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One World with Zain Asher
Oil Tanker and Cargo Vessel Collide Off U.K.'s Northeast Coast; Zelenskyy Arrives in Saudi Arabia Ahead of Ukraine-U.S. Talks; Mark Carney to Replace Justin Trudeau as Prime Minister; Syrian Government Says Operation Against Assad Loyalists is Over. Aired 12-1p ET
Aired March 10, 2025 - 12:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[12:00:00]
ZAIN ASHER, CNN ANCHOR: Ready to move forward to the U.S. as Ukraine is prepared to move the needle on discussions for peace.
BIANNA GOLODRYGA, CNN ANCHOR: The second hour of ONE WORLD starts right now.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: You know, I say they don't have the cards. Nobody really has the cards.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Are you comfortable with that? The fact that you walked away and Ukraine may not survive.
TRUMP: Well, it may not survive anyway.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GOLODRYGA: Could this be the moment? Leaders from around the world touch down in Saudi Arabia, hoping to find a path to peace in Ukraine. Donald
Trump says it takes two.
ASHER: Also ahead, friend or foe, who exactly is Mark Carney and will he get along with the American president? We'll talk about everything we know
about Canada's next prime minister. And later --
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's one of those things like when we started this, you know, people kind of jump on board at the beginning, but they have not
stopped.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GOLODRYGA: It takes a village. Neighbors pull out all the stops to surprise a six year old with cancer.
ANNOUNCER: This is CNN breaking news.
GOLODRYGA: Right. Hello, everyone, again, I'm Bianca Golodryga.
ASHER: And I'm Zain Asher, you are watching the second hour of ONE WORLD. We'll bring you those stories you mentioned in just a moment. But first,
you want to get straight to our breaking news happening from just off the coast of northeastern England.
The British Coast Guard says a fuel tanker, tanker rather, and a cargo vessel have collided.
GOLODRYGA: These images you're seeing right now of a huge fire burning at sea come from social media and have yet to be confirmed or verified by CNN.
Now, the company that owns the tanker says that it was carrying highly flammable jet fuel. Officials say at least 32 people have been brought
ashore so far.
ASHER: CNN's Anna Stewart is tracking the story for us. I mean, these pictures, Anna, are really striking. You know, the tanker was carrying
highly flammable jet fuel. So that explains part of it. But just walk us through how exactly this could have happened.
ANNA STEWART, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I mean, this was utterly extraordinary. The first sort of alarm call came at 9:48 a.m. So this collision happened
in daylight here in the U.K. off the northeast coast of England.
And as you say, it involves a huge oil tanker. This is a U.S. flagship called the Stena Immaculate. It was carrying, as you say, jet fuel. And
this ship is known to supply U.S. defense military essentially with various types of fuel. But jet fuel was on board at this time.
Now, we've just had a statement from the operator of this boat, this huge oil tanker, saying that they were struck by the other ship, the container
ship, for so long. They sustained a ruptured cargo tank containing all this jet fuel. There was a huge fire and jet fuel has been released. They say
that all of their crew are safe and accounted for.
Now, the other ship in question, this is the container ship, the so-called Solong. This is a Portuguese flag cargo vessel, slightly smaller. We know
from Vessel Finder that it was on route from Scotland to the Netherlands when the collision occurred. Why it occurred?
Well, that is going to be a huge matter for an investigation. There will be black boxes on both of these vessels, much like you would have in an
airplane. Conversations are recorded on the bridge. There will be a lot of data to sift through. And hopefully crew members on this ship are also safe
and accounted for. But we're awaiting confirmation for that.
But I'm sure there will be plenty of interviews to try and ascertain what happened here. Search and rescue has been the absolute priority so far.
Helicopters, lifeboats have all been traveling to the incident spot off the coast of Hull and Grimsby.
But following that, it will be a question of how did this happen? And also, what is the environmental impact of all that jet fuel leaking into the sea
right now?
ASHER: Great questions. Our Anna Stewart, we'll continue to monitor the story. Thank you so much.
GOLODRYGA: Well, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio is set to arrive in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, at any moment for talks with Ukrainian officials
aimed at ending the war.
ASHER: The meeting comes as Moscow gains ground on the battlefield and after Washington pulls military aid and scales back intelligence sharing
with Kyiv. Though Trump now says the pause in intel sharing is, quote, just about to be lifted. Earlier, the Ukrainian president posted that Russia is
the sole reason that the war continues.
