Russian Plane May Have Been Downed by Bomb; U.K. Ambassador on Special Relationship with U.S.; One Refugee's Treacherous Journey; Imagine a World.
CHRISTIANE AMANPOUR, CNN HOST (voice-over): Tonight: is ISIS now a global threat? If the Russian airliner was bombed, that'll be the question keeping world leaders awake at night. Reaction from key players ahead. Plus: digging deeper into the Syria disaster. A powerful film shows one refugee's treacherous journey to Europe. And the barbaric practice of female genital mutilation. A special report takes us inside a cutting room in Kenya and a survivor and activist joins us here.</s>AMANPOUR (voice-over): Good evening, everyone. Welcome to the special weekend edition of our program. I'm Christiane Amanpour in London. This week, dramatic new developments in the case of the Russian airliner that crashed in the Sinai, killing 224 people. The American and British governments revealed that intelligence suggests a bomb brought down the plane. But the countries with the most at stake, politically and economically, Egypt and Russia, continue to push back against those conclusions and, indeed, U.S. officials still say, until they know the results of the investigation, it could be a mechanical failure. But as that intelligence news was breaking this week, I spoke exclusively to the Egyptian foreign minister, Sameh Shoukry.</s>AMANPOUR: Foreign Minister Shoukry, thank you for joining me. Can I first get your reaction, the government's reaction, the president's reaction to this development from the British government?</s>SAMEH SHOUKRY, EGYPTIAN FOREIGN MINISTER: Well, it's somewhat surprised. The prime minister spoke by phone yesterday to fully discuss the issue. We can appreciate, of course, the offensive responsibility and desire to provide every protection to U.K. citizens. This is a desire that we equally share. But I think it is somewhat premature to make declarations related to what might or might not have happened to the aircraft before the investigation is completed and before there is a definitive cause for this crash.</s>AMANPOUR: Foreign Minister, the president, in an interview with the BBC, basically dismissed any notion that there was evidence or even the possibility of a terrorist attempt on this plane. Do you believe now that there may possibly be and that the British should be taking these steps pending an investigation? And they are sending a special team to your country to conduct further investigations.</s>SHOUKRY: From the outset we've always maintained that this is a matter for the investigation to clarify and we should not prejudge or take any measure that might have implications. There were implications also that the fact a large number of Egyptians, who rely heavily on the tourist industry. I think in all concerns should just take caution and have a tempered approach --</s>SHOUKRY: -- while, at the same time, we are cognizant of the interest and the concern and have provided additional security arrangements in all of our airports for the protection of our tourists and also to indicate that we are not sparing any efforts. But that does not in any way imply one outcome or another.</s>AMANPOUR: Islamic State Sinai affiliate claimed responsibility, raising big questions about the global threat of ISIS. Ambassador Sir Peter Westmacott, envoy to Washington and, before that, to a host of Middle East countries, joined me in the studio.</s>AMANPOUR: Ambassador, welcome.</s>SIR PETER WESTMACOTT, U.K. AMBASSADOR TO THE U.S.: Thank you, Christiane.</s>AMANPOUR: You just heard what the foreign minister said, that they're disappointed and surprised by this, particularly since the investigation has not been complete. From the British government point of view, is this a hasty decision or is this prudent?</s>WESTMACOTT: I think the Number 10 statement speaks for itself. We don't take these decisions lightly, as you know. And the reality is that the two biggest group of tourists in Sharm el-Sheikh tend to be Russians and British. There are a lot of people there. The government has a duty of care to British subjects. And if we put out a statement which says that we fear that it may have well been brought down by an explosive device, you know, we have said that because we have reason to fear that may be the case. We're not -- it's not a premature, it's not a hasty judgment. We haven't said this is what happened. We don't know for sure. Investigations are continuing; we look forward, of course, to hearing the results of the investigation of the black box. We're very conscious of the importance of Israel's tourist -- Egypt's tourist industry. We're delighted that President Sisi is here in town and the prime minister and he will obviously have some very important discussions tomorrow. But, please, don't think that this is a decision taken lightly. It's because of the concern that we have and the responsibility we have for the safety of British tourists.