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Turkey Strikes Targets in Northern Iraq; Kerry Defends Iran Nuclear Deal to Congress; Backlash Over Zimbabwe Lion's Death; Trump distances Himself from Aide's Rape Comment; GOP Republican Hopefuls Attend Anti Abortion Rally; Syrians Pay Smugglers to Flee the Fighting; Death, Mistrust in West Bank; Off-Duty Police Officer Threatens Motorist; House of Lords Member Involved in Drugs, Prostitution Scandal. Aired 2-3a ET
Aired July 28, 2015 - 02:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[02:00:08] ERROL BARNETT, CNN ANCHOR: ISIS influence in the United States. Federal agents say this man was plotting to bomb a beach in Florida.
Plus, this American hunter is wanted in Zimbabwe, accused of illegally killing a treasured lion.
Donald Trump's campaign deals with a decades-old rape allegation and a shocking comment from a trusted adviser.
Hello, there, everyone. I'm Errol Barnett, with you for the next two hours. To our viewers in the U.S. and around the world, thank you for joining me. This is CNN NEWSROOM.
We begin this hour in Turkey where military jets are striking more terror targets in northern Iraq and along the Syrian border. The air campaign is aimed at Kurdish militants who Turkey blames for several attacks on its security forces. The airstrikes come as NATO ambassadors meeting in Brussels pledge support for Turkey's war against terror.
Our senior international correspondent, Nic Robertson, brings us the latest.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
NIC ROBERTSON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: The support for the NATO ambassador is very important for Turkey. They didn't go into the meeting looking to get additional equipment. What they went in to do was to explain why their threat assessment changed and why they decided now it's necessary to target the PKK and ISIS as well. Until now, the threat assessment in Turkey has been the PKK is the biggest threat, then it's Syria, Bashar al Assad, the growing influence of Iran, and ISIS, a distant third. Now they are saying that ISIS is a threat they need to deal with, and deal with the PKK as well.
But what the ambassadors, the 27 other NATO ambassadors in the meeting will be listening for is to try to hear, is this a firm commitment by Turkey or are they going to back track, is the fact they are targeting the PKK an effort to gain more support for the ruling AK Party or is it something -- is the targeting of ISIS something they are committed to.
Of course for the NATO ambassadors as well, a year ago, they set out in Britain that they would encircle and diminish ISIS. Turkey plays a key role in that. The NATO countries have been waiting to step up and do this. Turkey is essentially the last threshold that connects ISIS with the outside world. By cutting off their supply routes for men and for material, this is something significant that NATO has been waiting for.
Nic Robertson, CNN, London.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BARNETT: Meanwhile, Kurdish fighters are claiming new victories against ISIS. Rights groups say Kurdish forces have gained ground in the city of al-Asaka (ph) in north eastern Syria. The Kurds have reported captured the town of Sauren (ph) from ISIS near the border with Turkey. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said ISIS fighters are using the area to stage raids on Kobani further to the north. And a coalition with rebel groups is launching a major offensive against Syrian government forces in the northwest. Activists say the rebels are trying to advance towards Syria's western coast, which is a stronghold for President Bashar al Assad.
This is an interesting story. The U.S. Justice Department says a south Florida man has been arrested and charged for plotting to use a weapon of mass destruction. According to the FBI, the man planned to build a nail bomb and bury it on a beach in Key West, a popular location, and set it off with a cell phone. Investigators took notice of 23-year-old Halam Suarez (ph) after he posted pro-ISIS messages on Facebook.
U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry tried to convince skeptical lawmakers to support the Iran nuclear deal on Tuesday. He spent four hours testifying before the House Foreign Affairs Committee.
CNN's Elise Labott walks us through what was a contentious meeting.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
(SHOUTING)
ELISE LABOTT, CNN GLOBAL AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Iran's supreme leader sends a chilling message to President Obama. This image from his Twitter account appears to portray the president holding a gun to his own head, warning, quote, "If any war happens, the one who will emerge loser will be the aggressive and criminal U.S.," only giving fuel to opponents of the nuclear deal.
ED ROYCE, (R-CA), CHAIRMAN, HOUSE FOREIGN AFFAIRS COMMITTEE: We are presuming Iran will change its behavior. That behavior did not change when they were chanting death to America.
JOHN KERRY, SECRETARY OF STATE: Mr. Chairman, please, with all due respect, we are not presuming any such thing. There is one objective. Make sure they can't get a nuclear weapon.
