coming up here on "cnn newsroom," the terrifying moment that iranian missiles rained down on u.s. troops in iraq. we have an exclusive look at what it was like to be on the receiving end of all of that firepower. also, in the philippines, the alert level rises after an explosive volcanic eruption spews ash into the air and sends people scrambling for safety. the video is just spectacular. and a right royal mess. harry and meghan's future will be on the table in the crisis meeting in the wake of the pair's bombshell announcement that they will step back from their royal duties. thank you again for joining us this hour. we begin with outrage and calls for justice in iran. protests are spreading after the

government admitted to shooting down a ukrainian passenger jet last week. authorities say it was a mistake and they've apologized but thousands of people taking to the streets say that is not enough. they want those responsible brought to justice. police have responded to of the protests with tear gas and a witness says they have shot into the air to disburse crowds. u.s. president trump tweeted his support for the protesters. he also says iran could be forced to negotiate and warns against a crackdown. most of the 176 people killed on the plane were from iran and canada, and you can see the grief people are experiencing right there. memorials like this one in toronto are being held for the victims. cnn's nic robertson has more on the protests rocking iran's government. >> reporter: chants of death to the supreme leader.

angry blowback for the downing of ukrainian passenger jet gathering momentum in tehran. thousands protesting just hours after iranian officials finally admitted mistakenly shooting it down. "i will kill who killed my brother," someone shouts. the vast majority aboard flight p s752 were iranian, the best and the brightest. their death a spark igniting tinder-dry middle class frustrations. police tossed tear gas, scattered the crowds. the anger quite simply supreme leader a toe la ali khamenei doesn't care about his people. he didn't pause u.s. flights while attacking u.s. bases in iraq. the crowd telling him he no longer has a mandate to lead. angry, too, the powerful irgc.

another big slap down for iran's leadership. protesters avoid walking on american and israeli flags painted on the ground some years ago by the regime out of disrespect. iran's leadership now facing growing external as well as internal pressure. >> iran's admission that it's own armed forces unintentionally shot down flight 752 is an important step towards providing answers for families, but i noted that many more steps must be taken. >> reporter: demands the airplane investigation be international, open and transparent. president trump heaping on his pressure, too, tweeting, "the world is watching the protests. there cannot be another massacre of peaceful protesters" as happened last year. and in the midst of it all, the british ambassador arrested at

the protest, held for several hours. the british foreign secretary calling it a flagrant violation of international law. fallout over the downed plane now becoming a perfect storm for iran. in the global spotlight with international investigators poking around. as domestic protests grow and sanctions increase and iran's recourse to violence neutered by fear of escalation. and still no real diplomatic off-ramp in sight. nic robertson, cnn, abu dhabi, the uae. >> again, canada is mourning the 57 canadian citizens killed in the downing of that airliner. a memorial was held sunday in edmonton. prime minister justin trudeau vowed justice for the victims and offered his condolences to the families. >> 176 lives were extinguished

in the space of a few minutes last wednesday morning, but countless more victims all around the world, all across canada will suffer for years to come. while no words can ease the pain, the grief, the outrage, it is my sincere hope that you can find some comfort in knowing that all canadians stand with you. that is what makes us strong. i am so deeply sorry for your loss. this tragedy should never have occurred. >> trita parsi joins me now, the executive vp of the quincy institute and author of "losing an enemy: obama, iran and the triumph of diplomacy." mr. parsi, thanks for coming on.

>> thank you for having me. >> well, let's start in iran. demonstrators are calling for the supreme leader to step down and for those responsible for downing the plane to be prosecuted. iran's pushing back somewhat on protesters, but how do you think khomeini is goi khamenei is going to handle this situation and the anger of the iranian people who are protesting? >> well, there hasn't been a huge variation in the manner in which the government deals with protesters. particularly those calls for khamenei to step down and for the regime to be replaced. so i fear that, unfortunately, there will be quite a lot of violence used, particularly if these protests grow, but what is interesting is that these protests seem to be quite different from the ones we saw two months ago and two years ago. those were mainly driven by working-class young males, 19 to 24-year-olds, poorer segments of society. these protests are driven by students, a lot of women are involved, if not in leading positions, tend to be more

middle-class. and part of the reason why the government in iran have been able to handle this is precisely because these different segments of society have not come together. they're protesting at different times over different issues but are not joining each other's protests. as long as that remains the case, i suspect that at least in the short term the government will not feel terribly threatened. the protests will not be terribly potent against them. that can change in the medium and long term, though. >> right. iran admitted the mistake. shot the plane down. what does it need to do for these families? we're talking beyond iran, ukraine and canada. what clarity should it provide about how this happened? >> they need to provide complete transparency of what happened, why it happened, not only ask for forgiveness, but also make sure that the people responsible are prosecuted appropriately. and depending on how high that goes, it means that everyone should be prosecuted. even if it goes very high up in the iranian government.

