for russia. >> a minor incursion, president biden sparks confusion and sows doubt on america's response if russia invades ukraine. we'll have reaction from moscow this hour. donald trump gets handed a major legal blow as the u.s. supreme court rejects his request to keep his white house documents hidden. what this means for the january 6 investigation. and hundreds of thousands of syrians facing a harsh and brutal winter. human rights groups calling it a crisis within a crisis. ♪ >> announcer: live from london, this is "cnn newsroom" with isa soares. good morning, everyone. welcome to the show. it is thursday, january the 20th, and we begin with the last thing u.s. president joe biden needed really with his approval rating at a listless 41%, and that is a foreign policy stumble. his administration is scrambling really to clean up his suggestion that a minor incursion by russia into ukraine might get a less forceful response than an outright invasion. have a listen. >> russia will be held accountable if it invades, and it depends on what it does. it's one thing if it's a minor incurring and we end up having to fight about what to do and not do. if they're capable of doing with the force of mass on the border, it is going to be a disaster for russia. my guess is he will move in. he has to do something. >> following that comment, the white house was quick to clarify, indicating something like a cyberattack would be met with a proportionate. jen psaki said it would be a swift severe united response. they tell cnn he shocked president biden giving russian president vladimir putin the green light at his pleasure. cnn's fareed zakaria offers his advice here. >> i think what biden is trying to convey is the complexity of the challenge. let's say ukrainians who speak russian in eastern ukraine who are allied with russia do something provocative. the russians in some way, short of an invasion, support it. what biden is trying to convey is that is still bad. that is still a russian incursion into ukraine. that is still a russian violation of ukrainian sovereignty. vladimir putin wants a ukraine that is subordinate, humble the colony of russia. the ukrainian people don't want that. that's the fundamental issue. we're just trying to help the ukrainian people achieve their own aspirations. >> fareed zakaria there. more than 100, it shows the buildup. of the country is telling his citizens not to panic and the situation hasn't changed since russia annexed crimea in 2014. meanwhile u.s. secretary of state anthony blinken has arrived in berlin a short time ago for talks with british, fresh and german allies. he will meet with his russian counterpart tomorrow in geneva. have a listen. >> finding diplomatic resolution to the conflict and to de-escalate the situation. that is the preference. it is also the most responsible thing that any of us can do. at the same time, we've made very clear to moscow that if it chooses to renew aggression against ukraine, it will be met and it will face very severe consequences. >> let's go live to moscow and cnn's international diplomatic editor nic robertson joins me now. nic, it is clear blinken is looking for the diplomatic solution. has president biden's words at the top of the show, has that muddied the waters with nato allies here? >> reporter: well, as fareed was saying, it is a complex situation and president biden is, as fareed outlined, trying to, you know, pick his way through it very carefully and to lay it out carefully. but it's undoubtedly that complexity that leads to the sort of gaps in positions between the united states and its allies and partners, that nato, it's allow today a degree for the french president, for example, yesterday, to re-express his feelings that the european union should have a voice at the table. the french president has always wanted the eu to have a more united defense position, a defense policy. so this, this complexity has allowed the waters to become muddied, and undoubtedly the assessment, you know, from western analysts is that if the kremlin -- president putin will be able to look at that muddied waters and perhaps find an opportunity there to exploit the situation as he wants to do in ukraine. what we're hearing from the kremlin today or at least foreign ministry spokeswoman today, saying that all this talk about an invasion that is being -- she implied heightened built up bayou cranian and western media is in russia's view a cover to build the pretext for something on the ground, a provocation on the ground that will necessitate or could lead to violence. and she pointed rather -- she pointed less to the diplomacy that's going on, and more to the actions of british military, she said, have been shipping in weapons over the past few days to ukraine. she described that as nato dragging ukraine into nato. these are words and language that will resonate at home. you see how the complexity, the muddied waters are now sort of in a way thwarting this very, very intense diplomacy that's going on at the moment. >> nic robertson for us there in moscow. thanks very much, nic. of course, we'll have much more ahead on the president's speech in about 20 minutes or so. now, the house select committee investigating the january the 6th capitol riot will now be able to see hundreds of documents from the trump white house. this after the supreme court delivered a major blow to the former president and his request to block such a move. cnn's paula reid has the details for you from washington. >> reporter: a significant loss for former president trump made possible, in part, by three supreme court justices that he appointed. here the supreme court has refused trump's request to block the house select committee from