against COVID-19.

Well, for a closer look at this year's holiday. Arwa joining me now from Istanbul. And let's just start with what is going on this year in Mecca.

ARWA DAMON, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Becky, Saudi authorities are obviously greatly concerned about the spread of COVID-19. Albeit this

year, they are allowing some 60,000 people residents of Saudi Arabia as you mentioned there to attend last year, for example, they only allowed 1000

people. But let's just compare this to the usual numbers of pilgrims who flocked to Mecca every single year to perform the Hajj.

Well over two million but the Saudi government most definitely feels as if it does need to take these additional very necessary precautions greatly

concerned about the spread of the Delta variant. Now this is what the Saudi Deputy Minister of Public Health had to say.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

HANI JOKHDAR, SAUDI DEPUTY HEALTH MINISTER: Our concern was that we don't want to have Saudi Arabia to be a focus of a shower or a spillover of a

variant D in countries where their vaccination rate is not as good, or their healthcare system is not as good to -- in terms of capacity.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GOLD: And that is a very understandable concern, Becky. If we look at a statement that the World Health Organization put out just last week in the

lead up, not just to Hajj but obviously to Eid-ul-Aadha. That was one that very blatantly stated that the Middle East and North Africa was reaching a

state of critical concern. A number of countries in the region have very low vaccination rates. Iraq, for example is just at one percent of the

population having received the first dose.

And today reporting its highest infection rate. Since the start of the pandemic. Tunisia has had to implement additional measures. Libya is

struggling, Iran, the country that was hardest hit in the Middle East is also recording numbers that are very close to being what they were at the

peak of the pandemic there. And so you have these dual concerns. Low vaccination rates and the increasing spread of the highly contagious Delta

variant.

And so, you know, this is most certainly going to be very devastating for those millions across the world. Muslims across the world who thought they

would be able to carry out there Hajj pilgrimage this year. It is one of the tenants of Islam and obligation upon any Muslim who is financially and

physically able to carry it out, Becky.

ANDERSON: Arwa Damon now on the story for you out of Istanbul today. Arwa, thank you. Let's get you up to speed on some of the other stories on our

radar right now. And King Abdullah of Jordan visiting the White House in just a few hours. He'll be the first Arab leader to meet face to face with

U.S. President Joe Biden. The two leaders are expected to talk about peace efforts between Israel and the Arab world as well as the situation in war-

torn Syria.

No doubt COVID will also be on their agenda. But it's only a quarter sentence to Americans for helping former Nissan chair Carlos Ghosn skip

bail and free Japan in 2019. U.S. Army veteran Michael Taylor was given two years in prison. His son Peter received a year and eight months. The pair

had pleaded guilty last month.

Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro has left to Sao Paolo hospital where he was being treated for an intestinal blockage. You've been hospitalized

since Wednesday after suffering abdominal pain and constant hiccups. He says or certainly official say he will continue to receive outpatient care.

Well, the billionaire space race is heating up just days after Richard Branson's historic launch. Jeff Bezos prepares for a flight of his own.

[10:35:07]

ANDERSON: Ahead what it could mean for the future of space tourism. And Collin Morikawa is rewriting the history books. We'll tell you about the

elite group of gulfers he has joined in just a moment.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ANDERSON: All right. Welcome back. You're watching. Connect well with me, Becky Anderson. And just have a look at this. The Dow Jones Industrial

average of about 2-1/3 of one percent. This market has been down more than 800 points today. Investors really taking some heat of the news now that

the Delta variant is really doing the rounds. And investors clearly quite spooked by the rising numbers of COVID-19 cases as a result of that.

This Delta variant of course spreading across the globe. The Dow down some 700 points at the outset today. This is a market that really fell like a

stone at the outset. Now leveling out, as it were. But really, you know, as you see here, those organizations and those part of the economies that

would really benefit from the reopening of these economies around the world really taking a hit today as people pause to consider what the Delta

variant means for the ultimate reopening of economies around the world.

Jumping around a little bit at present, but as you see down below 34,000 now still off some two percent. We'll keep you checked in on what's going

on the Dow Jones Industrial Average as we move through the day.

Well, the wife of Haiti's assassinated president has returned home as the country prepares for the funeral of her husband Jovenel Moise. First Lady

Martine Moise survived the attack making her one of the only witnesses and with questions still swirling around the murder. Investigators are of

course eager to speak with her. CNN's Matt Rivers is in Port-au-France with more.

MATT RIVERS, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, the first lady of Haiti is now back here on the island. She came back over the weekend. Remember

she was critically injured during the assassination that took the life of her husband President Jovenel Moise. They were -- he was assassinated in

the presidential residence more than one week ago. During that attack, she was critically injured, she was taken to the -- to the airport here in

Port-au-France.

