who want to take a little vacation from day to day life. and i get it. ♪ ♪ /s entire communities burn to the ground after days of deadly wildfires. large areas of california in ash. emergency teams trying to clear much of the devastation. plus, the u.s. president says he's fully aware of how saudi journalist jamal hashoggi was murdered but says he will not listen to the tape recording of that killing. also ahead this hour, for the first time in 25 years, the leaders at apec didn't reach a joint communique. we'll tell you why the u.s. and china are being blamed. live from cnn world headquarters in atlanta, we want be to welcome our viewers here in the united states and all around the world. i'm george howell.

the cnn newsroom starts right now. 2:00 a.m. on the u.s. east coast, the scope of destruction in the state of california is almost impossible to comprehend. the death toll continues to rise. take a look at the map. you see the state here. these fires in both the north and south, so far they've destroyed an area larger than chicago. the death toll across the state now stands at 80 people who have been killed, 77 of those lives lost in the camp fire in northern california. hundreds of people there still unaccounted for. officials warn the search for the dead and missing is painstaking, and that it is far from over. in the aftermath of so much chaos, there are incredible stories of survival. one of them involving a school bus driver praised for helping 22 students to escape the camp fire in northern california.

cnn's paul reports how the man was able to navigate that bus and its passengers to safety. >> reporter: so many stories of absolutely stomach-churning despair, but here's one of great heroism. there was a bus driver just about two or three months into his job. he goes to ponderosa elementary school in paradise. the school would eventually be damaged, but he gets 22 school children, two teachers on that bus, and they begin a harrowing drive to safety. >> it was, um, very scary. it was like, um, felt like armageddon. i don't know another word to say. >> i was like seeing smoke everywhere. i couldn't see hardly anything. i saw, like, houses burning and animals and cars whining. and i love animals.

and it was so crazy and, um, there were like fires left and right everywhere you look, there was like smoke everywhere. and people trying to get out and it was like really hard. >> reporter: so the odyssey through the inferno continued. some of the young lungs of these little school children started filling up with smoke. they were on the brink of passing out so they made makeshift respirators, dampening pieces of the bus driver's t-shirt and putting it over their mouths. eventually they made it to safety. parents just so relieved, and that bus driver, kevin mckay, made a joke. he said, i'm sure glad i paid attention closely in class when i was taking those safety lessons, and pointing out that after all, safety is the first issue for a bus driver. >> let's talk more about this now with liz shera. liz and her neighbors were evacuated from the town of paradise as the fire broke out.

first of all, we're just thankful that you're okay, that your family is okay. >> thank you. >> and we're so distraught by all the images we're seeing from paradise. tell us about what you've seen, what you've experienced and how things are right now. >> well, right now it looks horrible. all the pictures i've seen. but when we were being evacuated, it was chaos. there were so many cars trying to get out at one time, and we had to rush to try and save my mom and then we got trapped with hundreds of -- probably about 100, maybe more people all trapped in a parking lot for hours. and we couldn't get out. there was no way out. >> what is the sense of what you and so many other families do next? just given how much loss, how much devastation has come about there? where do you go from here? >> i don't know. most everybody lost their homes and jobs. a lot of people lost their jobs, too. but we have a strong little town and we're going to try and rebuild, i hope. i don't know.

>> what was it like in those hours when you were trying to escape? because we've seen all of these images, right? we've seen people driving down that main road, fire on either side, and then the question, is there fire around the corner, you know, that would prevent you from getting out. >> yes. >> what was that experience like? >> it was terrifying. in our family it was my mom and my boyfriend and our one-year-old son. we got trapped on the road. they kept telling us to stay in our car, and that -- let the flames go over us and hopefully we'd be okay. and eventually we got to move up and that's when we got trapped in the parking lot and there were flames everywhere. everybody was crying. we all thought we were going to die. we called our loved ones and said good-bye and we texted people. it was horrible. >> i'm sorry. it's hard to imagine what you're going through. i mean, we're looking at the images of your town right now and it seems like everything

that was there, mainly everything that was there, is pretty much gone. what about people that you know, friends, people there who may be reported missing at this point? are there a lot of questions for your family and others with regards to missing? >> all our family, all our immediate family made it out. as far as i know, my friends made it out. i'm a hair stylist. i've called and i can't get hold of them. their name sont missiis on the list and i don't know what happened to them. their families got hold of me and told me they did pass away so i have lost a couple and it's really hard. this is horrible. >> liz, it's so difficult to imagine over here in atlanta what you're dealing with over there in california, just the reality of so much loss. i want you to know that our hearts go out to you, everyone there. and we certainly are, you know, hoping for the best, especially

