i'm still waiting to wake up from this terrible dream. my daughter, she said, i know we hated our home and we wanted to move out, but it was our home and i'm sad that it's gone. >> whole neighborhoods burned to cinders and we're hearing heart breaking stories of people, families who lost everything in deadly wildfires, raging in california. plus, a day of unity with a sharp dig at the u.s. president, his french counterpart saying nationalism won't work in today's world. also ahead this hour, imagine earning $30.8 billion in

just one day. that's how many online sales alibaba racked up, setting a new world record. wow. 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. at 3:01 on the u.s. east coast, we start in the state of california. entire communities there have been burned to the ground. take a look at this map. it shows the fires affecting both the northern and southern parts of the state. many people will still unaccounted for. the death toll continues to rise. at least 31 people have died in the camp and woolsey fires so far. take a look at this. terrifying scenes when the campfire first sparked up in northern california thursday. at least 29 people have died as a result of that fire, tying it for the deadliest fire in the

state's history. it's already taking the record for the state's most destructive. in southern california, the woolsey fire forced more than 200,000 people to evacuate, to leave their homes. residents say they were shocked as the flames raced toward their homes. listen. >> you know, you know, we thought we were ready. we thought we had the right stuff. we hosed everything down. the standard protocol for what people do in these areas. but when it came over this ridge right here behind us, there was no way. i mean, it was 100 foot wall of flames. it was like a firestorm that was roaring. it was -- there's just no way. >> and in northern california, residents there of paradise are hoping to return home, though many won't have homes to return to. our nick valencia reports from what's left of paradise, california.

>> is that the welcome to paradise sign? it is. >> that's our paradise sign. >> reporter: but the time most people in paradise realized how quickly the fire was spreading, they were already in trouble. this man couldn't believe his eyes. >> [ bleep ] town is on fire. >> this is nothing like what we've had before, but here, you're looking at 90% of the homes are gone in every single neighborhood. >> reporter: jody jones is the paradise mayor. she says the speed and if feros of the fire caused gridlock on the main road. there was such panic some drivers abandoned their cars as they tried to flee on foot. >> we did have an evacuation plan in place. we did implement it. it worked the way it was supposed to work. we just never anticipated having to evacuate all zones all at the same time. >> reporter: an automatic emergency alert was sent out to land lines and cell phones of registered residents.

but not everyone got a notification. cole wyatt and his family live here. cole tells me he was asleep at the time the fire started. had it not been for a phone call from his brother, he might not have gotten out before it was too late. >> he didn't even think it was bad enough to call. but something in his gut said i need to make sure my family knows. and thank god he did. >> reporter: cole wasn't registered to receive the alerts. >> i immediately started thinking about my daughter. >> reporter: in the chaos cole says it took him two hours to find out his 8-year-old daughter had already been picked up from school by a family member. when they did evacuate, stuck in the gridlock, he ran out of gas. a stranger stopped and gave him enough to get out of town. has it hit you yet? >> no, i'm still in shock. i'm still waiting to wake up from this terrible dream. my daughter said, i know we hated our home and we wanted to move out, but it was our home, and i'm sad that it's gone. >> reporter: outside of paradise, we meet james and ruby

harris. their car still covered in ash from the fire. they show us where it was damaged when an rv crashed into them during the evacuation, trying to move it out of the way. the scene they describe is absolute mayhem. >> and my husband had to get our son out of the car and into the wheelchair and buckle him in and, you know, keep my other son from taking off. >> reporter: this is while flames are surrounding you? >> exactly. and everybody is running past us. >> reporter: though they were both able to get out. both the harrises and wyatts have nothing to return to. >> our whole town was wiped off the face of the earth in a matter of eight hours. >> reporter: the most destructive fire in california history has changed their town forever. nick valencia, cnn, paradise, california. >> on the phone with us this hour, we have a man who escaped with his family from their home in paradise, california. forest wood cox is now safe in gridly, california.

forest, thank you again for being with us. first of all, we're so thankful that you and your family are safe. tell us how you're doing, and if you could, tell us about what you're hearing given the situation in paradise. >> well, right now, george, we're doing the best that we can for what the situation is. based off everything i've heard, there is a death toll of about 29 so far that they have accounted for. >> right. >> from what i've also heard, there's a lot of people missing. not entirely sure if they're dead or if everything is okay. i'm hoping and praying that everything is okay with everybody that's missing and i'm hoping that all these families can be able to hold people again because it's quite unfortunate to see all the devastation that's happened around us. not easy and it's not going to be easy for the community of paradise for a while. we've seen a lot of beautiful support and a lot of great things have been done throughout the rest of the other communities.

