what we're now learning. marcus moore on the ground in haiti. the battle over mandates tonight. parents pushing back. and this evening, what they say when asked if they got their children other vaccinations when they were young. why not for covid? and news tonight on the virus. where they're now seeing a delta sub-variant. why some authorities say it requires urgent research. overseas tonight, china now denying it has tested a new supersonic missile, reportedly flying five times the speed of sound. how would you track it if it was carrying a nuclear weapon? and was u.s. intelligence caught offguard? jury selection underway tonight in the murder of ahmaud arbery. three white men, including a father and son, accused of killing arbery. and now the key video that will be at the center of this trial. the abc news exclusive. the former british spy behind the infamous steele dossier. investigating possible links between then candidate donald trump and russia. tonight, speaking for the first time. what he now says about the most damning claims in his report, including the suggestion there was a compromising videotape. george stephanopoulos one-on-one with christopher steele. and anyone who loves tony bennett will love the reason he's in the news tonight. good evening and it's great to start another week with all of you at home. and we begin tonight with colin powell, a soldier, a diplomat, an adviser to presidents, republican and democrat. a life dedicated to service, a life of breaking barriers. we learned today not only of his death but of his private battle with covid. he was fully vaccinated, but now we've learned of his other private health battles that put him at increased risk. and tonight here, the tributes now pouring in. president biden ordering flags to half staff, calling powell a, quote, patriot of unmatched honor and dignity. he grew up in the bronx, the son of immigrants. he found his calling in the u.s. military. tonight, what he said, how it felt when he first put on that uniform. two tours in vietnam, rising to four-star general and then the nation's top military leader, the chairman of the joint chiefs of staff. he then served as secretary of state. the first black man to serve in both of those roles. it was as secretary of state he made the case for the second u.s. invasion of iraq, the weapons of mass destruction that later the world would learn did not exist. what he told barbara walters about that moment. colin powell worked for four presidents. he put country ahead of party. and tonight, he is being remembered and honored by presidents, diplomats and by the men and women in uniform. martha raddatz, who covered general powell for years, leading us off. >> reporter: tonight, the nation remembering general colin powell, a trailblazing leader, a diplomat, a soldier, a patriot who served as the first black secretary of state, first black chairman of the joint chiefs and first black national security adviser. this to ronald reagan. today, defense secretary lloyd austin, the country's first black pentagon chief, who looked to powell as a mentor and friend, saying powell's death leaves a hole in his heart. >> the world lost one of the greatest leaders that we have ever witnessed. >> reporter: president biden ordering flags to be flown at half staff, saying, "colin embodied the highest ideals of both warrior and diplomat," adding, "he put country before self, before party, before all else -- in uniform and out." >> he's not only a dear friend and a patriot, but one of our great military leaders and a man of overwhelming decency. >> reporter: powell died of complications from covid-19 at walter reed medica center. he was 84. a spokeswoman revealing powell had been battling a rare blood cancer called multiple myeloma and parkinson's, too. doctors say the blood cancer can weaken the immune system, making him more vulnerable, even though he was fully vaccinated. he had been scheduled for the booster right when he came down with covid. powell's journey was an american journey. born to jamaican immigrants in harlem, powell grew up in the bronx, joining the army rotc in college, serving two combat tours in vietnam. powell once said when he first put on a uniform, he liked what he saw. powell would soon break through barriers, becoming a four-star general, serving under four presidents, republican and democrat. in 1991, overseeing the successful gulf war, when the u.s. ousted iraqi president saddam hussein from kuwait. his most controversial moment coming more than ten years later. in 2003, as secretary of state, during a speech to the u.n., powell made the case for war, telling the world of iraq's weapons of mass destruction. >> the gravity of this moment is matched by the gravity of the threat that iraq's weapons of mass destruction pose to the world. >> reporter: those weapons did not exist. the intelligence was flawed. telling abc's barbara walters he felt terrible about the claims made in that speech. >> do you think this blot on your record will stay with you for the rest of your life? >> well, it's a -- of course it will. it's a blot. i'm the one who presented it on behalf of the united nations, united states to the world and it will always be part of my record. >> how painful is that? >> it was painful. it's painful now. >> reporter: tonight, former president george w. bush calling powell "a great public servant." bill and hillary clinton saying he was "a courageous soldier, a skilled commander, a dedicated diplomat and a good and decent man." president obama saying he embodied what america "can and should be." general powell in his own words on a life lived -- >> my life has been blessed because i have had a chance to serve my country and i've had a chance to do things that benefited my country. and when it's all over, i just hope they say, "he was a good soldier, he did a good job, raised a good family and god bless him." that's all i ask for. >> powerful words from general powell