there needs to be a clear sense that this is not just something that they have apologized for, but they are seriously taking measures to rectify, to the extent that that is, of course, possible. so for instance, when it comes to a lot of these iranian, canadians and others to provide all of the types of support and information that they're requiring. there's always a sanctions issue here because some of the people that would need to go to iran right now may not be able to do so because of sanctions issues or support that is needed or payments that the iranian government may need to pay to the victims' families. how will those be handled, mindful of the fact all the sanctions on iran right now makes it next to impossible to move money out of iran. >> absolutely. it is such a tragedy. with immense complications. let's back up to the united states deciding to kill the general from iran, soleimani. there are so many unanswered questions about the evidence of

imminent attacks against americans. the u.s. defense secretary sunday said that he believed, like president trump stated, that four u.s. embassies were being targeted by iran, but he couldn't discuss any intelligence. the united states had. he also said on sunday he saw no evidence, though, of the imminent attacks himself. the story at the top continues to shift. what do you make of it? >> well, the only conclusion that appears to be possible to draw out of this is that there really wasn't any intelligence. and particularly if the argument is that four embassies were potentially targeted, why were not those four embassies immediately evacuated and informed? there is nothing that makes sense in this story except for the fact of what trump told his friends in mar-a-lago. which was that he was under pressure from more hawkish senators in the republican party to take some very bold action against iran in order to enjoy continued support in the senate from the republicans against impeachment.

and, unfortunately, that seems to be the piece of the puzzle that best explains why the president decided to do this. >> well, so i want to ask you, how do u.s. and iranian government leaders now in direct and open military confrontation for the first time since iran's islamic revolution map a route out of this crisis in the midst of yet another crisis now in iran? >> well, we need serious de-escalation and i'm not seeing any of that. yes, they have both backed down a little bit, but i would say that this is more likely to be just a small pause in this. as long as the trump administration continues to pursue economic warfare against iran, those are his own words incidentally, and the iranians push back against that, then there will be a significant risk for something like this happening again. more likely in the persian gulf area in the next six months. at the same time, if the united states remains in iraq against the wishes of the iraqi

government and becomes a target of some of these militias who want to take revenge against the united states, not just for soleimani, but perhaps more importantly for some of the iraqi militia men that were killed by the u.s. in some of these recent bombings. that too can spark a conflict between the united states and iran if the u.s. interprets those attacks to have been guided by the iranians. so we're still in a very, very tense situation. all we're seeing is a limited pause. we are not seeing any real de-escalation. for that to happen there needs to be real diplomacy, and right now the offices of countries such as japan, oman and switzerland, who in the past have played a helpful role in reducing tensions between the united states and iran, are really needed and will be very positive if both countries relied on those in order to be able to avoid another flare up and a potential war in the next three to six months. >> we appreciate your insight so much and your expertise. we'll see if that happens. trita parsi from washington.

thank you so much. >> thank you. appreciate it. well, the plane was shot down days after the u.s. killed iranian general qassem soleimani. mr. trump has said he believes soleimani was targeting four u.s. embassies, but t president's allies have struggled to back up that claim. here was defense secretary mark esper on cnn's "state of the union." >> was there specific intelligence the iranians were plotting to target four u.s. embassies? >> there was intelligence that they had -- there was an intent to target the u.s. embassy in baghdad. what the president said with regard to the four embassies is what i believe as well. he said he believed that they probably -- that they could have been targeting the embassies in the region. i believe that as well as did other national security team members. >> was there specific intelligence that he was plotting to attack four u.s. embassies? did you see any intelligence like that? >> i'm not going to discuss intelligence matters here on this show. let me just say -- >> the president did, though. >> the president never said

