Journalistic career was talking to you, Hazza, live in the International Space Station. It was remarkable. I enjoyed every moment of it. You spoke to me upside down at one point. It was brilliant. And you and I have got to know each other well since then. Thank you. And another update on the UAE's global cooperation efforts. Abu Dhabi will host the 2029 annual meetings of the World Bank and IMF. Deputy Prime Minister Maktoum bin Mohammed posted on XQuote, This milestone reflects the world's confidence in the UAE, its pivotal role in advancing global financial stability and its proven ability to host and organize major economic events. I am not Epstein's victim. Well, this was a rare intervention from the U.S. First Lady. Why, she is also calling out Congress for Epstein's victims. That's up next. Saturday. The heat is on in Miami. One electric title fight. One massive night. UFC 327. Saturday on Paramount+. This is Donna. Discovering that on Vinted, her closet can make her extra cash. All she has to do is sell what she no longer wears. She just snaps, lists, and sells her pre-loved pieces. And with zero selling fees, she keeps every dollar she earns. Don't wear it, sell it. Download Vinted. Thank you. The First Lady Melania Trump is blasting what she calls lies linking her to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. Now she made these remarks in what was a surprising on-camera statement on Thursday at the White House. I've never been friends with Epstein. Donald and I were invited to the same parties as Epstein from time to time, since overlapping in social circles is common in New York City and Palm Beach. To be clear, I never had a relationship with Epstein or his accomplice, Maxwell. My email reply to Maxwell cannot be categorised as anything more than casual correspondence. Well, she called on Congress to allow Epstein's survivors to testify, leading some of them to push back on the First Lady's comments. They said calling on victims to testify was, I quote here, a deflection of responsibility. Leonard Trine joins us live from the White House. According to some reports, Donald Trump said he didn't know Melania was going to make those comments. I mean, and it was a surprise statement. What more do we know at this point? No, absolutely, Becky. It, I think, stunned a lot of people in this building and throughout the Trump administration who were kind of caught off guard, not only by the statement, but by especially the subject of what she was speaking about, and particularly, of course, the timing of these remarks. I will note it did spark a bit of rumors going around the White House, questioning whether or not she was trying to get ahead of a story that perhaps most people just did not know was coming. They're still trying to figure that out. Today, I should note, look, I will say, though, we were also told by people who are close to the First Lady that it wasn't as surprising for them that Melania Trump had been, in recent months, growing increasingly frustrated with all of the stories trying to tie her to Epstein and to Ghislaine Maxwell and that she wanted an on-the-record denial. And this was really the first time we heard her come out and speak to this. But again, to get back to the timing part of this, I think that's also why so many people were caught off guard. I'd remind you, Becky, that so many people in this White House have worked furiously for months to try and distance themselves from the Epstein files, from Epstein overall, trying to put this story into the past. And I would note the only time that's really been successful has largely been over the last month and a half because, of course, amid the ongoing war with Iran, that's really where everyone's attention is. And so she almost drew back the attention, almost like the Streisand effect. You know, coming and speaking about it is drawing more attention to it, again, at a time when really not a lot of people had their focus on this. One other thing I will add is to your point about whether or not the president and many top people in the West Wing knew about this. We were told from a White House official that they were caught off guard, that the president did not expect him to say what she did And the president himself did an interview with MSNOW essentially saying I didn know what she was going to say We will say others in the White House tried to push back on that claim saying they were expecting her statement But I would remind others as well that when it comes to Melania Trump, unlike her husband, she is very, very intentional about what she says, especially in a statement like this, where they had the podium set up in the main hall of the White House to give these remarks. She knew exactly what she was doing. It's just a question of whether or not the president and his team did. And apparently, from our conversations with sources, they did not. Fascinating. Elena, thank you. Well, before we leave politics, just a word on the growing rift in parts of the MAGA movement, as it's known in the States. President Trump has taken his feud with some conservative media figures, too. what is a new level, slamming them on Truth Social Thursday, saying, quote, they're not MAGA, they're losers, just trying to latch on to MAGA. MAGA is about winning in strength, he said, in not allowing Iran to have nuclear weapons. This was part of what was quite a long post, to be honest, showing Trump's once closest right-wing allies, including Tucker Carlson, have frankly shifted from strong supporters to some of his most vocal critics. There will be nothing like it. Open the effing straight. How dare you speak that way on Easter morning to the country? Who do you think you are? The president, three in each, yes. Shut up. Shut up about that. You don't threaten to wipe out an entire civilization. How do we 25th Amendment is? The problem is to get the 25th