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talks. >> we're trying to get a peace with russia. ukraine, and we're working very hard on it. >> the uk prime minister saying he's ready to put troops on the ground in ukraine. >> very clear. the two countries in lockstep. >> we agree that. >> the ayatollahs must not have nuclear weapons. >> an incredibly busy weekend. the storms really came down hard. >> it was crunch. >> it was like. >> eggs. >> cracking. >> live from london. this is cnn newsroom with max foster and christina macfarlane. hello. >> and a very warm welcome to our viewers joining us from the united states and all around the world. i'm christina macfarlane. it's monday, february 17th, 9 a.m. here in london, noon in saudi arabia, where top u.s. and russian officials are preparing to hold critical talks on how to end the

war in ukraine. now, sources tell cnn those negotiations negotiations will begin on tuesday. the u.s. delegation includes secretary of state marco rubio, who has just arrived in riyadh after a two day trip to israel. he says the next few days and weeks will determine whether russian president vladimir putin is serious about ending the conflict. u.s. president donald trump confirms ukraine's president volodymyr zelenskyy will be involved. >> we're moving along. we're trying to get a peace with russia, ukraine, and we're working very hard on it. it's a war that should have never started. >> do you expect zelenskyy to be involved in. >> these conversations? >> what will his. >> role be? i do. he will be involved. yes. >> well the u.s. special envoy to the middle east, steve witkoff disputed criticism that ukraine won't be involved. here's what he told fox news on sunday. >> i am pretty sure that. a you know, a lot of our cabinet people, including treasury. >> secretary bessent.

>> the vice president, mike waltz john ratcliffe, our secretary of state, marco rubio, have been meeting with various ukrainian people at the munich security conference. so i don't think this is about excluding anybody. in fact, it's about including everybody. >> while speaking at the munich security conference on saturday, president zelenskyy warned that the old days are over when america supported europe just because it always had. meanwhile, the uk's prime minister, keir starmer, says he's willing to put british troops on the ground in ukraine to enforce a peace deal if necessary. he is among the european leaders who are holding an emergency summit in paris today. here to discuss all of this, cnn's salma abdelaziz and clare sebastian. following the latest developments with me from paris. so much to discuss. but first, let's just get to you, as we have seen marco rubio just landing there in saudi arabia, i think so many still reeling for the pace at which these meetings are taking place. and a big question still over who is going to be in the room. what more do we know about who is going to be

taking part? >> i mean, i'm experiencing whiplash because this was supposed to be a trip about the middle east. we had understood that the secretary of state was there to discuss the details of gaza and president trump owning it instead. now it's twisted in. it's a meeting on ukraine taking place tomorrow. and the big question, as you know, is, is ukraine going to be involved? president zelenskyy said he wasn't even invited to this meeting. and what the u.s. is pushing is a dual track negotiation. so a trump's special envoy for russia and ukraine, keith kellogg, will be in ukraine this week speaking with ukrainian officials, while others, including marco rubio, will be in riyadh. speaking to russian officials. and somewhere in the middle of that, they're all going to merge the other key people who aren't at the table are, of course, the europeans. it is shocking to see these talks take place in the middle east rather than in europe. so talks beginning in earnest tomorrow, without ukraine and without europe, as far as we

know right now. >> yes. and speaking of europe, claire discombobulated european leaders. some. not all. i should point out meeting in paris today, organized by president emmanuel macron. and we heard just there, british prime minister keir starmer saying he is ready and willing to put british troops on the ground in ukraine in the event of any deal taking place. is that an early signal, perhaps, as to what is going to come out of this meeting? >> so they are sort of projecting this as the sort of first stage in a longer process. they say that talks can continue afterwards in other formats. but look, i think it's clear that there are symbolic and practical elements to this one. europe has to push back against this criticism that it's a bystander in all of this, that it's willing to sort of stand by and let the u.s. take the lead here. it is not. it feels that it has a very critical stake in this war. you know, i was in brussels last week, and european officials kept emphasizing that they actually contributed more to ukraine last year than the u.s., so they feel like they deserve a seat at this table. so that's what they're showing with this hastily convened meeting today. i think on the practical side, this is about,