GOLODRYGA: On Sunday, U.S. President Donald Trump reiterated his claim that Ukraine doesn't have enough to show that it's ready or hasn't done enough
to show that it's ready for peace. And he said it may not survive Russia's full-scale invasion.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: We want to do anything we can to get Ukraine to be serious about getting something done. You know, I say they don't have the cards. Nobody
really has the cards.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Are you comfortable with that, the fact that you walked away and Ukraine may not survive?
[12:05:02]
TRUMP: Well, it may not survive anyway, but, you know, we have some weaknesses with Russia. You know, it takes two.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GOLODRYGA: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is also in Saudi Arabia. He is set to meet with the country's Crown Prince but not expected to be at
the talks.
CNN's Alex Marquardt joins us now live in Jeddah. And, Alex, we're getting some comments from Secretary of State Rubio saying that the U.S. is hopeful
about having a, quote, good meeting with the Ukrainians. Talk to us about what's at stake here for Ukraine as they enter these conversations.
ALEX MARQUARDT, CNN CHIEF NATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: Well, I would argue a huge amount is at stake following that explosive meeting that
really deteriorated quickly in the Oval Office two weeks ago. This meeting tomorrow is very much aimed, by both sides, at getting this relationship
back on track. And we have seen a bit of a thawing in that frostiness in the past week.
President Zelenskyy talking about how it was regrettable, how that meeting went, and President Trump responding positively to that.
President Zelenskyy landing here in Jeddah just under an hour ago. He is set to meet, as you say, with the Crown Prince, as is Secretary of State
Marco Rubio, who is set to land at any moment now. But Zelenskyy will not be at the meeting tomorrow with the American delegation. They will be
across the table from their Ukrainian counterparts.
Despite the fact that Rubio has not landed, we are getting some notes from what he is telling reporters on the plane. Very broadly, he is saying that
he is hopeful that they will make progress in the meeting tomorrow. But he is being quite specific about wanting to hear from the Ukrainian side what
difficult decisions, what concessions they might be willing to make in order to move these talks forward.
He said that the Russians will also have to make concessions, which is quite interesting because we haven't really heard any flexibility from the
Russian side in terms of giving up territory or allowing Ukraine to join NATO or allowing European and NATO troops inside of Ukraine.
Meanwhile, the U.S. is certainly expecting to hear that Ukraine is going to make some of those difficult decisions, which would include, they say,
giving up some territory in the eastern part of the country, what it could mean for elections and so on.
The Ukrainians have been very specific that they want to hear from the U.S. side security guarantees, so that is a big question. Is the U.S. willing,
in this negotiation tomorrow, willing to give any kind of military support to an eventual peacekeeping mission between the two sides?
But then, longer term, they're really going to have to figure out what this relationship looks like, and that is what the goal of this is, is really to
get this ball rolling again. We have heard President Zelenskyy talking about the possibility of an initial partial ceasefire, and that would look
like, in his words, the stopping of aerial bombardment against civilian and energy infrastructure, a stop of the fighting in the Black Sea.
When Secretary of State Marco Rubio was asked about that. He said he allowed for the fact that that is, yes, a good first step, that a cessation
of hostilities is really what would put the two sides on the path to some kind of peace deal.
So lots of talks taking place here in Jeddah. One more note, Marco Rubio was questioned about that minerals deal, which was supposed to be signed
two weeks ago in Washington. He said that that could be a component of the talks, but that is not something that they expect to seal here.
He said that they don't expect to go into a room with a map and figure out specifics on that granular level. It will sort of be a broader look and
hoping to hear a direction from the Ukrainians in which these talks can go in the coming weeks and months -- Bianna.
GOLODRYGA: Yes, and again a reminder, Alex, to our viewers that as Ukraine is entering these talks, they've had military aid frozen and intelligence
provided by the United States frozen as well. U.S. officials saying they're hoping that the intelligence aspect at least can be lifted sometime soon.
But it does show the perilous situation that Ukraine finds itself in right now. Thank you so much.
ASHER: More Russian attacks have been carried out across Ukraine over the weekend and into Monday morning. At least six civilians have been killed.
That's according to a CNN tally of figures released by Ukrainian authorities.
GOLODRYGA: Now this comes after Russia launched a major aerial assault late last week, days after the U.S. suspended military and intelligence sharing
with Kyiv, as we just noted. Canadian volunteer soldier April Huggett explains why she came to fight on the front lines.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
APRIL HUGGETT, COMBAT MEDIC: What kind of future am I going to leave for my children if Russia wins here? I could give them some great memories, being
at home, baking them cookies and taking them to school.