yeah, i mean, for what it's worth, it's -- yeah, not going to be easy is all i can say. >> forest, while you're talking, we're looking at these pictures. we're seeing what it must have been like to drive through that main road getting out of paradise. would you just tell our viewers in the u.s. and around the world what it was like for you, what it was like for your family getting on that road, seeing all those flames on either side of the highway? how did you get out of there? >> george, the easiest way to explain this, there's no easy way to explain it. but it was terrifying. we honestly weren't thinking we were going to make it out of there alive. we had carbs on the left and right of us, trying to pass us, people turning around, freaking out, panicking. the car driving behind us tire popped and they swerved and we had hot embers and the fire was cracking and just burning everything in its path. we could hear the trees around us, the crackling of the trees

burning. we had -- everything around us surrounded by smoke and ash blowing into our car. you could literally feel the heat that was outside of our vehicle inside of our car. and even with our ac on, you could still feel how hot it was. we were honestly all hysterical. at the end, we were crying. that was a moment in my life that i know that we will never forget. we honestly didn't think we were going to make it out of that alive. >> forest, we're so thankful that you and your family did make it out safely and one can only imagine what it was like for you to be on the road in that right there. look, i ask you with respect, if it's too far to ask, just let me know. but people wonder, what is it like for you in a situation like this where you don't know what's left over. you're trying to figure out your next steps. have you started thinking about the next steps, what is next for you? where do you go from here?

>> honestly, the first step that we can have is just keeping each other, you know, trying to keep each other together. my family and i, we have been very close throughout all these years. we helped each other through the hardest of times. we've been through a lot together already. my grandparents' house is on the brink of being burned down multiple times. we knew that the day would probably come we just did not think that it was going to be thursday. we had all hoped and prayed that things were okay. recently we found out from a family friend that our house was completely burned down. my grandparents lost their property and their business. over 47 years of hard work that my grandpa put into his house and his business was completely destroyed. i'm not worried about us so much. i'm worried about my community. i want everybody to know that if they need anybody to talk to or

anybody to direct them, need direction to get help, that they can always come to me and i'm there for them. we're all in this together. >> forest, thank you again for being with us. we wish forest the very best. thankful that he's safe. but again, so many other people with a great deal of uncertainty. our meteorologist pedram javaheri is following it. pedram? >> yeah, george. you know this pattern has played out for so many months here. we've seen the drought build across this region. of course now we're in the thick of it when it comes to extreme fire conditions going even into this monday afternoon. and then work your way to the north, we're talking about critical risk in place there. the gusty winds still in that forecast. the humidity is down to as low as 3% in spots and, of course, plenty of fuel to go around as well. high pressure has been kind of really -- across the eastern portion of the state now over the santa ana mountains. that's where we're having the santa ana winds kick up. of course the month of november

often the prime time to see the winds pick up in intensity across this region. the rainfall has been just about nonexistent in this region. in fact, the last time some of these cities saw rainfall was more than half an inch in a single day was some 7 to 8 months ago. so really tells you what a long duration period we're going here without any significant rainfall across this region of california. we'll expect this warmth to continue another couple days. the next best window for improving conditions in the weather department is going to be sometime around wednesday. the next best window for rainfall is thanksgiving, some ten days out. so still looking at widespread extreme conditions for fire weather behavior to be very difficult to contain. 50 to 70 mile per hour gusts are in the forecast across the canyons, across the mountainous terrain. that's in southern california where 20 million people are underneath the wind warnings and advisories. you take a city like calabasas that has been hard hit across this region with the fire weather the last couple of days. temps actually expected to rise

