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Reports: Dozens Killed In Suspected Chemical Attack; Trump Warns Of Consequences After Alleged Gas Attack; Jihadists Known As The Beatles Speak To CNN; Former South Korean President Lee Myung-bak Indicted; Bus Loads Of Asylum Seekers Head To Mexico City; World Headlines; Conflict in Syria; Data Collection Concerns. Aired 8-9a ET

Aired April 9, 2018 - 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 ANCHOR: I'm Kristie Lu Stout in Hong Kong, and welcome to News Stream.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

LU STOUT: A growing powder (ph) kick, the crisis in Syria reaches a dangerous level after reports of chemical attack. Indicted for corruption,

another former South Korean President is facing criminal charges. And data collection headaches, the YouTube faces heat over claims about what it

gathers from its youngest users.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LU STOUT: The horrifying images out of one Syrian town have shocked the world and caught the urgent attention of the U.N. In the coming hours, the

U.N. Security Council is scheduled to hold two emergency sessions.

On Saturday, videos emerged, appearing to show the aftermath of a deadly chemical attack Douma. And warning, the footage you are about to see is

extremely disturbing. It is very difficult to watch. Douma is a rebel- hled district.

It's in the suburbs of Damascus. And this footage were shot by rescuers and activists. It shows victims, including children, dead or suffering.

Again, these images are deeply disturbing and it is horrific to watch.

CNN cannot confirm the authenticity of this video. It appears to show the lifeless bodies of children and adults inside an underground shelter.

You can see foam around the mouth at some of the people, that's a telltale sign that some kind of toxic gas have poisoned them. Many, including

antigovernment activists accused Bashar al-Assad and his allies.

The Syrian government had once again denied it use chemical weapons, and Russia claims its experts found no traces of chemical weapons in Douma.

Now, we are covering reaction from all around the world.

CNN's Kailtan Collins is outside the White House. We're watching for the U.S. response after President Trump voice Syria of a price to pay. We have

Nic Robertson in Moscow where the Kremlin says the claims of the gas attack are fabricated.

But let's begin with Ben Wedeman. He is live for us from Beirut. And, Ben, let's talk more about just the grisly aftermath of this latest

chemical attack, tell us more about what you learned what happened to the men, women, and children of Douma.

BEN WEDEMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, we understand according to many activists and opposition sources in Douma that around 8:00 p.m. on Saturday

evening that a Syrian military helicopter flew over Douma, which is the last pocket of opposition fighters in the Eastern Ghouta, and dropped some

sort of projectile, which they say claim to contain chemical agents.

It's not clear which, but the result was that the few medical facilities that are still operating there were flooded with people showing signs of

contact with chemical agents, more than 500 people were treated for those effects.

And according to various opposition sources, the death toll ranges anywhere between 40 and to more than 100. Now of course the Syrian government and

the Russians have denied that this was the case.

Supporters of the Syrian government suggesting that this was some sort of self-inflicted wound carried out by the faction that runs, or used to

control our Douma, known as Jaysh al-Islam, which is a Saudi-backed faction in that area.

Now since then, we understand that some sort of agreement has been worked out between Jaysh al-Islam and to the Russians whereby the fighters, and

their families will be transported by bus to Northern Syria, the area of Jarablus, which is under Turkish control.

In exchange, Jaysh al-Islam did release many hostages essentially. These are civilians and soldiers that they have been holding for years. Kristie.

LU STOUT: And, Ben, after this latest atrocity, an airbase near homes was hit. Is there a connection to the Douma attack, and who could be behind

the strike?

WEDEMAN: Well, it does appear that the entity that was behind the strike was Israel. The Russians who obviously have a very good idea of what's up

in the air over Syria say that early this morning around 3:30 a.m. local time, two Israeli F-15s entered Lebanese airspace.

[08:05:04] And from there fired eight missiles toward the T4 airbase, which is about 100 kilometers northeast of Damascus. Five of those missiles were

intercepted by air defenses. Three of them hit the base.

Now the Americans and the French flatly denied that they had anything to do with this air strike. The Israelis have not commented.

It's noteworthy, however, that in recent years, the Israelis had launched over 100 air strikes in one form or another inside Syria.

Normally their targets are weapons storage facilities -- facilities linked to Iran and Hezbollah. And this may simply be another one of those strikes

that just happens to come very soon after this alleged chemical attack in Douma. Kristie.