[12:10:00]
But in a few short years, my oldest is 14, in four years she's going to be an adult. What kind of world am I handing over to her?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GOLODRYGA: Oleksandr Merezhko heads the Foreign Affairs Committee in the Ukrainian Parliament. He joins us now live from Kyiv. Aleksandr, thank you
so much for taking the time.
We were just talking about what's at stake going into these meetings for Ukraine, and it does seem as if Volodymyr Zelenskyy or Andriy Yermak, who
will be conducting these meetings, on his behalf, are coming with some sort of deliverables that we've heard over the course of the last few days in
terms of confirming to the U.S. how secure Ukraine is and how determined Ukraine is to bringing this war to an end, and that is some sort of
ceasefire both in the air and at sea. What do you think Ukraine will get in return for these deliverables?
OLEKSANDR MEREZHKO, CHAIR, FOREIGN AFFAIRS COMMITTEE, UKRAINIAN PARLIAMENT: First of all, I hope that it will become the first step towards improving
relations between President Trump and President Zelenskyy. It's a crucially important issue for us right now because the United States is our closest
ally and supporter and friend, and we continue to count on your support to save Ukrainian lives.
At the same time, we hope that the delegation from the United States will be receptive to the idea of President Zelenskyy to offer a so-called
partial ceasefire, partial truce, which is about ceasefire in the sky and at the sea. It might be a good start and a very kind of working idea.
ASHER: You know, it's interesting because the last time we saw a summit in Saudi Arabia was, of course, around three weeks ago, where we saw American
and Russian officials meeting in Saudi Arabia. So much has changed since then. Obviously, the biggest thing that has changed was that that meeting
took place before that unfortunate Oval Office meeting with J.D. Vance, Zelenskyy and Donald Trump.
In terms of what concrete positive things can come out of this meeting for Ukraine, I mean, is it just the fact that President Trump reignites
intelligence sharing fully between the two countries? Is it that the U.S. reignites military aid to Ukraine or that Zelenskyy actually gets some kind
of guarantees when it comes to security so Russia doesn't turn back around and reinvade the country again after a peace deal? What would you say were
the concrete deliverables that should come out of this meeting between the Americans and the Ukrainians?
MEREZHKO: Well, first of all, I hope that President Trump will take decision to continue to provide military and technical aid to Ukraine
because, again, this weaponry which we received from the United States, it helps to save lives of our people, both civilians and our soldiers. So it's
crucially important for us to continue to receive this support.
Extremely important issue about our survival, about our future, is an issue about security guarantees because we can have ceasefire only when we have
these guarantees and we understand, we feel, that Putin will not use ceasefire to destroy us completely and to start a new wave of aggression
against Ukraine. This is about our survival.
GOLODRYGA: Can I ask you a blunt question, Oleksandr? Given the sharp change in U.S. policy, the rhetoric coming out of the President's mouth,
even some of his top advisors who have been known to be staunch Russia hawks for many, many years, the about face that we're seeing and the
surprise response among all of the U.S. allies to these changing policies, is there concern within Kyiv now that the U.S. administration is not on
Ukraine's side and perhaps isn't even a neutral player here but maybe leaning more towards Russia?
MEREZHKO: Well, the truth is that we are very concerned because, you know, as I said, our survival depends on the United States. And from our part,
we're trying to do everything to mend relations with the new administration. At the same time, I believe that what can really help is a
face-to-face meeting between President Zelenskyy and President Trump because we're trying to understand what is Trump's strategy towards
Ukraine, towards Russia, and does he have any plan to stop Russian aggression?
Because on the surface, it looks very worrisome when you listen to the statements.
GOLODRYGA: You saw what happened at their last face-to-face meeting. You know, is it President Zelenskyy that will change at the next meeting? We
can probably already guess what President Trump is going to say because he's been quite outspoken about it.
[12:15:00]
MEREZHKO: Well, to me, the problem was not that they had exchange of sometimes even sharp views and points of views before the cameras. The
problem was that they never had direct talk behind the closed doors without the third persons.
I think -- I'm sure that it would solve all the issues, misgivings and misunderstandings.
ASHER: When you think about what Russia is looking -- obviously, we've talked about what Ukraine wants out of these talks in terms of intelligence
sharing and military aid and security guarantees. I mean, when you think about what Russia wants, I mean, Russia wants a number of things.
