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Migrant Center Bombed in Libya; U.N.: Airstrike in Libya on the Level of a War Crime; Inspectors Find Extreme Overcrowding in U.S. Migrant Centers; Shooting of Ethiopian-Israeli Teen Fuels Claims of Racism; Pregnant Woman Shot, Then Indicted in Death of Unborn Child; USA Edge England 2-1 in Thriller, Reach Final; Netherlands, Sweden Clash in Second Semifinal; Brazil Fans Celebrate Semifinal Win. Aired 11a-12p ET
Aired July 03, 2019 - 11:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[11:00:00] (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE REPORTER: From an air strike at a migrant center east of Libya's capital.
OTHMAN MUSA, NIGERIAN MIGRANT: I don't know what to do. I don't know what to do. I don't know where to go.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BECKY ANDERSON, CNN HOST: Millions stuck in limbo, nowhere to go, nowhere to go back to, at every turn under attack. Whether it's being bombed in
Libya, trapped as sex slaves in Iraq or enduring squalid conditions in America.
This hour we are connecting you to people running for their lives, often fleeing danger with some incredible CNN reporting. While that is not all.
Give us justice or you won't have peace. Ethiopians rioting in Israel we're in Tel Aviv to find out what is going on.
And --
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALES: Shame on you. Shame on you.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Last December Marshae Jones who was five months pregnant started a fight with another woman in this parking lot.
Authorities say Ebony Jemison shot an unarmed Jones hitting her in the abdomen killing her unborn baby.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON: Well she didn't pull the trigger, but she could go to jail. The full story is just ahead.
Good evening, folks. It's 5:00 p.m. in Tripoli, 7:00 at night here in Abu Dhabi, 11:00 a.m. in D.C. Most of all, it is time to act. I'm Becky
Anderson. Welcome to CONNECT THE WORLD.
Now no ifs, no buts, it looks like a war crime. That is how the U.N. describes an attack on a migrant center near Libya's capital. Officially
more than 40 people were killed but with so many more wounded, that number could rise. Here's what we know happened.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ANDERSON (voice-over): An attack on innocent civilians in the dead of the night. Emergency workers struggling to identify victims and body parts in
the rubble of an air strike. Parts of the Tajoura migrant's detention center were brought to the ground. Many inside had no chance. Those who
did survive rushed to recover their few possessions. The center held at least 600 men, women and children from other countries. Refugees and
migrants who'd fled other horrors, violence, persecution and economic repression in the search for a better life.
OTHMAN MUSA, NIGERIAN MIGRANT: All what we know is what we want U.N. to help people out of this place before this place is dangerous. There're
some people that are stranded here, they don't know what to do. They don't know where to go.
ANDERSON: The U.N. says, there needs be more than just condemnation. A full independent investigation to determine how and why this happened. To
bring those responsible to account. No one has yet claimed responsibility. But the U.N. backed government in Tripoli is blaming Khalifa Haftar. A
renegade general whose forces have been fighting for control of the capital for more than a year.
But the victims here had no part to play in the battle. And yet they paid the ultimate price.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ANDERSON: I want to take you back to the horrifying moments right after that strike hit to inside the detention center. Here's what it was like
for one 16-year-old boy.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MIGRANT: Oh my God. It's a terrible moment that happened three minutes, dear.
SALLY HAYDEN, JOURNALIST: It was close to you? Was anyone hurt?
MIGRANT: all the windows and doors are broken (INAUDIBLE).
You're going to be praying for us.
HAYDEN: OK, praying for you.
MIGRANT: Oh my God.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
Coming into CNN from award-winning journalist Sally Haden. She's one Forbes' 30 under 40 who is in in near contact with people in Libya stuck in
some of these detention centers. Right now she is in Kampala on assignment. Sally, horrifying listening to that young man. Any update on
how he is?
HAYDEN: I don't actually know how he is. The last time that I heard from him was about 5:00 a.m. this morning. But I've been talking to other
people here in Tajoura and they are all just completely devastated.
[11:05:01] One said that he had to help collect the body parts of other people that he knew and I think morale is just so low they almost don't
want to talk about it anymore.
ANDERSON: I know you've been in touch with people in the center and centers like this one for months. What have they been telling you, Sally?
