Return to Transcripts main page

CNN NEWSROOM

Taliban Claims Responsibility for Pakistan Attack; Migrant Crisis at Croatia/Serbian Border; FIFA's Jerome Valcke Suspended; Pope Francis to Visit Cuba, U.S.; Pope Helped Cuba, U.S. Restore Diplomatic Ties; Asian Market Response to Fed's Interest Rates Decision; Trump Did Not Denounce Hateful Muslim Rhetoric; Trump: Polls Declare Him Debate Winner; Clinton Responds to Republican Allegations; Tripped Syrian Refugee Given New Life; Power Still Out Following Chilean Earthquake; U.S. Senate Republicans Fail to Derail Iran Nuclear Deal; Widespread Support for U.S. Teen Arrest for Homemade Clock; Rugby World Cup Hours Away. Aired 2-3a ET

Aired September 18, 2015 - 02:00   ET

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


[02:00:00] NATALIE ALLEN, CNN ANCHOR: Plus, Croatia overwhelmed. You're looking at live video of the border. 11,000 migrants have crossed into the country. We look at how the nation is responding.

And later, the Rugby World Cup kicks off in England. Five things you need to know before today's big game.

Hello to you. Welcome to our viewers around the world. I'm Natalie Allen. And this is CNN NEWSROOM.

It is 11:00 a.m. in Pakistan, where Taliban militants are claiming responsibility for a large attack outside the city. The army says security forces have killed at least eight of the attackers. Soldiers are combing through the facility looking for the others. Ambulances are lined up outside the base and all nearby hospitals are on stand by to receive any casualties.

CNN's Sophia Steffi is in Islamabad, and she joins us now on the line.

Sophia, do officials not have all the attackers yet? Do they believe some are still on the loose at that facility?

SOPHIA STEFFI, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Yes, Natalie. We were told eight have been killed so far, two are still missing. It's a large base, as you just mentioned. Trying to find out where they are, if there's any potential suicide bombers. We know the Taliban has obtained responsibility. And 6: 00 in the morning, you despite the fact this has happened is about nine months after the attack in December of 2014 when 141 children and teachers were killed. This is the biggest attack on the military this year.

ALLEN: Any idea why this particular base was targeted?

STEFFI: Well, it seems it's not an operational base. It's a residential base. Maybe they have families in there. There are two operations that are ongoing in Pakistan, one in the north, the other in the south. The operation against them in the north is mainly led by air strikes. There's a belief that this air base itself has been a factor of the retaliation, to the Pakistan air force conducting air strikes in the north.

ALLEN: Sophia, thank you. Hospitals are on stand by for any more casualties. We hope they will not receive any. We'll stay in touch with you for any more developments.

We want to turn to the migrant crisis in Europe. Croatia is no longer welcoming migrants and refugees into that country. We have a live look at the Croatian/Serbian border where migrants are lined up. More than 11,000 have streamed into Croatia since Wednesday. The country said it cannot handle any more and closed the border crossings to those waiting for Serbia. For the migrants who did reach Croatia, they're expected to head into Slovenia. It's not clear how well that route will work. Slovenia's prime minister says his country will protect the European Union's borders. Austria and Germany have now called for an emergency E.U. meeting next week.

Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi and French President Francois Hollande met to discuss the crisis Thursday.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MATTEO RENZI, PRIME ITALIAN MINISTER: Europe was made to breakdown walls not to build them.

FRANCOIS HOLLANDE, FRENCH PRESIDENT: We expect three decisions to be made. The first is to create some hotspots where the new frontiers happen to be. The second decision, those who arrive in Turkey should be able to stay there, work and wait, that the situation in Syria may improve. The third decision is to make sure these people don't escape controls and we're able to send back those who have the prerequisites to stay.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ALLEN: Hungary has banned all border crossings from Serbia for at least 10 days. Wednesday, police used tear gas and water cannons on people who tried to break through a gate. This is what led to the influx into Croatia.

Most migrants are fleeing war and terrorism in the Middle East. Syria has seen the biggest exodus of people, although thousands of these migrants have been on long dangerous journeys.

