Pope Francis breaks down in tears while discussing the Ukraine war at a public prayer
From CNN’s Valentina Di Donato in Rome and Allegra Goodwin in London
Pope Francis is emotional after he recited a prayer on behalf of the Ukrainian people, during a traditional visit to the statue dedicated to the Immaculate Conception near Piazza di Spagna in central Rome, Italy, on December 8. (Vincenzo Pinto/AFP/Getty Images)
Pope Francis broke down in tears on Thursday while talking about the war in Ukraine during an annual prayer at Rome’s Spanish steps to mark the Feast of the Immaculate Conception, a national holiday in Italy.
The Pope’s voice cracked as he mentioned the suffering of the Ukrainian people and he trembled as he was forced to stop for around 30 seconds.
I would have liked to have brought to you today the thanksgiving of the Ukrainian people for the peace we have long been asking the Lord for," Francis said.
"Instead, I still have to present to you the supplication of the children, of the elderly, of the fathers and mothers, of the young people of that tormented land."
Watch moment:
6:16 a.m. ET, December 9, 2022
Griner's first stop expected to be at medical treatment facility
From CNN's Jennifer Hansler in Washington
Brittney Griner gets out of a plane after landing at the JBSA-Kelly Field Annex runway on December 9, in San Antonio, Texas. (Suzanne Cordeiro/AFP/Getty Images)
Brittney Griner's first stop back on US soil will likely be at a medical treatment facility, according to John Kirby, a spokesman for the US National Security Council.
Griner could also to take part in a Department of Defense Program known as PISA (Post Isolation Support Activities) to help her acclimate back to normal life.
Americans detained abroad, like Marine Corps veteran Trevor Reed and the seven Americans who returned from Venezuela in October, also participated in PISA.
Special Presidential Envoy for Hostage Affairs Roger Carstens, who traveled with Griner, confirmed her arrival early Friday morning on Twitter.
6:05 a.m. ET, December 9, 2022
UK slaps new sanctions on alleged human rights violators from Russia
From CNN’s Allegra Goodwin in London
Britain on Friday announced new sanctions against 30 people around the world it alleged were "corrupt political figures, human rights violators and perpetrators of conflict-related sexual violence."
Those targeted include "individuals and entities involved in a wide range of grievous activities – including the torture of prisoners, the mobilization of troops to rape civilians, and systematic atrocities," the UK Foreign Office said in a statement.
The move was coordinated with international partners to mark International Anti-Corruption Day and Human Rights Day.
Several individuals from Russia and Crimea, which the Kremlin annexed in violation of international law in 2014, were targeted. They will not be permitted to enter the UK, channel money through its banks, or profit from its economy.
5:46 a.m. ET, December 9, 2022
BREAKING NEWS: Brittney Griner is on US soil
From CNN's Tina Burnside
The plane carrying Brittney Griner arrives at San Antonio's Kelly Field on December 9. (CNN)
A plane carrying WNBA star Brittney Griner arrived at San Antonio's Kelly Field, in Texas, early Friday, a day after she was released from Russian detention.
Griner spent 10 months behind bars in Russia before being released in a high-profile prisoner swap that involved convicted Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout.
In February, authorities in a Moscow-area airport found Griner with less than a gram of cannabis oil in her luggage. She was later convicted of drug smuggling charges and sentenced to nine years in prison. In November, she was transferred to a penal colony to serve out her sentence.
5:23 a.m. ET, December 9, 2022
Donetsk remains the focus of enemy attacks, Ukraine's armed forces say
From CNN's Maria Kostenko in Kyiv, Ukraine
Firefighters work to put out a fire at a residential building hit by a Russian military strike in Bakhmut, Donetsk region, Ukraine, on December 7. (Yevhen Titov/Reuters)
The eastern Ukrainian region of Donetsk remains the focus of Russian attacks, particularly Avdiivka and Bakhmut, a Ukrainian Armed Forces spokesman said.
In Bakhmut the situation is "difficult but controlled," press officer Serhii Cherevatyi of the eastern division of the Ukrainian military said.
The head of the regional military administration of Donetsk, Pavlo Kyrylenko, said five people were killed in the region on Wednesday.
Ukrainian military officials said in their daily update that 25 "localities" near Avdiivka and Bakhmut had been targeting by shelling, mortars and rocket artillery.
5:17 a.m. ET, December 9, 2022
Ukraine is a "human rights emergency," UN rights chief says
From CNN’s Zahid Mahmood in London
High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk delivers a press conference at the UN Offices in Geneva, Switzerland, on December 9. (Fabrice Coffrini/AFP/Getty Images)
Ukraine is a "human rights emergency," United Nations human rights chief Volker Turk said on Friday.
