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NEWS STREAM

North Korea Tensions; North Korean Defector's Life-Saving Surgery; Russia Investigation; Trump White House; Developing Story; Out of the Olympics; China Web Conference; New App for Kids Aired; World Headlines; CNN Freedom Project; Crisis in Yemen; A Gift From The Sky. Aired 8-9a ET

Aired December 5, 2017 - 08:00   ET

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


[08:00:00] (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KRISTIE LU STOUT, CNN NEWS STREAM SHOW HOST: I'm Kristie Lu Stout in Hong Kong and welcome to "News Stream." Saving a North Korean soldier from

bullets and in parasitic worms. CNN gets exclusive access inside the Seoul operating room.

The Trump travel ban is in effect at least for the time being. An order from the Supreme Court gives the White House a temporary victory.

And Facebook is targeting new market. Kids. But, can the social platform be trusted?

For the first time in six years, a senior U.N. official is visiting North Korea. The U.N. undersecretary general for political affairs has a series

of meetings with government officials. His visit comes as the U.S. and South Korea conduct military drills that include attacking mock North

Korean missile sites.

Pyongyang as it does every year warns that the military drills are pushing the Peninsula to the brink of nuclear war. Let's go to Paula Newton. She is

standing by in Seoul. Paula, first, we have this top U.N. official in Pyongyang. This is a very rare multi-day visit. Why is he there?

PAULA NEWTON, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, it is significant. The point is he is one of the first U.N. officials to be there in about six

years especially on the political side. And it is to try and open the track of dialogue, especially here in South Korea, the ramping up for the

Olympics will start in February.

Everyone has an interest and interest in taking the temperature down especially as there seems so much heated rhetoric over the last few months

and in particular over the last few days. I want to add though as well that we've also learned that China's air force is also conducting drills.

We don't know if it is a response to the drills that are going on right now, but I can tell you from their release, they're saying that they have

ventured in the roots and areas that they have not ventured before, and that it is in order to safeguard what they call their national interest.

Again, in terms of having that U.N. diplomat there, he was in Beijing just before he went to Pyongyang. We will monitor what goes on there in terms of

(INAUDIBLE) in the next few days. It is always good news that they're talking.

LU STOUT: Yes, a florid diplomatic activity there in Pyongyang. A number of military drills underway in the region including as you reported that by

China. Meanwhile, Paula, you managed to get access to video and to get inside the operating room where South Korean doctors saved the life of a

North Korean defector. How did they do it?

NEWTON: Yes, I mean, we've already seen such a dramatic story from this man, right I mean, the fact that he was shot several times was basically on

the verge of death. The South Korean troops then risking their lives, walking on their hands and knees to pull him across the DMZ and pulled him

to safety.

And then when you watch this video, you can't believe what he had to go through after that in order to survive. I want to warn everyone they might

find these images disturbing as they are quite graphic. But it is really worse. Look.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

NEWTON (voice-over): You are watching a U.S. Black Hawk chopper touchdown as a South Korean trauma team gears up to save the life of Oh Chong Song.

This is an exclusive look (ph) at the harrowing efforts to save a North Korean defector shot five times as he escaped over the DMZ already bleeding

out. He is turning blue and having trouble breathing.

LEE COOK-JONG, SOUTH KOREAN TRAUMA SURGEON: Right here.

NEWTON (voice-over): He is now in the protective care of trauma surgeon, Dr. Lee Cook-Jong. He takes us through his crucial medical mission minute

by precious minute.

(on camera): And at this point, he had already lost more than half his blood.

COOK-JONG: Much more. Much more. Yes, ma'am. His vital signs were so unstable. So, he was dying of low blood pressure. He was (INAUDIBLE).

NEWTON (on camera): I'm watching all the transfusions of blood. One, two, three.

COOK-JONG: Yes, that's right. That's right.

NEWTON (voice-over): Utterly composed and deliberate, Dr. Lee shows us the 30-minute epic effort to keep Mr. Oh breathing (ph). Something you can see

on any given day in Dr. Lee's state of the art trauma bay, it's the key to Mr. Oh's miraculous survival.

COOK-JONG: As you can see here, we have been doing this kind of job every single day.

NEWTON (voice-over): Mr. Oh stabilizes. He is ready for the next battle, a grueling five-hour surgery. Dr. Lee is methodical doing (INAUDIBLE) system

dangerously over his open wounds. The American-trained trauma specialist is ready for that, but not this. Parasitic worms squirm out of Mr. Oh's body,

a sign of severe malnutrition.

