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Early Start with Rahel Solomon
New Images Of North Korea's First Nuclear-Powered Submarine; Korean Man Recounts "Miracle" Christmas Birth 75 Years Ago; Pope Leo XIV Delivering "Urbi et Orbi" Speech To World. Aired 5:30-6a ET
Aired December 25, 2025 - 05:30 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[05:30:00]
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JIMMY KIMMEL, HOST, "JIMMY KIMMEL LIVE!": This show is not important. What is important is that we get to live in a country that allows us to have a show like this.
BORIS SANCHEZ, CNN ANCHOR (voiceover): And the number one viral video on CNN's countdown, the feud seen round the world.
VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY, UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT: Get out so --
TRUMP: Wait a minute. No, no, you've done a lot of talking.
SANCHEZ (voiceover): On the left, the Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, hoping to win more lethal aid from the president. On the right, President Trump, moments before he would launch into a verbal rampage against Zelenskyy.
Boris Sanchez, CNN, Washington.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
RICHARD QUEST, CNN ANCHOR: The videos that we brought to you and that you watched. It wouldn't be Christmas.
For those, by the way, who are not familiar, this is what you call a Christmas cracker. It's part of a tradition. This is what you --
Nada Bashir is with me. And now you're well familiar with, of course, the Christmas cracker. Why don't you choose which one you would like to pull as part of our --
NADA BASHIR, CNN CORRESPONDENT: The middle one.
QUEST: You're going for the middle one. Ready? I've -- one, two, three. Oh! I lose again. But I don't -- there we go. We'll take all of these there. Is the joke -- so let me just find the hat. Do you know they don't have any presents in them anymore? Well, these don't. We're obviously saving some money. Times are hard at WBD -- yeah. Who will it be? Paramount or Netflix that will give us Christmas crackers with gifts in them next year? All right. Are you ready? Here we go. Stand by. What do -- this is truly awful. What do you call a snowman that likes to take tropical, hot holidays?
BASHIR: I don't know.
QUEST: A puddle. Ha, ha, ha, ha. There we go. Sorry about that. OK.
BASHIR: Another one?
QUEST: Why not? Still two for -- actually, no, no -- here we go. Here's a -- what am I. Oh, this is hard. This is hard. The more of these you, the more appear behind you. What am I?
BASHIR: I have no idea.
QUEST: The more of these you take, the more appear behind you.
BASHIR: Steps?
QUEST: Steps. Thank you.
As we continue remembering a Christmas miracle from 75 years ago. We were talking about that. How a desperate escape from North Korea continues to fuel the searches.
This is Christmas on CNN.
(COMMERCIAL)
[05:36:40]
QUEST: I'm Richard Quest. EARLY START and the stories we're watching for you.
California is in the midst of a major flooding as major rain batters the state. The governor has declared a state of emergency in at least six counties amid the severe weather, which is expected to last throughout Christmas Day. At least two people have been reported dead.
The Justice Department says it has found more than a million documents possibly relating to the Jeffrey Epstein case. They come from the FBI and the Southern District of New York. The Justice Department says lawyers are now working around the clock to make legally required redactions and hope to release the documents in the next few weeks.
After weeks of delays in vote counting, Honduras has a new president- elect. He is Nasry Asfura, right-wing businessman and former mayor of the country's capital, who was endorsed by Donald Trump. The election officials say that Asfura defeated Salvador Nasralla by about three- quarters of a percentage point.
North Korea has released new images of what it claims is its first nuclear-powered submarine. Photos show substantial progress has been made since it was first revealed in March. The country's leader, Kim Jong Un, can be seen inspecting the craft at an indoor construction site, which shows or suggests the sub has not yet been launched.
In its report, state media notes that South Korea is pursuing a nuclear-powered sub with U.S. blessing and calls that a violation of North Korean security and a threat that needs to be countered.
Three-quarters of a century since a group of children were born on aboard an American cargo ship during the Korean War. One of those five, born on Christmas Day in 1950, spoke to Mike Valerio about his family's escape from North Korea and the enduring search for siblings who were left behind.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SOHN YANG-YOUNG, "MIRACLE BABY": (Speaking foreign language).
TEXT: Every day my parents told me that mom had given birth to me on the ship.
YANG-YOUNG: I am the first out of a total of five miracle babies in terms of delivery who were born on the cargo vessel Secret Service Meredith Victory.
MIKE VALERIO, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voiceover): He's been called a Christmas miracle. Born Christmas Day, 1950, aboard an American ship carrying about 14,000 North Koreans escaping communist forces during the Korean War.
YANG-YOUNG: My family -- I brought my --
VALERIO (voiceover): This is Sohn Yang-young, who we met in Seoul. His parents, 75 years ago, were told to shelter in South Korea as fighting got closer to their home near the North Korean port of Hungnam. They hoped to leave for just a few weeks, but they would never see North Korea again.
BURLEY SMITH, FORMER JUNIOR THIRD MATE, SS MEREDITH VICTORY: All of a sudden, we got the word -- hey, they need you up in Hungnam.