in the next few days. rainfall probability sits right at 0% there, so good news certainly going to be hard to find across this region. and you take a look at the air quality conditions. they are comparable to what's happening in areas of china. eastern china, well known of course for poor air quality. so really talks about the severities of what's happening in california right now. >> pedram, thank you again. re: thank you. >> the u.s. president donald trump, he's back in washington, d.c. after marking 100 years since the end of world war i in paris, the armistice that ended the war. during his time in paris, alongside world leaders, mr. trump also got a lecture from the french president, emmanuel macron for his proud nationalism and america first policies. jim accosta reports. >> reporter: president trump is on his way back to washington after receiving something of a lecture from the french president emmanuel macron at the 100th anniversary at the end of of world war i here in paris. president macron said

nationalism is the opposite of patriotism and what seemed like a stinging rebuke of president trump's politics. here's more of what macron had to say. >> translator: patriotism is the exact opposite of nationalism. nationalism is a betrayal of patriotism. i know there are all demons which are coming back to the surface. they are ready to wreak chaos and death. history sometimes threatens to take its sinister course once again. >> reporter: later on in the day the president paid a visit to a u.s. military cemetery to remember american soldiers who died in world war i. the president made the trip despite the heavy rain in paris, contrast that with the decision he made one day earlier when he scrapped the visit to a cemetery to remember u.s. soldiers. that is a decision that was blasted on twitter by the grandson of winston churchill who sent out a tweet saying of soldiers who died in world war i, they died with their face to the foe and that pathetic

inadequate trump couldn't even defy the weather to pay his respects to the fallen. jim accosta, cnn, paris. >> let's talk more about this with cnn european affairs commentator dominic thomas. dominic chairs the department of french studies at ucla. joining this hour from los angeles. a pleasure to have you on the show, dominic. look, the context of history on full display, and we saw two themes. patriotism and nationalism being discussed. we know that the u.s. president embraces that word nationalism. the french president didn't mince any words, rebuking nationalism, describing it as a danger. what are your take aways from that? >> yes, well, from the moment emmanuel macron came on the state visit to the united states back in april, one of the main gifts that he gave president donald trump, which was planted on the south lawn of the white house, was precisely an oak sappling from billow woods to

remind him of that important historical relationship to the very least 1918, and to commemorate the first world war. this, of course, was the site that donald trump did not travel to, claiming bad weather. but the whole purpose of this visit as far as bringing these dignitaries together for emmanuel macron was precisely to remind these international leaders of the absolute devastation that this conflict caused in main land europe, and also to remind them how since that particular period, it was precisely international organizations and multi lateralism that has provided for peace in that area. and the use of the word nationalism, the echos of that particular world in this bloody and complicated european history, are extremely disquieting to people. and it was absolutely impossible for him to not take a shot across the bow at that particular word and, of course, it was everybody understood that this was referring specifically

to president trump. >> and mr. macron even making the point, saying that nationalism and patriotism sometimes get confused, but the two very different words. and clearly he made that very plain and simple, straightforward when he spoke. let's talk about the overall spirit of mr. trump's interaction with his counterparts in europe. he has had less than warm relations with many of them, and we even saw the bromance, dominic, the bromance between he and emmanuel macron seem to simmer a bit in this particular instance. how did donald trump come out of this trip to europe in your view? >> well, as many of the previous trips have gone, whether it's visiting nato and the united kingdom and so on, they have not gone well. on this particular occasion, the tensions rose the moment he exited air force one and tweeted his dislike for comments president macron had made

earlier about the importance of developing in this particular global atmosphere, stronger and more consolidated and articulated european troops. he then did not walk down the champs-elysees along with the other leaders, and he left immediately after having attended a small ceremony just outside of paris. and did not attend the peace forum. he was very much an outsider. i think he felt an outsider, having just left the united states where he's been embroiled in all kinds of controversies and issues and surrounding the recent elections. and his outsider status was sort of reinforced at this particular, particular gathering. he stood out as somebody whose protectionist, unilateralist beliefs are at odds with many of the leaders who were there. that was the purpose of this gathering and of the peace forum. >> given some of mr. macron's

comments before this weekend, you'll remember mr. trump described on twitter he saw it as an insult, beefing up the military against china, russia and the united states. the french president seemed to clear that all up as a misunderstanding, that his words were taken in the wrong context. but how does europe view its transatlantic relation with the united states? is it a matter of short-term temporary adjustments tailored to this current presidency, or is there a longer view here that they must look ahead to do things differently? >> well, the responsible position is to engage with both. it's to realize that beyond the statements of president trump, there is a long-standing relationship that continues at various levels of cooperation on a whole range of issues. but the fact is that the relationship has changed dramatically, and that the european union or the europe in a more general fashion, finds itself in a very complicated position. it can no longer rely on the united states and, therefore, the atlantic relationship. the relationship across the

