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Connect the World

At least 100 Killed after Fire Rips Through Celebration; CNN Spends 24 Hours at NYC's Main Migrant Intake Facility; Menendez in Court this Morning on Bribery Charges; He Crossed into North Korea Illegally when Touring the Korean Demilitarized Zone; U.S. Official: Army Private Travis King now in U.S. Custody; Inter Miami Sweats on Messi Fitness ahead of Final. Aired 9-10a ET

Aired September 27, 2023 - 09:00   ET

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

[09:00:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BECKY ANDERSON, CNN HOST, CONNECT THE WORLD: I'm Becky Anderson live from Abu Dhabi for you. This is "Connect the World" 5 pm in here. Coming up this

hour, celebration turns to tragedy is more than 100 guests at a wedding in Iraq are killed in a fire. North Korea says it will expel the U.S. soldier

who made a daring dash into the country.

Nearly half of all ethnic Armenians in Nagorno-Karabakh have now fled into Armenia and almost 9000 migrants crossed into the U.S. this week, we'll

have a special report for you from Mexico. Checking on the markets for you, New York opens in about 30 minutes U.S. futures pointing to a higher open

across the board after Tuesday's sharp sell offs.

That was due to weak economic data and rising bond yields. Keeping an eye on that few the opening, bells of course, in half an hour's time. We begin

with tragedy in Iraq. The Iraqi government declaring a three day mourning period after a fire at a wedding left at least 100 people dead and more

than 150 others injured.

Just a short time ago, we learned that nine people had been arrested in connection with that fire or authorities say the wedding hall did not meet

safety requirements and that fireworks, candles and other materials used during the celebration sparked the flames. The father of the groom says his

son and the bride are both alive and are in the hospital receiving treatment.

For the very latest, let's get you to CNN's Salma Abdelaziz who is following the very latest developments for us from London, Salma?

SALMA ABDELAZIZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: So you have mentioned those nine arrests Becky, and that's because of the cause the suspected cause of this

fire, which as you said is this building material highly flammable, cheap and illegal that was used on this wedding hall.

I mean, eye witnesses describe it essentially going up in a matter of moments. It was a tinderbox because again of that illegal building

material, all of this taking place around 10 pm last night. Some 1000 people were gathered to celebrate that Christian wedding. And this is the

context really behind this story.

This is a community that had returned to post ISIS, post 2016 after U.S. back forces were able to liberate that area from the terror group.

Buildings were being rebuilt in the area, the community was coming together. This is one of the buildings that were put up just in the last

few years.

Now of course we're finding out with materials that were illegal. The question that many of those victims are going to be asking is. Is

corruption to blame and one other building that have been built in recent years since post ISIS also unsafe?

ANDERSON: These images are truly shocking. What more do we know about those who've been arrested at this point?

ABDELAZIZ: Still very early information that we're getting, but these may have been people who were involved with managing the building, but again,

just mentioning those images because I think that's very important, Becky, to get an understanding of what happened inside if we can roll some of

those images inside the building.

I mean, there is nothing left in there, it is literally charred concrete and twisted rebar. And the horrifying accounts we're hearing is again

because this building went up in flames. So quickly those portions of it collapsed causing families to be trapped in that Inferno. The Health

Ministry saying that it wasn't just burns that led to people's death.

[09:05:00]

But asphyxiation, suffocation on able to get out again the death toll so far right now is about 100 people who have lost their lives, 150 injured. I

mean, the tragedy and scope of this is so great that multiple hospitals according to one official, nine different hospitals are trying to help the

wounded and the victims.

But it's still very early days, those numbers could absolutely rise in the fear in that Christian community again, a persecuted community, a community

that has faced tragedy time and time again, is where else can a fire happen or other buildings unsafe?

ANDERSON: It's like a nightmare. One local resident told a reporter on the ground Salma, thank you. All, nearly half of all ethnic Armenians in

Nagorno-Karabakh have now fled into Armenia. They're leaving on a packed mountain road so week after Azerbaijan, took control of the region in a

lightning offensive.

U.S. officials are in Azerbaijan today pushing Secretary of State Antony Blinken's message the Azeri President to protect those who remain in

Nagorno-Karabakh. Meantime, the death toll from the explosion Monday to fuel depot in the country or in Nagorno-Karabakh in the area has risen to

68 with nearly 300 others injured.