you know, really stepping up to the moment. i think if there's any consistency in what we've seen from the u.s., it's that europe has to now pay more to fund its own security. so they have to sit down and figure out how to do that. but as simon said, this is whiplash, right? they've gone from hearing from pete hegseth, the defense secretary, last week, that europe needs to pay more because of the scarcity argument. right. the u.s. has other priorities. it needs to focus on the indo-pacific. and frankly, europe's been freeloading for too long to then jd vance, who argued that europe is actually retreating from their shared values, suggesting that the u.s. sees the sort of edifice of the postwar security architecture as essentially crumbling. and interestingly, the very official marco rubio, who is going to be holding these thoughts in saudi arabia, doubled down on that yesterday. take a listen. >> the point of his speech was basically that there is an erosion in free speech and in tolerance for opposing points of view within europe. and that's of concern because that is eroding. that's not an erosion of your military capabilities. that's not an erosion of your economic standing. that's an erosion of the actual values that bind us together in the

transatlantic union that everybody talks about. >> so, of course, it's really unnerving to europe to hear that. and then you have the other side of this, which is that officials like pete hegseth and then general kellogg have said, you know, we don't speak for the president. you know, everything is on the table in negotiations. so europe has to grapple with the idea that all of these bombshells are being dropped by the trump administration, but they could change the very next day if trump himself decides. so it is a moment of critical importance for europe, and i think they have to look through the noise and think practically about how they move forward and take greater control of their own security. >> i think one thing that's been noteworthy in the last few days is the number of contradictory statements we've been seeing coming out of the u.s. administration. we saw marco rubio just there. i mean, he actually appeared to contradict ukraine's envoy, keith kellogg and saying ukraine in europe would be given a seat at the table. just one example of many mixed messaging that we've heard and seen. um, what does this say about the strategy heading into these talks, and also how important it is for europe not to read too much into the

rhetoric at this stage? >> i think what keith kellogg also said a few days ago was, i'm on trump time, and i think that was the most telling comment of all that he said. he said, i'm not working in days. i'm not working in weeks. i'm not working in months. i'm working in hours. i'm working on trump time. and what's so important about that statement is there's this overarching idea from president trump that the war must end. it must end immediately. it's not just ideological for him. we have to remember he sent one of his officials with a contract to sign over half of ukraine's mineral wealth. a week ago. ukraine did not sign that, of course. but we have to remember this is more than ideological. this is financial. he is telling people to pay up and he is finding ways to pay up. and however that happens for president trump, if that shifts, if that changes, if that morphs, it doesn't matter. as long as he attains that final goal of ending the war immediately. >> and i think for europe, that's the sort of very tricky part of this. right. what we clearly see, even though there

are inconsistencies, is that the u.s. wants to control this process, right. they want to be the ones doing the deal. we had this a lot from pete hegseth in brussels. you know, trump is the best dealmaker in the world. he's the only world leader. and get out there and do this. meanwhile, europe is being told very clearly that they are going to need to front the security guarantees, which is why the uk prime minister's statement was important, and then take on the overwhelming burden for funding ukraine after this, while not really having much control over what the final solution is, the final settlement is. so i think that is something that they are going to have to grapple with going forward. and i think this is why you see this hastily convened summit. they're trying to get to this, to this point of putting their points across. because i think the other thing that we can conclude at this point is that the trump administration don't have a clear plan at this point. we're literally i think, watching the sausage get made in real time in public. >> i mean, it's an extraordinary week and quite frankly, an extraordinary week in diplomatic affairs, politics across across the world in some ways. but thank you both so

