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CNN NEWSROOM

Military Arrests Siblings of West Bank Attacker Who Murdered Two Israelis; Far-Right Presidential Candidate Wins Broad Lead In First Round; Tokyo's Famous "Tsukiji" Fish Market Closes; Banksy Pulls Off Art Auction Prank; Jamal Khashoggi Missing For Days; Meng Hongwei is Being Kept in China for Supposed Corruption Charges; A Deadly Limousine Crash; Effects Of Climate Change; Midterm Elections Growing Closer; A Populist Surge is Being Felt in Brazil. Aired 2-3a ET

Aired October 8, 2018 - 02:00   ET

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


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[02:00:01] GEORGE HOWELL, NEWSROOM ANCHOR, CNN: A prominent Saudi journalist has been missing for days. And Turkish officials say there is a strong possibility that he was killed inside the Saudi consulate. We're following the story. Plus, another disappearance, the chilling message on WhatsApp and appears to have been the last communication for the Chinese former President of Interpol.

Also ahead this hour, a dire warning about our home, planet Earth, experts say our planet only has a few years before the effects of climate change becomes obvious, and even obvious even to the doubters. Live from CNN world headquarters in Atlanta. We want to welcome our viewers here in the United States and all around the world. I'm George Howell. The CNN Newsroom starts right now.

Around the world, good day to you at 2:00 a.m. on the U.S. East Coast, a prominent journalist disappeared in Turkey after entering a Saudi consulate office. And there is growing concern he may have been killed inside the building. The details of this mystery are still unfolding around Jamal Khashoggi, a journalist and critic of Saudi Arabia last seen on Tuesday after entering the Saudi consulate in Istanbul.

Now what happened to him after that? It's still unclear. But here's what we do know. A political advisor to the Turkish president tells CNN there is a strong possibility that Khashoggi was killed inside the Saudi consulate. Saudi Arabia strongly denies any involvement. U.S. officials say they cannot confirm what happened to him. But two senior administration officials tell CNN the U.S. is quietly trying to figure out what happened to Khashoggi.

CNN's Jomana Karadsheh is following the story live in I Istanbul, Turkey just outside the Saudi consulate in question. And Jomana, first of all, what do we know about Khashoggi's disappearance and the investigation that is now underway?

JOMANA KARADSHEH, CORRESPONDENT, CNN: Well, George, it has been -- this past week, we have been getting these conflicting reports, these different messages coming from different sides, different versions of events. As you mentioned, we heard from a senior advisor to the Turkish president saying that he believes that there is a strong possibility that Khashoggi was killed inside the consulate.

Something we also heard in the past 36 hours or so coming from different media organizations, also being told by a number of other senior Turkish officials that this is the conclusion they are reaching. But so far, we have not seen any evidence to support these allegations. You have Saudi Arabia, George, maintaining that this is not true.

They're calling these baseless allegations. They say that he was in the consulate on Tuesday and that he left afterwards. And at the same time, we're not seeing any proof of that either. You know outside the consulate, George, if you look around here, you look at that building. There are so many surveillance cameras around a diplomatic mission as you would expect.

So it seems like it would be something as simple as release the security footage showing him leave the consulate. And this is what we've heard, so many of his colleagues and friends here in Istanbul demand, asking the Saudi consulate to show that video of him leaving. So right, now we're at that point where Turkey is saying there is an investigation ongoing.

Saudi Arabia is saying they've sent in a team of investigators to assist with this investigation. And we'll have to wait and see what comes out of that in the coming hours and days, George.

HOWELL: OK. So if determined to be true, Jomana, what are the implications for relations between Saudi Arabia with Turkey and with the United States?

KARADSHEH: You know, George, so many people say that the United States can play a much stronger and much bigger role here. And this is something we've heard from people on the ground, saying that they could push Saudi Arabia to use that leverage, use that really good relationship to push for more answers from the Saudis.

And as you mentioned, this really could have wide reaching implications politically, diplomatically in this region. If you look at these two countries that are involved, these are two of the main powers here in the Middle East. But it seems if you look at the developments in the past 24 hours or so, that Turkey is not yet ready to push this to the next level of a full-blown diplomatic crisis with Saudi Arabia.