One Syrian refugee says it's already better than where he came from.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MIGRANT: This is different for me, without my family. In Syria, it's different.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[02:05:19] ALLEN: Our Ivan Watson filed this report as desperate people waited to board buses into Croatia. (BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

IVAN WATSON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: These are scenes that Croatia probably did not anticipate when they opened their border on Wednesday, chaos here at a train depot as the sheer mass of migrants and refugees desperate to push through are heaving against lines of riot police. It's hot here, you can see the perspiration on people's faces, they're trying to push their children through, one by one, past the police who are having to try to hold back the masses of people on the other side.

Come take a look over here, crowds gather behind fences here, passing their children over the fence. The Croatian authorities overwhelmed by the sheer number of people who crossed. There are buses waiting to take people to administrative centers where they can apply for asylum.

But for now, this is a situation that has rapidly grown out of control. Again, just a little bit more than 24 hours after Croatia announced the migrants and refugees would be entering this Balkan country.

Ivan Watson, CNN, Croatia.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ALLEN: In the next half hour, we'll update you on one story you may remember. The Syrian refugee, tripped by a camera woman as he ran with his child in his arms. You'll see how things have turned around for him.

A new round of corruption allegations are surfacing at FIFA. Sepp Blatter's top deputy is now suspended from football's governing body.

CNN's Evan Perez reports he's being linked to a World Cup ticket scam.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

EVAN PEREZ, CNN JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT: Jerome Valcke is the highest- level FIFA official implicated in the bribery scandal that has rocked the world governing body of football. FIFA says they're suspending the organization's secretary-general, Jerome Valcke, after allegations surfaced that he sold World Cup tickets for profit. Valcke denies the allegations, but this brings the scandal ever closer to the president of FIFA. We know the FBI has had sites on Blatter and Valcke. Valcke is listed, though not by name, in the criminal indictment that brought corruption charges against 14 people affiliated with FIFA in May. Law enforcement sources tell me he is the person listens as, quote, "high ranking FIFA official who transferred $10 million to the accounts of another FIFA official." That official, Jack Warner, is charged with taking bribes to secure the 2010 World Cup for South Africa.

Valcke and Blatter are among the senior officials still being investigated by the FBI. And this week, U.S. Attorney General Loretta Lynch says we can expect new charges against more people in the FIFA case.

Evan Perez, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ALLEN: Days ahead of his visit to Cuba and the U.S., Pope Francis addressed the Cuban people in a video message. The pope is credited for being the chief advocate for renewing diplomatic ties between Washington and Havana. In his message, he told Cubans that Jesus loves them and says he looks forward to seeing them and sharing his message in person.

Delia Gallagher is our Vatican correspondent. She joins us live from Rome.

With three masses in Cuba, he will be able to reach the people and share his message. What, Delia, are the goals of the pope's trip?

DELIA GALLAGHER, CNN VATICAN CORRESPONDENT: Of course, Natalie. One of the important meetings for Pope Francis will be with President Raul Castro. There's a possible meeting according to the spokesman with Fidel Castro. That is not on the official agenda, as you mentioned, the pope is coming on the heels of the important role he played in U.S./Cuba relations. The Vatican would like to push that even more and see the economic embargo that is in place for the last 54 clears lifted. They would like to see greater Democratic freedoms for the people of Cuba, including the freedom of religion. Those are some of the things that we will be looking for when the pope addresses the people of Cuba and leaders of Cuba. It's important to say something the Vatican spokesman told us a few days ago. The style is not confrontational. He doesn't say everything in public. He prefers private meetings and backroom meetings to push forward some of those important issues -- Natalie?

[02:10:34] ALLEN: And, Delia, he is the first Latin American pope. How does that affect his trip to Cuba and the U.S.?

GALLAGHER: Well, it's going to be important, obviously, in terms of his reception by the people. I mean, if you consider that, in the U.S., the growing Catholic population is Hispanic. The latest polls put it at 34 percent of Catholics. They are Hispanic. And it's significant, in that respect, that only 14 out of the 18 speeches the pope will give in the U.S. will be in English. The rest of the time he will be speaking in Spanish as a nod to that population. In Cuba, it's significant that the pope is a Latin American pope, not only for the Cuban people but also for his discussions with the leaders there.

There may be more reception on the part of the Castros to receive this Latin American pope. When Raul Castro was here at the Vatican in May, such was the influence that Pope Francis had over him in their discussions, that he came out of the meeting saying he might return to the Catholic Church. Significant that the pope in a certain sense is one of them -- Natalie?