there was specific intelligence to four different embassies. >> he said he believed it. >> and i believed it, too. >> four embassies? you believe that. >> i believe there were threat to multiple embassies. that's why we reinforced embassies with additional troops. >> iran retaliated, of course, for soleimani's death by firing missiles at bases with u.s. troops in iraq. one of the sites hit was al asad air base. cnn was the first network to reach and report from al asad after the attack. arwa damon has more on what happened and her exclusive report, a warning, some of the language may be offensive but it captures some terrifying moments for u.s. troops. >> holy [ bleep ]. god damn! oh, shit, bro. [ bleep ]. >> reporter: american forces are not used to being on the receiving end of this kind of firepower. >> [ bleep ], another one. another one. >> reporter: they are usually the ones delivering it. >> i'm not going to lie, i was

scared at the moment, but it happened. it's something that we were ready for. ready as can be. >> reporter: ready for some sort of ground attack by iran's proxies, ready for mortars and rockets, but this base is not equipped to defend against ballistic missiles. on any other night, some of the 2,500 troops would be in the areas hit. >> the ballistic missile reporting started to come in before the event. at that point we were really scrambling on how to protect against that, and so it really came down to dispersion, you know, putting space between people and then getting them into hardened bunkers just to provide that protection . >> reporter: at 11:00 p.m., those who could started to hunker down in bunkers built by their former enemy. >> this is a saddam hussein-era bunker. >> it is. so we felt it would be somewhat safe in here because it was designed to take, you know, some

kind of hit or it was built for, you know, bloiallistic missiles >> reporter: at 1:34 a.m., the first missiles hit. >> and these doors, every time one of the missiles hit, the doors would kind of sink in. >> reporter: dozens of troops were still out in the open holding their positions to protect the base. there was still the threat of incoming rockets, mortars and a ground assault. pilots were still at their stations operating drones. >> as i was going across the gravel, i looked out to, like, the eastern sky and see this orange streak. so started sprinting and yelling "incoming" and giving everybody a kind of warning. and then it hit. so, yeah. >> reporter: flames swallowed up the drone team's living quarters. some 30 troops would have been sleeping here had they not been ready. others rushed around the base as missiles came down looking for

anyone who might have been injured, checking on the base's defenses. along the base's perimeter, young soldiers on their first tour fought the instinct to flee and stayed manning the guard towers. >> it was definitely scary at first, but we both knew we had a job to do manning the tower and keeping eyes in front. so we had to do that, and more than anything focused on that. trying not to focus on everything behind us. >> reporter: when one strike hit too close, they bolted into the back of a truck and held their position there. it was a night unlike any here had experienced. hunkered down for about two hours, unable to fight back. some cramped into bunkers that weren't meant to withstand missiles like these. >> these kind of small bunkers exist throughout the base, but they're meant to protect against rockets and mortars. the ballistic missiles that were fired are about 3,000 times more powerful than that. the blast from this one knocked over a t-wall.

but if that hadn't happened, those sheltering here probably would not have survived. >> reporter: come daybreak, fear of finding out who was killed or wounded was eclipsed by the joyous shock that no one was. >> what are those reunion see so you're close to and you realize that you're both okay? >> it's a warm feeling deep in the heart that all your friends, your family here is okay. >> it just felt like forever since i'd seen my guys, and, you know, there's a lot of hugging and a lot of tears and a lot of just -- it's just a great feeling knowing that all your people are okay. >> reporte >> and this is where you used to -- >> yeah, this is my room. a little bit more open floor plan now, but, yeah, my bunk was right in the corner right there. and this is my neighbor up here. everything's obviously gone.

just happy no one was inside, you know? >> it's kind of freaky looking at it like this, isn't it? >> yeah. it's surreal. i'm not bothered looking at it, it's just, you know, it's a reminder. the threat still exists. >> i think, you know, we have each other. we had each other that night. it's a brotherhood that will never break becausee your perspective on life? >> it does. it does. it could, you know, it could be over in a, you know, in an instant. it really does. and it really makes me value -- value, mostly my team. >> reporter: the base is still on high alert. the dining facility is open, but people eat elsewhere to avoid a large crowd gathering. >> we got a little bit of notification -- >> reporter: the military says they are ready for what may come

next. iran's proxies on the ground continue to vow revenge. even for those who have seen war before, this was unlike any other battlefield experience. the overwhelming feeling of helplessness that comes with being under ballistic missile attack. to be at the mercy of the enemy, one that could strike again, even if it's not like this. arwa damon, cnn, al asad air base, iraq. >> next near on "cnn newsroom," ash rains down in the philippines after a powerful eruption from the taal volcano near the capital, and now many people there on heightened alert. we've got extraordinary pictures to show you about that. and the royal family set to hold a crisis summit. when has that happened recently? to figure out the next step for prince harry and his wife meghan after their shock announcement last week. much more ahead here. you're watching "cnn newsroom." huh, fifteen minutes could save you fifteen percent

