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One World with Zain Asher

North Korean Leader Arrives By Train In Russia For Talks With Russian President; U.S. House Speaker McCarthy Calls On Committees To Open A Formal Impeachment Inquiry Into President Biden; Libya Hampered By Political Division And Instability With Two Rival Governments; Rescue Efforts Underway In Earthquake Impacted Areas In Morocco; Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro In Beijing To Meet With Xi Jinping; U.S. Issues A Waiver Allowing Banks To Transfer $6 Billion In Restricted Iranian Funds; Israel's Supreme Court Asked To Weigh In On Its Authority Over Government; U.S. Versus Google Case Begins Today In A Washington Courtroom; American Caver Mark Dickey Is Rescued After More Than A Week Inside A Turkish Cave. Aired 12-1p ET

Aired September 12, 2023 - 12:00   ET

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

[12:00:36]

LYNDA KINKADE, CNN INTERNATIONAL HOST: Hello, I'm Lynda Kinkade live at CNN's World Headquarters in Atlanta. Welcome to One World. A high-level

meeting that no one in the West once could happen soon. The North Korean leader has arrived by train in Russia ahead of talks with the Russian

president. In these state media pictures, you can see Kim Jong-un meeting with the governor of the Primorsky region in Russia's Far East, as well as

Russia's minister of natural resources.

The 39-year-old North Korean leader traveling on his heavily-armored train received a military welcome as he arrived at the Hassan train station.

Precisely when and where he will meet Vladimir Putin remains unclear. But here's why the West is worried. Analysts say Mr. Putin could provide

technology to Pyongyang in exchange for weapons he could use in Ukraine. The Kremlin spokesman would only say that the meetings will touch on

bilateral relations and what he called sensitive areas.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DMITRY PESKOV, KREMLIN SPOKESMAN (through translator): Like with any neighbor, we consider ourselves obligated to establish good, mutually

beneficial relations. We will continue to strengthen our friendship.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KINKADE: Well, let's get some perspective on this story. Our chief international anchor, Christiane Amanpour, joins us now from New York. Good

to see you, Christiane. So, the last time these two leaders met was in 2019, well before Russia launched the war in Ukraine. Russia now more

isolated than ever. The U.S. vice president has said that Russia must be desperate to reach out to North Korea. Do you agree?

CHRISTIANE AMANPOUR, CNN CIEF INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: Well, Lynda, you know, you're absolutely right. It's the first time since then that Kim Jong-un

has actually, you know, left North Korea altogether. And the narrative coming from the United States and its allies is precisely that, that when

two pariah states, is how they describe them, join forces or have a meeting, it must mean, A, they're highly isolated from the rest of the

world, and in Russia's case, which is, you know, a form of superpower, a massive power, to reach, to be seen to be reaching such a hermit kingdom

that is so heavily cemented in the past as North Korea, is being viewed and being described as an act of Putin's desperation.

As the U.S. ambassador to Japan, Rahm Emanuel, told me when this visit was first mooted even last week, days ago, he said that if Russia, Vladimir

Putin, wants to continue his quote, "imperialist quest to restore the empire", well, then, it's kind of, you know, desperate and pathetic to be

relying hat in hand, you know, the tin cup towards North Korea, which itself is so isolated and has so little of the kind of modern technology

that any NATO nation or even Russia would require. That is how they're seeing it right now. Nonetheless, it would be a violation of sanctions and

nobody wants to see this military alliance strengthened in any way at all.

KINKADE: And Christiane, there are, of course, major concerns about what Russia could provide North Korea with. The U.S. has spoken about

consequences, about repercussions. What could that entail?

AMANPOUR: Well, it's hard to figure that out because that's been left vague deliberately. They don't obviously want to make military threats, but, you

know, potentially even more sanctions against North Korea. At what point, though, do these sanctions actually continue to bite when they are so

heavily sanctioned anyway? But it's a -- it's a, you know, method of continuing to isolate that regime.

Of course, South Korea has said today that they reach out to Russia, saying as a member of the Security Council and the international community, they

expect Russia to react responsibly, was the word I think South Korea used, so as not to go into any arms transfer or deal or technology transfer with

the heavily isolated and sanctioned North Korea. Having said that, Russia is also heavily sanctioned, particularly in the military field, since this

war in Ukraine.