Despite the comments and the statements we've heard from various officials here, everyone was waiting to see what President Erdogan had to say. And when he did, he did sound a bit hopeful. You know he sounded more measured. You know this is the top leader in this country who doesn't really shy away from saying what Turkish officials are thinking. Take a listen to what President Erdogan had to say.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) UNIDENTIFIED MALE: As the President of the Turkish republic, I am following it personally, and will let all the world know the outcome of this. Everything, including entries and exits to the consulate are being investigated. And departures and arrivals to airports are also under investigation.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KARADSHEH: So it seemed, George, right now Turkey has, to an extent, put the ball in Saudi Arabia's court. Giving them the chance to come back with what they have said, what officials have told us they want to hear and that is satisfactory answers, George.

HOWELL: Clearly, the Turkish president taking a personal approach toward this investigation. We'll see how all of this pans out. Jomana Karadsheh live for us in Istanbul, Turkey. Thank you.

And now to tell you about another disappearance, the President of Interpol, there is a new twist in the mysterious and even questionable disappearance. He remains missing at this point. According to the International Police Agency, Meng Hongwei has resigned. This, just days after he was reported missing during a trip to China.

Authorities say Meng, who is a Chinese government official, is under investigation for alleged violations of laws. And take a look at this. Meng's wife says that she received two very unsettling text messages from her husband. They came shortly across -- came after he arrived in China. One of them with the words wait for my call.

Then minutes later, a knife emoji, as you see there in the screen, that's the last contact that she had with her husband. CNN's Senior Producer Steven Jiang is following this story for live for us in Beijing this hour. And Steven, these cryptic text messages, then word of resignation. What more are you learning about the mystery, I should say, around this disappearance?

STEVEN JIANG, SENIOR PRODUCER, CNN: Well, George, we actually -- George, we actually have some late breaking developments on this story that Chinese authority just issued a fairly lengthy statement in the last hour, now confirming Mr. Meng is being held and under investigation for alleged corruption.

Now, in this statement, they have some harsh words for Mr. Meng, saying he had insisted on taking a wrong path and had only himself to blame for his downfall. The statement alleged that Mr. Meng had accepted bribes, now also committed other crimes but without giving much specifics. But it did say that the authorities are also investigating other people involved in his case.

Another interesting aspect of this statement, George, is that they alluded to Mr. Meng's connections to a former domestic security czar who is now serving a life imprisonment sentence for corruption. Now, Mr. Meng rose through the ranks under that person in the 2000s. So now it seems like he may be meeting the same fate as his former patron. So at least this latest statement by the Chinese authorities answers

some of these mysteries or unanswered questions. But there are still a lot more to be found about his disappearance and now detention, George.

HOWELL: OK. Steven, just recapping, this breaking news that you're sharing with us again that Mr. Meng is being held, you say. That he has accepted bribes according to government officials. And as we know, has resigned from Interpol. But here's the greater question here. Given China's efforts to basically focus on global ambitions, outreach, and put Chinese nationals in prominent positions, what are the implications around the world with regards to trust?

JIANG: That's right. It's a very unsettling story. And also, it's interesting you mentioned what his wife has been telling reporters in Leon, France. Now of course, she says she's been receiving threats online and via the telephone. But also she showed these, as you say, sent unsettling images and text message from her husband, now that knife emoji of course, has been talked about.

It obviously implies her husband was in danger, but could also be some sort of signal that -- basically from him to her to asking him to report him missing to the French authorities. And that's exactly what she did. And that, of course, triggered an international saga that is still growing fast.

Now, I think this episode, this example really has reinforced the notion of a lot of people that this country, its political system, its legal system still very much nontransparent, and also reinforce the notion that nobody is really safe in President Xi Jinping's China. Nobody is immune from the clutches of the communist authorities if you cross the leadership, George?

HOWELL: Steven Jiang following the story live for us in Beijing. Thank you for the reporting and the update on this. We'll keep in touch with you.

[02:09:54] Now to a dire warning about climate change, according to a new report, experts say that we have until 2030 to avoid catastrophe. It also says if unprecedented changes are not made and made soon, there will be irreversible damage to the planet. The report focuses on what could happen if global temperatures rise by more than 1.5 degrees Celsius or 2.7 degrees Fahrenheit.

It would likely mean more erratic weather, dangerous heat waves, rising sea levels, and dying coral reefs. CNN Meteorologist Ivan Cabrera is in the International Weather Center following this story. And Ivan, what more can you tell us about this very dire warning?