COOK-JONG: After the operation,

[08:05:00] he was transported here. This is.

NEWTON (voice-over): For Mr. Oh, the nightmare isn't over. Police says he was terrified when he woke, afraid he was still in North Korea.

COOK-JONG: He actually asked me that, is it really South Korea? So I actually answered him back, that hey, have a look at that flag.

NEWTON (voice-over): And he knew immediately he was safe?

COOK-JONG (voice-over): Yes, ma'am.

NEWTON: The North Korean defector remains somewhere in this hospital under heavy security. Dr. Lee is very protective right now. He won't even let the

South Korean government speak to him, fearing it will compromise his recovery.

(voice over): You obviously have a fondness for him. You like him?

COOK-JONG: Yes, ma'am. Yes, ma'am. I'm really proud of him because he fled from North Korea to, you know, seeking for, you know, liberty and much more

freedom.

NEWTON (voice-over): From his daring escape to the airlift, to the trauma and surgeries, Mr. Oh's survival is stunning by any measure. He still got a

long road to recovery. At least now, he is walking, talking, and free. His luck landing him in a place that seems ready and waiting to give him a

whole new life.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

NEWTON: You know, Kristie, I found that story about the flag so touching, that the doctor would think, yes, if he's groggy and he wakes up, I don't

want him to think that he is in North Korea and facing serious consequences for what he did.

Having said that, I mean, Dr. Lee explained it to me like a broken glass jar. It didn't matter how much blood they pumped through his body. He kept

bleeding out and yet they were still able to save him. Again, he is still expected to make a full recovery.

LU STOUT: Well, it is an incredible story of survival and compassion by Dr. Lee as well as modern day medicine. Paula, thank you so much for your

reporting and take care. Paula Newton there live from Seoul.

Now, a White House lawyer is weighing on the legal questions hanging over the Trump presidency. At issue here, whether Donald Trump obstructed

justice when he fired FBI Director James Comey. Mr. Trump's personal lawyer says a president can't be charged with obstruction of justice, but a White

House lawyer says there may be a different defense. Senior Washington correspondent Joe Johns has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JOE JOHNS, CNN SENIOR WASHINGTON CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): White House lawyer Ty Cobb downplaying the obstruction of justice defense put forward

by President Trump's personal lawyer, John Dowd, telling The Washington Post that while Dowd's assertion that a president cannot obstruct justice

because he is the nation's top law enforcement officer is an interesting legal issue, it is not Mr. Trump's official legal strategy.

SEN. CHRIS COONS (D), DELAWARE: Frankly the idea that our president is above the law, not only above the law but free to interfere with any

investigation and act in ways that are obstruction of justice, is Nixonian and I think unacceptable.

JOHNS (voice-over): Dowd floating his controversial defense amid speculation whether this tweet from the president's account could lead to a

potential obstruction of justice case. The tweet which Dowd says he drafted suggests the president knew his former national security adviser, Michael

Flynn, lied to the vice president and the FBI before he allegedly urged former FBI Director James Comey to drop the bureau's investigation into

Flynn.

A source now telling CNN that the president was told by White House counsel, Don McGahn, in January that Flynn misled the FBI about his

contacts with Russians. McGahn reportedly telling the president, Flynn should be fired, after receiving a warning that Flynn might be compromised

from then acting Attorney General Sally Yates.

SALLY YATES, FORMER ACTING UNITED STATES ATTORNEY GENERAL: We told him we felt like the vice president and others were entitled to know that the

information that they were conveying to the American people wasn't true.

JOHNS (voice-over): Despite McGahn's recommendation, the president kept Flynn on the job for weeks with access to the nation's most classified

information. Trump eventually caving to public pressure, firing Flynn, but insisting he was a good man. The president now defending Flynn after he

pleaded guilty Friday to lying to the FBI.

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I feel badly for General Flynn. Hillary Clinton lied many times to the FBI, nothing happened to her.

Flynn lied and they destroyed his life. I think it's a shame.

JOHNS (voice-over): Flynn's deputy, K.T. McFarland, also under scrutiny over apparent inconsistencies and hard testimony about Flynn. McFarland

told the Senate Foreign Relations Committee in July that she was not aware of any communications between Flynn and former Russian Ambassador Sergey

Kislyak.