LU STOUT: Ben Wedeman reporting live from Beirut for us. Thank you, Ben. Now let's bring in Kaitlan Collins who is live in Washington for us.

And, Kaitlan, just days ago, U.S. President Donald Trump was trying to seek a way out of Syria. So, does this reported new chemical attack in Syria

effectively pull him back in?

KAITLAN COLLINS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, that is certainly the question on everyone's mind here at the White House, and certainly the President --

today is going to be a very critical day for this administration because not only is the new third National Security Adviser John Bolton official

getting started today, but also, it does put the President right in the center of that.

It kind of squeezes him a little bit, it feels, because he is torn between what he said just a few days ago about withdrawing U.S. troops from Syria,

and whether or not he's going to be pulled back by all of this.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

COLLINS: President Trump warning that there will be a big price to pay for a suspected chemical weapons attack in Syria. One year after authorizing

missile strikes against the Syria airbase after sarin gas attack left dozens dead.

THOMAS BOSSERT, U.S. HOMELAND SECURITY ADVISER: Every nation, all people, have all agreed, and have agreed since World War II, this is an

unacceptable practice. So I wouldn't take anything off the table.

COLLINS: The President calling out Russian President Vladimir Putin by name for the first time, blaming Russia and Iran for backing the Syrian

President, who Mr. Trump nicknamed "Animal" Assad.

Syria denying involvement, and Russia firing back, calling the reported chemical attack a hoax, and warning that using far-fetched and fabricated

pretext for a military intervention in Syria is absolutely unacceptable, and it can lead to the most serious consequences.

President Trump also pointing a finger at his predecessor for not following through on his threat that the use of chemical weapons would be crossing a,

quote, red wine, but in 2013, Mr. Trump also opposed to strike, repeatedly tweeting, do not attack Syria.

The suspected chemical attack coming just days after President Trump said he wants to withdraw U.S. troops from Syria, ignoring near unanimous advice

from his military advisers.

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I want to get out, I want to bring our troops back home. We'll be coming out of Syria like very soon.

Let the other people take care of it now.

COLLINS: Senator John McCain faulting the President for those public statements, saying that Assad his backers heard him, and have been

emboldened by American inaction.

SEN. LINDSEY GRAHAM (R), SOUTH CAROLINA: Well, it's a defining moment in his presidency. They see us, our resolve, breaking. They see our

determination to stay in Syria waning. And it's no accident they used chemical weapons. But President Trump can reset the table here.

SEN. SUSAN COLLINS (R), MAINE: I think the President is going to have to reconsider his plan for an early withdrawal in light of what has happened.

COLLINS: President Trump speaking about the Syrian attack with the leaders of France and Iraq. The White House has read out of the colleague (ph) and

friend noting that the two leaders agreed to exchange information, and coordinate a strong joint response.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COLLINS: Now Syria will certainly be the topic of the day here at the White House because the President is scheduled to hold a cabinet meeting

around noon today. before being brief, and having dinner with senior military leadership, all while the United Nations Security Council is

holding an emergency meeting on Syria today.

LU STOUT: Kaitlan Collins live in the White House for us, thank you. Now, to Nic Robertson in Moscow. And, Nic, the latest word from the Kremlin --

I mean, what is Sergey Lavrov now saying about the reported chemical attack in Douma?

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, we seem to be getting two different strands of analysis on this from the Kremlin, one from Dmitry

Peskov, who's President Putin who says that lacking essentially hard evidence about precisely what has happened in Douma is, it would be

dangerous to draw any conclusions.

However, we have heard from the Foreign Ministry who has said that they believe that the claims of an alleged chemical attack are a fabrication or

a hoax.

And indeed, Sergey Lavrov has gone further than that, the Russian Foreign Minister saying that now Russian military officials have been there on the

ground.

[08:10:04] They have made checks, they've told to people on the grounds, and their analysis is that no chemicals were used. This is how he put it.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SERGEY LAVROV, RUSSIAN FOREIGN MINISTER (through a translator): Our military experts already went there, as well as the representatives of the

Syrian Red Crescent.

We have a very high reputation among international organizations, such as the U.N., and the International Red Cross committee. They didn't find any

traces of chlorine or other chemical substances used against civilians.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROBERTSON: So Peskov on one hand, and Lavrov have slightly different narratives that the message emerging from here, and we have heard it from

the Foreign Ministry saying that, you know, a very serious situation is developing here.

