What's up everybody? Welcome to another
edition of CNN 10. I'm Koi Wire with
your news for Wednesday, December 3rd,
which means it's your word Wednesday. So
listen up to see if the vocabulary word
you submitted helped expand our vocab.
Today we begin in the Middle Eastern
nation of Lebanon where Pope Leo has
concluded an historic visit to the
region. It was Leo's first trip abroad
since becoming the first American leader
of the Catholic Church back in May of
this year. The Pope brought a message of
unity and hope to the country that's
been heavily impacted by regional
conflicts and instability. He also met
with more than 15,000 youngsters as part
of an effort to address key issues
affecting students and teens in the
region. Our Christopher Lamb has more.
A warm welcome on the streets of Beirut
for Pope Leo in Lebanon during his first
overseas trip. The first American pope
in the heart of the Middle East with a
message of peace. In an age when
coexistence can seem like a distant
dream, the people of Lebanon, while
embracing different religions, stand as
a powerful reminder that fear,
distrust,
and prejudice do not have the final word
and that unity, reconciliation,
and peace are possible.
For a country which has been through so
much, Leo's visit lifting their spirits.
But people here want more than nice
words.
>> We need, if you want, practical things
that a pope will ask maybe to the church
or to the maybe international community.
We know the pope that he's not a
political figure and he's he's doesn't
have arms, but he has, you know, he's
the pope. People would listen to him.
The Pope in a country with a sizable
Christian community, one as old as
Christianity itself, excited to meet
Leo, as were young people. But like
thousands of Lebanese Christians, many
have been leaving. Leo urging them to
stay. The Pope's visit to Lebanon won't
be able to resolve the country's
problems, but it is offering a glimmer
of hope.
Staying in the Middle East, an academic
milestone is being celebrated in the war
torn enclave of Gaza. For the first time
in more than two years, some students
and teachers are returning to school.
Something that seemed impossible just
months ago. Our Orurin Lieberman heard
from students at Gaza's Islamic
University. And although their campus
shares the same streets as rubble and
wreckage, they said they will not let
the destruction be a hindrance to their
education.
For two years, Gaza's students thought
they would never return to school. Since
the war began, schools turned into
shelters for the displaced. Amid the
rubble wrought by Israeli air strikes,
Gaza's Islamic University is now
reopening.
More than 90% of the school and
university buildings in Gaza were either
damaged or destroyed by Israel's
bombardment, drawing accusations of
scholasticide. Education became
virtually impossible.
Israel has always maintained that Hamas
embedded its military infrastructure
within schools, an accusation the
militant group has denied.
for
10 second trivia. Sri Lanka was known by
another name during colonial times. What
was it? Salon Malaca Siam or Burma.
If you said salon, pinkies up. If you've
ever tried a cup of salon tea, it was
most likely from Sri Lanka. The country
was called Salon during British rule,
which lasted until its independence in
1948. The government of Sri Lanka is
engaged in an overwhelming rescue and
recovery mission right now after a
direct hit from Cyclone Ditto. The
cyclone was part of a series of deadly
storms that wre havoc across southern
Asia earlier this week, leaving at
least,00 people dead across four
countries. Our Mike Valerio has more.
Across flood ravaged Sri Lanka, the
military called in to airlift fuel for
families cut off from the rest of the
country by Cyclone Dwa. Social media
video from Sri Lanka's air force showing
a child rescued pulled up to safety as
neighboring India and Pakistan also send
an aircraft to help.
In Indonesia's West Sumatra, signs of
cyclone Senor's human toll are
everywhere. Orange body bags carried by
rescue and recovery teams. This man lost
both his mother and mother-in-law,
saying they were sick and could not
walk.
This building used to be my house. This
was a mosque and that was my parents'
house, our rice mill. My younger
brother's house and my in-laws. This is
a before view of Sla Province in
Thailand from October. And this is a
view from Sunday. A snapshot of West
Somatra from the summer and one from
over the weekend. Sri Lanka's president
Enrikumar Desika emphasizing the scale
of the catastrophe. As a country, we are
facing the largest and most challenging
natural disaster in our history. We also
recognize that what we are undertaking
is the most difficult rescue operation
in our nation's history.
>> In Sri Lanka, more than 24,000 police,
army, and air force personnel are still
trying to reach families stranded by
floods. Authorities said
>> in the night, things were normal. By the
next morning, everything was underwater,
including our house. Seven of us,
including children, took refuge on the
top floor. There are another 15 adults
still there. Their houses are completely
underwater.
>> Back in Indonesia, mud in some areas
seen coming up to the top of door
frames. This woman says her child was
the one who rescued her and the flood
was as high as the attic. She's got no
food from the government yet, only from
relatives. All as hundreds remain
missing across the worst hit areas of
Indonesia and Sri Lanka.
All right, to the nation's capital now.
It is beginning to look a lot like
Christmas, especially at the White
House. First Lady Melania Trump has
unveiled this year's decor. More than
150 volunteers helped decorate each room
following the theme of home is where the
heart is. The decorations feature a nod
to America's 250th birthday, which is
next year. There are traditional
elements including twinkling lights and
velvet bows, as well as a toy themed
tree in the green room, which stands
next to a 6,000piece Lego portrait of
President Donald Trump. In the blue
room, the official White House Christmas
tree honors gold star families.
From the White House to 151 gingerbread
houses, today's story getting a 10 out
of 10. This really takes Home Sweet Home
to a whole other level. In Stockholm,
the Swedish Center for Architecture and
Design is celebrating the holidays with
an entire neighborhood made of
gingerbread. For 35 years, this annual
contest has welcomed everyone from
professional architects to young kids to
show off their cookie construction
skills. Now, some of these houses might
not pass building inspection, but they
definitely passed the taste test. theme
of this year is love because love is uh
is for everyone and we think it's really
important to celebrate Christmas and the
spirit of Christmas.
>> The theme may have been all sentimental,
but contestants still came up with some
pretty silly and creative
interpretations, including the infamous
Lou Jewelry Heist. You can see some
little gummy burglars in there. There is
also a sinking Titanic, the Eiffel
Tower, the Taj Mahal, and of course
>> over here, labubu is a is a the spirit
of the time.
>> It's 2025. You know, somebody had to
include a laboo. All right. Congrats to
Mr. Walsh's class at Thurman White
Academy in Henderson, Nevada for
submitting our your word Wednesday
winner. Hindrance, which is a person or
thing that creates difficulty or slows
down progress, acting as an obstacle or
obstruction. Thank you for making us
smarter today. Our shout out of the day
goes to Mr. Lennox at Tolt Middle
School, incarnation, Washington. Thank
you for following along on Instagram and
for commenting on our CNN 10 YouTube
channel. Rise up. Speaking of Instagram,
we are doing something special this
month. 25 days of shoutouts. There's no
way we can get to all of the requests we
get, but we still want you to know that
we see you. Check out our Instagram page
each day. I'll be showing some love to
some additional schools each and every
day. And my team, we're going to put
these shout outs on YouTube as well. So
teachers, you can go up and put them up
in front of your entire class. We
appreciate all of you so much. Best
viewers in news. Go out, make it a
wonderful Wednesday. Make someone smile
today. I'm Koi Wire and we are CNN 10.