Obviously, it wants to annex the parts of Ukraine that it already controls. It wants to annex them fully. It also wants to make sure that Ukraine is
never allowed to join NATO. And it also wants some kind of pro-Russian government to be installed in Kyiv.
How concerned are you that the U.S. will capitulate to many, if not all, of these demands going forward?
MEREZHKO: I hope it will never happen because if it happens, you know, we will see the end of the world order and international law. And I hope that
it will never happen. But, you know, the final goal of Russia is not annexing territories of Ukraine.
The final goal of Russia is twofold. First of all, to destroy Ukraine completely, to deprive us of our statehood. And the next goal is to
dominate in Europe, to take Europe under control. And I understand that it's not in the best national interest of the United States.
GOLODRYGA: Oleksandr Merezhko, thank you so much for joining us.
ASHER: All right, still to come, Canada is preparing to swear in its next prime minister. And he's got some words of warning for Donald Trump when it
comes to tariffs.
GOLODRYGA: And a confrontation on the streets of Ohio. It was a shouting match or was it just an exchange of ideas? What the U.S. vice president has
to say when we come back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
GOLODRYGA: Well, Canada's next prime minister says retaliatory tariffs on the U.S. will stay in place until Americans, quote, show us respect.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MARK CARNEY, LIBERAL PARTY LEADER: The Canadian government has rightly retaliated and is rightly retaliating with our own tariffs that will have
maximum impact in the United States and minimum impact here in Canada.
[12:20:03]
And my government will keep our tariffs on until the Americans show us respect.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GOLODRYGA: The ruling Liberal Party has chosen Mark Carney to be its new leader.
ASHER: A former central banker, Carney will take over from Justin Trudeau as prime minister in the next few days.
Paula Newton joins us live now from Ottawa. Paula, in the last hour we talked about just a bit more about, you know, Mark Carney's background as
former governor of the Bank of England and former governor of the Bank of Canada and how he transitioned Canada through the financial crisis and how
he really does have sort of the economic chops to do this job at a time like this.
But I think the big question is when it comes to Canada's politics, what are the chances that he will be prime minister beyond a few months?
PAULA NEWTON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, this is a real contest, Zain, and you've hit the nail on the head there. He is an absolute political novice,
right? He hasn't run for anything except for this liberal leadership race before in his life.
And he still has to connect with Canadians. He very much does speak like a technocrat. Certainly, he has a resume that would be the envy of any
government in terms of being able to handle a crisis.
And as you just mentioned, Zain, remember, he held Britain's hand through Brexit. Not an easy task. But Britain, in fact, asked him to stay on an
extra two years in his mandate as governor of the Bank of England.
Will that impress any Canadians? No. What impresses Canadians now is how well you stand up to the threat coming from the Oval Office.
On that, you just heard his words, and he said more than that in terms of not just the fact that they will retaliate in Canada here dollar for
dollar, that they will stay on until, in his words, they're shown respect. But the fact that they will fight back, and they will fight back hard
against this existential crisis, against the fact that Donald Trump continues to say that Canada would be better off as the 51st state.
Leaning into that does a lot for him politically, but it also does a lot for the opposition. Conservative leader, Pierre Poilievre, certainly a
formidable opponent.
He, in contrast, is a career politician. He has a very extensive social media following that's been also noticed by MAGA. Now, that may not help
him in this election, but the point is there will be a current of change here in Canada, that thirst for change running through any election
campaign.
And by the way, we do expect it to be called in the next few weeks, likely an election here in Canada by the end of April, beginning of May. And I do
want to point out there will be a lot of hockey cliches, including from Mark Carney. He has an impressive resume that does include being the goalie
for Harvard when he was there at school.
So that is what this Canadian, I just previewed the Canadian election for you there, and that's the way it's going to be. And it is that connection
to things like hockey that will endear him to Canadians. And he really needs to get out there if he's going to have a shot at beating Pierre
Poilievre.
ASHER: I mean, his resume is, I mean, education wise, Harvard, Oxford. I mean, the list goes on, especially in terms of jobs.
NEWTON: Yes, I'm sorry. I'm sorry to take a little more time here. But listen, remember, he -- Donald Trump calls people globalists.
He's the ultimate globalist because it's not just that he what he did for Canada or the United States. He was at the helm of the finance structure of
the G20 when it was just coming out of that financial crisis. He also was a U.N. environment envoy. Think about the juxtaposition there. And let's see
how we go forward in the next few weeks.