ALLEN: What about his trip to the United States. There are some reports that he might take a ride in his pope mobile while in the U.S. How different is the message that he wants to stay in the U.S. to what he'll be doing in Cuba. GALLAGHER: He's got several messages for the United States, and

remember the U.S. is already in full swing for their presidential elections for next year, in that regard it will be very important what he says to the joint sessions of the U.S. Congress. It's the first time that a pope is going to address a joint session of Congress on many important issues that politicians will then have to play out for their electoral campaigns.

He will also be speaking to the U.N. on the important issue of the environment, one of the major themes of this pontiff. He wraps up his trip in Philadelphia at the World Meeting of Families, which is a Catholic meeting focusing on some of the challenges to the modern family today.

ALLEN: What an interesting trip this will be to Cuba and the United States for this pope.

Delia Gallagher, covering it for us, thank you, live from Rome.

We are getting new insight into how Pope Francis helped Cuba and the U.S. restore diplomatic ties.

CNN's Patrick Oppmann spoke exclusively with one of the men who had a front-row seat to the secret negotiations.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I want to thank his holiness, Pope Francis, whose moral example shows us the importance of pursuing the world as it should be.

PATRICK OPPMANN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: On the day of the breakthrough in relations between Cuba and the United States, Castro and Barack Obama both paid homage to Pope Francis for his role in the landmark agreement.

(SINGING)

OPPMANN: Not mentioned was this man, Cardinal Jaime Ortega, the pope's eyes and ears in Havana, who was at the center of parts of the diplomacy.

In an exclusive interview with CNN, Ortega reveals at the pope's first meeting with President Obama, Francis lobbied to change U.S. policy toward Cuba. Obama surprised the pope by agreeing with him.

"The president's response was very clear," he says. "These measures were all made before his birth, and he wishes to change them. This encouraged the pope and he made the important argument that would benefit the Cuban people who had suffered under these measures."

The cardinal said the church was not directly involved in the negotiations, but acted as a back channel to keep lines of communication open between Cold War adversaries and push for an agreement. (on camera): One of those back channels, Ortega says, was how to

arrange a prisoner swap between the two countries. Cuba wanted to exchange Allen Gross for three of their captured intelligence agents. The United States wanted a better deal.

(voice-over): The cardinal thought he knew how to break the deadlock. He had received a letter from a man he had prayed with while ministering the inmates in prison. His name was Rolando Soroff (ph), a Cuban intelligence official condemned to a lengthy sentence for his spying for the CIA.

"He wrote me a letter as someone who could be exchanged," Ortega says. "It was something separate from the pope's contribution. He wrote saying he could be traded."

At secret meetings at the Vatican and in Canada where sources involved in the negotiations say Cuba was represented by this man, Colonel Alejandro Castro, Raul Castro's son. The prisoner swap was struck.

After the trade, U.S. officials called Soroff (ph) one of the most valuable spies they ever had in Cuba, having helped broker ties with the U.S.'s long-strained relations between the church and Cuba are also improving.

Having helped broker ties with the U.S., long-strained relations between the church and state in Cuba were also included.

"The desire that Raul Castro stressed toward the U.S. is that we could live with our differences," he says, "but in a civilized manner. That's the desire that the church has also expressed to the government. The church is not the enemy."

A message of reconciliation and new beginnings that Pope Francis will bring with him when he arrives in Cuba.

Patrick Oppmann, CNN, Havana.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

[02:15:55]ALLEN: We will head out on the U.S. campaign trail to New Hampshire where a man in the audience asked Donald Trump what he plans to do about the country's, quote, "Muslim problem." We'll have Trump's response to that just ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ALLEN: Welcome back to CNN NEWSROOM. We turn to your money. The U.S. Federal Reserve is holding its key interest rates steady for now, leaving market watchers wondering when a hike may come. Rates have been near zero since the financial crisis in 2008.

Fed Chair Janet Yellin explains Thursday's decision to keep rates unchanged.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) JANET YELLIN, CHAIRMAN, FEDERAL RESERVE: The outlook abroad appears to have become more uncertain of late. And heightened concerns about growth in China and other emerging market economies have led to notable volatility in financial markets.

Given the significant economic and financial interconnections between the United States and the rest of the world, the situation abroad bears close watching.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ALLEN: The Dow closed down 69 points. U.S. stocks were mixed as investors processed the decision.