Him
HAYDEN: They've been calling for evacuation. I've been in touch with dozens of detainees who are across Libya since last August. And that
entire time they've been calling for evacuation. They're saying that they're not safe, that they need to be taken to a safe country. Certainly
since the conflict broke out in April, they have been saying that they really, really need to get out of there, that something like this was
always going to happen.
ANDERSON: I know that you've had text messages, as I understand it, from a number of migrants. Let's just bring up one of those.
We don't get any solution for drinking water. And then you go on, how long without water. Almost a month. We're drinking salty water for washing
clothes. It's making people sick you said. We don't have a choice. And I know you've had other text messages, just describing the sort of conditions
these men and women are living under. Who are they, Sally, and where are they from?
HAYDEN: So, the people that I met with are many people who would count as refugees. They fled wars or dictatorships in countries like Eritrea, like
Somalia, like Darfur and Sudan. And I think it's worth pointing out as well that a lot of the photos you see might be of men but there are women
and there are also children. From what I know there are more than a thousand underage people in detention centers right now. And there also
living in the middle of this conflict.
ANDERSON: What do they know about this conflict that's going on around them?
HAYDEN: I mean they know a lot because their life essentially depends on it. They knew when Haftar declared that he was going to advance on
Tripoli. They know which kind of places where he's fighting in. Also I think it's worth saying that a lot of the detention centers are actually
being run by militias. So there are fighters who are coming in, and in some there are weapons being stored in them and that's putting the migrants
in huge danger because they know that they are very vulnerable as targets as well.
ANDERSON: What sort of help are they getting, if any? Who as far as you understand it are running these detention centers?
HAYDEN: The detention centers are officially being run by the department for combatting illegal migration, which is associated with the GNA, the
government in Tripoli. But I mean, effectively, like I said, they are being run by different militias. Some are in areas that are controlled by
Haftar's forces and some are in areas being controlled by GNA aligned forces. And, yes, effectively they are just trapped in the middle of that.
ANDERSON: Sally, your reporting is incredibly important. Sally is reporting oftentimes on social media, flushing out the conditions that
these people fleeing oft times for their lives are enduring in these camps as we now understand, losing their lives overnight certainly in an attack.
Sally, good to have you on. Thank you for that.
At this hour the International Organization for Migration leading the charge on condemning this air strike. They are calling for a full and
independent investigation. They want those found responsible to be held accountable. And they along with other U.N. agencies are dispatching
medical and other response teams to the area. That's, of course, if they are given appropriate clearance from Libyan authorities.
Let's bring in someone in charge of the IOM. Its chief of staff, Eugenio Ambrosi. Joining us now live out of Geneva. We understand these detention
centers are officially run by the department at the Tripoli, the U.N. backed Tripoli government.
[11:10:00] But it's clear as Sally was pointing out that quite frankly that's not really who they are run by. The U.N. backed Tripoli government
have blamed this attack on General Haftar. Do you have any evidence to support that claim?
EUGENIO AMBROSI, CHIEF OF STAFF, INTERNATIONAL ORGANIZATION FOR MIGRATION: No, we don't have any evidence as to who is responsible for this heinous
attack. Which is the reason why we don't side with the (INAUDIBLE). We have asked and we continue to request that these be totally investigated by
the international community and those responsible be found. It is simply not acceptable that civilians are targeted, that the target of military
action are the area of the town where it's known that civilians are present and living and, therefore, knowing very well that their likelihood of high
civilian casualties very high.
ANDERSON: Sure. Let me just sweep one thing up here. You said it is unconscionable that civilians are being targeted. Is it clear whether this
was a targeted attack, or horrifyingly collateral damage in what is this incredibly messy conflict? Is that clear specifically?
AMBROSI: It might not be absolutely proven, but I think it is clear that it was very well known that that detention center was in that area. I
understand that in the vicinity of the detention center there was some military camps or military installation of the GNA which presumably was the
likely target of this action. But the fact that the detention center was there was definitely known. It is known and therefore, we continue to
consider it unconscionable that area had been targeted because of the likelihood of civilian collateral damage was very high and that is exactly
what has happened.
ANDERSON: Our viewers are looking at a statement from the U.N. commissioner -- High Commissioner for Human Rights, Michelle Bachelet, says
and I quote her.