But unsealed documents from Friday's court filing showed that Flynn spoke to a senior transition official before meeting with Kislyak. Although

McFarland was not specifically mentioned, CNN has confirmed she was the reference official.

REP. ADAM SCHIFF (D), CALIFORNIA: It certainly appears that was a directly false representation to the senate.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

JOHNS: In the midst of all of this on an entirely unrelated note, a temporary big win for the president and the administration in the courts, a

green light for the president's controversial travel ban

[08:10:00] to be implemented here in the United States as challenges to that policy make their way up to the courts. Kristie?

LU STOUT: All right, Joe. And before you go, question for you about Roy Moore, because what difference a month makes? We know that Trump endorsed

the Alabama candidate. Now, his party is looking beyond the sexual harassment claims against him and endorsing him as well. What's going on

here?

JOHNS: Well, what is going on is a lot of Republicans are now using the same language. At first, many were saying and some on Capitol Hill are

still saying, they don't thin he's the guy for the job. If he in fact is elected, they ought not to seat him. But the shift we have begun to see

among many more Republicans now is an indication from them that they think the voters of Alabama ought to be able to decide this rather than having

some interference from Washington.

It is an important shift because it sort of is a knot to the fact that Alabama voters might not take kindly to Washington trying to interfere one

way or the other. It is also an indication of position softening in Washington among Republicans about the idea of Roy Moore actually winning

the seat, Kristie.

LU STOUT: Yes, a very, very significant shift there. Joe Johns reporting. As always, thank you.

Now, the Trump administration is marking a victory of sorts, as reported by (INAUDIBLE), the legal fight over its latest travel ban. The U.S. Supreme

Court says that the ban can't take effect for now while legal challenges make their way to the courts. The ban places restrictions on citizens from

eight countries. CNN's Laura Jarrett has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

LAURA JARRETT, CNN JUSTICE REPORTER: A victor for the Trump administration at least for now as the Supreme Court green lights travel ban 3.0, pending

a full resolution of the appeal. This case has had dozens of twists and turns since President Trump signed the first executive order back in

January.

But this is the first time the justices had allowed this version of the ban to go forward in its entirety, potentially signaling that they may be more

inclined to rule in favor of this ban down the line.

Naturally, the decision was claimed as a win by Attorney General Jeff Sessions and the White House said in a statement, "we are not surprised by

today's Supreme Court decision permitting immediate enforcement of the president's proclamation limiting travel from countries presenting

heightened risks of terrorism."

But the challengers of this ban from the American Civil Liberties Union who have been arguing against it in court bowed to continue the fight saying,

we continue to stand for freedom, equality, and for those who are unfairly being separated from their loved ones.

Monday's decision means the travel ban can now be enforced, while these other legal challenged make their way to the court system. But the overall

legality of the ban will be heard by two different appellate courts later this week.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LU STOUT: CNN's Laura Jarrett there reporting.

Now, Russia is following through on its promise to classify to some international media outlets as "foreign agents." Nine U.S.-backed outlets

had been given that designation including "Voice of America."

CNN's Clare Sebastian is following all this from Moscow. She joins us now. Clare, why is Russia doing this? Some are calling this retaliation.

CLARE SEBASTIAN, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, that's absolutely why they're doing this, Kristie. Russia is saying that this is a direct

mirror response to the action taken by the United States enforcing RT to register under FARA, the Foreign Agent Registration Act. No more, no less,

says Russia.

The seven -- sorry, the nine news outlets that they've listed as foreign agents were designated today including "Voice of America," also "Radio for

Europe" and "Radio Liberty," and seven other news outlets with a link to those two mostly Russian language. It should be said that all of these are

backed and funded by the U.S. government.

This was in many ways expected. Some are actually warned by the Russian government ahead of time. But as to what this will mean for them, well,

they will be subjected to certain restriction and reporting standards. They will have to disclose their management and their funding sources. They also

have to label their content as, you know, the work of so-called foreign agent.

So, very much part of the broader political climate. That is the kind of tension that we are seeing between the United States and Russia that has in

recent months embroiled the two nations' media companies.

LU STOUT: And, Clare, we are also waiting for that announcement on Russian doping allegations from the International Olympic Committee. Ahead of that

announcement, what is the Kremlin saying?

SEBASTIAN: Well, they're very much sticking to the language that they have all along, one of defiance, the Kremlin saying their full statement on the

decision by the IOC

[08:15:00] on whether or not to ban the entire Russian team from competing in the Winter Olympics next year. But it says it will defend the interests

of its athletes and its national interest.