obtaining some of his white house records connected to january 6. trump had tried to assert executive privilege over these documents, but the authority to protect materials from previous administrations lies with the current president, and president biden citing the extraordinary circumstances of january 6 declined to assert executive privilege, here setting off a truly extraordinary and unprecedented legal battle that made its way all the way to the supreme court. now on its way, this case was heard by a lower court where trump lost. the appellate court also decided against trump. in an 8-1 decision the supreme court refusing trump's request to block these documents from getting to investigators. what could this potentially mean for the house select committee? well, now more than 700 pages of documents could help them shed some light on what was going on in around the white house on january 6. now, among the documents are call logs, handwritten notes, the former chief of staff draft speeches, correspondence aboutian 6. all of documents could help lawmakers better understand what was going on around the president on january 6 on the days leading up to the insurrection as well. now, it's notable that justice clarence thomas was the only justice who noted a dissent in this opinion. the three justices that former president trump appointed to the supreme court all decided against him. paula reid, cnn, washington. now, the chair and vice chair of the january 6 house committee issued a statement calling the supreme court ruling, quote, a victory for the rule of law, and american democracy. cnn's senior legal analyst laura coates weighed in on the high court's position. take a listen. >> the supreme court, the former president not taking his case and saying really unabashedly, that arguments about privilege and the idea he could somehow withhold documents from the incumbent president says they should be given over for transparency sake, for the interest of the nation, they are saying that the committee needs to have these documents and they essentially say that any claim that the former president has is out weighed by the public's need to know. at this juncture, they probably have a whole host of information that could corroborate anything that comes down the line. this might be the final jigsaw puzzle piece to see whether somebody was acting at the direction of really the highest office holder of the land, the president of the united states and his orbit. it could give information about what the president was doing at the time, what he did leading up to january 6, and what he did afterwards. >> laura coates there. the organization is also in the hot seat and facing investigations into its finances. the manhattan district attorney's office is looking into whether the organization and its top executives manipulated the value of several properties and provided misleading financial statements. now, that criminal probe is running parallel to the new york attorney general's civil investigation zeroing in on some of the same alleged fraud trump and his organization have called the investigations politically motivated and say they have done nothing wrong. while senate democrats' efforts to strengthen voting rights protections failed on wednesday, in moves that were not unexpected, republicans first blocked the legislation by using filibuster rule that keeps it alive. democratic chuck schumer then lowered the rule to 50 votes. two democrats voted against it, joe manchin and kyrsten sinema. >> it is a grave misleading of the american people. for the last year my democratic colleagues have taken to the senate floor, cable news airways, newspaper pages across the country to argue repealing the filibuster is restoring the senate to the vision of the founding fathers intended deliberate for this body. my friends, that is simply not true. >> given the rigid republican opposition, president biden admitted he'll have to break up his build back better initiative, but said he believes congress can pass big chunks of that. now, georgia's secretary of state has announced a new voter registration system for the key battleground state. brad raffensperger said it will be faster and more secure. georgia is one of several republican-led states that passed voting restrictions after the 2020 election, now a rural county is considering closing all but one polling place ahead of this year's election. and the republican running for lu lieutenant governor is proposing banning drop boxes. they were widely used in 2020 to prevent the spread of coronavirus. well, president biden says he knows americans are struggling with the high cost of living and he admits inflation will be difficult to get under control. and that's really not only the bad news on the economy front. the nasdaq has officially entered correction territory, down more than 10% from its november high. the dow and s&p lost ground, red arrows across the board with the nasdaq seeing the biggest losses on wall street yesterday, down more than 1%. and there are new signs gas prices won't be coming down any time soon unfortunately. oil finished the day at a seven-year high for the second day in a row. brent crude down almost 1%. wti crude down just over half of a percent. we'll keep on top of those numbers for you. now, british prime minister boris johnson now fighting for his political life. coming up, members of his own party join the opposition in calling for his resignation after the prime minister's staff flouted lockdown rules on numerous occasions. plus, parts of the u.s. are in store for another weekend of freezing temperatures and winter weather. we'll have the latest forecast after the break. why burn a candle when you can switch to air wick