for those that are still looking for the missing, the unaccounted for at this point. liz, thank you for taking time for being with us. >> thank you. thank you. >> now we are going to turn to a different story. the mystery of murder journalist jamal khashoggi. the u.s. president spoke about the investigation on sunday and says that he doesn't know if the saudi prince lied to him when he claimed that he wasn't involved, despite evidence to the contrary. here's what mr. trump said about it. >> a month ago you said you had spoken with saudi prince mohammed bin salman and he told you directly that he had no knowledge of this. >> that's right, and still says that. >> but we now know that some of the people closest to him, some of his closest advisors who were part of this question. did mbs lie to you, sir? >> i don't know. you know, who can really know? but i can say this. he's got many people now that

say he had no knowledge. >> the saudis have always denied the crown prince was involved, but sources say the cia believe he personally ordered the murder. the u.s. government has yet to reach a conclusion. mr. trump says he will get a full report on tuesday. he's already been briefed on some of the evidence, including an audio recording that details -- that you can hear part of that murder. mr. trump says he does not plan to listen to it and hasn't listened to it. >> i don't want to hear the tape, no reason for me to hear the tape. >> why don't you want to hear it, sir? >> because it's a suffering tape. it's a terrible tape. i've been fully briefed on it. there's no reason for me to hear it. in fact, i said to the people, should i? they said, you really shouldn't. i know exactly what went on in the tape. >> and what happened? >> it was very violent, very vicious and terrible. >> the saudis have changed their story multiple times since khashoggi disappeared from the saudi consulate in istanbul.

their latest narrative, that he was tied up, injected with a deadly dose of the sedative, and then dismembered. cnn's gentlem let's talk about this. during that interview, mr. trump indicated he is fully aware of the audio taken from inside the consulate. he described it as a suffering tape, but has chosen not to listen to it. >> reporter: you know, george, first, we don't know what is on this audio recording. we don't know how many audio recordings there are. but by all indications, there is something horrific that was recorded. whether it is the statements you heard there from president trump. we also heard from the leaks over the past few weeks as you know very well, there's been very little that's said publicly, these audio recordings have not been released publy. a lot has come out from the leaks and drip feed of

information from turkish officials, president erdogan in recent days saying that, you know, it is really shocking. it's appalling. a real disaster that was caught in these audio recordings. he even said saudi intelligence officer who listened to them was so shocked that he said only someone on heroine would be so capable of carrying out such an act. so i think the question right now is if the president doesn't want to listen to it, and there will be many who will be critical of president trump -- others in his administration including secretary pompeo when he was here list ebbed to tened recordings. gina haspel did listen to it. some will be critical of president trump. this is a critical time, a critical moment, a defining moment in u.s./saudi relations and he is refusing to listen to what some say is this critical piece of evidence. the question right now, george,

is why is this taking so long? why only now is the united states coming out saying the administration saying they are going to have a report on tuesday? why these statements from the president? you know, keeping in mind, this took place nearly 50 days ago. the cia director was here four weeks ago. there are some in this region, some in turkey, officials, we've heard this from the highest levels of the government here saying that they feel there is a stalling tactic by some in the administration, hoping that the world will move on and just forget about this whole case, george. >> well, let's push on that, jamana. given this report is due out tuesday to the u.s. president and recent reports that the cia has high confidence that the crown prince ordered the murder of this journalist. if what we know of that report is true, where does this leave the u.s. president? >> reporter: listen, i think, george, the thing is if you look

at these latest statements, what we understand the cia assessment, the conclusion they reached, none of it is based on a smoking gun sort of evidence. it is several things that they've taken into consideration, several pieces they have put together to reach a conclusion accordingly is what we've been told by some officials, that this is their conclusion, at least, or their assessment at this point. and one key thing here -- and we have been hearing this for weeks, george -- they say something like this that would have involved members of the inner circle of crown prince mohammed bin salman, wouldn't have taken place without his knowledge. he is the de facto ruler of that country. but, i mean, we'll have to wait and see what the next moves -- what this report says when it does come out. i think the u.s. administration and president trump's position has been pretty clear from the beginning. he is prioritizing his

