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The Brief with Jim Sciutto
Dozens Dead In Swiss Fire; Alleged Attack On Putin Residence; Mamdani's Pledge To New York City. Aired 6-7p ET
Aired January 01, 2026 - 18:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[18:00:26]
JIM SCIUTTO, CNN HOST: Hello and welcome to our viewers joining us from all around the world. I'm Jim Sciutto in Washington, and you're watching
THE BRIEF.
(MUSIC)
SCIUTTO: Just ahead this hour in Switzerland, a vigil after fires ripped through a bar during a New Year's Eve party at a luxury ski resort.
Moscow says it has handed information to the U.S. embassy about an alleged Ukrainian attack on one of Vladimir Putin's residences.
And crowds celebrate the inauguration of Zohran Mamdani as mayor of New York City. He's promising to tackle the affordability crisis in one of
America's most expensive cities.
That story, and much more coming up.
We begin tonight in Switzerland. And that deadly, just awful ski resort fire. A warning for our viewers. Some of what you'll see here is
disturbing.
(VIDEO CLIP PLAYS)
SCIUTTO: The screams of victims in distress. Swiss police say at least 40 people were killed. 115 others injured when a fire swept through Le
Constellation, a popular bar at the upscale Crans-Montana resort. Many of the victims believed to be young people.
Officials say it is still early in the investigation. They have, however, ruled out a terror attack
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BEATRICE PILLOUD, VALAIS CANTON ATTORNEY GENERAL: There are so many circumstances to clarify. Several hypotheses have been considered the most
likely scenario at this point is that of a generalized blaze that caused an explosion.
FREDERIC GISLER, VALAIS CANTON POLICE COMMANDER: Now, and in the coming days, the priority will be identifying the deceased so their bodies can be
returned to their families as quickly as possible.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SCIUTTO: Some witnesses told CNN affiliate BFM-TV that the blaze might have been sparked by sparklers attached to champagne bottles. Authorities
say it is too soon to comment on that theory. The Swiss president said it is one of the worst tragedies the country has ever seen.
One witness described the harrowing scene and what followed, as she and her friend managed to escape.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
LAETITIA PLACE, LAUSANNE RESIDENT: The same thing happened to a friend of mine. He couldn't get out and he just sat down and held his cross in his
hand, and the fire just avoided him. The fire just didn't touch him. It was all around him, but not on him.
And he survived. Thankfully, he managed to get out and he broke a window to escape. But for me, if I'm here tonight, it's because I just want to thank
the Lord for saving me. And I just want to ask him to save my friends who are missing because it's horrible.
Because I miss them. I don't want to lose more people because I already lost people. And were still looking. And I don't want to lose people
because I was so scared -- scared for myself, scared for my friends, scared for everyone inside. I have friends in the hospital. I have friends
everywhere.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SCIUTTO: Those poor young people.
CNN international diplomatic editor Nic Robertson is in Crans-Montana.
And, Nic, it looks like the exits might have been an issue here. So many people trying to get out at the same time.
NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: That's one of the questions that's being raised. Another question is how many people exactly
were in this downstairs bar? Le Constellation bar? How many people were down there?
Another question is about the narrowness of the staircase that led down into that bar. Young people in Crans-Montana were spoken with this evening
who familiar with the bar have been there before. Talk about a narrow staircase. How does all of that and the wooden ceilings fit in with fire
regulations?
These appear to be the questions that are being asked. And the prosecutor saying, we're still working on providing answers. What was the limit for
the number of people allowable in this downstairs bar?
So, obviously a lot of issues, but the priority that were being told by the police, not just identifying the dead, but identifying some of those people
who are lying injured, 115 of them total in hospitals throughout various parts of Switzerland, many of them in very serious conditions.
[18:05:07]
Some of them appear, the police say, not to have been identified yet. And of course, that vexing and harrowing for the families. The whys and
wherefores for them can probably come later and will come later. But for the moment it is, why can't they get through on the phone to their loved
one? And what can the police tell them? And that's the -- that's the thrust and the focus of what the police are working on at the moment, Jim.
SCIUTTO: Good Lord. And the cause of the fire seems like multiple witnesses are talking about the possibility of sparklers attached to
champagne bottles
ROBERTSON: Yeah, and this bar sort of had a reputation of what? One of the things it would do for a celebration is a barmaid would get on a barmaid
shoulders and hold a champagne bottle with these sparklers. And apparently, according to witnesses, last night it appeared that the bottle and the
sparklers and the flames from them were so close to the wooden ceiling. And witnesses have described how the ceiling catches fire and then suddenly
that fire really rips through this underground space where everyone was hiding.