IVAN CABRERA, METEOROLOGIST, CNN: Yes. In 2030, I mean we're talking about 12 years at this point here getting very close. And of course, all the while, I mean we've already seen climate change take its toll on the planet, so yes, another climate report and more bad news, this one, of course, on the intergovernmental panel on climate change.

And I want to drill down the numbers here because it may not sound like a lot. But they are huge in what differences result as temperatures go from 1.5 degrees Celsius to 2, huge difference. So this is what we've already done, right? We've warmed the planet since 1900 with the industrial revolution one degree. What has that brought us?

Well, that's brought record heat waves here. Look at this, 2015, 2016, and 2017, all those years, three of the hottest years on record. We know the heat waves have been ongoing. We've had, of course, more record floods. We've had more significant droughts. We've had all these events that are more frequent and more intense as a result of climate change.

Each and every one can't be associated to that. But the frequency and their intensity certainly will be over the next several decades. So this is what the report is coming up with. This is what George was talking about, 2030, CO2 emissions down by almost half. That is a tall order. That the going to be very difficult.

And by 2050, we have to get them to 100 percent, basically carbon neutral. And so that is what the study is talking about here. So the way we do that is we source 70 to 85 percent, right, of electricity from renewables. We put a price on greenhouse emissions, and then we use technology to remove the CO2 that we've already pumped into the atmosphere out of there with the Paris Accord.

That's a step, but it's not enough. That will get us to between 1.5 and 2. And we have to continue to bring that down. Otherwise, it's going to be exponential as far as the damage to the planet. By the way, it is October. I know you're getting the pumpkins ready and things are cooling off, at least in some places. But October is still hurricane month.

And we have a tropical storm that will eventually be a hurricane that will eventually threaten the gulf coast. We're talking about two days, right? This isn't an Atlantic storm where we have days and days to wait here. The Gulf of Mexico is really not all that large. And so by the time this continues to go up, we're looking at a hurricane potentially making landfall as category two.

By the time we get into Wednesday, we'll have the latest track coming up in the next hour.

HOWELL: That will definitely be the top news here in the coming hours on the southeast part of the U.S. Ivan Cabrera tracking it, thank you so much, Ivan.

Next here on CNN Newsroom, the U.S. midterm elections are just a month away and the battle to confirm Brett Kavanaugh may have been a sign of things to come. It could get ugly. We'll take a look. Stay with us.

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[02:15:00] HOWELL: In New York State, investigators are trying to figure out what caused a deadly limousine crash. That crash killing 20 people, including the driver, 17 passengers, and 2 bystanders, among the victims in the limo, Erin Vertucci and Shane McGowan, a young couple who were just married in June. A family member tells CNN the limo was headed to a friend's birthday party. That friend also died in the crash. CNN Correspondent Polo Sandoval has the details.

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POLO SANDOVAL, CORRESPONDENT, CNN: Well, a makeshift memorial continues to grow at the site of one of the nation's deadliest transportation disasters, at least the deadliest in the last nine years here in upstate New York. Authorities say a limousine basically failed to stop at a T-intersection, colliding with a vehicle and two people in a parking lot of a country store, and then eventually crashing into a ditch, resulting in the deaths of 18 people on board, the driver and 17 passengers.

Investigators have not revealed any information regarding the victims, only saying that they believe that that was the cause at this point, that the vehicle, again, failed to stop at that intersection, but they don't know exactly why. Was speed a factor? Of course, the condition of the vehicle, that is what investigators with the National Transportation Safety Board and also the New York State Police are trying to find out.

Speaking with members of the community here and even some journalists, including Peter Barber, a staff photo journalist with the Daily Gazette, telling me that it certainly was a horrific scene, something that was emotional even for the first responders who were working the scene. Though this community is home to only about 3,500 people, they are mourning and also searching for answers, Paolo Sandoval, CNN, Iscohary County, New York.

HOWELL: Paolo, thank you. Now to the U.S. midterm elections, less than a month away, the contentious battle to confirm the Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh may be a key piece of ammunition for both parties to use to rally their bases. CNN White House Reporter Sarah Westwood has this report.

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SARAH WESTWOOD., WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT, CNN: President Trump spent the weekend basking in the success of the narrow confirmation of now Justice Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court. And he's showing no signs of letting up on that victory lap as he heads into a week that will have him crisscrossing the country on the campaign trail.