channel with the united kingdom and with brexit has changed things. and, of course, looking over to the other side, there is concern about a rising russian federation. the european union finds itself between these two particular spaces. in different parts of europe, we have witnessed for a long time now the graduate rise of these far-right radical and populist political parties. and it is clear that president trump as well as vladimir putin sees a weaker europe as somehow benefiting the geopolitical plans that they have. and donald trump has provided oxygen to some of these political groups and parties, particularly in areas like poland and hungary. this has been incredibly disruptive. and as the european union heads in may of next year into elections, we will essentially be dealing with two particular views of europe. on the one hand, that of macron and merkel seeking greater integration and cooperation, fighting against those that are disrupting the european union and some of those countries that i've just mentioned.

and to that extent, the relationship with the united states is not one that they can rely on for the time being. and so obviously they've got to think about how they're going to act and behave without being able to rely on this unpredictable president. >> and to your point, it does seem that one view as you describe it, does seem to be on defense. the other view seemingly on the rise. dominic thomas, we appreciate your time and perspective. we'll stay in touch with you. >> thank you, george. >> up next, keeping up the pressure. the u.k. and u.s. lean on saudi arabia over the death of jamal khashoggi and the war in yemen. how can we say when you book direct at choicehotels.com

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let's say it in a really low voice. carl? lowest price, guaranteed. just stick with badda book. badda boom. book now at choicehotels.com the u.s. and the united king dom are keeping up the pressure on saudi arabia over the death of jamal khashoggi. the british foreign secretary jeremy hunt will meet with the king and crown prince monday. he'll urge them to cooperate with turkey's investigation of the journalist's murder, and to end the war in yemen. the u.s. secretary of state mike pompeo also discussed those issues in a phone call with the crown prince on sunday. cnn is following the story live

in istanbul. given the pressure, is there a sense they will get any traction here? >> reporter: well, you know, george, it's been more than 40 days since the killing of jamal khashoggi, and still, turkish authorities have not been able to locate a body. they have not been able to locate his remains. they don't even know if they're searching for a body right now or not because, you know, you've heard the theories that turkish authorities are looking at different scenarios including the possibility, one theory that his body may have been dissolved in acid, and turkish officials including president erdogan and we heard this from the president several times, believe the answers are with the saudis. and they want these answers to questions like where are his remains? who ordered the killing of jamal khashoggi? and they put these questions forward to the saudis, but they're not getting answers. they are actually complaining about the lack of cooperation from the saudis, and that has really led to the turkish strategy we've seen over the past few weeks, this drip feed of information. the latest was over the weekend

when president erdogan said that they provided recordings of the killing without going into details to several countries, including the united states, france, germany, the u.k., and to saudi arabia, and the hope has always been here that the united states would lead the effort to put pressure on the saudis to get to the bottom of this. but so far more than a month, more than 40 days, george, and still no answers. and the feeling is that not enough pressure is being put on the saudis. and i think what sums up the international position is that meeting we saw over the weekend between president trump and french president emmanuel macron, according to a french presidential spokesman, they did discuss how bad the killing of jamal khashoggi was, and the importance of getting to the bottom of what happened. but at the same time, the spokesman says if the united states feels that saudi arabia is the cornerstone of everything in the middle east, and they don't want to really disrupt

anything, they don't want to destabilize saudi arabia. and this is causing a lot of concern. yesterday we attended this memorial service that took place here in istanbul. it was organized by friends of jamal khashoggi, and also attended by opposition members from this region, journalists, activists, dissidents who feel this is a dangerous situation. that unless there is real accountability, there will be many other incidents like this. and amongst them, you know, the friends of jamal khashoggi, his fiance, people are really starting to lose hope that they will ever get to the bottom of this, that they will ever find the body of jamal khashoggi to give him a proper burial, and that is why, george, they have announced that they will be holding funeral prayers, funeral in abstefanowski s on friday and prayers around the world. >> prayers and consistent questions continue. jomana jomana, thank you again for the reporting . it has been 100 years since the end of world war i.