Scott McLean connecting us from London, two stories here not necessarily connected. We know certainly that on the ground, there is no sense that the

fuel depot attack was a security incident or a terror incident. But certainly there's just piling on the enormity of what is happening to those

who have fled and those of course. Scott, who remains?

SCOTT MCLEAN, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, just one more thing that those people did not need, Becky, and the numbers that we're talking

about are really extraordinary. So consider the population of Nagorno- Karabakh 120,000 at last census it was 99.7.

So virtually 100 percent ethnic Armenian and you have approaching half of them who have already left and obviously there are many people still lined

up trying to get out. But the journey is taking a very long time. Some people who have arrived in in Armenia, where officials are trying to get

them food and shelter, reported 24 hours or more.

Just trying to cross that border, others have turned back hopeful that they might be able to cross it in the coming days. Obviously there are concerns

right now for the people who are still left inside of that territory. We're talking about a territory that's been blockaded for 9, 10 months already.

So food, fuel supplies, these were scarce already. Luckily, the Red Cross I think told you yesterday, Becky, that look supplies food they are getting

in right now. The difficulty though is getting people out of the territory and so they are trying to figure out where exactly there may be alternative

routes.

Or whether they can do air lifts of some of these severely burned or injured people who desperately need urgent and specialist medical care

outside of that region. The international community, they are also concerned about the treatment of ethnic Armenians who remain in that area.

The U.S., Germany, others have called for international observers to be allowed in U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken has said that the

Azerbaijani President assured him that they would be allowed in and the State Department says that they expect him to keep his word.

The President of Azerbaijan for his part according to Armenian or Azerbaijani state TV, I should say, has told Antony Blinken that look the

minority rights in that area will be respected and that right now they are working on trying to get that area disarmed something that was agreed upon

in this ceasefire deal.

One of the things just to mention quickly, Becky, is that we have also gotten word just this morning about the arrest of Ruben Vardanyan. He is

the Former State Minister of the second in command in Nagorno-Karabakh by Azerbaijani officials as he was trying to leave that territory.

Officially, the only thing that we know of that he's been accused of so far as entering Azerbaijani territory illegally. He is a wealthy businessman,

obviously a former high ranking official in that state, and there are a lot of questions about his treatment. And obviously there are plenty of worries

about the treatment of others in that area, particularly those who've taken up arms or were part of the government.

One NGO who's working in the region said that on the day that Azerbaijan reclaimed control of the territory many people were burning stacks of

documents, anything that might tie them to taking part in that local government worried that they may be prosecuted, Becky.

[09:10:00]

ANDERSON: Scott McLean is on the story for you, Scott, good to have you, thank you. Well, North Korea says it will expel the U.S. soldier who made a

daring dash into the country. According to State Media Pyongyang says that investigation is now over. Now you may recall, Kim crossed into the country

during a public tour of the DMZ or the demilitarized zone back in July.

CNN's Paula Hancocks is following these developments from Seoul, and when we hear the term expel being used, what do the North Koreans mean by that?

PAULA HANCOCKS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Becky, what we've seen in the past when American citizens have been expelled from North Korea, there have been

a couple of cases over the years. They have been sent to Beijing in China, and then have been sent on to the U.S. or there have been U.S. officials

waiting for them there.

So we don't know for sure how this is going to play out at this point. The statement from North Korean State Media KCNA was three sentences long it

was short. It basically said they had an investigation into what Travis King had done. And they had said that he confessed to illegally intruding

into the country.

Now I have to point out this is all from state run media. This is not words from Travis King. We don't have any information on his well-being. We heard

nothing from him since mid-July when he crossed the military demarcation line into North Korea.

But State Media is also saying that that King had confessed to this and said that he had wanted to come to North Korea because he was disillusioned

with the U.S. talking about racial discrimination in the U.S. and also an unjust U.S. society. Again, Pyongyang's words attributed to Travis King.

So at this point, the question is when, where and how? And we're hoping those questions will be answered shortly. But it's worth reminding

ourselves what did happen, is this was quite a remarkable case? It was mid- July. Travis King had faced assault charges here in South Korea.

And he was actually spending and spent 50 days in a in a South Korean facility. He was then supposed to be deported to the U.S. he was taken to

the airport itself. He was supposed to go back to Fort Bliss in Texas. But he managed to leave the airport the very next day he went on this civilian

tour of the DMZ and then ran across the border into North Korea.

