he also said they never flew on the same flight as navalny.parallel flights, same destination but different flights, really giving you an insight into an operation that frankly was years in the making. >> clarissa there now has been a denial from the fsb? >> reporter: yes. it's not that often we hear from the fsb, russian state security services are notoriously tight-lipped. but they have come out after this explosive conversation. they have called it a fake. they have said it is designed simply to make russian state security services look bad. and they've also said that it couldn't have been done if navalny didn't have the help of foreign special services. this is an aspersion they cast on navalny all the time, really trying to discredit him by making out that essentially he is a pawn of western intelligence services, john. but i think we can expect to hear more questions not coming just to the fsb but also to the kremlin. >> i didn't think it was possible this story could get more intriguing, but it has. our thanks to you, clarissa ward. >>>

navalny said his wife felt uncomfortable.videos and photos of men she believes were following them. this man i also don't recognize she says. hours after the fsb's toxin team left, ulia suddenly felt sick. >> she said, well, i feel really, really bad. is it hard, no. is it stomach, no. is it head, no. could you describe it, no. and then we approach restaurant and she said, well, i feel like worse in my life. i never felt it before, but unfortunately -- and, of course, i couldn't connect this dots. now i realize how bad she was. >> reporter: she recovered, but the fsb unit was apparently not done with the navalny's. cell phone data shows several senior fsb officials were in contact with a lab in this compound. it's called the signal institute and cnn has established that it has been involved with resear researching and developing novichok. navalny travelled to siberia, at least five fsb members made the trip on different flights. we retraced his steps on the night he was poisoned. this is the room that alexei navalny was stayi

[ speaking in foreign language ] was it your team in navalny that poisoned navalny, please?ment? he doesn't seem to want to talk to us. >> reporter: toxicologists tell cnn that navalny is incredibly lucky to be alive and that the intention was undoubtedly to kill him. >> so you said that you want to go back to russia? >> yes. and i will do. >> you're aware of the risks are going back? >> yes, but i'm russian politician, and even when i was not just in hospital i was in intense therapy, and i said publicly i will go back and i will go back because i'm russian politician. i belong to that country, and definitely, which i -- i -- especially now when these actually crime is correct open, revealed, i understand the whole operation. i would never give putin such a gift. >> oh, my gosh. c clarissa, what a report and investigation helps connect the dots on every level. so what's the reaction from russian authorities? >> reporter: well, alisyn, i have to say stunning silence. it's been nearly 24 hours now since the first digital write of this investigation came out. we usually hear o

now a top secret mission tracking alexei navalny. involving experts in chemical weapons who work for the fsb, the russian successor to the kgb. this building on the outskirts of moscow was the headquarters of the operation. >> we're staying in the car because we don't want to attract any attention. but this compound is part of the institution of criminalistics of the fsb, russia's security service. and beyond that fence, an elite team of operatives have been tracking navalny's every move for more than three years. >> reporter: cnn has examined hundreds of pages of phone records and flight manifests that reveal backgrounds, communications and travel of the group. the documents were obtained by online investigative outlet belling cat. which two years ago identified the russian agents sent to pois poison sergei skri pof. the team's leader an expert in chemical weapons. several of the team are doctors, but they weren't recruited to save lives. >> i wanted to show you some photographs here and ask you if if you recognize -- if you've ever

has revealed how navalny was poisoned in august. agent, a member of the elite toxins team in russia's fsb security service said the lethal nerve agent novichok was planted in navalny's underwear. a cnn investigation revealed that the unit has trailed navalny for more than three years. cnn's clarissa ward has the details. >> reporter: it is an extraordinary scene, russian opposition leader al lexy navalny on the phone with one of the fsb units he believes poisoned him in august. navalny is pretending to be a senior figure from russia's national security council investigating the attempted assassination. the operative constantine kudretsev is hesitant at first, and then reveals the poison was placed on navalny's underpants. >> translator: well, imagine underpants and in what place. >> translator: the insides, the groin. >> translator: the crotch of the underpants? >> translator: well, the circled flap. there's such seams there, so across the seams. >> reporter: the explosive admission punches a gaping hole in the kremlin's repeated de

there's a new development around the poisoning of alexey navalny. new-media investigation has found a group of russian spies followed him for years, including the day this summer when he was poisoned. the agents for the russian security service fsb are reportedly part of an intelligence team specializing in toxins and nerve agents. alexey navalny is still recovering in germany after collapsing on a russian domestic flight back in august. doctors found that he had been poisoned with the nerve agent novichok. the investigation discovered telecom and travel data showing the fsb agents tailing him, including on that day last summer, when he almost died. joining me here in the studio now to discuss this development is my colleague. what do we know -- pablo, what we know about those identified in the investigation? pablo: eight people, all working for the russian domestic security service. almost all of them have medical training or training with chemical weapons. especially with the research and development of this novichok agent, part of a soviet family

