Bahrain Cuts off Diplomatic Ties with Iran; Anti-Government Militia Occupy Wildlife Refuge in Oregon
KRISTIE LU STOUT, HOST: I'm Kristie Lu Stout in Hong Kong and welcome to News Stream. Now Saudi Arabia cuts ties with Iran after Shia protesters burned the Saudi embassy, a major diplomatic split could further divide the Middle East. Armed protesters take over a government building in U.S. state of Oregon warning that they will defend themselves if forced to leave. And protests in Hong Kong after the disappearance of a fifth person linked to a publisher of books critical to China. We begin with escalating tensions between Saudi Arabia and Iran that now appear to be spreading. Bahrain has just announced it is joining Saudi Arabia in cutting diplomatic ties with Iran. This comes after Iranian protesters ransacked and burned the embassy over the weekend. That attack was in response to Saudi Arabia's execution of a prominent Shia cleric. Now, Russian state media report that Moscow is ready to act as an intermediary between Iran and Saudi Arabia. Now, Frederik Pleitgen is following this story for us from London. He joins us now live. And Fred, Bahrain is now severing diplomatic ties with Iran. I mean, walk us through the growing regional impact that this split between Saudi Arabia and Iran is having and could have?</s>FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, it could have major regional implications throughout a region that, of course, Kristie, as we know, has been very volatile over the past couple of years. If we look at places like Yemen. We look at places like Syria. We look at places like Iraq, but also Bahrain itself. Bahrain, of course, is a country with a Sunni minority ruling over a Shia majority. They've always had a government that was very close to the Saudis, big allies of the Saudis but have also had a majority Shia population. And the rulers there in Bahrain have for a long time accused the Iranians of trying to stoke sectarian tensions in that country. So certainly the Bahraini move is not something that necessarily really comes as a surprise. However, the speed at which the relations between the Saudis and Iranians have deteriorated over this weekend is certainly something that is surprising. You had the execution of that very prominent Shia cleric that did spark a lot of genuine outrage in Iran. However, then you had the storming of the embassy in Tehran on Saturday night, which the government under Hassan Rouhani later acknowledged was wrong and he said that would go after those who perpetrated this. The Iranians on Sunday saying that they had arrested some 40 people. However, that was certainly not enough to set the Saudis or to appease the Saudis. If you will they then announced on Sunday night they were severing all ties accusing the Iranians of trying to undermine security in Saudi Arabia. So, the pace at which these relations are deteriorating and the consequences all of this could have for the Gulf and for the greater Middle East is certainly something that is absolutely troubling to players around the world.</s>LU STOUT: That's right, with deepening anger spreading fast across the Middle East. Fred Pleitgen reporting for us live. Thank you, Fred. Now to Iraq now, and the brutal fight for Ramadi. Iraqi troops are combing the newly liberated city for booby traps and bombs that ISIS left behind. Nima Elbagir reports.</s>NIMA ELBAGIR, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Ramadi, after months of ISIS rule, this is what remains. ISIS's occupation of the city leaving its mark both above and below ground. (on camera): These are the houses that the militants were hiding inside of. You can see what they were doing is they were digging up tunnels so that they were able to move from house to house without being seen by the coalition planes. And so that this wasn't spotted from the air, they were hiding the dirt that they were digging up and keeping it inside the houses themselves. You come through here, we can show you one of the tunnels leading through. Some of these tunnels, we're told, went as far as a kilometer. We're going to go have a look inside. They're not actually that wide, but it does give you a sense of them moving in the dark, under the ground, out of sight. (voice-over): The city fell to ISIS in May last year. Since then, Iraqi forces have been battling to reclaim their territorial integrity and their ravaged morale. The head of Iraq's counterterror force told us the liberation of Ramadi should be celebrated around the world.</s>LT. GEN. TALEB SHEGATI AL-KENANI, IRAQI COUNTERTERRORISM FORCE (through translation): Defeating ISIS in this victory has impacted on ISIS plans and its very existence, including weakness and desperation. The road to Mosul is now open and clear.</s>ELBAGIR: Blindfolded and bound, captured ISIS fighters face the wall. They were, we're told, attempting to blend in to what remains of the local population. A reminder ISIS fighters could be hiding in plain sight. Even as the road to Mosul is in the Iraqi armed force's sight, a week on from the announcement of the liberation here in Ramadi, counterterror forces battle to purge the city of the remaining militants' presence.</s>ELBAGIR (on camera): We're hearing some pops of gunfire there. They're a little further across the other side of the river. The fighting is ongoing. The clean up operation is still going on and that's why the helicopter is circling overhead.</s>ELBAGIR (voice-over): In spite of the threat of IEDs and roadside bombs, the troops continue their painstaking push. Under every inch of reclaimed territory, a possible death. Everyone here knows so much is at stake in this claimed liberation and not just for Iraq.</s>AL-KENANI (through translation): This victory is a victory for humanity because ISIS is against Iraq and against all of humanity.</s>ELBAGIR: It is also, finally, some palpable momentum in the battle. Nima Elbagir, CNN, Ramadi.