much. we'll be watching to see how this unfolds. and the israeli negotiating team is on its way to cairo to discuss keeping phase one of the ceasefire with hamas on track. meanwhile, israel's security cabinet is expected to discuss phase two in the hours ahead. all of this comes after the u.s. secretary of state is meeting with the israeli prime minister, where iran was high on the agenda. cnn's nic robertson has those details. >> very clear. the two countries in lockstep and on iran. absolutely joined up in their thinking. the prime minister of israel saying very clearly, the ayatollahs cannot be allowed to get a nuclear weapon. marco rubio, doubling down on that. >> the common theme in all of these challenges is iran. it is the single greatest source of instability in the region. behind every terrorist group, behind every act of violence, behind every destabilizing activity, behind everything that threatens peace and stability

for the millions of people who call this region home is iran. and by iran, i mean the ayatollahs. by iran, i mean its regime, a regime who, by the way, its people don't support. the people of iran are victims of that regime. >> they also spoke about syria, about lebanon, that neither of those two countries would be allowed to have a footing or a place for forces that would target israel's security. and on hamas and gaza. prime minister netanyahu saying the united states, israel in lockstep, and that hamas could be no more. >> i want to assure everyone who is now listening to us. >> president trump. >> and i. >> are working in full. >> cooperation and coordination. >> between us. we have a common. >> strategy, and we can't always share the details of this strategy with the public, including when the gates of hell will be opened, as they surely will if all our hostages are not

released until the last one of them. ie. israel is determined to achieve all the war objectives we set after the horrific attack on october 7th, the worst attack on jews since the holocaust. we will eliminate hamas's military capability and its political rule in gaza. we will bring all our hostages home. >> and on that all important question of what happens next in the hostage ceasefire negotiations over gaza, prime minister netanyahu sending. delegation of negotiating delegation to cairo on monday to discuss the phase one, the first six weeks part of that deal, the security cabinet here in israel monday evening will meet to discuss what to do about phase two, the much harder to grapple with phase that could bring about an end to the war. and on that, prime minister netanyahu indicating once the security council has discussed phase two, then he will instruct his negotiators who have gone to

cairo how to discuss that further. nic robertson, cnn, jerusalem. >> meanwhile, mr. netanyahu says he knew about u.s. president donald trump's vision for a u.s. takeover of gaza before it was announced, and praised the idea as revolutionary. cnn has learned that saudi arabia is open to mediating a new nuclear agreement between the u.s. and iran. the kingdom is concerned iran may be more inclined to pursue a career, a nuclear weapon, now that its regional proxies have been weakened. well, this comes as u.s. intelligence agencies say they believe israel will likely attempt to strike iranian nuclear facilities this year. but israel's willingness to use military force runs counter to u.s. president donald trump's current desire for a nuclear deal with tehran. earlier, cnn spoke to former israeli consul general for new york about the geopolitics here at play. >> the iranians are facing a simple well, it's not simple, but but a major critical

dilemma. do we negotiate under unfavorable conditions because the iranians realize that they have been weakened geopolitically and militarily in the last year, and they are to a large extent isolated? so do we negotiate a deal and abandon us, a nuclear option, a military nuclear option, or do we go full steam ahead with the option and risk war? israel, on the other hand, is trying to, as i said, lure the u.s. into this but can go at it alone because a deal which seems to be what president trump is going for. and he said that in his own voice. a deal would not be received well in israel. the americans face a similar dilemma. we we use coercive diplomacy. we impose even more sanctions. but we want a deal. the question is, what kind of a deal? and the saudis, in one sentence, the saudis, they want stability. and so i think that the saudis, who have a major sway on on trump way,

way, way more than mr. netanyahu would dream of having the saudis may, may end up driving or impelling trump to negotiate with iran. >> the. >> millions across the eastern u.s. are still under flood warnings after a powerful storm swept through eastern united states this weekend. water levels reached historic highs in kentucky, where at least nine people, including one child, are dead. and officials say emergency responders rescued more than 1000 people in under 24 hours. but kentucky governor andy beshear believes the death toll is going to grow, as the severe weather event is expected to continue for several more days. in atlanta, georgia, one person died after a tree fell on a home amid tremendous thunderstorm activity, a local official said. an atlanta faced dangerous overnight conditions brought on by the storm. here's one local resident recounting the moment a tree fell on his home. >> it was crunch. >> it was. >> like eggs.