Let's take a look at how the markets in the Asia-Pacific region are reacting. Tokyo's Nikkei closed down 1.96 percent. Hong Kong's up 5.2 percent. The Shanghai composites down 4.34. And in Sydney, the ASX200 up .46 percent.

CNN's Asia-Pacific editor, Andrew Stevens, is in Hong Kong with more on how markets are responding to the U.S. Fed's decision.

Hello, there, Andrew.

[02:20:06] ANDREW STEVENS, CNN ASIA-PACIFIC EDITOR: Hi, Natalie. I think that Japan number that jumps out at you there is not all about the Fed. There are still concerns about the state of the global economy and Japan is a key importer and exporter. You look at the number on the Nikkei, its people taking a bit of profit off the table ahead of the holiday. You see the very mixed picture there. That does sum up what the Feds decision is. It still really hasn't provided any clarity at all, other than the fact that we know there's a problem with the global economy. The Fed doesn't know they're holding fire for at least another month.

Interesting though, Natalie, before this meeting, 15 of the 17 Fed board members have indicated that they're in favor of a rates rise. That number has now shrunk back to 13. So it's an indicative number. They make a decision at the time. It's still likely to be a rate rise this year. The Feds going a little bit softer on the process.

ALLEN: And we hear a lot, Andrew, about why U.S. interest rates are so important to emerging economies like Brazil and Indonesia. Why is that?

STEVENS: Well, the emerging market currencies have been tumbling since the first hint of a rate rise was made. You have to go back to May 2013 when then Fed chief was pulling back on quantity of easing. It was known as a temper tantrum at the time, markets panicked about the possibility of a rate rise. That was the response on the emerging market currencies since then, over the last couple days. The reason is, that people are looking at the U.S. dollar as a more attractive place to put their money, they're taking their money out of the emerging markets. The riskier markets seek better returns in a safer market. That's why you're getting this big selloff. A lot of people would say, lower currency means good news for exports, but in this case, most of those countries you saw there, Natalie, they export commodities. China's not buying commodities in the same volume it was before. They don't really have a buyer for this, though. It's affecting their real economy. On top of that, you forgot loans, which a lot of these countries had loans taken out by big companies in dollars. They have to pay the interest in that loan in dollars. And as the dollar gets stronger and their currency gets weaker, it becomes tougher and tougher. It's in a pretty difficult position to see the emerging markets dealing with this big fall in the currency.

ALLEN: We appreciate you breaking it down for us. Andrew Stevens, live in Hong Kong. Thank you.

Hillary Clinton says Donald Trump was just plain wrong for not denouncing some hateful rhetoric about Muslims. The Republican presidential candidate was taking questions from supporters in a rally in New Hampshire Thursday. Listen to what happened.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We have a problem in this country, it's called Muslims. We know our current president is one.

DONALD TRUMP, (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE & CEO, TRUMP ORGANIZATION: Right.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You know he's not even an American --

(CROSSTALK)

TRUMP: We need this question --

(CROSSTALK)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: But anyway, we have training camps where they want to kill us. That's my question, when can we get rid of them.

TRUMP: We're going to be looking at a lot of different things. A lot of people are saying that, and a lot of people are saying that bad things are happening out there. We're going to be looking at that and plenty of other things.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ALLEN: Trump told supporters he was excited about the CNN Republican debate and he even cited some flash polls that declare him a winner by a landslide.

CNN's Sara Murray is traveling with Donald Trump.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SARA MURRAY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Fresh off his performance at the CNN debate, appearing here in Rochester, New Hampshire, last night, fielding questions from voters at a town hall. They asked him everything from whether he would meet the pope, to how he would handle the Syrian refugee crisis to what he would do to make sure Social Security is solvent.

But Donald Trump saved his toughest fire for the woman who many said performed the best on the debate stage last night, Carly Fiorina.

TRUMP: I thought I'd wait a couple of days before I exposed her business failure. But, honestly, it's so ridiculous.

Yesterday, on the front page of the "Wall Street Journal," that Hewlett-Packard, that they are dropping 30,000 jobs now? They're still recovering. They may never. How knows if they'll ever recover. But -- and then she says -- everyone says she made a good speech yesterday. I don't know. I don't get it. I don't get it. I don't get.

MURRAY: You see there Donald Trump has some strong words for Carly Fiorina. Despite her strong debate performance, you will not be surprised to hear that Donald Trump believes he won the CNN debate. And he was quick to point out he won the CNN debate. He continues on to the campaign trail today at an event in South Carolina.

