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Apple Unveils New iOS, Mac OS at WWDC; President Obama Visits Poland; Critics Say U.S. Paid Too High A Price For Bergdahl's Release; Leading Women: Tory Burch; Spaniards Protest Monarchy; The Science Behind The Brazuca; Is Brazil Ready For World Cup; Tropical Depression Forms Of Western Coast of Mexico

Aired June 3, 2014 - 08:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


KRISTIE LU STOUT, HOST: Welcome to News Stream where news and technology meet.

Now Syrians vote for their next president, but it's likely to be the same one they've had for 14 years.

Plus, the U.S. president faces tough questions in Poland. We'll take you live to Warsaw.

And you know what they say about an apple a day, well not the tech giant is making health part of its new operating system.

U.S. President Barack Obama is in Warsaw, Poland. It is the first stop on his three nation, four day tour of Europe. He's trying to reassure European allies who are anxious about the crisis in Ukraine.

Now just a short time ago, Mr. Obama held a joint news conference with the Polish president. He announced he will ask the U.S. congress for $1 billion to bolster security in Eastern Europe. He also addressed the brewing controversy in the U.S. over his decision to free five Taliban detainees in return for the release of a captive American soldier.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Regardless of the circumstances, whatever those circumstances may turn out to be, we still get an American soldier back if he's held in captivity. Period. Full stop. We don't condition that. And that's what every mom dad who sees a son or daughter sent over into war theater should expect from not just their commander in chief but the United States of America.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LU STOUT: Mr. Obama says his administration did previously consult with the U.S. Congress about the possibility of a prisoner swap for the return of U.S. Army Sergeant Bowe Bergdahl.

Now CNN Pentagon correspondent Barbara Starr has more now on the accusations by soldiers that Bergdahl deserted his post and triggered a search that may have cost American lives.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT(voice-over): Within hours of Army Sergeant Bowe Bergdahl's release, social media lit up. A Facebook page saying, Bowe Bergdahl is not a hero, but a deserter who left his post. Josh Korder served with him.

JOSH KORDER, FORMER U.S. ARMY SERGEANT: As soon as he is able and as soon as he is fit I do believe that he needs to be questioned and basically tried, if necessary. Any of us would have died for him while he was with us. And then for him to just leave us like that, it was a very big betrayal.

STARR: Family and friends of fellow troops saying that these soldiers were killed in attacks searching for Bergdahl.

But the administration's position, the U.S. had a solemn obligation to search for and rescue him.

DENIS MCDONOUGH, WHITE HOUSE CHIEF OF STAFF: Let me be clear. The United States of America does not leave our men and women in uniform behind. Ever.

STARR: One reason, U.S. officials tell CNN, there was classified intelligence indicating Bergdahl's health is failing. But now that he is back, officials say they need to hear directly from him, did he deliberately leave his post and why.

Some of the confusion -- an initial incident report says Bergdahl was not on guard duty as some suggests at the time of his disappearance in 2009. A classified cable released by WikiLeaks detailing Taliban radio intercepts saying they grabbed an American at a makeshift latrine.

Key -- maybe Bergdahl's state of mind.

KORDER: As soon as we gone Afghanistan and things started to turn a little bit harder for all of us, he immediately started separating himself away from us and everyone in the platoon started gravitating more towards the Afghan soldiers.

STARR: But Pentagon officials say if Bergdahl was troubled, did his teammates report it?

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LU STOUT: And that was Barbara Starr reporting.

And in just a few minutes, President Barack Obama is due to issue a joint statement with the Polish prime minister. And CNN's Erin McLaughlin joins me now live from Warsaw. And Erin, the U.S. president is there in Poland for security talks, but to what degree is Russia and Vladimir Putin at the top of his agenda there?

ERIN MCLAUGHLIN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Kristie.

Well, President Putin is certainly not here in Poland, but he is definitely a topic of conversation. Earlier today, President Obama participant in that press conference in which he addressed the relationship between the United States and Russia in which he later in the week is expected in Normandy where it's possible that he could cross paths with Russian President Vladimir Putin, something that he talked about.

He also talked about the need for Russia to stand down, for Russia to directly influence separatists in Ukraine to stop the violence there. And he also talked about the trust that exists between Russia and the United States, something that can be rebuilt, according to President Obama if Russia continues to withdraw troops from its border with Ukraine.

Take a listen to what he had to say.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

OBAMA: If, in fact, we can see some responsible behavior by the Russians over the next several months, then I think it is possible for us to try to rebuild some of the trust that's been shattered during this past year.

But I think it is fair to say that rebuilding that trust will take quite some time.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MCLAUGHLIN: President Obama also saying, as I mentioned calling on Russia to ask the separatists to stand down. The White House's position has been that those separatists enjoy support from Moscow.