relationship with saudi arabia, business and economic ties with that country, over this case, over this murder of jamal khashoggi, and also some would say this is not the first issue with saudi arabia. the administration has pretty much turned a blind eye to an extent to other human rights abuses that the saudi regime has been accused of. whether it is the war in yemen or the imprisoning activists in the country over the past year and other critics. but so many people in this region, george, see this as a very critical moment. that if the united states does not -- there is so much at stake. whether it is turkey here, this nato ally that sees this as a serious attack on its own sovereignty and it has been hoping that the united states would take serious action to make sure something like this does not happen again, and then you also have dissidents, activists, journalists in this

region who view this as such a dangerous development. they feel that unless the united states, unless the international community take real action, they feel there will be many more incidents like this, that this will only embolden other regimes in the region to silence their critics, george. >> you know, it could be a bag of mixed messages, in fact, jamana. you could see the sanctions coming up from lawmakers and a response from the house of representatives. it could be very different from that of the u.s. president. so they will -- we'll have to u.s. response will be come he - tuesday. thank you again for the reporting. we'll stay in touch with you. the questions from the president for the special counsel robert mueller in that russia probe, donald trump says he answered those questions himself and is prepared to hand them over. but at least one question remains. will the president sit down with mueller's team for an interview in the investigation? we'll take a look at that. plus this.

>> i don't think there is anything that we have established at this point that's going to fundamentally deter them from continuing this kind of operation. >> russian propaganda still in full bloom, spreading misinformation on social media. getting rid of them is proving to be a real challenge. stay with us. as the one who is always trapped beneath the duvet i'm begging you... take gas-x. your tossing and turning isn't restlessness, it's gas! gas-x relieves pressure, bloating and discomfort... fast! so we can all sleep easier tonight. ♪ spread a little love today ♪ spread a little love my-y way ♪ ♪ spread a little something to remember ♪

philadelphia cream cheese. made with fresh milk and real cream makes your recipes their holiday favourites. the holidays are made with philly. their holiday favourites. every insurance company tells you they can save you money. save up to 10% when you bundle with esurance. including me, esurance spokesperson dennis quaid. he's a pretty good spokesperson. ehhh. so when i say, "drivers who switched from geico to esurance saved an average of $412," you probably won't believe me. hey, actor lady whose scene was cut. hi. but you can believe this esurance employee, nancy abraham. seriously, send her an email and ask her yourself. no emails... no emails. when insurance is affordable, it's surprisingly painless. ♪ the whole world's coming together now ♪ ♪ can you feel it ♪ can you feel it ♪ can you feel it ♪ can you feel it ♪ can you feel it ♪ can you feel it

♪ can you feel it ♪ can you feel it shhh... [whispering] ♪ can you feel it ♪

♪ ♪ ♪ comfort. what we deliver by delivering. heyi'm craving somethingkin! we're missing. the ceramides in cerave. they help restore my natural barrier, so i can lock in moisture... and keep us protected. we've got to have each other's backs... and fronts. cerave. what your skin craves.

welcome back to cnn newsroom. i'm george howell. the u.s. president sat down for a wide ranging interview that aired on sunday. he answered questions about the special counsel's ongoing russia investigation and went after a retired navy seal commander who led the operation that killed osama bin lauden. out boris sanchez has more now from the white house. >> reporter: president trump making news on a multitude of fronts this weekend. first with an interview on fox news in which he criticized retired admiral william mcraven. mcraven previously had criticized president trump suggesting he was unpresidential and saying that the president's comments about the press being the enemy of the people are a threat to democracy. the president, during this interview, shot back saying that mcraven was a hillary clinton

supporter, a backer of president barack obama. the admiral spoke to cnn about this providing us with a statement, saying that he did not back hillary clinton or anyone else. he also said, quote, i admire all presidents regardless of their political party who uphold the dignity of the office and who use that office to bring the nation together in challenging times. he went on to say, when you undermine the people's right to a free press and freedom of speech and expression, then you threaten the constitution and all for which it stands. the president also talked about the russia investigation during that interview, revealing that he probably would not sit down for that one on one in-person testimony to special counsel robert mueller, something he said in the past that he was looking forward to. listen to this portion of the interview. >> i think we've wasted enough time on this witch-hunt, and the answer is probably -- we're finished. >> one and 100?