when navalny was poisoned back in august, his flight was suddenly diverted to umsk.ow that just five days later, kudryavtsev flew to that same city, taking possession of navalny's clothes. on the 45-minute call with navalny, he offers an assurance that no trace of novichok would be found on them. >> translator: yes, all is clean. >> translator: visually it will not be visible. they did not remove. there are no stains on them, nothing? >> translator: no, no, nothing. they're in good condition and clean. >> translator: pants? >> translator: there's the same inside area, perhaps something was left on it too. we washed it off there also but this is presumably because there is contact with the pants. perhaps there was something on there too. >> reporter: the fsb toxins team trailed navalny on more than 30 trips around russia. five of its members flew to siberia around the same time as navalny during the fateful august trip when he was poisoned. toxicologists have told cnn that navalny is lucky to be alive and that the intention was almost certainly to kill him. a point ku

when navalny was poisoned back in august his flight was suddenly diverted to oms k.sev flew to that same city, taking possession of navalny's clothes. on the 45-minute call with navalny he offers an assurance that no trace of novichok would be found on them. >> translator: yes, all is clean. visually it will not be visible. they did not remove, there are no stains on them, no? no. no. nothing. they are in good condition and clean. >> translator: pants? >> translator: there is the same inside area, perhaps something was left on it, too. we washed it off there also, but this is presumably because there is contact with the pants. perhaps there was something on there, too. >> reporter: the fsb toxins team trailed navalny on more than 30 trips around russia. five of its members flew to siberia around the same time as navalny during the fateful august trip when he was poisoned. toxicologists have told cnn that navalny is lucky to be alive and that the intention was almost certainly to kill him. a point kudryavtsev himself appears to acknowledge. >> translator: if he had fl

when navalny was poisoned in august, his flight was diverted.ow just five days later, he flew to the same city, taking poe sissession of navalny's clothes. on the call he offers assurance no trace of nof chalk would be found on them. >> yes, it was cleaned. visually it will not be visible. they did not remove, there are no stains on them, nothing? no, no nothing. they're in good condition and clean. pants? there's the same inside area, perhaps something was left on it, too. we washed it off there also. this is presumably because there's contact with the pants. perhaps there was something on there, too. >> reporter: fsb toxins team trailed navalny on more than 30 trips around russia. five of its members flew to siberia around the same time as narcotics v-- navalny. they say navalny is lucky to be alive, the intention was almost certainly to kill him, a point he appears to acknowledge. >> if it flew longer, perhaps it would have gone differently. that is if it had not been prompt assistance of doctors and ambulances on the landing strip and so on.

ie., alexey navalny would be dead.s important to remember, if that pilot on that flight to moscow had not diverted to omsk, had continued to fly another three hours with navalny on board who at that time was extremely sick, almost every expert we've spoken to has said the same thing. alexey navalny would, in fact, be dead. one other interesting detail that also i found quite chilling just listening to president putin talking about navalny. he never calls him by his name. never. will only refer to him as the patient in berlin, referring to the fact, of course, he went for medical treatment after he was poisoned to berlin. and that, i think, gives you a sense of just how much of a threat he sees navalny as. of course, on the major allegation of our piece, there was no real answer. and that is not just that he was being followed by a bunch of fsb operatives but that those fsb operatives were experts in chemistry. they were medics, doctors and they were in regular contact with a laboratory here in moscow, the signal instit

he went to the city five days so he could take possession of navalny's clothing. he talks about scrubbing the clothes clean, also the underpants and the pants because they were concerned that they had contact with the underpants. he also talks about why it is that navalny didn't die, despite that being the apparent intention of this whole operation. take a listen. >> translator: if had he had flown a little longer and perhaps would not have landed so quickly and all, perhaps it would have gong differently. that is, had it not been for the prompt assistance of doctors or ambulances on the landing strip. >> the plane landed after 40 minutes. basically this should have been taken into account while planning the operation. it wasn't that the plane landed instantly. they calculated the wrong dose, the probability. why? >> translator: well, i can't say why. as i understand it, we added a bit extra, so -- >> reporter: you hear those chilling words, brooke. despite the added dose alexi navalny is very much looking for answers and justice. >> my understanding is the russia