We do expect a call between Donald Trump and Mark Carney pretty soon. A few hours, really, after he's sworn in, likely at the end of this week.
GOLODRYGA: Yes, someone who literally held the title of governor. That was Bank of England, Governor of Canada. A different type of governor, Paula,
but it was interesting.
I'm stealing that line. I also like his line. In trade as in hockey, Canada will win.
It is notable the difference in the language that we heard from him and Trudeau. Trudeau telling Canadians we will fight back, we will stay strong,
but you will feel the pain from these trade wars. And as we heard from Carney, basically telling Canadians yesterday that they will be protected
under his policies from the impacts of these trade wars. So that's interesting, the change in tone.
NEWTON: Yes, he's definitely leaning into the fact of what he can do to bring the economy together because that is his expertise. I do want to
point out, given everything you guys have covered in this show each and every day, geopolitics, unfortunately, not in his favor. If you talk to
Mark Carney, what he wants to do is bring all of these countries together.
So bring in the EU, bring in Mexico, bring in Asian partners to stand up to the United States to say, look, we are not going to take your bullying on
trade or anything else.
[12:25:00]
Given what is going on now with Ukraine and really how hobbled Europe is right now by having to spend so much on defense, it is unlikely that he
will get that worldwide effort together, you know, to really combat the new economic doctrine coming from the White House.
Having said that, though, as I remind you guys in the beginning, task number one, he does need to get elected prime minister, and that will be a
challenge.
ASHER: Minor details there. Paula Newton live for us there from Ottawa. Thank you so much.
GOLODRYGA: U.S. Vice President J.D. Vance and a group of protesters in Ohio are giving very different accounts of an encounter that took place over the
weekend. Take a look.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
J.D. VANCE, U.S. VICE PRESIDENT: They certainly invaded Ukraine in 2022.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: ... and Georgia and Chechnya. They are the aggressor every time.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What happened when you call Trump America's Hitler? What changed?
VANCE: Ma'am, now that's a different question. I'm happy -- would you like me to talk about how I changed my view on Donald Trump from 10 years ago.
Because I talked about it a lot during the campaign, and then the American people voted and mad him president of the United States.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You've got no integrity.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You've got no integrity.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ASHER: Vance claims the pro-Ukrainian protesters followed him around and shouted at him, scaring his 3-year-old daughter who was with him at the
time. Vance used profanity to describe the protesters in a social media report.
GOLODRYGA: The protesters say they just happened across the vice president, were not following him. They say they were respectful and engaged in a
conversation about Ukraine for several minutes before moving on.
All right, still to come for us, more on our breaking news out of the U.K. This was the scene after an oil tanker and a cargo ship collided in the
sea.
[12:30:00]
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ASHER: Hi, welcome back to One World, I'm Zane Asher.
GOLODRYGA: And I'm Bianca Golodryga. All crew members aboard a U.S.-flagged tanker that was in a collision with a cargo ship in the North Sea are safe
and accounted for. That is according to Chembulk, the company that owns the tanker. It says the ship was carrying highly flammable jet fuel.
ASHER: The British Coast Guard launched an emergency response after this incident. We know that the operation is ongoing. At least 32 people have
been brought ashore where ambulances were waiting to actually take them to the hospital.
GOLODRYGA: I want to bring in Martyn Boyers, the CEO of the Port of Grimsby East. Martin, thank you so much for joining us. So little by little, we're
getting more and more details as to what occurred prior to this collision happening.
It appeared that the tanker had dropped anchor. And thankfully, there don't appear to be casualties at this point. What are some of the first questions
that investigators will be asking?
MARTYN BOYERS, CEO, PORT OF GRIMSBY EAST, GRIMSBY, ENGLAND (via phone): Well, the first question will be, how on earth did it happen when we have
all this technology about navigation and with all the equipment that's available on the bridge of the vessel? But the circumstances for us were
that we were only put on standby to receive the casualties. So our port is, Port of Grimsby is roughly 10 nautical miles northeast of the incident.
And this was the nearest port to bring the casualties to. So we were put on standby by the harbor authority and the emergency services to say that
casualties would come. So we've received 32 casualties through the port on three different vessels.
And that's great because they're all alive. We don't know the actual numbers of people that were on board. But hopefully, everybody is safe and
everybody is accounted for.
But the next stage is going to be the inquiry as to how it happened. Because in today's modern world, with all the technology, it shouldn't have
happened. So something somewhere has gone drastically wrong.
