[Church:] We welcome our viewers joining us here in the United States and all around the world. This is CNN newsroom, I'm Rosemary Church. Want to update you on our breaking news that we're following this hour. Police in Melbourne, Australia, say a driver deliberately plowed into a crowd of pedestrians in the heart of the city. Two people have been arrested, including the driver. Police say 14 people were injured, including a child in serious condition in hospital. Police have not yet determined the motive. We turn to Ivan Watson who joins us live from Hong Kong. So Ivan we know from the police this was a deliberate act, but we don't know a lot more about this.
[Ivan Watson, Senior International Correspondent, Cnn:] That is right. The police have made clear that the motivation at this time behind this is unknown. That is something certainly that we'll be following very closely. But let's keep in mind, this took place at around 4:45 p.m. Melbourne time. That is less than three hours ago. So the authorities are very much in the preliminary stages of establishing what they say is going to be a crime scene for some time there in Melbourne. The incident took place near Flinders street station that is an iconic building, in the heart of the city. One of the busiest shopping districts, also an area people transit through, and coming into rush hour time, right before the Christmas holiday. The description of a white Suzuki vehicle ramming into pedestrians there, as we've heard some 14 people being taken to hospital there, including a child of preschool age as well. When it comes to also the investigation, the police have said that they immediately arrested two people on the scene, including the driver. They have not been identified yet. We do not know yet about charges potentially that could be placed against these two people. When it comes to the question of motivations here, we do have to take into consideration, a violent incident that took place almost a year ago, January of last year, just blocks away from where this took place, a ramming incident involving a vehicle that killed six people. In that case, the authorities ruled out terrorism, said that terrorism was not involved in that deadly incident which lead to city officials starting to put kind of planters, basically obstacles that could help protect this busy pedestrian area from vehicle-type attacks. Another piece of context, in December of 2016, almost exactly a year ago, Australian police did foil what they say was a terror plot inspired by ISIS, aimed at using improvised explosive devices around that same very area, running up to the Christmas holiday. So those are two important one deadly incidents, not terror related, another that could have become one that was foiled in that same vicinity almost year ago today. Rosemary.
[Church:] It has to be said, Australian authorities do have a good reputation and a good record for foiling attempts like this, or once they happen, certainly following up on them. Just want to make the point, as you said, this took place at 4:45 p.m. in Melbourne, it's now 7:36 p.m. So, of course, this is continuing and we heard from authorities there that this is a crime scene and will continue to be a crime scene for many hours to come. People are to stay clear of the area, although the Flinders street station is still operating. So what we need to focus on here now, Ivan, is that this has happened in various cities around the world, where there's a situation where vehicles are near pedestrian areas. And it may come to a point where various countries need to determine whether that is very wise.
[Watson:] Yes, and that is a question that of course will come up for down the road. I mean again, for now, because this is so immediate, not only is the treatment of the victims here of utmost priority, but also the gathering of information here. So the Australian police have put out a call for images, for example, for video that people could have been filming at the time of the incident. They've also put out a call for eyewitnesses to come forward to deliver statements, because they're trying to suck up as much information now as possible to try to figure out what and why this could have happened. But when you ask a question about these ramming incidents, that is also a major concern. Again, we don't know the Australian police say they don't know what the motivations are behind this incident, but there's certainly been a deadly and disturbing pattern of terror- related attacks around the world, involving vehicles plowing into pedestrians. That seems to be a tactic that has not only been publicly called for by both Al Qaeda and by ISIS, but it is something that has been implemented with deadly results in a number of incidents this year. You recall December 19th of 2016, there was an incident that took place in Berlin in a Christmas market there, where at least 12 people were killed. Since then, there have been more than a half dozen similar incidents taking place several times in London, in Stockholm, in Barcelona and in southern Spain, in Canada, and most recently, October 31st of this year, eight people killed when a man went down a bicycle path on the west side of Manhattan and rammed into people there. So this is something that is increasingly becoming a concern in major metropolitan areas. Rosemary?
