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Refugee Center Bombed in Libya; President Trump Defends CBP Facilities; Australian Released Safely from North Korea; Outcry As Dozens Killed In Air Strike On Libya Migrant Center; Alek Sigley Released From Detention in North Korea; Avicii's Father Speaks Out About Suicide Prevention; DNA Reveals Ancient Philistines Came From Europe; Trump Campaign Ad Uses Stock Footage Of Actors. Aired 2-3a ET

Aired July 04, 2019 - 02:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


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ROSEMARY CHURCH, CNN ANCHOR (voice-over): Hello and welcome to our viewers joining us from all around the world, I'm Rosemary Church, this is CNN NEWSROOM.

Coming up, the widespread condemnation of the deadly airstrike on a migrant center in Libya.

In the U.S., President Trump is showing little sympathy to migrant adults and children, coping with squalid conditions at detention centers.

And nearly 1 million people are urged to evacuate as intense rain pummels southern Japan.

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CHURCH: Thanks for being with us.

U.N. officials say the deadly attack on a migrant detention center in Libya could amount to a war crime. At least 40 people were killed, dozens wounded; the U.N. Security Council met in a emergency session on Wednesday.

Officials are calling for an immediate independent investigation and take a look at the satellite photos before and after the airstrike. The U.N. human rights chief says all sides in the conflict near the coordinates of the center and that it housed civilians.

Libya's internationally recognized government blames forces loyal to a renegade general are blamed who are trying to take over Tripoli.

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MABROUK ABDEL HAFIZ, LIBYAN INTERIOR MINISTRY (through translator): The interior ministry affirms that it will take all legal measures to follow and catch the criminals of war both domestically and internationally. Within this context, the minister of interior has asked for the

assembly of the international community and the African Union to see through their duties towards the crimes that are being committed by a fascist group that is trying in all ways to overthrow legitimacy and supreme sovereignty.

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CHURCH: Rebel leader Khalifa Haftar accuses militias loyal to the government of orchestrating the attack. The migrant center is next to a military camp, which has been the target of airstrikes for weeks.

Becky Anderson has more on the attack and the dangers African migrants are facing in Libya, which is a major hub for those looking to cross over to Italy.

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BECKY ANDERSON, CNN ANCHOR: 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 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 had fled other horrors, violence, persecution and economic repression in the search for a better life.

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OTHMAN MUSA, NIGERIAN MIGRANT: All that we know is, we want the U.N. to help people out of this place because this place is dangerous. There are some people that stranded here, they don't know what to do, they don't know where to go.

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ANDERSON: The U.N. says there needs to 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.

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EUGENIO AMBROSI, REGIONAL DIRECTOR, INTERNATIONAL ORGANIZATION FOR MIGRATION: It is simply not acceptable that civilians are targeted, that the target of military action in an area of the town where it's known that civilians are present and living and therefore, knowing very well that there will be high civilian casualty is very high.

(END VIDEO CLIP) ANDERSON: But the victims here had no part to play in the battle. And, yet, they paid the ultimate price -- Becky Anderson, CNN, Abu Dhabi.

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CHURCH: The political and military climate in Libya has been stormy and dangerous for years, back to the days of Libyan strongman Moammar Gadhafi and especially since he was killed after being captured by rebels in 2011. The last few months have not changed that climate and our Ben Wedeman has covered it all, we spoke to him a little bit earlier.

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BEN WEDEMAN, CNN SR. INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: This began in April, when Khalifa Haftar, who runs what's called the Libyan National Army, which is based in the eastern part of the country and supported by Saudi Arabia, Russia, France, Egypt and the United Arab Emirates, declared that he would take Tripoli, which is held by the government of national accord, which is the U.N. recognized --

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WEDEMAN: -- government, which is supported by Idlib, Turkey and Qatar, among others. He said he would take Tripoli in two days.

But what we have seen is that that offensive to take Tripoli has ground to a halt last week. The LNA lost control of the town south of Tripoli, which they were using as a staging point for attacks on the Libyan capital.

And he, after losing that town, declared that he would renew his push to retake Libya 00 or, rather, Tripoli -- and therefore that is where we are at this point. Obviously, the mess that is Libya goes back to 2011, with the overthrow of Moammar Gadhafi.

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CHURCH: Our thanks to Ben Wedeman.

Now to the United States, where president Donald Trump is defending the treatment of migrants at border detention centers, a government watchdog sounded an urgent alarm on overcrowding Tuesday. The inspector general published photos of migrants crammed into cells, some of them standing room only.