Now it should be noted that Russia all along has said that this is a political affair. It has never admitted to any state involvement in doping.

It sees it as a western conspiracy.

President Putin in fact in recent week has stepped up that tone even in November, saying that he believes that the U.S. is behind this, that they

are using this as a way to interfere in the Russian elections which are happening in March, a month after the Pyeongchang Winter game.

So very much a mood of defiance here, Kristie. But I think there is also a sense behind that defiance that many here feel that their hopes are waning,

that this might not, you know, go against Russia, the decision.

LU STOUT: We'll hear that defend of announcement in the hours ahead. Clare Sebastian reporting for us. Thank you.

Turning now to the international outcry over the Trump administration's possible plan to recognize Jerusalem as a capital of Israel. Turkey is

calling Jerusalem a red line. President Recep Tayyip Erdogan says the expected move could prompt anger to cut ties with Israel.

Despite concerns from Turkey and other allies, Mr. Trump is expected to fulfill his campaign promise and that is exactly what the mayor of

Jerusalem is demanding in this message he recorded in front of the White House.

(START VIDEO CLIP)

NIR BARKAT, MAYOR OF JERUSALEM: In Jerusalem, we don't cave to pressure and we don't let threats or violence stop us from doing what is right.

President Trump, I encourage you to do the right thing: recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, and bring the U.S. Embassy home to Jerusalem.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LU STOUT: CNN's Ian Lee joins us live from Jerusalem. Ian, Erdogan has weighed in. He has issued a stern warning against the move. Why is he

calling Trump's expected decision a red line?

IAN LEE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Kristie, essentially because it deals with Jerusalem. Jerusalem is the home of the third holiest site in Islam.

And for President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, this has been -- and he has said this before about Jerusalem, he has a lot of interests in Jerusalem,

keeping the characteristics of Jerusalem the same.

So, if the United States makes this move, it just further, in his eyes, potentially entrenches Israel's view that Jerusalem is their united capital

and that is the Palestinians who have advocated for East Jerusalem to be the capital of their future state. Well, that dream, that vision, the hope

basically for him would go away.

But, you know, when you look at the international community, even if the United States does this, you know, it is not likely that other countries

will follow. The Palestinians have been very adamant that East Jerusalem is going to be theirs in a negotiated settlement.

But, if this move does go forward, it does hurt the peace process as we heard from Husam Zomlot. He is the Palestinian representative to D.C. Take

a listen.

(START VIDEO CLIP)

HUSAM ZOMLOT, HEAD, PLO GENERAL DELEGATION TO THE U.S.: The U.S. is delivering a lethal bullet to the heart of the two-state solution that

would be, actually, kiss-of-death to the two-state solution because Jerusalem is at the very heart of the two-state solution.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEE: So, Kristie, not only you have the Palestinians, you also have other Arab countries that come out vocally against this move. But really it's

going to come down to President Trump. Is he going to fulfill this campaign promise or is he going to hold off like previous U.S. presidents have done

before?

LU STOUT: Yes, this would be a very, very contentious move. A number of parties have already weighed in. Ian Lee reporting live from Jerusalem.

Thank you.

You're watching "News Stream."

Facebook is targeting a brand-new demographic. Coming up, how the company is trying to reassure parents who might be worried by the new app for kids.

[08:20:00] (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LU STOUT: All right. Coming to you live from Hong Kong. Welcome back. This is "News Stream."

In Wuzhen, China, top execs from major U.S. high-tech companies have been attending an internet conference including the Apple's CEO Tim Cook. Now,

Google and Facebook are also taking part, even though their services are banned in China.

The government runs an internet filtering and surveillance system known as the Great Firewall to control online content. This week, President Xi

Jinping says China will not shut its door to the global internet, but it will retain its sovereignty in cyber space.

Elsewhere in the world, Facebook is tapping into a brand-new market. It is targeting six to 12 year olds with the new app called Messenger Kids. And

users can chat with their friends, make vide calls, and send age- appropriate gifts.

Parents must set up a child's account and approve who they can communicate with. Facebook's main site remains off limits to children under the age of

13.

For more on the story and the debate, I want to bring in tech journalist Charles Arthur. He joins us live now. Charles, thank you for joining us.

Interesting new demographic for Facebook. From Facebook's perspective, why do they think this is a good idea?