So I would imagine that in this country, we have the MAIB, which is the Marine Accident Investigation Bureau. So they'll be all over it. And we
have the Marine Coast Guard Agency, the MCA, and they'll be all over it.
And all the other services will be all over it because it's something that shouldn't happen. And obviously, they don't want to happen again.
ASHER: I mean, you're right. It is bizarre, as you point out, given all the technology, how this could have happened. We know the oil tanker was
carrying fuel for the U.S. military. And it apparently was at anchor. How rare is that, especially given just how busy of a shipping channel this
actually is? Just take us through that.
BOYERS: Well, it's an extremely rare occurrence. The North Sea must be one of the busiest shipping channels in the world because it's attached to the
bottom of it is the English Channel, which is the busiest shipping lane. And as the word describes, there are lanes, although they're not actual
roads that you can see, but they're on the charts.
And the navigational aid put you on the right track to make sure that you're in the right place. So that's the bit that's going to be part of the
inquiry into what's happened. How did that vessel continue plowing into the berth vessel?
There must have been some warning signs. There must have been able to detect it on the radar. But the whole thing is something that is completely
unusual. I've been here on this job 25 years, and I've never heard of it before.
GOLODRYGA: Oh, well, as we said, thankfully, there don't appear to be fatalities at this point. But as as you noted, an investigation should
begin shortly, and a lot of these questions will be answered. Martyn Boyers, thank you for the time.
ASHER: A lot of people are concerned about the environmental impact, especially given the fact that oil was leaking, of course.
All right, still to come, an eruption of violence in Syria, where a move to crack down on remnants of the former regime spirals to revenge killings.
We'll speak to an expert about where exactly the country is headed right now.
GOLODRYGA: Plus, how one community is rallying around this six-year-old boy after he was diagnosed with a rare autoimmune disease.
[12:35:00]
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
GOLODRYGA: Those are the sounds of gunfire on the streets of Syria as the country sees its worst outbreak of violence since the dictator Bashar al-
Assad was ousted last year. The interim government says a military operation against forces loyal to the former regime has ended now.
ASHER: Earlier, this was a scene as violent clashes spiraled into communal killings. Eyewitnesses say that armed men, loyal to the current government,
carried out executions. The UK-based Syrian Network for Human Rights says more than 700 people have died in the violence.
GOLODRYGA: Syria's interim president is vowing to hold those responsible for civilian deaths accountable. But the attacks are raising major
questions over whether the new administration has distanced itself from its jihadist past.
ASHER: Time now for The Exchange. Let's bring in Haid Haid. He's a consulting fellow at Chatham House Middle East and North Africa program and
a Syrian columnist as well. He joins us live now from London. Haith, thank you so much for being with us.
This is the worst spate of violence the country's actually experienced since the ouster of former President Bashar al-Assad. Obviously, the
Alawite community are terrified right now, understandably so, especially given the fact that security forces were literally going door-to-door,
house-to-house, carrying out some of these executions.
How much of a test is this for the current government, just in terms of the ability to really unify the country, especially when you think about how
divided Syria is with all the sort of different sects there are?
HAID HAID, CONSULTING FELLOW, CHATHAM HOUSE: Thank you for having me. Definitely, it's a big test for the interim authorities on different
levels. One level is related to ensuring that there are enough measures to protect civilians across Syria, but in areas where there are active
clashes, for sure.
There is one that intelligence also gathering sort of skills to be able to anticipate as well as prevent similar attacks to happen in the future would
be another issue to see if they would be able to really improve their abilities there.
But in addition to the military and security aspects, there are other aspects that need to be improved related to service provision, economic
situation, as well as political engagement, because so far many people are still not happy with the way the political transition is happening right
now.
GOLODRYGA: There's still so much uncertainty and reporting that hasn't been confirmed over how all of this began. But when you have interim leader al-
Sharaa say in an interview just moments ago that he vows to punish anyone involved in this violence, that this stands in the way of bringing the
country together, and he vows to punish even those, quote, closest to us.
Does that suggest to you that A, he should be taken at his word, or B, perhaps he doesn't have full control over all of his fighting forces?
[12:40:01]
HAID: Well, for sure, I think that the latter is a key concern, because so far, although we don't know who are the individuals involved in those
direct sort of violations, we know that some of them are affiliated with the forces that were mobilized. So this indicates that at least some of the
forces that were brought into that region are not disciplined and the authorities don't have full control over them.