The report back to what Democrats who toured the facilities described. Mr. Trump's response on Twitter read, "Our Border Patrol people are not hospital workers, doctors or nurses. The Democrats' bad immigration laws, which could be easily fixed, are the problem. Great job by Border Patrol above and beyond. Many of these illegal aliens are living far better now than where they came from and in far safer conditions."

Democratic lawmakers are not alone in describing disturbing conditions inside those centers, there are firsthand accounts of dangerous overcrowding and unsanitary conditions.

Nick Valencia reports that this comes as some border agents are under investigation for racist and sexist posts in a Facebook group.

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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There were a lot of negative comments back and forth. Agents bickering with each other.

NICK VALENCIA, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A veteran Border Patrol agent now speaking exclusively to CNN about the newly exposed secret Customs and Border Patrol Facebook group calling itself I'm 10- 15, where current and former Border Patrol agents reportedly made jokes about dead migrants, derogatory comments about Latino lawmakers including Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and posted offensive memes.

ProPublica, the non-profit news organization that exposed this Facebook group says post featured shocking comments about a dead Guatemalan teenager in Weslaco, Texas, like, "Oh, well" and "If he dies, he dies."

In a tweet today, Acting Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kevin McAleenan says he's ordering an immediate investigation into the offensive post. It comes one day after a DHS inspector general report quoted DHS and border patrol officials describing an acute and worsening crisis and calling the situation at the border a ticking time bomb.

From adults who had not had a shower for as long as a month and were given wet wipes to maintain personal hygiene to kids younger than seven being held in custody for more than two weeks, much longer than the allowed 72 hours.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What is basic human rights, toilet paper, water from the sink, wearing the same clothing for days?

We used to have these blankets and 10 different aliens would use the same blanket and we recycle them. You know, we'll put them in a bag and they won't get washed.

VALENCIA: Dr. Sara Goza, the president-elect of the American Academy of Pediatrics, toured two of these facilities last week, describing the horror she witnesses firsthand.

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DR. SARA GOZA, AMERICAN ACADEMY OF PEDIATRICS: When I opened the door, the first thing that we -- that we -- that hit us was the smell. It was the smell of sweat, urine and feces. And I heard crinkling to my left and I looked over there and there was a sea of silver -- I describe them almost like dog cages with people in each of them -- in the silence were just hard to -- hard to see.

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VALENCIA: New pictures from inside a facility in McAllen, Texas, depict a similar scene. These were drawn by migrant children 10 and 11 years old, all held there, all three pictures drawn in marker with stark similarities, people behind bars held in cages.

These pictures reveal just one day after a DHS inspector general report released these images from inside Border Patrol stations in Texas, the report quoting a Border Patrol official who described the situation as a ticking time bomb.

On Monday, Texas Democrat Congressman Joaquin Castro visited the Clint border facility, capturing this picture of migrant women sharing a cramped cell.

REP. JOAQUIN CASTRO (D-TX): The system is completely broken. People's human rights are being abused. And it's not just about money. It's also about the standards of care.

VALENCIA (voice-over): Nick Valencia, CNN, El Paso, Texas.

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CHURCH: For more on this, we turn now to CNN senior political analyst Ron Brownstein, he's also a senior editor at "The Atlantic."

Thank you so much for joining us.

RON BROWNSTEIN, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST: Glad to be here.

CHURCH: So, in a series of tweets President Trump said immigrants at the border are living better lives than ever before and in safer conditions, despite new images showing --

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CHURCH: -- quite the contrary.

And Democrats are sharing disturbing stories of appalling living conditions after visiting border detention centers, but Mr. Trump rejects this as simply politics.

But it's not just the Democrats saying this, isn't it?

BROWNSTEIN: Yes.

CHURCH: What's happening here?

BROWNSTEIN: Well, it's also the inspector general. I mean, look, I think what's happening here is every once in a while, the subtext becomes text and for a portion of the president's constituency, being tough on immigrants is its own reward, you know.

And that the president -- and that the -- as my colleague Adam Serwer has wrote, you know, the cruelty is the point at points. And by the way, the president sort of hinted at that argument himself today in another one of the tweets, as you know. When he said, if people don't want to live in these conditions, they shouldn't come here in the first place without authorization.

And so, the idea that this is not a byproduct of being overcrowded, but perhaps the goal, is something that the president himself kind of alluded to.

CHURCH: Right. Basically, sending the message of deterrence, right? So --

BROWNSTEIN: Yes, exactly.