>> cracking and you step on some eggs. and luckily it didn't kill my wife or my. >> nephew. >> well, in virginia, thousands of customers are still without power, and the national weather service warns that frigid water temperatures could pose a risk of rapid hypothermia for anyone caught in the flooding. and in virginia, first responders helped dozens of people and their pets relocate to safety in overnight water rescues. the severe weather threat is far from over, though our meteorologist, allison chinchar, has the latest on the incoming arctic blast that could break dozens of records. low temperatures this week. >> the cold front that brought all of the flooding rains across portions of the ohio and tennessee valley is now pushing out, but behind it, you've got some pretty significant cold air that's going to infiltrate portions of the central and the eastern u.s. and with that cold air in place as our next system begins to arrive, it's going to bring snow to some places that are pretty far south. here. you can see by tuesday morning you've already got snow and even some ice developing across portions of texas and even

oklahoma. the system itself will continue to slide east so that by wednesday morning, as many folks are headed out on their commute in nashville, louisville, even around huntsville, alabama, looking at some snow showers into the mix further south, it's mostly going to be rain for places like atlanta, montgomery stretching down towards new orleans. the system continues to spread eastward, eventually impacting portions of the mid-atlantic like washington, d.c., baltimore, and even into the northeast like new york and boston, bringing some additional snow there as well. here you can see some of these spots. you are looking at pretty substantial amounts of snow. lots of these locations across the central u.s. and even perhaps over the carolinas in virginia, could be looking at at least half a foot of snow before this finally pushes back out of the area. the cold air we talked about is also going to spread. so even for the areas that don't necessarily get the snow per se, your temperatures are certainly going to drop. look at dallas for example, 57 for the high on monday, looking at a high of only 28 on wednesday. their normal high would be in the 60s. they won't get there until the end of the week. similar

scenario for omaha. the average high is 39 degrees. they are looking at barely getting just into positive numbers. by the time we get to the middle portion of the week, they finally rebound. once we head into next weekend. >> now, less than three weeks after a deadly midair collision over washington, d.c., hundreds of federal aviation administration employees are being fired. that story and more after the break. and the trump administration is ready to present a new plan for tackling bird flu outbreaks without killing chickens. >> i want. >> i want, i want. i one. oh. oh. framing is hard. but frame. >> bridge is. >> easy. >> custom frames. premium materials. >> transparent pricing.

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it's an independent agency that enforces labor laws and protections for american workers. after an unprecedented firing, the board cannot now function. and critics say billionaire elon musk has everything to gain. rafael romo explains why. >> the board normally has five members. with the firing of board member gwen wilcox late last month by the trump administration. the national labor relations board now lacks a quorum to make any decisions at all. among the main objectives of the nlrb are overseeing elections to form unions investigating complaints about unfair labor practices, encouraging businesses and employers to reach settlements to avoid litigation, and enforcing judicial orders that have to do with labor practices. the terms of two board members had expired, but the board could still make decisions with the other three that remained. when wilcox was fired. the number of active board members fell to two, which means that even if

the board still exists in practice, there aren't enough members to have a majority on any decision. as for why she was fired, wilcox said the email she received late one night specifically said that the trump administration wanted someone more aligned with the president's policies. this is what she told cnn. >> he wanted people who were more, who were loyal to him and would issue decisions more consistent with his views. and that is actually in violation of the national labor relations. >> act. which is an independent agency that is to be free of. influence, both presidential and other political influence. >> it's important to mention that wilcox's term would have expired in 2028. her firing makes her the first person to be removed from the board in its 90 year history. elon musk's spacex brought a case to federal court