>> i don't do odds. i gave very -- you're right, and very successfully actually. we gave very, very complete answers to a lot of questions that i shouldn't have even been asked. and i think that should solve the problem. i hope it solves the problem. if it doesn't, you know, i'll be told and we'll make a decision at that time. but probably this is the end. >> now, president trump did say that he would be handing over his written responses to mueller's questions sometime this week, likely before thanksgiving. boris sanchez, cnn, at the white house. >> boris, thank you. let's talk more about this now with scott lucas. scott, a professor of international politics at the university of birmingham in england, live this hour in birmingham. it's good to have you, scott. >> good morning, george. >> let's start by talking about the questions that president trump says he answered himself, he insists he did it without the help of his attorneys.

but mr. trump now saying he most likely would not sit down for an interview with mueller's team. he said before that he would be open to sitting down for an interview, so what's your take on mr. trump's change of heart? >> well, first, if you believe that donald trump wrote the answers that robert mueller will see, i've got a trump tower in new york to sell to you. he sat down with lawyers last monday. they discussed the written responses and the lawyers will be going through them very carefully because, of course, if they are inaccurate or if they verge on falsehood, that opens up further charges against the president, namely perjury. in terms of the change of heart, there hasn't been a change of heart amongst the trump team. there had been discussion with months for months with mueller's team about the president sitting down one on one with mueller to be questioned. the white house lawyers have held out against that, and the move taken the day after the elections to replace jeff sessions with matthew whitaker

as acting attorney general is deliberately to block any chance of trump sitting down with mueller, and that's because whitaker can veto any subpoena that mueller issues, trying to get that oral rather than written testimony. >> let's talk about the president's attacks on the retired admiral william mcraven. again, this is a person who is the architect of the bin lauden raid, very significant moment for the united states. the question here, given his background, scott, given his reputation and experience, could an attack like this on a person like that backfire on this president? >> oh, of course, it can. but the question is when do we reach the breaking point on backfires? there are two reasons why donald trump launched this attack against william mcraven. you know, one of the highest ranking, most highly decorated vet rangers. the first is personal. trump doesn't like anyone who criticizes him. mcraven raised the issue of

donald trump attacking a free press. and trump lashed out. that is an the only style trump knows. but the second is linked to the trump/russia investigation. trump is going to attack anybody right now because he's frightened and he's scared. will it backfire? donald trump tried to drag the name of john mccain, a prisoner of war for 5 1/2 years, through the mud even as mccain was dying, and even as he was being buried. donald trump has attacked former directors of the cia, john brennan, jim clapper, you know, those people who have tried to keep the country safe simply because he fears what they say putsz him in a bad light and exposes him to political risk. they are probably a group of people out there, george, and donald trump could probably invoke the name of our good lord and say that he is a threat to himself and american democracy, and they might stick with trump. the question is, beyond that trump loyalist, where do americans go? because we're not just talking about a president.

we're talking about an american system and where it goes from here. >> you know, earlier in the show, scott, we talked about the murder of journalist jamal khashoggi. looking ahead this coming tuesday, the president says he will receive a full report from the cia assessment of that investigation. we have seen the saudi narrative, the response, the story shift several times. the president still seems unwilling to change his conclusion to basically leave the door open, saying that it's premature to make any definitive conclusions here at this point. but come tuesday, given what we know of this report, could this further force the president's hand? >> here's how it plays, george. the cia has concluded with high confidence that the crown prince, mohammed bin salman, ordered the murder of jamal khashoggi. donald trump will get this report on tuesday, and the white house will counter spin. they will say that the report is not conclusive, that it doesn't directly link mohammed bin

salman. i.e., that he made a call to that consulate in turkey and said, kill khashoggi. the white house will try, then, to sweep away the cia report, hoping the state department will give it cover. why is that? donald trump's highest priority is the $110 billion in arms that he agreed to sell saudi arabia last year. there was a ceremony in saudi arabia to celebrate that in may 2017, 18 months later donald trump says saudi arabia gives us jobs, gives us business. and that is far more important to him than the murder of a journalist no matter how gruesome it is and what his agencies say about the responsibility of the saudi monarchy. >> scott lucas, thank you again for your time and perspective live for us in birmingham, england. >> thank you, george. >> after a contentious senate race and recount, florida will send a new senator to washington. current u.s. senator bill nelson on the right conceded to his republican schale republican challenger, rick scott, on sunday. the margin was just over 10,000

votes. now that florida is settled, here's where things stand in the u.s. congress. you see in the house of representatives democrats have a majority with 232 seats. republicans now have 200 seats. three races still undecided, but no matter what happens, they won't swing the balance of power. in the senate republicans keep their majority, 52 seats, democrats 47 seats. one undecided race in mississippi will be decided later this month in a runoff. the wildfires burning across california left entire cities destroyed, including the hardest hit town of paradise, california. up next we speak with the mayor about how people are coping. plus, it could be a turning point in the war in yemen. what the houthis say about a potential cease-fire. cnn newsroom continues. being detected was not an option. if i was recognized