VALERIO (voiceover): Ninety-seven-year-old Burley Smith is the last living crew member of the Meredith Victory, an American cargo ship radioed by U.S. military commanders to set sail on an urgent refugee rescue mission into North Korean waters.
Smith still remembers the scene at the northern port.
[05:40:00]
SMITH: It looked like Times Square in New York on Christmas Eve. People just packed on the dock with babies on their backs, and men, women, and a lot of children.
VALERIO (voiceover): The American sailors jammed as many people into the cargo holds as possible. But Sohn said his parents did not bring their other two children, thinking the journey could be dangerous and the separation temporary.
Sohn remembered what his father said.
YANG-YOUNG: (Speaking foreign language).
TEXT: Since I was young, when I was able to understand words, they used to tell me, "You're all I have. I left your brother and sister in the North."
VALERIO (voiceover): The conditions on the ship for Sohn's mother, nine months pregnant with him, were abysmal.
SMITH: I've never been so cold in my life. And the folks who were down below had no heat. They were locked into these holes. No electricity, no light, no heat, no water, no food, and no toilets.
VALERIO (voiceover): But even in these conditions five healthy babies were born. Sohn was the first. Christmas, 1950. Name temporarily Kimchi by the crew.
SMITH: And the only word that any of us knew in Korean was Kimchi, so one of -- one of our crew must have said hey, that's Kimchi number one, that's number two, and so forth.
VALERIO (voiceover): The Meredith Victory made it to safety to what is now the shipping powerhouse of Geoje Island, South Korea.
Smith, Sohn, and Lee Gyeong-pil, AKA Kimchi 5, have reunited all these years later. But what remains a wound, Sohn has never seen his brother and sister.
YANG-YOUNG: (Speaking foreign language).
TEXT: My dad passed away about 40 years ago, and my mom 20 years ago. Their last words were, "We couldn't find your brother and sister, so you must find them."
VALERIO (voiceover): Decades of trying have been unsuccessful. The walls sealing off North Korean society difficult to break through. But on this 75 anniversary of his parents' escape, Sohn has a message for his siblings.
YANG-YOUNG: (Speaking foreign language).
TEXT: Brother Sohn Tae-young and sister Sohn Young-ok, I'm waiting day by day, still searching for you. Our father Sohn Chi-hoo and mother Park Soon-Jool tried hard to find you and have not forgotten about you, even for a day, since fleeing and until they passed away. I will look for you until I close my eyes. Do not get discouraged until we meet. We have to meet again.
VALERIO (voiceover): Mike Valerio, CNN, Seoul.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
QUEST: A Norwegian post office stays busy. Letters to Santa. I'll take you to the official address in Norway and meet the elves and those who help. (COMMERCIAL)
[05:47:35]
QUEST: OK, now I'm going to really wade into a diplomatic maelstrom. If you've ever written to Santa Claus, it may have ended up at his Norwegian official address. Yes, Finland, Sweden. Do not get on my case about it. You also have a Santa. But anyway, they always do every time you do this story.
Every year thousands of letters around the world arrive for Santa Claus in Norway, and the elves who work at his Norwegian bureau take their jobs very seriously -- I've got to say it like this -- as I learned when I was in Norway.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
QUEST (voiceover): In Norway, this is the official address of Santa. Located in the charming little town of Drobak, it is a Christmas- themed shop and post office which receives thousands of letters each year from around the world.
EVA JOHANSEN, CO-FOUNDER, TREGAARDENS CHRISTMAS HOUSE: From Thailand.
QUEST (voiceover): And all of them addressed to Santa.
JOHANSEN: And this is (INAUDIBLE).
QUEST: Ten to 15,000 letters?
JOHANSEN: Yes.
QUEST: Now, here we go.
JOHANSEN: Yes.
QUEST: Let's have a look at what we've got. All right.
JOHANSEN: Oh.
QUEST: So these -- oh, good Lord, they've come from everywhere.
JOHANSEN: It's from Taiwan.
QUEST: Taiwan, yeah.
QUEST (voiceover): The shop is run by Eva Johansen, who is part postmistress and part elf. I jest not.
The Santa in this part of Norway is a little bit different to the one with which we're all familiar.
QUEST: Santa Claus is a big, fat, jolly man or woman these days. Yours is small, short, and with a weird face.
JOHANSEN: He is different from all, you see? QUEST: Right.
JOHANSEN: Knitted sweaters, knickers, boots, and looks different.
QUEST: Why?
JOHANSEN: Because it belongs to our culture -- our history from all time.
QUEST: Oi yoi yoi. This is --
QUEST (voiceover): Eva the elf agreed to let me open and read a few of the letters that have been sent to Santa.
QUEST: I want an MP3 player.
QUEST (voiceover): Some of the content is a little surprising, but more of that in a moment.
In Norway, they take Christmas very seriously. After all, so many Christmas trees are grown here and in December, everywhere is filled with twinkly lights, trees, and markets.
[05:50:00]
This is one of the biggest and it's run by one of the country's most successful business leaders.