And we've also heard from the Russian General Military Staff saying that they would strike U.S. missile, strike at U.S. carriers, and presumably

launching those missiles. And this was a very dangerous situation, so in essence, a very strong all-around pushback from here in Moscow.

LU STOUT: And, Nick, the U.N. Security Council, we know that they are holding a pair of emergency meetings later today about that suspected

chemical attack in Douma. What should we expect to hear from Russia at the U.N.?

ROBERTSON: Well, I think from Russia, we've essentially heard this all laid out if you will that this was a hoax, that it is being perpetrated by

people they would call terrorists on the ground, they would say that their people have been there, and had a look, and there is no evidence of

chemical weapons being used.

What we are likely to hear from the international community from Britain -- British Prime Minister Theresa May recently spoke on this just within past

hour or so, saying it's very important to have a thorough investigation.

And I think we are going to hear a strong push for the OPCW, the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons, to be allowed to get

their experts in, to find out whether or not chemical weapons were used.

And we also likely to hear a very strong renewed push for the JIM, which was the U.N., and OPCW body, that joint investigative group that was

supposed to take the OPCW's findings from previous investigations in Syria because they were only there to find out if chemicals were used, and what

those chemicals were.

The investigative body was a follow-on body to apportion blame, and we certainly heard from people like Boris Johnson, the British Foreign

Secretary, and others in the international community blaming Russia for essentially shutting down on what prolonging the JIM's mandate in Syria.

So we'll likely to hear a further push. But not only the OPCW, but to have somebody in there who can apportion, who was actually responsible, that is

what we are likely to hear today, Kristie.

LU STOUT: Our Nic Robertson reporting live from Moscow. Thank you, Nic. Now there is still plenty more to come from Syria. Our Correspondent

Frederik Pleitgen is in fact on the ground in Damascus.

We're going to get a live update from him, but later, right here on News Stream. Now, meanwhile, ISIS continues to lose ground in the region, and

that is raising questions about what to do with foreign militants captured there.

Now Nick Paton Walsh, he went to Northern Syria to bring us the story of two British Jihadists. He joins us now live from Kobani, Syria. And,

Nick, what did you learn?

NICK PATON WALSH, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Kristie, the four British Jihadists who were accused of beheading, and some of them

imprisoning, and torturing western hostages were, in fact -- were, in fact, one of them killed, and the other was jailed in Turkey. And two were

recently captured.

Now we sat down with them, gain their consent for a lengthy interview, and frankly, when you're here, and it sound like Kobani, you reminded of how

ISIS was being considered to be as a 10-foot tall monster.

Yet, these individuals often times unremarkable, sniggering, confused, angry to extraordinary people, that are capable of saying extraordinary

things.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

WALSH: Once some of the world's most wanted, but now nobody wants them. The last two of the British ISIS cell dubbed, The Beatles, now jailed in

Syria, and suddenly fond of the home they spurned.

(on camera): Would you prefer to be tried anywhere in particular, like the U.K.?

ALEXANDA KOTEY, BRITISH ISIS DETAINEE: Definitely familiarity is the easier option. My experience with the British judges is that they're quite

fair and just. Yes, I might miss like fish and chips.

WALSH (voice over): They revel in their rights, like presumed innocence, when I tell them several westerners they allegedly imprisoned and abused in

ISIS jails like these have identified their voices and faces.

EL SHAFEE ELSHEIKH, BRITISH ISIS DETAINEE: It's just an accusation legally speaking. You know, if the -- if the Britain's said we're going to deal

with you by -- with barbaric law or with law from the medieval ages, then, yes, hung draw (ph) and court me, right?

[08:15:07] That's not the case. I'm just merely pointing that out. I don't believe in democracy. But I am being subjected to democratic law.

So it is only right for those who claim to uphold this -- to fully uphold it, because it's their mistake, not me, really.

KOTEY: I think the American administration or the British government, they decided they want to be champions of the Sharia or Islamic law, and apply

Islamic law upon myself and Shafee, then, by all means. If not, then they should adhere to that which they claim to be champions of.

WALSH (voice over): ISIS is nearly defeated, but the arrogance of their beliefs is not.

(on camera): What keeps you awake at night?

KOTEY: There are these lice in my clothes, and in the place I'm sleeping.

WALSH: So there will be some people who see you make a joke of that question, and think that whatever's gone before to you is sort of being a

bit of a laugh. Are you saying that there's nothing that you witnessed here in Syria or been involved in that troubles you?