But the deal, the way it's being viewed amongst NATO and U.S. allies is that if Russia needs to be at this point in its war with Ukraine, if it

appears so depleted in terms of weapon systems or even ammunition, which is probably the best it could hope to get from North Korea ammunition, if it's

going to Iran, for instance, for help with drone technology, like the Kamikaze Shahed drones, then again, this is not only an unfortunate

grouping of pariah states, but goes to the heart of what the West believes is Russia's increasing need for the kind of weapons and materiel to keep

prosecuting this war in Ukraine.

[12:05:00]

KINKADE: And we will cover more on this, coming up in the show, Christiane. But I just want to say congratulations to you. Today marks 40 years since

you started at CNN as an assistant on the International Desk here in Atlanta. And you are such a legend, such a trailblazer. And it is always an

honor to speak with you and get your perspective, your analysis. So, congratulations on 40 years of seeking and fighting for the truth. Thank

you.

AMANPOUR: Thank you so much, indeed, Lynda. And 40 years ago, yup, I came to Atlanta with the precise goal of being, you know, an international

correspondent. So, dreams were realized. Thank you.

KINKADE: You're incredible. Thank you, Christiana. And congratulations again. We appreciate it. Well, I want to turn to U.S. politics now. U.S.

House Speaker Kevin McCarthy calling on his committees to open a formal impeachment inquiry into President Biden. He made the announcement just

moments ago. Right-wing members of his party have been pushing for him to move ahead with the inquiry for months, claiming Mr. Biden benefited from

his son, Hunter Biden's business deals. But thus far, Republicans have not produced any evidence to prove that allegation.

The White House has just reacted to that move, calling it an extreme politics at its worst. CNN Congressional Correspondent Lauren Fox is

tracking this story and joins us now. Lauren, this is a quite incredible. If convicted, Biden would indeed become the fourth president in U.S.

history to be impeached. What is this over and what are the next steps?

LAUREN FOX, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yeah, I mean at this point, House Speaker Kevin McCarthy's announcement today makes it clear that he is

asking the committees to open this impeachment inquiry. The committees that are going to be leading this charge are the House Ways and Means Committee,

the House Oversight Committee, and the House Judiciary Committee.

Largely, those committees have been leading these investigations into Hunter Biden and the president for the last several months. They're going

to continue doing that work and now ramping it up. But it's also interesting, because in an apparent reversal, Speaker McCarthy announced

the opening of this inquiry today. But there isn't going to be, at this point, a vote in the House of Representatives. And there is a good reason

for that.

Largely, he doesn't have the votes at this point to open that inquiry. There are many Republicans who hail from swing districts and others who

have other concerns about opening an impeachment inquiry, arguing that the evidence is not there at this point. That's why you saw Speaker McCarthy

make this announcement today and didn't talk about having a vote on the floor of the House.

Now, it's always possible, as was the case in 2019 when Pelosi announced an impeachment inquiry into then-president Donald Trump that the vote could

come later. That's what happened in the case of Democrats back in 2019. But it is an important moment, because McCarthy had signaled prior to this that

he was going to have a vote in the House of Representatives.

We should also note that lawmakers are staring down a very serious spending deadline at the end of the month. And there is no plan at this point to

avert a government shutdown. So, the question is, can they do both? Can they continue with this impeachment inquiry while also finding a way

forward on government funding.

There are some who had already been pressuring McCarthy to move forward with this impeachment inquiry, arguing it would be contingent on their

support for a short-term government funding bill. So, you can see that despite the fact that these are two very separate issues, in the minds of

leadership, there are some reasons to move forward with both of them at the same time.

KINKADE: All right, Lauren Fox, we'll leave it there for now. Plenty more to cover on that story as the days progress. Thank you. Well, I want to

turn now to two natural disasters devastating North Africa. Just days after a deadly earthquake struck Morocco, Libya is reeling from crippling floods

that have washed away entire neighborhoods. And I want to turn first to Libya, where officials are calling the floods unprecedented and

catastrophic.

At least 2000 people are dead, and it's estimated some 10,000 may be missing after storm Daniel dumped torrential rain across the country's

northeast. Authorities say two dams collapsed sending raging water gushing into already flooded areas. The city of Durno is especially hard-hit.

An official there says all hospitals in the city are out of service and there are fears that aid efforts may be hampered by the political fractures

in Libya which is in the grips of a years-long power struggle between the two rival administrations. And as the planet warms, forecasters predict

more extreme rainfall and more severe flooding.

[12:10:00]

CNN Meteorologist Derek Van Dam is standing by for us in Atlanta. We've also got Ben Wedeman following the developments, following those from Rome.

