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Anderson Cooper 360 Degrees

Shots Fired, Officer Critically Wounded, Suspect Dead in Atlanta; CDC Employee Says He Saw Man Approach Steps, Pull Out A Rifle, And Shoot At Building; President Trump Says He'll Meet Putin In Alaska Next Friday; Israel Faces Backlash Over Plans For Expanded War In Gaza; British PM Says Move "Would Only Bring More Bloodshed"; Police: Officer Killed In Atlanta Shooting; Netanyahu Insists Israel Is "Not Going To Occupy Gaza". Aired 8-9p ET

Aired August 08, 2025 - 20:00   ET

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

JIM SCIUTTO, CNN HOST: Barry, quickly your thoughts and a word.

BARRY LEVINE, AUTHOR, "THE SPIDER INSIDE THE CRIMINAL WEB OF JEFFREY EPSTEIN AND GHISLAINE MAXWELL": Listen, for the sake of the survivors, let's get the entire FBI file released. That's what we really want to see.

The grand jury testimony is going to tell us extremely little. We need to see the complete transparency. What Pam Bondi promised us initially. We'll see if that happens.

Barry Levine, Terri Austin, thanks so much and thanks so much to all of you for joining us. I'm Jim Sciutto in tonight for Erin Burnett, "AC360" starts right now.

[20:00:34]

JOHN KING, CNN HOST: Tonight on 360, shots fired in Atlanta. Police believe the gunman was targeting the Centers for Disease Control.

Also tonight, the President names a date and a place for his summit with Vladimir Putin. The question now, where will it leave Ukraine?

And later, remembering the astronaut who was calm, cool and commanding enough for Tom Hanks to play him and when it counted to get Apollo 13 and his crewmates back home.

Good evening, everyone. John King here in for Anderson. Tonight, a night of big breaking news. And we begin with this in a story that began just before 5:00 P.M. Eastern Time with many shots fired.

(GUNSHOTS)

KING: That's what it sounded like.

A long gun being fired over and over again near the campus of Atlanta's Emory University. Also, just steps away from the CDC, the Centers for Disease Control, which, as you can see here, was hit and according to police, was apparently the target.

Just before airtime, we got video from across the street from a local CVS Pharmacy with police out front. More shots fired.

GUNSHOTS

KING: By the time it was all over, a police officer was shot, critically wounded. We're waiting for an update on his condition and the gunman was dead on the scene. A short time later, we learned his target may indeed have been the CDC. And the motive may have involved the COVID vaccine.

CNN's Ryan Young, not far from the shooting site, he joins us right now. Ryan, what more are we learning tonight about a possible motive here?

RYAN YOUNG, CNN SENIOR NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: John, first of all, before we get to that, we just got an update from the Atlanta Police Department that the DeKalb County Police Department will hold a news conference at 8:30 about the condition of the officer who was shot in this. And we know that officers rushed them to a local hospital nearby. That interim chief and there a CEO of that county is with the family right now. We have not been given an update on that officer.

When you talk about a possible motive in this case, our John Miller got a really great piece of reporting that, according to authorities who have talked to the family, they believe the suspect blamed the CDC for an illness that he possibly had and that that illness came from the COVID vaccine and that's why he was targeting the CDC.

I can tell you early on, around 4:55, close to 5:00, when my source first called me, they believe the CDC was the target of the shooting as well, and it took some time to confirm because it was so close to the university.

What we do know is those people who were inside the CVS and outside saw a man with a long rifle taking aim at the CVS and started shooting over and over again. That video that you showed, those 30 shots that really echoed throughout the streets here. This is a very busy area.

Traffic was going back and forth that DeKalb officer responded very quickly and took that shooter on. We know shots were exchanged. At some point, they found that shooter on the second floor of the CVS, and apparently that person had some injuries at that point, and they're not sure if the officer did that shooting or whether or not he did a self-inflicted gunshot wound.

The mayor, the police chief and the FBI all talked within the last ten minutes. Take a listen to the Mayor of Atlanta, Andre Dickens, talk about this shooting and the response.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MAYOR ANDRE DICKENS, ATLANTA, GEORGIA: There were shots being fired, calls -- or shots being fired right there in front of the CDC, and then shots fired inside of the CVS. And so, you're hearing, you know, everyone responded. It was hundreds of officers as well as fire rescue. And at this time, we've spoken with Emory President Fenves, as well as all of the individuals at the CDC. The leadership there, and the leadership of DeKalb County, et cetera.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

YOUNG: John, to be clear about this, I asked the Police Chief Schierbaum, whether or not this was connected to the COVID vaccine and the CDC, they did not want to answer that right now, of course, this is in the middle of the investigation. So obviously that reporting fresh, and of course, they didn't want to say that on camera just right now. What they're still trying to do is gather all the evidence from the scene, especially with the shell casings and the evidence that includes this officer.

Now, I know around the area there is a lot of surveillance video that they have on the scene that they're able to shoot and look at. So, that's a part of the situation as well. But hold on one second. Here comes the update that's happening right now.

[20:05:35]

CHATA SPIKES, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC AFFAIRS FOR THE ATLANTA POLICE DEPARTMENT: You may want to get this back because I do have another update. I do have another update.