what lessons have been learned from the great war? and are they still relevant to today? we'll talk with an expert on that ahead. plus, one lesson from the french president that he hopes his fellow leaders will heed, working together is better than going it alone. his rebuke of nationalism as newsroom pushes on. me where my father's family came from in colombia. they pinpointed the colombia and ecuador region and then there's a whole new andean region. that was incredibly exciting because i really didn't know that. it just brings it home how deep my roots are and it connects me to them and to their spirit and to their history. this holiday, give the gift that's connected millions to a deeper family story. order your kit at ancestry.com

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[ neighing ] [ neighing ] [ sigh ] it's bring your own phone, not pony. so i could've taken the bus? yeah. bring your phone. switch your carrier. save hundreds a year with xfinity mobile. call, click or visit a store today. welcome back to viewers here in the united states and around the world. you are watching cnn newsroom live from atlanta. i'm george howell with the headlines we're following for you this hour. in the state of california, the death toll has risen to 31 people dead and these massive wildfires burning on both ends

of the state. most of the deaths are in paradise, california, a town largely wiped out by this devastating campfire. firefighters struggling there against fierce winds to put the blaze out in the northern part of the state, and two other large fires also in southern california. after a sharp escalation of violence between israel and hamas in gaza, seven palestinians and an israeli special forces soldier killed. hamas said the senior leader of the military wing also dead. the violence disrupted a short period of relative calm at the israel/gaza border. the president president emmanuel macron took aim at donald trump's america first agenda with mr. trump looking on under the ark de triumph, nationalism is the opposite of patriotism. his comments came during sunday's world war i armistice centennial ceremony which the u.s. president and other world leaders attended in paris. let's talk about the big

picture of what we saw take place in the french capital with chris, a historian from the university of sussex who focuses on first world war. live this hour from canterbury, england. it's good to have you on the show with us. thank you. >> good morning. thank you for having me on. >> look, we look back at wars like this one, the death, the destruction, the tragedy around world war i for lessons learned. what are some of the biggest lessons to be considered from world war i? >> i think i sense exactly what you're saying, wars are destructive. they kill people. they destroy infrastructure. they destroy states. and that as a result, they are transformative moments in history, but they're not necessarily good moments in history. and i think when you look at some of the commemoration for some of the kind of events that have been going on around europe over the last kind of 24 hours, or even the last four years, what you see is kind of a threat emerging at times about the importance of european international cooperation to

avoid kind of reenacting some of the destructive wars of the past. >> we saw in france two themes on full display. the theme of patriotism versus nationalism. we know of the u.s. president's embrace of nationalism and mr. trump looked on as a guest in france. mr. macron did not mince words in rebuking nationalism as a danger. what are your views and take aways of nationalism versus patriotism? >> i mean, i think to begin with, speaking as a historian, i think macron is probably right. nationalism particularly in europe has been a destructive force. it's led to conflict between countries. it's led to conflicts within countries as well. so i think that his point on the dangers of nationalism is probably well taken. i definitely think there is a message probably there to president trump. that being said, given what's going on in europe at the moment, it could equally be a message to people in france, and people in germany as well. president macron made a fairly,

say ill-advised attempt to court some of the nationalist vote recently in regards to a first world war commemoration, marshall who was a general in the first world war but became a head under the german occupation. it can equally be a message to voting blocks and political parties in his own country and in germany as well where elements of nationalism are on the rise. >> we talk about nations working together, looking back at this war. the first world war underscores the importance of the transatlantic relationship between europe and the united states. what's your view of the health of that relationship as it stands now under the trump administration and for europe? is it a matter of short-term temporary adjustments tailored to this presidency, or is there a longer view here that europe must do things differently? >> honestly, i think probably the health of the relationship between europe and america has probably been better in the past.