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take a look at this time lapse video from sunday's eruption. steam and ash spewing some 9 nine miles high. that's high. the manila airport grounded flights and evacuations are under way in nearby towns. hours after the eruption, this powerful lightning strike was captured shooting through the night sky. generated by the intense energy of the volcano. look at that. and look at this, despite the dangers, one couple held their wedding not far from the volcano as ash fell around them. they just decided, let's get on with it. my goodness, what a picture for the ages. let's go now to cnn's blake essig. he joins me now from hong kong. these pictures are just incredible. what are they talking about now? what's the latest? >> yeah, they are, natalie. the philippines is bracing for a massive volcanic eruption from

one of the smallest vnolcanos i the world. this particular volcano, taal volcano is situated in the middle of a lake, roughly 36 kilometers south of manila. now, take a look at the dramatic images that we have of this volcano. the images that we just showed you. the ash cloud shot up roughly 15 kilometers, 9 miles up into the sky stretching all the way over to the outskirts of manila, so far roughly 16,000 people have already entered evacuation shelters with thousands more ordered to evacuate. now, earlier -- excuse me, so far the philippine institute of volcanology and seismology have raised it to a level 4 danger. this particular volcano despite its small stature is one of the

deadliest and dangers volcanos in the world and that's because of its proximity to roughly 25 million people in that manila area. now, at this point, it's the ash in the sky that's falling down that poses the biggest problems. >> it can contaminate water supplies because it's fine pieces of glass. if you breathe it in, that's going to be a hazard, because you don't want to be breathing in shards of glass. and importantly, it's going to be a hazard for airplanes if the engines ingest them, they can shut down. >> and regarding that ash, there are other potential issues. ash, in general, is heavier than snow, so any accumulation on potentially rooftops has the potential to collapse those rooftops. also, now, i had talked earlier about the fact that this volcano sits in the middle of a lake. so during a big eruption, any water displacement has the

potential to trigger a massive tsunami. and, again, a lot of these people in those nearby communities have been evacuated. natalie, again, we talked about the ash in the air, and the airport, the manila international airport grounding planes. at this point, the manila international airport is partially open. so if you do have a flight going in or out, it's a good idea to check on that flight status. >> absolutely. and we're so glad that people have been evacuated because a lot of vulnerable people there in the region. blake essig for us there in hong kong. thank you, blake. let's go now to our meteorologist pedram javaheri. >> what -- which part of this story, that story with the ash and the rain, but that lightning, pedram, is just spectacular to look at. >> yeah, you know what? it has been such an incredible scene there. of course, natalie, when you look at the population density, talking about 25 million people. the impacts from that alone across this particular region are certainly going to be impactful over the next several

weeks to several months potentially. showing you how things are playing out. winds in the upper level of the atmosphere west to east and certainly north of this region is where the winds are the heisheis highest. this is an area the aviation community would look to avoid for the next several weeks to months when it comes to the particular impacts of this eruption and how much of a long-lasting scenario is going to play out. the images in succession. 2:30 in the afternoon on sunday, we see the eruption take place. these incredible images coming out of this region as well. when an area is home to about 25 million people, you have an eruption with one of the world's most active small volcanos and situated, as i noted there, on top of a lake. it certainly creates what is known as flash steam. you take those boulders, the rocks and put them directly on top of the water across this region. it creates flash steam. michael, if we can take this back to the top of the graphic to show you the animation of what's happening here, that's really the most dangerous

scenario playing out of all of this. not only is rainfall in the forecast, at least inside the next 12 hours. mix that in with ash, that's a problem. the level being alerted to a 4 also remains a problem across this region. it doesn't look like we have the elements to show you the breakdown. here it is. the satellite imagery showing the eruption plume. there it goes. travelled 110 kilometers or 70 miles north of its original point, which sits south from manila. here is the eruption column. and the temperatures of these boulders, these rocks and also the magma itself, as high as 1,100 degrees celsius. if you put that into any sort of body of water, regardless of the water's temperature, that instantly creates what is known as flash steam and that's what creates a massive eruption, of course, of ejecting all this debris away from the center. that ash, of course, could end up many, many kilometers downstream. you see what the folks are doing, taking the initial images once the eruption took place. so keir goiwe're going to watch