I have repeatedly called for the closure of all migrant detention centers in Libya, where U.N. human rights staff have documented severe
overcrowding, torture, ill-treatment, forced labor, rape and acute malnutrition amongst other serious human rights violations.
As if we needed to describe any further human rights violations. There will likely, sir, be viewed watching tonight, asking why people continue to
risk their lives. Whatever their circumstances back home, trying to transit through such a dangerous place as Libya is today. If this is what
they can expect how would you respond to those concerns?
AMBROSI: Well, I think the first consideration is that in many cases, what they leave appears -- at least to them at the moment of being even worse
than what they might find underway towards north and towards the coast of Libya. Obviously, a lot of people are considering that well they might try
their luck. What I'm leaving behind is horrible, maybe what I find may be equally horrible and maybe not. So why not try?
I think what all this show, by the way, is that the reason why people take this risk might be so compelling and so strong that there cannot just be
brushed aside or handled with very superficial measure that don't really tackle the root causes.
And I think another point that's very important is that this again shows that Libya is not a safe place for migrants and refugees. Libya is not a
safe place to return, migrants and refugees that might be rescued or intercepted in the Mediterranean. And that therefore something has to
change in the way the international community handles this situation, otherwise --
ANDERSON: I want to put that to you. Let's just discuss that. A German captain arrested after docking at an Italian port defying orders from Rome.
She had had picked up dozens of people stranded off the Libyan coast. She was released without charge earlier today. Quite a controversial figure.
Some calling hear villain. Others calling her a hero. Even fundraising over a million dollars for her. She of course, is one of the first to test
Italy's new hardline migrant policy refusing to accept these ships, turning them back and finding those that do try and dock tens of thousands of
dollars.
[11:15:04] I want to get your sense and your message to the international community about human impact of this anti-migration policy.
AMBROSI: Well, first of all for us and we've been repeating this since the beginning of this new float with the Mediterranean back to 2013. Saving
life is a top priority not just of NGO or just of the U.N. agency, but of the whole international community. There has to be a top priority. In
addition to that, saving lives, search-and-rescue operation are regulated by international law and we call every member of the international
community to abide by the rules of international law that everybody has subscribed.
As for the specific case, I will not enter into the discussion that is happening in Italy on the specific case, except to say, that obviously, the
issue of saving lives in the Mediterranean and offering proper disembarkation to dock safe and then proper processing according to their
specific needs is not just the responsibility of just one given country that for geographical reason happens to be in that specific location. But
this is the responsibility of the whole on the European Union. The whole of the European Union has to come together to find a proper solution and a
proper sharing of the responsibility of what is happening in the Mediterranean. It's a shared space. It's a shared sea and has to be a
shared solution what is brought forward.
ANDERSON: Eugenio Ambrosi, Chief of Staff at the IOM. It is extremely valuable to have you on the show tonight. Thank you, sir.
And we started this part of the show with some incredibly distressing pictures as migrants in a detention center in Libya lose their lives from a
bombing attack. Whether that was a targeted attack or whether that attack was meant to target another facility close by, it doesn't really matter,
does it? People are losing their lives. And this is a global problem, the problem of migration and those trying to flee one awful situation and just
finding themselves under attack in another. CNN covering it everywhere it happens. Refugees and migrants' journeys can be incredibly harrowing and
even when they think they have reached safety, oft times they remain vulnerable. Many, especially women, become victims of human trafficking.
CNN's Arwa Damon recently met one such woman. Here is part of her story.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ARWA DAMON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Nadia's sentences reverberate with trauma. She survived the ISIS onslaught in
Sinjar. Was spared the fate of her fellow Yazidi sex slaves. Only to find herself trapped in a similar nightmare.
She says she came to Baghdad with a man she trusted who told her he knew a Parliamentarian who could help her family apply for asylum in the U.S.
NADIA (text): He greeted me, I said "Hi uncle". They looked at each other and smiled. He said, "you are mine now".
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ANDERSON: Fleeing ISIS only to find herself a sex slave. More of Arwa's reporting here on CNN.com. Let's just pause for a moment and turn to the
stories of what people doing the exact same thing, that is fleeing one life for another.
