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Dozens Killed in Turkey Wedding Explosion; Philippine President Wages Controversial War on Drugs; Race for the White House; Olympic Champions Reflect. Aired 3-3:30a ET
Aired August 21, 2016 - 03:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
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NATALIE ALLEN, CNN ANCHOR (voice-over): A deadly blast destroys a wedding celebration in Southern Turkey and the government points the finger at ISIS.
Donald Trump tries to court minority voters, even as he struggles to secure a demographic that traditionally swings Republican.
Plus: the host gets gold. Brazil takes its first Olympic gold in football after taking down Germany.
Hello, everyone. It's all ahead here on CNN NEWSROOM. Thanks for being with us. I'm Natalie Allen.
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ALLEN: An explosion ripped through a wedding in Southern Turkey Saturday night, killing at least 30 people, nearly 100 are wounded. Turkey's president says ISIS is likely behind the attack, though no one has claimed responsibility. Journalist Andrew Finkel joins me now on the line from Istanbul.
And why particularly ISIS, certainly they have been working in the country but why this wedding and this region, Andrew?
ANDREW FINKEL, JOURNALIST: Well, ISIS has targeted civilians before in Turkey. This seems to be very much their motive. Perhaps they have specific knowledge about who the suicide bomber was.
The place where this incident took place, this deadly attack took place, is in Gaziantep, which is a city very near the Syrian border, a city which is very much at the heart of the -- on the cusp of the Syrian conflict. There's many refugees there. It's a very mixed population within the city.
And this seems to have been a deliberate attempt to sort of inflame sectarian divides within that city, to take revenge against -- this was a Kurdish wedding. The family appears to have had connections to a Kurdish nationalist party and it seems to have been an attempt incite enmity between Turk and Kurd and Arab, who all -- who live in this heterogeneous city like Gaziantep.
ALLEN: And there have been many, many things happening recently because of ISIS just across the border, including the attack on the airport.
What is the mood there, with the people there, who keep seeing this happen?
FINKEL: You have to understand Turkey is in a very tense mood. There was an attempted military coup here not just a month ago. The country is already under a state of emergency. Newspapers are being shut down. Journalists are being rounded up. The university staff are being dismissed.
So Turkey is already on the edge, as it were. And I think this is an attempt really to push it a little bit closer to the edge. We've had a very serious appeal for calm from the government, perhaps one of the reasons they had identified ISIS quickly was to prevent some sort of outcrop of ethnic or sectarian violence within Gaziantep. So this is already a tense country -- Natalie.
ALLEN: Certainly is. Andrew Finkel of course, thank you, Andrew.
In Kunduz province, Afghanistan, the government official says security forces have retaken a strategic district from the Taliban. Earlier Saturday, a militant group briefly took over the district, which is near the key city of Kunduz. The Taliban temporarily seized that city last year in what was a major victory for the group.
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ALLEN: What's over Sunday will be the last day of the Rio Olympics as the closing ceremony brings the Games to a close. They were controversial from start to finish but Brazil's gold medal in the men's football final is pushing all that aside. The entire country is celebrating and our Don Riddell has heard from some ecstatic fans. He's in Rio.
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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (Speaking foreign language).
DON RIDDELL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: These Brazilian football fans are absolutely ecstatic. You can only imagine what it means to them to be Olympic champions. It's an historic achievement in itself. But to beat Germany in the final on penalties, well, that's special. That's redemption.
Two years ago in the semifinals of the World Cup, Germany thrashed Brazil by seven goals to one. It was humiliating, embarrassing, devastating. But now we'll take a look.
How does it feel to see Brazil be Olympic champions?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I feel great. First time Brazil is the Olympic champion. So it's great. It's -- I have no word to talk about it. UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We're so amazing. As they were screaming, the champion is back.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The only one title we don't have is the gold medal. Already win the silver medal. But the gold, never. In American and our country, against Germany, it's perfect.
RIDDELL: How will the people of Rio --
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RIDDELL: -- celebrate tonight?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: A lot of parties, of course. You're invited.
RIDDELL: I'd love to come.
Not everybody in Rio wanted the Olympic Games but this perhaps might go some way to making up for it. The five-time world champions are finally Olympic champions, too, and they did it at home in their iconic Maracana Stadium. The Games are now drawing to a close and the biggest cheer has been reserved for the home team -- Don Riddell, CNN, Rio.
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ALLEN: And let's look at track now. It's career gold medal number six for U.S. sprinter Allyson Felix. She and her teammates won the women's 4x 400 meter relay on Saturday. That win came a day after Felix and the U.S. won the women's 4x 100 meter event.
And staying there, Great Britain's Mo Farah won the men's 5,000 meter Saturday. He's won both the 5,000 and 10,000 meters in two consecutive Olympics.