At a rally in Kansas on Saturday night, Trump previewed what could become a central theme to his political messaging heading into November. And that's using Kavanaugh's bitter confirmation battle as a warning to Republican voters about what might happen if Democrats retake Congress. Trump used that Supreme Court fight to paint Democrats as extremists, as partisan obstructionists.

And that's all part of the GOP's effort to try to match the Democrats' advantage among voters. It is one Democrats have enjoyed for months now, and it's a reason why experts have predicted a potential blue wave in the midterm elections. Now echoing the President's attacks on Democrats, top Trump aide Kellyanne Conway went after some Democrats on Sunday for the way they handled sexual misconduct allegations against Kavanaugh. Take a listen.

[02:20:12] UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: They wanted America to look up and see Brett Kavanaugh as a gang rapist, and a lot of women including me in America looked up and saw a man who was a political character assassination. And also we looked up and saw in him possibly our husbands, our sons, our cousins, our coworkers, our brothers. And this was unfair.

Had they shown Brett Kavanaugh the grace and dignity that his 10-year- old daughter showed Dr. Ford, that we all showed her in her testimony, in the FBI supplemental investigation.

WESTWOOD: Now Trump will have several chances this week to try to keep up the excitement level of his base. Some GOP strategists have questioned whether that energy will last the several weeks remaining before voters cast their ballots. This Monday, Trump will head to Orlando for an official event before jetting off to campaign rallies throughout the week in Iowa, Pennsylvania, Ohio, and finally Kentucky on Saturday.

Trump will likely continue to celebrate those wins and try to stretch those results into electoral gains next month. Sarah Westwood, CNN, the White House.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HOWELL: Sarah, thank you. Let's talk more about what's ahead with Steven Erlanger. Steven is the Chief Diplomatic Correspondent at the New York Times live via Skype from Brussels, Belgium. Steven, with Kavanaugh now on the high court, it is clear this is a big win for President Trump and his party. So the question, who is more energized, headed into the mid terms.

Is it Republicans who may be very pleased with how this last week played out, or Democrats who have been energized since President Trump took office, but got kicked in the teeth last week?

STEVEN ERLANGER, CHIEF DIPLOMATIC EDITOR, NEW YORK TIMES: Well, that's a very good question, because some people were suggesting if Kavanaugh's confirmation was withdrawn or if he were defeated, it would have really energized the Republicans, and particularly Trump supporters. But that if he got through, it would energize the Democrats. So I think that still makes quite a lot of sense.

We even see Taylor Swift supporting Democrats in Tennessee. So if this is any indication, I think the Democrats feel more energized, and the mid terms will be particularly interesting.

HOWELL: You mentioned Taylor Swift who stayed out of politics, and that is indicative of Democrats and people stepping forward given what's happened. Let's talk about this process to confirm Brett Kavanaugh, now Justice Kavanaugh, a very tight margin here, a 50 to 48 vote, indicative of the sharp divide here in the United States.

And both some Democrats and Republicans are pointing to this as disappointing to say the very least, even the Republican Governor of Ohio, John Kasich. Let's listen.

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JOHN KASICH, (R) OHIO GOVERNOR: Our leaders need to stop playing a zero-sum game like flipping a coin. You know I win, you lose. Leaders need to figure out a way to bring people together. Now, they can have a victory, but they can't leave the person who loses vanquished. And that's so much of what we're seeing.

And in a zero-sum game, we get to appoint where any tactic is acceptable, and then we use our tongues, and we say things that we ultimately can deeply regret.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HOWELL: Governor Kasich there. So what are your thoughts about his assessment of the process?

ERLANGER: Well, it's not a pretty process. Democracy isn't always pretty. I was particularly moved when Linda Murkowski, the sole Republican to vote against Kavanaugh, said that it was the worst process she'd ever been through. And then Trump basically came like a mafia boss warning her that she'd be in trouble. So if that's the tenor of the day, I think partisanship is not going away.

And then there's talk that the Democrats, if they manage to control the systems of government in a few years, may want to pack the cork and try to create 11 justices rather than 9. But there is no question of the importance of what happened is that the centrist vote of Justice Kennedy on the court is gone. We now have a 5-4 court with no one really obviously balanced in the middle.

And so we're going to have a conservative court for a long time. And Ruth Bader Ginsburg, one of our liberals, is 85. Steve Briar, another, is 80. So it could be before the Trump presidency is finished that you have a 7-2 conservative majority on the court. So there is a lot (Inaudible) a lot of it has to do with how long people live and what the midterms are going to tell us.