The leaders here in eastern and central Europe as well as in the United States see it essential that Russia put a stop to that in order to stop the violence in Ukraine -- Kristie.

LU STOUT: All right, CNN's Erin McLaughlin there. Thank you, Erin.

Now as Syria struggles under the weight of a crippling three-year-old civil war, voters are heading to the polls today in the country's presidential election, but opposition groups and many in the west say that the vote is a farce and the winner has already been decided.

Now incumbent Bashar al-Assad, he is widely expected to win a third seven year term in power. And he cast his vote today alongside his wife Asma.

Some analysts say by holding this election, al-Assad wants to show the world that he has weathered the crisis, that many believe that he would not be able to survive.

Now extremist groups inside Syria have been growing in number since the civil war there started three years ago.

al Qaeda's Syrian arm, known as ISIS, is now using social media to target new recruits, many of them from Europe.

Nick Paton Walsh spoke exclusively to an ISIS defector now in hiding to get a rare inside look at the organization.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

NICK PATON WALSH, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: If you want to be one of these, an al Qaeda fighter filmed secretly here in this stronghold in the Syrian city of Raqqah, it can be a long and complex road. But if you're a westerner, the journey to this radical utopia where women must dress like this can start here on Twitter.

This man is now in hiding, but he told us he helps recruit westerners using direct messaging on the Twitter accounts of the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria, or ISIS.

There was special treatment for the Europeans, he says. One British guy said he was called Ibrahim, then told me he was from Manchester.

One asked my boss if he should fight in his own country or come to Syria. He was told, if god doesn't give you martyrdom in Syria, then he could wage war in his own country.

Syria now has a new horror. Will western recruits take their jihad back to their home countries? Some won't.

Like Abu-Salha, the first American to die in this blast as a suicide bomber in Syria.

He was well known in Raqqah, said our source, adding their foreign recruits were first vetted carefully in their home countries, part of an office that ran a welcome online chat about life under ISIS two weeks for future recruits. There were very strict rules.

"There are some questions I am allowed to answer," he says. "And things I must ask my supervisor about. Specific questions about religion. I have to get their permission to message anyone. I can't talk on Skype. Everything is written down so they can monitor everything."

He fled this city when ISIS murdered two relatives, was jailed when he spoke out of turn, and was rarely allowed to meet the recruits.

Chats could last hours, but some of the questions were strange.

"I remember one guy asked me for a video of a public execution," he says, "but one that hadn't been put online before."

"Strange ones, too, about marrying Syrian girls. I got made once when I was asked if someone could marry three or four girls."

Motives often selfish, the goal violent, and its most radical offspring turning their sights on the west.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LU STOUT: Wow, an incredible report there from our Nick Paton Walsh as ISIS uses social media platforms like direct messaging on Twitter to get new recruits from the west.

Now I want to take you live to Syria as citizens continue to cast their vote. Nick Paton Walsh is near the Turkish-Syrian border. He joins us now on the line.

And Nick this elections, it has been widely criticized as a sham, so why hold it at all?

WALSH: It's (inaudible) I think is a milestone for those supporters of Bashar al-Assad that he's still in power. In some ways, the decision to have more than one candidate on the ballot, the first time in Syria's recent history that's happened. There are two people you could potentially vote for who are not Bashar al-Assad.

It in some ways obviously what sort of started the entire revolution and the subsequent brutal civil war, people wanting a broader choice of freedom. That they (inaudible) being given it, but obviously it's in the climate of civil war where the only people actually getting to vote are those on Bashar al-Assad's side of the front lines.

So, obviously everyone there expects and overwhelming endorsement of his continued tenure, but it is perhaps in some ways, as I said, a milestone for those supporters of Assad. A year ago, for example, if you spoke to western officials, they hoped this election may never come to pass, that perhaps through the Geneva peace process, it may have been viable to negotiate a transitional government, Assad may have stepped aside, but things have simply not gone their way. He has -- despite the use of chemical weapons around Damascus, despite international pressure about that, he remains in power.

And if you speak to many analysts and observers of the battlefield here, while it's a fluid situation, it seems as though Assad's forces are moving more and more in positions of dominance in some key areas, particularly near where I'm standing the town of Aleppo in the north of Syria where we are hearing of continued military progress by the regime there.

Today, I think for many in the opposition, at times take stock of the possibly 150,000 lives lost during this brutal civil war, but also, too, for the international community to look quite enormously how the narrative has changed in the past year or so.

You've just seen that report about the recruitment of westerners to join part of the fractured rebel opposition here that are aligned with al Qaeda, the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria. Almost inconceivable two years ago that we'd be in a situation where Bashar al-Assad claimed he was fighting terrorists, could in the eyes of some western officials almost receive some sort of affinity. We are seeing today such strong numbers, the hundred certainly from some European countries individually moving into northern Syria, joining these groups.