essential mist? it's the modern way to transform fragrance infused with natural essential oils into a mist. air wick essential mist. connect to nature. >> announcer: this is cnn breaking news. and we are getting new details on arrests in england that may be connected to the hostage-taking incident at a texas synagogue. if you remember last weekend, british counterterrorism police arrested two men in birmingham and manchester. now, it is not clear if they knew the gunman at the standoff in the beth israel. it resulted in the death of the gunman who was a british national. the hostages were thankfully not harmed. cnn's scott mclane is following this from london. scott, what more can you tell us about these two individuals here? >> reporter: isa, look, there was precious little information in the statement put out by the greater manchester police. that's the force that deals with counterterrorism in the northwest of england. we know that the hostage taker, his name is malik faisal from blackburn in northern england. we know that with these arrests, one man was arrested in birmingham, one man was arrested in manchester. this is in connection with the texas synagogue hostage taking as you mentioned, was in suburban dallas. lasted for hours. last of it captured on the live stream before law enforcement was able to get in there, shoot the hostage taker. the hostages were able to escape. we know that this man was known to british security services before. they had opened an investigation into him in 2020, but then they had done a bit of digging, realized - deemed him not to be a threat and moved on and closed the investigation. obviously there was more to the story there at the time. his family had put out a statement calling it or saying they apologize wholeheartedly saying they are absolutely devastated. they also said this man had mental health issues, but they didn't elaborate on what those were. local counsellor had said earlier this week they are working with the law enforcement in the united states. the prime minister weighing in on this calling it a terrible act of anti-semitism and terrorism. as for the arrest, we don't have a lot of information as to what the connection is, who these men are, what the relation might be, what their possible involvement might have been or how law enforcement was flagged to them in the first place. and we should probably be a little bit cautious here, isa, because you might remember back in november there was a terror attack in liverpool where a dom was nadetonated outside a hospital. police arrested three young men all in their 20s and questioned them, realized that they didn't have anything to do with it and then they released them. so, again, it's too early to tell what the connection might be here, what the involvement might be, if any. we just have to wait and see at this point. >> and i know you'll continue to work your sources. scott mclane there with that breaking news. thanks very much, scott. now, part of the united states are in for another weekend of snow and ice while some haven't had a reprieve really from last weekend. the midwest is bracing for below zero temperatures north and south carolina have declared states of emergency ahead of winter storms. and other parts of the south could see tornadoes. meteorologist derek van dam joins me now. good morning, derek. another round of heavy winter storm. tell us what we can expect here. >> yeah, extremely busy along the east coast. so far so good in terms of the precipitation falling as rain. this is a really important map as meteorologists analyze what's happening on the ground and the upper levels of the atmosphere. look at the temperatures from new york to philadelphia to d.c. we're well above freezing. temperatures of 32 degrees or below that, of course, indicating freezing and we see a change in the wind direction across this area. that's the demarcation zone between the warmer air to the south of the cold front and the colder air mass to the north where temperatures are quickly plunging. and that means our precipitation is going to change from rain in new york, philadelphia and d.c., and right over to snowfall just in time for the morning commute this morning. so we have winter weather alerts across this particular area, 2 to 3 inches of snowfall perhaps locally higher amounts from the i-95 corridor, that heavily traveled interstate across the east coast of the u.s. connecting many major metropolitan areas to the north and west. that's where we anticipate the higher snowfall totals. this is some of the largest population density of the east coast. we're monitoring as people head to work this morning on thursday. you can see d.c. still light rain, light rain all the way to philadelphia. but we do anticipate that to start changing. mixing in with snow flakes in the next hour or so before changing to all snow. starting to accumulate on the ground as well. you mentioned states of emergency across the carolinas. we currently have winter storm warnings and watches in place a for areas that don't normally see snow. this is out of the ordinary for these areas, especially along the coastal areas. wilmington, as far south as charleston. we have the potential to see snow flakes on the beaches there as this cold front starts to sag south over the east coast through tonight and into your day on friday. here's a look at the forecast accumulation. snowfall totals already mentioned them across the big cities, new york to d.c., 1 to 3 inches. locally higher amounts near norfolk, virginia. keep in mind that is a possibility. it will mix in with sleet and freezing rain across the carolinas. and then across the deep south we even have the potential of freezing rain. just north of new