navalny for years, they had expertise in chemical weapons.was a member of the national security council carrying out an investigation into how the poisoning operation had gone down, and quite frankly, shockingly, the operative who he spoke to constantin kudretsev, who graduated from the -- russian academy of chemical defense, he actually spills the beans to navalny. he falls for it and he gives some extraordinary details, john. he talks about how the and a half chock was placed, where it was aplaced apparently on the inside seams on the crotch area of alexey navalny's underwear. he also talks about his role in the whole operation. he was part of the "clean-up team." five days after navalny was poisoned he traveled to omsk, where he landed and spent a couple days in the hospital before he managed to go to germany. this operative also went to omsk five days after the poisoning and spent days scrubbing the underwear, and scrubbing the pants to make sure that there would be no traces of novichok and offers some clues why it was navalny didn't die

navalny, for his part, has continuously said that he wants to return to russia. fred pleitgen, cnn, moscow. >>> actress lori loughlin has been released from prison after serving a sentence for her role in a college admission scandal. her husband, mossimo giannulli, is serving a foiive-month sentee for his role. the two were among dozens of wealthy parents wrapped up in a scheme to lie, cheat, and bribe the admissions process. to get their daughters into the university of southern california under false pretenses. >>> i am paula newton. for the international viewers, "world sport," starts right after the break. and for our viewers in the united states, up next for us, a return to the first coronavirus epicenter in the united states. ten months later. you do not want to miss this report. vaccines are now giving health workers there some hope. >> i cannot express, you know, how i feel right now. i didn't even feel the -- the needle. but, what i feel right now is a new life, a new beginning, but a better life. these folks, they don't have time to go to the post offic

how does navalny feel after his sting operation?now you had a chance to speak with him. >> so essentially i think it's between shock and elation, but also now increasingly frustration. the kremlin hasn't responded. but the fsb russian security service has. they've called the tape a fake. they said it's designed solely to discredit russian security services and accused navalny of essentially working with western intelligence agencies in order to have been able to pull something like this off. this is what we hear often from the russian government in response to navalny trying to discredit him, to paint him as being a con of the west. what navalny still wants to see although he's not planning or not hoping he will be able to see is it for president putin to open a criminal investigation into this wrongdoing. >> why put the poison in navalny's underwear? >> well, without getting too graphic, wolf, different parts of the body have different absorption rates. so your hands, for example, are not very porous. very difficult to absorb thing

navalny, for his part, has continuously said he wants to return to russia.red pleitgen, cnn, moscow. >>> a long-ti. >> i asked him is santa going to bring you anything good for christmas? and he smiled and he said -- >> the bomber's chilling response, when we return. >>> plus, covid-19 continues to devastate the united states. now vaccines may take much longer to get to the masses after a rocky roll-out. we'll bring you both of those stories after a very short break. you are watching cnn. s buildingr septic tank. but monthly usage ofof rid-x is scientifically provoven to break down waste. maintain your septic t tank with rid-x. i got this mountain bike for only $11. dealdash.com, the fair and honest bidding site. we sold an ipad worth $505 for less than $24. a stand mixer for less than $20. a 4k television for under $2. a macbook pro for under $16. as well as a playstation 4 for under $16. and brand new cars for less than $900. dealdash.com offers hundreds of auctions every day. all auctions start at $0 and everything must go. and don't forget, we offer a fu

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alexei navalny claims he knows how he was poisoned. also on the program, the pfizer covid vaccine gets the green light from europe, granting final approval following a recommendation from its medicines regulator. also tonight, the maximum sentence for a an anti-semitic atrocity. a deadly attack on a synagogue. he killed two people after entering the building and showed no remorse. a celebrating of the season from the safety of your car. germany gets into the christmas spirit by heading through a drive through wonderland. ♪ i'm phil gayle. welcome to the program. russian opposition leader, alexei navalny, says he has spoken with one of th russian security agents allegedly. when website said they had been tailoring no vomit for years, posing as security officials. -- no phony -- alexei navalny for years, posing a security officials. >> he took off, then i landed the plane. there you go. the situation ended up not going in our favor. that is what i think. things could have turned out differently. >> if what had been longer, flying for lon

he said, it would be normal for fsb operatives to follow around navalny because he claims navalny is he did say, though, what is crucial, was that if we had wanted to kill him, we would have. his exact words were, of course, our special services need to keep an eye on him, but that doesn't mean he needs to be poisoned. who needs him anyway. if they wanted to, they would have probably finished it. so that is a somewhat ominous way of saying that the number of our reporting was absolutely correct. what he doesn't address, though, which is the crucial question here is why navalny was being followed not just by fs bhrks operatives i'm sure we can all understand why that was happening but by fsb operatives who were skilled in the use of poisons who were making phone calls to the institute here in moscow that has been directly involved in the development and research into novichok. that part of the question he did not answer at all. >> we're watching footage of you speaking with navalny here days ago. have you heard from him after hearing what putin said? like we could have killed him if w