And most importantly, it seems, slowly now, but surely returning back to the countries they came from to perhaps pursue their radical agenda here.

That's the real concern for many western governments now. They have in the eyes of critics stood back from proper intervention in this conflict, allowing it to remain a status quo on the ground, a stalemate, we've seen in the past few months or so despite military advances by the regime in the past few months.

And the price of that has been the fracturing of the opposition and part of that opposition joining up with al Qaeda and becoming increasingly radical.

Of course, into that flood westerns, foreigners joining the ranks of those radicals who have received significant battlefield experience on the ground in Syria, often want to return back to, for example, the United Kingdom where one man was recently convicted of terrorism offenses after some time in Syria. We've also heard accusations in other European countries of radical activities who have been performed by those who had previously spent some time in Syria.

That's the real concern for the years ahead. Outside of the brutality, the savagery against ordinary civilians, often by the Assad regime that we've seen in the past few months. But now we're seeing a new separate concern for the west here, that perhaps so close to their own borders, on in Turkey, a NATO member, across its borders is an al Qaeda stronghold that we may start seeing these radicals returning to the societies they originally came from -- Kristie.

LU STOUT: The dangers of increased radicalization. Now it's come to this, the so-called election reflecting a new form of confidence from the Syrian regime.

Nick Paton Walsh joining us live on the line, thank you, Nick.

You're watching News Stream. And still to come on the program, the king of Spain is stepping down from the throne. Could it mean a permanent end to the country's royal line?

Plus, 25 years after the bloody crackdown at Tienanmen Square, one of the country's leading activists speaks out about that deadly day and its impact on China today.

And in Pakistan, a young woman brutally bludgeoned to death by her own family for marrying the man she loved. Now she is one of many women who have become victims of these so-called honor murders. More on this later in the hour.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LU STOUT: Live from the waterfront here in Hong Kong, you're back watching News Stream.

Now June 4, it marks a grim anniversary in China, but there will be no official commemorations of the day on the mainland. Now tomorrow, it will be 25 years since the crackdown on peaceful protesters, hundreds, perhaps thousands were killed. The exact number is still not known. And China intends to keep it that way.

In the lead up to this year's anniversary, authorities are clamping down once again on dissent both on the street and online. And some Google services have reportedly been disrupted, though Google is not commenting.

And TV coverage is also being restricted. Here you could see the TV screen go blank on the CNN channel in China after authorities there pulled the plug.

Now activists say the younger generation has been kept in the dark about the massacre. Here's David McKenzie in Beijing.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DAVID MCKENZIE, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Scores of activists have been detained in the runup to the 25th anniversary of the Tienanmen Square massacres, according to Amnesty International. They're calling it a merciless campaign of repression. So we have to interview one of China's leading activists several months ago before he we put in house arrest.

HU JIA, CHINESE DISSIDENT (through translator): You know, I have met many people born in the 80s and 90s that have no idea at all of June 4.

They don't know about all the students who went on hunger strike then, crying out against corruption, demanding democracy.

Why must we commemorate June 4? To fight against the authorities covering up of the truth and their erasing of the history of 25 years ago.

This generations ignorance of the past is directly connected to the Communist Party's brainwashing and its erasing of history. They're not aware of the social injustice that produced such a massacre. It is also related to the fact that this generation is more pragmatic. They focus on how to enjoy life, how to change their economic conditions, how to pursue their careers, how to do business, their own personal struggles and development.

We want to tell people, especially the younger generation, that these things did happen. That your predecessors made sacrifices when they were your age. And that today we should still make sacrifices to achieve what was not achieved 25 years ago.

MCKENZIE: The Chinese government says there's no such thing as dissidence in China. They say there are only lawbreakers and call for outsiders to respect their internal legal system.

But they have tried to obliterate any mention of June 4 into the leadup of this important anniversary.

Back to you.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LU STOUT: David McKenzie there.

Now the anniversary has never been publicly marked in mainland China, but the special administrative region of Hong Kong holds huge vigils every year.

Now earlier, we paid a visit to a new museum that opened recently here. It's paying tribute to those who died on June 4, 1989 and is keeping their memory alive.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

LU STOUT: The words June 4 and Tienanmen Square are politically taboo in mainland China, but not here in Hong Kong. Here in Hong Kong, there is freedom of expression, and that's why right here in this unassuming office building is the worlds first permanent museum dedicated to covering the crackdown in Tienanmen.

Let's go inside.

The June 4 museum is in a tiny cramped space, just 74 square meters, or 800 square feet. It's organized in a spiral timeline of all the events leading up to the June 4 crackdown.

You could see news clippings, and photographs from 1989. There's an interactive map over there. And against the wall, a screening of the documentary film, The Tank Man.