Good to have you both with us. First, to you, Ben. It really is hard to understand the magnitude of this disaster with so many villages seemingly

wiped out, an estimated 10,000 people missing. What more can you tell us about the storm and the dams that burst its banks?

BEN WEDEMAN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, what we understand, Lynda, is that there were two dams in the Wadi, or the normally

dry riverbed, that goes through Derna to the Mediterranean. Those dams, according to one scientific study, needed to be maintained, but because

Libya was convulsed in 2011 by the uprising against Mamar Qaddafi, then that followed by that wars between the East and the West, perhaps the

infrastructure wasn't being very-well maintained.

Now, this storm, Storm Daniel, dumped the equivalent of eight months of rain in this area of eastern Libya in just one day. So, we've seen video

that would appear that those dams burst, sending a tsunami of muddy water right through the middle of this city. Now, we've heard from one doctor

from Benghazi who made it to Derna. And keep in mind that the roads are very, are almost impassable, because many of them were washed out by the

flooding.

Nonetheless, this doctor made it. And he said that the hospitals there are barely functioning, that the emergency services aren't working, and that

people, ordinary people, are out scavenging, or, rather, looking for and collecting rotting bodies. In fact, we have seen a video from outside the

morgue which is reportedly full to capacity.

Outside it are dozens of bodies covered in blankets. And it appears that the authorities really are struggling to try to get a grip on the

situation. They simply don't seem, they weren't prepared for a catastrophe of this magnitude. And in fact, just within the last hour or so, on the

Facebook page of the municipality of Derna, they've put out a message saying, the situation in the city is out of control. We need international

intervention.

Now, there is help on the way. The Turks, according to Turkish President Rajab Tayyip Erdogan, have sent three planes, including well-over 100

search and rescue personnel, as well as equipment. The rival government based in Tripoli in the West has sent a plane load of emergency workers or

medical personnel, as well. But it appears that the magnitude of this disaster is going to require a lot more than that at the moment. Lynda.

KINKADE: And Ben, of course, at the best of times, Libya is hampered by a political division and instability with two rival governments, one in

Tripoli and of course one in the east, including Derna. How is that disconnect adding to the problems as you see rescue workers trying and aid

groups trying to get in to help those affected?

WEDEMAN: Well, basically, you know, you have various countries in the region and beyond supporting one side or the other. So, we've seen that,

for instance, Egypt and Turkey, which support the government in the East, seem to have jumped to, in the case of Turkey, to actually providing

concrete aid. Egypt is providing rhetorical support, so to speak. But the government in Tripoli is internationally recognized for what that's worth.

And, therefore, it's easier to access that part of the country.

In the East, not so much. So, it's difficult, for instance, for journalists to get there without a lot of paperwork. And for aid organizations as well,

it's going to prove quite a challenge, in addition to the fact that this is a country of six million people floating on a sea of oil. But since 2011,

it has been completely distracted from recovering from years of dictatorial rule by Muammar Gaddafi by this infighting.

So, even though, in theory, the resources should be there to build a prosperous country, the country has been so divided. There's been so much

foreign intervention backing one side or another against the other that the country has just gone backwards over the last 12 years.

[12:15:00]

And we see it in its incapacity when it comes to dealing with the disaster like this. Lynda.

KINKADE: Yeah. Ben Wedeman for us. We appreciate your perspective. Thanks so much for joining us. I want to bring in our Meteorologist Derek Van Dam

now. Derek, why has storm Daniel been so devastating and explain the climate conditions that make Libya and its coast so vulnerable?

DEREK VAN DAM, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Yeah, I think Ben really described it best, Lynda, when he talked about this tsunami of water that was literally

going through Derna as the two dams collapsed. Ultimately, too much water for the infrastructure to hold, and it is all because of Storm Daniel. What

you kind of see on this rate, this is actually a satellite loop taken over a seven-day period.

Remember, this is the same storm system that brought the heavy flooding rains to central and eastern Greece. And then it started to drift further

and further south. It took advantage of the very warm above average temperatures of the Mediterranean. It actually got tropical

characteristics. So, we call this a medicane, like a hurricane in the Mediterranean. And then ultimately walloped to the northeastern sections of

Libya. And this is where this catastrophic amount of rain fell in a dry area that is typically dry this time of year.

We'll show you the climatological averages. But El Bayat is actually just to the west of Derna where the dams collapsed. And this is important

because there's a river basin that goes between this area and that received 414 millimeters of rain in just one day.