[02:25:08] HOWELL: The midterms will be certainly crucial for the next several years, even the next several decades. We'll see what happens there. Steven Erlanger live for us in Brussels, Belgium. Thank you, Steven.

ERLANGER: Thanks.

HOWELL: America's top diplomat has arrived in China. What to expect from Mike Pompeo's trip to Beijing ahead.

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HOWELL: Welcome back to viewers here in the United States and around the world. You're watching CNN Newsroom live from Atlanta. I am George Howell with the headlines we're following for you. This hour, a political advisor to Turkey's President tells CNN he believes there is a strong possibility that the journalist you see here, Jamal Khashoggi, a critic of Saudi Arabia was killed inside the Saudi consulate in Istanbul where he was last seen on Tuesday.

The Turkish President, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, says that he is personally chasing this investigation. Saudi Arabia denies any involvement. Chinese authorities say that the former head of Interpol, Meng Hongwei, has been detained in China for alleged corruption and accepting bribes. Interpol says Meng that has resigned just days after his wife reported him missing.

She says that he sent her cryptic text messages after traveling to China, suggesting that he might be in danger. In Brazil, a populist surge is being felt there. This far-right presidential candidate almost secured an outright win with 47 percent of the vote. Jair Bolsonaro campaigned as an anti-establishment candidate.

The Trump of the tropics, he's called. A runoff second place leftist candidate, Fernando Haddad, is scheduled for October 28.

[02:30:00] Israeli Security Forces are looking for a man they say killed two Israelis at a factory in the West Bank on Sunday. Soldiers searched the village where the suspect, a 23-year-old Palestinian lives. Officials say that he used a homemade automatic weapon in the attack.

A 29 year-old woman and a 35-year-old man both employees of the factory, they were both killed. A third person was seriously wounded. CNN's Oren Liebermann is following the story live in Jerusalem this hour. Oren, Israeli Security Forces are looking for the suspect, what are we learning about the attacker?

OREN LIEBERMANN, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, this is now more than 24 hours after the end and security forces to include the army, the Israel Security Agency and police are still searching for the suspected gunman in this shooting. A 23-year-old Palestinian named Ashraf Na'alowa. Authorities say that he came to this factory where he worked in the Barkan Industrial Park in the West Bank in around 7:30 on Sunday morning, went into his place of employment from which authorities say he'd been absent for a few days and then shot two of his coworkers, 35-year-old Ziv Hajbi and 29-year-old Kim Yehezkel.

He then ran away shooting one more person in the stomach. That woman remains in the hospital in stable condition at this point. That led to a very wide, very large scale manhunt to look for the suspected gunman in this case. The Israeli military went into his village near the Northern Palestinian -- Northern West Bank Palestinian City of Tulkarem to try to find him. They carried out a number of searches as well as arrest and apprehensions of those who knew the suspect in this case to try to figure out if he acted alone or if this was a, "Lone wolf attack."

Authorities say he had no criminal or security background before carrying out this attack. One of the victims, 29-year-old Kim Yehezkel was laid to rest last night. The funeral for the second victim is just a few hours away at this point. That's the funeral for Ziv Hajbi. As for the investigation, authorities of course will have to figure out how it is that the suspect entered a secured industrial park with an automatic weapon. It was known as a home-made (INAUDIBLE) based on the Swiss Carl Gustaf rifle.

But the other question is and this is what investigators are looking at, was this terror related? Investigators say so far the indications are that it is based on social media post as well as other indications from the suspect. That all part of the investigation here as they try to figure out how an automatic weapon got on to the industrial park in the West Bank which has security, which has a check, and what led to the shooting in that industrial park, George.

HOWELL: Liebermann on the details of this case live for us in Jerusalem. Oren, thank you. America's top diplomat has touched down in Beijing. The Secretary of State Mike Pompeo met with China's foreign minister just a short time ago. He arrived in Beijing after wrapping up a trip to the Korean Peninsula. There, he meet with South Korea's President Moon Jae-in. But much of the focus has been on this, his talks with the North Korean leader Kim Jong-un.