And over here is a library of English and Chinese literature related to Tienanmen Square. Lee Cheuk Yan is the chairman of the Hong Kong Alliance, the driving force behind the June 4 museum. And Cheuk Yan, could you tell me how many mainland visitors from mainland China have visited this exhibition.

LEE CHEUK YAN, FOUNDER, JUNE 4 MEMORIAL MUSEUM: Actually in about one month's time we have about 5,500 already. And half of them are from mainland.

So you can see that this museum is exactly a sort of remembrance to the struggle against forgetfulness and to preserve this historical truth to struggle against the eradication of memory by the Communist Party. And so the mainlander who are not allowed to discuss about June 4 back in mainland, they can come to Hong Kong to get this historical truth. And we hope that by going through this museum they will, you know, have a seat of consciousness to fight for (inaudible), Kristie.

LU STOUT: In addition to the June 4 museum, you also organized the June 4 annual vigil here in Hong Kong. It will be the 25th anniversary this year. How many people do you expect to see?

CHEUK YAN: In the past few years, we have about 150,000 people coming to Victoria Park to hold a candle to commemorate those who sacrificed for democracy, and at the same time to protest against the Communist Party for this oppression 25 years ago, and actually for this oppression now today in China, because we can see human rights regression.

LU STOUT: And finally a message from Hong Kong to the world, what is the legacy of Tienanmen outside China?

CHEUK YAN: In fact, you know, actually Tienanmen Square massacre does not just affect China, this had repercussion all over the world. You know, the whole Soviet and eastern European downfall had its root, or part of its root in the Tienanmen Square '89 movement.

So the 25 years afterward, you people are still only just tried to do business with China instead of, you know, upholding the principle of the human rights.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LU STOUT: And that was Lee Cheuk Yan, the chairman of the Hong Kong Alliance and the founder of the June 4 museum.

The museum is located in Hong Kong's Chim Satui (ph) district. It's where I am right now. And I've got to say it was a particularly busy day today thereat the museum. In fact, quite a number of visitors were from mainland China.

And News Stream will have special coverage of the vigil here in Hong Kong. It starts 8:00 pm on Wednesday local time. That's 1:00 pm in London.

You're watching News Stream. We'll be back right after the break.

(COMMERCAIL BREAK)

LU STOUT: Coming to you live from the (inaudible) waterfront here in Hong Kong, you're back watching News Stream.

And now to a story that's drawn international shock and some sole searching in Pakistan.

Now we've told you how a young woman who was three months pregnant was bludgeoned to death by her own relatives last week because they believed she brought dishonor to her family by marrying a man against their wishes.

Well, CNN's Saima Mohsin went back to the scene of the crime and spoke with a witness who couldn't believe what he saw.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SAIMA MOHSIN, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: A young woman's body lies in the middle of a street in the middle of Pakistan's vibrant modern second city in front of dozens of witnesses.

Lawyer Hassan Ali Raza heard her cries for help and came running out of court. The horrific scene he witnessed remains written on his face.

HASSAN ALI RAZA, LAWYER: We see a lady who is strangled by men, by women, and she was on the road. She was screaming for help, screaming to the top of her lungs. And people were hitting her with bricks. She was crying to the top of her lungs. She was loud.

MOHSIN: And did you try to intervene? Did you step forward? Did anyone?

RAZA: I was taken by shock, was stunned, ashamed I didn't do anything. But I couldn't do anything. There was a circle of people around her. They were adamant to kill her.

MOHSIN: Farzana Preveen (ph) had just left her lawyer's office and was coming across the road to Lahore high court when she was attacked and killed.

Now this is a high security zone. We are surrounded by police officers. And the very fact that this happened in front of police, lawyers and judges, the very people responsible for upholding law and justice in Pakistan exposes the fact that you can quite literally get away with murder here.

The woman was killed because her family said she disgraced them by marrying a man they did not approve of.

ASMA JAHANGIR, SUPREME COURT LAWYER: The entire criminal legal system has collapsed. And the most vulnerable are women.

Once a woman is killed, nobody will even pursue her case. And the state will not pursue it with the vigor that they should. That is the sad part of it.

MOHSIN: Why is that? Is that because there's a different attitude as far as violence towards women is concerned?

JAHANGIR: Absolutely, there's a different attitude to violence against women. Deep down they believe that a woman who did not obey her parents deserves to be killed, starting from the investigating officer ending to the highest levels.

MOHSIN: Outrage over Farzana Preveen's (ph) murder has prompted the Pakistan Islamic Cleric Council to speak out. The council issued a fatwa, or religious edict, against these so-called honor killings, declaring them against any teachings of Islam.

"These people are animals. It's insanity and inhumane," this cleric tells me. "It's unthinkable to kill your wives, sisters or daughters in the name of honor. Muslims are not permitted to kill women at war leave alone in public in the middle of a street. This is nothing to do with Islam."