[02:05:00] LABOTT: On Capitol Hill, another bruising for Secretary Kerry trying to defend the deal against firm Republican opposition.
UNIDENTIFIED CONGRESSMAN: We stand for America. You represent America.
KERRY: Congressman, I don't need any lessons from you about who I represent. I represented and fought for our country since I was out of college.
UNIDENTIFIED CONGRESSMAN: And God bless you for your service.
KERRY: Don't give me lessons about that, OK?
LABOTT: A new CNN poll shows 52 percent of Americans wants Congress to reject the deal. Only 44 percent said it should be approved.
In Africa, President Obama blamed, quote, "fast-and-loose attacks from presidential contenders," like Mike Huckabee, who invoked the Holocaust.
MIKE HUCKABEE, (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE & FORMER ARKANSAS GOVERNOR: He is so naive to trust the Iranians and take the Israelis and basically march them to the boor of the oven.
BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: The particular comments of Mr. Huckabee are, I think, part of just a general pattern we have seen that would be considered ridiculous if it weren't so sad.
LABOTT: While the harshest pushback to the deals is coming from Republicans, the president is struggling to keep his own party on board to override a veto. Even the chairwoman of the Democratic Party is, at best, non-committal
REP. DEBORAH WASSERMAN SCHULTZ, (D), FLORIDA: There is a lot of merit and a legitimate cause for concern and this is a decision that no member of Congress should make lightly.
LABOTT (on camera): The White House did pick up an important Democratic endorsement, Congressman Sandy Levin, the longest-serving Jewish member of Congress, has come out in support of the deal. But Senator Chuck Schumer, on tap to be the next majority leader, remains undecided despite mounting pressure from the president to support it.
Elise Labott, CNN, Washington.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BARNETT: Other stories we are following for you, Jonathan Pollard, convicted spy for Israel, will soon be free after spending nearly three decades in a U.S. prison. On Tuesday his lawyer said he will be paroled in November. Pollard was a former U.S. Navy intelligence analyst, sentenced to life behind bars for giving top-secret U.S. government information to Israel. Israel admitted to paying for the intelligence and had lobbied for his release for decades. Now to a story there has been lots of discussion about on social
media. An American dentist is being sought in the death of a prized lion in Zimbabwe. Walter Palmer said in a statement that he hired professional guides and thought his hunting trip was legal. But Zimbabwe officials say the 13-year-old lion, named Cecil, was killed illegally. One official CNN spoke with said the lion's death will have a long lasting impact. Listen to this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOHNNY RODRIGUES, CHAIRMAN, ZIMBABWE CONSERVATION TASK FORCE: With the loss of this majestic animal is that he was in the prime of his life. He had cubs. Now what's going to happen is that the next lion that comes along will kill all the cubs so he can get the females to come on heat so that he can carry on his bloodline.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BARNETT: It's certainly sad.
CNN's David McKenzie has more on Cecil's death and renewed call from around the world to change hunting regulations.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DAVID MCKENZIE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Cecil was one of Africa's best-known lions, a major tourist draw for Zimbabwe. Conservationists and police was he was lured out of a national park and killed by an American hunter. Alleging it's this man, Doctor Walter Palmer, an avid trophy hunter and a dentist from Minnesota. In a statement, Palmer admits to killing Cecil, but said he didn't know the lion's significance and relied on the expertise of local guides.
Cecil's killing has sparked outrage on social media and renewed calls to ban trophy hunting.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is a really large male.
MCKENZIE: Key conservationist, like Ioana Dungler, have been calling for a ban if are years.
IOANA DUNGLER, CONSERVATIONIST: Killing an animal because you want a picture and the skin on your wall is a form of sickness.
MCKENZIE (on camera): Does it make you angry?
DUNGLER: Extremely angry.
MCKENZIE: Dungler runs Lion's Rock, a sanctuary in South Africa that rescued scores of big cats. Many of them were bred just to be hunted.
(on camera): When he was a few weeks old, Conn was taken away from his mother. He was bred to be killed. And trophy hunters for a gorgeous lion like that will pay tens of thousands of dollars.
(voice-over): Hunting groups say that money can be funneled back into conservation, but lion numbers have plummeted up to 90 percent in Africa.
Wow. Should trophy hunting be a crime?
DUNGLER: This is murder. It's really cold-blood killing of a creature that cannot defend. If she can, then we are equal.
[02:10:09] MCKENZIE (voice-over): Dungler and other conservationists want the killing of Cecil to spark change.
