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Aid Workers Concerned over Southern Gaza; Blinken Says Much Work to Be Done on Hostage Deal; Top Israeli General Says No Plan in Place for Civilian Protection in Rafah; 2024 to Be Biggest Election Year in History; Chances of "Metacrime" in Metaverse; Jordan Stuns South Korea 2-0; One Year Since Turkiye-Syria Earthquake. Aired 10-11a ET

Aired February 07, 2024 - 10:00   ET

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

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ANNOUNCER: Live from CNN Abu Dhabi, this is CONNECT THE WORLD with Becky Anderson.

BECKY ANDERSON, CNN HOST (voice-over): Well, a lot more work to be done. America's top diplomat addressing hopes of a potential deal to free

hostages from Gaza in exchange for a pause in fighting there.

It has been a whirlwind day; nay, a whirlwind week for the U.S. secretary of state, Antony Blinken. Today, he held talks with Israeli leaders. He

says much more work is needed to finalize any potential agreement.

Earlier, an Israeli official close to negotiations says there's no way Israel would accept a counterproposal by Hamas, which included the

withdrawal of Israeli troops from Gaza. The Israeli prime minister is set to hold a news conference. One assumes he'll put more detail on this in

around 2.5 hours from now, stay with CNN for that.

All this as aid workers sound a new alarm about the IDF expanding operations in southern Gaza; 1 million people there are currently living

out of tents with nowhere else to go. The U.N. is also raising new concerns about acute malnutrition amongst children.

Jeremy Diamond covering developments from the Middle East, while Jennifer Hansler has reaction from the State Department.

And Jeremy, let me start with you because, at the end of the day, we should be squarely focused on what is going on in Gaza as we speak, as we continue

to monitor what is going on in mediation around this conflict.

Things are as acute, it seems, as ever, not least in the south of the country. Certainly no evidence at this point that Israel is set to pause

its operations.

JEREMY DIAMOND, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: No, certainly not. And in fact, things could get a lot worse for the civilian population in Gaza if

there is no ceasefire agreement, if there is no hostage deal.

And that's because already we are seeing a desperate humanitarian situation. We are seeing people who are gathered to collect humanitarian

aid fleeing in panic as shots ring out.

And around the hospitals in southern Gaza in Khan Yunis, where thousands of displaced Palestinians have been sheltering, we are seeing intense heavy

fighting, reports of snipers firing at people in the streets around that hospital.

And now there are also reports about the Israeli military potentially moving to Rafah, where we know that more than half of Gaza's total

population has now been sheltering. And so Israeli military operations in that area would certainly be disastrous for people there.

But all of this comes in the context, of course, of these ongoing negotiations over a potential deal and Hamas today returning to Israel with

a counter proposal, one that would see three phases, broken down in 45 days each.

And in that first phase, you would see what Israel has proposed as well in large part in terms of women, children, the sick, the elderly, those

hostages being released first in exchange for additional humanitarian aid being brought into Gaza, a temporary ceasefire in the withdrawal of Israeli

forces from population centers.

But when you get to phases 2 and 3 of this Hamas counterproposal, you come across a total breakdown between the Israeli and the Hamas position because

Hamas here, you can see, is clearly pushing for the withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza entirely as part of phase 2.

Israel in contrast, has ruled that out effectively, with the Israeli prime minister saying that the Israeli military will continue up until victory.

Only be willing to agree to a temporary ceasefire to see the release of hostages.

But Hamas is clearly staking out a very, very different position. And so the, now the main question is whether or not they can reach an agreement

perhaps on that first phase, where there seems to be significantly more agreement, although we should note not entirely.

But certainly this is part of a process and we're going to see this process continued, including today as the secretary of state is in Tel Aviv,

meeting with Israeli officials.

ANDERSON: Let me bring you in, Jennifer. Frankly, let's be quite clear about this.