The council is calling on all mosques in Pakistan to read out the fatwa during Friday prayers and sermons at the end of the week.

JAHANGIR: It's not an honor killing, it's a disgrace killing in my view. It's disgraceful.

MOHSIN: Today, there were no flowers, no tributes outside the courthouse, just a brick on a broken crate to mark the place where Ferzana Preveen (ph) was killed in broad daylight.

Saima Mohsin, CNN, Lahore, Pakistan.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LU STOUT: You're watching News Stream. And still to come, some protesters in Spain are demanding an end to monarchy. Could the king's abdication usher out the royals altogether?

Plus, Apple unveils its latest products from the health kit to the home kit. We've got all the details after the break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LU STOUT: I'm Kristie Lu Stout in Hong Kong. You're watching News Stream. And these are your world headlines.

Now Syria's leader Bashar al-Assad has cast his ballot in the controversial presidential election that he is virtually guaranteed to win. Now the vote comes against the backdrop of a three year civil war, which has killed close to 150,000 people and forced almost 3 million Syrians to flee the country.

U.S. President Barack Obama is in Poland, the first stop of his four day trip to Europe. At a news conference earlier today, Mr. Obama touched on the ongoing situation in Ukraine calling on Russia to engage constructively with the government in Kiev. He also defended the prisoner swap that secured the release of captive American soldier Bowe Bergdahl in Afghanistan.

Now more violence reported from eastern Ukraine this day. Reuters says pro-Russia separatists are fighting the Ukrainian in Slovyansk. It comes after a deadly day on Monday. At least 12 people were killed during attacks in the city of Luhansk.

Now Spain's cabinet meets today to discuss a plan for royal succession. The Spaniards question whether they've outgrown the monarchy altogether. In fact, thousands of protesters are now calling for a referendum on whether to keep the royal system.

And just over an hour ago, King Juan Carlos made his first public appearance since abdicating the throne at a military parade outside of Madrid.

Now our Al Goodman, he was there just outside the royal palace. Let's bring him in now. And Al, tell us more about what the king said and what stage we're at right now in this complicated royal transition.

AL GOODMAN, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Kristie.

We're at the El Escorial monastery on the outskirts of Madrid. This is where the past kings are buried.

Now clearly Juan Carlos and his son, Crown Prince Felipe, want this monarchy to continue. And this was the first public appearance of the two men together, father and son, king and the prince, at a military parade that was previously scheduled. The king needed some help getting out of the car. He had to be sort of lifted up, but once he got on his feet he walked.

No statements were made. But clearly the royal household and the government want the Spanish public to see this as an orderly transition with power passed to the crown prince who is first in line to the throne. But many Spaniards see this as anything but normal, and that's why we saw an estimated tens of thousands of people across the country protesting against the monarchy last night with large crowds in Madrid and Barcelona in many provincial capitals. They have a whole long list of grievances against the monarchy and they say it's time to get rid of it.

However, in the parliament, there does seem to be a majority in favor of carrying out this transition. And polls indicate that the pro- Republican anti-Monarchy current is still a minority current in Spain -- Kristie.

LU STOUT: We have thousands of people out on the streets this day protesting against the Spanish monarchy. To what extent do they represent the wish of the people in general in Spain? And at what point did the monarchy's popularity start to erode there?

GOODMAN: Well, King Juan Carlos who has been on the throne almost 40 years really had a good long ride cementing his place in Spanish history as basically helping guide the country to democracy after the long dictatorship of Francisco Franco. But, in the last several years there have been a number of scandals that have hurt him and the royal household, specifically a financial corruption scandal involving his daughter, the princess, and -- Princess Cristina, and her husband, the king's son-in-law. That has really soured relations for a segment of the Spanish populous.

Now, we've heard them become increasingly vocal and some leftist parties have done very well in some European parliamentary elections just about a week ago. But it appears that right now the current makeup in parliament, the government and the opposition socialists do have enough votes to put through and put in effect this transition of power -- Kristie.

LU STOUT: All right, Al Goodman reporting live from Madrid. Thank you.

Now Apple is unveiling a slew of new software features as it ramps up its rival with competitors like WhatsApp, Voxer and even DropBox. At its annual developers conference in California on Monday, the tech giant announced an upgraded operating system for Macs, it's called Yosemite. And it unveiled tweaks to its new iOS 8 operating system.

Now among the changes, users will be able to exit group texts, texting will be faster, and calling and emailing will work simultaneously across devices, across iPhones and Macs.

Now CNN contributor and New Yorker.com editor Nick Thompson joins me now live from New York with some much needed analysis here.

And Nick, first, we're going to bring up a tweet that you flagged to me earlier. It's a tweet from Jan Koum. He is, of course, the CEO of WhatsApp. And in this tweet he says this, quote, "very flattering to see Apple borrow numerous WhatsApp features into iMessage in iOS 8 #innovation."