KOTEY: No. If I want to talk about while I was in the Islamic State, the kind of things that keep you up at night is the sound of like F-16 jet

flying the sky, and some Syrian neighbors with these kids crying.

WALSH (voice over): There is so much bravado. It's hard to see if they really think it all, the videos, the savage beheadings, went too far.

(on camera): Do you regret that sort of messaging?

KOTEY: Yes, definitely, it would be damaging. And it's regrettable and that -- you know, that families have to see that.

WALSH: So Jihadi John, who's dead now, what kind of a guy was he?

SHEIKH: He was a friend of mine.

WALSH: For what reasons?

SHEIKH: For what reasons was he my friend? Do you need to have a reason to be a friend of somebody?

WALSH: I'm just asking you to describe him as a person.

SHEIKH: Oh, to describe him as a person? Obviously I know that people in the western world are not going to want to hear this. But the truth has to

be said to us. And he was one of the most loyal friends I've had, trustworthy, honest, upstanding.

WALSH: Were you surprised when you saw videos of him cutting off people's heads?

SHEIKH: Surprising, yes.

WALSH: You didn't approve?

SHEIKH: Did I approve of the act, or did I approve of the video?

WALSH: Did you approve of the act by your friend?

SHEIKH: I would rather not answer that question.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WALSH: Extraordinary to hear those two men, who's part of ISIS railed against all forms of the British establishment, American, and western

establishments, yet appear to kind of hoping their legal process will come to their aid.

And also to now after the years of western nations fighting against us, it is remarkable thought that there are thousands if not hundreds of foreign

ISIS fighters still being held by Syrian-Kurdish forces here with American backing waiting for answers from their home nations to what they want to do

with them.

Did they want to bring them back for trial? Do they want them to magically perhaps disappear somewhere out her in the Syrian desert? A great burden

being placed on those Syrian-Kurds, simply keeping this number of important and dangerous men potentially in custody. Kristie.

LU STOUT: It's an interview both revealing and chilling to watch. We thank you for that. Nick Paton Walsh reporting live from Kobani, in

Northern Syria, thank you.

Now, you're watching News Stream. Still ahead right here in the program, another former South Korean leader is indicted for corruption. The charges

facing Lee Myung Bak, coming up.

Plus, hundreds of migrant families and activists are making their way to the U.S. border. The latest from Mexico, and the migrant caravan, after

the break.

[08:20:00] (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LU STOUT: Coming to you live from Hong Kong, welcome back. This is News Stream. U.S. President Donald Trump is blasting China over trade tariffs.

Just 24 hours after he said that he and President Xi Jinping will always be friends no matter what happens.

In fact, he tweeted this about an hour ago, quote, when a car is sent to the United States from China, there is a tariff to be paid of 2.5 percent.

When a car was sent to China from the United States, there was a tariff to be paid 25 percent. Does that sound like free or fair trade? Now he

added, that sounds like stupid trade. And that's been going on for years.

Investors of the those in between bothered by the President's latest tweet, now the Dow is appointed to start trading session a little over an hour

from now with a slight gain.

Now South Korea is brazing for the corruption trial of yet another former leader. This time, it's former President Lee Myung Bak. CNN's Paula

Hancocks reports from Seoul on the long list of charges against him.

PAULA HANCOCKS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Look, Kristie, another former South Korean President has been charged on corruption charges. This is Lee Myung

Bak, in this case, he was a President between 2008 and 2013.

And in a special criminal investigation, he has been charged with the tax evasion, bribery, embezzlement, abuse of power, misuse of political funds

among other things.

Now, Lee, himself has denied any wrongdoing. This is just the first three months of an investigation so far, but he has already been behind bars for

the last month.

Last month he was arrested not an admission of guilt in South Korea, but the processes that prosecutors can make a case to the judge of that

concerned, but if the suspect remains free, that they could destroy the evidence, and the judge agreed in this case.

So he has been in detention since last month. Now he is the fourth former South Korean President to face charges, and to face trial, I should say,

since the -- since the 1990s.

In fact, just last Friday, the former President Park Geun-hye was found guilty on a number of charges, including abuse of power, and coercion, and

bribery.

She was sentenced to 24 years in prison. It is not clear up until this point whether or not she is going to appeal. She has some days to decide

that.

And it's not clear how long this investigation, the trial will last for Lee Myung Bak. But looking at the President Park Geun-hye, it took up to a

year. But for Lee Myung Bak, we will have to see. Kristie.