[10:05:02]

Antony Blinken came to this region needing a win in and for the region; not least, for the remaining hostages and the hostage families being held in

Gaza and for the 2 million Gazans who are living under this Israeli assault. So many of them now pushed up against that Egyptian border down in

the south of Gaza.

That obviously was a priority for the region on the region but also domestically, the Biden administration need a win on this.

Where are they at?

What do we understand to be the situation as we speak?

And just how much pressure is the U.S. now bringing to bear on Israel and on the Israeli prime minister?

JENNIFER HANSLER, CNN STATE DEPARTMENT PRODUCER: Well, Becky, that's right because we are starting to see a lot of that pressure playing out here in

the United States.

We have seen large protests, massive anger over the Biden administration's handling of the situation in Gaza and the fact that they continue to lend

support to Israel with no conditions on aid or any sort of guardrails to this point.

Now four months into this offensive. So we know Blinken was coming to the region to press for these humanitarian pauses. We have not seen the Biden

administration call for ceasefires. This has been a continued -- something they are not calling for yet but they do want to see these pauses go into

effect.

U.S. officials have indicated that these pauses are crucial to getting a lot of these priorities in place, to getting the hostages out, to getting

more aid in and to see these longer-term solutions come into effect as well.

We know Blinkn has been traveling throughout the region in the leadup to his stop in Israel. He was in Saudi Arabia and then Egypt and then

yesterday in Qatar and he was talking about this day after for Gaza. He wants to see a two-state solution. The Biden administration has been

pressing for an independent Palestinian state.

Now of course, this is something Netanyahu has repeated heatedly, publicly rejected. So we are going to see if he can bring this pressure to

Netanyahu, who'd to say, look, your Arab neighbors are ready to help but you have to be committed to making these hard decisions to get to a two-

state solution.

And to this point, we have not seen Netanyahu prepared to do so. So we'll be watching and waiting to see what both the prime minister and the

secretary have to say later today, Becky.

ANDERSON: Jeremy, what is the torque on the ground where you are?

I mean, Antony Blinken is scheduled to speak to the press a couple of hours from now. He's been on the West Bank; he's spoken to Mahmoud Abbas and

then, of course, as Jennifer has rightly been reporting, he has been in tense discussions with Israel, with President Herzog and indeed with the

prime minister.

Netanyahu is expected to speak just before Antony Blinken today.

What are you hearing?

DIAMOND: Well, we -- from the meetings that we've had so far between Secretary Blinken and these various officials, we haven't gotten much more

than the traditional diplomatic platitudes.

We haven't gotten a whole lot of sense of exactly what the Israeli reaction is to this latest proposal or how the secretary of state is trying to get

Israel to a place where they can perhaps offer a counter proposal that might bring about some kind of agreement.

But I think it is important to understate (sic) the fact that the secretary of state isn't here, just dealing with this hostage negotiation issue. He

is dealing with a number of short-term as well as long-term issues.

And when you look at the long-term issues on his plate, I think those in particular come into play as he will meet with Mahmoud Abbas, the president

of the Palestinian Authority.

Because the United States really has a substantive view here that the Palestinian Authority is going to have to play a critical role in the day

after, in -- after the war in Gaza.

But in order for that to happen, there are going to need to be some significant changes, significant reforms to the Palestinian Authority not

only because the Palestinian Authority is extremely unpopular inside the West Bank.

And including its leader, Mahmoud Abbas, viewed as kind of corrupt, as ineffective and also as basically colluding with Israel by many

Palestinians in the West Bank.

But also because Israel right now is rejecting the idea of the Palestinian Authority playing in a role in Gaza, at least as it currently is. So

there's a lot of work to try and discuss with the Palestinian Authority.

And, of course, with Israeli officials as well in terms of getting the Israeli prime minister -- we're seeing if he can get the Israeli prime

minister to a place where he can accept this the idea that, after the war in Gaza, there should be a two-state solution.