One witness has described their survival because they hid behind a table and, you know, fire experts, fire services will tell you, you know, what
happens in an underground fire. The oxygen is consumed when a window gets opened. That sucks air in, creates a draft. We don't know the details of
what happened here yet, but these will be what the forensic teams will be working on to try to ascertain the details of how it got out of hand so
quickly.
SCIUTTO: And the age of the victims. It's a New Year's Eve party. I imagine the concern is so many of them are young people.
ROBERTSON: And we were talking to some young people earlier on. My colleague, producer Joseph Ataman (ph), was speaking with him. And this was
a group of young men who were about 17 years old. And they said, look, this is a bar that was popular with people of their age, 17, 18-year-olds, 19-
year-olds.
Some of them had thought about going to the bar for the New Year celebration last night. There was an entrance fee. They said of about $60.
They didn't want to pay that. So, it's not by any stretch of imagination just because it was underground, a dive kind of bar.
It was a bar that cost to get in in an upmarket, upscale Swiss ski resort, a premium time at New Year. But yes, absolutely. One that was popular with
the younger clientele, Jim.
SCIUTTO: Yeah. Good Lord.
Well, Nic Robertson, thanks so much for walking us through it.
Joining us now from Baltimore, Maryland, is Dr. Mark Fisher. He's from the John Hopkins -- Johns Hopkins Burn Center.
Doctor, thanks so much for joining.
DR. MARK FISHER, DIRECTOR: JOHNS HOPKINS BURN CENTER: It's my pleasure.
SCIUTTO: So many injured here. 115, in a fire like this in a confined space, I imagine some, perhaps many, perhaps most of them are facing quite
severe injuries and recoveries.
FISHER: Yes. Sadly, us in the burn community have been hearing similar experiences that just seem to come up you know, sometimes more than one a
year. There have been stories like this in other places in Europe as well. And so, what we've heard from this one, but also recent ones is you know,
there's a rapid loss of oxygen and, and many deaths just due to asphyxiation, just not having enough to breathe.
And so, there can be an early mortality there on the scene. But then those who do survive can have massive injuries that can threaten life in the
hours to follow, but also can result in threat to life from the days and then disfigurement and disability for those who do survive in the future.
SCIUTTO: Good Lord. How have treatments evolved for burn victims over the years? Are the latest treatments, do they bring about faster healing, less
scarring?
FISHER: Well, if you know one thing that is probably really worth mentioning is coordination of care. As you can imagine, when you have
hundreds of potential casualties in a moment, there's no way that any particular center is going to be able to manage that well.
And so great innovation, particularly that were seeing in Europe, is coordination across nations for the rapid triage and matching of patients
to other facilities within country and then in surrounding countries. So that has made a huge difference. That's one thing.
Definitely worth mentioning. And then, you know, the first thing is some people are going to be, you know, on the close, you know, death's door
unless they get on life support on scene, which you know, intubated, we say with support for breathing.
[18:10:01]
And so having trained teams on site rapidly to be able to do that is lifesaving. And then, you know on the burn, you know, lifesaving and
reconstruction, there's some amazing things that have come out of Switzerland, specifically, out of Zurich, engineered skin is really
exciting, and phase three trials are underway to really change the way people can survive and get reconstructed. So wonderful things happening in
burns these days.
SCIUTTO: I wonder if this number, 115 injured, as we understand it, quite a large percentage of those critical. Would an area like this be likely to
have the capacity to treat so many burn victims, or. I mean, as you said earlier, there's got to be a sharing and coordination of the casualties.
FISHER: You know, just if you're in a typical burn center in a high income country that's, at, you know, the top of its game anywhere in the world, us
included. If you bring in two or three patients like that on a given night, it can push you to your limit.
SCIUTTO: Wow.
FISHER: So there is there is no burn center that can manage hundreds and maintain their normal standards per -- so you go into sort of an austere
conditions, situation where you're trying to triage and save as many lives as possible and temporize others, and then getting people moved. And you
know, it's hard. It's hard. It'll be overwhelming for anybody.
SCIUTTO: Yeah. No question. Listen, you have 2 or 3 can be overwhelming. Imagine 115.
Well, Dr. Mark Fisher, thanks so much for joining
FISHER: It's my pleasure and best wishes to everyone out there dealing with this.
SCIUTTO: Yeah. No question.