</s>AMANPOUR: If a bomb did bring that plane down, it puts into sharp focus the price of Russia's military action in Syria. Many believe it's to prop up the Assad regime, who has been struggling after more than four years of war. That war has sent millions fleeing for their lives, people like Abu Salah, who continues to risk everything to bring his family to safety in Europe.</s>ABU SALAH, SYRIAN REFUGEE (from captions): Please help us! The regime of Bashar al-Assad is killing us! Please! Every day there is blood. I can't speak. Please help us!</s>UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Allahu Akbar.</s>SALAH (voice-over): They bombed my home. They killed my cousin. And a lot of</s>UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: (Speaking foreign language).</s>UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (from captions): I condemn you, Bashar al-Assad. God help us!</s>UNIDENTIFIED MALE (voice-over): Abu Salah was a blacksmith living in Al-Rastan, one of the first cities to rise up against the Assad regime. And in retaliation it was completely flattened by the Syrian army. He made his mission to record the destruction of the loss of life, to tell the world about the horror of the war unfolding around him.</s>SALAH: After that I decide to leave Syria just for save my family and myself.</s>UNIDENTIFIED MALE (voice-over): Abu Salah brought his family to Turkey. He made frequent trips back to Syria by himself, compelled to keep documenting the war, hoping it would make a difference until the day he couldn't take it anymore and felt the world was just not listening.</s>SALAH: I'm a human being. I am not animal. (from captions): Abu Salah decided to make the journey to Europe. He thought it best to go alone and send for his family later. He reached the western coast of Turkey and joined thousands of refugees looking for a boat to Greece.</s>UNIDENTIFIED MALE (voice-over): Abu Salah spent a week in Izmir preparing for the journey.</s>UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (Speaking foreign language).</s>UNIDENTIFIED MALE (from captions): This is the best captain! The best captain ever!</s>SALAH (voice-over): The smuggler choose me to drive this boat because anyone can drive the boat, he go free without paying the money, $1,200. But when I decide to drive this boat, I cannot imagine all these people, 57 people.</s>UNIDENTIFIED MALE (voice-over): After 2.5 hours at --</s>UNIDENTIFIED MALE (voice-over): -- sea, the group arrive on a tiny Greek island, their first steps on European soil.</s>UNIDENTIFIED MALE (from captions): Where are you going?</s>UNIDENTIFIED MALE (from captions): Germany.</s>UNIDENTIFIED MALE (voice-over): They traveled on by bus through Greece, then continued on foot into Macedonia. They reached the border at dawn, where they rested. Then they followed railway tracks heading north.</s>SALAH: It's hard for this child. I carry a lot of child in this journey. But I feeling, this is my daughter.</s>SALAH (from captions): Wasn't that a beautiful train?</s>UNIDENTIFIED MALE (voice-over): They boarded a train to take them to the Serbian border. It dropped them just short and they had to trudge through forests in the dead of night to reach Serbia.</s>SALAH (voice-over): It was really cold. The children all the time hungry, need the water. Very tired. Very tired.</s>UNIDENTIFIED MALE (from captions): Keep going. Keep going. Don't stop.</s>UNIDENTIFIED MALE (voice-over): The women and children did their best to keep up the pace. All the way, they slept rough. After hours of waiting, finally a train arrives to take them north. Silent and exhausted, they trek through the night to make it across the Hungarian border, desperately trying not to get caught by police patrols.</s>UNIDENTIFIED MALE (from captions): There is a car. Hide, hide.</s>UNIDENTIFIED MALE (voice-over): But the rain they could not escape. After Hungary, Abu Salah traveled by himself up to Germany and ended up in Belgium. He's in a refugee center, hoping to be granted asylum and for his family eventually to join him.</s>AMANPOUR: And when we come back, we turn to what one activist hee calls horrific child abuse. As Britain says, it will now enforce its ban on the barbaric practice of female genital mutilation. More than 100 million women worldwide have been forcibly cut up like this. Next, we take an unflinching look and we speak with a survivor.