the whole operation was blown. the element of surprise was imperative. wow. he won't even recognize you. seriously. i don't even recognize myself. and thanks to my cashrewards credit card from navy federal with never-expiring rewards it's gonna be a killer honeymoon. woo! maui!! boom navy federal credit union. our members, are the mission. opportunity is everywhere. like here. where you can explore the world knowing you can always find your way home. ♪ winning audience awards greeacross the country.ovie

he's only the greatest piano player in the world. there's no better way to spend the holidays than with viggo mortensen and mahershala ali. that's a handsome suit. guys looks just like you. they're so good, you'll wish the movie would never end. where'd you learn how to play like that? my mother, soon as i could walk. it's one of the best films of the year. i don't think i've ever met anyone with you're appetite. you know my father used to say, whatever you do, do it 100%. [ laughter ]

so, let's talk about conference calls. there's always a certain amount of fumbling. a lot of times it doesn't work. we have problems. comcast business goes beyond fast. by letting you make and receive calls from any device using your business line. and conference calls you can join without any dial-ins or pins. (phone) there are currently 3 members in this conference. i like that. i like that too. i would use that in a heartbeat. get started with innovative voice solutions

for a low price when you get fast, reliable internet. comcast business. beyond fast. welcome back to our viewers here in the united states and all around the world. you are watching cnn newsroom live from the atl. i'm george howell with the headlines we're following for you this hour. u.s. president indicated in an interview that we may never know if the crown prince of saudi arabia was lying about his investigation in the murder of journalist jamal khashoggi. mr. trump also said that he, quote, listened to a recording of the murder, calling it a violent, vicious thing. the israeli prime minister is urging his coalition to hold the government together. many israelis are upset that benjamin netanyahu agreed to a cease-fire with hamas last week.

his defense minister quit. his majority in parliament is down to one seat, and now he is calling -- facing calls for a snap election. mr. netanyahu says that that would be irresponsible. in the state of california, a vigil was held on sunday for victims of the deadliest wildfires to hit that state. at least 80 people have been killed, hundreds more unaccounted for. the so-called camp fire in the north is now about 65% contained while the woolsey fire in the south of the state almost 90%. those fires devastated so much of california. my colleague natalie allen spoke with the mayor of paradise, california, earlier. jodi jones spoke about whether more could have been done to warn residents about the dangers of these fires. >> i got a text on my phone at 8:31 to immediately evacuate. i do live sort of on the east side, not on the far eastern

side, but, um, i don't know how accurate it is, but i can tell you that fire came in so fast. there was -- it wasn't that notifications were delayed. it was that there was no time to give them. >> reporter: is there anything that could have been done, though? is there anything that should have been done in retrospect? >> you know, the notification system where you get that text on your phone, it's an opt-in system. it's automatic for land lines, but cell phones have to opt-in, and so i think we probably could have done more to sign people up to get them to opt into that system so more people would have gotten that notice. housing is a big problem. there's just not enough housing for everyone in butte county. and so people are having to go far away to find places to stay in the short term.

so that is a big need right now. >> and how would you assess the support, though, that you're getting, mayor? how would you assess? there's always heroes in this, people that just show up to do good deeds, to lend a helping hand. >> i would say i'm just amazed by it. the outpouring of support from communities surrounding us and far away. and also the work that fema is doing, and they showed up on saturday. the fire happened on thursday, and they've been working 24/7 ever since. >> the mayor there, i remember seeing her walking through so much destruction, debris left behind. so many people in her town just no longer have homes, and now there is the smoke to deal with and rain on the way? >> and we have rain on the way which, george, you would think it would be a good thing. obviously it will be for the fires. but the potential for mudslides is going to be there. you heard her say there's not

too many places to go in butte county. the issue is people are in tents, we have the heavy rain coming in, and that's going to be an issue as well. let's talk about where we are as far as the camp fire. not much containment through the day today. we had some very gusty winds in the morning. we started at 65%. that's how we ended sunday. i think we're going to do better on monday as a result of the winds beginning to subside. that's going to be a good thing. 150,000 acres, of course, have burned so far we're talking about the most destructive fire in california, the camp fire. this is the improving weather conditions, the area we have, winds subsiding so we're not going to have those 50, 60 mile an hour winds. it was 40s in the morning. that's bad enough. humidity will be on the increase. and we have cooler temps on the way along with the fact we're talking about rainfall. we shouldn't be into these kinds of fires this late into the season in california. where we should be is in the rain season. that is affidavit least going to happen the next few days. i'll talk about why that may be a problem as well. the gray you see there, that has