Well, Russia says it has given the U.S. embassy there evidence of an alleged Ukrainian attempt to strike one of Vladimir Putin's homes. The
Russian defense ministry says the material includes the routing data of Ukrainian drone shot down in the Novgorod region. The CIA undercut the
Kremlin's story earlier, assessing that Ukraine was not targeting a Putin residence.
Moscow is also claiming now at least 24 people were killed in a Ukrainian drone attack on a Russian occupied part of Ukraine. It says the drones
targeted a hotel and cafe in the Kherson region, while New Year's Eve celebrations were taking place. There has been no independent verification
of that attack.
CNN has reached out to Ukrainian authorities for comment.
Joining me now, former U.S. ambassador to Ukraine, William Taylor.
Ambassador, good to have you.
WILLIAM TAYLOR, FORMER U.S. AMBASSADOR TO UKRAINE: Jim, good to be back.
SCIUTTO: So here you have Russia, which doesn't have a particularly good track record with telling the truth in its ongoing invasion of Ukraine
versus the CIA, regarding this drone attack and the CIA assessing that, no, Ukraine was not targeting one of Putin's residences. Who do you believe?
TAYLOR: CIA. There's no doubt.
So, as you say, this is a man, Putin, and his team who have lied to us on frequent, serially lied. Jim, you reported when they invaded Crimea back in
2014. They denied it was Russian soldiers. Then on the eve of the invasion in February of 2022, they were ridiculing Americans for saying the invasion
is coming. So they were just lying every time.
So that's why if the CIA says they couldn't find evidence, there's no evidence.
SCIUTTO: Yeah. And prior to the full-scale invasion I remember the U.S. military and intelligence services said Russia attempted several false flag
attacks, attempted, you know, quote/unquote, terror attacks in eastern Ukraine to justify military action. We now have Russia on the second day
claiming that Ukraine hit, in effect, civilian targets inside its own territory there. Should we take that allegation with a grain of salt?
TAYLOR: We have to take any statements coming out of the Russian military or the Russian leadership. Very skeptically, very skeptically. They have a
-- they have a track record of not telling the truth of -- and it's very suspicious that when there was a very good meeting by both sides account.
But in between the Americans and the Ukrainians saying that they're making big progress on a plan, on a peace plan.
So, agreement between Americans and Ukrainians and Europeans, by the way that the Russians got worried, Putin got spooked. He doesn't want to see
that because he knows he's going to have to say no. He's going to have to turn it down. So, he looks for a way and his -- and his -- these false
flags are a good way to derail those discussions.
SCIUTTO: Yeah. That was going to be my next question. Do you see a connection between these two allegations on consecutive days.
[18:15:02]
So where does that then leave the peace process? Because it does seem that the U.S. and Ukraine at least, and it's our Ukrainian, our European allies
rather have narrow differences over a peace proposal. The other ingredient, of course, would be Russian -- the Russian reaction to all of this.
But have you seen any evidence from Russian officials that they are taking such a process or the proposal, as we understand it, seriously?
TAYLOR: None. There's no indication they're taking it seriously. There's every indication that they're sticking to their maximal demands. That
effectively want the Ukrainians to surrender. They want to eliminate.
Putin has been very clear, Jim, you've reported over and over as well that he's been clear about what he wants. He wants Ukraine under his thumb or
nonexistent. He wants his part of Russia.
So, no, there's no indication that they're willing to discuss. And that's, again, why they're so worried that the Americans and Ukrainians, with the
support are getting very close to an agreement.
SCIUTTO: So, I wonder what your read is of Russia's next move. Brett McGurk was telling me the other night that as he watches Putin now, he sees
someone who is not just not interested in peace, but someone who is building up for an even bigger offensive, showing up on the front lines in
military uniform, seems -- seem to do a bit of a recruiting drive to have more manpower when the true fighting season begins again in the spring.
Is that a reasonable expectation that perhaps Russia's answer to this peace process is to attempt to break through Ukrainian lines, expand the war,
rather than come to the table?
TAYLOR: I think his actions as being one of a desperate person, a desperate man. He knows he's not doing well on the battlefield. They're
taking meter by meter, crossroad by crossroad. Little bit by little bit. And have not been able to break through, Jim. And neither side, frankly,
has been able to break through because the drones allow both sides to look and see what's going on on the other side and take it out if there is a
massing of troops.
So I don't expect a big breakthrough. I don't expect -- I expect Putin to try very hard to recruit. He's having difficulty. He's got criminals, he's
got North Koreans, he's got Syrians.