But half a world away. Seeking a better life in the United States. Government inspectors warn that centers where thousands are being held are
ticking time bombs. Inspectors visited several centers along the southern border of the U.S. in Manjula. They took these pictures. These images
really tell the story. You can see people crammed in sometimes to the point where they cannot sit down.
Some facilities didn't provide equate clothes or showers. CNN's Nick Valencia has seen some of these squalid conditions for himself. Nick
joining us from El Paso in Texas. And I know, Nick, that you've gotten an exclusive firsthand account from a border patrol agent on exactly what is
going on down there. What did you learn?
NICK VALENCIA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right, Becky. I want to start first by addressing this inspector general photos. They are disturbing.
And there's no denying the facts. The kinds of conditions that migrants are being held in. In some cases in this report you have 80 migrants to a
cell that's only supposed to hold 30 to 40 people. There's a pervasive health risk. There's a risk to the safety, not just to the migrants, but
also according to the inspector general, to the agents that are in these facilities.
[11:20:05] They relay a story about a potential for a kind of an uprising where migrants were stuffing the toilets with mylar blankets and socks just
to get a little brief -- to be able to get out of these cells just briefly. Refusing to go back in. And these agents had to bring in a special force
saying that they would use force if migrants didn't go back in these cells.
This Inspector General report, Becky, focused on the Rio Grande Valley. But conditions here in El Paso are just as bad. This according to a
veteran El Paso border patrol agent who agreed to talk to us on camera if we conceal their identity. They say they decided to go on camera because
they're tired of seeing the conditions in these facilities. Saying enough is enough.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
VALENCIA: What do you say to leaders who are saying migrants are getting basic human rights?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Basic human rights are toilet paper. Water from the sink. Wearing the same clothing for days. I remember when there used to
be a processing center. We used to have -- especially in winter -- we use to have these blankets. Ten different aliens we use the same blanket. We
recycle them. We put them in a bag and they won't get washed.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VALENCIA: This veteran agent went on to tell me that it was just a few nights ago they heard a supervisor joking about dead migrants. Remember
that viral photo they were joking about the deaths of migrant father and 2- year-old. Also going on to say that they wishing they could use their vehicle to run over migrants. These are very serious allegations, Becky.
We pose them to customs and border protection and while they did not directly respond to these allegations, they did say they take them
seriously and handed them over to the office of the inspector general -- Becky.
ANDERSON: Thank you, Nick.
Before we move on, I just want to share what some of the American media are saying about these images that Nick has been speaking to. Shameful reads
the headline of the "New York Daily News". "The Dallas Morning News" warns of that ticking time bomb. And "The New York Times" writes, squaw
pervasive in the detention centers.
With the migrant crisis playing out at the border, well it's all about Fourth of July in Washington. Logon to our website and find out about
controversy over Donald Trump's planned holiday extravaganza. That is at CNN.com.
Still to come this hour, things you may not expect to see in the heart of Tel Aviv. Demonstrators are furious over the police shooting of an
Ethiopian-Israeli teen and they are gearing up for a third night of nationwide protests.
Plus, we are just hours away from seeing who the U.S. will play in the women's World Cup final. We'll look at the highlights of yesterday's match
and at today's big one and going viral.
Actor Jason Statham here showing off his skills. You may have seen this on the social media feed. This is called the bottle cap challenge. We'll
show you who else is trying it out.
[11:25:00] (COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ANDERSON: Anger boiling over on the streets of Tel Aviv and cities across Israel after an off-duty police officer shot and killed an Ethiopian-
Israeli teenager. Demonstrators have blocked major roads and staged sit- ins. Some burning cars and tires, others clashing with police. Authorities say more than 100 police officers were injured and they warn
they will not tolerate, quote, anarchy as demonstrators gather for a third night of protests.
While these may be new but the resentment now boiling to the surface has been simmering for years. Many in Israel's Ethiopian community have long
complained of racism, of being treated like second class citizens. The shooting of a 19-year-old Solomon Tekah in disputed circumstances then only
adding fuel to the fire. Let's get the very latest from Oren Liebermann who is live tonight in Tel Aviv for you -- Oren.