LU STOUT: Paula Hancocks there. Now to Mexico, where hundreds of people have traveled for days on an arduous journey to the U.S. border, it's part

of an annual caravan of migrants fleeing Central America, leaving behind violence and poverty.

Now, migrant families and activists are preparing to board buses headed to Mexico City, and for some, the journey won't stop there. CNN's Leyla

Santiago has been following the caravan. She joins us now live from Puebla, Mexico. And, Leyla, you have been tracking the caravan, even

meeting people. What's their story?

LEYLA SANTIAGO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, let me sort of walk you through what is happening right now, because we're seeing bit of activity, given

that they are about to make another big move, and what could be one of the final stages of this caravan.

So let me sort of walk out the shots. You can see, there are more than 500 different migrants that are behind me. And the reason we know that is

because over the weekend, we were here for the headcount. We watched as organizers counted them one by one.

Many of them from Central America, and now, they will be headed to Mexico City. Now, let me turn the camera a little bit, so you can see we have

counted more than 11 buses. They will be getting on these in the next half hour or so. And so what's next? OK, will that vary from family-to-family,

person-to-person?

[08:25:02] They will be heading to Mexico City, I'm told by organizers. They will be meeting with government officials, immigration officials, and

then many of then will sort of break off into their own groups.

Some of them will stay here in Mexico, others tell me they have plans, hopes, and dreams of getting to the United Stated of American. Some of

them have family there, others do not or wanting to just make it on their own.

We have heard so many stories of violence that they are fleeing, and the poverty that they are fleeing, but again, just take a look behind me.

I mean, the number -- more than 500 people, including children, including families, individual men and women, this is a group that started with more

than 1,000 people on the southern border of Mexico, planning to make its way up, and what's know as Via Crucis.

These are annual pilgrimages. And so what change this year? Well, they received a lot of attention after President Trump tweeted about this very

caravan.

They are very much aware of the President's tweets, but none of them seem to be deterred in terms of the mission to go north if that was the original

plan.

We have met a few exceptions, but the majority of them say, if they were headed to the U.S., they still have that as a dream. Mexico did grant some

of them, most of them in this group, 20 to 30 day permission to stay here.

Many will stay here, and then seek asylum here. But as we've been reporting all along, others will seek asylum in the United States of

America. How many that will be? We're still waiting to find out.

LU STOUT: It's an incredible story. This is a political pilgrimage, and emotional journey. Leyla Santiago reporting and tracking that all for us.

Thank you so much, Leyla, and take care. Syria says reports of a chemical attack are false.

But the U.S. is pointing the finger at the Assad regime. And is promising there will be consequences. We'll get a live update from Damascus, and

from out Fred Pleitgen.

FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, we will tell you exactly how the Syrian government is reacting to all of this, and this could mean also

for the international committee as well, how will it react. We'll have much more.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LU STOUT: I'm Kristie Lu Stout in Hong Kong, you're watching News Stream, and these are your world headlines. The United Nations Security Council

has two emergency meetings planned for Monday over a suspected chemical attack in rebel-held Douma, Syria.

Video emerged Saturday, showing the aftermath of what activists say was a chemical attack that killed dozens, including children. Syria and its

allies vehemently denied using chemical weapons.

[08:30:04] U.S. President Donald Trump's National Security Council will meet later on Monday to discuss the U.S. response to the attack. He has

labeled Bashar al Assad an animal and warned there will be a big price to pay. All this comes just days after Mr. Trump said that he wanted American

troops out of Syria soon.

Right-wing Hungarian leader Viktor Orban will be prime minister for a fourth term. He focused on anti-immigration during his campaign.

(INAUDIBLE) his coalition a sizable lead at about 48 percent of the vote, securing a super majority in the parliament.

Since the suspected chemical attack in Syria, there has been claim and counterclaim about who is responsible. The Syrian government also says one

of it air bases was attacked. Our correspondent Frederik Pleitgen is on the ground in Damascus. He joins us now live.

Fred, thank you for joining us. Let's first talk about that strike on the Syrian air base near Homs. Was that a direct response to what happened in

Douma? And who is behind the strike?

FREDERIK PLEITGEN, SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: It's unclear whether or not that was a direct response, but it certainly of course comes

at a very important and very difficult time right now here in the Syrian conflict where there is the real threat of a possible international

escalation, if you hear some of the rhetoric that is coming out of D.C. and then some of the rhetoric especially that is coming out of Moscow as well.