He's got people from all over. He's got incredible bonuses that he's providing to his troops, although he's running out of money because the
sanctions are having an effect on the -- on his ability to export oil.
So he's got troubles. He's got problems.
SCIUTTO: Ambassador William Taylor, always good to have you help us break it down.
TAYLOR: Thank you, Jim.
SCIUTTO: Coming up, 2026 is here, of course. So, what should you expect from the economy?
CNN's global economic analyst looks at the year ahead, what it likely means for you and me. That's after the break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[18:20:30]
SCIUTTO: Welcome back to THE BRIEF.
U.S. stock markets will reopen tomorrow after the New Year's Day holiday. The S&P 500 gained more than 15 percent last year amid President Trump's
ongoing trade war and major policy changes. Trump said he plans this month to name his pick to succeed Jerome Powell as Fed chair.
That decision could affect the central bank's independence. The president wants lower interest rates quickly, which could spur potentially inflation
ahead of crucial midterm elections in November. Lots to balance.
Rana Foroohar joins me. She's our global economic analyst and an associate editor at "The Financial Times".
Rana, good to have you. Happy New Year.
RANA FOROOHAR, CNN GLOBAL ECONOMIC ANALYST: Great to be here. Happy New Year to you.
SCIUTTO: Thank you.
Okay. So, first, let's talk about the markets. You have concerns and you're not alone about a potential correction. Given all the air that's been
pumped into A.I. stocks in particular. Do you think we'll see that in 2026?
FOROOHAR: Yeah. Yeah. It's a -- it's a great way to put it. I mean, there has been a lot of froth a lot of air in A.I. The stocks are now priced in
such a way that if anything goes wrong, you know, if you see China coming out ahead of one of the big U.S. companies with a new product.
If you get any kind of a sense that the productivity gains just aren't there, you're going to see a correction. Now, it may only be a ten or a 15
percent correction, but the market is heavily concentrated in these stocks. So this isn't a matter of, you know, going back to 2008, having a big
financial crisis, but it could be a matter of a steep correction quickly if the wrong bit of data comes out.
Now, that said, I do think that A.I. is the real thing. I think it is going to change how we work, how we live. It already is for many people, but this
is a slow burn. This is something that's going to take years, if not decades to play out, and we are definitely going to have some corrections
along the way.
SCIUTTO: How about from an economic perspective? I was speaking to Mohamed El-Erian the other day, and he was looking at looking at the Q3 GDP numbers
in the U.S., as I know you were looking very closely and saw some A.I. kind of froth there as well. I just wonder, are you seeing a lot of the growth,
at least in the headline figures concentrated there and therefore not spread out, you know, the wealth being shared among large portions of the
population.
FOROOHAR: For sure. I mean, you're hitting something really important. And Mohamed and I have actually talked about this. There is a real winner take
all dynamic in the economy right now. It's true in markets. It's true amongst large businesses versus small businesses. And it's true in terms of
how technology is being deployed.
So, the leaders in every field are doing pretty well. And, you know, the richest people in the country are doing pretty well. Everybody else, not so
much. We have what I would say is a K-shaped economy that goes for companies.
You know, it goes for regions, actually. You're seeing entire parts of the country growing faster than other parts. So everything is very, very
bifurcated right now. And this actually presents, you know, not just a sort of a reality check for Americans where how we feel may not be how other
people feel. You know, we are living in our own realities.
It also makes it very, very difficult for policy makers to make a decision because you know what? They don't want to crash the stock market, but they
do need to assure job growth. And they also need to make sure that inflation doesn't get out of hand, because the lower 25, even 50 percent of
the population is going to be much, much more affected than those at the top.
SCIUTTO: So you have a president who desperately wants lower interest rates, and he wants a Fed chair who's going to deliver lower interest
rates. Is that going to help with inflation?
FOROOHAR: You know, I'm very worried because the latest data that we're seeing, the minutes that have been released from the Federal Reserve
meetings, show that there's actually a lot more dissention even than we've realized. There's a big I wouldn't call it a fight, but there's certainly a
lot of discussion right now between doves and hawks.
And honestly, almost every bit of information that you say, yeah, we should be cutting interest rates. You know, we have an economy that's doing very
well. You could say, well, actually, were in danger of running too hot, and we need to be raising them. It is a hard decision to make at the best of
times.
Throw into that the politicization of the Fed. The president has made it very, very clear.