orleans into the baton rouge region and southern texas today. this is part of the same funnel system bringing cold air and a mixture of wintry weather to the deep south including the chance of severe storms today along the gulf coast. back to you, isa. >> stay safe, everyone. thanks very much, derek. now, british prime minister boris johnson says england will return to less strict covid rules thanks to the success of the vaccine booster campaign. the announcement could help prop up his sagging support among conservative members of parliament. many of them if you remember are angry. the prime minister's staff held parties while the rest of the country was under strict lockdowns. returning to plan a, means people in england will no longer be asked to work from home. and mask requirements will soon be lifted, including in classrooms. let's get more on the story. salma abdelaziz joins us with the latest. salma, the easing of these restrictions, the ditching of plan b coming at a very good time for the prime minister. prime minister, i think it's fair to say, has been pretty much on the ropes. is he over the worst, salma? >> reporter: he's definitely not, but he is back in fighting form, isa. he's shown regret, he's shown remorse. back in parliament he was that borse we know ready on his feet, quick to evade questions, refusing to answer anything on party gate, but that did not stop the hits from coming. take a listen. >> i know yesterday from the man who wrote the rules, it was, well, nobody told me what those rules were. >> does the prime minister realize how ridiculous that sounds? >> finally take responsibility, resign, prime minister. >> i mean, it was a really boisterous session, isa. even before it began, there was this moment, very dramatic in which a member of prime minister boris johnson's own party defected. mutiny, crossed the aisle. it captures the mood against prime minister boris johnson has hardened. yes, you have the public outrage. if prime minister boris johnson is going to lose his seat, it will be from his own party, from his own lawmakers turning against him. there's a handful of conservative mps that said they will submit those letters to trigger a no confidence vote. we haven't reached that threshold of 15% yet, but here is what's worrying for the prime minister, isa. the reason he holds that seat is because he is seen as a winner, somebody who can succeed at the ballot box. somebody who can unite the conservative heartland, somebody who got brexit done when nobody else could. if he's no longer the person that can win mps their seats, that's when you can start to see that tide turn. you have to remember lawmakers went home last weekend and they were flooded with complaints from their constituents. so real concern rebellion in the conservative party continues to grow against prime minister boris johnson. >> it will be interesting to see whether he continues to have that loyalty from members of his own party. of course, wait to see the release of that report from sue gray we've all been waiting for. salma abdelaziz. thanks very much, salma. now, the flight cancellations are decreasing, but there is still concern about the safety of the 5g rollout near u.s. airports. anna stewart joins me with the latest. plus, there are hopeful signs the omicron variant might begin to wane in parts of the united states. too many hospitals have struggled to save lives are still just a constant battle. >> i've held the hands of people dying of covid. i've been in the covid ward. i've had close friends lose their lives even at my age. i've had -- i've had somebody who said to me 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panel investigating the riots will now be able to dig deeper into what happened before and during, of course, the attack on the u.s. capitol. and president biden is predicting russia will invade ukraine, but caused confusion somewhat when he said he would consider the consequences if it was, quote, a minor incursion. the white house later clarified the president's response saying there would be severe consequences for any russian military incursion. well, mr. biden signalling he is ready for a new approach really as he starts his second year in the white house. the u.s. president acknowledged his dreams of bipartisanship have largely been dashed, calling republicans obstructionist. he says he wants to talk to more people outside of the white house, and he's willing to break up his massive build back better agenda to get parts of it passed. now, the new approach comes as mr. biden's approval rating as you can see on your screen there, that's sinking. the latest cnn poll shows 41% approve of the jobs he's doing. 51% disapprove. cnn's dana bash has the reaction to his news conference. >> reporter: well, people i checked in with when it comes to the political calendar are some house democrats, those who are in the most competitive seats. and the word i had back was a couple of things. number one, they were happy that he was open to the notion of breaking up his massive spending bill that is stuck in the senate, and doing so piecemeal, which he revealed today in his press conference, because it shows a willingness to change in order to get things done. and just on the performance part of it, the fact that he spoke for almost two hours, i was getting texts during the press conference from some political operatives saying, make it stop. but from another political perspective, it was the response i got was it shows he has stamina. >> dana bash there. in that same news conference, the president acknowledged that the u.s. should have dunmore testing early in the pandemic, but said more tests are now being done. a government website formally launched