So, why in the world do we still see these heavy rain events occurring across the planet from China to Europe to places like North Africa and in

the United States? Well remember, we have warmed about 1.2 degrees Celsius since the pre-industrial averages. What that in-turn has done is allowed

our atmosphere to hold more water vapor. More water vapor brings the potential for more extreme rain events.

Now, in terms of northern Libya, North Africa, we're typically in our dry season, so getting a medicane, moving off of the Mediterranean this time of

the year is out of the ordinary. We don't normally see the rain this time of year. And so to get that amount of precipitation in such a short period

of time, unfortunately, Lynda, it led to the scenes that we are witnessing on our TV screens today.

KINKADE: Yeah, absolutely shocking scenes. Derek Van Dam, we appreciate it. Thanks so much. Well, first responders are continuing to dig through the

rubble in Morocco, looking for survivors after Friday's devastating earthquake. The death toll there now approaching 3000. And tragically,

those numbers are expected to rise. Thousands of homes have been destroyed and families displaced.

According to UNICEF, nearly 100,000 children could be impacted. Many residents of remote villages say they feel abandoned and have been left to

fend for themselves. Our Nada Bashir is in Morocco with more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

NADA BASHIR, CNN REPORTER: This is one of the villages impacted by the earthquake, the village of Moulay Brahim. And you can see behind me just

how high we are in the Atlas Mountains. This is a remote village, but it has proven easier to get to for rescue workers on the ground. In other

parts of the Atlas Mountains, including the village we visited yesterday, Imi n'Tala, it has proven nearly impossible for rescue workers to reach

those impacts. And in fact, when we spoke to residents there, they told us that yesterday was the first day international rescue teams had made it on

the ground. Take a look.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BASHIR (voice-over): Stone by stone, hour by hour, the desperate search for survivors pushes on. The silence in this remote mountainous village,

punctured only by the wails of those who survived, now left to mourn. Well, for the rescue team here, this really is a race against time. There is a

woman and her 12-year-old daughter buried beneath the rubble and for their family waiting anxiously for news of whether they have survived Friday's

earthquake. They are quickly losing hope.

Razika has already buried 19 members of her family. Now she fears she will soon have to bury her niece, Shayma. On Saturday morning, we could still

hear her voice, she tells me. She was alive. Now, we can't hear her. They took too long to get here. Until now we've been digging through the rubble

with our bare hands. If help had arrived sooner, we could have rescued them in time.

Though small in size, the village of Imi n'Tala was among the hardest hit by the earthquake, the deadliest Morocco has suffered in decades. But three

days on, rescue teams have only just arrived. The high mountainous range simply too remote. The roads up until now still obstructed by debris from

the quake. And with time running out, rescuers say this has now become a recovery operation.

[12:20:00]

SAAD ATTIA, INTERNATIONAL SEARCH AND RESCUE VOLUNTEER: I think they are all working, working very hard. But until now, they don't need a dog who search

for life. So, they confirm there's -- all the victims and this rubble has already passed away.

BASHIR: Few lives in this close-knit community have been untouched by death. Each body recovered, a gut-wrenching reminder of the climbing death

toll already in the thousands. It's unclear just how many in this village are still missing. But for those buried beneath the rubble, just like

little Sheymar, rescuers fear it is already too late.

International rescue teams are now on the ground in many of these impacted villages. We've been speaking to aid workers on the ground, and they tell

us there are still villages across the foothills of the Atlas Mountains that they haven't been able to reach.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KINKADE: Our thanks to Nada Bashir. Still to come, it is the West's worst nightmare, an arms deal between Russia and North Korea. We'll look at the

global fallout from such a deal when we come back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KINKADE: Welcome back. We want to take a deep dive now into our top story. The U.S. and its allies very concerned about what they say could be a

potential arms deal brewing between North Korea and Russia. As we've been reporting, Kim Jong-un is in Russia right now, ahead of meetings with

President Putin. But it's not clear when or where those talks will happen. The West says Russian military technology could end up in North Korea's

hands, while North Korea could provide ammunition and weapons to Russia for Moscow's war in Ukraine.

Our Clare Sebastian joins us from London where she's at the Defense and Security Equipment International Fair in London. Good to have you with us.

Just give us a sense of the sort of weaponry you're seeing there today and how it compares to what might be on the table in this potential arms deal

between Russia and North Korea.