[18:25:01]
He wants interest rates cuts. He has made it very clear that he hopes Kevin Hassett will be the new Fed chair. You know, he's -- it's a lot of
investors are counting on that as a done deal.
If the markets begin to feel that you don't have a truly independent Fed, that could itself have an impact. I mean, you can already see that a lot of
global investors are diversifying away from the dollar. They're going more into foreign markets for a lot of reasons. You know, the U.S. has done very
well for the last 20 years. We could have a correction no matter what happens. But the politicization of the Fed is not going to help things. And
so yeah, I worry about that a lot.
SCIUTTO: I guess one question I've had is -- for some time is why haven't the markets been more spooked by what is at least an effort to politicize
the Fed and take away its independence, whether its successful? And I understand there are multiple voices, voices on the board. You know, it's
not just one voice who want one vote to decide the interest rates, but it's quite a clear in public campaign for what the president wants.
Have the markets underestimated the damage of that, in your view?
FOROOHAR: You know, it's a slow burn, right? I mean, we have been seeing for some time and this isn't even just about the federal reserve. Weve been
seeing with the flouting of the rule of law in many ways you know, examples of the administration getting rid of people that they don't like, the
labor, the Bureau of Labor Statistics head being thrown out.
All of this is a slow burn. It's not one thing that's going to crash the party, you know, but it is a sense amongst global investors that, look, the
last 20 years have been good for the dollar. It's been good for the U.S. It's been good for U.S. stocks.
Now we have a lot of risks. We've got tariffs. We've got a president that's unpredictable. We've got a central bank. We're not sure if it's independent
or not.
All of that is creating headwinds for the dollar, which is on track to be a low against the euro for the end of the, you know, in the in the last year
or so, you're seeing diversification away from U.S. stocks. And I think that that's going to continue.
I do worry a little bit, if we were to see a big market correction at the same time that you had, say, a major political event, you know, more
polarization, the president doing something unpredictable, or for example, the Supreme Court ruling that the presidents tariff strategy is illegal.
That could be something where, you know, maybe you see more than that 10 percent drop. Maybe you see investors saying, oh, we're going to were going
to tiptoe further away from the U.S. right now.
SCIUTTO: Or a war, right, or expansion of military action in a place like, yeah, yeah.
Rana Foroohar, thanks so much.
FOROOHAR: Thank you.
SCIUTTO: Coming up after the break, we will have more on the deadly fire in Switzerland. Police now say some 40 people, many of them young people,
have died.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[18:30:59]
SCIUTTO: Welcome back to THE BRIEF. I'm Jim Sciutto.
And here are the international headlines were watching today.
We are continuing to follow the tragic fire at a popular bar at a Swiss ski resort. Officials say they believe some 40 people were killed, more than
100 injured. Most of the victims are likely young people. Police have ruled out a terror attack. The blaze broke out early this morning during New
Year's Eve celebrations.
In the Netherlands, police say two people were killed in fireworks accidents as the country celebrated the New Year, and a neo-gothic church
in Amsterdam was destroyed by a fire shortly after midnight. Police are investigating the cause of that.
Bulgaria has become the latest country to join the Eurozone. Its government hopes the move will strengthen ties to the West and reduce Russia's
influence. This comes about 20 years after Bulgaria joined the E.U. and brings the number of people using the euro currency to more than 350
million, about the size of the U.S.
We're turning now to our top story. Mourners are paying their respects near the site of that deadly fire in Switzerland, an investigation is underway.
CNN's Nada Bashir has the latest.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
NADA BASHIR, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): What began as a night of celebration turned into a nightmare. As crowds rang in the New Year. A
deadly fire tore through a packed bar in the luxury alpine resort of Crans- Montana in southern Switzerland. Swiss police say around 40 people were killed and over 110 injured, many of them severely. Adding it will take
several days to return bodies to families.
BEATRICE PILLOUD, PROSECUTOR: There are quite a few circumstances to be clarified through initial investigations. I would like to point out that as
things stand, we are treating this as a fire and there is no question of any kind of terror attack at this stage.
BASHIR: The fire broke out just after 1:30 in the morning inside a bar called Le Constellation. Two witnesses told CNN affiliate BFMTV it may have
been caused by sparklers placed in champagne bottles.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: People shouted "fire, fire!" And at first, we thought it was a joke. Then suddenly, there was a very large cloud of black smoke.
We could not breathe anymore, and in our heads, we knew we had to get out. But there was a crowd and we couldn't leave. So, we tried to hide.
