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Smartmatic Accuses OAN Execs Of Potentially Violating Privacy Laws; Defense Secy Austin Returns To Pentagon After Hospitalization; Palestinian State Media: 10 Killed As Israel Strikes UNRWA School; Israeli Protesters Block Aid Trucks From Entering Gaza At Kerem Shalom Crossing; White House Holds Briefing After 3 U.S. Troops Killed In Jordan. Aired 1:30-2p ET

Aired January 29, 2024 - 13:30   ET

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

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[13:31:38]

BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN HOST: Voting technology company, Smartmatic, is accusing executives of the pro-Trump network "One American News" of potentially engaging in criminal activity while peddling lies about the 2020 election.

Court filings from Smartmatic allege, in the immediate aftermath of the January 6th attack on the U.S. capitol, the president of OAN sent a potentially explosive email to a former Trump campaign lawyer at the center of the disinformation campaign.

CNN's Marshall Cohen is joining us live on this.

All right, walk us through Smartmatic's claims here.

MARSHALL COHEN, CNN REPORTER: Hey, Brianna. This is a wild story. According to court filings, after that 2020 election, the president of OAN, Charles Herring, sent a spreadsheet to former Trump lawyer, Sidney Powell, claiming to contain passwords of Smartmatic employees.

This came at a time, as you mentioned, when OAN and Powell were promoting baseless conspiracy theories that Smartmatic had rigged the 2020 election.

Details about this spreadsheet had not been made public before. We pieced together the story from three different court cases stemming from the 2020 election.

In one of those cases, Smartmatic is suing OAN for defamation. And in a recent filing, Smartmatic referenced this email exchange between Herring and Powell.

It is unclear how Herring got the spreadsheets or if the passwords were real. But Smartmatic says this means OAN executives, quote, "May have engaged in criminal activities because they appear to have violated state and federal laws regarding data privacy."

So a very heavy accusation, Brianna, from Smartmatic against the fringe far-right network, OAN.

KEILAR: That is some pretty wild stuff, Marshall. How is OAN responding?

COHEN: They deny wrongdoing. First of all, they deny defaming anybody. And secondly, they deny breaking the law with this supposed spreadsheet.

Charles Babcock, an attorney for the network, told CNN in a statement that, quote, "This vague accusation is a clumsy attempt to smear OAN and to divert attention away from Smartmatic's own misconduct."

Now, Brianna, the email in question was sent in January 2021. The timing is crucial. It was sent one day after the voting systems in Coffee County, Georgia, were breached by some of Sidney Powell's associates.

They were looking for evidence that would prove their fraud claims. And Powell, as you know, has pleaded guilty to state charges in Georgia stemming from that breach -- Brianna?

KEILAR: All right, Marshall, thank you. We will continue to follow this.

Still ahead, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin returning to the Pentagon after his hospitalization. Hear what he had to say about this flashpoint moment in the Middle East and for the war in Ukraine.

Plus, the number of countries suspending money to the United Nations program in Gaza is growing. New intelligence from Israel alleges that some of the agency's employees were involved in Hamas' attacks on October 7th. Ahead, why some Palestinians are calling the suspension of aid from this program a death sentence.

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[13:39:18]

KEILAR: Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin back at the Pentagon today after nearly a month away. He spent two weeks at Walter Reed and another two weeks recovering at home following complications from surgery to treat prostate cancer.

Austin came under heavy criticism for not notifying the White House or his defense chain of command for several days about his December hospitalization.

He is returning one day after three U.S. servicemembers were killed in a drone attack in Jordan, near the Syrian border.

This morning, he met with the NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg at the Pentagon.

And that is where we find Oren Liebermann.

Oren, what is Austin saying now that he is back? What's on the agenda? OREN LIEBERMANN, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Brianna, it's worth

pointing out this is the first time we've heard from Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin in the Pentagon in more than a month now.

[13:40:04]

We did hear from him once when he was in the hospital. That was a virtual meeting of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group. But this is the first time we have seen him back in the Pentagon.

You can see the video there of him meeting Jens Stoltenberg. He gave a brief opening statement there.

He said and he began with the deadly attack on U.S. forces in Jordan. He said and expressed his outrage and sorrow for the death of three brave U.S. troops in Jordan and for the others wounded.