There should be movement toward rebuilding Gaza with the idea of creating a Palestinian state. Saudi Arabia, of course, very involved in that

conversation as a key piece of this. But up until now, the Israeli prime minister has effectively ruled that out.

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And so there will need to be some major diplomatic wrangling with the Israelis in order to get him to that place. And if not, then perhaps the

United States needs to start thinking about whether another partner or another future Israeli prime minister might be the right man or woman for

that job.

ANDERSON: The next couple of hours will be critical. We certainly need to understand the Israeli response to this counterproposal from Hamas. It is a

pretty wide ranging and detailed proposal. It has to be said.

And Jeremy, pointing out there, just doesn't talk specifically to the hostages that remain in Gaza and the truce, the temporary truce in the

first instance, Hamas looking for a permanent truce going forward but also what happens in the aftermath of this when those guns ultimately go silent.

Really important stuff and we will continue to monitor. To both of you, thank you very much, indeed, both for your reporting and for the legwork on

this.

Well, Ukraine says a massive Russian missile attack has hit at least six parts of the country, including the capital. Four people were killed by a

strike on Kyiv; 38 others were injured, including a pregnant woman, according to local officials.

And you can see large fires burning across several stories of this apartment building, for example. Parts of the city also left in the dark

after the mayor says missile fragments downed power lines.

On the front lines, Ukrainian troops face a growing challenge. They aren't just running low on weapons and ammunition, as CNN's Fred Pleitgen reports,

they are also struggling with a shortage of manpower.

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FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The explosions are dangerously close as the drone team from the 92nd

assault brigade set up their bird, attach the bombs and head off into battle.

While drone technology is often seen as the realm of tech savvy youngsters, one of the pilots here is over 50.

"One way or another, everyone should serve," he says. "It is our duty to defend our land, our families, our motherland. If you do not want to fight,

what kind of citizen are you?"

Ukraine is badly outgunned by the Russians but the reality is they're also outmanned. Unable to recruit enough soldiers willing to join the military,

especially younger ones. Decimated and exhausted, Ukraine's top general, Valeriy Zaluzhnyi, has called for a new mobilization drive, maybe including

up to 0.5 million people.

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is unconvinced. And sources tell CNN he has informed Zaluzhnyi he'll be fired with differences over troop numbers a key

reason why. Mobilization is unpopular and in front of Ukraine's parliament, some are protesting for their spouses to be de-mobilized.

Antonina (ph) says her husband is too old to be serving this long.

"My husband is 43 years old," she says. "It is difficult for him to endure all this time on the ground, jumping from shells and performing all those

tasks at the front line. And there are many people like him."

"I'm here for my dad to come back," her son says.

But on the front lines, like in this rocket launching unit, some say they need more people to give those who've been in combat, nearly nonstop, a

breather. The commander of this launcher is 59. In Ukraine, people can only be drafted until they're 60.

"All of Ukraine is at war and each and every man who thinks he lives in Ukraine must go through it," he says. "It's irreversible. People here are

tired."

Ukraine's parliament is working on a law to make mobilization more appealing and possibly allow soldiers to exit the military after three

years. But back at the drone unit, they don't believe the talk.

"There should be no illusions," he says. Also, among soldiers whom politicians have given hope that there will be demobilization, there will

not be any -- Fred Pleitgen, CNN, Kyiv.

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ANDERSON: Ahead on CONNECT THE WORLD, new warnings coming out against the metaverse over great concerns about possible metacrimes -- coming up. What

a police organization to protect us.

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ANDERSON: Going underground in Gaza, CNN's Ivana Kottasova was among a small group of journalists, granted access to two tunnel compounds, where

Israel's military says hostages were held. Now an Israeli military escort accompanied the journalists and the IDF reviewed CNN's footage of the

tunnels as a condition to join that embed.

An Israeli commander says that the tunnels are part of a vast underground system used by Hamas to carry out the October 7 terror attacks. Well, Ivana

joins me now from Jerusalem.