"You have 17.7 million in need of humanitarian assistance; you have 9.3 million requiring food and livelihood assistance," Turk said at a news conference in Geneva, Switzerland. "You have about 7.4 million refugees, you have 6.5 million people internally displaced."
Turk said the country is "suffering" from not only continued missile attacks but from destroyed civilian infrastructure.
"The energy sector is heavily affected, the heating system, the electricity grid, there are people who live in sub-zero temperatures without heating, and without electricity," he said.
"There are these blackouts, so you can imagine these are millions of people who suffer this every day."
On Monday, Russia launched a fresh barrage of missiles toward Ukraine, cutting off water and electricity supplies in some areas and killing at least one person in the Ukrainian city of Kryvyi Rih and at least two people in Zaporizhzhia, according to local authorities.
3:05 a.m. ET, December 9, 2022
Kherson hospital hit by Russian shelling, official says
From CNN's Teele Rebane
A hospital in Kherson city was hit by Russian shelling on Friday morning, Yaroslav Yanushevysh, head of the Kherson region military administration, said in a Telegram post.
The pediatric ward and morgue were damaged in the shelling, according to Yanushevysh. No injuries or casualties have been recorded so far.
On Wednesday, two people died after Kherson was shelled 51 times, according to Yanushevysh, who said Russians had “fired at peaceful settlements of the region with artillery, MLRS, tanks and mortars.”
Some context: Last month, Russian troops withdrew from Kherson city after having occupied it for eight months, in a humiliating setback. But Russia still retains control of much of the broader Kherson region.
1:31 a.m. ET, December 9, 2022
Blinken says US will "soon be able to call" Sweden and Finland NATO allies
From CNN’s Hannah Ritchie
Antony Blinken speaks during a joint news conference in Washington on December 8. (Drew Angerer/Getty Images)
The US will “soon be able to call” Sweden and Finland NATO allies, Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Thursday following a meeting with his Swedish and Finnish counterparts, when asked about their admission into the defense alliance.
"I am convinced based on everything I know that we will soon be able to call both countries formally our allies … Finland and Sweden are already integrating into our work," Blinken told reporters at the State Department. "There can be no doubt on anyone's part that they are ready today to be members of the alliance."
Some context: Finland and Sweden asked to join NATO earlier this year following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, but have faced ratification delays from Turkey and Hungary.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has accused both countries of harboring members of the separatist militant Kurdistan’s Workers Party, also known as PKK, which Turkey views as a terrorist organization.
Erdoğan has also called on Finland to publicly abandon the arms embargo it imposed on Turkey in 2019, after it invaded northern Syria. A step which Sweden — which had joined the embargo — took in September.
“Turkey has raised important security concerns in this process, and the process is being used effectively and productively to address those concerns. I won't speak for either of my colleagues on that except to say as we've observed it, what both countries have done in engaging with Turkey and with NATO itself, has been to address those concerns in tangible ways,” Blinken said. “And we've seen these countries take tangible steps to again address the concerns that Turkey has raised. So, I'm confident that this is moving forward."
NATO decisions are made by consensus, which means all 30 alliance member states must approve the two Nordic nations joining. Turkey is the only member that has voiced opposition to their membership, while Hungary is yet to ratify it.
12:20 a.m. ET, December 9, 2022
Analysis: Biden chose humanity over geopolitics with Griner release
Analysis from CNN's Stephen Collinson
Swapping an American jailed for a minor drugs offense in Russia for one of the world’s most notorious arms traffickers known as “The Merchant of Death” might seem like a lopsided deal that could fuel dangerous national security precedents.
But President Joe Biden’s decision to exchange WNBA star Brittney Griner for Viktor Bout goes beyond the exchange’s bottom line. It represented a humane resolution to a painful dilemma that came after tortuous talks with a Russian regime that treats people as geopolitical pawns every day.
In that sense, the Biden administration demonstrated the gulf between its moral grounding and that of Russian President Vladimir Putin who is currently demonstrating his inhumanity on another front, with a fearsome assault on Ukrainian civilians.
But the tragic counterpoint to this diplomatic triumph — Biden’s failure to also secure the release of Paul Whelan, another American incarcerated in a Russian penal colony — underscored the unforgiving moral conundrum he faced. And it prompted top Republicans to charge that he had prioritized a basketball superstar over an ex-marine who benefited from a vocal political pressure campaign on Biden.