alexei navalny collapsed on board a russian flight in august and is recovering in berlin after weeks in intensive care. the eu impose sanctions on russian officials following the attack. after tests and multiple labs confirmed he was exposed to novichok. moscow said it was imposing retaliatory sanctions on eu member states and institutions. the fsb has described the phone call as fake, while the criminal and denies any link between the russian state and alexei navalny 's poisoning. anchor: marcello crivello has been arrested on suspicion of bribery. he was elected in 2016, but lost reelection early this year. he says he is a victim of political persecution, having previously denied any knowledge of payments being made to city hall. police believe companies were being offered to pay off officials in order to secure contracts. brazil does have a long history of bribery in elite circles, and it is not the first time the top politicians have been arrested on similar charges. thousands have been taking to the streets in armenia to put in in to the prime minister's visit to the south of th

kn navalny's underwear. he had trailed navalny for more than three years.art of clarissa ward and her team. she's joining me with this new reporting. clarissa, this is unbelievable. can you tell us how this happened? how did this information come out? >> reporter: yeah, it's one of those stories like if you saw it in a movie, you'd be like, this is unrealistic. here we are reporting on it and it is very true. essentially what happened is navalny who was poisoned with novichok decided to try to call one of the fsb operatives who we revealed in our reporting was part of an elite team with expertise in chemical weapons trailing him for many years. what navalny did was to pretend that he was a high ranking member of the national security council and that he was carrying out an investigation into how the poisoning operation went. and this operative acquiesced and started talking about the details starting out with the most stunning detail, which is how he was poisoned. he talks about it being planted in the underwear. >> translator: what item of clothing was the

he also said they never flew on the same flight as navalny.rallel flights, same destination, but different flights, really giving you an insight into an operation that frankly was years in the making, john. >> and there has now been a denial from the fsb? >> yes. it's not that often we hear from the fsb, russian state security services are notoriously tight lipped. but they have come out after this explosive conversation. they have called it a fake. they have said that it is designed simply to make russian state security services look bad and they have also said that it couldn't have been done if navalny didn't have the help of foreign special services. this is an aspersion they cast on him all the time, making him out to be a pawn of western intelligence services. we can hear more coming. >> do you think it is possible this story could get more intriguing, but it has. our thanks to you, clarissa ward. >>> just ahead, live to capitol hill for the latest on that must pass $900 billion covid relief bill. but with walmart's low prices, you still

mr navalny then posted a recording of the telephone conversation on his youtube channel.avalny‘s underpants. he also acknowledges that the swift action of mr navalny‘s pilot and emergency services may have foiled the operation. daniel treisman is a political scientist at ucla and i asked him whether the story was credible. i think it's absolutely credible. it's really a bombshell of a video. navalny, just to set the scene, calls up this fsb security service scientist, an expert on biological warfare, and biological weapons, at seven in the morning and manages to convince him that he's an aide to the head of the security council who's working on a kind of debriefing report and over the course of 45 minutes he gets the scientist to talk in detail about different aspects of the operation to kill mr navalny. it's really an incredible piece of video. the victim interviewing one of his would—be assassins. if it is all true, as you say, it's pretty incredible. it does seem extraordinary that mr navalny‘s voice was not recognised. just to be clear, he did it by using an app, i th

mr navalny posted a recording of the telephone conversation on his youtube channel. he also acknowledges that the swift action of mr navalny‘s pilot and emergency services may have foiled the operation. joining me now from los angeles is daniel treisman, he's a professor of political science at ucla in california and specialises in russian politics. i know you also specialise in russian politics and you have seen russian politics and you have seen the video. what do you think, is it credible? ithink it is absolutely credible. it is really a bombshell of a video. navalny, just at the scene, calls up this fsb security service scientist, an expert on biological warfare, and biological weapons, at seven in the morning and manages to convince him that he is an aid to the head of the security council who is working ona kind security council who is working on a kind of debriefing report and over the course of 45 minutes he gets the scientist to talk in detail about different aspects of the operation to kill mr navalny. it really is an incredible piece of video. the victim i

he never said navalny's name out loud.ow much of a threat putin actually thinks that navalny is. the fact that he refuses to say his name, and that he really wants to cast him as somehow being a stooge of the cia, a stooge for u.s. intelligence services, who he really blames for this whole incident. >> you know, i did travel down that long, winding road of putin's response, looking at the translati translation. what struck me in addition to the fact that he never used navalny's name, like you point out, he seems to know a lot about what your report says. this is something that he clearly had put in front of him in great detail. it gives you a sense of the bank account of this, clarissa. >> i think that's absolutely true and i think the fact that we didn't hear a word for two and a half days, basically, other than one flippant remark from the foreign minister, sergey lavrov, tells you that they've really been mulling over how to respond to this. and even the way the question was phrased, and it's important to remember, they