CLARE SEBASTIAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yeah, Lynda, sorry about the noise. We're actually quite close to London City Airport here. So, we get the

occasional fly past of commercial aircraft. But this is one of the biggest defense conferences in the world. It only happens every two years. So, the

last time was just after Covid. So, it's on a much bigger scale this year. More than 1500 companies have been exhibiting. Look, it's a lot of

technology. It's a lot of high-tech equipment.

[12:25:00]

This is the sort of battlefield of the future on display here.

But the really crucial part of this when it comes to the war in Ukraine, is that what we see on the equipment, this is the sort of battlefield of the

future on display here, but the really crucial part of this when it comes to the war in Ukraine is that what we see on the one hand, President Putin

meeting likely on Wednesday with Kim Jong-un, potentially signing some kind of arms deal according to the U.S. intelligence, which could involve

ammunition.

We've been speaking here to defense contractors in Europe and in particular, I spoke today to one Norwegian ammunition company, one of the

really, the four major ammunition producers in Europe and they are still very concerned about the major gap between what they can produce and what

Ukraine actually needs. Case in point, before the war in Ukraine this company which accounts for about a quarter of Europe's ammunition they say

was producing several thousand artillery shells a year.

Right now, that is what by many estimates Ukraine is burning in one day. They have now started ramping up they're targeting 80,000 a year but that's

still just a couple of weeks' worth, so you see that there's still this major gap. New orders are coming in. The U.S. is ramping up. They're at

almost 30,000 artillery shells a month in terms of production, according to the Pentagon.

Europe has a new joint procurement plan, so steps are being taken. But the defense contractors here are still very worried. They're seeing the slow

progress, the limited success of Ukraine's counteroffensive. So, this is a major topic of discussion. We heard President Putin today say --

KINKADE: I think we might have just lost Clare Sebastian. It sounds like she was just talking about the fact that President Putin today effectively

endorsing Donald Trump and talking about the politics involving the court cases that he is currently facing. We'll leave that there for now.

But I do want to take a closer look at the ramifications of a potential Russian-North Korean arms deal. Now, we're joined by Martin Navias from the

Center for Defense Studies at King's College in London. Good to have you with us.

MARTIN NAVIAS, CENTER FOR DEFENCE STUDIES, KINGS COLLEGE: Good to see you.

KINKADE: So, it's fair to say that these two countries, Russia and North Korea, are more isolated than ever. Russia's economy is suffering, its war

in Ukraine is not going as it had hoped. Just how much does Russia need North Korea right now? Is it desperate?

NAVIAS: Well, desperate's a very strong word. There's certainly a confluence of interests here between Putin and Kim Jong-un. The Russians

are burning through conventional weaponry at a rate that the industrial base cannot sustain. They don't have the structures for it. They certainly

don't have the efficiencies.

So, the Russians are short of conventional munitions. The North Koreans are short of virtually everything. Both are isolated. The type of weapons that

the North Koreans will provide the Russians, not the type of weapons your reporter is seeing at that defense exhibition in London. They are old

munitions. They are pretty basic stuff, artillery, multiple rocket launchers, short-range missiles.

Those are the type of things that the Russians are using up rapidly in eastern Ukraine. And they need that pretty badly. They won't be able to

continue at the current rate of weapon expenditure, and they were going to have to start rationing significantly unless they get these supplies from

North Korea.

KINKADE: And if North Korea does indeed supply Russia with that sort of weaponry, how could that potentially drag out the war in Ukraine?

NAVIAS: Well, whether -- whether they -- if North Korea provides the weaponry, the Russians will have the capability to sustain their operations

at a high tempo. I don't think whether the North Koreans provide the weaponry or whether they don't, will impact upon the Russian decision to

continue the war. I mean, personally, I'm more concerned about the type of weaponry that Russia may provide North Korea than what North Korea could

provide Russia.

KINKADE: Well, yeah, that's what I want to ask about, because in the past, Russia has backed the international sanctions against North Korea over its

nuclear program. So, what is North Korea hoping to seek from this meeting?

NAVIAS: That is going to -- that is at the moment unclear. I mean, the details of this military agreement are not going to be made public, right?

Well, certainly most of it is not going to be made public. The North Koreans want a range of things. They're the most sanctioned country in the

world and have been so for decades.

But that sanctions regime directed against North Korea is on a precipice now.

[12:30:00]

It's starting to crumble because efforts made to isolate Pyongyang are not going to work if Russia and China are starting to crumble. Because efforts

made to isolate Pyongyang are not going to work if Russia and potentially China disregard at all. I expect that what the North Koreans will want are

a range of things, starting from economic aid, grain, that's already starting to come from Russia, hard currency.