David McKenzie, CNN, Lion's Rock, South Africa.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BARNETT: If you have checked out #Cecilthelion on line, you know it angered people around the world. The alleged hunter is in the crosshairs of their comments. We will show you a few comments. Kristi posted this on Twitter saying, quote, "Sickening, sad, and an embarrassment to America. Rip." Nick sent this tweet, quote, "Just once, I would like to see a game animal more of a hunter than posting a selfie." Another Twitter users says, quote, "So Walter Palmer, are you accepting new patients, I think there is a long line of people who would like to see you." And I'll show one more tweet, "Not a fan of Internet mobs, but Walter Palmer who paid to have a lion lured out of a reserve so he could murder it deserves what he gets."
Now the National Football League has upheld a four-game suspension for star quarterback, Tom Brady, for his role in the Deflategate scandal. The league commissioner says Brady tried to hide evidence by having his cell phone destroyed. Investigators say that phone may have held incriminating text messages. Brady's agent reacted to the latest decision saying, quote, "The appeal process was a sham resulting in the commission of rubber stamping his own decision."
Brady's fans are also unhappy.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Did you hear about the ruling?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: What do you think?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Irritated. I think it's ridiculous.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I have seen them play for 15 years. He is such a high-class guy. He doesn't remind me of someone who can destroy his phone. I don't think his legacy will be tarnished.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Four games is ridiculous. For a little air out of the ball? That doesn't seem right to me.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BARNETT: You will recall this controversy began when Brady's team, the New England Patriots, were accused of under-inflating game balls to get an edge in January's AFC championship game.
Now, Donald Trump's campaign is distancing itself from some controversial comments. That isn't stopping him from talking. You will hear from the man after this shored break. Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[02:16:22] BARNETT: Welcome back. Donald Trump remains the front- runner among Republican candidates for the White House. The rise to the top is not without bumps and bruises and a number of missteps. Now his campaign is distancing itself from a trust advisor who made controversial comments about marriage and rape.
Sarah Murray explains.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SARAH MURRAY, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Even for a campaign known for overstatements --
DONALD TRUMP, (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE & CEO, TRUMP GROUP: I will be the greatest jobs president that got ever created.
MURRAY: -- offensive remarks --
TRUMP: They are bringing drugs, they are bringing crime, they are rapists and some I assume are good people.
MURRAY: Tonight, comments about rape from Donald Trump's long-time counsel and surrogate, Michael Cohen, may have gone too far. In an interview with "The Daily Beast," published overnight, Cohen said, "Legally, you cannot rape your spouse," when asked about a decades old allegation made by Trump's first wife, Ivana, during divorce proceedings. At the time, Ivana alleged Trump forced her to have sex against her will, an accusation she later walked back.
Cohen allegedly then threatened "The Daily Beast" reporter saying, quote, "I'm warning you, tread very (EXPLETIVE DELETED) lightly because what I am going to do to you will be (EXPLETIVE DELETED) disgusting."
Within hours, the campaign distanced itself from Cohen who, until today, had been a surrogate for the developer-turned-candidate.
MICHAEL COHEN, TRUMP AIDE: Donald Trump has hit a cord. There is a long road ahead for this campaign.
MURRAY: Trump's campaign manager tells CNN only Trump speaks for Trump, saying Cohen, quote, "is a corporate employee, and is not affiliated with the campaign in any way."
In a statement today, Cohen tried to walk back his controversial comments, saying the reporter upset him and, "In my moment of shock and anger, I made a comment for which I do not believe and for which apologize for entirely." Meanwhile Trump's former wife, Ivana, the mother of three of his
children, called the rape allegation without merit, saying, "I think he would make an incredible president."
And tonight, there is no sign Trump's no-holds-barred campaign is slowing his political rise.
(SHOUTING)
MURRAY: A new Monmouth university poll shows him on top with primary voters in New Hampshire, polling at double his closest rival, Jeb Bush.
(APPLAUSE)
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BARNETT: That was our Sarah Murray reporting there.
To get clarity on this, earlier, CNN spoke with Trump about Cohen's comments and where he currently stands in his campaign. Listen
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DON LEMON, CNN ANCHOR: Do you still stand by Michael Cohen?
TRUMP: No, you have to understand, Michael was angry because he knew this never took place. He knew this website was the joke, considered a joke. And he was very angry and maybe he didn't understand the question. But, no, I don't. I disagreed with him. In fact, when I read it, I disagreed. I didn't even know if he said it. Who knows what they said. Frankly, I'm not sure they reported it accurately anyway. But assuming he said it, no, I disagree.