U.S. Olympic swimmer Ryan Lochte says he overexaggerated his story about an altercation at a Rio gas station. Brazilian authorities say Lochte vandalized the gas station and made up a story about being robbed at gunpoint. He spoke about the scandal in his first TV interview since apologizing on social media. He talked with NBC's Matt Lauer.
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MATT LAUER, NBC HOST: You told me on the phone, Ryan, you said, "We are victims here. We are victims. And we're happy that we're safe."
In the police press conference, they said, "Not victims, they're vandals."
How do you feel about that?
RYAN LOCHTE, U.S. OLYMPIC SWIMMER: It's how you want to make it look like, whether you call it a robbery, whether you call it extortion or us paying just for the damages, like we don't know. All we know is that, there was a gun pointed in our direction and we were demanded to give money.
LAUER: And that's really interesting point. I want to take a little time on this.
If I were to ask you the same question again right now and say, "Were you robbed on Sunday morning in Rio?" how would you answer?
LOCHTE: I can't answer that because I don't know if -- because I was intoxicated, so I don't know. All I know is there was a gun pointed at us and we had -- we were demanded to give money.
Whether it was to pay for the damages of the poster, whether it was extortion or whether it was a robbery, like I can't -- I'm not -- equipped to like...
LAUER: Except I want to point out that Gunnar, in his statement, the police said, at some point, someone who spoke English walked over and offered to help translate this altercation.
And he made it clear that the security guard was telling the four of you, you need to pay for that stuff, that damage before you can leave here or I'm going to call the police.
You understood that at that time, didn't you?
LOCHTE: Yes. Yes. So then, we had to give the money.
LAUER: Right. So -- but at that point it's not a robbery. At that point, you're striking a deal. You're striking a deal to pay for what damage you've cause so that he doesn't call the police and this doesn't become a bigger incident. Isn't that fair?
LOCHTE: We just wanted to get of there. There are held -- I mean, there was a gun pointed in our direction. We are all frightened. And we wanted to get out of there as quick as possible. And the only way we knew is, this guy saying you have to give him money. So we gave him money and we got out.
LAUER: That doesn't sound like a robbery. A robbery is when some guy targets you, whether he's armed or not, to take your money and you belongings and valuables. This guy was negotiating a deal because of what happened in the walk way and you guys were on the other end of the negotiation.
LOCHTE: And that's why it could be -- people can see it in many different directions. All we know is that there was a gun pointed to us and we were demanded to give him money. End of story.
LAUER: I guess, what I'm trying to get at is, the first version of the story you told, Ryan, was much more about the mean streets of Rio.
LOCHTE: Yes.
LAUER: And the version we're hearing now is much more about a negotiated settlement to cover up some dumb behavior. LOCHTE: And that's why I'm taking full responsibility for it, is because I over-exaggerated that story and if I never done that we wouldn't be in this mess. Those guys would never be in Rio or we're in Rio, none of this would happened and it was my immature behavior.
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ALLEN: Ryan Lochte there. The IOC and USA Swimming will review what happened and perhaps evoke (sic) disciplinary action.
It's looking like the last day the Olympics will be impacted by bad weather. Meteorologist Derek Van Dam is here with that horrible news.
How dare you.
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ALLEN: This is a story that has shaken the world like a photograph we saw earlier from the Syrian war. You know that little picture of the little boy sitting right there in the chair after he survived an explosion. That's Omran Daqneesh.
However, his brother apparently died in that airstrike in Aleppo. Jomana Karadsheh has more on the family's heartbreaking story.
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JOMANA KARADSHEH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: According to a local official from Aleppo, Ali Daqneesh, the 10-year-old brother of Omran, died at 9:00 am local time on Saturday in Aleppo. He says that Ali died of his wounds that were sustained as a result of that airstrike on Wednesday.
And for the past three days he's been in critical condition before succumbing to his injuries. Now the mother of the boys remains in critical condition. The family, according to this official, remained in Aleppo where that humanitarian situation, that humanitarian disaster, continues to unfold with the escalating violence we've been seeing.
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ALLEN: Activists say an airstrike Saturday in the Aleppo countryside has killed four other children.
We turn to Yemen's ongoing civil war. Tens of thousands of people came out Saturday to support the Houthi-led counsel that retains control of the capital, that council vowing to perform a new government. Houthi rebels allied to the former president have been fighting the internationally recognized government for control.
And the group Doctors without Borders said it's withdrawing from six hospitals in Northern Yemen. The U.N. says attacks on civilians are on the rise.
The president of the Philippines is accused of going too far in his war on drugs.
Why too far and what is that doing to the prisons?
We'll have a special report next here.
