begin this hour, with the rising death toll from the tornado outbreak that has ripped across much of the south and midwest just minutes ago, officials in illinois confirmed for more storm related deaths, the overall death toll over the last 24 hours now jumps to 21 lives lost more than 50. tornadoes have been reported in seven states. in the south and the midwest. the state of emergency now blankets, much of arkansas and the national guard is rolling into devastated communities. there are reports of at least a dozen tornadoes touching down in the state. these images are of the hard hit town of wynne, arkansas, and that s where we find cnn s derek van dam. jim i was just talking to my crew a moment ago, and the scene behind us reminds us of being on the set of a major blockbuster movie. i mean, just look at what we have with this destruction coming out of wynne, arkansas, that is a church steeple that was blown off by this tornado. look at the incredible damage in front of tha
states and all around the world. i m paula newton ahead right here on cnn newsroom hope francis is presiding over easter mass. at the vatican, where thousands have gathered for celebration. but in the middle east religious events this weekend are being marred by ongoing violence. we are alive in jerusalem and beirut for the latest, and we ll take a closer look. at that abortion drug that s at the center of two opposing court rulings in the united states. live from cnn center. this is cnn newsroom with paula neeson. but first it is easter sunday, the holiest day of the christian calendar. celebrating with the bible says was the resurrection of jesus. thousands of the faithful have converged on st peter s square for easter mass. currently underway. you see it there. francis is presiding over the service. now he did not walk in the traditional procession, but instead arrived in a wheelchair . you will soon deliver his traditional easter blessing. the 86 year old pontiff has been
easter sunday from new york. i m fredricka whitfield and we begin this hour in the middle east, where israel says it has carried out air strikes in syrian territory. israel s defense forces releasing a video it says shows strikes on a syrian military compound radar systems and artillery posts. the strikes were launched after israel says rockets were fired from syria toward the golan heights and in the west bank today, a funeral was held for two two british israeli sisters who were killed in an attack on friday. days of violence erupted following an israeli police raid on the al aqsa mosque compound in jerusalem last week. cnn s fred pleitgen is in jerusalem fred what s the latest? fredricka. well, certainly pretty big incident that happened there today on the border with syria when you had those rockets that came flying over from syrian territory, the israel defense forces say they say that those came flying towards the golan heights, which, of course are held by israel and t
good evening, everyone. i m alison camerata, and this is cnn tonight an unprecedented moment in u. s history. former president donald trump indicted by a grand jury in new york. it s the first time that a current or former u. s president has faced criminal charges. the indictment is under seal tonight , but more information will be announced in the coming days. sources tell cnn that the former president is facing more than 30 counts related to business fraud , defiant donald trump, issuing an angry statement tonight calling this political persecution. let s turn right away to cnn correspondent kara scannell and cnn s senior crime and justice reporter katelyn polantz keira. what happens next? well alison next. we expect that on tuesday, the former president is expected to come here to new york to go into the courthouse behind me and be arraigned on these charges. now that day, we will also expect to have the indictment unsealed. then we will learn the specifics . what are the
we re also going to have expert analysis on just how historic this indictment really is. the political fallout that s unfolding how it could potentially benefit trump. i ll tell you what s happening right now. moments ago here in new york city, alvin bragg, the manhattan district attorney, arrived at his office just hours after former president donald trump was indicted. we ve learned this morning that trump had been asked by braggs office to turn himself in today to face those criminal charges here in new york, but his defense lawyers say that trump and the secret service needed more time to coordinate his surrender. after yesterday s historic indictment, sources tell cnn the former president is facing more than 30 counts. they re related to business fraud. and he is expected to turn himself in. on tuesday. the manhattan district attorney s case is centered around those hush money payments. surrounding stormy daniels caitlin s reporting that number of members of trump s camp