Now Nick, I mean obviously Jan Koum, he's taken a real dig here at Apple, but is he right? Is he spot on?

NICK THOMPSON, NEW YORKER.COM: Well, he is right. I mean, there are a lot of features that Apple has taken into their messaging update that come directly from WhatsApp. Now, where did WhatsApp get them? WhatsApp may have, you know, taken them from other places, perhaps from BBM beforehand.

So, the way that innovation works in technology is very complicated. It's very hard to have patents that hold, software falls very quickly. Features are adapted by lots of companies very rapidly. So it's a very murky area.

But what's very interesting here is that Apple feels quite free to copy other companies at the same time that it also sues everybody who copies it. So is what Apple did to WhatsApp roughly parallel to what Samsung did to Apple? That's the question that critics of Apple would raise.

Apple would say, our phones were so innovative, so different, so absolutely above everything else that it's not fair to compare it. But a lot of people are saying look at what Apple is doing. They're doing to WhatsApp and to DropBox what others have done to Apple.

THOMPSON: Yeah, it's worth pointing out Apple seems to want it both ways right now.

Let's talk about continuity next. Now this is a collection of features to make that easy switch between using a Mac and using an iPhone. Why is Apple doing this and making this push?

THOMPSON: Well, they're doing it for two reasons. One, it's cool. It's interesting. It makes the products more exciting if you can start a phone call on your phone and finish it on your computer or start an email on your iPad and finish it on your phone.

But the other reason they're doing it is that they really want you to use only Mac products. They don't want you to have an Android phone and a Mac laptop. They want you if you have a Mac laptop to feel like there's an extra special reason to get an iPhone.

LU STOUT: Also, the two big announcement from the developers conference on Monday, health kit and home kit. I mean, both are very on trend in the tech space, but can Apple succeed here?

THOMPSON: Well, that's a hard one.

So home kit is basically software to connect all of your home devices. They're trying to set up sort of a central hub so that your garage door and your refrigerator and your lights can all talk to your phone. That's a great vision. They talked about somebody saying to their phone, you know it's time for bed and the lights automatically dimming and the doors locking.

The problem is that all these devices are built with different standards. They use different protocols. It's going to be very hard for Apple to connect them.

Home kit is interesting. This is both an app for measuring some of your health vitals and also for allowing health apps to communicate with each other. And so the example there is that you could have an app that's measuring your heart rate or the number of steps you take and it could be sending them to your doctor.

I think that's most interesting, because it seems pretty clear that Apple's next new product is going to be a watch that's going to be very fitness focused. And I think this announcement is setting that up.

LU STOUT: All right. And something else that you found interesting, Swift, the new programming language crated by Apple. Do you think developers want to and are willing to learn it?

THOMPSON: Well, this is interesting. So at the end of their announcement yesterday, at the end of the event Apple says we've built a new programming language you can now build apps not in Objective C, which is the standard language that people have used forever, but in Swift. And it works much better and it's way faster. And everybody was thrilled. You know, this is a developers conference yesterday. So the developers were excited.

I don't know. I'm a little skeptical, right. The reason we have common programming languages is you learn them at school and then you use them to build lots and lots of different things. Apple makes a programming language that helps you build apps in the Apple ecosystem, it's much narrower, it's much more narrowly tailored. So I'm not sure it's really going to work. But it was quite interesting and quite surprising.

LU STOUT: All right. Nick Thompson there, a key and critical Apple watcher. Thank you so much for that. Take care, we'll talk again next week.

Now still ahead here on the program, day turns to night as a deadly wall of sand and dust engulfs the capital of Iran. We'll have the world weather forecast. Stick around.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LU STOUT: coming to you live from Hong Kong right next to Victoria Harbor. You're back watching News Stream.

Now from ballet flats to a billion dollar business, designer Tory Burch built her clothing and accessory empire in just 10 years. The latest Leading Woman is a self-made billionaire, also happens to be on Forbes list of the world's most powerful women.

Now Nina Dos Santos spoke with Burch about what it means to be at the top of her game and what is next for the fashion icon.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

NINA DOS SANTOS, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: She's turned ballet flats into must have footwear. And her Double T logo is now a major symbol in the world of fashion. She's Tory Burch.

We met at her store in London.

TORY BURCH, FASHION DESNIGNER: In the beginning of the collection I did this sort of antique vintage linen. And I just love the contrast of the high and low.

DOS SANTOS: Self-made billionaire, head of a fashion empire, mother of three boys and unstoppable.

120 stores wholly owned and then you've got more than 1,000 department stores in which you are present in and concessions and various licensing agreements. 2,000 staff, 80 percent of those are women, and you're planning on getting bigger?

BURCH: Well, it's a natural as we move into different parts of the world you -- we will get bigger. And that's just the way it is.