CARL OTTO LOVENSKIOLD, OWNER, BAERUMS VERK: We like the summers with the long light and bright days, but then we have the pressure also enjoying the four seasons -- a wonderful fall. The winter is now coming where we can go skiing and live a completely different lifestyle before summer comes again. Well, we adjust to the -- to the seasons and enjoy them.
QUEST: Enjoy them.
LOVENSKIOLD: That is very important.
QUEST: Right. Let's go have a look.
QUEST (voiceover): Browsing for this --
QUEST: Look at that!
QUEST (voiceover): -- looking for that, enjoying the other. I could have spent many hours here filling stockings.
But back in Drobak, there were still letters to Santa --
QUEST: Oh, look at this.
QUEST (voiceover): -- that had to be opened and read. Heartwarming messages the lot.
QUEST: Dear Santa Claus, my favorite holiday Christmas is coming soon. Oh, look at that. A nice little hat.
Oh! Uzbekistan. Dear Santa Claus, Merry Christmas. Can I have a froggy toy?
From Hong Kong. My daughter will turn five in December. She kind to friends. She loves practicing KPop dancing.
QUEST (voiceover): Before I left there was one last letter thrust in front of me, and I was in for a shock.
QUEST: (Laughing)
This year, her brother has been a very good boy. Much like you, he's been traveling the world. It's highly likely he'll be on December the -- is there any chance you could give him a small present in advance? Anything chocolate-related would, in our experience, work well. Thank you very much, Beverly, Laray, and Caroline, my three sisters.
JOHANSEN: What?
QUEST: Yes. What a coincidence. Well done. Thank you. Oh, I'll take that. Sorry, I'm taking this one with me.
QUEST (voiceover): Now I just have to wait and see whether Sana thinks I deserve that gold chocolate bar.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
QUEST: To live -- there we are. The Vatican -- Saint Peter's Basilica. Pope Leo is scheduled to deliver is famous "Urbi Et Orbi" Christmas address. It'll be the first from him since becoming the pope in May. It's Saint Peter's Square there, actually, we're looking at. Of course, the famous balcony. A strange picture, actually. We don't often see it from that angle.
The message going out to the Catholic faithful, to the city, and to the world. It's likely to include themes important to him, like the need to care for immigrants, refugees, children, and all who are vulnerable. We will hear from the pope in the next hour.
This is CNN Christmas morning.
(COMMERCIAL)
[05:57:20]
QUEST: OK, I am at work today, so I clearly did not win the lottery. But the U.S. Powerball lottery says a single winning ticket for its huge jackpot was sold in Arkansas. I live in New York, so that tells you what you need to know. We're still waiting to find out who owns it.
The numbers, if you want to check -- it's the second-largest -- they were 4, 25, 31, 52, 59, and the red Powerball was number 19. The prize was $1.8 billion because there were no winners on Monday. The winner or winners can collect 30 annual payments for the whole jackpot or take a lump payment. It works out about $834 million before taxes.
I did not win but I've spent the money already in my mind many times.
Christmas crackers. Paul Manzi is online. Good evening, sir.
PAUL MANZI, CNN SENIOR DIRECTOR: Good evening.
QUEST: Or good morning, I should say. Thank you very much. This is all your handiwork. Every year you bring us Christmas crackers. You bring us the beauty and the look of the thing, so I'm very grateful to you.
MANZI: You're welcome.
QUEST: You ready?
MANZI: Yeah.
QUEST: Ritual humiliation.
MANZI: We're doing double.
QUEST: No, we're not doing it. Read it. Choose which one you want.
MANZI: This one.
QUEST: You want them -- one, two, three.
MANZI: Oh, hmm.
QUEST: Yeah, there we go. Pull out the --
MANZI: Two.
QUEST: I have to do all the work here. Here we go. Uh, you don't escape this part. Ahh! Sorry about this. Go on --
MANZI: Thank you.
QUEST: -- and put that on. Here we go. What -- this is -- what's bad- tempered and goes with custard? I don't know. What is bad-tempered and -- apple grumble.
One more before we love you and leave you.
MANZI: I'll take that.
QUEST: There we go. Keep going. There we go. Give me the hat. OK.
MANZI: There we go.
QUEST: Oh, look at this. What did the stamp say to the Christmas card? I don't know. Stick with me and we'll go places. Thank you very much. Thank you very much.
Now, let's have a look at some pictures. There we go -- pictures of the royal family going to Christmas services. I think the King is the last to arrive, so this will be early members of the family. You can't really see there. We just sort of have to wait and see a bit more pictures. That was a lot of them, but just -- you see them going into Sandringham.
[06:00:00]
Missing, of course, this year will be Andrew Mountbatten Windsor. He's not there. Missing also are the Sussexes. They are in California. And the Mountbatten Windsor's children probably -- well, we don't know.
We'll see more pictures. It's the king who arrives last, of course, for the morning service. They've already been once to church. Ah, I can just see that. The princess royal and Vice Admiral Timothy Laurence at the front.
You are very welcome. I know, it's hard to take me seriously when I'm standing here with a silly hat, but I thank you for joining us on EARLY START. I'm Richard Quest in London. My colleagues at "CNN NEWS CENTRAL" start right now because the news never stops, even on Christmas Day.