OREN LIEBERMANN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Becky, just moments ago for the first- time this evening protesters took to the streets and blocked off one of the main intersection here in Israel. This is the Azrieli intersection where
you can see protesters just moments ago locked hands here to blocked the street in the middle of this intersection. This happened for hours
yesterday as this intersection was blocked. Police have drawn a red line. Saying they'll give them two minutes for this protests that they are
calling illegal and then they will forcefully remove them. There appears to be much less tolerance for what happened last night.
Again, it was this intersection, The Azrieli intersection that was blocked off in a much bigger way and it is right now. But yesterday not only here
but in cities across the country, there were protesters -- Ethiopian- Israelis and others who were blocking the streets. That was allowed for hours until it intensified and then became violent. We saw from the videos
across the country, cars torched, ambulances were damaged. At the end police say there where 111 police officers injured as well as 136
protesters taken into custody. That alone makes this the largest protest since I've been here. Protests that at least for now continues here behind
me.
This is smaller than the numbers yesterday. Regardless the street here is closed in Tel Aviv right in the heart of the city and we'll see where this
develops as police have taken a far less willing approach to block streets. And have essentially said, look, you certainly have the right to protest
and there's reason to be angry here. But will not tolerate the closed streets as you can see. Police officers here are trying to prevent more
protesters from joining. As a say, they will in just a few moments try to clear the street.
All of this all stems from the anger from what happened Sunday night in northern Israel. When an off-duty police officer shot and killed 19-year-
old Solomon Tekah. At the time police said the officer was trying to defend himself and was in fear of his life. But because of questions about
the officer's version of events as well as some eyewitness accounts, that officer was taken into custody and remains under house arrest.
It was the funeral of 19-year-old Solomon Tekah yesterday that ticked off and triggered the violent protests that we saw across the country
yesterday. And that has led to a third day of protests that we're watching here behind us right now, Becky. The protesters are chanting and have been
for the last half hour or so. Among the protests they have been chanting are black or white, it doesn't matter, we're all human. We'll see how this
develops here. But right now you can see they are determined to keep this street blocked off. One of the main intersections in Tel Aviv as long as
possible.
ANDERSON: Not an instant community, the Ethiopian-Israeli community and making its voice heard. Oren, thank you.
Well to another story making headlines in Israel. On the surface it's the inauguration of an important archaeological site in a city with the richest
histories on earth. The symbolism of these sledgehammer blows goes much deeper.
The U.S. Ambassador to Israel opened a tunnel at a heritage site in East Jerusalem. A part of the city that Palestinians want as the capital of a
future state. Well Palestinian officials say David Freeman is acting more like an extremist Israeli settler than a U.S. ambassador. Calling it yet
another blow to peace.
You're watching CONNECT THE WORLD. I'm Becky Anderson. And this is out of our Middle East broadcasting hub of Abu Dhabi.
Up next a legal battle is brewing in the U.S. over a pregnant woman who miscarried after being shot during an argument.
[11:30:00] Why police say she's responsible for the death of her unborn baby. That's next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[11:33:31] ANDERSON: It is 7:32 here in the UAE. Welcome back and for those of you who are just joining us you are more than welcome. This is
CONNECT THE WORLD. I'm Becky Anderson.
In Libya, chaos. The United Nations Special Representative says an air strike that rained down on a detention center for displaced people on
Wednesday quote, "amounts to a war crime." More than 40 people are dead and that number could rise with over 100 wounded. Just moments ago I spoke
to the chief of staff of the International Organization of Migration.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
EUGENIO AMBROSI, CHIEF OF STAFF, INTERNATIONAL ORGANIZATION OF MIGRATION: I think it is clear that it was very well known that that detention center
was in that area. I understand that in the vicinity of the detention center there was some military camps or some military installation of the
GNA which presumably was the likely target of this action. But the fact that the detention center was there, was definitely known, it is known and,
therefore, we continue to consider it unconscionable that that area had been a targeted because of the likelihood of civilian collateral damage was
extremely high and it is exactly what has happened.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON: You'll be able to find that full interview by going to our Facebook page, Facebook.com/CNNconnect very, very shortly.
Well, to a major development in case that's sparking outrage over the consequences of abortion laws in some U.S. states. In Alabama prosecutors
will soon announce their decision on whether or not they will proceed with the grand jury's recommended charge against a pregnant woman who was
indicted in her own baby's death after she was shot in the stomach. CNN's Martin Savidge is live in Bessemer, Alabama with the very latest. Martin,
what do we know at this point?