But in the munitions sector, they want high-level technology that will help them with their intercontinental ballistic missile program, which they

recently tested into the Sea of Japan, and also their submarine program. That, if the Russians are prepared to give them something, and I assume the

Russians will be prepared to give them something, because the Russian situation, while not desperate, is certainly not good.

That may change the balance of power in Asia and increase the vulnerability of the United States to North Korea's strategic weapons. That's not a good

thing. So, people have got every reason to be concerned about this potential agreement.

KINKADE: Martin Navias, good to get your perspective on all of that. No doubt we will talk again soon. Thanks so much.

NAVIAS: Thank you.

KINKADE: Well, still to come, scenes of villages and homes destroyed in Morocco as thousands are left homeless. Our relief efforts are shaping up,

when we return.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[12:35:04]

KINKADE: Hello and welcome back to One World. I'm Lynda Kinkade. Let's catch you up on the headlines. The American Red Cross is sounding the alarm

over their low blood supply, declaring a national blood shortage. They cite low donor turnout and climate disasters for the reason. The organization's

blood supply has fallen by about 25 percent since early August, which could threaten proper medical care.

The former head of Spain's football federation, Luis Rubiales, has been summoned to testify in a Spanish court this Friday. It's part of the

investigation into his unwanted kiss on Jenny Hermoso at the Women's World Cup final. It comes after Spain's national court admitted a complaint by

Spanish prosecutors against Rubiales for the crimes of sexual assault and coercion on Monday.

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro is in Beijing to meet with Xi Jinping. Mr. Maduro arrived in China late last week and toured the city of Shenzhen,

China's tech hub. This is the fifth time President Maduro's visit has visited China as president.

A step forward in the efforts to free Americans detained by Iran, including these three men under house arrest. The U.S. has issued a waiver allowing

banks to transfer $6 billion in restricted Iranian funds.

Well, it is well into the dinner hour right now in Jerusalem and Israel's Supreme Court is still hearing arguments in one of its most important cases

ever. The court is being asked to weigh in on its own power to decide whether a law that limits the Supreme Court's authority over the government

should be allowed to stand. Well, that law is a central part of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's plan to overhaul the country's judicial

system.

Israelis, of course, have been protesting for months over this issue, critics saying that Mr. Netanyahu is trying to steal power away from the

courts and that all of this weakens democracy. Well, our Hadas Gold joins us now live from Jerusalem and Hadas, this case is essentially about the

power of the Supreme Court. Has a court ever nullified a basic law before?

HADAS GOLD, CNN JERUSALEM CORRESPONDENT: No. And that's why this hearing on this law is so historic. The court has discussed basic laws before, but

it's never nullified one before. And that is one of the options on the table here for this law.

Now, what this law says, this was passed in July, it was an amendment on a basic law. Israel has no constitution. The closest thing it has is what is

the series of basic law. And what they did with this amendment was take away the Supreme Court's ability to declare government actions unreasonable

and therefore prevent those government actions from moving forward.

And this is historic not only because the Supreme Court could be nullifying a basic law, but also because never before in Israeli history have all 15

now of the judges sat together for this hearing. We're now in an hour, 10 and a half, we're 10 and a half hours into this hearing. It's expected to

go on for some more time. There's some more petitions -- petitioners who we are expected to hear from.

It's still possible the hearing might go into tomorrow, but it's only expected to last today, maybe into tomorrow, and that'll be it. And then

the Supreme Court judges will have some time. They have a deadline in January before they issue a ruling. What's interesting during today's

hearing is actually the government's own attorney general is not representing them. And that's because the attorney general, who's not a

political appointee, is on the other side of this.

The attorney general actually does not believe that this law should stand. They believe the Supreme Court should strike down this law. And so, the

government is being represented by private counsel. Now, the government's argument in this is saying the Supreme Court has no authority, they say, to

review basic laws. They say that should not be in their authority. They say that's up to the people who should be able to have the authority to review

basic laws through elections.

The plaintiffs on this, these are the petitioners who say this law should be struck down, say that this law harms the authority of the judicial

branch and it deals a severe blow to the democratic quality of Israel. So, what's really at question here is what kind of powers can and should the

Supreme Court have.

Now, the president of the Supreme Court, Esther Hyatt, if you see that picture of all the justices together, she's the one that sits right in the

middle. She has said, "there must be a mortal blow to democracy for them to be able to strike this down". So, that's the question here. Does the

Supreme Court believe that there would be a mortal blow to democracy if this law passes? And if they do, then they will potentially strike it down.