CHARLES ARTHUR, TECHNOLOGY JOURNALIST: They did a survey which found that about two-thirds of children under the age of 13 already have their own

device. Ninety-three percent of children between the ages of six and 12 were using a device (INAUDIBLE) parents. And they were really trying to

find a way to let parents control who children spoke on social networks and to be more confident about what sort of content they would be seeing.

The problem that they found when they did surveys was that other social networks (INAUDIBLE) children sign on when they're underage. There is

really no good way of controlling the content that children see. I mean, this applies to networks such as You Tube and also (INAUDIBLE) under the

age of 13.

LU STOUT: Yes. So, I can see how, you know, this app can be sort of playing a gatekeeper function for kids who want to sort of step into the social

world. I'm a parent myself. I have a nine years old. I frankly don't want her to get a social media account. I'm concerned about data collection. I'm

also concerned about abuse. Can Facebook, you know, with all its talent and all its money, can it prevent abuse and protect digital privacy?

ARTHUR: I think it is still an open question. I mean, they have been very thorough here in talking to parents and talking to people who do studies on

how children use networks, about trying to make sure that it's really difficult to be abused.

So for example, parents have to approve when children have a new contact, it has to be someone who the parent friends themselves, generally would

have to be the (INAUDIBLE) one of those people who they friend. One can still see that there might be ways for this to be abused. Someone can set

up a fake account. We could therefore see people who are looking to, you know, connect with children wrongly, might find ways around it.

The broader question is, why do children need to be on the social network in this way? For example, Facebook talks a lot about, you know, it's great

to talk with grandparents. I think a lot of children have already been talking to grandparents on things like Apple's FaceTime. There are video

calling services like Skype, for example.

[08:25:00] It's still a bit unclear for the people who are on Facebook why everyone would want to be on Facebook. Facebook is office. It wants to get

them using it early (INAUDIBLE) using it when they're adults. You know, that's a big part of what the real aim is for Facebook here. I mean,

certainly they like it to be good for children, but, as always, look to the bottom line in the long term and (INAUDIBLE) Facebook.

LU STOUT: Absolutely. On Facebook, we know why it is free, because the product is you. The product is me. And we really have to ask the hard

questions ourselves, why do we, ourselves, want to be on it or kid as well? Parents have to be across this, also governments as well. So social media

platforms evolve. Are policy makers keeping pace?

ARTHUR: Well, in Europe, there is a new set of regulations which would come in next year called the GDPR which are much more rigorous about the

collection and the use and the monetization of data about individuals. There has to be much more explicit permission given.

It is still not entirely clear how Facebook will manage to alter its privacy policies in the way that it uses and collects data about people --

pretty much about the way, for example, when you're not on Facebook itself, when you are just looking at another page in a browser, but you are signed

in with Facebook, Facebook is collecting data about what you were doing there.

So it's a bit unclear whether the GDPR will allow that to continue next year or will the Facebook will have to alter the way it behaves a bit. In

the U.S., which is where this app is going to be rolling out now, the regulations are nothing like this. And I think that it's quite indicative

that Facebook is taking it very slowly at first. It's only doing it in the U.S. It's only for the moment. You can do it on the Apple's platform, the

(INAUDIBLE) platform (INAUDIBLE).

So, the much bigger population, people using Androids in much bigger populations in Europe and the rest of the world, it is not going to those

yet. So, I think they're being a bit circumspect about this. They're trying to dip their toes in the water. I think generally what we see with social

networks is that things will start out being really great.

Over time, we will discover all the flaws in them. Better than being, for example, with streaming services. Over here in the U.K., the National Crime

Agency has been warning parents recently about the dangers of allowing children to use streaming services.

LU STOUT: Right.

ARTHUR: Recently, they arrested 200 adults. So, things always start out looking good, but after a time, the cracks start to show.

LU STOUT: Got it. Quick question for you, just one word to answer. Right now, would you sign your kids up for this app, yes or no?

ARTHUR: No.

LU STOUT: OK.

ARTHUR: Because I don't really want them to be on Facebook.

LU STOUT: Yes, there we go. And that's the question that we should all be asking ourselves. Thank you so much, Charles Arthur. We will talk again

next time. Take care.

You're watching "News Stream." Still to come right here in the program, CNN travels to the Sahara Desert where migrants are risking their lives trying

to get to Europe. Freedom Project is next.

[08:30:00] (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LU STOUT: Welcome back. I'm Kristie Lu Stout in Hong Kong. You're watching "News Stream." These are your world headlines.