YOUNG: This update is happening right now.

SPIKES: I want to give everybody a chance who needs to put their mic.

YOUNG: So we're not sure to be said right now.

They actually asked us to go to another site for the update for the hospital scene. Now, we have another update coming from the spokesperson from the Atlanta Police Department that they're trying to give us all a chance to hear. So, this is still a very fluid situation with hundreds of officers still around the area.

One thing they did confirm is the fact that there was only one shooter. They did clear a lot of buildings at this point. So, we'll see what happens.

All right, so it looks like they're going to announce maybe a change in who's doing the investigation, but let's see what happens here.

SPIKES: All right, is everyone ready?

Guys, because I'm not going to wait much longer, is everyone ready?

All right, so right now, what we can tell you, since we walked away from the podium, we do have an update. The GBI is going to take the lead on the entire investigation. That's the first update.

The second update is the officer was transported to the Emory University Hospital. I know earlier we stated Grady, but it was Emory University Hospital on Clifton Road. I cannot tell you which campus on the portion of the campus on Clifton road, but it is Emory University Hospital. If I get further updates, I will do my best to come back to the podium to update you because this is evolving.

Our chief is Atlanta Police Department Chief Darin Schierbaum is headed to the hospital there. He will meet the DeKalb County Interim Chief, Chief Patrick.

So for any other updates, we'll try to do them here at the podium. If not, we will update you via social media. Thank you everyone.

YOUNG: Chata Spikes from the Atlanta Police Department.

The GBI will now be taking part of this investigation. They'll be taking over everything. So, now we're hearing that that update at the hospital will happen with the interim police chief at DeKalb.

I told you, John, this is a very fluid situation. One thing that was confirmed today is no one else was injured during the shooting. We know the shooter was taken down. We know the officer was shot.

And then of course, the 92 children that were in that daycare that were trapped, we're told they're all okay. Their parents behind us who want to get their kids, we were told all those kids are safe and sound at this point.

John, back to you.

KING: It is remarkable, given how busy that spot is, that nobody else, only the shooter, is struck tonight and obviously the police officer and we wish him the best as we wait for that update.

Ryan Young, please stick around.

Just before we came on the air, I spoke with a CDC employee who witnessed the shooting. He does not want to be named, but listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KING: Sir, very much appreciate your time. I just want to walk through. Where were you and what exactly did you see?

WITNESS: Sure, so I was leaving campus. If you've seen the video, there's the intersection with CDC on one side and CVS on the other. I was sitting at the light waiting for it to get green. I noticed a gentleman sort of walking on the sidewalk with what I thought looked like fishing gear at first.

And then he sort of made a left, walked up a couple of steps in front of CVS, put his backpack down. That's when I realized that they were -- I think I saw two rifles, but I can't be certain. But by the time just before the light went green, he raised the rifle sort of at an angle and started firing into CDC's campus.

KING: And from your perspective, you're certain, right? That's what the authorities now believe. The CDC, not Emory, was the target, but they're right side by side right there.

WITNESS: I would say that the that he was aiming at, Building 21, is on the opposite side is on sort of the furthest side from Emory's campus. But yes, I mean, it was certainly targeted directly at CDC.

KING: And you say, you believe he had two rifles. He was firing one of them -- how many shots did you hear?

WITNESS: Let's see, probably six or seven shots. But I pulled away, I got a few hundred yards down the road called 911, spoke to the 911 operator for about three minutes until the person told me that they were starting to get additional reports of what was going on.

So then I hung up. I drove a little further down the road, pulled off the side of the road to make sure that my wife and the kids were no longer at the daycare, and the shooting went on for several minutes after that.

KING: And you say you spoke to a 911 operator for about three minutes and then was told they were getting additional calls? Do you believe you may have been the first person to call?

WITNESS: I can't speculate on that.

KING: Okay, you made a very important point in the last part. The mayor has said there were 92 kids at the daycare center on the CDC campus there. That's where your children were, sir and your wife ended up picking them up and they're safe?

[20:10:24]

WITNESS: Yes, my wife ended up -- I usually do pick up because I work there. The kids are right there. But as luck would have it, she got off work a little early, and went to pick them up, and they left about ten minutes before the shooting started. But we have friends and their kids who were on lockdown. I have very close colleagues who were locked down in the office at CDC, you know, cowering in or sort of sheltering in place, so, yes.

KING: You're a CDC employee. You witnessed this shooter pull a rifle out of a backpack and start firing toward the CDC.

WITNESS: Yes.

KING: Could he have walked onto the campus, or are you confident that someone who was there just about every day, there's adequate security, which is why he had to shoot from a distance and thankfully, no civilians. There has been an officer hurt, but no civilians have been shot.

WITNESS: Yes, and my thoughts go out to the officer's family, but I really don't know why he can just walk across the street. There was nothing to prevent him from you know, it's a public sidewalk. There are demonstrations there, not infrequently. So, maybe just luck. I don't know. KING: Sir, we're grateful for your time tonight and obviously your quick response to that 911 call contributed to the quick response from law enforcement. So, in addition to being happy, you're safe and your children are safe. Thank you so much.

WITNESS: Well, hopefully I played some part in the quick response but, you know, I'm just glad to see the flotilla of police cars going as quickly as they could soon after.