Ivana, what did you see?

IVANA KOTTASOVA, CNN SENIOR PRODUCER: Hello, Becky. So its important to say that I went in with the Israeli military, which means that I only saw

what they allowed me to see.

And yet I can tell you that the devastation that I saw in Gaza is absolutely incredible. We drove from the Gaza border fence to Khan Yunis.

And I had limited view but I can tell you, Becky, I did not see a single building that would not be damaged in some way. And most were completely

destroyed beyond any chance of repair.

It's been raining heavily in Gaza in recent weeks so there's lots of mud everywhere and its just piles and piles of rubble and bulldozed remains of

buildings everywhere.

Now the Israeli military says that this level of destruction is necessary because they're trying to destroy this huge underground network of tunnels

that they say Hamas has built underneath much of Gaza. And this is what they want us to see.

We went to two different underground compounds, where the Israelis say that Hamas held some of the hostages that were taken during the October 7

attacks. And where they also say that Hamas leaders were hiding even now during the war.

Of course, we can't verify these facts but this is what they were telling us. And I can tell you that being inside those tunnels is very unpleasant

experience. They're very narrow, very dark. It's quiet. Some level underground, so it gets very, very hot in there.

The floor is covered in mud in many places. And then you enter into the compound and that's where it really gets quite strange because some of

these rooms inside the compound are furnished in a very strange way.

For instance, a kitchen with tiling on the walls that is arranged in patterns that you would normally see in domestic kitchen. And then they

took us into the room where some of the hostages were held. And again, this was just horrific. It's a very narrow, dark room that is very wet from the

condensation.

It just is very unpleasant experience and you really have no idea where you are, what time of day it is and what is happening around you -- Becky.

Ivana, good to have you. Thank you.

Well, 2024 is poised to shape our world for years to come. More than 50 countries, home to half of the world's population, set to head to the polls

this year right now.

[10:20:03]

Azerbaijan voting after the country's president there called for a snap presidential vote after his country, reclaimed control of the breakaway

region Nagorno-Karabakh. He is almost certain to be reelected.

However, under the shadow of crackdowns on dissent and media freedom, rights groups have expressed concerns about just how free that vote truly

is.

Meantime, on Thursday, Pakistan will hold its first general election since the collapse of Imran Khan's government in 2022. The former prime minister

is currently in prison and he is barred from contesting. That election comes amid economic uncertainty and frequent militant attacks.

Europe's biggest economy also gearing up for key elections this year and Germany's mainstream parties are particularly worried. That is because the

country is grappling with the rise of a major far right party.

Tens of thousands of Germans have been demonstrating against the Alternative for Germany or AFD. This was Monday in Frankfurt. Some

mainstream politicians still fear the AFD could sweep the polls in the coming months. CNN's Sebastian Shukla takes a closer look for you.

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SEBASTIAN SHUKLA, CNN PRODUCER (voice-over): It's boots on the ground in Freienthal for the Alternative for Deutschland, the AFD.

In this tiny Brandenburg village, Germany's far-right party are doing what many say their government aren't, talking to them.

But as night falls, protesters spring with a message: Germany has been down this path before. "Never Again" means now.

ADAM SEVENS, PROTEST ORGANIZER (through translator): The AFD's plans only reveals the xenophobia, hatred and bigotry that exists in this country.

SHUKLA (voice-over): Views that are not hard to find across the road in the village hall.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translator): I'm glad that someone is taking care of all this scum that has spread in our country, in our beautiful

Germany.

SHUKLA (voice-over): Pro and AFD curious supporters have gathered to hear from party officials. The message even has Trumpian undertones. Our country

first, posters say.

SHUKLA: Part of the AFD call for voters is about luring people away from some of Germany's largest political parties through transparency, they say.

But some of what's being discussed in this room is warped. Questioning things like the COVID pandemic and whether climate change is even real.