CHURCH: And about --

BROWNSTEIN: As was the separation, right?

CHURCH: Right.

BROWNSTEIN: I mean, that was kind of the argument for the separation of parents and children.

CHURCH: But the things is, people are still coming, aren't they?

But about 24 hours ago, we were reporting that the Justice Department would go ahead and print the 2020 census without including that controversial citizenship question, in response to a Supreme Court decision made last week.

But now, the Justice Department is reversing that decision, saying it's considering whether to add that citizenship question to the census.

What changed?

BROWNSTEIN: The president. I mean, the president did not want to be seen as backing down. You know, the Justice Department -- and I believe on at least nine occasions in the earlier litigations -- said that the absolute deadline for the printing of the census documents was June 30th.

And in fact, my understanding is at this moment they are already printing census documents without the question included.

But -- the but is that John Roberts, the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, did leave them the opening; while he rejected the question for now, he said they could go back to the lower courts with another rationale for doing it and try to work its way up to the Supreme Court in time to include it in the census.

And that it seems is why the president is now demanding that the Justice Department do in a day of total chaos.

CHURCH: Right.

So why is the citizenship question so important to President Trump, what's he hoping to achieve by including it? BROWNSTEIN: Look, I think there is a practical reason and a symbolic reason. There is no reason, the census department, the census bureau's own experts have concluded, that including a citizenship question will significantly reduce the count of Hispanic Americans.

People will be reluctant to answer the questionnaire and that means two things.

First, that as political power, political districting for Congress and state legislatures follow census results, as does the apportionment of federal dollars, this will shift influence and money from places that are more diverse to places that are less diverse.

But that is also a powerful symbolic message here as well for the president because, you know, when we talk about making America great again -- again -- restoration is at the core of his message.

And there is no way to more powerful signal your determination to restore in early America than to literally kind of erase from existence millions of non-white Americans by not counting them in the census.

CHURCH: Right. I do want to shift now to former Vice President Joe Biden and, since his debate performance last week, he has lost his once-impressive lead in the crowded field of Democratic presidential hopefuls, according to a number of polls.

And now the latest Quinnipiac University poll of Democratic leaning voters shows Biden at 22 percent support and Senator Kamala Harris at 20 percent; considering the margin of error that puts them at a virtual tie.

How sustainable is Harris' surge, giving Biden is still seen as the one to beat Trump?

BROWNSTEIN: That is the safety net under Joe Biden, it goes in the Quinnipiac ball and the CNN poll, with very similar results, he still has a significant lead over anyone else when asked who is the best candidate to put up against Trump.

The problem he's got, if you look at our CNN poll inside of the numbers, Biden is only winning about two-fifths of the people who say that he is the best general election nominee against Trump.

That is not consolidating those voters nearly as much as he needs to and I think it reflects the anxiety that people have from watching his unsteady performance. He has room to recover, though, and one point of contrast that we will hear a lot more about heading into the next debate, you know, there are four candidates in the top tier of the polling.

Joe Biden, Kamala Harris, Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders; the other three want to eliminate all private health insurance and basically require everyone to go into a government-run single-payer system. Biden is the only one at the top tier who wants to maintain and build on the Affordable Care Act -- [02:15:00]

BROWNSTEIN: -- passed by President Obama.

I think he will use that to differentiate himself, particularly because the voters who are the most reluctant to abandon private health insurance are the same voters who he does best with at the moment: non-white voters, older voters and more moderate voters.

CHURCH: Still a long way to go, it's early days, right?

But we'll see what happens. Ron Brownstein, thank you as always.

BROWNSTEIN: Thanks, Rosemary, thanks for having me.

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CHURCH: We shift to sport now. The Netherlands have booked their ticket to the Women's World Cup final. They beat Sweden 1-0 or with a goal by Jackie Groenen in stoppage time. The women's team is playing in only its second World Cup tournament.

They've never reached the finals before but they are the reigning European champions, so it all comes down to Sunday in Lyon, France. The Netherlands versus the defending Women's World Cup champs, Team USA.

Chalk up another win for the wonder of Wimbledon, 15-year-old American Cori "Coco" Gauff is through to the next round after her straight sets victory over Magdalena Rybarikova.

Gauff beat five-time champion Venus Williams in the first round, she is the youngest ever to emerge from qualifying and the youngest since 1991 to win a match in the main draw. Gauff says she was not expecting any of this and admits she is kind of starstruck.

It has not affected her play though, has it?