last year, arguing two points that nlrb structure was unconstitutional and that it shouldn't be allowed to act on unfair labor practice complaints. apparently, that suit was an attempt to block the agency from moving against spacex for firing some employees, who complained in a letter about musk's behavior on social media. neither space nor tesla responded to a request for comment. spacex is not the only major company that has fought the nlrb in court. amazon in recent years has also sued over the existence of the nlrb, with the e-commerce giant still fighting the results of a union representation vote, it lost in 2022. that was the first time workers at one of amazon's facilities had voted to join a union. amazon did not respond to requests for comment, either. rafael romo, cnn, atlanta. >> now, the trump administration's department of education is threatening to defund schools that don't cancel diversity and inclusion

programs. the department's acting assistant secretary for civil rights wrote a letter friday directed towards the schools that receive federal funding. the letter said schools have, quote, toxically indoctrinated students with the false premise that the united states is built upon systemic and structural racism and advanced discriminatory policies and practices. republicans have long argued that white americans, particularly white men, are losing their rights to minorities and women. the trump administration is ready to present a plan to counter bird flu without killing chickens. unlike other countries, until now, the u.s. has chosen not to vaccinate chickens. instead, the u.s. normally culls flocks and birds when the detects bird flu. but the impact is sending the price of eggs soaring, which became a talking point during last year's presidential election. director of the national economic council, kevin hassett, says he's ready to present a new plan to president trump. >> so what we need to do is have better ways with biosecurity. and medication. >> and so on to make sure that

the perimeter doesn't have. >> to kill the chickens. we have a better, smarter perimeter. >> and so having a. >> smart perimeter is what we're working on. >> and we're finalizing. >> the ideas about how to do that with the best scientists in government. and that's the kind of thing that should have happened a year ago. and if it had, then egg prices would be a lot better than they are now. >> and the first vaccine for chickens may soon be on the way. authorities said they gave conditional approval to a vaccine from drugmaker zoetis. this week marks the end of donald trump's first month in his second term in the white house. it's been a wild month, to say the least. cbs yougov poll finds that 53% of americans approve of the president's performance so far. 47% disapprove. whether or not they agree with his flurry of executive action, 70% of americans say mr. trump is doing what he promised in his campaign. but a whopping 66% believe he is not doing enough to lower the prices of goods and services. and this comes, as we were saying, as egg prices skyrocket and thousands of people are losing their jobs

from his federal job cuts. president donald trump himself attended the daytona 500, nascar's premier race in florida, on sunday. >> mr. president, thank you for joining us at this year's great american race. >> at daytona 500. >> started the radio is yours, sir. >> this is your. >> favorite president. i'm a big fan. i am a really big fan of you people that you do this, i don't know, but i just want you to be safe. you're talented people and you're great people and great americans. have a good day. have a lot of fun, and i'll see you later. >> that was mr. trump addressing the drivers over the radio as the presidential limousine known as the beast did ceremonial laps around the track before the race. mr. trump's appearance at daytona comes shortly after he made history as the first sitting u.s. president to attend a super bowl. west texas is grappling with a measles outbreak. we'll have the latest on this after the break. plus, top u.s. officials are starting to arrive in saudi arabia while high level talks are set to

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macfarlane in london. if you're just joining us, here are some of the top stories we're following today at least ten people are dead after a severe storm system devastated parts of the eastern u.s. this weekend. the governor of kentucky, one of the hardest hit states, warns the death toll could grow as millions in the region remain under flood warnings. we're now just one day away from the highly anticipated negotiations between the u.s. and russia over the war in ukraine. u.s. secretary of state marco rubio arrived in riyadh in the last hour, with sources telling cnn those talks will begin on tuesday. the uk's prime minister, keir starmer, says he's willing to put british troops on the ground in ukraine to enforce a peace deal, if necessary. he is among the european leaders who are holding an emergency summit in paris today, after getting shut out by the u.s. let's bring in nigel gould-davies, the former u.s., u.k. ambassador to belarus. he's also a senior fellow for russia and eurasia at the international institute for strategic studies. thank you for your time. now, as you can