It doesn't mean that it's going to change who we are.

DOS SANTOS: Burch launched her company in 2004, seeing the need for stylish and affordable clothes. She opened her first boutique in New York.

And would you describe your business to a certain extent as the fourth child?

BURCH: Absolutely. I think it's later in life child, sort of took it on and started it when I was in my later 30s, when I was 37 and my boys had just gone to school. And so I had time and knew that work was very important to me and I wanted to think about what work would look like. And it sort of became this business.

DOS SANTOS: One of her big breaks came in 2005 when Oprah Winfrey named her the next big thing in fashion.

Tory Burch, your name, it's a big brand now. You've made it to Forbes billionaires list with a Fortune of around about $1 billion in net worth according to them. Do you ever think I'm proud of myself when you look in the mirror?

BURCH: Not really, I don't. I'm happy as a person. And I look at my life and feel very fortunate, but I always have. So it's been a journey I never imagined being on. And to share it with the people, many of the people who work with me today were working in my apartment. And so it's been a great experience and we're thrilled to move forward.

DOS SANTOS: Burch is defining success on her own terms, a principle she's implemented since she launched her business.

BURCH: Well, everyone advised me not to do a retail store. And I think it's a more traditional route to go and sell at a department store and do one category. And I thought what resonated when we first launched this company is that we opened with a shop and it had 12 different categories. so people walked in and you could immediately see our vision and what we were trying to do.

I'm very proud of this company. And we've had so many great moments of wonderful successes that we've all experienced together. That said, we're always looking forward. And we're not ever sitting back and saying look at us how great we are.

You never can sit and rest on your laurels.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LU STOUT: Designer Tory Burch there.

You're watching News Stream. And coming up next, we are just days away from the start of the World Cup, but is Brazil ready for the millions due to descend in the coming week?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LU STOUT: Welcome back. You're watching News Stream. And the countdown is on as Brazil gets set to host the World Cup next week.

Now football fans are gearing up for what is the world's biggest sporting event.

Now there are still concerns over whether everything will be finished on time. Brazil's president hit back at criticism that the country is not ready to host the cup.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DILMA ROUSSEFF, PRESIDENT OF BRAZIL (through translator): W are prepared to show the world a marvelous party full of the characteristic joy, respect and kindness of the Brazilian people. We know that we are ready. The stadiums are ready. And many of them have already hosted matches during the state championships and the Brazilian championship.

Fans who have visited the stadiums know that they are secure, comfortable structures.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LU STOUT: While experts will be looking to ensure the stadiums are in ship shape, players will be keeping their eyes on the ball. Adidas has made some key design changes to this year's official football. And Jim Clancy looks at the science between the Brazuca.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JIM CLANCY, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: 32 teams will compete for the World Cup at 12 different stadiums across Brazil. But one thing will be the same for all of them, the ball, a new one. Adidas has made some changes this time around that could have a major impact. The new ball, called the Brazuca, will have only six panels compared to eight in the one used in South Africa. And each will be shaped like ninja throwing stars. The texture of the ball is a bit rougher, with tiny bumps, and longer, deeper seams.

Wind tunnels were used to test the balls air resistance, or drag.

TAKESHI ASAI, SPORTS SCIENCE PROFESSOR (through translator): Despite the reduced number of panels used, the total length of the seems to put together the panels became longer, which makes the range of the ball speed that creates low air resistance become wider.

CLANCY: The changes should make this ball fly faster with less power. Adidas says this will improve touch and accuracy. And players are advised not to kick the ball so hard.

The new design should also cut down on knuckling, sudden jerky direction changes caused when the ball spins very little or not at all.

ASAI: Because Brazuca has lower lift force when it flies, the so- called knuckling effect will be hard to achieve with this ball.

CLANCY: Now this could be good news for goalkeepers, but bad news for someone like Christiano Ronaldo who likes to use the effect to score.

On the other hand, the increased spin helps to create the effect that makes the ball curve. So more players should be able to bend it like Beckham.

Jim Clancy, CNN, Atlanta.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LU STOUT: Love the look of that ball.

Now time now for your global weather forecast. And a possible tropical storm threatens Mexico. It's the first of the season. Let's get details now with Mari Ramos. She joins us from the world weather center -- Mari.

MARI RAMOS, CNN WEATHER CORREPSONDENT: Hey, Kristie, this is right now a tropical depression, but it could become a tropical storm. And that's why we're watching this very, very carefully.

Now it's very close to land. We're looking at the western coast of Mexico here. You can see it right over here. Here's central America.

This is the first tropical depression of the season to get close to land. And it's important because it is very close to land. And it's nearly stationary.

Whenever you have a tropical system, and those of you that are watching from, you know, east Asia you know exactly what I'm talking about, when you get one of these weather systems that slows down and sits over the same area for a long time, it has the potential of causing very heavy rainfall even if it doesn't strengthen into a tropical storm.