KING: Thank you sir.

WITNESS: Thank you.

(END AUDIO CLIP)

KING: We're told there could be another update from the authorities on the scene in this hour. We'll bring that to you, of course, when it happens.

Let's get some perspective now from CNN's Josh Campbell. He's a former FBI special agent. Also, the former FBI Deputy Director John Pistole.

John Pistole, let me start with you. From what you heard from the briefings before and what you just heard from that eyewitness who's a bit of a hero himself for quickly calling 911, if you were on the scene, what are your major questions now that you've heard some pieces of the evidence come forward?

JOHN PISTOLE, FORMER FBI DEPUTY DIRECTOR: Well, sure, John, and key that has been addressed is what was his motive? Was it because of some illness, whether physical stemming from COVID 19 or is there some type of mental illness that drove him to conduct that attack, if you will? And then the question was, did he kill himself? Was it suicide by cop? Or he wanted to be killed after doing some damage?

What message and what motive was he sending by conducting that shooting and ending his life, either by himself or the who was shot also? So, those are some of the questions.

And anytime there's an active shooter when -- especially when it's near a university campus such as where I was a president of university ten years after FBI and TSA, there's a crisis response plan for each university, just as there are for government agencies.

And so, trying to distinguish between Emory, the university with, what, 15,000 or 16,000 students between undergrad and graduate students, and then the CDC campus and what are the crisis response protocols and how do they deconflict if there is something where it goes across boundaries, if you will, physical boundaries.

So, those are some of the things that they'd be looking at and trying to discern and then get to the key questions about was he acting alone? Apparently he was, based on everything that's known so far. And then the other point, which I think people always need to be looking at, it, was this some type of triggering device or triggering event where copycats or others who may be have similar grievances see this as a time to okay, now is the time to act.

So, I'm going to use this and this will be my springboard for saying, okay, the time has come, I'm going to act now. So, people, law enforcement around the country will be on high alert to say, is there something else going on that we need to be mindful of? Are all the sources that were talking to -- is anybody coming up with anything that this may be an event that spurs additional bad actors?

KING: And Josh Campbell to the point John just made, I've been at this spot many times over the years doing campaign work mostly, but being on the campus, you're right at the line between Fulton County, Atlanta, DeKalb County over there.

Police officers from both jurisdictions responded. You have federal security at the CDC site. You have a university police force at Emory University. So, you have a lot of different jurisdictions, which it sounded like from the mayor helped get a lot of officers on the scene very quickly, which was helpful, we assume, in bringing the situation to calm.

But now you also have a lot of bodycams, a lot of radio traffic, a lot of other things to piece together in addition to the surveillance cameras from the CVS and the gates at the CDC and the gates at Emory University. How do you put all this together?

[20:15:22]

JOSH CAMPBELL, CNN SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: Well, it's going to require a lot of resources and as we just heard, the Georgia Bureau of Investigation is now going to lead. But we do know that they also working with Atlanta Police, as well as the FBI's Atlanta Field Office, which was brought in -- that brought numerous resources, including the tactical agents during that first response.

They have evidence response team members who will help process the actual scene. And there's a big question here about the motivation. And as my good friend, Deputy Director Pistole, who I had the honor of serving under, noted there that, you know, the motive is going to be key, even if the suspect is dead, they still want to get to what that actually was.

And this was a federal facility that was apparently targeted here. And so, we could expect that the FBI will continue to play a pivotal role here and working with their law enforcement partners.

Now, there is something that is worth noting here according to our John Miller reporting, that the suspect had believed that he was ill, suffering from some kind of illness, that he blamed on the COVID 19 vaccine.

None of us are mental health experts here, but that is obviously not a rational action to take to then use violence to act upon something like that. And so, there will be a question, what was actually motivating this person? Was it the cesspool of disinformation and misinformation that's out there? And the reason that's important, even though he's deceased, is because the FBI goes back and studies all of these incidents trying to learn what were the red flags, what were the warning signs in order to help possibly stop the next one?

KING: Gentlemen, I appreciate the hustle.

Josh Campbell, John Pistole, and please stand by if we get an additional update tonight. We may need to come back to you and we will come back to this story throughout the hour as the developments warrant.

But next, tonight's other big breaking news story, the President of United States announcing he'll be meeting with the Russian President, Vladimir Putin, on U.S. soil one week from today.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[20:21:34]

KING: Continuing at this moment to follow developments in the CDC shooting in Atlanta, we will bring you the latest if more comes in.

But right now, let's turn to the President's announcement that his meeting next week with Vladimir Putin will be taking place on American soil, quoting the President from his social media, "The highly anticipated meeting between myself as President of the United States of America and President Vladimir Putin of Russia will take place next Friday, August 15, 2025, in the great state of Alaska." Further details to follow.

The President adding, as he often does these days, "Thank you for your attention to this matter."

His announcement came not long after he spoke to reporters, flanked by the leaders of Armenia and Azerbaijan.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP (R) PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: I'll be meeting very shortly with President Putin. It would have been sooner, but I guess their security arrangements that unfortunately people have to make. Otherwise I'd do it much quicker. He would to -- he'd like to meet as soon as possible.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KING: The big announcement came toward the end of a day that was supposed to be a deadline for Putin to either reach a ceasefire in its war on Ukraine or face new American sanctions. That has not happened.