</s>LU STOUT: And that was CNN's Nima Elbagir reporting from inside Ramadi. Now, there is a deep global sell-off underway this hour on the first trading day of 2016. U.S. stock futures are falling fast ahead the opening bell after China suspended its markets due to heavy loss. Shares and stock markets across Europe are also, as you can see, sharply lower. They have followed the plunge in share prices that grip markets here in the Asia- Pacific earlier. Setting off the panic was that weak manufacturing data, that report out of China earlier this day. The benchmark Shanghai Composite shed nearly 7 percent. And the losses were so big that trading was automatically halted on China's two main exchanges. Now, armed protesters in the U.S. state of Oregon have told CNN that they will remain in a federal building for as long as it takes to take a stand against how the federal government uses and controls land. Now, they have taken over a national wildlife refuge near the city of Burns, that after two ranchers, a father and son, were convicted of arson. They are due to begin their sentences later today. Now, they said they started a fire to reduce the growth of invasive plants and to protect their property from wildfire, but they were accused of hiding signs of poaching. Now, a spokesman for the protesters say that they are not terrorists, but a CNN.com, one of our contributors asked if armed people take over a government building and do so in the name of Islam, would that change how they are labeled? Now, go to CNN.com/opinion, check out the article, it's written by CNN's national security analyst Juliette Kayyem. Let's get more on the standoff under way in Oregon. Sara Sidner joins us live from Burns. Sara, what's the latest there?</s>SARA SIDNER, CNN INTERANTIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yeah, hi, Kristie. Basically what has happened is that there are two groups of people involved in this. One: the Hammonds. Now, the Hammonds that you mentioned are going to turn themselves in. They're going to jail, they're going back to prison to serve more time after a -- the government decided that they appealed their sentence and they said, look, they haven't served enough time, they have to go back to jail. They are going to do that. They are separate from the incident that's happening here. This is being led by Ammon Bundy. He has long, him and his family, long have had beef with the federal government saying that the federal government has overstepped its bound when it comes to land rights. They are ranchers and farmers who believe that they should able to use the land that the federal government has taken from local communities and that it is far overstepped its bound and so they have decided to come here in support of the Hammonds who are also ranchers, saying they are here not in their name, but they are here in the name of ranchers everywhere and inviting people from around the world and around the country to come in and help them secure the land and give it back to the people. The issue with that, of course, is that the federal government says this is federal government land, which is technically the people's land. It is a wilderness here, a wildlife refuge. We are basically 30 miles outside of Burns in the middle of almost nowhere, if you will. This is a place where you would come out to kind of enjoy the scenery. But this family has decided that they are going to take over this government building which is inside of the property. They've also stopped people from being able to come and go in and out of the property freely. And we have not seen, Kristie, any police presence whatsoever so far. They've been here for a couple of days. This is now going on the third day. But we do hear from the sheriff's department that there will be a command center set up. This group has said that they do not want to become violent. They said that they will not be the first to create any violence, that they are not hurting anyone, they are simply holding on to land they believe should be given back to the local people here. As far as how long they will be here, they say they are going to stay here as long as it takes.</s>LU STOUT: So, this family, they say at issue here is the use of public land. You're reporting that you've seen no police officers there despite the fact that these are armed protesters or can we even call them that? Because, Sara, the standoff there has sparked this huge debate online, on social media, among Americans about why these armed protesters are not being called terrorists. Tell us about that.</s>SIDNER: Right, so there is a whole group of people online who have been talking about this group saying, wait a minute, if they were Muslims or if they had a different -- if they were African-American that they would be treated differently. I cannot speak to that. All we know is that this is literally very far away from any city and that is their point, that they are not putting anybody in danger. But we haven't seen a police presence out here. We do know that there will be one. They have promised that they are going to set up some sort of a command center. But we asked particularly, we asked Ammon Bundy, the person who is heading up this idea of taking over this federal building about that. They are being called names like Y'all Qaeda. And he said, look, we are not terrorist, we're patriots. That's how they see themselves. That's how their supporters see them. And as to what the federal government does, because this is federal land in their jurisdiction, we'll have to wait and see about that. Let me let you listen to what Ammon said earlier today about why they are out here.</s>AMMON BUNDY, PROTEST SPOKESMAN: If we go to the constitution, we can see who's done really what. An article 1 8.17 are the rules that the federal government have to follow in order to own and control land and resources inside the state. And that is first, they have to get consent from the state legislatures. Second, they have to purchase them from the rightful owners and third, they can only use them for the erection of forts, magazines, arsenals, dock yards and other needful buildings. And they have done this here. They did not get consent from the state legislature.</s>SIDNER: Now, the federal government, of course, has a different story about this. And we asked him because what is particularly interesting is that Ammond Bundy is not from here either. He is coming from out of state. He has taken over land. He is not from this area. He says he's doing this in the name of the local people here. But the local people haven't come out in big numbers to join him either. So, it is an interesting scenario that will play out in the coming days as the federal government and the police start to make their move.</s>LU STOUT: Yeah, Sara Sidner reporting right where it's happening, just outside Burns, Oregon. Many thanks indeed for that update, Sara. Now, here in Hong Kong, people are demanding answers over the disappearance of nearly half a dozen booksellers all reportedly critical of China's Communist Party. Now, after the break we have a report on the police investigation into the missing vendors. Also ahead, charged allegations are exchanged between South China Sea neighbors. We've the details of a new territorial feud that has pit Vietnam against China.