very carefully. the level of alert is at the highest. the lava dome is growing, natalie. watch this for further updates from the authorities in the philippines. >> pedram, thanks very much. >> thank you. britain's royal family will meet to map out the future. working out next steps for prince harry and his wife meghan. that happens on monday. more about that in a moment. also, the australian's prime minister approval rating got burned after his botched handling of the bush fires ravaging the country. we'll have a live report. whatever happens out there today, remember, you have the hilton app. will the hilton app help us pick the starters? great question, no. but it can help you pick your room from the floor plan. can the hilton app help us score? you know, it's not that kind of thing, but you can score free wi-fi. can it help us win? hey, hey! we're all winners with the hilton price match guarantee, alright? man, you guys are adorable! alright, let's go lose this soccer game, come on! book with the hilton app. if you find a lower rate, we match it and give you 25% off that stay.

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the royal family will be meeting monday to discuss the future of prince harry and his wife after their surprise announcement last week. meanwhile, the uk's "sunday times" is reporting that prince william is sad about the rift with his brother harry. cnn's anna stewart has more about it. >> reporter: the queen's sandringham estate a much-loved country retreat and the royal family's christmas getaway. monday it will host a different sort of get-together. crisis talks to decide the future role of the duke and duchess of sussex. attending will be her majesty, prince charles, prince william and harry. it will be the first time senior royals have seen each other face-to-face since the sussex's shock statement on monday. meghan, the duchess of sussex, returned to canada but is expected to dial into the meeting. the announcement came in defines of the queen who expressly asked prince harry to hold off making

any statements. a terse response from buckingham palace appeared to express her displeasure. discussions with the duke and duchess of sussex are at an early stage. we understand their desire to take a different approach, but these are complicated issues that will take time to work through. officials acting for the queen, prince charles and prince william were instructed to work together at pace to find workable solutions for the future role of the sussexs. a range of potential options are to be discussed monday. any of which will take time to implement. on the negotiating table are expected to be income, properties, security, and even titles. defining their future role will likely involve a compromise on both sides. for the queen and her heirs, it's crucial they reach a solution that is workable, not just for prince harry and meghan, but for other royals who slip down the line of succession. prince andrew and prince edward

and one day princess charlotte and prince louie, too. anna stewart, cnn, london. the humanity righ rights wa their executive director has been denied entry into hong kong. kenneth roth arrived there sunday, but says immigrantion officials gave him no reason to keep him out. for more on this story let's turn to cnn's kristie lu stout joining us from hong kong. what's up with this one, kristie. >> kenneth roth, the global head of human rights watch attempted to fly here in a press conference on human rights in hong kong, he arrived, but says he was denied entry and turned back at the airport for immigration reasons. he's a u.s. citizen. he's visited hong kong a number of times in the past. after he was denied entry here,

roth immediately took to twitter to share his account of what happened. take a listen. >> sadly, as i arrived here, the chinese government decided it didn't want to let me in. even though i've been able to enter hong kong freely before, this time for the first time they blocked me. this episode is just the latest evidence that the chinese government is doing everything it can to undermine the enforcement of international human rights standards. >> for an explanation we've been reaching out to the hong kong department and their immigration department. it did return its message saying it doesn't comment on individual cases, unquote. in a tweet, kenneth roth called it another disturbing crack in the rights of one country, two systems. now, one country, two systems is the governing principle by which hong kong has been governed since the handover in 1997. this is the model that many opposition figures here in hong kong see as broken as the government refuses to answer demands for greater democracy.