So really quite a remarkable story and we heard from U.S. officials consistently that their priority was to make sure they got him back safely,

Becky.

ANDERSON: Thank you, Paula, Paula Hancocks in South Korea. Well, nearly 9000 migrants crossed along the U.S. border in a 24 hour period this week.

That is, according to U.S. Customs and Border Protection officials that number up from around 3500 since last May, at the expiration of what was

known as title 42.

So why the sudden surge while the Border Patrol's top cop blames smugglers looking to turn a profit by using the distraction of large migrant groups

to disguise running deadly drugs and violent criminals in the U.S. Our Shimon Prokupecz has the story of some families who have just arrived in

New York.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DR. TED LONG, SENIOR VICE PRESIDENT AT NEW YORK CITY HEALTH + HOSPITALS: We're going to offer you food and water right away. A hot meal can go a

long way.

SHIMON PROKUPECZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Dr. Ted Long from New York City's Health and Hospital is proud of the operation the city has

established here.

LONG: Everything that we've developed in New York City is to meet the needs that were not met for people coming to us from Texas so far. So here,

whether it's screening for communicable disease, if you're a pregnant woman giving you prenatal care or screening, if you for the very important mental

health conditions you might have like depression. We do it all here because it's not done before here.

PROKUPECZ (voice-over): It really catches your eye to see so many kids running through the halls of the Roosevelt Hotel, almost like a playground

so many kids. The city says 20,000 migrant children have come through New York so far.

PROKUPECZ: Why did you come to America?

PROKUPECZ (voice-over): Leidi Caeza is 23 years old and escaping violence in Ecuador. She says she came here for her daughter Mia was born with a

physical disability.

PROKUPECZ: How are you feeling?

PROKUPECZ (voice-over): She says she's happy that she's here now. And she's scared to go back to Ecuador. I'm afraid that my daughter will die there if

she can't get medical attention and need a place to stay. I think they're going to help me.

PROKUPECZ: Yes OK, good luck, OK.

[09:15:00]

PROKUPECZ (voice-over): Its good news for Leidi and Mia they're being moved out of the intake center to a shelter as this group leaves another is

already shuffling in behind them. 116,000 have come to New York City since the spring of 2022 city officials say and it's a reminder that the flow of

migrants doesn't stop.

FABIEN LEVY, NEW YORK CITY DEPUTY MAYOR OF COMMUNICATIONS: The burden on New York City is too much quite honestly, we're past our breaking point.

PROKUPECZ (voice-over): Among those just arriving, Luis Flores, we met him outside and his wife Melinda Mirallas. They now have seats inside. It's a

dream come true he says.

PROKUPECZ: Took him 2.5 months to come to this country through the border. And now he's just hoping to give his family a better life. And they've been

sitting here now for several days waiting for the next steps and the next process. And this is this is your wife. Yes, -- years you've been married.

How are you doing?

PROKUPECZ (voice-over): Melinda tells us it was their dream to come to the United States. And she doesn't want to lose her husband, now that they

finally made it. As we leave, Luis speaks directly into our camera. I just want to work he says these are the hands of a worker.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ANDERSON: A fraud case against Donald Trump goes to trial in New York next week. But the judge has already made one ruling that takes a bite out of

Trump's business dealings in the Big Apple that is coming up, after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ANDERSON: Welcome back, 18 minutes past 5 here in Abu Dhabi. This says "Connect the World" from your programming hub here in the UAE, a major blow

to Donald Trump and his family's business empire. And New York judges so ruled that the Former U.S. President and two of his sons repeatedly

committed fraud by wildly overestimating the value of Trump properties and other assets.

This is just one piece of a wider case brought by New York's Attorney General. Brynn Gingras in New York following this for us, and joins me now.

So how we described this is just one part of this wider case, how significant a part is this?

BRYNN GINGRAS, CNN U.S. NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: That's exactly what I was going to say, Becky, it's just one piece, but it is huge. It's a huge

victory for New York Attorney General Letitia James who brought about this civil lawsuit because it kind of clears a path for her to get what she

wants some of what she already did when she filed this lawsuit.

So let me break down exactly what the judge ruled here. Essentially, he said Trump and his two sons over evaluated some of his assets, the golf

courses, the hotels, and his homes in order to gain loans and really build his empire, right?

[09:20:00]

Let me give you a tangible example. One of them is his Trump Tower apartment it's a triplex, right? He said on paperwork according to the

judge that it's three times bigger in square footage than it actually is over evaluating that, just that one property by 114 to $207 million.