tonight. martha with us from washington. and martha, we know many republicans wanted powell to run for president along the way. he famously resisted and it was often reported that his wife alma was not keen on the idea. >> reporter: she was not, david. and i think she was largely concerned about his safety. and in the end, he really didn't want to run for president, because whenever you ask colin powell whether he wanted to be called secretary or general, he would always say general, because he was a soldier at heart, a good soldier, david. >> i know that was something you asked him along the way. martha, thank you. we're going to turn now to the other news this monday night. the fbi and a team of u.s. officials now on the ground in haiti tonight, joining the urgent search after 16 americans and a canadian have been kidnapped, five of them children. abc's marcus moore in port-au-prince tonight. >> reporter: tonight, the fbi now part of the urgent, coordinated effort to rescue 17 members of a christian organization kidnapped in haiti, including more than a dozen americans. a team of u.s. officials now on the ground working with senior haitian authorities to secure their safe release after the gang kidnapped the missionaries on saturday. ohio-based christian aid ministries confirming the 17 kidnapped members include 16 americans, one canadian and five children. the group had just visited this orphanage near port-au-prince when haitian authorities say they were stopped at a checkpoint run by one of the country's most notorious gangs, 400 mawozo. >> that's their modus operandi. they tend to attack convoys, buses and taxis, and so this fits with the pattern of operation. >> reporter: in a newly released statement, the ohio-based organization tonight asking the public to "join us in prayer that god's grace would sustain the men, women and children who are being held hostage." by some estimates, those violent gangs now control nearly half of the capital city of port-au-prince, terrorizing locals with violent gun battles and those brazen kidnappings. the surge in gang violence further crippling the impoverished nation after the july assassination of its president and an earthquake in august that killed more than 2,200 people and left tens of thousands homeless. david, officials confirm to abc news that the fbi has made contact with the 400 mawozo gang, but the exact nature of their communication is unclear tonight. and david, as you know, this is still a very delicate situation. >> marcus moore in haiti for us. thank you, marcus. we're going to turn now to the covid pandemic and the battle over vaccine mandates. california parents tonight opposed to vaccine mandates for school children, saying they will take their kids out of school before getting them the vaccine, when it comes to that. and that faceoff in chicago. police officers defying the mayor's demand they be vaccinated, amid that number that more than 60% of officers lost last year on the front lines were lost to covid. and tonight, the call to action after another sub-variant has been detected in the uk and reports it's been detected in parts of the u.s., too. our chief national correspondent matt gutman from california now. >> reporter: across california today, in those boisterous protests, thousands opposing the state's vaccine mandate for students. some parents preparing to homeschool their kids. >> i will never vaccinate my kids. i will never vaccinate my kids. >> reporter: so you would pull them out? >> i will pull them out, i will quit my job. i will teach them at home if i have to. >> reporter: california teachers are now required to get the shot and all students will follow as soon as the vaccine is fully approved for their age group. the covid vaccine joining a list of ten other vaccines required for california schools like the measles and mumps. but lindsey mccoy, who started homeschooling her kids last year, says this vaccine is different. do you do the mmr vaccines and the polio and all that stuff, as well? >> i am totally pro vaccine in general. >> reporter: in general? >> in general, absolutely. and i think that it's my choice with my doctor. we should have a conversation and decide what is necessary for our children. >> reporter: and tonight, across the country, some police officers are also pushing back against vaccine mandates. in chicago, 35% of the police department's officers haven't reported their vaccination status and risk losing their jobs. >> i really hope the men and women of the chicago police department, who have been fed a lot of stuff, that's the most polite, appropriate word i can use in this forum, are not going to ruin their careers over going to a website and saying yes or no. >> reporter: last year, nationwide, 62% of all officer deaths in the line of duty were from covid. >> so, let's bring in matt gutman tonight. and matt, i wanted to get to this other headline, as well, we're following today. scientists are now tracking what they call a delta sub-variant, a related strain in the uk where cases are rising. there are reports tonight it's been found in the u.s., too. what do we know so far? >> reporter: david, this is one of those so-called delta-plus variants. it has been detected in the uk. in fact, it's about 6% of all the cases in the uk. you mentioned, it is here in the u.s. and it's of such concern that one of the former heads of the fda, scott gottlieb, wrote today, "we need urgent research to figure out if this delta-plus is more transmissible." david? >> all right, matt gutman tonight. thank you, matt. we turn next here this evening to china. that country denying reports tonight that they have tested a nuclear-capable hypersonic missile. how would you track it if it was carrying a nuclear weapon? and was u.s. intelligence caught offguard? here's our foreign correspondent james longman now. >> reporter: tonight, china denying reports it test-fired a hypersonic missile, technology that would allow it to fire a