as you know, for more than seven months, almost eight months, the massive and often violent pro-democracy and anti-government protests have been rocking the territory. and in taiwan, the newly re-elected president, we know that she denounced one country, two systems as a potential model for any unification with china. in recent months, hong kong has barred several individuals, including a number of americans, an american photographer, as well as an american scholar, both have addressed the protests in hong kong. both have criticized beijing. the chinese government has blamed the west for interfering in chinese affairs. the human rights watch was scheduled to release this report of status of human rights this week in hong kong at the foreign correspondent's club. the club's president said on twitter this is just another example to block freedoms granted in hong kong. denied entry here in the city, human rights watch will now launch the report at the united nations in new york. we have a copy of the report but

it's on embargo so we can't give the details yet. it's 335 pages long. the group says the lead report highlights, quote, the chinese government's intensifying assault on the international human rights system. natalie? >> all right. we'll wait for the release of that report. kristie lu stout, thanks so much, kristie. american firefighters are stepping up to help tackle australia's massive bush fires, but the fight is much bigger than they thought. >> have you ever seen anything at this magnitude? >> no. we have large fires, of course, in the united states and all over the world, but this is just unprecedented. >> we will have more on their mission live from australia with our will ripley in just a moment. these days, we're all stressed. (honk!) i hear you sister. that's why i'm partnering with cigna to remind you to go in for your annual check-up, and be open with your doctor about anything you feel - physically and emotionally. but now cigna has a plan that can help everyone see stress differently.

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welcome back. the australian prime minister's approval rating has taken a

major hit as his government struggles with the bush fire crisis. a new poll found scott morrison's approval rating dropped eight points. australians are upset over his interactions with fire-ravaged communities and his inaction on climate change. and what's going on as he continues to tout the importance of coal in his country. cnn correspondent will ripley is live in nowra, australia with the latest on the fires, and, of course, the most amazing video i think i've seen in the adorable and sweetness category, dropping carrots to the animals below. my goodness. >> reporter: so, let's start with the good news, right? because obviously we know that these fires have been just awful. for some of the world's most endangered species. critically endangered species like the rock wallaby, which saw all of its diet burned up because it feeds on the vegetation on the ground. right now much of the ground in these areas is just pure black

ash. so what the government has done is allocating millions of dollars for relief organizations to fly overhead, drop down carrots and sweet potatoes to feed these animals, hoping that the rain in the forecast in the coming days will help to kind of retrigger the vegetation growth and not result in these animals becoming dependent on humans for their survival. of course that would not be a good thing either. let's talk about the efforts to contain these fires. the fire fighting has shifted. and this is a good thing. it shifted from a defensive mode to protect the communities like where we are now to offensive mode, to reduce the size of these fires, build containment lines and keep the fires from spreading when temperatures inevitability climb and, you know, sparks inevitability happen. there is still over a month left of australia's fire season. working alongside the australians here are americans who say they are being greeted like heros. >> reporter: hovering over australia's hellish inferno,

this american angel. a 52-year-old heavy lift helicopter nicknamed "georgia peach" built in 1967 for the vietnam war. today it battles bush fires dousing them with enough water to fill three large swimming pools every hour. but in new south wales, australia's hardest-hit state, these helicopters sit idle. giving american firefighters who came here to help a rare day off. >> today's wealth's nther is no allowing you to fly. temperatures and high humidity are slowing the fires' progress. >> what this will do is put the fire in a comb stoes staatose s few days. he knows that break may be short lived. recent rains barely made a dent in australia's historic drought. just a few days of extreme heat

could be catastrophic. reigniting a burn area the size of massachusetts, connecticut and rhode island combined. >> is there any way to have enough resources to fight a fire this big? >> not at this magnitude and not at this intensity. >> reporter: for the first time, superintendent mark williams takes us inside nowra's fire control center. we see australians and americans working together. the two nations have agreed to share fire resources. >> i've been to the united states and canada on numerous occasions myself fire fighting, so it's great to have that reciprocal effort to come back and assist us in our times of need. >> reporter: more than 150 fire specialists from two dozen u.s. states are in australia. some traveling more than 16 hours. these americans got a heros' welcome when they landed in sydney last week. even the city's iconic opera house lit up its sales for all the firefighters risking their lives. >> it felt really good.

i was very proud to be able to come over here and help. >> reporter: bart kicklighter from oregon says the two nations are sharing manpower and brain power at a critical time. >> have you ever seen anything at t no. we have large fires, of course, in the united states and all over the world, but this is just unprecedented. >> reporter: he's never seen a fire so fast, so big, so hot. an ominous sign of what could lie ahead, not just for australia, but the u.s. and the world. >> scientists pretty much agree that the one factor that these fires have in common is increasingly intense fires is climate change. and what fuels climate change in large part? fossil fuels. yet on the drive to this location, natalie, guess what we saw? a train piled with coal. australia is the world's leading coal exporter. it's going to be hard to see how this country weans itself off what environmental activists call an addiction to coal, a

situation they say will only cause the fire situation to get worse. >> it's a paradigm shift that needs to happen, for sure. all right. will ripley, thanks so much for your reporting. we'll take a quick break. more news after this. i wanted my hepatitis c gone. i put off treating mine. epclusa treats all main types of chronic hep c. whatever your type, epclusa could be your kind of cure. i just found out about mine. i knew for years epclusa has a 98% overall cure rate. i had no symptoms of hepatitis c mine caused liver damage. epclusa is only one pill, once a day, taken with or without food for 12 weeks. before starting epclusa, your doctor will test if you have had hepatitis b, which may flare up, and could