imagine, there is understandable concern about what the u.s. will agree to without europe and ukraine in the room as these meetings take place in saudi arabia, especially as u.s. officials have provided a flurry of contradictory statements in recent days, which has concerns that there is no strategy here for the u.s. and that president trump may embrace as a result of that, any deal with putin. what are your expectations for what is going to come out of these talks in saudi? >> yes, we really. >> are. >> in uncharted territory. >> the first thing to say, i think. >> is that. >> even the americans are not expecting an outcome, an end to the war from the saudi talks. they are envisaged as the first stage in a series of discussions in different capitals. and i think president trump has said that he expects to receive president putin in washington and maybe himself go to moscow. so i don't think we can expect

anything sort of decisive immediately. but they will be exploring the terrain, the outlines of a possible agreement. i think one of the worries here is that the united states is signaling undue haste. i would say that they are anxious to reach an agreement. and if you are negotiating and you are showing that you are the one that wants to to to get this done as quickly as possible, that puts you in a weaker position. there is a lot for putin to exploit here. the second concern is, as you already hinted, that it's the americans alone who are negotiating with russia, but the americans are also saying it is europe alone who will have to enforce and guarantee and pay for any agreement that the americans make over their heads? >> yes. and that reality has forced european leaders, some not all, to convene this hastily

arranged meeting in paris today. many believe this to be the biggest security crisis the u.s. has faced since the second world war. what will need to come out of this meeting if they're to stay in the room and maintain their ground? >> i think that's right. it's no crisis. it's no exaggeration to say this is the most serious crisis that the that the transatlantic alliance has faced, and europe has been subjected to a barrage of diplomatic shock and awe over the past few days. this is a first opportunity for them to sit down together and take the measure of what has happened, to discuss more or less calmly, with one another in an extended way what is going on, how to make sense of it. that's the first thing. um, the second thing is that they will want to agree a diplomatic strategy, a response to what the united states is saying and doing, and also perhaps decide on the

messengers, because for president trump, even more than for most leaders, the personal is the political and getting the right people to say the right things is, uh, will be very important in sort of getting into his, uh, his thinking. and the third thing that the europeans will be doing is thinking about the resources that they can marshal to respond to this situation, and in particular, to to meet the challenges of any peace agreement which, to repeat, seems likely to be agreed over their heads. what do they have? they have underinvested in defense resources for at least a decade. they are catching up. what do they have on the table? what could they put in ukraine? >> well, on your point about resources and the the importance of the messenger, we know that prime minister keir starmer is due to meet with president trump later this week. he has stated just yesterday that he is ready and willing to send british

soldiers to ukraine as part of a peacekeeping deal, the likes of which will be being discussed in europe today. what are your thoughts on what a european security force deployed in ukraine? you know, after any any peace deal is arranged will actually look like. >> you recall, too, that president zelenskyy over the weekend called for a european army. now, that may be, uh, quite an ambition, but, uh, britain and other countries, france two and others are looking to see, you know, what they could field in ukraine itself. one challenge there is that, uh, pete hegseth, the u.s. defense secretary, said that any european troops in ukraine would not, uh, be protected by the united states, would not be subject to that sort of article five of the nato treaty. the second concern is the sheer numbers involved. now, you know, the best guess is that it would be something like 100, 120,000

troops would be needed to sort of police and guarantee a line of contact across a a frozen conflict. it's very difficult, especially in the short term, to see how, um, europeans could muster that sort of force. britain alone, for example, has the the smallest army since, i think, around the 18th century. so we are looking into cupboards that are really quite bare. uh, and so this crisis, like no other is concentrating european minds on just what it is that they have available and the messages they will need to send to their own domestic populations about the urgency of this crisis. >> yeah, a lot to contend with, uncharted territory, as you said at the top there, ambassador, we appreciate your thoughts. thank you. >> thank you. >> now, mourners laid flowers in moscow on sunday, one year after the death of russian opposition leader alexei navalny.