But the other one is related to previous statements by al-Sharaa, where he said that local communities from elsewhere just mobilized themselves and
went on and then killed civilians in that coastal area. Which is also another concern, because that means that the authorities currently don't
have enough security measures in order to ensure the protection of civilians in that region.
ASHER: When you look at how we got here, ever since the sort of ouster of Bashar al-Assad, Syrians have been demanding accountability for the crimes
committed under Bashar al-Assad's regime. Does that mean that the Alawite community are going to be extremely vulnerable for the foreseeable future
for these -- you know, in terms of this kind of violence against them?
HAID: Well, it's definitely a concern because, again, it's related to whether the new authorities or interim authorities will be able to ensure
that what happened in that region will not be repeated again through improving the security measures that will protect those civilians. If they
don't do that, and in case accountability measures in order to hold those that were involved in previous violations committed by individuals linked
to the regime continue to be sort of postponed, then you would expect people taking matters into their own hands and trying to basically go and
do what they think is right in order to serve justice the way they see it.
So because of those two issues, I think it'll be quite concerning if we don't see a change in the way that caretaker government is basically
handling the situation there.
So far, we have seen positive statements following those tragic incidents where they are saying that we will hold all people accountable. And I think
at this point, the real test is whether those statements will be translated into actions that will actually be verified by the people who were impacted
by them.
GOLODRYGA: What does this do in terms of Western countries, specifically the United States, lifting sanctions against Syria, against this interim
government right now, which had been in negotiations for a number of weeks? The U.S. has said that it condemns the Syrian massacres and, quote, stands
by the minorities. How at risk is this interim government of the U.S. taking a step back from lifting some of those sanctions and attempting to
normalize relations?
HAID: I think it's a serious risk, and this risk could also be seen elsewhere. So far, it seems that at least European countries, as well as
regional actors, are still supporting the current caretaker government. And they are still understanding the fragile situation they are still and the
different challenges they are still dealing with.
But this might not last for long if they don't see that things are done differently in terms of inclusivity in the political process and in terms
of basically translating what we have seen or what we have heard recently, in terms of holding all people accountable. If they don't see progress on
those two fronts, I think we might see more and more resentful from other actors who might also start thinking about taking a step back.
ASHER: There has been, of course, some concern among security forces in Syria that members of the Alawite community were perhaps plotting, just in
terms of seeking revenge against the current government. And there are also concerns that Iran and foreign powers may have been involved in that as
well. What are you hearing on the ground?
[12:45:00]
HAID: Well, it's exactly what you just said. It's not only what we're hearing from people on the ground, but those are also the same statements
that are shared by the interim authorities in Syria, because they have made it clear that those incidents were not only motivated by local actors who
are basically part of the former regime but were supported actively by external actors. However, while that might be true, again, it's important
to highlight that there are several factors that contributed to those incidents.
Among them, as I said, lack of capacity, basically that the current caretaker government is struggling with when it comes to imposing security,
but when it comes also to other matters related to improving living conditions and improving the inclusivity of the processes that they are
leading, especially on the political level.
ASHER: All right, Haid Haid from Chatham House, live for us there. Thank you so much.
All right, Romania's government has been working to counter human trafficking operations in the country, which sees the highest share of
victims in the EU.
GOLODRYGA: Yes, last year, it passed a set of new laws that eased the way for successful prosecutions, but the fight is far from over.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SAMARA, HUMAN TRAFFICKING SURVIVOR (through translator): Someday, a stranger will come and tell you, hey, I like you. Let's go out for a
coffee. Anything can happen from there.
My name is Samara, and I'm a former victim of human trafficking.
My story starts in 2016. I was 19. I was pregnant. Spending time on Facebook, I started talking to what is now my former trafficker. He called
me over to his house. He wanted me to meet his family, to see where he lived. I didn't realize then what was happening.
I lived in the car. I sat outside in the rain. Beaten or not, you had to stay there. There was no one to come save you, to take pity on you. And
yet, he'd come and tell me he loved me, even after he beat me.
STEFAN COMAN, ADVOCACY AND PARTNERSHIPS LEAD, INTERNATIONAL JUSTICE MISSION: If we want to see human trafficking decrease in our lifetime, we
need to go after the traffickers, because there are vulnerable people that get trafficked, and there's vulnerable people that don't get trafficked.
And the element that is present in one and absent in the other is the trafficker.