LEMON: But you won't fire him or get rid of him?
TRUMP: No, I'm not. He was very angry. They issued a false story to get publicity and make themselves relevant because they are not. Others are failing, too, as you know in that world. A lot of them are failing. This is a bad one and it has been a disaster, and he knew that. And he said to them, you know, you are doing the wrong thing. You do this and you are doing the wrong thing. So what happened is he probably got angry. No, I disagree with him. In fact, when I first saw it, I said, wow, it's something I disagree with, but that's the way it is. He is speaking for himself, not for me obviously.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
[02:20:] BARNETT: Let's talk about all of this with Rick Wilson, a Republican political strategist who worked on the successful campaigns for George H.W. Bush and Mayor Rudy Giuliani.
Rick, thanks for being with us.
RICK WILSON, REPUBLICAN STRATEGIST: Thank you. BARNETT: You called Donald Trump dangerous and you believe he is running a scam on the Republican Party. Each controversy, he rises in the polls. Donald aside, what does that say about the electorate?
WILSON: The Republican electorate, there is a lot of anger in the Republican electorate. Everyone acknowledges that. Unfortunately, Donald Trump is not the solution. He is exploiting that anger as a guy who is a talented showman and a talented conman about this whole thing where he is tricking Republican conservatives into thinking he is one of them. He's a liberal.
BARNETT: What is the outcome for the Republican Party ahead of their debate. Is this a distraction or a shake-up that the party needs?
WILSON: It's a distraction and you will have a lot of high quality candidates with one exception, Donald Trump. They thought through serious and alternatives to Hillary Clinton's policy. Barack Obama's legacy, etc. It will be something where Trump tries to exploit and redirect the conversation to make it the Donald show when it should be about Republicans putting out the inside about how to redirect the country. Six disastrous years of Barack Obama and prevent a Hillary Clinton presidency whose ideas are equally terrible.
BARNETT: Let's branch it out. The current president, Barack Obama, became the first U.S. president to address the African Union. When he did, he was speaking about African leaders hanging onto power for too long. He also made this comment. Take a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
OBAMA: I love my work. But under our constitution, I cannot run again.
(APPLAUSE)
OBAMA: I can't run again.
(APPLAUSE)
OBAMA: I actually think I'm a pretty good president. I think if I ran, I could win. But I can't.
(APPLAUSE)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BARNETT: Sky high confidence there.
The Iran deal was pushed through. Obamacare was upheld by the Supreme Court. Gay marriage has been pushed through. The trade deal with Congress was passed. And he is at a net positive in approval ratings. As much as it pains you to say it, any truth to what you just heard?
WILSON: I believe if Barack Obama's personality cult had the opportunity to elect him again, they would. I don't think the economic picture in this country is rosy. I don't believe there's many victories on Barack Obama's party. I think the Iran deal with be something with such dire and terrible consequences for the country and the region, this won't be a point of pride for his legacy down the road. The fact of the matter is Barack Obama will slip into retirement, unfortunately, not into silence, but he'll slip into retirement soon.
BARNETT: All right. Spoken like a true Republican strategist.
Final point, "The New York Times" has reported details on comedian, Jon Stewart, being secretly summoned to the White House to meet with the president because of his popularity through his show to Millennials. What kind of insight the president got from these meetings?
WILSON: I'll give Obama full credit on this. He understands the value of and importance of pop culture on society. He understands the value of celebrity in pop culture in society. For Jon Stewart, his brand was always the iconoclastic funny man, not a political hack. But they're getting marching orders from Barack Obama, so it colors the nature of Jon Stewart's commentary and comedy in that he was secretly meeting with the president and the president's staff. You can't but assume this is a guy who has a lot of sympathy for this president and is basically taking marching orders.
BARNETT: Rick Wilson, thanks for your time.
WILSON: Thank you.
BARNETT: Joining us from D.C., a Republican political strategist.
Protesters carrying pro life signs with slogans like "It's a child not a choice," gathered outside Planned Parenthood locations in dozens of U.S. cities on Tuesday. These rallies were in response to a series or videos secretly recorded and released anti abortion activists this month. The heavily edited clips show Planned Parenthood executives talking about how the organization sells fetal tissues after abortions. Anti abortion activists argue the organization profits from the sale of that tissue, which Planned Parenthood denies.
Meanwhile, Senate Republicans said they would schedule a vote on a bill in the coming days that would restrict funding to the organization.