Sara Murray, CNN, Rochester, New Hampshire.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

[02:25:19] ALLEN: It is no surprise Hillary Clinton was a prime target at the Republican debate. She was out on the campaign trail Thursday. Clinton sat down for an exclusive interview with CNN's Wolf Blitzer to respond to some of the allegations.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

HILLARY CLINTON, (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE & FORMER SECRETARY OF STATE: I didn't get to see all of their debate, but I saw enough of it to know that this is just the usual back and forth political attacks, the kinds of things you say when you're on a debate stage and you really don't have much else to say. I didn't hear anything from any of them about how they're going to make college more affordable or get down student debt or get equal pay for equal work for women. What they're going to do to make sure that we deal with challenges of raising incomes for hardworking people. So I don't really pay a lot of attention to this kind of rhetoric that heats up the debate stage.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ALLEN: Hillary Clinton talking with CNN.

Deadly protests erupt after a coupe in a country that has been aiding its Western allies in the fight against terrorism. That is next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[02:29:52] ALLEN: Welcome back to our viewers from around the world. You're watching CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Natalie Allen. Here are our top stories this hour.

[02:30:00] The Pakistani army says it has killed at least eight militants who attacked an air force base near the city of Peshara (ph). It's the largest assault on the country's military personnel this year. The Taliban claims responsibility.

Another scandal at FIFA. Secretary-general Jerome Valcke is suspended until further notice. Valcke's lawyer denies allegations he profited from tickets that were allegedly sold on the black market.

Buses have started leaving the Croatian border with Serbia, and long lines are forming as migrants wait to move into northern Europe. This is live video you're seeing. Croatia says it has reached its limit and closed seven border crossings into Serbia. More than 11,000 people have poured across the border since Wednesday.

You may remember video of a camerawoman tripping a Syrian refugee a week ago. He was running with his 8-year-old son in his arms in a field near Hungary's border. The father and son have been given a new home and a new life.

Paula Newton shows you.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

(SHOUTING)

PAULA NEWTON, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It was the trip seen around the world. A Syrian refugee running with a child in his arms tripped by a camera woman while fleeing police near the Hungarian border, the video caused an international outrage and the Hungarian camera woman was fired.

(APPLAUSE)

NEWTON: That same refugee father received a different welcome in Spain. Osama Abdul Mohsen and his two sons were greeted with applause at this train station. 52-year-old Mohsen was overwhelmed.

OSAMA ABDUL MOHSEN, SYRIAN REFUGEE: I love you. I love Madrid. I love Espana, all Espana. Thank you for all. This very important for my life I am here with you, thank you very much.

NEWTON: It turns out Mohsen is a football coach who managed one of Syria's top teams, until the country's civil war forced him to flee to Turkey.

When the president of a school for coaches in Spain heard Mohsen's story, he arranged for him to travel to Madrid and offered Mohsen a job.

MIGUEL ANGEL GALN, PRESIDENT, NATIONAL SCHOOL OF FOOTBALL COACHES (through translation: The fact that he is a football coach in Syria and we are the National School Football Coach's, leads to solidarity because we are colleagues. So we said, how are we going to support these people.

NEWTON: The school is also providing Mohsen with an apartment, language training, and schools for his children. Mohsen's wife and the rest of his family, who are still in Turkey, are

expected to come to Spain next week.

And the family will be guests at Real Madrid's next match.

A remarkable turn of events for Mohsen, from being tripped in a field in Hungary, to starting a whole new life in Spain, all of it in little more than one week.

Paula Newton, CNN.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ALLEN: Thousands of migrants and refugees are in need of food, clothes and more as they try to start over. For ways you can help, you can head to our website, CNN.com/impact.

There is great political uncertainty right now in a tiny African country that's become an important ally in the West's war against radical Islam. Right now, people in Burkina Faso are waking up to a new leader after a military coupe. The general was a top aide to the country's former president who was ousted a year ago. He is now in charge.

One capital resident described what the coup was like.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED BURKINA FASO RESIDENT: The people started to come, in front of us, we saw they directly in front of us, they started shooting, people started to fall. They said they were looking for specific people, if they found them, they would finish them all.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ALLEN: Deadly protests have erupted in the capital. General elections were to be held next month. The toppled leaders are being held but it is not clear where they are.