[Church:] It most certainly is. Ivan Watson joining us there from Hong Kong, bringing us up to date on the situation in Melbourne Australia and giving some context there, some history of similar accidents that have occurred in the past. Many thanks to you Ivan. And Jim Stupos owns a donut shop in the area of Flinders Street station nearby and witnessed what happened. He joins us now on the phone. So, Jim, talk to us about what you saw exactly in the lead up to this accident and then in the aftermath.
[Jim Stupos, Owner, Walkers Donut Shop:] Hi, Rosemary. I was probably 20 yards away from it, across the road. I saw this white Suzuki SUV speeding at about a hundred kilometers, about 60 miles per hour, and the intersection was completely full. Probably the busiest intersection in Melbourne here. And the car just literally plowed into them. All you could hear was people hitting the car, bouncing off and screaming. The only thing that slowed down the vehicle was the amount of people that it hit. It was awful.
[Church:] That is a horrendous thing for you to witness. And then once the vehicle did come to standstill there, were you able to see the driver and the other person in the vehicle?
[Stupos:] No, I wasn't. I only saw the footage that was on the internet. I saw the police responded within a minute almost. A minute, two tops and they had the vehicle surrounded. I didn't see them pulled out of the car, but I heard that is what happened. I was more concerned with the people lying on the road. The vehicle didn't seem to speed up, but it didn't seem to slow down. Terrorism is everybody's first thought, but thought maybe somebody had fallen asleep at the wheel, but it wasn't.
[Church:] It's extraordinary what you said. You said police were there within a minute. Where were is that usual there would be a lot of police around that particular area?
[Stupos:] Yes. There's a station across the road. Because the intersection is so busy, there's always police around. But I was amazed at how quickly they were here. Police cars were turning up within minutes.
[Church:] The police do have a pretty good record in Melbourne, Australia, don't they, for responding very quickly to situations like this? Do you remember back in January this year, just a few roads streets away from Flinders street station, there was a similar incident, but there were six fatalities? Do you remember that incident?
[Stupos:] Yes, absolutely. I was here on that day as well. I didn't witness the incident, but, yes, the city was in virtual lockdown again. It was a lot of traffic. I remember, because I was driving to the store and the city was gridlock, basically.
[Church:] And of course no link has been made by Australian authorities at this point between what happened just a few hours ago there in Melbourne and what happened back in January. But just talk to us about the situation. I'm assuming you're still there nearby. What are you seeing right now?
[Stupos:] Right now it's a fairly subdued scene. The vehicles are still there. There's debris all over the place. Police and SWAT Team are walking around with big machine guns. There's detectives. And there's major collision investigation. So there's police, in terms of the chaos before, it's just calmed down. The car is still there where it stopped.
[Church:] And of course for the benefit of our viewers joining us here in the United States and all around the world, it is now 7:43 in the evening there in Melbourne, Australia, as the police continue to try to piece together what exactly happened here. They have been able to establish this was a deliberate act, but they do not know at this point what the motivation was. So, Jim, talk to us about the people you saw being taken to the hospital. Because we understand now 14 people were hit by this vehicle.
[Stupos:] Yes, I thought it would be more, to be honest. I was surprised it was only 14. A little child apparently, I heard through other people speaking in the internet, but there was a lot of people being put into ambulance. A lot of people with backpacks on, you know, look like business people as well. Sort of a cross-section of the community, basically.
[Church:] Jim Stupos, thanks so much for going us and sharing your story with us, what you were able to witness at this accident where the police there in Melbourne, Australia, have said it was a deliberate act. They don't know at this point what the motivation was, but two people including the driver have been arrested. We will, of course continue to follow this story and bring you the details as they come in to us. We'll take a very short break here, but still to come, a big day ahead at the United Nations where the U.S. has a warning for countries that don't support its recognition of Jerusalem as Israel's capital. We're back in just a moment.