According to Ukraine's President Zelenskyy, Russian forces launched more than a hundred drone strikes against his country overnight. Just the latest salvo in Russia's war on Ukrainian civilians, which began wholesale with its full scale invasion nearly three and a half years ago.

The question hanging over both the upcoming summit and the press conference today, territory which Russia now holds in Eastern Ukraine, and whether any cease fire deal would include Moscow keeping it. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: You're looking at territory that's been fought over for three and a half years with, you know, a lot of Russians have died, a lot of Ukrainians have died. So, were looking at that, but were actually looking to get some back and some swapping -- it's complicated.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KING: The President would not specify further, however, just as reminder, a very important reminder. President Putin certainly has repeatedly including this just a couple of weeks ago at an economic summit in Saint Petersburg, Putin telling reporters he considers Russians and Ukrainians to be one people and quote, "In that sense, the whole of Ukraine is ours."

He also cited a parable saying, "We're the foot of a Russian soldier steps, that is ours."

Joining us with more are CNN chief White House correspondent and anchor of "The Source," Kaitlan Collins. Kaitlan, what more are we hearing about the plans for this summit and why Alaska?

KAITLAN COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR AND CHIEF WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: I mean, John, it's fascinating just how fast all of this came together. It was about 48-hours ago that we had heard from White House officials that they were on the prospect of having an in-person summit between Trump and Putin.

There were still a lot of questions of how quickly this could come together. I mean, you heard the President there frustrated that it's not happening faster than a week from today, but this is what they've agreed on. There were some questions about meeting in the Middle East, meeting other countries.

Putin can't really go to Europe because there's an ICC arrest out, a warrant out for his arrest if he if he steps foot in any of the countries that are party to the ICC. And so, Alaska it is.

It is remarkable to think that Putin will be in the United States one week from today for the first in-person meeting with Trump since Trump took office. And the key questions remain, though, about what exactly this is going to look like and what any deliverables there are, if any, coming out of this, because all of these challenges remain when it comes to, you heard the President talking about swapping territory earlier.

Russia has wanted to take the land that it illegally annexed back in 2014. The regions that it's taken since then, some of them still under Ukrainian control. There are real questions about what that's going to look like, because Ukraine has been adamantly opposed to giving any more territory to Russia.

And then there's questions about what Ukraine wants to get out of this, which are security guarantees. They still want NATO membership. Russia has said it is adamantly opposed to that. [20:25:22]

And so, there are a lot of thorny issues here. And then, of course, the question of how the President himself handles this. He has long said that he is someone he believes could bring this to an end. He's tried to get this war ended since he first took office, and its proven to be elusive and incredibly challenging for him. And the way he's even talked about Putin has changed in recent weeks.

And so, with this -- with the question of the secondary sanctions given, that was the deadline today, with the President doubling sanctions or doubling tariffs on India this week for buying Russian oil. There are so many questions that are going to seek to be answered by next Friday. It remains to be seen how many actually get answered -- John.

KING: That's a big remains to be seen. All caps, bold face.

COLLINS: Yes.

KING: Kaitlan Collins. Thanks, we'll of course see you at the top of the hour for "the source" for more on the Trump-Putin summit on U.S. soil is playing in Ukraine.

I'm joined by CNN's Nick Paton Walsh, who's staying up very late for us tonight in Kyiv.

Nick, the war is in Ukraine, the war is on Ukraine. President Trump talks about a meeting with Putin and hardly mentions the President of Ukraine. What is the reaction there?

NICK PATON WALSH, CNN CHIEF INTERNATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: Yes, I mean, obviously late at night here, we've not heard a specific reaction to this Alaska plan.

And indeed, Trump did point out how he felt Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy would be able to force through whatever kind of deal, essentially is presented to him, or he is party to. We don't know that key element through Parliament, through the political elite here.

Look, this potentially is a complex and difficult moment for Ukraine period.

As you said, there's no suggestion that there has to be a follow on summit to trilateral with Trump Putin and Zelenskyy together. And indeed, we are looking a bit like we did months ago, where the Americans and Russians in the Gulf talked about what kind of peace deal might suit them.

And indeed floated around the past hours ahead of the announcement of location and time of this summit was the idea, according to one European official, I spoke to, that Ukraine might have to give up what it still holds in Donetsk and Luhansk region. That's half of the territorial goals that Putin had for this war. Ukraine's forces are surrounded, almost encircled nearly in two key towns there, but properly controlled two others in Donetsk. And so, the idea of them having to pull back without a fight there or being forced out by the Russians, it's going to be hard for many Ukrainians to swallow potentially politically toxic in the long term for Zelenskyy.

And I think it's a window, really, as to how this deal is being done. Essentially, the Russians saying this is what we'd like and the Americans working out how much of that they can sell past their European allies and Ukraine.

What does Ukraine get back? What, maybe a ceasefire. You heard Trump there talking about swapping of territories. It's hard to see what significant things Ukraine could get back. Maybe Russia pulls out of the border areas in the north that its moved into, saying the Kremlin does that it wants to create a buffer zone there.