However, in this case, the National Weather Service is saying, you know what -- The Hurricane Center, I should say, is saying this could become a tropical storm within the next 24 hours. There are some warnings posted along this area here so the advisories -- because of the wind that could come with it.

But I think the major concern here will be the threat for flooding and mudslides. And not only for this area right here of southern and western Mexico.

Also as we head back over toward the border with Guatemala, we could see some very heavy rain and also some rain forming into parts of El Salvadore and even areas farther to the south.

So, as far as rainfall right now, you can see it spreading all across this region anywhere in some isolated areas. Some of these pockets up to 25 centimeters of rain are possible over the next couple of days as this weather system very, very slowly moves across this region.

It's going to take about three or four days for it do so. So the potentially for flooding and mudslides is tremendous here even if this does not become a tropical storm. So definitely something to monitor very, very carefully.

And now returning to one of our other major stories for weather here, massive sandstorm. You can see people kind of walking around covering their faces. That's nothing compared to what came next. Look at this wall of sand that moved over Tehran just about 24 hours ago. I have video to show you. It's really incredible when you see images like this.

This turned out to be a deadly storm. About 30 people were injured, five people were killed. Winds were howling near hurricane strength, close to -- and just over 100 kilometers per hour. Very intense.

You can see that man on the motorcycle there almost toppling over.

Trees came crashing down. Roofs were blown off homes. There were signs on the streets that were damaged. And day literally turned to night as this happened.

We had a cold front that was moving through this area. As it moved through it cause very strong winds. When those winds moved over those areas here across the desert, that's when they picked up all of that dust, pretty similar to what happens in northeastern China, except they're a bit more rare here, especially something so intense in this part of the world.

Now, as the storm moved through, this is pretty impressive. The temperature dropped a full 15 degrees in just a matter of, what, an hour, hour-and-a-half. That's pretty impressive. The rain came down. And then the temperature stayed cooler.

There you see the strongest wind gust was about almost 90 kilometers per hour, Kristie. Pretty impressive indeed.

And hopefully now it's over.

LU STOUT: Yeah, rain is a good way to keep cool. In fact, the rain has just started to drop right here in Hong Kong. Mari Ramos there, thank you. We'll talk again soon.

And finally, one woman's wedding day is sparking a lot of criticism because the bride used some pretty unusual decor for the train of her dress. Jeanne Moos has the details.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JEANNE MOOS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Here comes the bride.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: OMG.

MOOS: Here comes the bride and baby attached to the baby's wedding dress.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Horrible. Is it a real baby?

MOOS (on camera): It's a real baby.

(voice-over): Even some of the guests looked like they couldn't believe their eyes as Shona walked down the aisle to become Shona Carter Brooks with her one-month-old baby girl fastened to her wedding train.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You can't do that to a baby.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Oh that's disturbing.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Was it padded? Or was she just going bump, bump?

MOOS: We don't know the details of how baby Aubrey was attached but we do know it caused Internet insults to be showered like rice upon the Tennessee couple. "Why not just tie it to the bumper with some cans and old shoes? Poor kid.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That's so ridiculous and embarrassing too.

MOOS: OK. Not everyone thought it was outrageous.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think it's cute. MOOS: Another defender posted, "When I was a kid I loved when my friends and I dragged each other around- the-house on the blanket. I'm sure the baby had fun riding on her mom's wedding dress.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Is that a baby?

MOOS (on camera): Yes.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Oh, Jesus.

MOOS: That's funny you should say that because that's kind of her reasoning.

(voice-over): The bride wrote on her Facebook page, "We do what we want, when we want, as long as Jesus is on our side. Everything worked out fine. One-month-old was awake and well secured on my train."

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: She shouldn't be a mother.

MOOS (on camera): How did the baby behave on her trip down the aisle? Only thing we have to go on is a comment from an apparent wedding guest on the bride's Facebook page.

(voice-over): "I thought it was unique, all I wanted to know was how she stayed so calm, LOL."

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: That's a stupid idea.

MOOS: The bride didn't respond to CNN's request for comment but she e- mailed Buzzfeed saying everyone entitled to their own opinion, so all I have to say is God bless you.

Could the brouhaha launch baby trains as a wedding trend? Jokesters photoshopped, while others quipped, "No child left behind".

We asked Jerome about the special lady in his life.

(on camera): If she said to you, honey, I want to get married and I want to put my baby on the wedding...

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Oh, that's not going to happen, not on my watch.

MOOS: Jeanne Moos, CNN, New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LU STOUT: And that is an image you just can't forget.

And this is News Stream coming to you live from the waterfront here in Hong Kong. We'll be back here again tomorrow. But the news continues at CNN. World Business Today is next.

END