navalny has continuously said he wants to return to russia. fred pleitgen, cnn, moscow. >>> public health officials are raising the alarm over the high level of covid-19 infection in england, bringing the latest from london in a live report up next. >>> and the democrats in georgia are gaining on republican ad spending. will they need more help as they try to win two key senate seats next week. we'll bring you both of those stories after a short break. you are watching cnn. technology, sh q quantu cleansns without pre-rinsing. switch to finish and skip the rinse to o save water. they use stamps.com all the services of the post office only cheaper get a 4-week trial plus postage and a digital scale go to stamps.com/tv and never go to the post office again. robinwithout the commission fees. so, you can start investing today wherever you are - even hanging with your dog. so, what are you waiting for? download now and get your first stock on us. robinhood. lan in the united states and around the world. i'm isa soares. i want to take you to the u.k

august 20th, on a flight to moscow, a passenger captures the awful wails of aleksei navalny. the russian opposition leader has suddenly fallen ill and he knows exactly why. >> i get out of this bathroom. go over to the flight attendant and said i am poisoned and i am going to die and then i lay under his feet to die. >> reporter: you knew in that moment that you've been poisoned? >> question. >> reporter: quick thinking from the pilot saves his life. instead of flying to moscow still three hours away, the plane diverts to tomss. he is flown to berlin where the government announces he has been poisoned with a nerve agent. now an exclusive investigation can reveal a top-secret mission tracking navalny involving experts and chemical weapons who work for the ssb and associate to the kgb. this nondescript building on the outskirts of moscow was the headquarters of the operation. we are staying in the car because we don't want to attract any attention, but this compound is part of the institute of criminalistics of the russian security service. beyond that fence, an elite team of o

increase again over the russian opposition leader -- the death of russian opposition leader alexey navalny. the country is planning on rolling out a vaccine early next year. a front-line worker says he cannot wait much longer. i am phil gayle. welcome to the program. biontech says it is confident that is widely approved vaccine will work against the new strain of the virus in britain. >> the vaccine is about to be rolled out across the european union. but the rapid spread of a new variant of the coronavirus in britain has sparked concerns. biontechand phizer researchers say that they are confident there virus will work against these new strains. >> this means that 99% of it is still the same. we know the new response induced by our vaccine is a -- attacking this protein on multiple sides. >> so far, there have not been any major problems with inoculations already being administered in britain, canada and the u.s., article workers have reported relatively few side effects. following the eu approval of the biontech phizer vaccine, many citizens are eager to be vaccinated. >> we will be able

quite dangerous for alexey navalny. he could face up to 10 years in prison if it goes to court and if he is convicted in all of this. just yesterday he was supposed to appear at a hearing at a penal service. he's still recovering from the novichok poisoning in germany. he could, indeed, face arrests if and when he decides to come back here to russia. and navalny of course is crying foul in all of this. he believes that the russian authorities, once again, are embarrassed by that cnn and belencap investigation that uncovered the plot to poison and try to kill alexey navalny. he believes this is pay back. in fact, he went to his twitter account -- instagram account and he posted the following, i said from the beginning in my video that they will try to jail me because i didn't die on the plane and then track down my assassin because i proved that putin is behind it and that is the thief who is ready to kill those who refuse to be silent about his thievery. alexey navalny talking. and we actually asked the kremlin about th

alexey navalny already taking to instagram, and ripping into all of this.obviously believes that the russian authorities are bars bars embarrassed by the fact that a cnn and bellingcat uncovered the plot to kill navalny, and that he was able to contact one of the agents who was allegedly part of that plot, and get him to admit large details of the plot. alexey navalny on his instagram feed said this is a quote, like i said, somewhere there is vladimir putin in his bunker stomping and yelling why didn't he die, and if he didn't die, then he is twice guilty, and now we will jail him. so obviously navalny saying that he believes once again this is a plot by the russian authorities. the russian authorities of course have consistently said they were not behind the poisoning of alexey navalny, and he has said he wants to return to russia. we're going to have to wait and see whether he rethinks all of that now. christine. >> yeah, fred, it is just amazing all of that reporting that cnn and bellingcat have done. i would encourage our viewers to go back and just spe

as you can guess, alexey navalny himself was furious. lyub lyubov sobol being put into a van. this is how the system protects the privacy of those who commit terrorist acts on putin's orders. of course what he's referring to is that he believes that the privacy of this fsb agent is being protected while those who are trying to uncover all of that are being put into custody. this is a very dire situation for this kremlin critic, for this ally of alexey navalny. we're going to wait and see where this goes next as the 48 hours, those run out early tomorrow morning. we'll see what happens then, boris. >> yeah, just another unbelievable chapter in this navalny saga. we know you've been following it. frederick pleitgen reporting from moscow. >>> 2020 so you seismic global changes from the coronavirus pandemic to the economic crisis and the huge social justice movement. when we come back, we'll look at a year like no other in the business world. want to sell the best burger in every zip code? add an employee. or ten... then easily and automatic