The U.S. Supreme Court is allowing President Trump's travel ban to take effect. This version of the ban puts restrictions on nationals from Chad,

Iran, Libya, North Korea, Syria, Venezuela, Somalia, and Yemen. It is expected to be appealed.

Senior U.N. official is now in North Korea, the first visit of its kind in six years. It comes as U.S. and South Korea conduct joint air force drills,

something Pyongyang says pushing the Peninsula to war.

Nine U.S.-backed media outlets have been designated by Russia's justice ministry as foreign agents. They include "Voice of America" and "Radio Free

Europe." President Vladimir Putin signed the new law last month after the U.S. required Russia's RT network to register as a foreign agent.

The U.S. secretary of state is in Brussels, shoring up ties with America's European allies. Rex Tillerson has a meeting with the E.U.'s foreign

affairs chief and other officials despite facing speculation about his own future on Mr. Trump's team.

This week, CNN's Freedom Project is focusing on modern day slavery within the Africa-Europe migration crisis. The Sahara Desert is often one of the

most dangerous parts of an African migrants' journey. Arwa Damon traveled there with troops from Niger on a mission to rescue stranded migrants. She

filed this exclusive report.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ARWA DAMON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice over): Just imagine what it would take to make this journey. Driven by poverty and

desperation, crammed in the back of a truck, the searing heat, the desert wind. Imagine your truck breaks down and you're stranded in the middle of

the Sahara Desert in Niger. Abandoned with no water, just an endless expanse of sand.

(on camera): It really only takes a few moments in the back of one of these trucks to begin to gain an appreciation on just how tough it is out here.

(voice over): We are on a mission with the Nigerian Army to rescue stranded migrants. Our convoy will stop when one truck is in trouble. The smugglers

carrying the migrants will not. Finally after 10 hours driving through the desert, light signal.

The migrants have been stranded here for three days after their truck broke down. There are about 30 in all left to die. The women who don't want their

identities revealed are wearing the local Islamic headdress because the smugglers told them to, so they can blend in. The women are Christians and

mostly from Nigeria, and say, they had no idea about the dangers of the road. But that they were lured by a Facebook page.

(on camera): And what did this Facebook page say? What were they promising you?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I saw job opportunities, and I saw good life there, you know?

DAMON (voice over): Most often, the dream they are sold is a scam to get female migrants to Europe and then force them into prostitution. As we

speak, one of the women starts praying under her breath.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Jesus Christ of Nazareth.

DAMON (voice over): A single sentence over and over.

We can hear the agonizing wails of another woman and go to speak to her.

(on camera): I heard you crying.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I want to see my babies.

DAMON (voice over): Her name is Olabisi (ph). Two of her four children it seems were on another truck. They are the older ones, ages just nine and

11.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I don't want to go without my children. I prefer to die here.

DAMON (voice over): (INAUDIBLE) the international organization for migration tells her husband that they have a local office close to where

they think the children were taken and that they will try to track them down. But if the children continue on --

[08:35:00] TEXT: I can't lie to you and promise that we can trace them all the way to Libya.

DAMON (voice over): It's only at daybreak that we truly understand the remoteness of where we are. The migrants ready themselves. They pile into

the back of the trucks. They are reluctant to leave. They want to keep going to Libya. Olabisi (ph) is hardly able to believe what has happened to

them.

As a convoy departs, she does not yet know if Falalu (ph) will be able to track down her children. We learned that three days later, he did, and the

family was reunited. This is a place of death and deceit. For many, the descent life promised beyond the Sahara and across the sea in Europe is

only a mirage.

Arwa Damon, CNN, the Sahara Desert, Niger.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LU STOUT: Thank goodness, the family was reunited. Look at the desolate landscape. A very, very dangerous journey ahead.

Now CNN's five-part Freedom Project series continues on Wednesday when Arwa visits the safe house, where women wait to be reunited with their families

after being rescued from the slave trade in Libya.

(START VIDEO CLIP)

DAMON (voice over): He sold you?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.

DAMON (on camera): Were they buying and selling a lot of people?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes. They started today. When they're finished paying their money, if you ask them, we tell somebody, we sold you to another

people, so you start all over again.

DAMON (voice over): Little did she know that like so many others, her goal, her dream of a better life would end in the increasing lawlessness of

Libya.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LU STOUT: (INAUDIBLE) full report Wednesday 9:00 p.m. in Hong Kong, 10:00 p.m. Tokyo time, right here on CNN.