MARTIN SAVIDGE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hello, Becky. It's going to be at 3:00 eastern time, 2:00 local, in other words in about three and a half hours
maybe from now that this announcement is coming down and it all has to do with Marshae Jones. She is the young woman here, she's the one who is the
mother that lost the child and against whom a grand jury handed down an indictment of manslaughter. Now the district attorney in this county has
said that she actually has the final say as to how that prosecution could proceed.
And today is the day she will have that say and many will be watching closely.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SAVIDGE: The case of Marshae Jones has become a lightning rod in Alabama and beyond.
PROTESTERS: Shame on you. Shame on you. Shame on you.
SAVIDGE: Last December police say Jones who was five months pregnant started a fight with another woman in this parking lot. Authorities say
Ebony Jemison shot an unarmed Jones hitting her in the abdomen killing her unborn baby. The grand jury handed down an indictment of manslaughter not
against the shooter, but the grieving mother alleging she was responsible for the death of her fetus by inciting the fight. The case has outraged
abortion right advocates nationwide who say Alabama puts more value on the fetus than on rights of the mother.
SHEILA TYSON, THE ORDINARY PEOPLE SOCIETY: How dare you prosecute this young lady. Her life is just that important to us.
SAVIDGE: Jones' attorneys are challenging the charge calling the rational flawed and twisted.
MARK WHITE, DEFENSE ATTORNEY: How in the world could you engage in a criminal prosecution, try to charge someone with a crime that carries the
maximum sentence of 20 years, and all she was, was the victim.
SAVIDGE: But many here in part do blame the mother for the tragedy.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's really heart wrenching. I believe if she hadn't -- who she approached -- that definitely the baby would be alive today.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: She needs be charged something. She did put a child in a dangerous situation.
SAVIDGE: So you think a lesser crime would be better?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: A lesser crime. Yes.
SAVIDGE: Whether Jones is prosecuted for a lesser crime or even at all now rests in the hands of the Jefferson County District Attorney.
VALERIE HICKS HALE, CHIEF ASSISTANT DISTRICT ATTORNEY, JEFFERSON COUNTY, ALABAMA: Whatever decision it is that she makes will be made with
fairness, it will be made with equity, and it will be made with justice.
PROTESTERS: We shall not be ruled.
SAVIDGE: Jones' supporters say they'll be watching to see just what kind of justice Alabama delivers.
PROTESTERS: We got to fight to make right.
SAVIDGE: The options for the district attorney are simple. She can either prosecute the manslaughter charge, she could bring forward a lesser charge
or she could decide not to prosecute at all. Becky?
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ANDERSON: Martin Savidge on the story for you. Martin, thank you for that. It is
37 minutes past 7:00 in the UAE. Got more to come. Take a very short break. Back after this.
[11:40:00] (COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ANDERSON: You know call me old-fashioned but if I fancy sipping water, I'll just do that, unscrew this. And do that. But it turns out that well
that just isn't cool anymore, apparently. Check this out. Opening a bottle with a spinning kick and leaving the bottle upright. You'll
recognize the guy doing this, this is action star Jason Statham.
Now singer John Mayer took a run at it as well. Not bad. But apologies for what you're about to see. Some of my gorgeous girls here are giving it
a go. Well, let's say that are not quite as poised as others. Good effort, though. Maybe just use your hands the next time, guys. I'm
watching them all out there in the newsroom.
Whereas Team USA, have been celebrating using their feet for something else. Kicking England out of the Women's World Cup. Sliding in a sneaky
little drinking tea celebration while they are at it. A lot more on that up next in "WORLD SPORT". For now I'm Becky Anderson. That was CONNECT
WORLD from this gorgeous tearoom myself. Thank you for watching. We'll see you next time.
[11:45:00] (COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHRISTINA MACFARLANE, CNN WORLD SPORT HOST: Hello and welcome to CNN WORLD SPORT with me, Christina Macfarlane. There was no Rapinoe, no problem for
the U.S. women will play for their fifth World Cup title and chance to be back-to-back champion after crushing British homes in Lyon. There really
can be no solace for the lionesses who came so painfully close to victory after giving it their all.