SHUKLA (voice-over): As the meeting concludes, many leave content with what they've heard.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translator): The AFD is finally standing up for the citizens and is slowly doing what we want. And what we want is to

be part of the government.

SHUKLA (voice-over): Omid Nouripour is part of that government. And he acknowledges that public image is partly to blame for their ailing poll

numbers.

OMID NOURIPOUR, HEAD OF GERMANY'S GREEN PARTY: No doubt that we have to improve a lot of things, especially the performance of our coalition or

giving the impression that we just shout at each other. We are not. But the feeling is there and we have to improve that.

SHUKLA (voice-over): Following an explosive investigation from the news outlet Correctiv, AFD lawmaker, Dr. Hans-Christoph Berndt hailed the so-

called remigration plan discussed as a promise.

At this hotel, far-right leaders suggested mass deportations, including for German citizens of foreign origin.

HANS-CHRISTOPH BERNDT, HEAD OF ALTERNATIVE FOR GERMANY, BRANDENBERG (through translator): It is not only legitimate, it is necessary to think

about remigration.

Since 2015, more than 10 million foreigners have entered the country and a large proportion of them are not willing to integrate and live in German

society but are instead building parallel worlds. The federal government is not putting the interests of the indigenous population first.

SHUKLA (voice-over): In the real world, the report sparked waves of anti- AFD protests. Berndt's response is to shout conspiracy.

BERNDT (through translator): Yes, without the government campaign, people wouldn't be out in the street. I am very positive.

SHUKLA (voice-over): Sebastian Shukla, CNN, Brandenburg, Germany.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ANDERSON: Well, the AFD has tried to distance itself from the reported secret meetings, saying it was not an official party event.

Well, new warnings about the danger of the metaverse coming from Interpol in what is a newly published white paper. The law enforcement agency wants

to make people aware of potential metacrimes, such as grooming, radicalization, cyber, physical attacks on critical infrastructures.

That means that 3D virtual and cultural property could be stolen. Well, the warning is also about how private virtual spaces could be hit by

trespassing.

[10:25:05]

And the robbery of avatars is also a problem of concern. This is stuff which is frankly so new to the -- what is traditional world of police

investigation. And police investigating these crimes might also be affected by facing virtual crime scenes with no physical evidence that can be

collected.

That means that evidence has the chance of simply vanishing. Now one advantage is that the metaverse does give law enforcement the chance for

immersive training in virtual crime scene preservation.

So what does all of this mean?

And how will Interpol try and stop it?

We spoke with Stephen Kavanagh, the executive director of police services at Interpol. Have a listen to the interview that we conducted.

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STEPHEN KAVANAGH, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR FOR POLICE SERVICES, INTERPOL: The challenge for the metaverse is it doesn't fit a conventional policing

model. We're used to borders. We're used to legal jurisdictions.

And if we're going to keep people safe in the metaverse, there needs to be a coordinated law enforcement voice to work with those tech companies, to

make sure they're taking responsibility for the safety of the individuals who are there.

And whether that's online police stations or safety areas but there needs to be immediate capture of that evidence and it needs to be then presented

to the jurisdictions of the location where the victim is.

We can't have this argument about, where is the metaverse?

It's not my responsibility. I think modern law enforcement needs to understand it's got to work beyond jurisdictions, it's going to work beyond

the conventional. And that's where Interpol in the modern age is going to be increasingly important.

ANDERSON: We've had, just last week, some pretty explosive congressional hearings when lawmakers at cross-examine the big tech CEOs about online

sexual exploitation and how they need to do better.

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SEN. LINDSEY GRAHAM (R-SC): Mr. Zuckerberg, you and the companies before us -- I know you don't mean it to be so -- but you have blood on your

hands.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ANDERSON: What's your sense for sort of policing perspective about what we need to do next?

Certainly we heard talk of new legislation, new regulation. It's not clear that any of this is sticking at this point.