on wednesday to send at-home test kits to any u.s. household that requests them, and 400 million n95 face masks will soon be distributed through local pharmacies. now, the latest u.s. data on the coronavirus suggests the most recent wave of new cases may be subseeding. but health experts caution infections are still climbing in much of the country, including kentucky. cnn's marques returns to a kentucky hospital he visited a year ago and found staffing shortages are making a difficult job harder than ever. >> reporter: owings mill, kentucky, rolling hills, rural, the coronavirus still a heavy burden for health care workers. >> i've, i've held the hands of people dying of covid. i've been within the covid ward. i've had close friends lose their lives even at my age. i've had, i've had somebody see their mom lose her battle. there's just not words to what we're experiencing right now at the health care forefront. >> reporter: dr. parker banks is the physician at saint can claire health care's clinic care. the battle now, the highly infectious omicron variant. more patients and some days less staff. >> it definitely puts a strain on the system, on an already strained system. so right now we have probably a 40% reduction in staff currently today due to covid or covid exposure. with that, everybody else here has to pick up a significant amount. >> reporter: at saint claire's main hospital in moore head where we visited in september, health care workers are still battling the virus and false information. >> i think a lot of our patients just need to be able to be talked to. let them know the truth. talk to them and answer their questions because a lot of them are just fearful of it. >> reporter: people you treat, come in not believing they have it? >> some of them don't believe they have it. they don't believe it's a real thing. i've heard that. >> reporter: with nearly a third of kentuckyians testing now positive for the coronavirus, the state has smashed its record weekly case count, more than 72,000. the unvaccinated or partially vaccinated accounting for nearly 80% of those cases, nearly 85% of hospitalizations, and more than 83% of deaths. sherry kahn, 80 years old, diabetic and asthmatic now has coronavirus, too. she had one dose of the pfizer vaccine and says if not for that, she might be in worse shape today. >> and that asthma will really knock you down. when you can't breathe, you better be getting some. >> reporter: with covid on top of that, that's not a good combination. >> the way i can understand, i didn't have it bad like some people, because some people won't take shots like that. >> reporter: not sure how she picked up the virus, she says once released -- >> i'll get that second shot, yeah. i'll go to my doctor. >> reporter: and despite the sharp rise in cases, one bright spot. >> it seems that because omicron, in general, appears to be a milder disease versus the delta, we're still having a lot of hospitalizations because people are being affected just by the sheer numbers. but i think the number of people on ventilators, the number of people requiring respiratory support are a little lower than they were. >> reporter: still, health care workers here, like everywhere, working harder, longer, and with seemingly no end to the pandemic or the nation's bad mood. >> everybody just needs to try to be a little more patient, be kinder with each other. everybody's got their own struggles, whether it's where they work or what they're dealing with with their families, people had losses personally. so we just need to all work together to be a kinder place, i think. >> reporter: miguel marques, cnn, moore head, kentucky. now, disruption to air travel to the u.s. over the rollout of 5g mobile services, that eased on wednesday. american airlines said it's closer to returning to normal operations. the decision by verizon and cnn's parent company at&t to delay activating the fifth generation service near key airports came too late to head off some cancellations. the airline industry worries the new 5g antennas with stronger transmission and higher frequencies than in europe, could interfere with aircraft technology. for more on this, let's go to anna stewart who has been on top of the story for us. anna, i was surprised to see the impact this has had on the airline industry, given they had two years to get their ducks in a row before 5g. >> reporter: the rollout at airports came too late. many airlines said they are resuming normal service. lufthansa, british airlines, ana. isa, when you and i talk about flight disruption, once that disruption is over, we stop talking about it. but the frustration and anger about everything that ran up to the botched 5g rollout continues, and here is what the president of emirates said to richard quest. >> i guess i need to be as candid as i normally am. this is one of the most delinquent utterly irresponsible issues, call it what you like, i've seen in my aviation career. somebody should have told them a long time ago that it would compromise safety of operation, of aircraft in metropolitan areas, with catastrophic consequences if this was allowed to continue. >> reporter: isa, he does not mince his words, does he? but a whole litany of events led to this decision on tuesday night before the rollout on wednesday. and as you said, that was over a very long period. there was this decision in the u.s. to assign a very high frequency of spectrum to 5g, much higher than in europe. and that is why the rollout in the u.s. has been so problematic because that frequency was very close to that used with radio altimeters. there is the issue of the strength of the antennas used in the u.s. they are stronger, for instance, than in europe. the