The game was all square after 19 minutes with goals from Christen Press and Ellen White when Alex Morgan here finds her way through the thumping header
for her sixth goal of the tournament, and the celebration certainly riling a few English fans here, tea sipping the U.S. to a 2-1 lead. But the real
drama came after the break. When White finds through ball to pocket the equalizer only to have it ruled offside after a long confrontation with VAR
and the time running out for England, White tries again for a goal. But is brought down here in the box. VAR rules penalty.
Which Steph Houghton steps up to take. But Alyssa Naeher is there with the biggest save of her career to ensure the U.S. go through to their third
successive World Cup final.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ALYSSA NAEHER, U.S. GOALKEEPER: This has been quite a journey. We've been on together as a team. And to just, you know, have that moment with the
team and celebrate was -- I had a huge smile on my face. It just meant a lot to me to observe this whole thing. My teammates have had my back, I've
had theirs and that was just kind of a culmination of that.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MACFARLANE: Let's go live to our Amanda Davis who is in Lyon. And had a front row seat through all the drama last night. Amanda, this really felt
like a special moment for women's soccer. What was it like to watch it unfold up close?
AMANDA DAVIS, CNN WORLD SPORT CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Chrissy, we have been talking about it really as the biggest game of this tournament today. And
you felt that. There was such a sense of atmosphere from all the fans flocking inside this stadium. They were real fans, invested not just in
the two teams playing but in women's football as a whole. Loads of conversations going on between the people who were sitting around us.
It was a real, real privilege to be there and part of it, that, of course, was mirrored by the record television audiences that we've been hearing
about, a record 11.7 million people watching in the U.K. which for a Tuesday night mid-week is incredible. As the English boss, Phil Neville,
put it, his team left their hearts and souls on that football pitch. But England's lionesses were tamed by a tea drinking Alex Morgan and a U.S.
team that showed exactly why they are the top ranked team in the world, the ones that everyone else is still using as the benchmark for women's
football.
They were quicker. They were more in control of the moment. They weren't overawed at all by the fact this was a World Cup semi-final and they were
clinical. They took their opportunities as and when they arrived. They were so quick out of the block scoring for the sixth time in six games
inside the first 12 minutes.
[11:50:00] They really didn't give England time to stop and take breath. Christen Press who set the defending champions on the way as you said.
Closely followed by the birthday girl Alex Morgan. She's keeping up that campaign for the golden boot award given to the tournament's top scorer of
course. But there is that's controversy once again over the U.S. celebrations. We were talking about it after their first match against
Thailand.
That 13-nil thrashing people feeling maybe the U.S. were celebrating too much. Then there was Carli Lloyd's somewhat more subtle perhaps sarcastic
golf clap against Chile in response. But this time for Morgan it was all about drinking the tea. Was it a dig at English tradition? We don't know.
She's left us guessing. It didn't necessarily make her too many friends. But they are not in business for friends, Chrissy. It's about winning
trophies isn't it. And the U.S. rightly celebrating once again a place in the World Cup Final.
MACFARLANE: Yes, they have made that very clear from the beginning. A lot of surprise to see no Megan Rapinoe featuring for the U.S. last night. Do
we know anything more about reports of her injury and if she will play in the final?
DAVIS: It was one of those incredible moments inside the stadium when you saw the team sheet and people kind of looked at each other, and said,
really, no Megan Rapinoe because she had been making so many of the headlines both on and off the pitch in the run up to this match. But there
it was in the black and white no place for USA's co-captain. Some people think it was for disciplinary reasons. No.
The U.S. absolutely came out very quickly saying it wasn't a disciplinary issue. They were thoughts it might have been tactical. Maybe her lack of
pace, it was a reason she wasn't chosen but then actually we saw here pitch side pre-match. It was obviously she was struggling with an injury. She
didn't try and take part in the pre-match warmup. And it was confirmed afterwards it's because she's been struggling with a slight hamstring
problem. But she sounds pretty confident that she will be back in competition for USA come Sunday's final.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MEGAN RAPINOE, AMERICAN MISSED SEMIFINAL DUE TO INJURY: I wasn't fit for a selection today, just a minor hamstring strain. So obviously we have a lot
of days now. You know, for me the timeline really was after the France game. And now I have you know the extra rest day and looking forward to
the finals, so, I expect to be fit by then.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
DAVIS: And Chrissy, you would expect Rapinoe to start if she is fit. She's definitely been first choice for Jill Ellis throughout this
tournament. But what was so frightening for the rest of the women's game last night was the strength and depth of that U.S. squad. For all Ellis
has been criticized for her squad rotation in the last couple of years, we're now really seeing the evidence of it paying off. And everywhere you
looked there were stars stepping up to the plate on that pitch.