North Korea has released an Australian citizen who went missing over a week ago. How Swedish authorities helped secure his release. That's still to come.

Plus southern Japan has been hit with record setting rain, putting almost 1 million people at risk of floods and mudslides. The details on that when we come back.

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CHURCH: An Australian citizen feared missing in North Korea is now safe. Australia's prime minister says Alek Sigley is at the Australian embassy in Beijing after being released from detention in North Korea. The 29-year old was reported missing just over a week ago. CNN's

Paula Hancocks joins us now from Seoul, South Korea, with more on this.

Thankfully, a happy ending here.

What is the back story and how was this resolved so rapidly, really, when compared to events like this in the past?

PAULA HANCOCKS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Rosemary, we don't know --

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HANCOCKS: -- exactly why Alek Sigley was detained. We did hear from the prime minister telling parliament that just yesterday, on Wednesday, Swedish authorities told the Australian government they were acting on their behalf, they were talking to North Korean authorities and trying to secure the release of the student.

The Swedish embassy often acts on behalf of other countries, it has often been involved in these negotiations to try to release detainees. But at this point we don't know why he was taken.

We know that the reporters are waiting for him at the Beijing airport when he touched down, leaving North Korea, he said he felt great, good.

When the reporter asked him why he was detained, one of the men that was accompanying him, presumably from an embassy, said, best to leave it, leave it for the moment. No clarity on that at this moment.

But we heard from the prime minister talking about the help that the Swedish authorities gave him.

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SCOTT MORRISON, AUSTRALIAN PRIME MINISTER: This outcome has demonstrated the value of discreet, behind the scenes work of officials in resolving complex and sensitive consular cases in close partnership with other governments. I'm sure we all could not be more pleased that not only know where Alex is, but we know he is safe.

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HANCOCKS: Alek well-known to North Korean observers and experts, he has started a tour group, which are educational and culture exchanges for tourists into North Korea. He's been living in Pyongyang since last year. He is studying Korean literature at Kim Il-sung university.

So there really is some confusion at this point why the North Korean authorities detained him.

CHURCH: We will see if we learn more about this in the days ahead, Paula Hancocks joining us from Seoul, many thanks. Southern Japan is braced for possible landslides following extremely heavy downpours across the island of Kyushu, home to more than 13 million people. Almost 1 million residents have been told to leave areas prone to flooding and mudslides.

The government says thousands of troops are ready for emergency operations if necessary.

For more, let's go to Kaori Enjoji in Tokyo.

Kaori, 1 million people ordered to evacuate, that's extraordinary. All due to the threat of this flooding and mudslides.

What's the latest information you have?

KAORI ENJOJI, JOURNALIST: Well, there are thousands still in evacuation centers, predominantly in the southern part of Japan, on the island of Kyushu. The numbers are starting to come down. At one point, about 24 hours ago, there were more than 1 million people ordered to evacuate but that number is coming down as the worst of the rain seems to be moving through towards the east and towards central Japan.

But the weather forecast is still saying there's a lot of rain in store over the next couple of days. What has been problematic this time around is that this rain has been relentless, pretty much since last week on Friday.

So you are seeing some cities in the island, on the island of Kyushu. They are getting double the amount of rain they would normally get in a period of one month, in just a period of one week. So this is causing a lot of concern about some of the mountainous areas in this region; they are prone to landslides in a situation like this.

There has been one killed in this disaster, so far, and they are searching for one person, a lady in her 80s, whose home seems to have been swallowed by a landslide. She was in her 80s and living in this area. Because of the vulnerability of the land, that's prolonged period of rain.

Even the rain seems to have stopped and some of these areas, be careful of landslides. They still have evacuation orders in many parts of this region and, which does not mean that everyone has to evacuate; there's a limit of evacuation centers.

But in some of these areas where there are aging populations, a lot of elderly living at home alone. It's very difficult for them to move in situations. We are seeing a lot of rain and river waters rising.

I think that's why they put out a cautionary note this time around, particularly since last year, exactly at this time, there was severe rain in this area, more than 200 people were killed and the government was under fire for not warning its citizens early enough about this kind of disaster.

CHURCH: Kaori Enjoji, thank you for bringing us up to date on the situation. Appreciate it.

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CHURCH: We'll take a short break, still to come, it's Americas birthday and Washington D.C., is preparing to celebrate Trump style. Just ahead, the tanks, the fighter jets and the controversy.