i don't think it's necessarily particularly good at the moment. in regards to what's going to happen in the long term, i think it partly depends on america, it partly depends on europe. there is a possibility that this might just be a case of isolation, depending on what happens in america in the 2020 election if trump is replaced by someone who europe finds easier to work with, then this might not be a long-term issue. that being said, europe itself is changing. there are populist nationalist movements on the rise in a variety of european states. and the state of european union, as i sit here in england, isn't a guarantee going forward. so i think that in the immediate short term, i think it's probably going to be a case of let's wait and see what happens in america more than anything else. however, for the long term, europe itself has to kind of decide what direction it's going to potentially go in with regard to the future of some of its political ideologies. >> and you see it bubbling up in germany, in poland, in italy. it is happening in various,

various countries in europe. we'll of course have to see how this all plays out. thank you again for your time. >> absolutely my pleasure. thank you very much. >> the french president says his good relationship with donald trump is important to both countries, and he's proving his friendship supporting mr. trump over an issue that has proved thorny. here's what the french president told cnn's fareed zakaria in an exclusive interview. >> were you disappointed that president trump chose not to go to the cemetery and memorial? i know it was his decision, but this was a place that french and american soldiers died together, fighting for freedom, and is very important in the history of the u.s. marine corps. were you disappointed? >> no, i think it was just because of the weather and for security reasons. so i do respect that. i'm not part of the security team of president trump. he did want to go there, and we had a discussion, we had a very pleasant and friendly lunch, and he wanted to go there, but he

was not in a situation to go there because the helicopter was blocked in paris due to the weather. but, anyway, i appreciate that he had the intention to go to waterloo. if you remember, we together at the white house garden, precisely we put an oak coming from waterloo together as a symbol of this alliance. so, i'm sure that next time it will be in a situation to go there that they still have a tree in a certain way representing this alliance and the presence of marines. these young american people came to france. they were 18, 19, 20, and, and they died there in a place they didn't know. unknown from families. i have in my office -- normally, i have the key that lafayette brought to washington.

i mean, it's so strong that we are from our history and in future together. >> for viewers outside the united states, you can watch the rest of emmanuel macron's interview with our fareed zakaria less than two hours from now, 10:00 a.m. in london, 6:00 p.m. in hong kong here on cnn. u.s. is making fresh calls for a cease-fire in yemen as the long war there shows no sign of resolution. we'll see if there's any hope on the horizon. also, new violence in gaza. ahead, the toll taken during an israeli operation, and the response from hamas.

a new wave of violence in gaza has left seven palestinians and one israeli soldier dead. the senior military leader for hamas among those killed, there had been a brief period of restraint over the past two

weeks following months of violence. now israel says it is reinforcing its troops near gaza. our oren liebermann has this report. >> reporter: in a sudden spike in violence between israeli forces and gaza, israeli soldier and hamas leader were killed inside operations in gaza. the officer had been shot and killed during what it described simply as operational activity in gaza. according to the palestinian ministry of health, among them, 37-year-old, a leader of the brigade, the military wing of hamas, reports of the deaths were followed by sirens in israel and warning of incoming rocket fire on the gaza periphery. the israeli military said the iron dome military defense system intercepted at least two rockets. so what happened here? according to a statement issued by the brigades, israeli special forces entered in a car and

assassinated the big aid's leader. when the israelis were discovered by militants, the statement said israeli war planes provide the cover while they escaped. israel provided no further information about the activity. only saying it had concluded. the sharp escalation came africa tar sent military aid into gaza to reduce tensions there. netanyahu was criticized for allowing the transfer of money defend it had it saying it was the right decision he was aiming to prevent a humanitarian crisis in gaza. they vowed to destroy israel. net in the who was in paris has ended his trip early because of the escalation, meanwhile hamas and islamic jihad two palestinian factions are on high alert. orren liebermann, cnn, jerusale.

>> the u.s. secretary of state is again urging saudi arabia for a cease-fire in yemen. mike pompeo spoke with the saudi arabia crown prince on sunday about the saudi war against the rebels in yemen. the u.s. wants all of the parties to sit down with a u.n. envoy and negotiate a peaceful solution. in the meantime, street battles continue raging in one area, one of yemen's main port cities, with civilians trapped in the violence. cnn's senior international correspondent sam kiley following the story in abu dhabi. sam, u.k.'s foreign secretary jeremy hunt traveling to saudi arabia, we know he'll be focusing on what's happening in yemen, asking for an end to that war. what more are you hearing? >> reporter: yes, it's become a really -- there is unanimity in saudi arabia. in descending order, united states, united kingdom and

france have now for two weeks been calling for a cease-fire led by the united states. now we have the first visit of a senior european foreign minister to saudi arabia since the murder of jamal khashoggi. but this is an opportunity to both raise that issue, of course, which jomana already discuss discussed with you, george, but the united kingdom and united states are the supplier of arms to the yemen, and they have called for a cease-fire which is due to happen they if they stick to scheduled sometime next month. and they do have levers to pull. so far the united states has pulled a pretty meaningless lever in suspending air refueling to the saudis who said they didn't need it anyway. but there are real pressure points that can be brought to bear. i think that is likely that we are going to hear jeremy hunt suggest later on today that perhaps he might use some of those pressure points, or at least implore the saudis to dial down the violence.