The power remains out for tens of thousands of people in Chile after a deadly earthquake struck off the country's coastline Wednesday. At least 11 people died, more than 170 homes were destroyed. The 8.3 magnitude quake triggered tsunami warnings across southwestern Africa and all across the Pacific as far away as Japan.

The Chilean president credited efficient disaster planning for preventing a more serious tragedy. Chile is highly prone to earthquakes.

DEREK VAN DAM, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Highly prone, but also highly prepared as well, Natalie.

I spent some time in Santiago. Many of the high rises have pools at the top of these buildings that act as a counterbalance, when shaking or swaying from around earthquake takes place. It helps prevent the damage from the buildings. ALLEN: That's by design?

VAN DAM: By design.

ALLEN: Oh. Yeah.

VAN DAM: It's very clever to counteract the effects of an earthquake. And that's why the infrastructure there is so strong, especially when you have an 8.3 magnitude.

ALLEN: 8.3, I know.

(CROSSTALK)

VAN DAM: Only 200 kilometers away. So very impressive.

Listen, I want to tell you about some flooding events that we've been covering over the past 12 hours or so. Three different flooding events spreading over three different continents across the world. Check this out. We have flooding in Asia, flooding in Europe, and we have flooding over western Africa. I'll highlight all of those in a moment. This is a satellite loop across the world, just to give you a bit of background. This is the equator, the intertropical convergence zone. Notice how the storms move from east to west. They're flaring up across Africa, northern sections of South America and parts of Indonesia. This is an area where we get convergence and thunderstorm ago activity. This is latitudes of 30 to 60 degrees. It's also mimicked on the southern hemisphere as well. They have low pressure systems, cold fronts and warm fronts, something you're probably more accustomed too if you live in Europe or perhaps you're watching us from the United States or even into China. The reason I bring this up, the difference there is that storms move from west to east, and that is what is responsible for our flooding in Scandinavia, particularly Norway. But it's the intertropical convergence zone that's brought us flooding into Thailand. Take a look at some of these visuals coming out of this area. This particular region typically receives about 219 millimeters of rainfall, in the whole month of September. In a two-day period, it received 198, that led to flooding scenes down the roadways and pretty scary for some of those individuals living in that region. We hop over to western Africa. This is an area that is impacted by the intertropical convergence zone. The convergence of air that allows for thunderstorms to develop, and unfortunately, it produced a significant amount of rain in the capital of Sierra Leone over the past several days, that's mixed with some of the mud into the ground and it's also created landslides and mudslides. Take a look at this profound photo of mudslides sweeping across somebody's living room, that water eventually poured right out their windows, unfortunately, there were four people left dead with this particular flooding event. You can see cars, entire SUVs swept away by the tore ants of rainfall. We take you to Scandinavia, specifically Norway, we have had rivers burst their banks outside of Oslo, you can see this moving mass of water, I would not be anywhere near that particular bridge. Of course, very dangerous situation for that particular area with in excess of 100 millimeters of rain falling since Monday. We cover this quite often, remember, it only takes about 150 millimeters of rainfall to sweep somebody off their feet, it takes about 600 millimeters or just over a half meter of rainfall that moves to actually pick up an entire car and sweep it down the road.

ALLEN: Yet, people always try to get through it sometimes.

VAN DAM: I know. That's why they need to learn the saying "Turn around, don't drown."

ALLEN: Sounds good to me.

Derek, thank you.

Still to come here, social media goes wild when a Muslim teenager takes his handmade clock to school to impress his teacher and winds up in handcuffs. More about it when we come back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[02:42:02] ALLEN: Reykjavik Iceland is stepping squarely into the Israeli/Palestinian dispute passing a resolution to boycott all products made in Israel. A retiring council woman proposed the measure saying Israel must end its occupation of Palestinian territories. The move is called a volcano of hate. The wife of Iceland's president was born in Israel. Lawmakers are reportedly looking into whether the resolution violates Iceland's constitution. To Washington now, where a last-ditch effort by U.S. Senate

Republicans failed to derail the Iran nuclear deal. An amendment they largely supported fell short of the votes needed to pass Thursday. The measure, designed to pressure Democrats, would have required Iran to recognize Israel and release Americans held in Iran before getting sanctions relief from the United States.