Amendment harder than impeachment. Well, we will keep a close eye on this growing rift between MAGA factions. It's important as we consider what is going on in the US space. Before that, of course, we will be right back with one of Trump's key European allies who may lose power. We're going to head to Hungary before we close out this hour. and a Victor Orban rally ahead of what is Sunday's pivotal election in this European country. Saturday, the heat is on in Miami. One electric title fight. One massive night. UFC 327, Saturday on Paramount+. This is Donna, discovering that on Vinted, her closet can make her extra cash. All she has to do is sell what she no longer wears. She just snaps, lists, and sells her pre-loved pieces. And with zero selling fees, she keeps every dollar she earns. Don't wear it, sell it. Download Vinted. Thank you. As Victor Orban and Peter Magyar gear up for this weekend's elections in Hungary, President Donald Trump could be losing his closest ally in Europe, Magyar, who is an Orban loyalist turned nemesis, has held a double-digit lead over Orban for more than a year. CNN's Melissa Bell is in Hungary looking at how the right wing in both the US and Europe have rallied around the incumbent, Mr Orban. Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orban has had no shortage of friends willing to travel to Budapest in his hour of need. Go to the polls in the weekend. Stand with Viktor Orban. from the American vice president to the secretary of state. Your success is our success. Not to mention that of the European far right. Several of its leaders also travelled to Hungary mid-campaign to support the man who leads their fight against the European Union. The left-wing elite in Brussels is weaker every day. On the other side, we, the patriots, are getting stronger, getting stronger in Central Europe. But as much as Viktor Orban rails against the European Union, he's never quite shied away from taking its money. Take this $1.5 million roundabout in Western Hungary that was meant to be part of a logistics hub. It was built with money from European taxpayers, and yet the railroad and the container terminal that it was meant to link were never built, leaving behind just this monument to Viktor Orban's vision of Europe, a road to nowhere. Instead, Orban has continued to milk Russia for cheap gas and oil in defiance of Europe and to look to U.S. President Donald Trump as a champion, with both leaders sharing disdain for Brussels. My best wishes to Prime Minister Viktor Orban, who I am endorsing, as you know. I am endorsing his election. On Sunday, Orban and his Fidesz party will come head-to-head with Peter Magyar, who's standing for the TISA movement. Through all the support that Viktor Orban has received from abroad, it's been Peter Magyar's campaign inside the country on very domestic issues that the polls suggest might be about to make the difference even in traditional Fidesz strongholds like this town to the southwest of Budapest. Melissa Bell, CNN, Sikesh for Hervar. Well a final note on our top story today and all this week The US war with Iran and the talks that we are now expecting to end the conflict The Islamabad gearing up and the world holding its breath for make or break ceasefire talks in the Pakistani capital now under 24 hours away Security is tightening and there is a sudden two-day public holiday. That is how the Pakistani government is preparing for its role as mediator. one it doesn't often play. Well, my colleagues Rhea Mogul and Sfya Safi have more on how Pakistan emerged as an unlikely bridge between the US and Iran. Check out their great analysis on our digital platform. And a quick programming note before we end the show. CNN will have live coverage of Artemis' return to Earth from the moment they enter the atmosphere to splash down in the Pacific Ocean. And that begins 7 p.m. Eastern time, 4 p.m. on the Pacific coast. It'll be very early for our viewers here in the UAE. But for those of you staying up or getting up for 3 a.m., it will be an historic moment on CNN. And I'll be back at 4 a.m. Eastern tomorrow, midday UAE time, for our continued coverage of the talks. For now, that's it. Or connect the world. Stay with CNN. One world is ours. Saturday The heat is on in Miami One electric title fight One massive night UFC 327 Saturday on Paramount Plus This is Donna Discovering that on Vinted Her closet can make her extra cash All she has to do is sell what she no longer wears She just snaps, lists, and sells her pre-loved pieces And with zero selling fees, she keeps every dollar she earns Don't wear it, sell it Download Vinted Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. A shaky ceasefire with negotiations quickly approaching. One World Starts right now. Peace talks between the U.S. and Iran are set to begin on Saturday in Pakistan, with a ceasefire between the two countries barely holding together. Plus, this weekend could be a pivotal moment in Hungary. Prime Minister Viktor Orban facing his biggest challenge yet as voters head to the polls. And countdown to splashdown. The Artemis crew are on their way back home, but they still have the riskiest part of their mission ahead of them. Hello everyone, live from New York, I'm Bianna Golodriga. Zane is off. Today you are watching One World And we are one day out from high stakes negotiations in Pakistan Though ongoing attacks between Israel and Hezbollah are threatening to derail the U ceasefire These are images of Beirut, which has been devastated by the Israeli strikes. Earlier, Hezbollah said that it targeted Israeli soldiers in Lebanon and an Israeli border town Friday morning. This as U.S. and Iranian delegates prepare for talks in Islamabad. streets have been emptied as the Pakistani capital enforces a strict security lockdown. Here's what U.S. Vice President J.D. Vance had to say as he departed Washington for