Plus, leaders are trying to end days of violent protests in Israel after the police shooting of an Ethiopian Israeli teenager. We will explain on the other side.

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[02:30:07] ROSEMARY CHURCH, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: Welcome back, everyone. I'm Rosemary Church. I want to update you now on the main stories we've been following this hour. Pro and anti-government forces in Libya are blaming each other for an airstrike on a migrant detention center near Tripoli. At least 40 people were killed. The government points the finger at Renegade General Khalifa Haftar whose forces are trying to take the capital.

Haftar accuses militias loyal to the government of orchestrating the attack. The U.N. says it could amount to a war crime. Australia says North Korea has released one of its citizens from detention from help from Sweden. 29-year-old Alek Sigley is now at the Australian embassy in Beijing. The student Kim Il Sung University in Pyongyang was reported missing by his family over a week ago. It's unclear why he was detained.

The Netherlands will face team USA on Sunday in the women's World Cup final after a grueling win against Sweden. Jackie Groenen needed this goal in extra time, earning her teammates spot in the finals for the first time.

Well, Americans are getting ready to celebrate the 4th of July. Commemorating U.S. independence from Britain 243 years ago. And Donald Trump is putting its own spin on the holiday with a costly and controversial celebration in the nation's capital. CNN's Pamela Brown has the details.

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PAMELA BROWN, CNN JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT: Those armored vehicles have started arriving at the national mall. Moved in overnight through Washington D.C., carefully so as not to damage local roads and bridges. But the President's so-called a salute to America, hyping it up as the show of a lifetime.

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Some incredible equipment, military equipment on display.

BROWN: Acting Defense Secretary Mark Esper and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs General Joseph Dunford are among the military officials who will attend. But CNN has learned that some military chiefs have expressed reservations about politicizing the July 4th celebration. Concerned about the tanks and armored vehicles on display. And while the overall cost of the event has not been released.

Today, the President defended the plans, tweeting, the cost of our great salute to America tomorrow will be very little compared to what it is worth. We own the planes, we have the pilots, the airport is right next door, all we need is the fuel. We own the tanks and all. But that tweet is misleading, as many of the aircraft involved in the ceremony will be flying in from around the country.

F-35 fighter jets from California, a B-2 Stealth Bomber from Missouri, Apache Helicopters from Kentucky and the Blue Angels from Florida. All burning costly fuel to get to Washington.

TRUMP: We're going to have planes going over at the best fighter jets in the world, another planes too.

BROWN: And the President's checklist ignores additional cost and security, personnel and infrastructure. For example, the see-through bulletproof barrier needed for the President's speech at the Lincoln Memorial, $24,000. And that's not all, the Washington Post reporting the national parks service will divert nearly 2.5 million extra from fees paid by visitors, and intended to improve parks across the country for the President's event.

Compared to the usual cost of about two million for the entire 4th of July celebration on the mall.

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BROWN: Now, another controversial aspect of the president's 4th of July celebration on the mall is the VIP section. We're told by a source familiar with the situation, there are 500 VIP tickets handed out and we're told they're handed out to political allies of the president, which is unusual because this is a taxpayer-funded event. Pamela Brown, CNN, the White House.

CHURCH: Joining me now to talk more about all of this is Jordan Libowitz, he is Communications Director for CREW, Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics. Thank you so much for being with us.

JORDAN LIBOWITZ, COMMUNICATIONS DIRECTOR, CREW: Thank you for having me.

CHURCH: So critics are concerned that President Trump is hijacking the 4th of July celebration, turning it into a political rally where the President flanked by military tanks and military officials with the flyovers, a dramatic backdrop. I know you agree with that assessment, but do you also believe he is profiting from this event through his D.C. hotel? What evidence do you have of that? LIBOWITZ: So, CREW recently published a piece by (INAUDIBLE) that

showed that the rates at the Trump hotel for around the 4th are significantly higher than both the usual rates, but also the rates of its competitors. You cannot book an individual room on either the 3rd or the 4th. On the 5th, it will cost $1100 as opposed to the $350 it would cost you for the previous Friday or the $370 it would cost you for the next Friday.

[02:35:12] And to book a room on the 4th, they're now advertising a minimum three-night stay, which you don't see anywhere else which would cost you over $1000 a night. So, it's more than double their normal rate. But if you look at their competitors, not only can you book an individual room but a night at the Ritz Carlton in Georgetown would cost you, you know, $350 or Hay-Adams costs 450 and that was just named as the best place in D.C. to watch the fireworks.