There she was flown to Miami where she recovered in a hospital in Miami for more than one week. Obviously now feeling well enough to have returned here

to the island. She's a surviving witness of this attack. Investigate obviously wants to hear what she has to say and so to do members of the

public because so many questions still surround the investigation into the assassination of President Moise.

Unclear at this point if or when she plans to speak out publicly. We do know she will be attending funeral events that will take place this week

for President Moise. There will be some of those events that take place here in Port-au-France. Also there will be his official funeral on Friday

in Cape Haitian. It is a town on the northern part of this island. That is where Maurice is from and that is where his official funeral will take

place on Friday.

But again, when -- if the First Lady plans to speak out publicly remains an open question. Matt River, CNN Port-au-France, Haiti.

ANDERSON: Less than 24 hours, the world's richest man is slated to reach the edge of space on his very own rocket ship. Jeff Bezos, along with his

brother and two other people will take off from Texas on the so-called New Shepard spacecraft. The 11-minute ride. Yes, 11 minutes will be a crucial

test for Bezos and his company Blue Origin. New plan to use the rocket for space tourism flights going forward.

Well, this will what happen of course nine days of the fellow billionaire Richard Branson took a flight on his spacecraft. CNN's Kristin Fisher

following this story for us. She's live in Texas, near the side of the launch. And much publicity, much marketing by these two billionaires, some

criticism that their money might be better spent these days, but be that as you will, and what can we expect from tomorrow's launch? And how will it be

different from Branson's flight last week?

KRISTIN FISHER, CNN SPACE AND DEFENSE CORRESPONDENT: It's going to be so different. I mean, first and foremost, what we saw last week with Richard

Branson's Virgin Galactic SpaceShipTwo. That was a supersonic space plane which took off and landed from the same runway. What we're going to see

tomorrow with Jeff Bezos is Blue Origin's New Shepard spacecraft is a good old fashioned rocket like you saw during the Apollo days.

There is a booster and a capsule on top, which is where the astronauts are going to be inside. And I had a chance to actually go out to the launch

pad, which is much smaller than you would normally think of. When you think of a launch pad, like you would see down at Cape Canaveral, down in

Florida. This is a smaller launch pad because this is only a suborbital rocket, so it's not going to be going up into orbit. It's just going to be

going up to the Karman line.

The internationally recognized boundary of space, and then coming back down with the help of three parachutes. So that's one of the biggest

differences. Plane versus a rocket. It's also much shorter. I mean, Richard Branson's flight was 90 minutes long, Jeff Bezos' flight only 11 minutes.

And then of course, there's the price tag. Virgin Galactic selling seats for about $250,000. Well, Jeff Bezos and Blue Origin, we don't know how

much those seats are going to go for.

But you take a look at that auction, they're probably going to go for pretty high because the first paying customer he won a seat on this flight

for about $28 million, but he's not flying tomorrow due to a scheduling conflict. How is that possible? How can you have a scheduling conflict when

you spend that kind of money, but that's what they say.

ANDERSON: It is absolutely remarkable. I'm sure there are people who will be perfectly happy to slip in to that (INAUDIBLE) but anyway, there you go.

I'm sure you'll get another opportunity. Thank you for that.

Collin Morikawa is doing things rarely seen in golf. On Sunday, he won the British Open becoming only the eighth golfer for in history to win two

majors before the age of 25. The others to accomplish that are legends of the game like Jack Nicklaus and Tiger Woods. Amanda Davies is here with

more and we -- your colleague of mine, Alex Thomas and I were talking about the potential for this chap to do well here.

I don't think we really thought he was going to win it. This is quite special, isn't it?

AMANDA DAVIES, CNN SPORTS CORRESPONDENT: Yes, it feels almost too glib to call Colin Morikawa the next golfing superstar, doesn't it? But what he is

doing is literally rewriting the history books. The first man to win two different majors on debut following up his PGA Championship success. Alex

actually got the chance to sit down with him after his victory yesterday. We've got some of that interview coming up in World Sports in a couple of

minutes.

But he is just taking it all in his stride. He -- this is his first trip to Europe. His first tournament he played was the Scottish Open. He finished

with his worst ever results having made the cut tied for 71st. The very next week he said he was going to sit back watch and learn and he's walked

away with a claret jug. It is quite incredible. He really is pretty special. And we've got the interview coming with you next.

ANDERSON: We've been running some pictures of that.

[10:45:01]

ANDERSON: And it looks as if he's quite intrigued by that claret jug. So let's find out what went on in that conversation after this break. Amanda

is back with World Sport. You folks come after that with the second hour of CONNECT THE WORLD. Do stay with us.

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