Scott Thuman, from our Washington affiliate, WJLA, found out where some of the 2016 GOP presidential candidates stand on that issue at an anti abortion rally.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SCOTT THUMAN, REPORTER, WJLA (voice-over): Just feet from where they hope to bring their fight, abortion opponents called on Congress to cancel some $500 million a year in funding for Planed Parenthood. The heavy hitters with sites on the White House were lining up.
(on camera): If it does come to the floor, you've got a president who would veto it, wouldn't he? SEN. RAND PAUL, (R), KENTUCKY & PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: It's difficult. No one argues that it's not difficult. We'll do the best we can.
SEN. TED CRUZ, (R), TEXAS & PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I think every Democrat should be asked by ABC News, on camera, if they support taxpayer funds for an organization that has been caught on tape in what appears to be carrying out a pattern of multiple felonies.
THUMAN (voice-over): Supporters of Planned Parenthood told us they have no concerns over the videos or the threats to eliminate funds.
TERRY O'NEILL, PRESIDENT, NATIONAL ORGANIZATION FOR WOMEN: This is a political stunt by people who are going to loose elections over the next few cycles. It's my job to ensure they lose their elections. And you know what? I'm pretty good at my job.
THUMAN: But elections are exactly what this mostly Republican crowd says are helping their cause, reigniting debate over an age-old issue. They say the support and donations are rolling in.
DR. BEN CARSON, (R), NEUROLOGIST & PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: This has turned up the heat real quick. And people can actually see the barbaric things that are being done.
The neatest thing I see with these videos, it kind of unites the pro life organization, the pro life movement behind one goal.
THUMAN (voice-over): If you were president, would you defund Planned Parenthood?
CARSON: I would certainly lead the charge.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BARNETT: Thanks to Scott Thuman and WJLA for that report.
Now, Planned Parenthood has said the videos are nothing more than a smear campaign. The organization maintains it has done nothing illegal.
Coming up on CNN NEWSROOM, anger in the West Bank. Ahead, we'll show you what's behind the latest cycle of mistrust and violence there.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[02:30:27] ERROL BARNETT, CNN ANCHOR: Welcome back to our viewers in the U.S. and those tuned in from around the world. I'm Errol Barnett. Let's update you on the top stories right now.
Turkey is getting a call from the NATO allies as it escalates its war on terror. Turkish jets have been pounding Kurdish rebels in southern Turkey and northern Iraq, as well as ISIS positions in Syria. NATO leaders meeting in Brussels strongly condemned recent terror attacks in Turkey. The leader of a militant Pakistani group has been killed by police in
an attempted jail break. He was on a U.S. list of global terrorists. His group claimed responsibility for the deaths of hundreds of mostly Shiite Muslims.
South Africa's archbishop, Desmond Tutu, is back in a Cape Town hospital. His foundation says he's being treated for infection and expected to stay in the hospital for the weekend. The 83-year-old was discharged from the hospital last Tuesday after a week-long stay.
Migrants desperate to reach England have reportedly made new attempts to enter the Euro tunnel overnight. According to the French press, at least 1500 tried to storm the tunnel from the French side and one was found dead. British Prime Minister David Cameron says and both countries are working to increase security at the tunnel.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DAVID CAMERON, BRITISH PRIME MINISTER: This is very concerning, as you said. We are working closely with the French. The home secretary met with the French interior minster and we've invested money into the fencing around Calais. We're also putting fencing around the entrance to tunnel. So we are doing everything we can.
The latest attempt follows a similar one late Monday night when tunnel officials say about 2,000 migrants tried to enter in France and many were injured.
Many Syrians caught in that country's civil war dream of a future across the Mediterranean Sea in Europe. If they have the money, smugglers can get them there.
Our senior international correspondent, Arwa Damon, is investigating the lucrative trade and filed this exclusive report.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ARWA DAMON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It's the illusion that lies beyond the waters of a better life in Europe that drives many to make the treacherous journey, the vast majority of them Syrians. Their country is decimated and they are easy prey for the smuggling vultures.
Earlier this year, we met this Syrian family that doesn't want to be identified. A barrel bomb hit the home next to theirs, covering them in dust.
"We used to height underground for to four days," Mohamed said.
His children still have nightmares of the dead and shredded bodies.
12-year-old Abadine (ph) says he wanted to bring his English and math books; his younger sister, her toys. Mohamed sold everything to come up with the $5,500 each the smuggler was charging.