So, you have to wonder, how is it charging so much more than both its usual rate and its competitor's rates?

CHURCH: Interesting. And we'll see what comes of that going forward. So let's return to this concern many have that the 4th of July event will be transformed into a political rally to promote President Trump's reelection effort. What are the legal risks of turning this into a political campaign event?

LIBOWITZ: So, there's a lot called the Hatch Act which prohibits government resources for being used for political purposes. If the President does start either talking about his own reelection or bash his Democratic competitors as he is want to do, that could put a lot of people in a lot of trouble. While the Hatch Act does not apply to either the President or the Vice President, it does apply to pretty much the entire rest of the executive branch.

So, any senior officials who are appearing in their official capacity, members of the military, any money being spent to put this on, advance money from the treasury for political purposes. So there is a pretty strict law that says they can't do that but it's also a law that the Trump administration has shown an almost complete disregard for so far. To the point where the head of the Office of Special Counsel, a Trump appointee, even took the unprecedented step of saying Kellyanne Conway should be removed from government service because of her repeated violations of the Hatch Act.

CHURCH: Right. Of course, President Trump has already said that there's not -- this isn't going to cost a lot of extra money. Although of course, the facts seem to really question all of that. I mean, there's massive amounts of funding being funneled into this potentially political event, aren't there? What are the ramifications of that and shouldn't there be more transparency when it comes to what the full cost might be for this revamped 4th of July effort?

LIBOWITZ: Absolutely. So it's not just the potential political spending. There's also an issue involving misappropriation of funds. The government is pretty clear on using funds for the way Congress said the funds should be used. And he is moving around money from places like the National Park Service. There are also questions about the fireworks themselves. He today tweeted, thank you to two companies for donating $750,000 worth of fireworks.

Leaving out the part where the head of one of those companies was lobbying him on the Chinese tariffs. So, there's the question of influence. There's going to be a long period of people searching for answers to questions raised by the 4th of July celebration that you've really never had to deal with before.

CHURCH: And what about the participation of the Republican National Committee handing out event tickets to friends, political appointees, and party donors, and of course, as you mentioned, the presence of some political officials on the podium with President Trump. Although, some military chiefs that has to be said have expressed reservations about politicizing this event?

LIBOWITZ: Sure. Well, it's hard to say that it can't be a political event or won't be a political event if the Republican National Committee is involved with it. And so it's pretty easy to see why militarily leaders might be hesitant because their strict Department of Defense guidelines saying that military members can't be at political rallies or political speeches or take part in political parades.

So the President normally has nothing to do with the 4th of July celebration and certainly doesn't use it for speech. So the risk of it being and becoming a political event has a lot of people in D.C. nervous.

CHURCH: Well, we should watch to see how this all plays out on the 4th of July and then of course who investigates the amount of money this costs and where all of the money came from. Jordan Libowitz, thank you so much for joining us. We appreciate it. LIBOWITZ: All right. Thanks again for having me.

[02:40:05] CHURCH: And we'll take a short break here. Still to come, protestors in Israel turned their anger toward police after an off duty officer killed an Ethiopian Israeli teenager. Now dozens of officers are injured and leaders scrambling to end the violence. Plus, it's been more than a year since Superstar D.J. Avicii died. His father is now opening up about his son's death and suicide prevention.

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CHURCH: Well, new details now on violent protests which broke out in Israel. Police say demonstrators angry over the police shooting of an Ethiopian Israeli teen attacked officers late Tuesday injuring more than 100. 136 protesters were arrested and demonstrators were back on the streets Wednesday as well as Oren Liebermann reports.

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OREN LIEBERMANN, CNN JERUSALEM CORRESPONDENT: Protests spread across Israel for a third straight month, smaller this time but fueled by the same reason. On Sunday night, an off-duty police officer shot and killed 19-year-old Ethiopian Israel Solomon Tekah in Northern Israel. The officer felt his life was in danger, police said but he was taken into custody soon after the shooting. After Tekah was laid to rest Tuesday, streets across the country exploded in anger.

Protesters blocked streets in major cities overnight, torching cars and burning tires. For years Israel's Ethiopian community has felt marginalized, second-class citizens, accusing authorities of racial discrimination. The anger boiled over, the largest protests Israel has seen in years. By the end of the night, police said more than 100 officers were injured, more than 130 protesters arrested. Israeli authorities met Ethiopian leaders on Wednesday taking a conciliatory tone walk trying to curb the protests.