MACFARLANE: Yes, they are absolutely were. And just briefly, Amanda, all eyes now of course turning to the second semi-final tonight which promises
to be another blockbuster between Netherlands and Sweden. Which team has the edge in this one, would you say?
DAVIS: Well, you've got to say it's a daunting task for Both of them. You wonder whether either of them actually wants to make to the final having
seen that last night. Obviously joking, somewhat. But it is the Dutch that are the favorites for this one. The European champions. Some real
talent amongst their ranks, the likes of Vivianne Meidema and Lieke Martens much like the men's side in Holland at the moment.
Such an impressive group of youngsters emerging out on to this world stage. But the Swedes have caused a couple of upsets in the last couple of games
after a disappointing start in the tournament. They have overturned Canada and Germany in the knockout stages to reach this semi-final. We know
they're defensively disciplined and they will be hoping to cause another upset later on today. They are the side with the World Cup pedigree
really.
The Dutch here in the semi-finals for the first time, this is fourth World Cup semi-final appearance for the Swedes. The first time -- they haven't
made to it this stage since reaching the final in 2003. It really does promise to be a sensational occasion. We've seen the Dutch fans in their
orange, in the center of Lyon today. They will be starting to make their way out here to the stadium very shortly.
MACFARLANE: Yes. We will be watching closely. Amanda Davis there live in Lyon. Great job out there, Amanda. Thanks very much.
Well, elsewhere another major tournament in world football is reaching its conclusion after Brazil bagged the win and the bragging rights in one of
football's fiercest rivalries.
[11:55:00] (COMMERCIAL BREAK)
MACFARLANE: We're back on WORLD SPORT with Brazilian fans in Salvador witnessing and celebrating their team beating great rivals Argentina in the
semi-finals of Copa America. It means it's yet another tournament where Lionel Messi
has failed to win a major international trophy with Argentina and the Barcelona star was furious at the referee following their 2-nil defeat.
Host, Brazil, took the lead in the 19th minute in Belo Horizonte through match.
The City forward Gabriel Jesus -- there it is much to the delight of his coach, their second game midway through the second half. As he is turning
from goal scorer to provider, he set up Liverpool star Roberto Firmino here. Which means Brazil through to the final for the first time in 12
years. Much to the frustration of Messi after the game. He said, "Referees gave so many stupid fouls in this Copa America but today VAR
wasn't consulted once. This should be looked into and I hope CONMEBOL do something with these referees who unbalanced the pitch by favoring a team.
I spoke to the referee and he said he would respect us, but at no moment did I see that."
Well, coach Lionel Scaloni voiced his displeasure as well.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
LIONEL SCALONI, ARGENTINA COACH (through translator): It's true that I didn't like it. I normally don't talk about them, but he wasn't up to the
task of a match of this importance because losing in this way I don't want to say it's definitely unfair as far as the game's concerned. Brazil went
through and we can congratulate them.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MACFARLANE: Well, the second semifinal takes place later on Wednesday. Defending champions Chile are looking for a third straight Copa America
title. And they play Peru in Porto Alegre. And the final of course is Sunday in Rio.
Now later today at Wimbledon, world number one and defending champion, Novak Djokovic is back in action against the USA's Denis Kudla on center
court. But there will be a lot of eyes on court number two where tennis prodigy Coco Gauff will be in action. The 15-year-old will be playing in
the second round against Magdalena Rybarikova of Slovakia. The American of course pulling off one of the biggest upsets of the tournament in history on Monday by defeating Venus Williams in
straight sets.
Can't wait for that one. All right. That's it for this edition of WORLD SPORT. I'm Christina Macfarlane in London. Stay tuned the news is coming
up next.
[12:00:00]
END