It's an industry that has always thrived along these Turkish shores with their hidden, hard-to-reach coves, now made all the more lucrative.
Facebook pages, rapidly changing, opening advertising smuggling services. The names of known cafes where smugglers can be found spread by word of mouth.
We call a number for one of them.
(SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE)
The smuggler asks if I would like to travel by plane or boat. The boat would cost $5,700.
(SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE)
He calls back later and says I can even fly to Europe from Turkey with a European passport that he can obtain. It would cost me around $10,000.
This man, Hilad (ph), is another smuggler who agrees to speak to us as long as we conceal his identity.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE)
DAMON: "The cost varies between Italy or Greece, between 4,000 to $7,000," Halid (ph) tell us. "I put you in a home, I get you food and drink," he continues. "I call you to tell you that the trip is happening in an hour and to get ready."
From there, the small fishing boats take migrants out to larger cargo ships waiting in international waters. But in the last six months, the Turkish Coast Guard tracked down along this shoreline on the Mediterranean.
Lieutenant Colonel Olespasec (ph) shows us the ships in the area. The yellow markers, none of them on this day, suspicious.
The success is forcing the smuggling operations for the north into the Aegean where opportunists continue to thrive on the misery and desperation of others.
Arwa Damon, CNN, Turkey.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
[02:35:38] BARNETT: You can see more of Arwa Damon's exclusive reporting on the measures so many Syrians are taking to flee their country. All of it in hopes of making it to Europe. You can watch the special series, "Migrant Journeys," all week, right here on CNN.
Now, there's outrage in the West Bank after a 20-year-old Palestinian was shot and killed by an Israeli soldier. The details are not clear, but the anger and confusion are palpable.
CNN's Erin McLaughlin has more.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) ERIN MCLAUGHLIN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The body of 20-year- old Mohammad Abdul LaTeifa (ph) taken for burial.
(GUNFIRE)
MCLAUGHLIN: Gunfire at his funeral.
(SHOUTING)
MCLAUGHLIN: About all the family and the Israeli forces agree on is he died after running away. The Israelis came to his house at dawn to arrest him and another man. They had been suspected of planning an attack. Abdul LaTeifa (ph) ran to the roof. The border police said they fired at his legs and say he was critically injured after he fell from a roof top.
His family denies he fell.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE)
MCLAUGHLIN: "They shot him. All the injuries were to the bottom of his body, then he was arrested," his uncle says. "After less than an hour, we were informed he was dead. Now his mother weeps over his grave."
Beside her, the fresh tomb of 18-year-old Mohamed al Cuspa (ph). Three weeks ago, a high-ranking Israeli commander shot him dead. He was running away. Its show al Cuspa (ph) throw a stone at an Israeli vehicle and he runs. Colonel Yesreal Shomer (ph) and another soldier exited the car ready to fire. The shooting happened out of frame.
(on camera): The incident was recorded on a camera at this gas station and took place just over that way. The Palestinian medical report said he was shot twice to the back and once to the side of his face.
(voice-over): The Israeli military said it is still investigating. The photos show a shattered windshield and an undated photo of al Cuspa (ph) holding a machine gun. The military put out a statement, "The commander feared a lynch that would place subordinates and himself in mortal danger exited his vehicle and implemented standard procedure for the apprehension of suspects."
After its own investigation, the Israeli Human Rights group was skeptical of the military's explanation.
UNIDENTIFIED MEMBER, ISRAELI HUMAN RIGHTS: It's impossible to see how a youth who is running away from you can pose a mortal danger that justifies shooting to kill at him.
MCLAUGHLIN: High-ranking officials expressed support for the Israeli commander. On the official Facebook page, the education minister posted, "The man comes to kill you, kill him first. I fully back the Binyamin Brigade commander who acted against a terrorist to protect himself and the lives of his soldiers. This is the conduct we expect from IDF commanders." UNIDENTIFIED MEMBER, ISRAELI HUMAN RIGHTS: This is sending a clear
message to soldiers that this is acceptable and desirable behavior.
MCLAUGHLIN: This is the third son al Cuspa's mother has buried. Two others were killed about 15 years ago and she has little hope for justice.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: (SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE)
MCLAUGHLIN: "They cut them off and kill them," she said.
Down the road from al Cuspa's (ph) house, Palestinian youth throw more stones at Israeli soldiers, protests of the latest death. The soldiers fire back with real and rubber bullets, and the cycle continues.