positioning, they point up, not slanted down. there are all sorts of issues here as to why this became such a big issue for airlines. they want to know what happens next because this is just a temporary pause that could be rolled out near airports soon and they want to know what the difference will be. they don't want to see another standoff. isa? >> of course safety comes first. but we still don't know when they will try again for the 5g. anna stewart, i know you'll stay on top of it. thank you very much, anna. now, qr codes have become a part of daily life since the pandemic began. the fbi is warning scammers a using the technology to hijack people's payments and steal their data. they say to carefully check websites and download apps straight from the app store. the warning comes after fake qr code stickers were found on more than two dozen parking stations in austin, texas. now, the university of michigan says it will pay nearly $500 million to more than a thousand people who say they were abused by a former university physician. dr. robert anderson, who worked at the school from 1966 to 2003, had been accused offer has been accused, i should say, of sexual assault against hundreds of students. he died in 2008. the settlement agreement includes $30 million for any future claimants. now, tonga begins a long road to recovery after being hit with a massive volcano and tsunami. next, international aid starts to trickle in as we hear from survivors about the situation on the ground. plus, brutal winter storms are putting thousands of displaced syrians at risk. now getting essential supplies to those in need will be even harder. we have the details in a live report after the break. you are watching "cnn newsroom." this is how you imagine your dishwasher. but it may not be as clean as you think. built up grease and limescale could be hiding in your pipes. try finish dishwasher cleaner its dual action formula hygienically cleans hidden limescale and grease in your dishwasher. finish. clean dishwasher. clean dishes. as a business owner, your bottom line is always top of mind. so start saving by switching to the mobile service designed for small business: comcast business mobile. flexible data plans mean you can get unlimited data or pay by the gig. all on the most reliable nationwide network. with no line activation fees or term contracts... saving you up to $500 a year. and it's only available to comcast business internet customers. so boost your bottom line by switching today. comcast business: powering possibilities. now, tonga is starting to reconnect with the world as international aid begins to trickle in. the first military flights from australia and new zealand landed in the past few hours. more aid is set to arrive by air and sea in the coming days. officials say some of the phone lines cut by the eruption have been repaired. one journalist described the situation on the ground. have a listen. >> i think we'll be able to survive in the next few weeks. but we're hoping a shipment of imported -- will be back to normal after the disruption. but so far food is okay. phone is of most concern right now. >> on saturday tonga was devastated when that under water volcano erupted, causing tsunami waves up to 15 feet high. ash blanketed the country. three children have been killed in syria and hundreds of thousands of people are at risk following heavy winter storms in the region. you can see there on your screen. humanitarian organization care says the storm is especially brutal to internally displaced syrians in camps. temperatures are expected to drop lower than they were -- they have been, in fact, in 40 years. let's get more on the story. arw arwa daman joins us from istanbul. it struck me, she said people can see their own breath when lying on a thin mattress. you'll see children walking around in flip-flops, ripped shirts. families are afraid they'll freeze to death. this is incredibly troubling and quite frankly unacceptable. >> reporter: it is, isa. and it's especially heartbreaking because it is to a certain degree unnecessary. it's hardly the first time that these syrian internally displaced or refugees who are living elsewhere have faced a very brutal winter. remember last year we were reporting on a number of children freezing to death over the winter, and yet aid organizations continue to still struggle to be able to get in enough supplies to properly winterize, to proper prepare these families for these dipping temperatures. when we talk about these children who were killed inside syria, these are not children who were killed because of bombs or bullets. one of these children was killed when the tent collapsed. and hundreds of tents have been collapsing, and families are having to pull it all together on their own because the snow has blocked off the roads, and so aid organizations that are based inside syria are unable to reach those in need in a sufficient time span. another reason why children are dying and people continue to suffer injuries is because of what they are having to burn. inside they'd tents you have a makeshift stove. fuel is very expensive inside syria, so people are having to turn to burning unsafe materials, such as plastic. on monday, two sisters ages just 3 and 5, died because their tent burned down. unsafe living conditions that could have been prevented. and this is another reason why aid organizations are sounding the alarm bell because we're just at the beginning of winter, and the great concern is that more people are going to either die or suffer injuries as the days and weeks go on. we were speaking to one local hospital inside syria close to one of these camps who said that the -- the director said on a near daily basis they are