nuclear warhead faster than anyone else. britain's "financial times" saying beijing test-launched the weapon this summer, sending it into space and around the planet before it landed just 25 miles away from its intended target. hypersonic glide weapons can fly five times the speed of sound and lower than conventional weapons. >> the u.s. does not currently have the ability to even track this weapon, much less defeat it. it will give the chinese the ability to conduct a nuclear strike anywhere in the world without warning. >> reporter: the u.s. and russia are also developing this capability, but it's thought they're far behind china in this particular weapons race. the report, which can't be independently verified by abc news, says that u.s. intelligence services had no idea that why that was so far ahead. china denies it was a hypersonic missile, calling it instead a routine test of a reusable spacecraft. but this will only add to u.s. concerns about china's nuclear buildup. david? >> all right, james, thank you. james longman tonight. back here at home now, jury selection is now under way in the murder trial of three men accused in the death of ahmaud arbery. and tonight, the video that will now play a central role. abc's elwyn lopez from georgia. >> reporter: tonight, jury selection is underway in the trial of three men charged in the killing of ahmaud arbery. of the thousand potential jurors summoned, 600 have been asked to report today. so far none have been seated. at the center of the trial will be this disturbing video, which emerged 2 1/2 months after arbery's death in february of last year. filmed by william "roddie" brian, it appears to show father and son gregory and travis mcmichael in a pickup truck chasing arbery who was unarmed and out for a jog near brunswick, georgia. then travis fatally shooting the 25-year-old in what prosecutors say was a racially motivated crime. the defense maintaining that the mcmichaels saw arbery leavin a house under construction and thought he was a burglar and were using a then existing law to make a citizen's arrest. they say travis shot in self-defense. >> your honor, for the record, we don't believe this is a case about race. >> reporter: tonight, arbery's parents told me they believe justice will be served. and do you think that you'll be able to see a fair jury? >> i'm praying to god. >> i think we will get justice for ahmaud. >> reporter: and david, the three men pleaded not guilty to those charges and it could take two weeks before all 12 jurors and four alternates are seated. david? >> elwyn lopez covers this trial for us. thank you. we turn now to the abc news exclusive tonight. the former british spy behind the infamous steele dossier. investigating possible links between then candidate donald trump and russia. tonight, speaking for the first time. what he now says about the most damning claims in his report. george stephanopoulos one-on-one with christopher steele. here's jon karl. >> reporter: christopher steele, the former british spy who set off a political firestorm in the united states about donald trump's alleged ties to russia, is now speaking out in public for the first time in an exclusive interview with george stephanopoulos. >> give me a declarative sentence. "christopher steele is --" >> a patriot. somebody who has professional integrity and expertise and somebody who is a true friend and ally of the united states. >> reporter: steele authored the infamous steele dossier that presented some allegations about russian interference which proved to be accurate, but others, including a salacious claim that the russians may have had a video of trump watching prostitutes in a moscow hotel room, are either unproven or discredited. an investigation by the justice department's inspector general showed that the source who gave steele some of his key material, a washington analyst, told the fbi that much of it was "rumor and speculation," including the supposed videotape recorded by russia to blackmail trump, what's known in russia as "kompromat." >> one of your main collectors spoke to the inspector general. said that, especially the kompromat was word of mouth and hearsay, conversations with friends over beers. it was just talk. >> if you have a confidential source and that confidential source is blown or is uncovered, that confidential source will often take fright and try and downplay and underestimate what they've said and done. and i think that's probably what happened here. >> reporter: steele says he believes the video probably exists. but trump and allies say it was all lies designed to destroy his presidency before it even started. >> it's phony stuff. it didn't happen. >> reporter: but tonight, christopher steele defends his work. >> so you stand by the dossier. >> i stand by the work we did, the sources that we had and the professionalism which we applied to it. >> reporter: regarding that salacious video, although steele says he believes it probably does exist, he also says he, quote, wouldn't put 100% certainty onto it. regarding the overall dossier, david, he said, we knew some of it was right, but he adds, we suspected some of it may never be provable. david? >> jon karl live in washington. thank you. and there is much more of george's exclusive interview with christopher steele in "out of the shadows," an original abc news documentary, available right now on hulu. when we come back here tonight, news this evening about a horrific attack on a woman on a commuter train here in the northeast and why passengers allegedly didn't try to stop it. ♪ their excitement can get grating ♪ ♪ they're dressed for pastry baking ♪ ♪ the progressive family ♪ ♪ they're helpful but annoying ♪ ♪ they always leave us snoring ♪ ♪ accidents are boring with the progressive family ♪ so, when do you all go home? never. we're here for you 24/7. morticia: how terrifying. protection so good, it's scary. 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