Erin McLaughlin, CNN, Refugee Camp, the West Bank.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BARNETT: Coming up, we will explain what you are about to hear. An off-duty officer in the U.S. is caught on video threatening to harm a driver.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DRIVER: I didn't know you were a cop.
STEVEN LE BURKE (ph), OFF-DUTY POLICE OFFICER: I will put a hole through your head.
DRIVER: Okay, okay, okay, okay.
LE BURKE (ph): You are lucky I'm a cop because I would beat the (EXPLETIVE DELETED) out of you right now.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[02:42:36] BARNETT: The New York prison worker accused of helping two convicted murders escape has pleaded guilty. Joyce Mitchell was charged with promoting prison contraband, a felony, and charged with criminal facilitation, a misdemeanor. She could face up to seven years in prison. During the manhunt, Mitchell told police how she bought and delivered tools so the inmates could escape and she also told authorities of a plot to kill her husband and her sexual relationship with one of the inmates.
We have another video to show you that surfaced recently and it shows a police officer in the U.S. acting aggressively towards a driver. This time though, the policeman is off duty and it's happening in the U.S. state of Massachusetts. This is also not the cop's first controversial incident.
CNN's Brian Todd has details. (BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): One angry motorist snaps at another. But this is no standard road rage incident, and the guy in the white tank top is not just any hot head.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DRIVER: I didn't know you were a cop.
LE BURKE (ph): I'll put a hole right through your (EXPLETIVE DELETED).
DRIVER: I didn't know you were a cop.
LE BURKE (ph): I will put a hole through your head.
DRIVER: Okay, okay, okay, okay.
LE BURKE (ph): You are lucky I'm a cop. I would beat the (EXPLETIVE DELETED) out of you right now.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
TODD: The man in white threatening the motorist is Steven Le Burke (ph), an off-duty detective in the Medford, Massachusetts Police Department. This incident captured this past Sunday night from a camera on the motorist's dashboard.
At first, the motorist backs up, fearful.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
LE BURKE (ph): I will put a hole through your head.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(on camera): That kind of a threat, acceptable under any circumstances?
ADAM KASANOV, FORMER NYPD TRAINER: Let me say that under these particular circumstances, it is a problem if the person in question being stopped was unaware he was a police officer and backing up possibly concerned for his safety.
TODD (voice-over): La Burke does appear to pull his badge, but it is not clearly seen. Despite the pleas for understanding, the detective keeps on threatening.
DRIVER: Sorry, I didn't see the sign.
LE BURKE (ph): (EXPLETIVE DELETED). You're lucky I'm a cop because I will beat the (EXPLETIVE DELETED) out of you right now.
TODD: In video, Le Burke (ph) insists the car was driving dangerously. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
LE BURKE (ph): You almost hit that car head one when you went though the rotary.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
TODD: The motorist, who would only call himself Michael to the media, admits he took a wrong turn, but was shaken by the detective's anger.
DRIVER: It was definitely, nerve racking when someone said I will shoot you and digging for his gun. I'm like, that's a bit extreme, don't you think?
TODD: Medford Police Chief Leo Sacco says Detective Le Burke (ph) he has been placed on administrative leave with pay during an investigation.
LEO SACCO, MEDFORD POLICE CHIEF: This was a bad situation and it's troubling to watch one of my officers involved with that.
TODD: This is not the first time Sacco has been troubled by Le Burke (ph)'s behavior.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
LE BURKE (ph): That's your brother?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
TODD: July 2012, Le Burke (ph) confronts a man filming a routine street engagement, flicks his finger and tries to smudge the lens. Le Burke (ph) keeps smiling eerily into the camera and tells him what he should do with his brother.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
LE BURKE (ph): What you do is take him up to the railroad tracks and tell him to lay down.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
TODD: Detective Le Burke (ph) could not be reached for comment on either incident.
(on camera): Chief Sacco tells CNN, when the video of that 2012 incident was brought to their attention, Officer Le Burke (ph) got a verbal reprimand and some counseling. Chief Sacco says he can't justify what happened, but he does say Le Burke (ph) is a good detective who does solid work.
Brian Todd, CNN, Washington.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BARNETT: It is roughly 11:45 in the state of California and a wildfire is forcing about 200 people to evacuate their homes north of San Francisco. It's burning in Napa and Solano counties, but firefighters have had much of it contained now. Crews initially thought a burning car sparked the blaze, but the cause is under investigation.
For more on what's called the Wrag Fire, Meteorologist Ivan Cabrera, joins us to break down how much is still at risk of damaging homes.