But look, we're into a very messy week, potentially Ukraine not at the table initially, the Russians talking about future further summits in Russia, about economic cooperation in the Arctic, trying to recast this as a U.S.-Russian summit of their relations, getting back on track. But the Ukraine matter is something which they may simply find a deal that they have to stomach presented to them.

One more important point, Putin is getting himself certainly a week here from secondary sanctions, potentially longer if this yields are longer technical discussions and maybe the Ukrainians getting involved and their European allies, too. They're making fast progress on the front line, being no doubt about that. And some of the territory were talking about now may indeed change hands in the weeks or months ahead. Putin getting a little bit more time and rest by here to pursue that.

So far, fairly successful summer offensive and stave off the secondary sanctions against India and China, its key energy customers. They were both on the phone to Moscow today. Maybe they've tried to influence this going forwards. Publicly, they've been quite resistant to U.S. pressure though -- John.

KING: Remarkable week ahead as we watch this play out. Nick Paton Walsh, again, grateful staying up to give us that great reporting.

And joining me here now to continue the conversation, our CNN global affairs analyst, Brett McGurk. He's a former Middle East North Africa coordinator for the National Security Council. I don't really know where to begin because there are so many questions. Let me start with this one. Again, the tone from the President of the United States that this is a deal that he can make with Putin. What about Ukraine?

BRETT MCGURK, CNN GLOBAL AFFAIRS ANALYST: Well, John, that's a key question. You know, there's a saying in diplomacy that if you're not at the table, you're on the menu. And so, I think that's the key question that Nick just raised here, where the Ukrainians in this?

There will be a meeting with senior officials in the U.K. in London this weekend with the Ukrainians to talk about some of this. But this is really a key question -- where are the Ukrainians? Number one.

A second, I think it reinforces what we talked about last night, John, that this is this summit has a binary outcome. There's a ceasefire at the end of it or there's not. I think Putin will come in and he'll want to fight and talk. He'll keep the war going. Let's talk, here are the new maps. Here's the proposal. Let's get into a process as the war continues. That would really be a failure.

I think the President has to come in here. He's coming in with a strong hand and has to say, look, we're leaving this summit with a ceasefire. The fighting has to stop to then get into that process. You're not going to figure all this out over the next week and over the course of a few hours in Alaska. Ceasefire, that is the objective, that has to be the aim of the summit and if Putin says, no, I won't accept a ceasefire until all this is worked out. I think you got to walk away.

[20:30:46]

KING: But there's not much in Trump's history that tells you that will happen. History can change. He can be unpredictable.

MCGURK: That's true.

KING: He has surprised us in the past. However, Putin was supposed to face new sanctions today. The president didn't say, I'm going to implement them and I'll drop them if we make progress next week. He didn't do anything.

So Putin gets at least a week, as Nick (ph) said. Putin can't go to Europe because he invaded a country. He's trying to steal a sovereign democratic nation. But he's being invited to the United States of America. Is that in itself a mistake by the president of the United States to let Vladimir Putin, aggressor, set foot on American soil? Should this not be done on a neutral third side?

MCGURK: Look, John, I don't like it. I think the optics aren't good. You could argue it, hey, you're coming to my house. These are going to be my rules. And if, it's a big if, I agree, pass this prologue, this probably won't happen. Here's what I recommend to the president, though.

You have one objective in the summit. It's a ceasefire. And like Reagan and Reykjavik in 1986, be prepared to walk away. It might look like a failed summit at the time. That's how you set the foundation for peace. Because this is a binary outcome. Ceasefire or not.

KING: He's very different. He always has been. But when he has this conversation, there might be territory swap back and forth. He often speaks about this as a real estate transaction. He's a real estate guy. Nowhere in his words, number one, he is giving Putin a platform. And Putin's the one who started this war.

He doesn't mention Ukraine. But he doesn't mention its sovereignty. And nothing, he doesn't say, you know, you mentioned you have to have a ceasefire. He also doesn't say that there has to be security commitment for Ukraine. Security guarantees for Ukraine.

Do you see Donald Trump is willing to go to a summit with Vladimir Putin and say, I'm looking you in the eye and I'm telling you, the United States will guarantee this peace? The United States and its NATO allies will guarantee this. And you understand if you violate it, what that means. Is Donald Trump prepared to say that?

MCGURK: Well, look, I can't pass his prologue, John. Probably not. But I would, I hope he can be inspired by that portrait of Ronald Reagan that he put behind the Resolute Desk in the Oval Office. And look at that Reykjavik summit in 1986. That is what you got to do here.

Otherwise, this is going to be a failure. You got to come out of it with a ceasefire. Otherwise, this is just going to continue. And Putin gets a big, gigantic win.

KING: And that --

MCGURK: And he can't give him that.

KING: Right. He's -- Putin would get yet another one.

Brett's going to stay with us as we continue the conversation.

First, we want to hear from the authorities in Atlanta, the backlash tonight also, which is why Brett is staying for the new satellite images showing Israeli forces now gathering along the Gaza border. What Israel's prime minister is saying about that ahead on 360.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[20:37:24]

KING: You're looking there at the outside of Emory University Hospital in Atlanta where any moment now we're expecting to get an update from authorities on the shooting earlier today at the CDC. Right now, let's move to the Middle East, though. This satellite image from this morning showing dozens of military vehicles at a compound just at the crossing from Israel into Gaza. That crossing sits just 2 miles from Gaza City, which Israel security cabinet has recently approved plans to capture.