He told reports an announcement about a new summit between Mr. Kim and the U.S. President Trump is pretty close. Let's talk more about this now with CNN correspondent Sam Kiley following the Secretary of State's visit to China. And Sam, look, this is coming off what Pompeo has described as good talks with North Korea. South Korea certainly satisfied with the result but given some recent comments by the U.S. vice president about China and current trade disputes between the two countries might he get a chilling reception there?

SAM KILEY, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: I think it's certain to have had a fairly frosty encounter behind closed doors. In public, the Chinese have made their views about Mr. Pence's statement last weekend that China was effectively an intense rival both militarily as well as economically, culturally, and indeed was politically attempting to interfere in the November midterm elections. So all charges of course that the Chinese not only deny but called them slander.

That as you point out, George, against the background of a growing trade dispute between the two countries that involves some $200 billion worth of tariffs being imposed on Chinese imports to the United States per year. That figure indeed could go up. So in that context quite a frosty talks likely. Where there will warmth though will be over North Korea because the Chinese and the Americans are in lock step with the idea that the Korean Peninsula, George, needs to be denuclearized.

CHURCH: All right. And on that point, Mike Pompeo telling reporters again that a possible summit is, "Pretty close." But here's the question, is denuclearization is it more about more summits and instant perfect pictures? Is it more about the details here? The nitty-gritty details of what it means for North Korea to denuclearize?

[02:35:07] KILEY: Well, I think the American side are conscious that it's got to be something much more intensely detailed than the broad brush agreement that was made between Chairman Kim and President Trump back in when they met in Singapore. They are saying that an official, senior official level that these are exactly the sorts of details that are going to be worked out. They do come the two sides from a pretty different perspective.

In short, the North Koreans won a good number of concessions being made towards them in terms of trade and international politics before they will completely denuclearize. And of course, the Americans and the west in general and in China would probably want to see a good deal of movement of denuclearization before signing off on a particularly in terms of inspections and so on. But these are the nitty-gritty details that are going to worked on Mr. Pompeo was saying ahead of the summit that both sides think is fairly imminent.

But when and where that will be will also be the subject of talks. But I don't think either leader of either country want to have a summit until there is something pretty substantial for them to get their teeth into and possibly even sign up to, George.

HOWELL: Well, the pictures are pretty. But the devil always in the details. Sam Kiley live for us in Hong Kong. Thank you for the reporting. In Brazil, a far-right presidential candidate has secured a stunning lead ahead of a runoff vote. His critics fear he could become a leader similar to the U.S president and the Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte. We'll explain as CNN NEWSROOM pushes ahead. Stay with us.

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HOWELL: Welcome back to CNN NEWSROOM. I'm George Howell. The parents' of kidnapped Nigerian schoolgirl tells CNN the terror group Boko Haram issued an execution deadline for their daughter. Leah Sharibu's father says Boko Haram militants threatened to kill Leah this month if their demands are not meet. The 15-year-old was abducted with more than 100 school girls in February. Most were released after four weeks but Leah was held back after reportedly refusing to renounce her Christian faith.

[02:40:29] Now to the aftermath of the double natural disasters in Indonesia. More than 5000 people could still be missing. This more than a week after the powerful 7.5 magnitude earthquake and tsunami hit the island of Sulawesi. More than 1700 people are confirmed to have died in the disasters. Military, civilians, and volunteers are keeping the search and rescue efforts going. But officials say that thousands of missing people are mostly from areas destroyed by soil liquefaction as when oversaturated ground essentially turns rivers into mud sweeping only entire neighborhoods.

Emergency teams are working in Northern Haiti after a 5.9 magnitude earthquake that shook that nation late Saturday. At least 12 people were killed and 189 injured. Haiti's president traveled to the area on Sunday to see the damage there. Haiti is still recovering from the massive earthquake back in 2010, that earthquake that killed more than 220,000 people and destroyed much of the capital city. In Brazil, a far-right candidate is getting closer to becoming the next president of that nation.

Jair Bolsonaro has been called the Trump of the tropics. The anti- establishment candidate secured a stunning lead in the first round of Brazil's presidential election. Shasta Darlington has more now from Sao Paulo.

SHASTA DARLINGTON, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: The message from Brazilian voters was loud and clear. They're fed up with the endemic political corruption and the rising crime and violence. Jair Bolsonaro, a former army captain far-right candidate may not have won in absolute majority in Sunday's elections but he's riding a wave of conservatism as he heads toward a runoff leader this month. He beat pollsters projections.