BENJAMIN NETANYAHU, PRIME MINISTER OF ISRAEL (through translator): The death of Solomon Tekah is a great tragedy. Our hearts are with the family and lessons will be learned. But one thing is certain, we cannot stand for the violence we saw yesterday.

LIEBERMANN: But the anger didn't fade, many Ethiopian protesters didn't want to talk on camera but they weren't alone. Eliran Dahan carried an I Can't Breathe sign, a reminder of Eric Garner who died in 2014 after a police officer put him on a chokehold.

ELIRAN DAHAN, PROTESTER (through translator): This is a string of events that we are experiencing for years, and slowly, the earth is burning under our feet and, people are starting to realize.

[02:45:03] This shows that it's not just a demonstration of race and skin color, this country belongs to all of us and we want to keep it that way for all of its citizens.

LIEBERMANN: Israel's public security minister, said he would create a body within the police force to examine accusations of racial discrimination. That may address part of the problem, but on the streets of Israel, the outrage runs far deeper.

The family of Solomon Teka has asked the demonstrators to hold off on protests until the traditional Jewish mourning period is over. So, through the weekend. That will give authorities, officials, and the Ethiopian community a few more days to come to grips with what happened, and see if they can avoid another explosion of anger on the streets of Israel.

Oren Liebermann, CNN, Tel Aviv.

CHURCH: We are getting a new look inside Hong Kong's Legislative Council building after protesters stormed it on Monday. Police showed reporters some of the damage Wednesday. And you can see debris, broken glass, and graffiti spray painted on walls.

Demonstrators were protesting a now-suspended bill that would allow people to be extradited from Hong Kong to China.

Hong Kong's chief executive Carrie Lam strongly condemned Monday's violent protests. 13 police officers were taken to hospitals drawing those clashes.

Well, Boeing, says it will pay $100 million to help support the families of 346 people who were killed in two 737 MAX jet crashes in the past year. A computerized stall prevention system is believed to have played a role in both crashes in Indonesia and Ethiopia. Boeing, says the payout will not affect the family's lawsuits against the company.

Boeing CEO said, "We know every person who steps aboard one of our airplanes places their trust in us. We are focused on re-earning that trust and confidence from our customers and the flying public in the months ahead."

Well, the father of Swedish D.J. Avicii is urging lawmakers to address mental health problems. Klas Bergling, gave his first on-camera interview since his son whose real name was Tim Bergling died by suicide last year.

Bergling, says mental health problems need to be addressed earlier in a person's life before it's too late. And he spoke with our Robyn Curnow.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ROBYN CURNOW, CNN ANCHOR CORRESPONDENT: So it's been a year. How, how are you doing?

KLAS BERGLING, FATHER OF D.J. AVICII: Up and down.

CURNOW: Yes.

BERGLING: Some people may expect that this goes over after a year or so, but it's not the way it works.

CURNOW: Are you starting a foundation in his honor.

BERGLING: Yes. The idea came very quickly after Tim's death that we should do something. We will focus on the mental health and prevent suicide. That's the purpose of the foundation. For our part, we must consider us lucky, because we have received so much love and -- from everybody. There are so many people working in this field and really do a nice job -- fantastic job. But it has to be something coming higher up from the politicians, making this force going in one direction, not as it is today. A lot of things here and there.

My wish is that it will be a change here, where young people can get help very early when the problems are small. But this is also the problem, how do you identify the problem? How do you see it? What do you do? It's not easy to talk to your child all the time. It could be very hard.

CURNOW: Did you have some hard conversations with Tim?

BERGLING: Absolutely. Many. We talked a lot. His thoughts about life, meditation, love. When he was younger, we have very hard talks getting him out of bed. He was introvert. He wanted to sit and talk, meet his friends. Of course, there was many people that want him out on parties. Yes. That's the part of the hard life as a D.J. or artist. You have to do a lot of things that you don't want to do. And, in the end, that takes a part of you, really. If you are extremely happy, it's not so hard to be unhappy. Our theory is not that he planned this suicide, more that it was like a traffic accident. But he was -- he was happy before, and he was happy for his music.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

[02:50:04] CHURCH: All right, time for a short break. But when we come back, pay for praise. We will meet the actors starring in Donald Trump's new campaign ad. You're watching CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CHURCH: The battle of David and Goliath is one of the most well-known stories from the Old Testament. About a young Jewish boy who killed the giant Philistine warrior with a rock from a sling.