That deal was negotiated by the U.S., Iran, and five world powers earlier this year. It provides Iran relief from international sanctions in exchange for constraints on its nuclear program. Opponents fear the proposed deal will empower Iran, but supporters say it keeps Iran's nuke program peaceful.

CNN's Fredrik Pleitgen recently spoke with Iran's vice president to get her take on the controversial agreement.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MASOUMEH EBTEKAR, IRANIAN VICE PRESIDENT: It's a balance. It sees all aspects of the issue. Particularly the lifting of the economic and nuclear sanctions that's very important for our country. And it gives Iran the opportunity to play the role that it should play in the region.

FRED PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: There are some countries who fear Iran playing a bigger role in this region.

EBTEKAR: I think that we're already working on that matter. They've been visiting different countries in the region, creating an atmosphere of trust, trust and confidence in the fact that Iran is playing a role with respect to trying to resolve the conflicts, trying to bring about peace and civility.

PLEITGEN: Could that also mean cooperation with the United States in certain areas?

EBTEKAR: That would mean cooperation with the global community, including the United States. We've always had cooperation at different levels before. Of course, limited, with respect to Afghanistan, with respect with elicit drugs. And now I think the priority will be to implement the settlement properly in a balanced way to ensure that the deal is properly implemented in all its different aspects. I think that is the priority we have in our relationships with the United States.

PLEITGEN: There's some pretty strong rhetoric especially coming from the Republicans.

EBTEKAR: We have the spoilers on both sides.

(LAUGHTER)

On both sides, people are attempting to undermine the deal. Well, they -- all sides, I think they have their concerns, but the most important thing is the majority, at least in Iran were confident, the majority support, balance and just settlement which also ensures the dignity of the Iranian nation, and I'm sure it's the same on the other side, the American people are also looking forward to a deal which would ensure peace and prosperity and stability in the world.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

[02:45:38] ALLEN: Iran's V.P. speaking with CNN's Fred Pleitgen. Fred is in Iran where he'll be covering anti-U.S. and anti-Israel marches scheduled hours from now in Iran.

U.S. President Barack Obama is hailing three friends who subdued a gunman on a train to Paris as, quote, "the very best of America." Mr. Obama met Thursday at the White House with Alex, Anthony Saddler and Spencer Stone. They tackled the man who tried to open fire on passengers last month. After the White House meeting, each received a medal from U.S. Defense Secretary Ash Carter in a ceremony at the Pentagon. Last month, French President Francois Hollande gave them the Legion of Honor, France's highest honor.

A teenager in the state of Texas is getting support on a global scale after he was handcuffed and arrested when his school mistook a homemade clock for a possible bomb. Now, in the wake of the outrage, 14-year-old Ahmed Mohamed is getting accolades from the White House and internship offers.

CNN's Alina Machado has his story.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ALINA MACHADO, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): This is Ahmed Mohamed, being led away in handcuffs after being accused of creating a fake bomb and bringing it to school. The device was nothing more than his latest invention.

AHMED MOHAMED, STUDENT: I guess everyone knows I'm the person who built a clock and got in a lot of trouble for it.

MACHADO: Authorities released this picture of the clock. Ahmed says he made it using a pencil case and was excited to show it off at school.

MOHAMED: I built a clock to impress my teacher, but when I showed it to her, she thought it was a threat to her. So it was really sad that she took the wrong impression of it and I got arrested for it later that day.

MACHADO: The chief of the Irving, Texas, Police Department says officers took Ahmed into custody because of the device's, quote, "suspicious appearance." But by Wednesday, police announced there would be no charges filed against the 14-year-old.

LARRY BOYD, CHIEF, IRVING POLICE DEPARTMENT: The follow-up investigation revealed the device apparently was a homemade experiment and there's no evidence to support the perception he intended to create alarm.

MACHADO: The mayor of Irving defended the actions of both the school district and police, releasing a statement saying, in part, "I do not fault the school or the police for looking into what they saw as a potential threat."

Still, the incident is fueling criticism and outrage on social media and plenty of words of encouragement for the team.

MOHAMED: It made me happy to see all these people support me and support others.

MACHADO: Support from high-profile names and companies. Reddit and Twitter have offered him internships. Facebook Mark Zuckerberg wrote, "The future belongs to people like Ahmed," adding, "Ahmed, if you ever want to come by Facebook, I'd love to meet you. Keep building."

Even President Obama asked to meet him, tweeting, "Cool clock, Ahmed. Want to bring it to the White House?"