SAMUEL RAPP, LOCAL RESIDENT: There were people screaming and then people lying on the ground, probably dead. They had jackets over their faces.
Well, that's what I saw. Nothing more.
BASHIR: The bar is located in the heart of Crans-Montana, an exclusive resort town known for skiing, fine dining and nightlife.
On Thursday morning, authorities closed the area to the public and declared a state of emergency. They added the investigation would look into whether
safety standards were met.
Swiss Confederation President Guy Parmelin described it as one of the worst tragedies to have faced his country, saying on social media, quote, "What
should have been a happy occasion on the first day of the year in Crans- Montana has turned into a tragic loss that touches the whole country and far beyond."
Few could imagine the first day of 2026 would begin this way. For a resort known for sweeping alpine views, authorities are now focused on finding
answers and preventing another tragedy.
Nada Bashir, CNN, in London.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SCIUTTO: Our hearts go out to the families.
Well, still to come on the brief. Citizens from even more nations are now facing a total ban from entering the United States. We'll have the details
just ahead.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[18:37:27]
SCIUTTO: New New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani is promising a new era on his first day in office. Thousands gathered outside city hall for his
public swearing in the oath administered by U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders, one of the country's leading progressives. Mamdani, who ran on making the
city more affordable, says he stands alongside all New Yorkers, whether they voted for him or not.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MAYOR ZOHRAN MAMDANI (D), NEW YORK: Few of these 8.5 million will fit into neat and easy boxes. Some will be voters from hillside avenue or Fordham
Road who supported President Trump a year before they voted for me. Tired of being failed by their party's establishment. But in our administration,
their needs will be met. Their hopes and dreams and interests will be reflected transparently in government. They will shape our future.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SCIUTTO: A short time ago, I spoke to former New York City Mayor Bill De Blasio, a supporter of Mamdani's. He says the new mayor knows exactly how
to connect with the people of New York.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BILL DE BLASIO (D), FORMER NEW YORK CITY MAYOR: I think this was in many ways a love song to New York from Mamdani. It was actually quite poetic,
the way he talked about the city and our people. And I think that's something that should not be underestimated. He has a unifying voice in
terms of love of the city and the neighborhoods, but a very distinct focus on working class New Yorkers.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SCIUTTO: Gloria Pazmino is in New York for us now. She was covering the swearing in there.
And, Gloria, listening to the speech, one thing that was very clear is this is a new mayor who is not running away at all from his progressive agenda.
In fact, he's quite proudly saying, I'm going to stick with this.
GLORIA PAZMINO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: No question about that, Jim. And I think the point that the former mayor, Bill De Blasio, made there with you
just before you came to me, is a really important one, because, you know, having covered the primary and the general election campaigns, there was a
real -- a really sort of complicated debate happening here in New York City about what voters were concerned about was a public safety. Was it the cost
of living? Was it the quality of life here in New York City?
And Zohran Mamdani election proved that its affordability and the plight of working class New Yorkers that won out in this election, but he was able to
send that message while also running a positive campaign, a campaign that sort of celebrated the city of New York, celebrated New Yorkers.
[18:40:02]
And I think he tried to do exactly that here today. Speaking about working class people, he talked about cab drivers and subway conductors and
restaurant workers and sort of describing them as the people who actually keep the place running, but also the people who have the hardest time
affording to live in this city. He talked about how over the last several years, the city of New York has become sort of a playground for the rich.
That was something that we heard over and over during the campaign. And I think that same message was also echoed by Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders,
by Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, who opened up the ceremony here today.
So, it was really this idea that the liberal left is ascendant in many ways. That is certainly the message that they were trying to send here
today. What comes after all of that will, of course, be determined over the next four years. You know, Zohran Mamdani has a very ambitious, complicated
agenda that he has laid out, and there's a lot of competing forces here in New York City that will be fighting with each other in order to make sure
that things can happen.
Already in the last few hours, Zohran Mamdani has gotten to work. He signed a handful of executive orders, including one that directs his
administration to figure out the blocks and complications of building housing right now, it's incredibly difficult to build new housing in the
city of New York, and he has set up a task force to try and figure out if there's anything they can do quickly to try and remove those roadblocks.
That is, of course, a nod to the fact that he said he wants to build more affordable housing and make sure that the housing crisis is being dealt
with. He also, I think, interestingly, reversed a number of executive orders that were signed by the last administration, the administration of
Eric Adams. We see this often with new administrations take over trying to undo some of the actions that the last person did. So, we did see that
tonight.