He then spoke a little more and said the U.S. would respond. And then, for just a brief moment there, he talked about how he was feeling. He said I feel good and I am recovering well but still recovering.

We know, on Friday, he had a checkup appointment at Walter Reed Military Medical Center right before coming back Monday. Again, this is the first time he has been back in the Pentagon in approximately one month.

Obviously, an incredibly passing time, not only with that attack in Jordan but meeting the NATO secretary-general, and then, essentially, back into what is a very busy time here at the Pentagon because of the national security issues the U.S. is facing.

KEILAR: Yes, incredibly busy.

Oren, thank you from the very latest from the Pentagon.

Boris?

BORIS SANCHEZ, CNN HOST: Israeli Defense Forces have hammered Gaza in a new round of strikes. Palestinian state media says the shelling hit a school run by the main U.N. agency in Gaza, UNRWA, killing at least 10 people.

Now more than a dozen countries are suspending funding to UNRWA after Israel accused some members of that aid group of having ties to Hamas and participating in the October 7th attack in Israel.

CNN's Nic Robertson live for us in Tel Aviv.

Nic, what more are you learning about the Israeli strike in Gaza?

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: There have been two principal areas of focus for Israeli military activity today.

One has been the Khan Younis, that major -- the second-biggest city in the south of Gaza, which, incidentally, we saw rockets being fired that actually arrived in Tel Aviv, on the outskirts of Tel Aviv for the first time since the beginning of the year.

Hamas or other rockets were fired right toward the center of Israel. So the military operation was going on there, inside Khan Younis.

But it's this situation in Gaza City, which is surprising, if you will, because the IDF has been operating there for so long.

But the attention of the Israeli forces there - it's a neighborhood called Al-Rimal, which, according to Palestinian Authority officials, they report that a building there, this building housing displaced people was surrounded by Israeli troops.

There was artillery fire. There was gunfire. This resulted in some of the deaths.

They also say, nearby, in the same larger military operation, there were four ambulance workers were killed when two ambulances were hit by Israeli jets.

Now the IDF hasn't responded to queries about this incident yet but it does show you how intense the fighting is in the north and in the south of Gaza as well.

And to these reports that are been shared with CNN about the allegations Israel has made against UNRWA, some of them are quite detailed.

We understand, that of these 13 people alleged to be involved, six of these employees actually went into Israel as part of Hamas' operation. Four of them were involved in bringing back hostages into Gaza.

And another three were sent text messages telling them where to report on the morning of the attack and that they would get weapons. Not clear if they took part in the attack. That's not clear if they actually took part in the attacks.

So these are quite detailed allegations that are already causing many countries, half of the 20 principal donor nations supporting UNRWA, to withdraw funding, which, in Gaza, is causing a concern about the lack of humanitarian aid.

There is another cause for concern over that and that is that some of the humanitarian aid convoys are getting blocked. When we went to look at protesters, Israeli protesters blocking those convoys yesterday.

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ROBERTSON (voice-over): In southern Israel, protesters snake through fields, dodging police checkpoints, eventually forced to walk.

(on camera): So, we're getting close to the border now. There are a lot of police and a lot of soldiers here, but it seems that people can just pass through.

(voice-over): They've come, a hundred or so, to Kerem Shalom, Israel's only functioning border crossing to Gaza, to block aid trucks. (on camera): Did the army and police stop you?

SEFI BENCHAIM, PROTEST ORGANIZER: They would. Now they tried, but we came a lot of people and they are with us because well --

ROBERTSON (voice-over): A pause as he finds the right words that the soldiers sympathize with them.

BENCHAIM: All of us, we're the same. We have the same kids inside Gaza.

(SHOUTING)

[13:45:01]

ROBERTSON (voice-over): Sefi organizes the protests. In the last four days, they have effectively shut the border. Their demand? No aid until all hostages are --

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SANCHEZ: We are going to cut away from this piece because National Security Council spokesperson, John Kirby, is taking the podium in the White House press room. We want to bring you his remarks live.

Let's listen.

JOHN KIRBY, NSC COORDINATOR FOR STRATEGIC COMMUNICATIONS: -- what is required to protect ourselves, to continue that mission, and to respond appropriately to these attacks.

I know the first set of questions I'm going to get are: What does that look like? What's appropriate? And what response options is the president considering?