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i have a brother in the second battalion. >> yes, sir. >> they're walking into a trap. >> that right there, the world war i epic "1917" it marched into the number one spot at the u.s. box office, and fresh office win at the golden globes. expectations are that it will also do well at the oscars. we'll soon find out how many nods it and other movies receive with the nomination announcements just hours away. journalist andrew monetti is with us from los angeles. he is editor in chief of hollywood international magazine. let's start with the big films this year. what are the big favorites and what do you hope to see rack up the most nominations? >> i think there are three leading contenders for the most nominations. "1917," the world war i drama, is the film with all the momentum going into the

nominations. it was the last major release to come out, and talk about saving the best for last. to me it is the favorite here. i can see it getting ten or 11 nominations. i can definitely sequin te quin tarantino's film leading the pack with 11, 12 nominations. also very much in the race, the early front runner, never a good place to be as oscar history has shown us, "the irish man" which is netflix's hope to win its first best picture oscar. that's lost a bit of momentum in recent weeks. could it be the first film since turning point and color purple to get 11 nominations and zero wins? i can see it getting a lot of nominations, but it's losing track. so it's going to be very interesting to see what tops the

field. could it perhaps be joker which led the pack at the bafta nominations? we'll find out early monday morning. >> there are a lot in the mix for dinardo dicaprio, renee zellweger. are you expecting to see favorites or new names among the nominees? >> yes, i'm expecting to see a lot of old favorites especially in the best actor category where there is some real industry heavy weights there. but it would be interesting to see if a couple of industry favorites, mainly known for comedy films, are able to break in. eddie murphy for dolemite is my name. adam sandler for uncut gems getting a lot of buzz as well. but dicaprio and deniro look like lops. so, too, does joaquin phoenix, a front runner for joker. and it's renee zellweger's to lose. at the moment she seems

untouchable. but who will the rest of the nominees be? we'll find out. i've got oscar fever. it's so exciting. >> we're in the season. britain announced behalf da and they were roundly criticized for nominating all white actors and all male directors. are we likely to see any diversity in the oscars this year? >> that's a huge disappointment, by the way, especially as bafta has been very much a leader in encouraging more diversity in all its programs and film education classes. but it did not translate to the membership. and we've had the oscars so white controversy, now the academy has moved to address that. they had promised to double the number of minority and female members by 2020. and they have hugely increased the membership and the voting membership to now approximately 9,000. so whether this will be reflected in more people of color getting nominations, let's

hope so. there are certainly many deserving candidates in there. the makeup of the academy, though, it basically used to be old white guys. now it's 32% female. it's 16% minority, and by changing the numbers, will they change the game? it's going to be one of the most fascinating things to watch when the envelopes are opened. >> all right. and i also want to ask you, there was a big controversy last year when the academy proposing quickly dropped an idea for a new popular film category. are this year's most popular films that might have been nominated from that category like avengers "end game" or "star wars" going to get any love in the mainstream categories? >> absolutely not. so, yes, there's been -- it's a good point, though, because there has been a big disconnect between what audiences are seeing at movie theaters and what, you know, is being awarded by the oscar voters.

you know, there has sometimes been a situation -- i can think of examples like "titanic" and "lord of the rings, return of the king." more often than not, it is the critics and the industry favorites which tend to get oscar votes. i expect more of the same in the morning. >> block busters at the box office. does not mean always an oscar. all right. we'll talk with you again once they're out. sandro, thank you so much. sandro monetti. >> thank you. >> i'm signing off. i nominate rosemary church to continue our news next. el sites - even our competitors - so you can be confident you're getting the right flight at the best price. kayak. search one and done. to put on our website? i mean i would have but i'm a commercial vehicle so i don't have hands... or a camera...or a website. should we franchise? is the market ready for that?

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