but as ever, george, when there is a prospect of peace talks or a cease-fire, belligerence on all sides can be expected to grab as much territory as they can before the front lines get frozen. that is exactly what we've seen with a very substantial new assault on hadada. by coalition, george, it is a very complex tapestry led by the saudis, the united arab emirates also deeply involved. but on the "frontline" there are militia troupes from salafi groups, from secular groups, from separatist southerners. even al qaeda has been involved in the fight against the houthis. >> thank you for the reporting. well, the world's biggest online shopping day, singles day, china's alibaba group racks up big numbers, breaking their own record from last year. we'll go live to hong kong. stay with us.

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online retail giant the alibaba group set a new sales record on china's biggest shopping day. it's known as singles day.

mariah carey was there, in fact. alibaba says it rang in $30.8 billion in sales. that is above last year's record. sheree is following the story for us, the big numbers to tell us about there live in hong kong. look, 1.30 billion in one day, huge. but before we get into the context of all that, help our viewers understand what exactly is singles day? >> reporter: that is a great question. it's a $31 billion question actually, george. singles day is an informal holiday inn china. it was started by students in the 1990s, and for all you single viewers out there, you will love this. it started as an anti-valentine's day holiday. and it is celebrated on november 11, so 1-1-1-1.

get it? that is singles day. alibaba high-jacked that day ten years ago, turning it into a massive shopping bonanza. and this is a huge day for alibaba. they kicked off the event with a four-hour-long gala, with everything from circus acts to mariah carey performing as you mentioned there. and they had another huge date this year. this is a day where they really like to tryout some of their new business models. so they have a new grocery store, brick and mortar grocery store similar to amazon in the united states. in china it's called homa. you have to have an ali pay account to shop there to really capture that shopper in the online world and the off line world. this year also the very first year that they pushed single day sales in southeast asia through an e-commerce platform they have called lozata. big numbers obviously a billion dollars in 90 seconds, $31 billion in 24 hours.

but sales growth did decline a little bit. so last year, singles day sales growth came in at 40%. this year, george, clocking in at just 27%. >> 30 billion in a day is pretty big, pretty significant. but overall, sherisse, what does this say about the health of the chinese economy, given, you know, the trade disputes that we're seeing back and forth between the united states and others? >> reporter: yeah, that's the big elephant in the room, right? the ongoing u.s./china trade war did play a factor in the slowing sales in singles day. no matter what alibaba says, you've got a multitude of factors affecting the sales number. you've got the slowing chinese economy. you've also got the weaker chinese yuan which has been under pressure because of this trade war. when the yuan is weaker, all those international goods that people like to buy on singles day, all the makeup, from

companies like estee lauder and l'oreal and apple and dyson products are popular on singles day. all of those goods become more expensive, much more expensive with a weaker yuan. so absolutely, the u.s./china trade war did play a factor here, but executives really trying to play down the geopolitical head winds. executive vice chairman saying, look, we will still benefit from the growing chinese middle class. and he said that trend is not going to stop trade war or no trade war. george? >> sherisse, thank you again for the reporting. so, you've probably heard that machines that a.i., that robots are taking over many jobs around the world. and in this glimpse of the future, news anchors are not immune. look at this. >> hello, everyone. i'm an english artificial intelligence anchor. this is my first day in the agency. my voice and appearance are

modelled -- >> it is not a real person. it is a life like example of how a.i. is developing in china. the news agency reports this news person can work uninterrupted, no coffee breaks, no bathroom breaks, no coughing. just constant updates typed into his software, cheap and efficient maybe missing a little personality? you bet. but, hey, that is what's to come. and we thank you for being with us this hour of cnn newsroom. i'm george howell at the cnn center in atlanta. early start is next in new york for our viewers here in the united states. and for viewers around the world, my colleague max foster kicks it off live in london. you are watching cnn, the world's news leader. my name is jeff sheldon,

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