KAVANAGH: The reality is that the level of child abuse online, the grooming, the horrific nature of what takes place is a global epidemic. But

it's a silent epidemic. And we have to mature this debate.

It's not helpful to say one group is right, one group is wrong. You're either privacy or you're not privacy. We all want privacy.

But I think we all want to take some responsibility to work more effectively to reduce this polarization and say, what can technology do?

What can other companies do?

What can law enforcement do and governments and NGOs?

ANDERSON: The metaverse is a new place with some of the most heinous crimes. The U.K. police are reportedly investigating a rape in that virtual

world. I want our viewers to hear what the U.K. home secretary said, explaining the reasoning behind this investigation.

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JAMES CLEVERLY, U.K. FOREIGN SECRETARY: I know its easy to dismiss this as being not real. but the whole point of these virtual environments is they

are incredibly immersive.

And we're talking about a child here, that someone who is willing to put a child through a trauma like that digitally may well be someone that could

go on to do terrible things in the physical realm.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ANDERSON: Let's talk about what policing in the metaverse looks like. We even have an Interpol virtual video showcasing the online efforts. Just

explain the vision if you will.

KAVANAGH: The vision is that, if you have something where your virtual asset is stolen, where you're assaulted, where your identity has been taken

from you and used in another way, then you have the opportunity to, in the virtual environment, go and report this matter.

To make sure that the evidence is captured, that there is a link quickly to the technology company and then there's some type of resolution because, at

the moment, the resolution is going to a solicitor or trying to get various environments taken down.

And that's where we need to have much more effective capabilities, not with -- not with a U.S. badge, not with a Chinese badge but with a badge that

everyone knows is independent and neutral.

ANDERSON: What does a global security architecture look like in 2024 and beyond, to your mind?

KAVANAGH: So I think that has to be about the crimes that are coming over the horizon. We're seeing, we've talked here a little bit about cybercrime,

crimes against children.

The scale of environmental crime is unmeasured in so many ways. The countries that are experiencing illegal logging, illegal mining, it has to

be about making sure that we do things once, to identify the data spots, that we analyze them and we don't just give them to the countries.

[10:30:03]

KAVANAGH: That the countries are trained to make sure they're able to deal with that and to support effective investigations.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ANDERSON: Stephen Kavanagh, one of the candidates standing for SG of Interpol later this year.

Well, still to come, Jordan celebrating a huge upset win in the Asian Cup. Fans who made the trip to Doha, frankly, this is what they were doing. They

were dancing in the stands and outside the stadium. More on that is up next.

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ANDERSON (voice-over): Well, that is the sights and sounds of Jordanian football fans celebrating after Jordan stunned South Korea on Tuesday to

reach the Asian Cup final for the first time.

The side shot down one of the tournament favorites, beating South Korea 2-0 in the semis. It is the farthest Jordan has ever gone in the Asian Cup.

Fans were literally dancing out of the stands.

The head of the Jordan Football Association is Samar Nassar. She calls the team ambassadors of happiness and she knows what it's like to compete as a

world-class athlete, as a former Olympic swimmer. Samar joining us from Doha.

It is good to have you.

Have you had much sleep?

SAMAR NASSAR, GENERAL SECRETARY, JORDAN FOOTBALL ASSOCIATION: Not really. Greetings from Doha, Becky, and it's a pleasure to be with you tonight. I'm

the general secretary of the Jordan Football Association and head by His Royal Highness, Prince Ali of Jordan.

Not much sleep, Becky, after yesterday's win --

(LAUGHTER)

ANDERSON: Well, good for you.

Why go to sleep when you have a game like that to celebrate?

[10:35:02]

Tell us about the game before we just talk about why this is so important. I mean, Musa Al-Taamari with what was a brilliant, curling strike. He

absolutely stunned what are, as I described, South Korea had to be the host, the tournament favorites.

I mean, this wasn't just a win; it was a proper win.