Now, the president of Yemen is calling upon his people to rise up against Houthi rebels a day after the group killed former president, Ali Abdullah

Saleh. Saleh was killed two days after announcing the alliance with Iranian-backed Houthi rebels would end.

(START VIDEO CLIP)

ABDRABBUH MANSUR HADI, PRESIDENT OF YEMEN (through translator): I call on all the people of our Yemeni nation and all provinces that are still under

the control of these terrorist criminal militias to rise up in their faces, resisting them and renouncing them. Our heroic army will be around Sana to

support them under our instructions.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LU STOUT: Yemen has sank deeper into one of the world's worst humanitarian crisis since the fighting began more than three years ago. Ben Wedeman

tells us how his death will affect the world going forward.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BEN WEDEMAN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: It essentially means that this war which has been horrendously destructive in terms of human

life as well as the country itself is probably only going to get worse now.

The Saudi-led coalition that has been fighting in alliance of the Houthis and loyalists to Ali Abdullah Saleh had hoped that when the two split just

a few days ago that this was an opening somehow that their enemy was divided and they would be able to finally bring this war to an end.

But what we saw was that Saleh at the end of the day was the weaker partner in this alliance with the Houthis and the Houthis very quickly were able to

retake all the territory that Saleh's loyalists were able to grab in the initial days in the capital of Sana and of course kill him yesterday. So,

those Saudi hopes for an early end to this conflict have been dead (ph).

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LU STOUT: Ben Wedeman reporting there. Now coming up right here on "News Stream," a raibow that may have broken records. We got details on the

magnificent sight in Taiwan that kept eyes in the skies for hours.

[08:40:00] (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LU STOUT: Coming to you live from Hong Kong. Welcome back. This is "News Stream." Now catching sight of a rainbow is always exciting, sometimes

fleeting, only lasting a short amount of time. But apparently not in Taiwan.

The Chinese Culture University says that they have captured a rainbow that lasted nearly nine hours, breaking a world record. A professor there says

his department is trying to collect more than 30,000 photographs to send to the Guinness World Records Committee.

According to Reuters, the current record-holding rainbow was seen in the U.K. for at least six hours. That was back in 1994. look at that. So

beautiful. For more on this spectacular rainbow, meteorologist Chad Myers joins me now from the CNN World Weather Center. Chad, what story -- I got

to ask you. How does this at the phenomenon happen? What conditions are needed to create a rainbow that can last almost nine hours?

CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST AND SCIENCE REPORTER: Well, first of all, you need the sunshine, because if the sun is behind the cloud, the rainbow goes

away. And you have to understand, in nine hours, that sun has moved all the way across the sky. So, what you need is moisture, either mist or even

some steam or rain of course and then the sun behind you.

So here is the rainbow here. It wasn't a bright rainbow the entire day, because as the clouds came and went, the rainbow kind of faded but never

faded all the way together. So here is how all this happens now. So, you need a mountain range kind of like a valley to keep in or hold in this

rainfall, otherwise the rains are going to move away.

So we have the hills. And then we have the clouds. And the clouds put this moisture in the air, kind of a mist, almost a little bit of fog as well.

And then behind you, as you have to stand here, the sun has to be at your back, way back here.

So you stand here, and understand again that the sun is moving, so you have to move along with it. All of a sudden, the rainbow right here in front of

the viewers here in front of the cameras lasted for nine straight hours. Not all in the same position, because clearly as the sun moves, so does the

rainbow.

I have seen some of the pictures on Twitter and they are truly amazing that they -- it lasted that long. Even a six-hour rainbow in the U.K. is still

pretty phenomenal. But for this, I'll take a nine-hour one here in Taiwan. Looks pretty great.

LU STOUT: It looks amazing. That explainer that you gave us was absolutely epic. I mean, we had the mountains, you got the mist, you have the

sunshine, the rainbow. I was expecting unicorns to come out. That was --

MYERS: We are going to post unicorns in there, but we are going to put two unicorns, not just one.

(LAUGHTER)

LU STOUT: Yes, of course, absolutely. They will be even perfect. Double rainbow and double unicorns. Chad Myers, thank you so much. Until next

time.

That is "News Stream." I'm Kristie Lu Stout. Don't go anywhere. We got "World Sport" with Amanda Davies, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[08:45:00] (WORLD SPORT)

END