But who were the Philistines? It's a question that has puzzled historians for decades until now. DNA analysis of skeletons unearthed in Israel in 2016 has provided some valuable clues. Scientists now say they have good evidence the Philistines originally came to the Middle East more than 3,000 years ago from what is now southern Europe.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DANIEL MASTER, CO-DIRECTOR, LEON LEVY EXPEDITION TO ASHKELON: Our study has shown for the first time that the Philistines immigrated to this region in the 12th century. We didn't show it by showing similar styles of pottery, we didn't show it by looking at texts, we showed it by looking at DNA of the people themselves. And we were able to show that in the 12th century, we can see at Ashkelon new DNA coming in from this immigrant population that is really changing the whole region.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: The intriguing findings will publish Wednesday in the journal Science Advances.

Well, this week kicks off our special month of coverage on CNN. Space 50 as we lead up to the 50th anniversary of the moon landing. And we begin with a special animated series. CNN business anchor Julia Chatterley explores the origin stories of five everyday items inspired by innovations from space technology.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JULIA CHATTERLEY, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: Wanted to suck up crumbs? Conveniently clean up a mess? Just reach for your handy Dustbuster, the handheld vacuum Black & Decker introduced back in 1979. But the story of this household helper started with the Apollo mission within the 1960s.

NASA needed a tool that could drill as far as 10 feet deep into the lunar surface, so the astronauts could collect samples. The device had to be small, lightweight, battery run, and powerful.

And voila! Black & Decker had the solution, developing handheld technology that would later prove to be useful not only in outer space but in our homes too.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: And make sure you stay with us all month for more space coverage. Including an exploration of the economy of space, personal accounts of the moon landing, and a forward look at our mission to Mars.

A politician spend a lot of money trying to convince people to vote for them. And in the case of Donald Trump's new campaign ad, about $170 a piece. CNN's Jeanne Moos has the truth behind the testimonials.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JEANNE MOOS, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: This Trump ad features Tracey from Florida walking the beach, praising the president.

TRACEY, MODEL FROM ISTOCK PHOTO, FLORIDA: I could not ask for a better President of the United States of America.

[02:54:54] MOOS: And he couldn't ask for a better testimonial. Unless it was from a real supporter because Tracey from Florida is just a model from iStock photo. But surely, Thomas from Washington offering Trump religious support is the real thing.

THOMAS, MODEL FROM ISTOCK PHOTO, WASHINGTON: -- are in our prayers.

MOOS: Nope, not a prayer that he's realm just a bearded and tattooed hipster type from iStock. And A.J. from Texas.

A.J., MODEL FROM ISTOCK PHOTO, TEXAS: President Trump, although I am a lifelong Democrat.

MOOS: He's another model from iStock photo available for a modest licensing fee of $170. All this was first reported by the web site, popular info. What's an ad guy who spent 17 years making Democratic spots think of this?

J.J. BALABAN, DEMOCRATIC AD MAKER: If I did anything remotely like this for anyone of my clients, I'd be fired.

TRUMP: You're fired.

MOOS: Actually, no word of firings from the Trump Make America Great Again Committee that made these Facebook ads.

Now there is an itty bitty disclaimer that pops up on the ads from maybe two seconds. But you better have your trusty magnifying glass handy.

Don't blink, it's coming. What you missed says actual testimonial actor portrayal. Why would someone do this when they could just grab a real Trump supporter?

BALABAN: Sloppiness and laziness.

MOOS: Sloppiness is nothing new. There was that Marco Rubio screw- up.

JIMMY KIMMEL, HOST, NBC: This is real.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's morning again in America.

KIMMEL: Stop, stop, stop, the footage there. That's Vancouver, Canada.

MOOS: Someone on Twitter defended the Trump committee's use of stock images. "Because the unhinged jackasses on the left would go to no ends to make some Trump supporters life a living hell." But they didn't just borrow the people, they lifted the storefront it's in Tokyo. Note the Japanese sign. And the beach that Tracey from Florida is walking on is actually the Mediterranean Sea. Better check Tracey's birth certificate.

Jeanne Moos, CNN, New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHURCH: Money can buy happiness, apparently. Well, thanks for joining us this hour. I'm Rosemary Church. I'll be back with more news in just a moment. You're watching CNN. Do stick around.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CHURCH: A horrifying tragedy in Libya. An airstrike kills, at least, 40 people at a center sheltering migrants. And now the U.N. wants answers.

And despite the squalid conditions, President Trump doesn't see any major problems at U.S. migrant centers. He says those being detained, they're already better off than they were at home.

[03:00:00]