IVAN CABRERA, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Aren't you glad they named them? We would lose track. There so many fires in California. The Wrag Fire flared up yesterday. The containment continues to go on. That is excellent news. Let's show you what's happening here. California getting hit again, Napa County and Solano County. 7,000 acres have burned as a result of this one fire, 5.6 million acres. 80 percent containment with this fire. 136 structures threatened. They had to get out of the way for good reason. Farce the winds, nothing terrible, 10 to about 20 miles an hour. The relative humidity will crash as the temperatures go up. The humidity goes down and we will be into the mid-and upper 90s here and overnight temperatures into the 60s and 70s. We will get back into the 80s and help for firefighting efforts. This should help with the temperatures into the mid-and lower 80s. Temperatures into the triple-digits. And this is the heat index. And we combine the air with the humidity and the temperatures into the 70s makes it feel like 106 and 108. The heat wave continues. Here is where we will have heat indices up to about 110. Dangerous stuff. My concern for the northeast is the prolonged heat wave. Temps in the 90s, not for a couple of days, but in places three days would make an official heat wave in Philly, New York. Boston doing better in the mid-and upper 80s. New York into the low 90s. We will continue to see the temperatures over the next few days staying into the 90s. By Friday, we will have showers and thunderstorms moving Thursday into Friday. For New York, the temps don't change behind the front but the humidity will go down a little so hopefully that will make a difference. The dew points go down and it feels like the actual temperature.
BARNETT: The humidity makes the world of difference.
(CROSSTALK)
CABRERA: You cannot officially cool off with the high humidity. Absolutely.
BARNETT: Ivan, thanks very much.
CABRERA: Thanks.
BARNETT: See you next hour.
We will bring you an update on the story we broke roughly 24 hours ago. Lord Sewel in the U.K. resigning from the House of Lords following a cocaine and prostitution scandal. We'll get you all the latest information after this short break. Stay with CNN.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK) [02:53:08] BARNETT: Welcome back. Tawdry allegations are rocking the British House of Lords. Lord Sewel, the man charged with setting ethical standards for parliament, finds himself in the middle of a scandal involving drugs and prostitution.
Max Foster reports.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MAX FOSTER, CNN LONDON CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): "The Sun" on Sunday, Lord Sewel allegedly snorting cocaine at a sex party with prostitutes. He resigned from his committee roles.
"The Sun" on Monday, wearing an orange bra and allegedly criticizing senior politicians, including the prime minister. The police announced an investigation and Sewel takes a leave of absence, as he calls it, from the lords.
"The Sun" on Tuesday, he is quoted bragging about adulterous affairs and resigns from the lords once and for all. He'll keep his title though.
It was the ongoing flood of scandalous detail emerging from this covert video in his London flat that undermines Sewel, and even, he conceded, threatened the reputation of the lords.
"The bigger questions are whether my behavior is compatible with my member in the House of Lords," he said. "And whether my continued membership would damage and undermine public confidence in the House of Lords. I believe the answer to both these questions means I can best serve the House by leaving it."
He had few defenders, least of all the conservative leader of the House, Baroness Stowell.
BARONESS STOWELL, LEADER OF THE HOUSE OF LORDS: I am pleased he decided to resign, all be it belatedly. It is important that all of us as members of the House of Lords, especially because we are unelected, consistently meet the expectations that the public has of us.
FOSTER: The liberal Democrat leader, Tim Farron, said the scandal shows the lords was rotten to the core. But Prime Minister David Cameron appeared to rule out reform, saying he had tried and failed in the last parliament to do so and was not planning to go down that route again.
There may be more detail to come, but this House hopes the mud won't stick here, now that Sewel is gone. The irony being he was in charge of setting parliamentary standards.
Max Foster, CNN, London.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
[02:55:25] BARNETT: After that shocking story, let's restore your faith in humanity with this one. A science experiment conducted in zero gravity. You know this will be cool. Astronauts put an effervescent tablet into a floating cup of water and it fizzes like crazy. He was testing the international space station's new high- definition camera that shoots with four times the resolution of all the models. And the image from this camera is so clear -- check it out -- that you can see the tiny bubbles popping and spraying into the air. They came out of the expedition before returning to earth a few weeks ago. It takes a lot of hard work to get into space, but once you get there, you have fun.
You have been watching CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Errol Barnett. I have another hour to go with you all. Please stay with me. My colleague, Zain Asher, joins me after this short break. Stay with CNN.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