And the judge not mincing words about that saying a discrepancy of this order, or magnitude by a real estate developer sizing up his own living

space of decades, can only be considered fraud. So that's just one example. And it's a huge blow to Trump and Trump Organization.

The judge essentially saying here, that Trump, his business certifications are going to be canceled Trump Organization, or parts of it that are named

in this lawsuit are going to be dissolved, and that there is going to be a receiver that's put in place to get that process started.

Now, it's unclear exactly how that's all going to look when it's all said and done. But again, that's how he makes his money, or at least a big chunk

of it. And that is going to be dissolved by this judge. Now, as you just said, Becky, it's just one part of this piece, or big pie.

That Attorney General is now going to move forward with this lawsuit that's expected to go to court starting next week, but there could be a glitch in

that start date. And that's because of course, as you can imagine, Trump is appealing not only this decision, but he's also filed appeal prior to this

related to this case.

And a judge is expected to rule on that sometime this week. So we'll see if that part gets really started. But this is a huge blow to Trump

Organization who, as you can imagine, again, is fighting this.

ANDERSON: Yes, absolutely. Brynn, good to have you, thank you. Donald Trump, for his part is focusing not on his legal troubles, but on the court

of public opinion. Specifically, the working class votes the Former President and 2024 Republican front runner is skipping a scheduled debate

in California later today.

Instead, he will be in Michigan, where he'll speak to former and current union members including some striking auto workers and their families. Now

his visit to the key battleground state follows President Biden's trip there yesterday to join the picket line.

Meantime, the prominent U.S. Senator Bob Menendez and his wife are in a New York courthouses hour on bribery charges. That is that first appearance

ever claims that the veteran senator and Former Chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee Menendez took cash and gifts in exchange for helping to

businessman and the Egyptian government.

He faced calls to resign from protesters. And it must be said from colleagues at least 26 fellow Senate Democrats now say that he should step

down. CNN's Kara Scannell is outside the courthouse with the very latest. He has absolutely insisted that he will not resign at present this act now

or out in the opening and is beginning.

This indictment unsealed on Friday suggests are alleging that Menendez used his power and his leadership in his position as the Chair of the Senate

Foreign Affairs Committee to commit fraud and other things. Just how bigger deal is this?

KARA SCANNELL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I mean, Becky, this is a big allegation. This is also the second time Senator Menendez has been indicted on bribery

related charges. But in this allegation mean prosecutors are saying he abused his position on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee to aid the

government of Egypt.

And part of these allegations are that he received bribes, hundreds of thousands of dollars that came in the form of gold bars, cash, Mercedes

Benz convertible for his wife, and in exchange, he passed sensitive information about the makeup of the number of employees at the U.S. Embassy

in Cairo to a middleman and that middleman pass that on to the Egyptian government.

He also allegedly held meetings with Egyptian military intelligence officials at his Senate office with his wife and a businessman and no

professional staff present. And this is all part of what Prosecutors allege with this corrupt bribery scheme. And now Menendez and his wife arrived

about an hour go hand in hand walking into court.

They are also co-defendants in this case, along with the three New Jersey businessmen. We expect this arraignment to get underway later this morning,

maybe in an hour or so. And then the Senator will be asked to enter a plea in this case and he's been defiant saying he has done nothing wrong that he

expects to be exonerated.

So it's expected that he will enter a plea of not guilty. Now one of the co-defendants did appear in court yesterday he was he entered a plea of not

guilty was recent $5 million bond and we'll look to see if Menendez does anything afterwards when he's leaving court, Becky.

[09:25:00]

ANDERSON: Good to have you my bad these are bribery charges of course not fraud charges. Thank you. Well another big story in Washington the looming

U.S. government shutdown there are fewer than four days folks left to go before Washington runs out of money to fund operations with no solution yet

in sight.

Now the Senate is advancing a short term agreement to keep things running until mid-November. It is easily clearing its first procedural hurdle that

happened Tuesday night, but the bill which includes billions in new aid for Ukraine is likely to be a non-starter in what is the Republican controlled

House.

Let's get you up to speed on some of the other stories that are on our radar right now and brutal gang violence forcing more people from their

homes in Haiti. A monitoring group says up to 35,000 are internally displaced there, and many of the areas they are fleeing to aren't any

safer.