>> that is pretty typical, particularly, with alexei navalny. they are really trying to cultivate the narrative that he is not truly russian. that he is in cahoots with western-intelligence sources. that he is a stooge, if you will, for the cia. and one other thing that was really telling, john, throughout this press conference and other press conferences we have heard putin give, where he is talked about navalny. he will never say navalny's name. today, he referred to him simply as the patient in berlin. talking about the hospital that he was transferred to in berlin. another point, he called him the blogger. but he won't say his name. he won't allow him to be a person. and that, one can only assume, is because he views navalny as a legitimate threat. >> there is almost something pathological act tha pathological about that. any sense how your reporting and this press conference is being received by the russian people? >> it's extraordinary because honestly, it's been radio silence. there hasn't even been the usual, propaganda campaign against

one other chilling thing that it was not to notice and he never mentions navalny by name. he will only refer to him as the blogger or patient in berlin. clearly, he sees him as some kind of a threat. >> who does that remind you of? clarissa ward, thank you very much. joe biden will not be inaugurated as our next president for 34 days. these attacks, believed to be carried out, speaking of russia, by the russian military intelligence, they are so massive that they're still trying to grasp the full scope. it will take months to know the full damage to u.s. cyber security. alex, first let's talk about the president-elect's response. what is biden saying? >> it's not just what he says here, brooke. it's because it stands in stark contrast to what the president, the current president is saying, and that is absolutely nothing. since this came out five days ago that the u.s. has been the subject of this massive intrusion, almost year-long intrusion. we've heard nothing from president trump. a short time ago, we did hear from president-elect joe biden in a very forceful statement.

mr navalny posted a recording of the telephone conversation on his youtube channel.ed in a pair of navalny‘s underpants. he also acknowledges that the swift action of mr navalny‘s pilot and emergency services may have foiled the operation. joining me now from australia is alexey muraviev. he's a professor of national security and strategic studies at curtin university in perth. professor, welcome to you. thank you forjoining us. what do you make of this? is this a credible prank call, if you will? i think we have to take it seriously, but we also have to ta ke it seriously, but we also have to take it with a degree of a measured response. if this prank was aimed to bolster navalny‘s popularity, tickly through his social media platforms and obviously, once again, bolster his international reputation, it achieved instant success because the story went viral and became an instant international media sensation. if the story aims to add more credibility to claims that the russian government was behind it, the fact that it was the prank and the way the prank was actually c

this has to do with the poisoning of aleksi navalny.as uncovered evidence that russia's security service formed an elite team, specializing in nerve agents that followed navalny's moves for years. he was poisoned back in august and nearly died. our chief international respondent and her team have been working the story for months. the stunning report first aired on monday. two days later, there is some reaction from russia. those details in a moment. but first here is part of her official report. take a look at she attempts to confront one of the men accused of being part of the assassination. >> so we're here now at the home of one of the fsb team, and we're going to see if he has anything to say to us. we enter a rundown apartment building on the outskirts of moscow, with the operative lives. my name is clarissa ward. i work for cnn. can i ask you a couple of questions? was it your team that poisoned navalny, please? do you have any comment? he doesn't seem to want to talk to us. >> she joins me tonight from moscow. this reporting is

which is that yes, fsb operatives were trailing navalny for a long time. but he said this makes perfect sense because alexei navalny was working with american intelligence services, although he didn't call him alexei navalny, he called him only the berlin patient, making a reference to the fact that he was staying in that hospital in berlin. he doesn't like to use his name because he sees him as such a threat one would assume. so he said, basically, it would be natural to have fsb operatives following someone who is working with u.s. intelligence agencies and take a listen to what he said next. >> translator: in this case, of course, the special services should keep an eye on him. but it doesn't mean at all that he needs to be poisoned. who needs him anyway. if they wanted to, they probably would have followed it through. >> reporter: if they wanted to, they probably would have finished it. essentially what he's saying there is, just because russian security forces were following him, that doesn't mean they actually poisoned him. if they had poisoned him,

so at 4:30am this phone call took place and i do not think alexei navalny had slept much.be happening. who did you decide to call? well, actually the original plan had been to only confront the actual suspected poisoners for navalny to call them up and say, hello, why did you try to kill me? and try to get their reaction. we thought this would be a funny moment before we published the investigation. midway through the call, he said i am not getting any reaction, so how about ijust do a prank and impersonate a top security officer? we had a two minute prep session to think what name might work and who might be the office they come from. he decided on calling the nonexistent aid to the chief of the security council of the russian council, who is probably one of the most senior security officials in russia. he was going to call and ask for a quick report on what went wrong when alexei navalny was poisoned. i was completely determined that this would yield in a hang—up and somebody would put the phone down. it went through the first five minutes and i thought, there is a chanc