getting in patients who are suffering respiratory problems because of the materials that they're having to burn inside their tents to stay safe. and every few days, they are also getting cases of people, adults and children, suffering from severe burns. all of this are preventable. and, isa, as you're saying, unacceptable. >> as you said, these camps are so many children. thank you very much, arwa daman with that report. thanks, arwa. now, cardi b is offering to pay the funeral cost for 17 victims of an apartment building fire in new york earlier this month. the rapper is a proud bronx native and perhaps not having to worry about fees will help families move forward and heal. she is partnering with the mayor's fund to advance new york city to ensure all those who lost loved ones will be supported by her donation. new covid cases are cropping up in china's capital with just over two weeks until the winter olympics. we are live in beijing. what's being done to stop the spread. that's next. unlike ordinary memory supplements, neuriva plus fuels six key indicators of brain perfrforman. more brain performance? yes, pleasase! neuriva. thihink bigger. new vicks vapostick. strong soothing vapors... help comfort your loved ones. for chest, neck, and back. it goes on clear. no mess just soothincomfort. try new vicks vapostick. blendjet's new year's sa is on now! make your resolutions come true with this incredible deal onlendjet 2. it packs the power of a big blender on the go, and it crushes right through ice. just drop in your favorite ingredients, even frozen fruit, and make a smoothie any time, anywhere. blendjet cleans itself. just add a drop of soap, water, and blend. recharge quickly with any usb port. order now on blendjet.com and kick off the new year right! now, major western cities are reporting hundreds of thousands of new covid infections each day, but in beijing, the number of new daily cases can be counted on one hand. yet officials are clamping down, determined, of course, to keep the virus from disrupting the upcoming winter olympics. less than two weeks to go. let's bring in kristie lu stout from beijing as we promised before the break. the rise, a small rise, i should say, they are worried ahead of the olympics. what would happen if there is a positive case inside the olympics there? >> reporter: if there is a positive case inside the olympics, what they would do is find out first, is it symptomatic? they'll be sent to a designated hospital. if it's asymptomatic, they will be sent to designated facilities. already the closed loop system for the beijing olympics is up and is running. designated lanes for cars, that will be running as well starting tomorrow. but as you just reported, beijing is reporting a growing number of covid-19 infections. in fact, on wednesday it reported five new covid-19 infections, including three of the delta variant, four of those new infections relate to a cold storage or frozen food warehouse in a district of beijing. the warehouse has suspended operations. it has been sealed off. and the residential building where the workers live, that has been under lockdown as well. as for the total number of omicron cases across china, that is still unclear, but if we bring up the map for you, you can look at the geographic spread of confirmed locally transmitted omicron cases, the variant can be found across the map in china from shenzhen in the south, central hunan province, and the north. the olympic host city beijing. isa? >> and spreading despite, of course, china's zero-covid policy put in place. kristie lu stout for us in hong kong. thanks so much. >> reporter: you got it. and finally, we have some good news for all of you lord of the rings fans, myself included. amazon's anticipated prequel series had a name and a plot. the rings of power is set thousands of years before the events of the beloved trilogy and has been confirmed that a certain dark lord will make an appearance as episodes explore how the 20 rings were forged and their source of evil. the series is set to start streaming on amazon's prime video service in september. and that does it here for me and the rest of the team on "cnn newsroom." i'm isa soares in london. stay in touch with me. the details on your screen. "early start" with christine romans and laura jarrett is next. i shall see you tomorrow. have a wonderful day. bye-bye. do you have a life insurance policy you no longer need? now you can sell your policy - even a term policy - for an immediate cash payment. we thought we had planned carefully for our retirement. but we quickly realized we e needed a way to supppplement our income. if yu have $100,000 or more of life insurance, you may qualify to sell your policy. don't cancell or let your policy lapse without finding out what it's worth. visit coventrydirect.com to find out if your policy qualifies. or call the number on your screen. coventry direct, redefining insurance. good morning, everyone. it is thursday, january 20th. it's 5:00 a.m. here in new york. thanks so much for getting an early start with us. i'm laura jarrett. >> and i'm christine romans. welcome to our viewers in the united states and around the world. we enter year two of the biden white house this morning with the president hoping for a reset and a bit of a clean-up mode here. first, on foreign policy, president biden predicted russian will, in his words, move into ukraine. biden went further causing an outcry in ukraine when he said this. >> russia will be held accountable if it invades he, and it depends on what it does. it depends if it's a minor incursion and we end up having to fight about what to do and not do, et cetera. but if t

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