The teen's story, even a topic on last night's Republican presidential debate.

JAKE TAPPER, DEBATE MODERATOR: Did you ever see the discrimination part of it?

BOBBY JINDAL, (R), LOUISIANA GOVERNOR & PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Sure. I don't think a 14-year-old should ever get arrested for bringing a clock to school.

MACHADO: Now Ahmed was suspended for three days. It's unclear if he's going to return to the same school. He says he wants to transfer schools.

As for the clock, police were initially holding on to it as evidence. But they tell us it is ready for Ahmed to pick it up.

Alina Machado, CNN, Miami.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ALLEN: An update on what she just said there, we have learned from his parents that he will be switching schools.

Just ahead, it is billed as the largest tournament of its kind. The first match of the Rugby World Cup is just hours away, and we have selected five things you need to know about it.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

[02:50:57] KATE RILEY, CNN WORLD SPORTS ANCHOR: I'm Kate Riley, with your CNN "World Sport" headlines.

Top FIFA official, Jerome Valcke, has been put on leave and relieved from duties until further notice by world soccer's governing body Thursday. The FIFA secretary-general has been in his role since 2007. He was widely considered the right hand man to FIFA president, Sepp Blatter. These FIFA allegations Thursday implicated the Frenchman in a scheme to sell World Cup tickets above face value. Valcke has denied the allegations. FIFA has been engulfed in claims of widespread corruption since May when Swiss police raided a Zurich hotel, arresting seven of its top executives.

To the Europa League, where Qarabag visited Tottenham in their first ever game in the Europa League. The Qarabag champions took the lead, but would get two goals within minutes of each other to put Spurs ahead. Made sure it was Tottenham that took away all three points with the late goal, 3-1, to end it.

The Rugby Union World Cup trophy greeted with cheers outside 10 Downing Street in London Thursday. British Prime Minister David Cameron and children waved flags and looked on as the Webb Ellis Cup arrived in Westminster. England plays Fiji Friday at Twikingham to open the global showcase.

That's the global sports headlines. I'm Kate Riley.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ALLEN: The opening match of the Rugby World Cup is just hours away when England faces off against Fiji. Over the next 44 days, teams from 20 countries will do battle in England and Wales. It is expect to be the largest World Cup in history.

CNN's Alex Thomas has five things you need to know about the sport and the tournament.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) (MUSIC)

ALEX THOMAS, CNN WORLD SPORTS ANCHOR: OK, so we would be stretching to say Rugby is becoming as global as football, but there is at least one team from every continent on the planet, bar Antarctica. Traditional powers such as New Zealand, England and South Africa in the mix with improving nations, Uruguay, Namibia, the United States and more. There's enough interest for organizers to claim around three-quarters of a billion people watch on television and online.

(MUSIC)

THOMAS: Rugby World Cup is aiming big, not just trying to match world wide competitions, like the Premier League and the NFL, but going one better, global, how about interstellar. OK, rugby in space was just a stunt. But organizers are using technology to engage new fans.

(MUSIC)

THOMAS: Don't know your hocker from your rubber? They've made these demos to help you understand.

ANNOUNCER: If kicked so the ball rotates end over end, the trajectory should remain straight.

(MUSIC)

[02:55:02] THOMAS: Rugby officials aren't growing the game from scratch, though. They claim the World Cup is the third-biggest sporting event on the planet. That's based on TV audience, tickets sold, and the number of countries taking part. But it is open to debate, especially with lovers of the Winter Olympics and European football championship.

(MUSIC)

THOMAS: Unlike the 2012 Olympics, this isn't just a London event. Rugby World Cup games are being played in 13 different stadiums across 11 you cities in England and Wales. Fans of soccer clubs like Manchester City and Aston Villa will have to get used to their grounds looking different.

(MUSIC)

THOMAS: The team on everyone's lips is the All Blacks and their famous Hucka war dance. New Zealand's team and their distinctive hit.

(SHOUTING)

THOMAS: They're not just defending champions and ranked world number one, they have dominated rugby union for well over a decade. Some even claim the best sports team of all time. Now that's a debate that really stirs some passions.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ALLEN: They definitely have the best cheer, don't they?

Thank you for watch CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Natalie Allen. We have another hour coming up right after this. I'll be right back with more on the migrant crisis, live, in the Croatian border town.