He had supporters celebrating in front of his house. But the candidate himself a fairly sobering speech on social media saying the next three weeks are not going to be easy.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JAIR BOLSONARO, BRAZIL PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE (via translator): We indeed are able to change the destiny of Brazil. We cannot continue flirting with socialism or communism.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

DARLINGTON: Bolsonaro's standing just went up in the polls when he was stabbed during a campaign rally and forced to recover first in the hospital and then at home. In the end, he's going to face-off against Fernando Haddad. He's the candidate for the left-wing Workers' Party who really only joined the race a month ago when former President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva was jailed on corruption charges and forced to pull out of the race.

And after voting himself, Haddad told his supporters that he's going to try to unite other parties behind his candidacy. Now, what's interesting here is that these are the two most popular candidates but also the two most unpopular candidates with very high rejection rates. In fact, just a week before Sunday's election tens of thousands of Brazilians took to the streets in marches organized by women encouraging Brazilians to vote for anyone but Bolsonaro using the slogan (INAUDIBLE) or not him.

Now, of course, they have three weeks to try and unite Brazilians around them. I'm Shasta Darlington for CNN in Sao Paolo.

HOWELL: To talk more about what's happening now in Brazil with Paulo Sotero. Paulo is the Director of the Brazil Institute at Woodrow Wilson Center for Scholars joining via Skype from Washington, D.C. Paulo, thank you so much for your time. Look, voters give a first round victory to Jair Bolsonaro who has been described as Brazil's Trump option outpacing his rival Fernando Haddad. What is the appeal for voters around these two very different candidates?

PAULO SOTERO, DIRECTOR OF THE WILSON CENTER, BRAZIL INSTITUTE: Well, foremost (INAUDIBLE) was clearly represents a rejection. A clear rejection of the left, of the Workers' Party that has governed Brazil for 15 years whose leader, former President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva very famous, very important at one moment is currently in prison serving time for corruption. There is enormous frustration in Brazil with politicians in general. But particularly with the left, particularly the Workers' Party and

Jair Bolsonaro, a back-bencher in Congress. There is one legislation to his name in 27 years there is the beneficiary of this anger Brazilians feel. He has run a campaign on social media mostly. And actually, he has not campaigned recently, he was stabbed during a rally on September 6th and has -- was for three weeks in the hospital, and he didn't explain what he wants to do other than say that he will combat corruption, he will combat crime, and sort of pushing the buttons that are important for an enraged Brazilian public.

[02:45:43] HOWELL: Let's talk more about Bolsonaro, as certainly since being stabbed, he did a plenty on social media putting out messages.

And look, this is a candidate who initially lacked the budget that the mainstream campaigns had. He has been known for his racist, his misogynist, his homophobic comments. What is it about this candidate that has allowed him to see such a rise?

SOTERO: I think it has to do with the moment in Brazil, as I mentioned, this moment of frustration, of rejection. It is people are not voting for someone, they are mostly voting against someone, against the situation.

There is a lot of hatred in all this. And Bolsonaro happens to be the beneficiary, it could be someone else. He is somewhat able on television, but he will now have to face a campaign three weeks of campaign where he will have to expose more himself to the public.

I believe that he has an enormous chance here of winning the election on October the 28th. But it's not clear how you would government with whom you would govern. And so, Brazil is in for a lot of uncertainty.

HOWELL: OK. So, you say this is an election about voting against the other candidate. But talk to us about these other issues. What is important to voters? Is this an election about pocketbook issues, given the nation's economy? Is it about safety issues given crime?

SOTERO: It is about safety issue. This is the most important issue for Brazilians right now. Crime is rampant in Brazil. 17 of the 50 most dangerous cities in the world today are in Brazil. And it's also about the economy. Brazil has gone through a deepest and longest recession in history. Is not completely out of it.

Bolsonaro has promised and has gained the support of financial markets for promising liberalization, a more open economy in Brazil, easier said than done. In his 20-plus years in Congress, he has never supported a single piece of legislation liberalizing the economy, privatizing state companies, and -- but he has an opportunity. A businessman, financial markets are with him at this point.

If he takes a few measures in that direction, it would have probably a positive reaction from investors. But it's very doubtful that he has or he has to prove to have the capacity to form an economic team, to manage an economic team to select key people to important positions and that's why there is so much uncertainty about Mr. Bolsonaro. He has no experience running anything. Especially, running a complex structure as the Brazilian government.