supporters filed by his gravesite expressing their sadness not only for themselves but for the country. navalny died last february after collapsing and losing consciousness in a russian penal colony. his mother also visited the grave and praised the bravery of his followers, who could risk possible reprisals by honoring her son. >> i know how hard it is. i understand the fears of those who come here. no matter what, i sincerely believe that those who come here are for me the best people in russia, because that's patriotism. when you love your country and want to make it a little better. russia should be happy. >> well, navalny's widow yulia, encouraged people to continue fighting for a free and peaceful russia to make her husband's dream come true. she said she spent the last year trying to continue his work, and says he is still an inspiration to russians. navalny has accused russian president vladimir putin of being responsible for navalny's death, but the kremlin has denied this. our 20

countries issued a joint statement marking the first anniversary of navalny's death on sunday. it said we reiterate that the ultimate responsibility for his death lies with the russian authorities. one year on russia's dire human rights record continues to deteriorate. the kremlin crushes peaceful dissent, maintains a climate of fear and undermines the rule of law. the united kingdom, australia, canada and several european countries are among the signatories on the statement. the u.s. was not among them. up next, an update on the health of pope francis as he recovers from bronchitis in the hospital. >> our thoughts and prayers. >> are with those. >> whose lives were tragically taken. >> the dots all start to connect. >> together. >> somebody did this purposely to these people. >> lockerbie. >> the bombing of pan am flight 103 sunday at nine on cnn. >> i want. i want, i want, i want.

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has now spread to neighboring counties as well. wayne, terry and yoakum counties now are part of this outbreak. they have vaccination rates lower than the recommended threshold for this area. experts say that the risk of further transmission remains high, but they are putting in measurements to try and curb the spread of this virus. clinics have been open now in extended hours, seven days a week, and last week about 80 people got their mmr shots, their measles, mumps and rubella vaccines. but this area in one in about five kindergartners is not vaccinated against measles. that is the highest exemption rate in the county, about 18%, according to the texas department of health. measles is an extremely contagious virus that is spread through the air when an infected person coughs or sneezes, and in some cases, it can lead to blindness, pneumonia, and swelling of the brain, and it can be deadly, especially for

those unvaccinated people or under vaccinated. those who haven't completed their second dose of the vaccine. and for children under the age of five, the cdc warns that once an outbreak starts in an area with low vaccination rates, it is extremely difficult to contain it. and now the virus is spreading over to new mexico after two adults were diagnosed with the virus after a teenager unvaccinated teenager was also diagnosed in lee county, just across the border from texas. authorities nationwide are warning parents to make sure that their children are vaccinated to check those vaccine cards and help curb the spread of this virus so it doesn't go even further. julia vargas jones cnn, los angeles. >> the vatican says pope francis is in a stable condition as he remains in hospital. the 88 year old pontiff was admitted to hospital on friday and has been undergoing treatment for bronchitis. pope francis has been suffering from the respiratory illness for a number

of days. let's get more now from rome. cnn's vatican correspondent christopher lam joining me. so good news that his condition is stable but not able to leave the hospital just yet. christopher. >> that's right. cristina. this is the fourth day that pope francis will have been hospitalized at the gemelli hospital behind me in rome. and we don't have a clear timetable from the vatican about how long the pope is going to be in hospital. it all depends on how well he responds to the treatment that is being given for this respiratory infection. now, the doctors have told the pope he must have complete rest. and that meant for the first or sorry for the second time in his almost 12 year pontificate, he did not lead the sunday angelus prayer that he does each week. he has been ordered to slow down and recover because the pope, who is 88 years old, had been keeping up a relentless schedule

of meetings and public events. in fact, i saw him on the day that he was hospitalized, and it was clear in that meeting that he was struggling to speak for long periods because of the breathing difficulties. he has been asking assistants to read reflections, and his addresses. he just hasn't seemed to have the lung capacity to speak for long periods of time. the vatican update, saying that his condition is stable, but we're having to follow this very closely because it is unclear how long he will remain in hospital and we are awaiting further updates from the vatican later today. cristina. >> all right. we shall watch this space. christopher lam there live from rome. thanks very much, christopher. and we'll be right back with some bafta's action after this quick break. >> guys, what is peak performance mean to you? being