doesn't believe it was the russian fsb who poisoned navalny. affirmed statement they have made on this topic, because in the past secretary of state mike pompeo said there was substantial chance that it was russia who had carried out this poisoning, but they had not gone this far in saying that it was, indeed, russia. now, of course, the follow-up question is what is the united states going to do about this? we have seen president trump not directly tie the poisoning of navalny to russia, and we have heard from the national security council on this topic who have said that whomever carried this out is going to face a cost, but the u.s. has still imposed no cost on russia for this. the state department saying nothing on that today. the u.k. and the eu sanctioned russian officials for this more than two months ago. brooke? >> kylie, thank you very much at the state department. let's continue on. >>> top of the hour here. you're watching cnn. i'm brooke baldwin. thank you for being with me. look at every single coronavirus metric you can imagine,

they're talking about the poisoning of alexei navalny.ting on those answers, but we frankly along with our european partners who have been good on this, too, have begun to impose real costs on the russians for this kind of activity. that from the secretary of state, clarissa. what do you think? >> well, i think that the uk and the european union have come out and singing from the same song sheet, have said that this was an assassination attempt. they have gone so far as to sanction very senior leaders in russia's security services. but also aides and people working within the kremlin. so they have delivered a much more stern tone than anything we have heard from the white house so far. essentially, president trump largely ignored this, other than to say that they were looking into it. but we have not seen anything like the robust response that we have seen from europe. but let's remember, this isn't just about, you know, alexny navalny, russia's top opposition leader, a big critic of president putin being targeted, this is about the use o

. >>> russian opposition leader alexi navalny has revealed he was poisoned through his underwear. navalny has released a call allegedly with the operative who planted the nerve agent in his underwear back in august before a flight. navalny is one of vladimir putin's fiercest critics and says the operative told him things would have gone differently had the plane not made an emergency land ago louing him to get medical care. >>> we turn to a cold case potentially solved after more than 30 years involving a missing california girl who went to buy candy in 1988 and never came home. now thanks to a partial handprint, police believe they found her killer. here's abc's megan tevrizian. >> reporter: this morning a murder mystery spanning more than three decades potentially solved. 32 years after little michaela garecht went missing near san francisco, authorities have charged a man with her murder. his name, david misch. a convicted felon already serving time. >> it was so brazen, so ruthless, but clearly planned. >> reporter: the case even appearing on "america's most wanted and unsolve

alexei navalny tweeted out a picture of her being put into a police van.ead part of the caption, saying this is how the system protects the privacy of those who commit terrorist acts on putin's orders. dana? >> fred pleitgen, thank you so much. russia and the putin regime are under scrutiny over a massive cyber attack. a russian foreign ministry spokesman said the blame may be the trump administration's attempt to damage a relationship with joe biden. joining me to discuss that and more is former national security adviser in trump white house john bolton, and former u.s. ambassador at the u.n. and author of "in the room where it happened, a white house memoir." thank you so much. we have to start with russia, what you just heard from fred, what i just mentioned with the hacking that has gone on. maybe even is still going on as we speak. what do you make of what russia is doing right now? >> well, i think for some time putin has been increasing the authoritarian nature of the russian government in the political sphere, the economic sphere, and this is just

that stems from a case in 2014 that navalny says was politically motivated. up to that hearing and he violated the terms of his probation. so they could now file that he would be arrested if and when he ever comes back into this country. there is two things about this. authorities are saying he recovered from the poisoning and he should be able to show up, but he is still recovering. yesterday when this broke i look at the flight routes from germa germany. there was no way for him to get here. there is no direct flights, there was no way to make that hearing at u 9:00 a.m. this morning. he took to social media to call the authorities out on this. he says the intelligence service are embarrassed after they recovered large parts of an fsb plot to kill him. navalny also says he managed to get in touch with an fsb agent that was part of that plot and duped him into admitting large parts of that. he said "like i said, somewhere there is vladimir putin in his bunker stomping and yelling "why didn't he die" if he didn't die he is device guilty and we will jail him."