It appears as though the Russians are saying and the Syrian government clearly saying that they believe that Israel was behind the attack. And

they said that Israel warplanes flew into Lebanese airspace, launched missiles from there (INAUDIBLE) that hit the base which is not really that

close to Homs. It is pretty much between Homs and Palmyra. It is called the T-4 base.

The interesting thing about it, Kristie, is that this is the base where the Israelis have said in the past, they believe that Iranian operatives are on

the ground. Of course, one of the things that the Israelis have been saying is that they will prevent Iran from setting up permanent military bases

here in Syria.

So, is it a direct response to some of the chemical allegations that we have been seeing over the weekend or is this something where Israel is sort

of trying to defend its own national interest but certainly trying to put forward its interest here in Syria? It is really unclear at this point in

time. The Israeli so far not making any statements on the situation. Kristie?

LU STOUT: Copy that. Fred Pleitgen, reporting live from inside Syria in Damascus. We thank you for your reporting. Take care.

Now, let's dig deeper into how the U.S. might respond to this suspected chemical attack with Karin von Hippel. She is the director-general at the

Royal United Services Institute, the defense and security think tank. She is also former chief of staff to American General John Allen, who was the

special presidential envoy for the global coalition to counter ISIS under Barack Obama.

Thank you so much, Karin, for joining us here on the program. As you heard from our correspondent in Damascus, we still don't know who is definitively

behind the strike on Homs, but what impact in general, what impact could targeted strikes have on the Assad regime?

KARIN VON HIPPEL, DIRECTOR-GENERAL, ROYAL UNITED SERVICES INSTITUTE: It really depends on what they are following up with. So last April when

President Trump launched 59 Tomahawk missiles into an air base near Homs in response to the chemical attack then, he did not follow that up with

(INAUDIBLE) diplomatic -- really (INAUDIBLE) diplomatic process to bring everyone back to the negotiating table. It is just a one (INAUDIBLE)

strike.

And so it's really not going to be helpful if he does another one (INAUDIBLE) strike, but rather it needs to be combined, you know, with the

old formula of diplomacy backed by force.

LU STOUT: So meaningful action needs to take place. Donald Trump has promised a big price to pay for the attack in Douma. He didn't specify what

action he is going to take next. What could he do next that would get the attention of the Assad regime?

VON HIPPEL: This time, it looks like other international partners, the French and maybe the British may join in if they decide to take -- to use

military force in response. And I would hope that if that does happen this time, that those countries will also make sure that there really is a

significant diplomatic push to really stop the bombing and killing of civilians.

I mean let's not forget that civilians are being killed every day without chemical weapons. They (INAUDIBLE) killed in a whole bunch of different

ways but also should really be requiring response. It is a little frustrating that the world paid attention when one type of attack happens

but largely ignores other attacks where civilians are being killed.

LU STOUT: We know that John Bolton, he is starting his first day at the White House today as national security advisor. Knowing about his views,

(INAUDIBLE) stands, how does his presence change America's approach to Syria or will it change at all?

VON HIPPEL: It's a good question. I mean, but Kristie, not the secretary of state, it's really secretary of state's job to manage the diplomatic

piece of this puzzle.

[08:34:55] And so if force is used by the (INAUDIBLE) and partnership with a number of allies, then one would hope that the secretary of state then

immediately gets into the picture and really pushes very hard in concert with allies.

I don't think the U.S. can do this by -- on its own. I think the U.S. really should work (INAUDIBLE) with a number of allies. We are already

seeing the Russians denying that anything happened and saying that in fact there was no even chlorine attack. I saw that just in the last few minutes.

So it's going to be the usual he said, she said challenge until OPCW comes back with some evidence that a chemical attack was carried out.

LU STOUT: And now we are going to see the usual at the U.N. Security Council later today. There is going to be this (INAUDIBLE) emergency

meetings about the attack. There will likely be condemnation, perhaps another resolution. There was also resolution on Eastern Ghouta (INAUDIBLE)

ceasefire there. That never really took place.

What can happen today? Is there any way that the U.N. or the international community can respond to the latest chemical attack in Syria in a way that

would effectively change the military balance in Syria?

VON HIPPEL: Great question because so far it has been exactly as you said, it has been back and forth. It has been one country (INAUDIBLE) the regime

and then the Russians and sometimes even the Chinese walking any sort of conserving (ph) U.N. Security Council action.