The U.N. said last month that over 2400 Haitians have been killed in gang violence this year alone. Well, half a dozen teenagers are suing 32

European governments accusing them of climate negligence and inaction. The complainants argue that climate change is a threat to their lives both

physically and mentally.

The applicants who range in age from 11 to 24 years, I'm asking the court for a legally binding decision that would force states to act. A ruling is

expected in the first half of 2024. The body of the mafia boss Messina Denaro has been returned to his Sicilian hometown.

Denaro died earlier this week after being treated for colon cancer for Cosa Nostra, mafia boss spent 30 years on the run before being captured in

Palermo. In January, he was notorious for a series of bombings and murders in the 1990s. Let's get you some breaking news just coming into CNN Center

now.

And U.S. Army Private Travis King is now back in U.S. custody after North Korea expelled him from the country. You will remember before the summer

this is a soldier who crossed into North Korean territory across the DMZ he had been discharged from the army. He had been in South Korea and he is now

in U.S. custody.

He was expelled from North Korea after the North Koreans report that they conducted an investigation and that he was in the country illegally Travis

King back in U.S. custody after crossing into North Korea more on that as we get it.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[09:30:00]

ANDERSON: Let's get you some breaking news that now and U.S. Army Private Travis King back in U.S. custody after North Korea expelled him from the

country. Let's discuss this more with Paula Hancocks, who is in Seoul, and we talked just about a half an hour ago about how and where or when he

would be expelled and to where? We now understand that he is in U.S. custody. Do we have any more details about where he is in U.S. custody at

this point?

HANCOCKS: At this point, Becky, no, we don't, we have the when answered we know that he is in U.S. custody. A U.S. official saying that he has been

handed back we don't know where at this point, or where the next destination is. So that will presumably be forthcoming shortly from U.S.

officials.

But certainly, there will be great relief from his family the fact that he has now been returned to American custody, there will be relief from the

American diplomats who would have been working on this and also the Biden administration. But of course, there are many questions still to be

answered.

Now there are a couple of potential options he may be in Beijing, he may be coming into to South Korea, across the DMZ of effectively the way that he

crossed into North Korea. It's simply unknown at this point which route they have decided to take but we did hear just a few hours ago from North

Korean state run media that they had decided to expel Travis King.

They had said that they had done an investigation and that he had confessed to illegally intruding into North Korea. Now of course this is state run

media saying this this is not Travis King's words themselves and he'll they also said through state run media that he said that he wanted to do what he

did because of an unjust U.S. society talking about racial discrimination.

Again, these are Pyongyang's words. Now, clearly we will hear more when we know more about Travis King's whereabouts we haven't even heard anything

about his condition because he went across the border into North Korea in mid-July, and nothing was heard or seen from him until today.

And since that point we know at this point is a U.S. official says he is in U.S. custody. So certainly welcome news for the U.S. side to hear that this

has been finished in this particular way. But of course there are many more questions about his whereabouts, his well-being and how he was treated.

Whilst in North Korea the wide assumption is he would have been extensively debriefed by North Korea. He was an Army Private t he wouldn't have been

privy to any significant information, but he was still a U.S. soldier based in South Korea. And North Korean officials would clearly have been very

interested to hear anything he had to say, Becky.

ANDERSON: Yes, let's just remind people he was an enlisted, a junior enlisted soldier assigned to U.S. forces in Korea. What happened while he

was there? And just remind us how he moved from South Korea as it were across the border into the north and why?

HANCOCKS: The why, is a very good question. And that's the question that to be honest, only Travis King can answer but as to your first question. He

was facing assault charges in South Korea and he had spent 50 days in a South Korean facility. He was supposed to be deported to Fort Bliss in

Texas.

So he was actually taken by a U.S. escort to Incheon Airport to the International Airport to get on a plane. Now the envoy wasn't able to go

all the way through to the boarding to the gate with Travis King, so they left him there. He then pretended he had lost his passport.

[09:35:00]

Immigration officials allowed him to leave the airport and then the very next day he went on this civilian tour of the joint security area at the

DMZ. And while he was there while he was close to the military demarcation line, the MDL he simply turned and ran across the line into North Korea.

Now, eyewitnesses say that they heard one of the soldiers shouting get him. But at that point, they he managed to run foot everybody and managed to get

across the border into North Korea. He according to U.S. officials, and eyewitnesses then tried to get into the main building on the North Korean

side of the JSA.