You know, Zohran Mamdani has a long road ahead of him, but I think the crowd here today, thousands of people who came out to see him take office,
are really rooting for him and want him to succeed.
But this is politics, Jim, and it is also New York City. So, we know that it will not be without a challenge, something that Mamdani himself
acknowledged during his speech. And like you said, not backing away from his identity, his ideological beliefs, calling himself a Democratic
socialist and promising to govern like one -- Jim.
SCIUTTO: And that will be the -- it will be all in -- the proof will all be in the pudding, right? It's one thing to make the campaign promises, and
we'll see what he's able to accomplish.
Gloria Pazmino in New York, thanks so much.
Well, to Iran now, where anti-government protests have now turned deadly in clashes between protesters and police forces. At least five people were
killed in clashes on Thursday. This, according to reports from state affiliated media. It is unclear if the casualties were protesters or
members of law enforcement.
In a separate incident on Wednesday, a member of Iran's paramilitary forces was reportedly killed. The protests have now spread across the country. In
the past week, sparked by a dire economic crisis.
CNN's Paula Hancocks has more.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
PAULA HANCOCKS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): These are the biggest demonstrations seen in Iran for three years, traders and shopkeepers walk
through a Tehran bazaar chanting "Close it down!"
Many shops did this week, shutting their doors in protest, furious at the country's currency plummeting to a record low, pushing inflation and the
cost of living to unbearable levels.
"This is the year of blood. Seyyed Ali will be toppled," a popular chant by protesters referring to the supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, calling
for the collapse of the regime.
Economic pain is being blamed on government mismanagement. Similar rallies are being seen in cities across Iran. Police deployed tear gas in some
areas of Tehran. A lone protester covers his face but refuses to move. A significant act of defiance in a country where dissent has been met with
swift and deadly force in recent years.
President Masoud Pezeshkian acknowledged the public anger, stating, the livelihood of the people is my daily concern. Adding, he has tasked the
Minister of Interior to hear the legitimate demands of the protesters.
The head of Iran's Central Bank has resigned. Food prices have risen more than 70 percent since this time last year, inflation for December year on
year is at more than 40 percent.
[18:45:05]
The regime cannot ignore these protests. Merchants played a crucial role in the 1979 Islamic Revolution that ousted the monarchy and brought the
Islamists to power.
Students at several universities have staged their own demonstrations calling for economic justice. It is unclear at this point how widespread
this dissent might become.
ABAS ASLANI, SENIOR RESEARCH FELLOW, CENTER FOR MIDDLE EASTERN STRATEGIC STUDIES: The average citizens and ordinary public is not joining this,
let's say protest, and because there is no bright and clear picture of the day after and there is no, let's say, credible alternative to this
political system.
HANCOCKS (voice-over): Hundreds of women ran a marathon on Iran's Kish Island in early December without mandatory head scarves. Similar acts in
the past have sparked bloody crackdowns.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You're earning 15 million tomans a month, so you should understand people's struggle but you don't.
HANCOCKS (voice-over): Those desperate for reforms in Iran are once again this week, testing cracks in the wall of the Islamic regime that they want
to see crumble.
Paula Hancocks, CNN, Abu Dhabi.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SCIUTTO: Some brave and risky stands there.
Well, a sweeping new U.S. travel ban largely targeting countries in the Middle East and Africa, takes effect today. Citizens from Burkina Faso,
Mali, Niger, South Sudan, Sierra Leone, Syria and Laos joined 12 other nations whose citizens are already barred from entering the U.S. Nineteen
countries now face a total ban, 20 nations face partial bans. The White House says the move will, quote, protect the U.S. from national security
and public safety threats. Mali and Burkina Faso have joined a list of countries imposing reciprocal travel bans on Americans now.
CNN's Larry Madowo takes a closer look at all these bans and how this will impact those who fall under them.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
LARRY MADOWO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: President Trump's expanded travel restrictions that came into effect on 1st January 2026 have been criticized
by some as an effective Muslim and African ban. Many of the nations with full restrictions are Muslim majority nations -- Afghanistan, Syria, Iran,
the Palestinian Authority in Africa. Almost half of countries on the continent now have full or partial restrictions for travel to the United
States. 67 percent of the nations with these restrictions are from Africa.
So those that cannot travel to the United States include South Sudan and Sudan, Sierra Leone, which was surprising, and some major nations are on
the partial restrictions list, such as Nigeria and Tanzania.