Islamabad earlier today. We're looking forward to the negotiation. I think it's going to be positive. We'll foresee, as the President of the United States said, if the Iranians are willing to negotiate in good faith, we're certainly willing to extend the open hand. If they're going to try to play us, then they're going to find that the negotiating team is not that receptive. is not that receptive. So we're going to try to have a positive negotiation. The president has gave us some pretty clear guidelines and we're going to see. Tehran argues that Israel's attacks in Lebanon are violating the truce, something the U.S. and Israel have disputed. Lebanon's health ministry says more than 1,800 people have been killed and thousands more injured. Israel says that it is targeting Hezbollah command and military sites. Sources say President Trump and Prime Minister Netanyahu held a tense phone call on Thursday. We have just learned that Lebanon's prime minister will travel to Washington in the coming days for talks. Jeremy Diamond is in Tel Aviv, Israel, with the latest. So, Jeremy, just talk about the latest round of firing back and forth. Hezbollah once again targeting Israel there and Israel responding in kind. Give us the latest. Yeah, that's right, Brianna. We have continued to see airstrikes from the Israeli military in Lebanon unabated, as well as Hezbollah rocket fire towards northern Israel. Last night, in fact, there were also Hezbollah rockets that were targeted at the center of Israel with air raid sirens going off here in Tel Aviv. And indeed, all of this is happening despite the fact that there is this new diplomatic effort now afoot. Israel saying that it is willing to engage in direct negotiations with the Lebanese government. The Israeli prime minister making that announcement last night at the request of President Trump, who also urged the Israeli prime minister to scale back Israeli attacks in Lebanon. And the Israeli prime minister announcing last night as he was talking about these negotiations that there will be no ceasefire in Lebanon. And Israeli officials have told us that any negotiations with the Lebanese state will happen under fire with continued Israeli airstrikes in Lebanon. Sources have indicated to us that Israel does intend to scale back some of its strikes in Lebanon, but we've yet to fully see exactly what that looks like on the ground. Because while we certainly haven't seen the level of strikes that we saw on Wednesday when Israel killed more than 300 people in a matter of minutes through a series of 100-plus strikes inside the Lebanese capital and other parts of Lebanon, We have continued to see strikes. We've continued to see Hezbollah rocket fire as well. And the real question now is whether or not this is all going to undermine the broader ceasefire agreement between the United States and Iran, as Iranian officials are continuing to insist that this ceasefire include the Lebanese arena as well. That is part of the reason why we haven't yet seen the full reopening of the Strait of Hormuz. and ultimately we'll see how much this all impacts the negotiations that are now set to take place tomorrow in Islamabad. Of course, and remember one of the goals of the administration in starting this war was to dismantle Iran's proxies. And here you have Iran demanding that its most important proxy also be included in the ceasefire, Israel pushing back. But, Jeremy, give us more insight into this phone conversation between President Trump and Prime Minister Netanyahu that's ultimately led to what could be historic talks between Lebanese leadership in the government there and Israeli officials. Yeah, well, President Trump and Prime Minister Netanyahu had a series of conversations this week that did touch on the Lebanese issue. First, it was when President Trump informed Prime Minister Netanyahu at the 11th hour that this ceasefire agreement with Iran was happening. Then the announcement quickly followed. The Israeli Prime Minister in that call had asked that Lebanon not be included in the ceasefire agreement. And then we saw, of course, both Israel and the United States saying it was not, despite what the Pakistani mediators were saying and what the Iranians were saying. Then, subsequent to that, there was a phone conversation on Wednesday where President Trump urged Netanyahu to engage in these negotiations to scale back strikes in Lebanon. And then we're told that there was another phone call yesterday, far more tense, according to an Israeli and American source familiar with the details of this conversation. According to the Israeli source, this is the call that led the prime minister to announce these negotiations because he feared that President Trump would announce a ceasefire in Lebanon, notwithstanding what the prime minister wanted to do or not. one that would basically put the Israeli prime minister in the position of having to abide by a ceasefire that he had not agreed to. And so you can see the dynamics that are at play here and the extent to which Israel's desire to continue carrying out strikes against Hezbollah in Lebanon, you know, has risked unraveling this ceasefire with Iran altogether. And while the United States, you know, is kind of on the one hand saying Lebanon's not included, On the other hand, pressuring Israel to scale back its strikes, you know, it seems like for now both sides have landed in a place that they are comfortable with. But again, the big unknown is to what extent is Iran going to continue to insist that Lebanon be included? And the other question is the Lebanese government. You know, the Lebanese officials have indicated to us that they will not negotiate under fire. And so they are also under pressure from their own population, which just suffered this, you know, very this mass casualty event on Wednesday. as a result of these Israeli strikes, not to negotiate