Plus: Donald Trump making moves as he tries to attract minority voters. We'll tell you which group he's having a hard time with.
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ALLEN: Philippine president Rodrigo Duterte is threatening to pull out of the United Nations, angry because U.N. human rights experts say his crackdown on drugs in the country has led to an alarming spike in extrajudicial killings. CNN's Ivan Watson shows us how the death toll is rising in Mr. Duterte's war on drugs.
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IVAN WATSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: This is one way teach your kids to stay away from a life of crime: with a visit to the overcrowded, sweltering city jail.
This is definitely a field trip that these kids are likely to remember. Their teach says they're brought every year to the city jail to get a very strong example of what can happen if they run afoul of the law.
This hunger for law and order in Philippine society helped propel Rodrigo Duterte to power in recent presidential elections.
The Harley-riding former city mayor promised to crack down on illegal drugs, which he says are destroying the country.
Since he took office on July 1st, he's ordered police to shoot to kill if suspects resist arrest.
RODRIGO DUTERTE, PRESIDENT OF THE PHILIPPINES: The system is violent, thereby placing your life in jeopardy. Shoot and shoot him dead.
WATSON: The official statistics of Duterte's seven-week war on drugs are staggering, amid thousands of police raids, arrests and voluntary surrenders, police say they've killed at least 659 suspects, allegedly all in self-defense and there's been a spike of 899 further unexplained murders.
This was the crime scene before dawn on Thursday, after police say they killed a suspected drug dealer who tried to resist arrest.
Have you ever seen a body count like this in such a short period of time?
LELA DE LIMA, PHILIPPINE SENATOR: No, this is the first time. It's phenomenal. It's unprecedented. And that's why it deserves inquiry.
WATSON: Senator Lela De Lima is leading a Senate inquiry into the police and alleged extrajudicial killings. President Duterte doesn't like it. He slammed De Lima, calling her an immoral woman and issuing this warning to lawmakers.
DUTERTE: Be careful with me, because when I say I will do it for my country, I will do it even if I have to kill you, or be killed in the process.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Duterte, are you happy with what you're doing to the lives of these people?
WATSON: Relatives of recent victims accused the president of giving the police a license to kill.
Family members say the man in this coffin, a meth user, was shot dead in recent days but they don't want him nor the family identified for fear of becoming the target of further retribution.
A police report says cops killed this man, a suspected drug dealer, after he opened fire on the police. But his sister claims her brother was a drug user who used to buy meth amphetamines from corrupt police.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: My god, Duterte, stop doing this, you have finished the lives of these people in Philippines. Stop.
WATSON (voice-over): Ivan Watson, CNN, Manila.
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ALLEN: Donald Trump and the Republican National Committee met with the National Hispanic Advisory Council Saturday. The Republican candidate struggling to win over minority voters, particularly Hispanics.
Trump has angered many, of course, over the comments he's made about undocumented immigrants. He's also pushing harder for the African American vote, saying the Republican Party must do better in its outreach.
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DONALD TRUMP (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Finally today I would like to address an issue of great and very deep personal importance to me. In recent days, across this country, I've asked the African-American community to honor me with their vote.
I fully recognize the outreach to the African-American community is in an area where the Republican Party must do better and it will do better. The GOP is the party of Abraham Lincoln and I want our party to be the home of the African-American voter once again.
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ALLEN: While Trump was trying to appeal to African Americans and other minorities, he's actually struggling with a demographic Republicans traditionally win: white college-educated voters. Here's our John King.
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JOHN KING, CNN CHIEF NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Make some magic.
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KING (voice-over): This is 2012: 4-point win nationally in the popular vote for President Obama but a thumping over Mitt Romney in the electoral college.
So if you're Donald Trump, you not only need to change some of these blue states red, you need to change some dynamics of the election. One thing you cannot do, must not do, is underperform Mitt Romney with key constituencies.
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KING (voice-over): One of the big changes in this campaign, one of the reasons we know Donald Trump is in a ditch, is because if you look at this constituency here, this is back to Election Day 2012. White college grads, Mitt Romney with a 14-point lead over Barack Obama.
Now, Republicans always win the white vote. But Mitt Romney had a huge lead over Barack Obama among white college grads, a critical constituency. You find a lot of them in the key suburbs that tend to decide key swing states.
Big edge for Mitt Romney, one of the things that makes this campaign interesting and it makes Donald Trump's challenge even greater in the final weeks, Hillary Clinton leads.
This is our national CNN/ORC poll, Hillary Clinton with an 11-point lead among white college grads. This is one of the reasons Hillary Clinton is winning in many of the big swing states, because of that same dynamic.