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israel. he says the next few days and weeks will determine whether russian president vladimir putin is serious about ending the conflict. we'll have much more on this developing story in the hours ahead. team shaq won the nba's first all star mini tournament on sunday night. now, this was the biggest highlight of the night. steph curry nailing a half court shot. nothing but net. he was literally standing on the half court line. then when he pulled up for the shot. curry was the game's mvp, helping team shaq post a 41 to 25 win over charles barkley's team. chuck william byron has won nascar's daytona 500 for the second time in a row. the 27 year old took the checkered flag after a series of wrecks on the race's final lap. byron is the first back to back daytona winner since 2020. the rain caused a three hour delay after just 11 of the 200 laps. superstar denny hamlin was in the lead coming into the final lap, but his car spun out after crashing into another racer on

the backstretch. and. in the czech republic, a group of skiers took a trip back to celebrate the sport's history on saturday. skiers hit the slopes in vintage style, donning wooden skis. the event, very slowly to the event, is meant to recreate the arrival of skiing in the country more than a century ago. participants were seen using old fashioned gear like wool sweaters, hats and ski poles. i've actually done that myself and it is very difficult. it's about as hard as it looks. the event began about 30 years ago with just a handful of people. good to see them keeping tradition alive. now in the spotlight this hour. the baftas awards saw the brutalist win big for leading actor adrien brody and director brady corbet. but. papal selection drama conclave took home the gong for best film. >> what happened? >> they say a heart attack. >> you know. >> how rumor spreads. and 1.25. >> billion souls. >> watching. >> well, governor lawrence. >> it seems the. responsibility

for the conclave. >> falls upon you. >> but heading towards the oscars, predictions are still looking difficult. in addition to the favorites, there were some surprises. a real pains. writer director jesse eisenberg took the best original screenplay award. he spoke to our max foster about the broad appeal of the movie. >> i guess the unusual thing about it, but i can't even parse it because it's my own thing, is that perhaps it takes the kind of well-worn theme which is like holocaust themed movies, and maybe comes at it from an angle that feels a little. i don't know, newer or more modern, more welcoming, less sanctimonious than a lot of the movies made on the similar theme. so maybe that's why. >> and in the best actress category, mikey madison edged out the favorite demi moore, who's been riding high on her comeback performance in the substance. madison spoke to max about the film she stars in and nora. >> why do you think the film hit a. >> nerve? >> have you got any feeling for that? >> i mean, i think sean makes films about humanity and touches

on really interesting subject matter. um, and i don't know. i mean, i think that there is just something really special in the air. when we made this film. >> captain america brave new world is the number one movie at the u.s. box office. >> steve rogers., you're right. >> i'm not. >> is marvel studios fourth captain america film? it's expected to take more than $100 million on america's presence day long weekend, which will make it the fourth highest grossing movie for the holiday. captain america brave new world stars anthony mackie, and as you can see there, harrison ford. it's the 35th movie of the 35th goodness of the marvel cinematic universe. and it's helping 2025 get off to a better start at the box office. things are looking up. takings are up 22% so far this year. superhero films often do well even without a summer release date, and marvel features now make up all top four films for presidents day

with 2018. black panther leading the pack. good news if you like marvel films. and that is it for me here on cnn newsroom. i'm christina macfarlane. thank you so much for joining us. cnn this morning is up after this quick break. stay with us. >> it's the news. >> welcome back. >> but it's also kind of not the news. >> all the information on this show. so terrible. >> if i got news for you. news saturday on cnn. >> ocd is more than what you see on tv and in the movies. it comes with unrelenting, intrusive images, thoughts and urges. if you have ocd and need

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