been -- when we were talking about this, this is one of the worst outbreaks as far as stagnation and air quality in california. because of the valley the way it's shaped here, everything sinks down and doesn't move despite the fact we have gusty winds up at the ridges here. look at the plume. this is from noaa here the last several days. depending on the prevailing wind, states as far away as the northern plains are seeing some of the smoke. the worst where it has been unhealthy is california. the red dots you see there, that's in the unhealthy stage. we were towards purple, one of the highest numbers we've seen as far as air quality index goes up to 500. we were in the 300s to give you some idea. how much rain do we need to help things out? we need at least half an inch to stop the spread of the fires, right? the winds are also going to help as they begin to calm down, but we need actually upwards of 2 inches to extinguish the fires. so i think, in fact, heading into thanksgiving, this thing is going to be put out because of

the heavy rain and the heroic fire fighting efforts that continue at this hour. look at these weather systems. not just one. i'm counting three here. we have one that comes in on wednesday. this will be the first big rain event coming in, and that's going to be heavy at times, as all that moisture gets pumped in from the pau isk is. another one thursday into friday, looking into next week, perhaps even a little more rainfall. when it's all done, we're talking the potential anywhere from 2 to as high as 5 inches. look at chick owe there. this is where the fire is. that's where we're looking at some significant rainfall. when you mix the rain with the scarred and the burn scars in california, you're going tomorrow the potential for i think mudslides over the next few days. we're going to have to watch that very closely. we had that issue last year. we had fires and then we had what usually follows with the heavy rainfall, which is the mudslide threat and that's going to increase big time beginning wednesday. >> that's a big deal. the rain obviously welcome, but real concern there. ivan, thank you. >> you're welcome. >> of course, if you'd like to

help, you can find ways to reach to the victims to help ought our website, cnn.com/impact. there you will find a list of vetted charities helping the people there in need. the murder of journalist jamal khashoggi could impact the war in yemen. for several years of war and blood shed now, a saudi-led coalition has been fighting iran backed houthi is there. now a houthi leader says his fighters are ready for a cease-fire. and after the khashoggi murder, riyadh might be open to accepting it. saudi-backed forces hold much of yemen, but the houthis still control much of the west. last month a top u.s. official, several said there need to be a truth within 30 days. cnn's sam kiley is in abu dhabi and has the very latest on this peace offer. >> reporter: just under three weeks ago, the united states and the united kingdom joined voices with the united nations to call

or renew their calls and demands for a cease-fire within 30 days in yemen. there has been a dialing down in the violence. and gist in the last few hours, there has been a statement published by the leader of the iranian-backed houthi rebels clinging onto the port city of hedada. that statement said, in part, they are prepared -- this is the houthi rebels -- to end their drone attacks and their use of long-range missiles as a sign of good will. there was an offer of good will that came from the saudi-led coalition side, which about a week ago agreed to allow the medical evacuation of about 50 wounded houthi rebels as a precondition to meeting. there are meetings hoped for to be held sometime over the next couple of weeks somewhere in sweden. but this is a major breakthrough in a conflict that really has

run into the sand for the saudi-led coalition which is trying to battle the houthi rebels and above all, to thereby to make sure that iran does not get a foothold in that strategically important part of the arabian gulf that controls access to the red sea. at the same time, of course, the iranians are insisting they are backing their shi'a brethren, the houthis in their efforts to prevent an annihilation, if you like, of the houthi rebellion. but this, after many, many years of blood shed, some tens of thousands of people injured, thousands wounded, and 400,000 children according to the united nations children's fund on the verge of starvation, offers a slim glimmer of hope. just as the united kingdom is expected to sponsor a demand at the u.n. security council, a demand for a resolution calling for a cease-fire, and putting

pressure, particularly on the saudis for that, and that would come on the eve of the publication expected from the united states on what the united states government believes happened to jamal khashoggi. the washington post correspondent who was murdered inside the consulate of the saudi kingdom in istanbul. those two issues have been tightly connected now for many weeks because it is seen, really, that the murder of jamal khashoggi, which is now accepted as a premeditated killing by the saudis, was effectively the straw that has broken the camel's back in terms of particularly congressional support for the very, very bloody and humanitarianly disastrous campaign that has unfollowed over the last few years in yemen. sam kiley, cnn, abu dhabi. >> sam, thank you. the u.s. president said hen

vice-president to the apec this weekend. he was front and center at the gathering of leaders. why that's angering china. stay with us.