It was locked. He went around the back was bundled into a van by North Korean officials. And that was the last that was seen of him, Becky.

ANDERSON: Good to have you Paula, thank you. A more amount of courses we get it. Well now to the United Kingdom and the government approval there

have massive oil and gas project which seals Britain's commitment to keep producing fossil fuels. So for quite some time, the Rosebank field located

northwest of Shetland off the Scottish Coast has the potential to produce 500 million barrels of oil during its lifetime.

Its majority owned by the Norwegian State Energy Company Equinor. Well, while the government says it will bring energy security. Oxfam says it

locks the U.K. into fossil fuel dependency and rising emissions. Anna Stewart joins me from London. And it has to be asked, doesn't it?

What on earth has happened to Britain's green credentials recently? After all, it was the COP 26 meeting in Glasgow, which was held and heralded as

such a success on the pathway to a cleaner future. And here we are, why?

ANNA STEWART, CNN REPORTER: And exactly a week ago, we're talking about the fact that the Prime Minister of the U.K. has actually watered down some

climate policies arguing that the U.K. has almost carbon headroom because they're ahead of reducing greenhouse gas emissions in terms of the G7.

Today this announcement doesn't come as a huge surprise because Rishi Sunak the Prime Minister had already said that he would like to, "max out" the

oil and gas reserves in the U.K. And this one's pretty big. It's going to be focused more on oil and gas producing up to 500 million barrels of oil.

Now, the government argues that this will help improve the U.K.'s Energy Security and reduce bills now that may well play well with voters ever

since the invasion of Ukraine of course, energy bills have skyrocketed. There has been an issue over energy security.

But today opposition MPs, Climate Activists, campaign groups have really thrown cold water on this argument. One group called uplift. The Executive

Director said Rosebank will do nothing to lower fuel bills or boost U.K. energy security. Most of this oil will be shipped abroad and then sold back

to us and whatever price makes the oil and gas industry the most profit.

Essentially, this oil will of course be sold on global market at global market prices. And the company the majority owns. This, as you mentioned is

the Norwegian state owned Energy Company Equinor. Now uplift that campaign group does say they would like to launch a legal challenge against the

government on this decision.

Opposition MPs particularly the leader of the Green Party, the Scottish Nationalist Party, they are very much against the decision. But

interestingly, Becky, the main opposition party, the Labor Party have said if they were to win the next election, they wouldn't reverse this decision.

So it does suggest that we will see more drilling in the next couple of years.

ANDERSON: Anna Stewart, in the -- thank you. Coming up another big final for inter Miami but will the team's star player be on the pitch, "World

Sport" is coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[09:40:00]

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Touchdown, touchdown confirmed at 6:17 am Central Time, Rubio's record ride comes to an end.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ANDERSON: The first American astronaut to spend a full calendar year in space is now, back on the ground. Frank Rubio landed in Kazakhstan with his

two Russian crewmates just a couple of hours ago. He was only supposed to be on the International Space Station for six months.

But his trip back was derailed by a coolant leak putting him on track to make NASA history. Well Inter Miami playing in yet another final this week.

This is pretty historic stuff for the FAMU team but it is set sweating on the fitness of its star player one Lionel Messi, really play, Amanda Davies

in the house, Amanda?

AMANDA DAVIES, CNN WORLD SPORT: Becky, I don't know into Miami are keeping everybody awaiting and guessing. Messi of course taken to Miami with 1 --

to win them silverware and of course put into Miami on the map. They have the U.S. Open Cup final later on Wednesday.

But he didn't play in his second scheduled match for Argentina. He didn't play against Atlanta he came off midway through the first half in their

match last week. And that brings us to this evening. Coach Tata Martino said because silverware is at stake, they may risk as he put it, their star

man but it's not just tonight.

They've also got that drive for the MLS Cup playoffs, a huge game coming up the weekend. Of course, he's the one that all the fans want to see. We know

the impact he can make. But you get the distinct impression that this might be the question. We are asking between now and the end of the season and

every into Miami game because he's just not going to be able to play them all, but we'll get the answer in a few hours.

ANDERSON: But look, I mean, he's putting on the map. Clearly they want that silverware. But you know whatever else happens this season, he has put that

team on the map is amazing, isn't it really to see his impact? Thank you. That is coming up on "World Sport". We're back top of the hour for you.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[09:45:00]

(WORLD SPORT)

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END