This decision marks a major escalation of the conflict in a move that brings Israel closer to a full occupation of Gaza, something it has not done in nearly 20 years. That plan has drawn criticism from leaders around the world, including the prime minister of Britain who said it is wrong and will only bring more bloodshed.

The chancellor of Germany announcing his country would no longer approve any exports of military equipment that could be used by Israel in Gaza. Germany is the second largest supplier of arms to Israel behind The United States. In response, the Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu accused Germany of, quote, "rewarding Hamas terrorism."

The move by the Israeli government also spurred demonstrations in Israel. In Tel Aviv, protesters demanding the return of the hostages and an end to the war. You see them at times scuffling with police.

Back with me is Brett McGurk. Brett, we talked about this last night, and you said your -- I'm sorry, we have to take a break right now to get you down to Atlanta for the press conference.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm not going to comment on the investigation and what's going on with the investigation that's being conducted by the Atlanta Police Department, with assistance from the Georgia Bureau of Investigations. But what I can say, it is with profound sadness that we announced the loss of the life of one of our very own DeKalb County Police officers.

This officer responded to the call as he did as he was trained to do. And during that incident, he received gunfire and he lost his life in this incident. He was committed to serving the community.

At this time, we're asking for the community's prayers, for his family, his friends, his loved ones, and the entire DeKalb County Police Department family. It's a noble profession that we all do. We answer the call to serve our community, and he gave his life with a commitment to serve others, and he should be respected for that.

At this time, we are not going to release his name with respect for the family, but we will provide his name and photograph at a later time. We ask for your prayers and your thoughts during this difficult time, especially for his family and for all of the officers involved in this incident in the DeKalb County Police Department. Thank you.

[20:40:01]

LORRAINE COCHRAN-JOHNSON, DEKALB COUNTY CEO: Good evening. Of course, I'm Lorraine Cochran-Johnson, DeKalb County CEO. And today is a very dark day in DeKalb County as we stand before you during the loss of one of our beloved officers. This evening, there is a wife without a husband. There are three children, one unborn without a father. There is a mother and a father as well as siblings who also share in this traumatic loss.

This evening, my heart goes out to the family as well as the DeKalb County family and to our frontline responders, to our officers who in this case simply answered the call. These are individuals who run towards danger when we have the ability to run away.

So tonight, it is with profound sadness that I stand here and I say to all of those who serve as frontline responders and to our officers that we are here to support you and to this family and to my DeKalb County family during this time. Let's join together to give this family the support that it needs during this traumatic loss. Thank you.

KING: I want to go straight down to the scene now. CNN's Ryan Young standing by. Ryan, that's the update we were hoping went the other way. We were waiting to hear about the DeKalb County officer who was shot, hoping he would survive his injuries, but obviously an incredibly sad announcement. RYAN YOUNG, CNN SENIOR NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, John, I don't say this lightly. We've known this outcome was coming for a little bit. They were trying to make sure all the family was notified before it became national news that this officer passed.

I've talked to some sources of mine for quite some time. They say this officer got the 911 call, rushed to the scene, and as he pulled up, the shooter turned from shooting at the CDC and went right to shooting at the officer. And as it was described to me by the source, that it was almost like an ambush and he never had a chance.

We know other officers responded. I've now been able to talk to another source of mine who says that shooter had a couple handguns, shotgun, two backpacks full of ammo, ear protection, a hat, and what looked like a surgical mask to cover their face and had the earmuffs on his ear while he was shooting.

It was a fire station, fire station number one, it's just up the hill here, that heard those shots and called 911 and that DeKalb County officer was responding. There have been a lot of tears off to the side. I noticed some SWAT officers that choked up a little earlier. They obviously didn't want to talk about what they had learned about their fellow brother who had passed. This has been tough for so many people.

There's a lot of information now trying to figure out because you heard the mayor say this was someone they knew in this area. Our John Miller reporting that the family says this man believed that he was attacking the CDC because he believed he was sick because of the vaccine because of COVID. That's something that we're obviously going to have to run down.

The GBI now involved in this. But I do want to take us through that process. A lot of this is caught on video, John. They've been able to review it. They have a command center where all the officials from Atlanta are sitting up in there. This investigation is still ongoing.

The body of the shooter has not been moved just yet as they're processing that scene. But once again, this all happened right in front of that CVS near the CDC as he was shooting toward that building. John?

KING: Ryan Young, grateful for the hustle and reporting throughout this evening. We'll check back if more comes in.

I want to bring a law enforcement analyst, Josh Campbell, back in to the conversation. Josh, you worked in law enforcement for some time, so I want to get to an investigation question in a minute. But I want to begin with the heroism. As we noted earlier in the program, this is a DeKalb County officer we just heard was killed at the scene.

This happened in Fulton County. Now it is routine because it's right on the line for these agencies to routinely go back and forth to help each other, whether it's a traffic stop, whether there's, you know, any kind of crimes like that, but this is an officer who heard a call, came across the county line into a jurisdiction that's not his, to do the right thing and lost his life.