russian state investigators have brought new charges against opposition leader alexei navalny. fraudulently spent public donations on his personal needs. mr navalny described the case as a fabrication and hysterics from president vladimir putin after russia issued him an ultimatum on monday to return to russia immediately orface imprisonment. they're one of the world's rarest land mammals. only two northern white rhino are left, both are female, but researchers in kenya are now putting into place an audacious plan to save them from disappearing for ever. russell trott explains. fatu has seen it all before. the eyes of the world once again on herand the eyes of the world once again on her and her mother, najin. they are the only two surviving northern white rhino and at the centre of an unprecedented fertilisation project. it is something, you are trying something that you never imagined. you could do. it isa never imagined. you could do. it is a common medical procedure in humans, in vitro fertilisation, or ivf, in which the eggs have been injected with sperm cells from two dec

i asked, too, about mr putin's most vocal critic, alexei navalny.hok. can you explain to me, steven, president putin says, why can't they provide us with an official report about the use of this novichok? you're asking me, i reply. i'm the journalist here, i say. i ask the questions. i'm sorry, replies mr putin, i'll continue to answer it. now that is rare. an apology to a bbc correspondent, from the president of russia. steve rosenberg, bbc news, moscow. more than two thirds of english population will be living under the toughest covid rules on saturday as southern more countries move into tier 3. it comes admits in a surge in infections of 35,383 cases recorded on thursday up from 25,161 on the previous day. the changes comejust 25,161 on the previous day. the changes come just days before the five day relaxation of rules over christmas. here's our health editor hugh pam. the government said the tightening was required to bring virus cases down. no one wa nts bring virus cases down. no one wants tougher restrictions anywhere than necessary. but wh

i asked, too, about mr putin's most vocal critic, alexei navalny. was poisoned by novichok. "can you explain to me, steven," president putin says, "why can't they provide us with an official report about the use of this novichok?" "you're asking me?" i reply. "i'm the journalist here," i say. "i ask the questions." "i'm sorry," replies mr putin, "i'll continue to answer it." now that is rare — an apology to a bbc correspondent, from the president of russia. steve rosenberg, bbc news, moscow. the british actor jeremy bulloch, who played boba fett in the original star wars trilogy, has died aged 75. his agent said he died in hospital from health complications after living with parkinson's disease for many years. he was best known for playing bounty hunter, boba fett, in the empire strikes back and return of thejedi. the character has since featured in the second season of star wars spin—off series, the mandalorian and the doctor who series in the 1970s. with me is our news reporter, paul hawkins. for people who were not big fa ns for people who were n

russian state investigators have brought new charges against opposition leader alexei navalny. germany after being poisoned, fraudulently spent public donations on his personal needs. mr navalny described the case as a fabrication and hysterics from president vladimir putin after russia issued him an ultimatum on monday to return to russia immediately orface imprisonment. palestinian human rights groups have called for the release of a female dj arrested for performing at a dance party at an islamic religious site in the occupied west bank. sama abdulhadi — known as the palestinian techno queen — was arrested after videos of young palestinians and israeli arabs dancing and drinking at the nabi musa shrine attracted online condemnation from some palestinians. senators in argentina are debating a bill which would legalise abortion up to the 14th week of pregnancy. the bill has already been approved by the chamber of deputies but that debate lasted some 20 hours and the senate discussion is expected to be even more heated. tanya dendrinos has more. as the debate began in argentina

i asked, too, about mr putin's most vocal critic, alexei navalny.irm he was poisoned by novichok. "can you explain to me, steven," president putin says, "why can't they provide us with an official report about the use of this novichok?" "you're asking me?" i reply. "i'm the journalist here," i say. "i ask the questions." "i'm sorry," replies mr putin, "i'll continue to answer it." now that is rare — an apology to a bbc correspondent, from the president of russia. steve rosenberg, bbc news, moscow. the british actor, jeremy bulloch, who played boba fett in the original star wars trilogy, has died aged 75. his agent said he died in hospital from health complications after living with parkinson's disease for many years. he was best known for playing bounty hunter boba fett in the empire strikes back and return of thejedi. the character has since featured in the second season of star wars spin—off series, the mandalorian. jeremy bulloch also appeared in the james bond film, 0ctopussy, and the doctor who series in the 1970s. with me is our news reporter,

and navalny telling us that he kneels frustrated that the u.s.istory as he calls it on this important issue. >> and just about vladimir putin, do you expect -- is there any chance that you expect him to respond directly? >> tomorrow is the big annual vladimir putin press conference that takes place every year, it runs four or five hours even sometimes. and many different outlets are allowed to ask questions, but they do cherry pick in advance which questions they can ask. i'm not allowed to ask a question this year because i don't have the propered creden. but the fact that this unit was trailing navalny for years, the fact that they had expertise in the use of chemical weapons that they were in regular contact with a lab that produces novichok, these are important questions that need to be answered and we can only hope that vladimir putin will answer them tomorrow. >> clarissa, thank you for your fantastic reporting. >>> coming up for us, moments from now, president-elect joe biden is set to make another big announcement with regard to his cabin