Tell me, how surprised were you?

NASSAR: They're not surprised, Becky. And to tell you the truth, we're not celebrating yet. We celebrated briefly on the pitch. But we're focused on

the cup, to be honest. And that's exactly what they set out to do when we came here to Doha.

We're absolutely thrilled to reach the finals of the Asian Cup for the first time ever. And we're immensely proud of our talented players and what

they were able to achieve, whether Musa Al-Taamari, Yazan Al-Naimat, all of them were champions on that -- on that pitch.

You know, Becky, despite being a small country in size but we're big in our dreams and our aspirations. And the Jordanian team showed that they're a

force to be reckoned with. Their team is called Alnashamaa, meaning chivalrous in Arabic.

And they showed us that they're really tough contenders and a force to be reckoned with. Throughout the championship, I think, from beginning, up

until the semifinals, they demonstrated remarkable discipline, commitment and showed a solid performance throughout.

ANDERSON: Listen, this has echoes of Morocco back in the World Cup in 2022. When you get a team from this region, I'm here in Abu Dhabi, I'm

talking about the wider region here of the Middle East and North Africa, the entire region gets behind the team.

There is so much support for Jordan at this point, not least because of what is going on in Gaza and the escalation around this region.

I mean, if we describe this as a team of individuals who can create some happiness, that is really not going too far at this point, Samar, is it?

NASSAR: No, not at all. Firstly, Becky, this one was no coincidence and no stroke of luck. This was a result of a well thought-out strategy. And now

we're reaping the rewards. And the rewards are much more than reaching the semifinals.

It's the happiness that these, these players, the overwhelming support and the happiness they brought into the Jordanian hearts for the past few

months, the war in Gaza has taken a toll and this win brought new energy, new hope, brought new unity to the country.

And it's wonderful to see the power of the sport, the power of this game to create change in community. Reaching the finals was undoubtedly historic

moments and it has rallied the entire country behind the national team. We saw it with the fans in the stadium, the celebrations back home and the

support of the royal family.

ANDERSON: Yes. It was Nelson Mandela who once said sport has a power to change the world. And it's on, it's on nights like this that you really

remember that and support the conceit of that argument.

And very briefly, who would you rather play in the final, Qatar or Iran?

It's 1-1 in that game as, as it goes on, as we speak.

NASSAR: It's a tough question but, to be honest, that would be great to see two Arab countries compete for the final, although it's not going to

be, it's going to be hard to play Qatar on its home grounds.

But we've seen Jordanian, the overwhelming support for Jordanian fans here in Doha. And to be honest, we don't mind who we play. This is about

football. And may the best team win. I think what's important is having our fans rally our team. The positive energy and the positive vibe that comes

with reaching to this level.

ANDERSON: Regards to you. Congratulations to the entire team getting this far, the entire team and the entire setup because its a big team behind the

lads on the pitch. And so congrats to all of you, getting this far.

And we will be watching that final and winging our support to you from around the world. Thank you so much for joining us.

We're going to take a very short break, back after this.

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ANDERSON: Victims of Turkiye's 2023 earthquake protesting in Qatar on Tuesday, 12 months on from the quake that struck Turkiye and northern

Syria. The anger, palpable. In Turkiye, more than 50,000 people were killed and in Syria close to 10,000.

One of the hardest hit cities, Hatay, this areal footage shot in the immediate aftermath. And as you can see, not much has changed. My team and

I deployed to the city of Gaziantep less than 24 hours after the earthquake struck. It was an eerie feeling, standing in front of the flattened remains

of buildings.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ANDERSON (voice-over): We had to go very, very close to the area and (INAUDIBLE) that building. (INAUDIBLE).

More than 76 hours later, three men actually emerged alive from underneath that destroyed building. But so many others lost their lives.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ANDERSON: And so many others remain in desperate need of support.

That's it for CONNECT THE WORLD. Thank you for joining us.

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