tensions between the united states and china kim to a head this weekend at the asia-pacific economic cooperation summit in papua new guinea. for the first time in 25 years, the forum ended without an agreement on a joint communique. the u.s. official says china president xi jinping grew frustrated with the criticism over his country's trade policies, particularly from the united states. the u.s. vice-president mike pence says washington will not back down from the trade war with china until beijing changes its ways. following the story, cnn's ivan watson live in hong kong. ivan, we saw this rivalry on full display impacting the outcome of this overall summit, it seems. >> reporter: yeah. where for the first time in 25

years, you couldn't have this routine joint communique published. apec, the summit, they take place every year and they're usually pretty straightforward affairs where you have heads of state dressed usually in very loud bright ethnically colored shirts. in this case, there was a break down and there was some last-minute drama as well because cnn has learned from a source with direct knowledge that after the host country's foreign minister denied a request from chinese officials to meet with them to try to influence the final joint communique, which was never published in the end, that these four chinese officials then barged into the papua new guinea's foreign minister's office, a rather unusual rupture in normal kind of diplomatic protocol in the wrangling over this final document which, again, was never published, we're hearing from the canadian prime minister, because of disagreements over trade.

and that is the big disagreement between china and the u.s., who have slapped tariffs on hundreds of billions of dollars worth of products going to each other's countries. and there were thinly veiled kind of criticisms coming from xi jinping who was present, and from u.s. vice-president mike pence who went in president trump's stead to this gathering. take a listen to some excerpts from their speeches. >> translator: history tells us to take the road of confrontation, whether it's in the form of a cold war, open war, or trade war, it will produce no winners. [ applause ] >> offer a better option. we don't drown our partners in a sea of debt. we don't commerce or compromise your independence. the united states deals openly and fairly. we do not offer constricting belt or a one-way road. >> george, that's pence taking aim at china's ambitious one

belt one road initiative where they have lavished huge amounts of money on infrastructure projects around the world that put xi jinping on the defensive. he was pledging that there is no hidden agenda to his one belt one road initiative. you also had pence announcing the creation of a new military base in papua new guinea in conjunction with the sydney, australiaians, part of bigger jockeying confrontation in the region for influence between china and the u.s. and its allies there. this is the chance, perhaps, at a negotiated way out of this trade war, and that could be an upcoming meeting between xi jinping and president trump in argentina later this month. george in >> ivan watson, live for us in hong kong. thank you. we'll be right back after the break. always a catch. like somehow you wind up getting less. but now that i book at hilton.com, and i get all these great perks. i got to select my room from the floor plan... very nice... i know, i'm good at picking stuff.

free wi-fi... laptop by the pool is a bold choice... and the price match guarantee. how do you know all of this? are you like some magical hilton fairy? it's just here on the hilton app. just available to the public, so... book at hilton.com and get the hilton price match guarantee. if you find a lower rate, we match it and give you 25% off that stay. ♪ spread a little love today ♪ spread a little love my-y way ♪ ♪ spread a little something to remember ♪ philadelphia cream cheese. made with fresh milk and real cream makes your recipes their holiday favourites. the holidays are made with philly.

you may have gum disease and could be on a journey to much worse. try parodontax toothpaste. it's three times more effective at removing plaque, the main cause of bleeding gums. leave bleeding gums behind with parodontax toothpaste. leave bleeding gums behind a moment of joy. a source of inspiration. an act of kindness. an old friend. a new beginning. some welcome relief... or a cause for celebration. ♪ what's inside? ♪ [laughter] possibilities. what we deliver by delivering. so did you gkind of. car? thanks to navy federal it only took 5 minutes. so vets can join? oh yeah. how do you kind of buy a new car? it's used.

it's for mikey. you know he's gonna have girls in that car. yeah. he's gonna have two of them. great benefits for veterans from navy federal credit union... our members are the mission. havi is not always easy. plaque psoriasis it's a long-distance journey, and you have the determination to keep going. humira has a proven track record of being prescribed for over 10 years. humira works inside the body to target and help block a specific source of inflammation that contributes to symptoms. most adults taking humira were clear or almost clear and many saw 75% and even 90% clearance in just 4 months. and the kind of clearance that can last. humira can lower your ability to fight infections, including tuberculosis. serious, sometimes fatal, infections and cancers, including lymphoma, have happened, as have blood, liver and nervous system problems, serious allergic reactions and new or worsening heart failure. before treatment, get tested for tb.