Now, always hard to gauge how judges are going to rule based off of their comments in a hearing because, you know, they're supposed to grill both

sides. But some of the things we've heard from them, they've asked the lawyers representing the government saying, okay, if the people should have

all the authority to decide what happens if the government says, okay, well, then they're won't be elections. There won't be elections for 10

years.

Who will then be the check on the power? Because the way the Israeli parliamentary system works, essentially the Supreme Court is the only check

on power. And there's one very key quote that I think will really stand out of this entire hearing, as one of the justices said, democracy dies in a

series of small steps. Lynda.

[12:40:00]

KINKADE: Yeah, that is true. Hadas Gold for us in Jerusalem. We will continue to follow this story closely. Thank you very much. Well, one

resident in a tiny mountain village in Morocco says it took just 10 seconds for the whole village to disappear. We want to take a closer look now at

Friday's earthquake, the deadliest one to hit Morocco in more than 60 years.

While rescuers are working urgently to find survivors amidst the rubble, hope is fading. The death toll has climbed past 2900 with more than 5000

people injured. It struck the bustling city of Marrakesh. But its most devastating impact was felt in the isolated regions at the foothills of the

Atlas Mountains. Aid has been slow to reach some of the hardest hit remote villages where roads have been destroyed or blocked by debris. And some

residents are feeling desperate.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

NOUREDDINE BO IKEROUANE, LOCAL CARPENTER (through translator): This is the fourth day already. We just need a tent. We have been given blankets. I'm

afraid to go home as it may collapse because of the cracks.

MALIKA OUABELLA, LOCAL RESIDENT (through translator): We don't know what we'll do afterwards. We have nothing because our money, our furniture,

everything was destroyed because we haven't recovered anything yet.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KINKADE: Well, time now for the exchange. Joining me now from Marrakesh is Erez Gollan, a paramedic with the relief group United Hatzala of Israel.

Thank you so much for your time today. How are you doing?

EREZ GOLLAN, PARAMEDIC, UNITED HATZALAH OF ISRAEL: I'm doing good. Thank you very much for having this interview. Good afternoon from Marrakesh.

KINKADE: This earthquake, Aris, struck Friday. It's now Tuesday and certainly from some of the people we've been speaking to there is a great

deal of anger initially about the government's response to the disasters as people waited for help. Can you describe the initial response for us?

GOLLAN: So, I cannot speak on behalf of the Moroccan government, but I can just say that we are currently a Go team from United Datala, the relief

group, the NGO that I belong to. We are searching the area, looking for the most urgent needs with regards to the population and what relief efforts

need to be done. And I can say that in the remote areas up in the in the mountains, there is a big necessity for both community medical and also

general relief efforts, whether it is tents, clean water, having supplies to people, et cetera.

KINKADE: Erez, when did you and your team arrive in Morocco? And can you describe for us any cases of people you've been able to find, any survivors

that you've rescued.

GOLLAN: So, my team and myself arrived in Morocco on Sunday. And I have to say that currently the Moroccan government is doing very big efforts and

successfully evacuating those people who are severely injured and also unfortunately, the dead out of the wreckage. However, there are many people

who are currently left homeless, wandering around the streets and are in seek of shelter and clean water and a lot of both humanitarian and medical

-- community medical, if I can say, assistance.

KINKADE: Is there -- how is that assistance getting to them? Because there is an international rescue effort. There is certainly a lot of

international aid organizations trying to help. What are the priorities right now and what other help is needed?

GOLLAN: So, the help is needed, I would say, in the more distant areas such as the mountain villages.

KINKADE: Have we lost his sound?

GOLLAN: Can hear you me?

KINKADE: Have we lost his sound?

GOLLAN: Hello. I can hear you. Can you hear me? Okay, sorry. As I said, the most desperate need, I would say, or the most urgent need is up in the

remote mountain areas where total villages are left without medical assistance, without shelter, without any either humanitarian or medical

assistance. So, I think these are the main focus areas currently with the relief organizations other than the rescue attempts.

[12:45:00]

KINKADE: Erez Gollan, we appreciate you and your team's efforts there. We wish you all the best. The need certainly is great in Morocco. Thank you

very much.

GOLLAN: Thank you very much for having me.

KINKADE: And for more information about how you can help the victims of the Morocco earthquake, go to cnn.com slash impact. Well, still to come, the

phrase, "Google it", is part of our vocabulary. Google is synonymous with searching. Now, a U.S. judge must decide if Google abuses that dominance.