CRISTIAN BACANU, FORMER ROMANIAN MP: You can't really understand the phenomenon if you don't talk to people, if you cannot drop any form of
prejudice. For me, it's personal, because I could do something to have the justice system work better. We worked with institutions to create the
capacity to prevent human trafficking, if possible, to get convictions for human trafficking offenses, where it is the case, and to protect the
victims or potential victims.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translator): If someone had taken care to tell me, look, be careful, there are bad people out there, maybe this wouldn't
have happened. Now, the things that I should have been told then, I get to tell others.
I'm not the old me anymore. I'm so much stronger than eight years ago. I'm a different person. In my case, justice was made, and I'm really glad.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ASHER: All right, coming up on Tuesday, we invite you to join CNN for My Freedom Day. That is a student-driven worldwide event to raise awareness
about modern-day slavery. Follow the #MyFreedomDay on social media and check out cnn.com/MyFreedomDay. We'll be right back with more after this
short break.
[12:50:00]
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
GOLODRYGA: For the first time in seven years, a woman has competed in a NASCAR Cup Series race. Forty-four-year-old British driver Katherine Legge
made her debut on Sunday during the Shriners Children's 500 at Phoenix Raceway in Arizona. And it all happened on a special day.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KATHERINE LEGGE, RACE CAR DRIVER: I said, oh, I'm going to fly under the radar for my first cup race, right? Nobody's going to notice. We'll just be
in the back. We'll chill. We'll get NASCAR permission.
And then somebody was like, you know, it's International Women's Day on Saturday. And I thought, oh, there's no way. There's no way I'm flying
under the radar.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ASHER: Unfortunately, a crash ended her day a little bit early. But Legge is now the 17th woman to compete at NASCAR's top level and the first since
Danica Patrick in 2018.
GOLODRYGA: Well, people in Rhode Island have come together to light up the night for a six-year-old boy. Landon Vasquez was diagnosed with an
extremely rare autoimmune disease last September.
ASHER: His family says that Landon's battle has been incredibly tough, but the community has been there every single step of the way. WJAR's Sam Read
has the story.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SAM READ, WJAR (voice-over): Like any kid coming home from school, a playdate with a best bud can be pretty exciting. In fact, if you stop to
really think about it, it's something a lot of us probably take for granted, but not Aaron Vazquez.
ERIN VAZQUEZ, WARWICK RESIDENT: You wouldn't know looking at him that anything is wrong.
READ (voice-over): In 2023, now six-year-old Landon caught a cold that he couldn't recover from. Similar situations happened again and again. He was
diagnosed with anemia and pneumonia, but then things took a turn a few months later.
VAZQUEZ: He got really sick this time, like had trouble walking, trouble breathing. His skin turned really yellow. He was vomiting blood.
READ (voice-over): For six months, there was no diagnosis. Then they learned he has an incredibly rare and potentially deadly disease.
VAZQUEZ: It's called idiopathic pulmonary hemosiderosis or IPH.
READ (voice-over): Now undergoing monthly treatments at Boston Children's Hospital, things are getting better, thanks in part to their circle and a
Warwick community that cares.
VAZQUEZ: It's one of those things, like when we started this, you know, people kind of jump on board at the beginning, but they have not stopped.
They show up for everything for him. They're always checking on him.
READ (voice-over): That was evident on Friday.
VAZQUEZ: It was completely a surprise. We had, I didn't even know. We had no idea.
READ (voice-over): February is rare disease month all over the country, and on the last day of the month, family and friends light up to show support.
[12:55:00]
READ (voice-over): Landon's front lawn was no exception.
VAZQUEZ: To go through something like this, but to be able to celebrate it in that way is pretty cool.
READ (voice-over): Weeks earlier, the Rhode Island State House was lit up for Landon
too, the ongoing support has even encouraged the family to start a non- profit, Breath of Hope R.I., to raise money for the first ever study of the autoimmune disease. As all of the positive thoughts and prayers have been
working, the Vasquez family says the support has been a breath of fresh air.
VAZQUEZ: Just to know they're always behind us makes us want to keep going so we can help other people in the process.
READ (voice-over): Showing you something good. I'm Sam Read.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ASHER: What a beautiful, really powerful, touching story.
GOLODRYGA: Yes.
ASHER: Right, that does it for today's ONE WORLD. I'm Zain Asher.
And I'm Bianna Golodryga. Thanks so much for watching. Don't go anywhere. We'll be right back with Amanpour.
END