[20:45:00]

JOSH CAMPBELL, CNN SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: This is one of the few professions in this country where members of the field, they suit up each morning and go out knowing that they may not return home that night. And that is sadly what we're seeing here. We heard the county CEO there describing this is somewhat -- there's now a wife without a husband and, you know, obviously other family members that are impacted. And so obviously your heart goes out to that officer who went there towards danger as officers are trained to do in order to try to stop others from being harmed.

And I have to know just as we tie that to the reporting that we've gotten that it appears this suspect may have been motivated by some type of disdain for the COVID-19 vaccine and then decided to act upon that allegedly here with violence against the CDC. I mean, that's -- it's infuriating when you think about how conspiracy theories and misinformation and disinformation can potentially have deadly consequences.

And again, there's a lot we're still waiting to learn here, but it appears based on multiple sources that the CDC itself was a target. And so it shows you just, you know, how dangerous that can be. And then for law enforcement officers who were supposed to respond, they're the ones who face the danger whenever they're trying to protect civilians. I mean, it's infuriating, John.

KING: And because of what you just noted, help me through the jurisdictional questions. The -- now we've told the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, the state police, if you live in a state that maybe doesn't call it that way, but the Georgia Bureau of Investigation is taking the lead here. But obviously the target is a federal agency.

And what we know now, at least preliminarily about the motive, had something to do with targeting that federal agency. So what happens to the FBI and other federal law enforcement agencies in terms of how they coordinate that investigation?

CAMPBELL: Yes. One of the misnomers in Hollywood is that agencies show up and they say, we're taking over, we're in charge. It doesn't work that way. You have these agencies that work very closely, but they will try to determine who is best resource to address the investigation here. The GBI is taking the lead, but they're also working with Atlanta police as well as agents from the FBI's Atlanta field office as well.

All of them will bring different skill sets, different resources to bear. Obviously, they're going to want to run down whether there was anyone in the shooter's orbit who knew what was about to transpire. And sometimes that can be multi-jurisdictional if witnesses are in other parts of the state.

So they're all working together under this unified umbrella in order to try to get some answers. And as we've noted before, that, you know, it's not just about this case. The law enforcement learns from each case. And if there were warning signs here that were missed or other aspects in the investigation that can help save lives in the future, that is something that they'll certainly want to learn.

KING: Josh Campbell, thanks. Appreciate your patience and hustle throughout the night.

Next, we'll continue our conversation with Brett McGurk about Israel- Gaza and a very uncertain future.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[20:51:52]

KING: Our conversation with Brett McGurk a bit earlier was interrupted because of the breaking news in Atlanta. I want to return to it now.

And Brett, we were just beginning to talk about Israel's satellite photo show. It has amassed dozens of military vehicles right at the border crossing, about 2 miles away from Gaza City. Netanyahu, the Prime Minister of the Security Cabinet, has said Israel is going to take Gaza City, which would be, if they took all of Gaza, it would be the first time in nearly 20 years.

When you were here last night, you said you hoped it was a bluff to try to get Hamas back to the negotiating table, to try to get a deal to free the hostages. Where are we now?

MCGURK: It's a good question. This is like the fourth time the Israelis have said there's one more operation. And can I step back?

KING: Yes.

MCGURK: Earlier this year, we had a ceasefire, internationally backed ceasefire by the U.N. Security Council resolution. That was the deal Biden laid out. We closed that deal just before Trump came into office, got 30 hostages out, 42 days of peace and quiet.

Unfortunately, that ceasefire broke down. After that, the Israelis did two things. I think they made two very tragic mistakes. Number one, they imposed a total blockade of Gaza, 77 days with nothing getting into Gaza. That was a huge mistake. It led to this cataclysmic humanitarian crisis we're seeing.

Secondly, they launched a massive operation with five divisions called Operations Gideon Chariots. They said that was really what was going to help get the deal. We almost had a deal, as I understand it.

Ten hostages released, half the hostages for 60 days of peace. That broke down. And now where are we? Again, a new operation that seems to be very similar to the previous operations. I don't think it's going to lead to anything different.

Whether it's a bluff, John, probably not. It looks like they're prepared to do this. However, one thing, it's reported in Israel today, they're not going to start this operation until October 7th, two months. There's a lot going on here behind the scenes to try to get that hostage deal back on track. The fastest way to stop this is half the hostages.

We have a 60-day ceasefire. You've got to keep pushing that. I would have somebody out in the region every single day working this at a senior level to try to get that ceasefire in place because this is going -- this is not going to work.

KING: To that point, October 7th obviously has giant symbolic meaning, which is why the Israelis are waiting for that date. That was the date of the Hamas terrorist attack --

MCGURK: Of course.

KING: -- on Israel. But Netanyahu in social media today saying, quote, "Gaza will be demilitarized and a peaceful civilian administration will be established, one that is not the Palestinian Authority, not Hamas, and not any other terrorist organization." Then who?

MCGURK: Yes, John, you know, I worked on this. I studied this. You need about 50,000 security personnel, Palestinian-trained security personnel to help hold that ground. They don't have that because the Israelis are unwilling to work with the Palestinian Authority.