Occasionally, U.N. Security Council has been able to come up with condemnation but then nothing happens after that as you said. So it is

incredibly frustrating and it is such a tragedy. Over half a million people have been killed in Syria. Half of population have been displaced.

This is largely due to the Assad regime. It is not due to ISIL which has been a challenge for other reasons. But the vast majority of civilians have

actually in fact (INAUDIBLE) because of the regime.

LU STOUT: And so the conflict looks likely to grind on. Human suffering to continue as well. Karin, we will leave it at that. Thank you very much

indeed for your analysis here on the program. Hope to talk with you again soon. Take care.

Now, the fear over Facebook's data privacy scandal is also spreading to other social media platforms. Now some privacy groups have concerns about

YouTube and how it deals with its younger users.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

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

Now, if you are a Facebook user, you may want to check your news feed a little bit more closely today. The site is rolling out notifications to

about 87 million people, letting them know their data was taken by Cambridge Analytica.

The scandal over that data just keeps growing for Facebook. It is already being investigated by the U.S., U.K., as well as Australia. A source tells

CNN that CEO and founder Mark Zuckerberg is meeting with some lawmakers on Capital Hill in a few hours. Some of them are from the committees listening

to his testimony on Tuesday.

Now, the revelations over Facebook is kicking off a live discussion over what other companies are doing with our data. And some advocacy groups are

now criticizing YouTube. They say the site is illegally collecting data about underage viewers and they have filed a complaint with U.S. officials.

YouTube says kids under 13 can't sign for its service, but research shows some 45 percent of kids between ages of eight and 12 have their own

account. Our tech and business correspondent Samuel Burke joins us now for more on the story.

[08:40:00] Samuel, wow, several groups here are making serious charges about YouTube and how it collects data from kids. Can you walk us to the

claims and tell us more about how YouTube is responding.

SAMUEL BURKE, CNN BUSINESS AND TECHNOLOGY CORRESPONDENT: Kristie, you have 20 different groups that represent consumer interest, children interest,

privacy interest, saying that YouTube has been collecting this information about kids for years.

Now, it is no surprise to any parent that a lot of kids are using YouTube, but what could be a surprise is people not realizing that YouTube could be

profiting off of this information.

What this complaint alleges that they filed with the Federal Trade Commission, which is also the group that is going to be looking at

Facebook, is that inadvertently they may be picking up the data when kids log in using their parents' accounts or no account whatsoever.

Yes, you need to be 13 year old in order to have an account, but how many times have you logged into YouTube with no account whatsoever? So, they are

picking up information about the parents but also picking up information about the children.

You may think that there is no harm here, but we have spoken to experts here in Israel who have been telling me, look, a lot of times the company

can distinguish between when a parent is using something, when a kid is using something just based on the content that they are clicking on.

So it could be a big benefit to YouTube. What these companies or rather these advocacy groups are really saying here is, they're not trying to make

it so there is no kids' content on YouTube.

They just want Facebook and Google and all of these companies to be able to distinguish between the parents' data and the kids' data and then make sure

that when they are using the kids' data because of the child online privacy protection act in the United States that they really don't use that data,

they focus on their parents' data.

I just want to up on the screen what Google said in response to this complaint which has just been filed. Google which owns YouTube saying the

following, quote, protecting kids and families has always been a top priority for us. We will read the complaint thoroughly and evaluate if

there are things we can do to improve.

I think every tech company is doing this now, Kristie. I am here in Israel, known as the star of nation. I have been speaking to CEOs of tech

companies, many different fields all week long and what they have been telling me is that whether its Facebook and data or the death that we saw

from the self-driving Uber car in Arizona, this is a wake-up time right now for the tech industry.

The dip that we have seen in tech stock prices, mostly CEOs think that stocks will go back up. But they say that this is a time where they realize

that people are reevaluating their relationships with the tech companies that run their lives, many would argue, and they realize that they at going

to have to make profound changes whether it is like Google or the smaller start-ups that you see in a country like this.

LU STOUT: Yes, definitely a major wake-up call for the entire tech industry about stealth marketing, data collection, and our rights as social

users. Samuel Burke, always a pleasure to have you. Take care. Good luck with your reporting there.

That is it from "News Stream." I'm Kristie Lu Stout. But don't go anywhere because we got "World Sport" with Alex Thomas coming up next. Keep it here.

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