Again, let's go back. The state of North Carolina, Mitt Romney won North Carolina in 2012. It was a big deal when Obama won it in 2008. It's one of the states Mitt Romney actually got back in 2012 and he won it by winning nearly 60-40, a 19-point lead among white college grads.
They're big in the Raleigh-Durham Research Triangle, they're big in the Charlotte suburbs. Very important to win in a competitive state like North Carolina and Clinton with a lead right now, a 7-point lead.
Mitt Romney won by 60-40. The Democrat has a lead now among this constituency.
Again, you cannot win North Carolina if you're getting crushed in this electorate. That was North Carolina, a state he must win. It's very similar in a state like Virginia, a state that Donald Trump might have to win.
Tim Kaine, Hillary Clinton's running mate, is from there. She has had a consistent lead in Virginia. She has a lead now in North Carolina. She has a similar, pretty comfortable lead in Colorado.
But what do these states, critical in the presidential map, have in common?
A very important constituency is college-educated whites. It's part of the growing population in the suburbs, the research areas, the high-tech areas of all three of these key swing states.
It was a Republican constituency in 2012. It has been a Republican constituency traditionally. It's leaning Clinton's way right now. If Donald Trump can't change that, Hillary Clinton will win the election.
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ALLEN: All right. So we got red states, we got blue states and we have money rolling in. This weekend, Hillary Clinton is in Massachusetts, attending private fundraisers. Her campaign reported Saturday she has about $58 million cash on hand to Donald Trump's $38 million.
In addition, a top political action committee or super PAC backing Clinton says it has nearly $40 million to spend. Together, the Clinton and Trump campaigns have spent a total of $300 million so far, with 2.5 months to go until Election Day.
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ALLEN: And if the presidential candidates want some tips on how to be a winner, they should just listen to some of the champions from the Olympics.
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LAURA TROTT, CYCLING OLYMPIAN: On the morning of my gold medal racing, I have some porridge to start with and then I have eggs and avocados to finish.
GILES SCOTT, SAILING OLYMPIAN: I had marmalade (ph) and poached eggs.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Bread and Marcela (ph). I love Marcela.
KRISTIN ARMSTRONG, CYCLING OLYMPIAN: Oatmeal with bananas, apples and a little bit of honey.
SHAUNAE MILLER, TRACK OLYMPIAN: You know, I think I missed breakfast that morning.
CHRISTIAN TAYLOR, TRACK & FIELD OLYMPIAN: Because of all the nerves and excitement, I only managed to have one boiled egg.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I do nuts and yogurt.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I just drink a smoothie.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I couldn't eat breakfast.
MAJLINDA KELMENDI, OLYMPIAN: Before the fight, I usually sit down on the mat.
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KELMENDI: I just want to imagine that they're just me and my opponents.
TAYLOR: My good luck superstition, my sister actually gave me her shoelace many, many years ago.
SANYA RICHARDS-ROSS, TRACK and FIELD OLYMPIAN: My mom gave me a bullet necklace when I was in the 7th grade, told me I was faster than a speeding bullet.
MILLER: I'm just the type that, you know, I leave it all in God's hands.
WAYDE VAN NIEKERT, TRACK & FIELD OLYMPIAN: I don't think it's a superstition but I always travel with my Bible on me.
DANIELE GAROZZO, FENCING OLYMPIAN: I have so many that we have to take one hour just talking about this.
KATINKA HOSSZU, SWIMMING OLYMPIAN: My nerves are always mad black for the competition.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I thought my bracelet was lucky and I wasn't allowed to wear it because of aerodynamics. So I hung it around my necklace and I race with it underneath my skin suit.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I may or may not wear the same sports bra as I did in my last success.
SEGUN TORIOLA, TABLE TENNIS OLYMPIAN: I believe that on my (INAUDIBLE) I don't need anything.
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TORIOLA: And it's something (INAUDIBLE).
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: My advice to other Olympic athletes would be just to go out there and enjoy yourself.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Train hard and play hard.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Just be yourself and try your hardest. That's all you can do.
TAYLOR: Stay away from eating too much McDonald's.
MILLER: Keep your head in the game. You know, anything can happen.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Think of it like any other race and you'll do well.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Go to the start line with as much confidence as you had two weeks ago in training.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Never give up and, no matter what, you have to believe in yourself.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You have to believe in -- on yourself.
KELMENDI: Everything with I started in Kosovo, I became world champion. So just to believe in yourself.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Just believe in yourself and never, ever give up in your dreams. I mean, if I can do it, anyone else can.
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KELMENDI: Was that OK?
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ALLEN: Thank you, all those Olympians, for inspiring us. I want to get out of here and go to work out, hit the gym. Going to happen.
"INNOVATIVE CITIES" is next. I'll have your top stories right after this and then I'm headed out.
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