Details of a landmark courtroom battle when One World continues.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KINKADE: Welcome back. I'm Lynda Kinkade, good to have you with us. So, the case of the U.S. versus Google begins today in a Washington courtroom. It's

been called the biggest antitrust case in the tech industry in decades. Prosecutors say Google abuses its dominance of internet search traffic

because it made exclusive deals with other companies that effectively made it impossible for rival search engines to compete. The case is expected to

take about 10 weeks to complete with more than a hundred witnesses testifying.

Our Anna Stewart is watching this story for us and joins us now live. Good to have you with us, Anna. So, there have been comparisons to the Microsoft

trial of 1998. The tech giant also accused of using its market power to squeeze out competition. What are the similarities and differences? What's

this case about?

ANNA STEWART, CNN REPORTER: Well, yeah, it's another massive antitrust case and lots of people are making that comparison or at least there hasn't been

major anti-trust case against one of the big tech companies really since then, since the late 1990s. And we just had the opening remarks from U.S.

prosecutors on day one of what could be a 10-week trial.

And really, some of the comments were quite explosive. U.S. prosecutors from the DOJ accuse Google of operating an illegal monopoly when it comes

to its search engine, thereby they say stifling competition illegally from rival search engines and thereby, and I quote, "harming every computer and

mobile device user in the United States".

Now, the DOJ is saying that Google pays more than $10 billion to Apple and other companies like browser developers, like Mozilla, to ensure that

Google is the default search engine when users use the devices. A user has to actively change that default if they want to use a different search

engine. Now, of course the DOJ believes that to be illegal.

[12:50:00]

According to Google, this is lawful, this is fair business practice, they maintain they have done nothing wrong, they say that plenty of users choose

to use Google because it is a preferred option. Google Search Business, Lynda, provides more than half of Alphabet's revenue, which is a massive

deal. So, what happens in this case really matters when you look at Alphabet's bottom line.

KINKADE: Yeah, exactly. And of course, I have to ask, what happens if Google loses?

STEWART: Well, we can look back, actually, that Microsoft case you mentioned in 1998, which was the last big case, and Microsoft lost. Now,

the U.S. government wanted to see Microsoft broken up. That decision was overturned in court and instead what you saw was Microsoft was essentially

restricted in how it could use its operating system to ensure that there was a level playing field.

We could see if Google loses something similar here. There are plenty of remedies in its toolbox. I mean, they could see a massive fine. I don't

think they go that way. The government could push to break up Google or it could try and restrict how Google promotes its search engine, given that

it's causing all the problems in this case. But we'll have to see. There'll be plenty of star witness testimony, so, it will be a really interesting

trial to watch over the coming weeks.

KINKADE: Yeah, no doubt. We will chat again soon about this case. Anna Stewart, good to have you with us from London. Thank you. Well, still to

come in One World with much of the world rooting him on, American Mark Dickey was hoisted to safety. His remarkable rescue, when we come back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KINKADE: Welcome back. American Mark Dickey has been rescued after more than a week inside a Turkish cave. He's now undergoing medical tests at a

local hospital. Take a look at this. You can see the 40-year-old being pulled to safety in a complex operation earlier Tuesday. The experienced

caver fell ill with gastrointestinal bleeding and had to receive medical attention some 1000 meters below surface. An international team helped pull

him to safety. And "The New Yorker" thanked them and his fiance for saving his life.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MARK DICKEY, AMERICAN CAVER: It is amazing to be above ground again. I was underground for far longer than ever expected with an unexpected medical

issue. At one point in time, while I was waiting for Jessica to get back down with fluids, she made an insane climb of a thousand meters out of a

cave to come back down another thousand meters, along with the support Hungarians and Turkish cavers, saved my life.

[12:55:00]

And it was the rapid response to the Turkish government that got the resources to her. Just, what can you say? Saved my life.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KINKADE: Very lucky to be alive. Well, if you have trouble focusing on books, work or even your favorite TV show, you're not alone. Turns out our

attention spans are shrinking. A University of California, Iovine researcher found in 2003 the average attention span was 2.5 minutes

compared to today which is a little over 45 seconds and it's mostly due to how we're getting our information. Shorter segments, shorter videos, and

experts say you can grow your attention span by finding something that engages you and focus on it, like any of our CNN shows.

Thanks so much for watching One World. I'm Lynda Kinkade. Stick around. Amanpour on what is her 40th anniversary at CNN is up next. You're watching

CNN.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

END