President Trump has said that he intends to permanently pause migration from all third world nations, and these restrictions track with that. The
United States says these nations citizens pose national security and safety threats to the United States. The main issue is that some of them have
serious deficiencies in their vetting, according to the White House, either because they have no functional governments, because of terrorism,
widespread fraud, citizenship by investment schemes that mask who or where somebody originally is from, and they just don't feel like they can trust
the documents issued by these governments.
The big complaint also is that some of these nation's citizens have high visa overstay rates. They go to the United States and overstay their visas,
and sometimes their countries don't accept them when it's time for them to be deported. And so, the United States is pressuring these nations to
accept their citizens. And if they do not, then they will be either included in the partial or full restrictions list.
And this travel ban will affect a lot of people from these nations, some of whom were hoping to go to the United States because of the World Cup, which
is very popular in the rest of the world. This means also citizens hoping for reunification with their families through asylum cases, through
immigration to the U.S. Those have all come to a stop.
Students who have even ongoing programs in the United States have been affected by this as well. So, it has far reaching consequences for many.
Larry Madowo, CNN, London.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SCIUTTO: A rapidly expanding ban.
Coming up next, New Year, new celebrations. We round up some of the best images from around the world as it welcomed in 2026.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[18:51:44]
SCIUTTO: So, it's the day after the night before with New Year's celebrations. Well and truly done. And whether you're nursing a hangover or
back in the gym fulfilling a resolution, we want to take a moment to reflect on some of the festivities. CNN celebrations all around the world,
among them New York's iconic ball drop, which featured a dazzling new ball with more than 5,000 Waterford crystals.
Times Square was packed, as always, but the party had been going on for hours across the globe before. Have a look.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ANGUS WATSON, CNN PRODUCER: Guys. Welcome to 2026. Happy New Year from Sydney, Australia.
HANAKO MONTGOMERY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I hope you like my sparkly golden hat. Kind of makes me look like a unicorn as well, but it's been a great
start to the New Year.
ANNOUNCER: Happy New Year, Tokyo!
KRISTIE LU STOUT, CNN CORRESPONDENT: If you think Labubus are going to be out in 2026, you're --
WILL RIPLEY, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Oh my God!
STOUT: Ooh!
RIPLEY: What the --
STOUT: Lulu -- oh, my gosh. We got to realize this is a New Year's Eve miracle.
Can I have a hug? Can I have a hug?
RIPLEY: Did you -- did you know about this? Did she know about this?
MIKE VALERIO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It's a little hard to see this bear thermometer, but. Oh, my god, were closing in on negative 30 Celsius, which
is negative in the Fahrenheit. But we're all stoked, right? Woo woo!
We are in one of the ice tunnels of the Harbin winter festival.
ANNOUNCER: One, two, three. Let's go!
BECKY ANDERSON, CNN ANCHOR: Hey, John, I hope you're getting ready for your first trip ever out to Abu Dhabi. You're going to help me ring in the
New Year here. And I've got the team sorted with a whole bunch of adventures for you.
(SCREAMING)
ANDERSON: Good to go.
JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: Feeling good?
ANDERSON: Here we go.
BERMAN: Happy New Year.
ANDERSON: Happy New Year
PAU MOSQUERA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: What do you see here? Around me is the inside of the tower that houses Madrid's most famous clock. The one that is
located in iconic Puerta Del Sol.
Since the beginning of the 20th century, this clock has marked the 12th chimes on New Year's Eve.
(DANCING)
[18:55:08]
MAX FOSTER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: We're just going to talk about a few of the myths of "Auld Lang Syne".
MICHAEL PEDERSEN, EDINBURGH'S POET LAUREATE: There's nothing indicatively in the song which says it should be sung at New Year. Yeah, it is a song of
celebrating friendships past and present, of reminiscing about the past while looking to the future, which I think sort of speaks to the spirit of
new year.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SCIUTTO: Quite a show, quite a city to see it.
In our New Year's Day good brief, Indonesia has announced the birth of a giant panda cub named Rio. Speaking of Rio, the cubs mother is one of two
giant pandas sent to Indonesia as part of a 10-year conservation program with China. Rio is reported to be in stable condition and being monitored
around the clock. Given how complicated it is to breed pandas in captivity, every birth for this endangered species is a milestone.
Well, thanks so much for joining today. Very happy new year to you and your loved ones. I'm Jim Sciutto in Washington. You've been watching THE BRIEF.
Please do stay with CNN.
END