I don't think any Arab force is going to come in to Gaza. That's something the Prime Minister continues to talk about. I've been to every Arab capital talking about this. We have plans on the books. We can help. CENTCOM can help from Egypt. We have all the plans.

Until Hamas basically gives up its authority, nobody is going to come in. And until the Israelis very importantly can articulate exactly where this is going, which they've really failed to do. You know, strategy is the essence of tying a military operation to a political outcome.

And here, the Prime Minister is talking about a new Palestinian force, not the PA. Who? Who are they? You have to rally people behind something to help get support.

[20:55:04]

I helped lead the counter-ISIS campaign, built a global coalition because we had a way to articulate. Here's what's going to happen once we defeat that ISIS caliphate. Here's who's going to hold the ground. And the Israelis are not doing that. And I'm really concerned about where this is headed.

KING: But you -- I hate to interrupt, but you mentioned your work on the ground all the time. You mentioned that before. You think that should be the thing right now. Just today, the German government says it will stop sending Israel weapons it could use as offensive weapons in Gaza.

The UK Prime Minister says this is a mistake. Mr. Netanyahu, please do not do this. The French government has said, Mr. Netanyahu, please do not do this. There's a crisis, a humanitarian crisis.

Do not do this. War is -- more war is not the answer. Where's the president of the United States? Ambassador Witkoff was there, but then when it was clear the talks were not going to resume, he left and he's now involved in the Russia. Do you believe the president of the United States needs to pick a team and just land it there and leave it there?

MCGURK: Yes. Look, Steve Witkoff is doing all he can. And I worked with him back during the transition. But, yes, look, I believe the best thing to do right now in the immediate focus on the immediate. And the urgent -- what's urgent, focus with urgency. That is the humanitarian crisis and the plight of these hostages.

These videos Hamas put out of these emaciated, starving hostages, it's horrific. If I were the president, I would call for, we need a 30-day ceasefire. We're going to address the humanitarian calamity in Gaza and demand the ICRC, the Red Cross, get access to those hostages.

Do that for 30 days. Try to get something changed here. As you work behind the scenes, and the Egyptians and the countries are trying to get the ceasefire talks back on track, it will take the president to be involved. It will take his senior officials to be involved.

Look, a lot of them are doing all they can, but to your point, the Israelis did not do any diplomacy before they announced this thing last night. It led to this announcement by the Germans and the Europeans. This is going the wrong way. And, yes, it's going to take the United States to help turn it around.

KING: We'll see if that happens.

Brett McGurk, again, appreciate your patience tonight.

And as Brett noted, there are still 50 hostages being held in Gaza by Hamas. The Israeli government says it believes at least 20 of those hostages are still alive. One of those who has managed to survive is Evyatar David. He was kidnapped on October 7th at the Nova music festival.

Last week, Hamas released a propaganda video of him inside one of their tunnels. He looked extremely frail and emaciated, a video his family wants the world to see.

I had a chance to speak with Evyatar's brother, Ilay, just before air today. And in this interview, as you listen, you will see more of that Hamas propaganda video so that you can see his brother. And I just want to warn you, you might find it difficult to watch.

(BEGIN VIDEOCLIP)

KING: Ilay, it has been a horrific week for you and your family. Now a momentous moment as the prime minister says he believes that Israeli military forces should now take control of Gaza City. Let's start with that. Do you believe this is a wise move from the prime minister and the IDF? There are some who worry that it could put your brother and other hostages at risk.

ILAY DAVID, BROTHER OF HOSTAGE EVYATAR DAVID: I am worried. Actually, I'm worried every day that Evyatar is being starved right now. And it's a matter of a decision, his captors, if he's alive or not. And I'm worried because already a week has passed since they published his video as a living skeleton forced to dig his own grave. We saw how weak he is.

Doctors said it's a matter of days and he has to get the proper treatment immediately. And so I don't know if it's a smart decision or not, but I just -- I'm just worried for Evyatar's life, like every day and those days, especially seeing him like that.

KING: I know you were able to speak to some hostages who spent quite a bit of time in captivity with your brother. What did you hear from them about their experience, how harsh the conditions were? And could they give you any glimpse of how your brother was getting through this ordeal?

DAVID: Yes. So we spoke with two hostages that stayed with Evyatar for 500 days in the tunnels underground, in those filthy dungeons. When they watched the video we saw last weekend, they said, oh, my gosh, we live there. We recognize the space. They even recognized my brother's pants.

And they told us it's a horrible, horrible place. They were intentionally weakened, starved. And they were also abused by their captors. They have abusive captors, very dangerous ones. We knew that the conditions are super hard and they might die.

But knowing that he was tortured like that for so long to a point where he's in such, you know, that in this point of starvation, there's tremendous pain all over the body. The body eats himself, itself. Somehow we still have faith. I really -- I mean, he hasn't told -- he hasn't lose hope yet.

KING: Ilay David, thank you for your time at this very difficult moment, sir. Appreciate it very much.

DAVID: Thank you, John.

KING: Thank you.

(END VIDEOCLIP)

KING: And that's all for us. Appreciate your patience through the breaking news. I'm John King in for Anderson. Hope you have a peaceful weekend.

The Source with Kaitlan Collins starts now.