tell your doctor if you've been to areas where certain fungal infections are common, and if you've had tb, hepatitis b, are prone to infections, or have flu-like symptoms, or sores. don't start humira if you have an infection. join over 250,000 patients who have chosen humira. ask about the #1 prescribed biologic by dermatologists. humira... and go. u.s. tech companies and government agencies are trying to keep russian-connected accounts from spreading propaganda online. but the information and misinformation from these so-called trolls continues. here's our fred platkin with more. >> reporter: the russian control factory is still up and running. now operating as various new

legal entities under the name project lata, according to a u.s. criminal complaint. cnn has obtained video of this flashy business center in st. petersburg where several of the firms are now apparently working. and month ject lata is putting down more cash to harm america. company financial records in the u.s. criminal complaint reviewed by cnn show huge budget increases since 2013, especially in 2018. around 650 million rubles, almost $10 million in the first six months of this year alone. though prosecutors say not all of that money goes to operations targeting the u.s. >> it is essential to look at these efforts as consistent and persistent as opposed to they rally around a specific geopolitical event or an election. the way that they actually gain influence is by talking to these

specific populations over a period of time. >> reporter: a former employee, we are not naming out of safety concerns, tells cnn's the project's operatives constantly create new online identities using tools called anonymizers along with virtual private networks and varying cloud services to mask their origin. >> i don't think there is anything that we have established at this point that's going to fundamentally deter them from continuing this kind of operation because, frankly, it's been successful. >> reporter: a kwording to the criminal complaint, lata is part of a sprawling empire controlled by this man. nicknamed putin's chef because of his close ties to russian president vladimir putin and because of his restaurant empire. putin has denied the two men are close. >> translator: i know him, but he is not among my friends. this is misrepresenting the facts. he is a businessman. he has restaurants and some

other businesses, but he is not a state official. we have nothing to do with him. >> reporter: but he clearly has major dealings with the russian state. a firm linked to him runs a mercenary company active in syria that even a takttacked u.s.-backed forces there. this is from russian state tv of a meeting between russian officials and sudan's president, wanted by the international criminal court for severe human rights abuses. his firm tried to push back on the special counsel's indictment arguing, like president trump, that the mueller investigation is a witch-hunt. on thursday, a federal judge refused to dismiss the indictment charging his company with having a role in russia's efforts to interfere in the 2016 u.s. presidential election. meantime, cyber security experts say project lata's trolling experts are expanding in the united states and elsewhere. their message, unabashed and

unapologetic. like this recent online meme plant the by the group which reads, remember, 90% of online trolls are paid professionals. fred platkin, cnn, moscow. >> fred, thank you. thank you for joining us. let's do it again after the break. stay with us. meet true match multi-usealer. concealer from l'oréal. true to you and your skin. in 14 shades with an innovative cushion-tip applicator, true match concealer hides dark circles, imperfections and brightens. it's our all-in-one concealer. true match. from l'oréal paris. opportunity is everywhere. like here. where nothing stands between you and your best friends. ♪

♪ the whole world's coming together now ♪ amazon's black friday sale is on now! with deals in every department, low prices and free shipping on millions of items. the amazon black friday sale. on now! ♪ audience awards only oacross the country. i'm a musician about to embark on a concert tour down south. i got no problem being on the road with you, but i ain't no butler. viggo mortensen and mahershala ali are the perfect pair to spend your holidays with. [ yells ] it's one of the best films of the year. you're looking for the commode? right out there. how does he shake their hands like that?

it takes courage to change people's hearts. you try to pull that on me, i'd piss right on the living room floor. no, don't do that. [ laughing ] being detected was if i was recognized the whole operation was blown. the element of surprise was imperative. wow. he won't even recognize you. seriously. i don't even recognize myself. and thanks to my cashrewards credit card from navy federal with never-expiring rewards it's gonna be a killer honeymoon. woo! maui!! boom navy federal credit union. our members, are the mission.

the devastation across california unimaginable. wildfires force thousands of people to evacuate, many now living in tents, and we are hearing heart breaking stories of how they survived. plus, the u.s. president again praising the u.s. ties to saudi arabia, but as for the recording of murdered journalist jamal khashoggi, mr. trump says he will not listen, that it's too terrible. the leader said his forces are ready for the fighting to end in yemen but only if the saudi-led coalition really wants peace. live from cnn world headquarters in atlanta, we want to welcome our viewers here in the united states and all around the