HOWELL: You say that he lacks the experience. But at this point, he seems to have the votes securing a lead here in the first round. We'll see where this goes, of course, Paulo Sotero, thank you so much for your time and perspective there in Washington, D.C.

Next here on CNN NEWSROOM, the artist Banksy pulls off a stunt that has the art world shaking its head in pure disbelief.

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CABRERA: I'm meteorologist Ivan Cabrera, with an update on our new tropical cyclone. Here this one's called Michael, it will eventually be a hurricane that's what they are called in this part of the world.

And I want to pay very close attention to this one bringing torrential rains to portions of Central America. But particularly, now that the plume of moisture now impacting there with Western Cuba. The winds at 95 kilometers per hour that still holds it as a tropical storm to that time the way it's going to stay.

Look at the forecast here as it crosses into the Gulf of Mexico, intensification likely and the potential even for rapid intensification. We're looking at a Category 2 hurricane, but the time we get into Tuesday, 160-kilometer per hour winds. So, it will be between 160, I'm thinking perhaps, even 180 before it makes landfall.

And then, once it's inland we'll begin to see those winds dying down. And then, it goes off to the north and the east. So, this will be the big player for traveling across North America. Particularly, obviously across Eastern United States.

Be about -- behind the storm, it will be certainly wet, and out ahead of it's been pretty warm here. Flood threat continues across the midsection. This is the time of year, its October, we can get hurricanes. We're going to have one at the Gulf of Mexico, and we can get snow, and we're making plenty of it here across the Northern Rockies, as well, as very cold air continuing to move in. And that continues into the Canadian Rockies through the middle part of the week.

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HOWELL: Welcome back to NEWSROOM. One of Tokyo's long-standing institutions is no more. For decades, the Tsukiji fish market has drawn restaurant tours and tourists alike, but now, the market has closed its doors. This was the feeling as it finally shut down on Saturday, you see.

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TAKESHI OHASHI, FORMER WORKER, TSUKIJI FISH MARKET (through translator): I am sad to see Tsukiji close but I do look forward to seeing what the land will be used for after this and how Tokyo will develop going forward. ATZUMI NAKAMURA, FORMER WORKER, TSUKIJI MARKET (through translator): Tsukiji is now a brand name, and people buy from here because it's from Tsukiji. I'm hearing a lot of people that Toyosu will not be the same, and that is why people don't want to move. I have been working here 23 years and don't want to move either. This all brings up a lot of emotions in me.

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HOWELL: The new market location is due to open October 16th. A big reason for the move was that the old markets real estate in the center of Tokyo has become just too valuable.

And finally this hour, the story of the elusive street artists known for over-the-top stunts may have pulled off one of the most audacious yet.

The iconic painting by Banksy has just been auctioned off for more than a million dollars when the unthinkable happened. You'll just have to see it to believe it. Our Lynda Kinkade explains.

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LYNDA KINKADE, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: Moments after a buyer placed the $1.4 million winning bid on his famous Banksy artwork, a stunts like no other. The iconic image, known as, Girl With a Balloon, self- destructs.

The artist delighting in the moment, in real time on his Instagram account. Writing, "Going, going, gone." A shredder building to the frame ripped the piece in the strip at Sotheby's auction house in London. Banksy says he added a shredder to the picture years ago just in case it was ever auctioned off.

It's not clear how the shredder was activated or how this will affect the arts value?

Could it be worth more now?

[02:55:25] WILL ELLSWORTH-JONES, CHIEF REPORTER, SUNDAY TIMES: Well, that would be sad if it is.

KINKADE: Will Ellsworth-Jones, author of Banksy, the man behind the wall, says the artist has a clear message.

JONES: It was a sort of protest against the way his paintings are being monetized. It's become how much does a Banksy make? How much is it worth rather than a painting?

KINKADE: Banksy is known for using the element of surprise to make a point. Like a tiny bought a truck as stuffed animals into New York's Meatpacking District, tweaking for (INAUDIBLE). When he pointed a finger of privilege by painting a butler serving a young graffiti artist on a wall in the Bronx.

In a statement, Sotheby's auction house said, "We've been Banksyed." Lynda Kinkade, CNN.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HOWELL: Wow. And thank you for being with us for this hour. I'm George Howell at the CNN Center in Atlanta. More news right after the break. Stay with us

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