I hope you can understand why I'm not going to telegraph any punches from the podium, nor will I get in front of the president or his decision-making.

He met twice with the national security team, yesterday and today. He is weighing the options before him.

As he said yesterday, we will respond. We'll do that on our schedule, in our time. And we'll do it in a manner of the president's choosing as commander-in-chief.

We will also do it fully cognizant of the fact that these groups, backed by Tehran, have just taken the lives of American troops. And I think I will leave it there.

Quickly, on one other topic, over the weekend -- no, sorry -- over the weekend, national security adviser, Jake Sullivan, held more than 12 hours of meetings in Bangkok with his counterpart from the People's Republic of China, Director Wang Yi.

Mr. Sullivan and Director Wang took stock of progress on key issues following the meeting between President Biden and President Xi back in November.

And that includes discussing efforts to resume military to military communication, which has occurred, addressing artificial intelligence safety and risks, and advancing bilateral counter narcotics cooperation.

In fact, the launch of a working group on counter narcotics will begin tomorrow in Beijing. A delegation will be led by Deputy Homeland Security Advisor Jen Daskal.

The two sides also held constructive discussions on global and regional issues, including those related to Russia's war against Ukraine, the Middle East, of course, the DPRK, South China Sea and Burma. And they also discussed cross-strait issues.

With that, I'll take questions.

UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Thanks, John. A couple of questions. Can you confirm the initial report suggesting that the attack drone that killed U.S. forces was misidentified for a U.S. drone returning to the base?

KIRBY: I cannot.

UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Can you update us on has the U.S. definitively confirmed attribution of the attack beyond vaguely Iran-backed militias? Is there a specific militia group?

KIRBY: We are still working through that right now.

UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: You said that the president was still weighing options. Does that mean he has not made a decision on how he wants to respond?

KIRBY: I won't get ahead of his decision-making. He met twice with the national security team, including us, not long ago. When we have something to speak to, we will speak to it.

UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Will we hear directly from the president? Will he speak to the American people about this attack and his response when it happens?

KIRBY: He mentioned yesterday in South Carolina. I don't have anything on his schedule to speak to. But I have no doubt he will continue to communicate with the American people about how important it is that these missions continue and that our troops and facilities are safe.

UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Lastly, has the president directed any change to force posture in the region to protect the American troops there?

KIRBY: We don't talk about force posture changes one way or another. And we don't preannounce them, particularly when it comes to areas on the ground that are under threat.

I can just tell you that the president is confident the Defense Department under Secretary Austin will do what they've got to do to look after force protection issues.

UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: John, do you expect the president would go to Dover for the dignified transfer when these Americans are returned to the United States?

KIRBY: I don't have anything on his schedule to speak to.

UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Given the fact that while there are Americans in harm's way, it has been a while since we had this kind of incident resulting in death.

Is it a consideration of the public type of response? There are a range of responses the president could use, going from military strikes to cyber or sometimes things the public cannot see.

Do you believe this event rises to a level where whatever the president's decision is it would have a public -- we would know --

KIRBY: You're going to know. Well, again, without getting ahead of the president's decision-making -- I want to do that. And as I said in my opening statement, I'm not going to telegraph punches.

We will make these decisions on our own time, as I said. The president will choose for himself how he wants to respond.

And as I said in the opening statement, we will do it fully cognizant of the fact that now and just and with what happened, American lives have been taken.

[13:50:00]

And so his decisions, whatever they are, will be informed by all the circumstances. What that looks like and when that comes, I'm not able to say right now.

UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: What in this strike in Jordan fundamentally different from what Americans have been facing for months now? In other words, does the U.S. believe it was a deliberate attempt at escalation?

KIRBY: Fundamentally different now because we have three families who just got the worst possible news. That is different.

In the scope of the wounded, more than 30 injured, some seriously. That is also different. And it's possible the number of wounded could go up.

As you may know, traumatic brain injury symptoms, for instance, do not present right away. And that is a very serious physical injury.

But look, it is -- this was not the first drone attack on an American facility in the region. There have been others.

The fact that this one had lethal consequences does not mean that the previous ones were not intended by these Iran-back militias to have that same effect. This time, they killed Americans and they wounded a lot of them. It

does not mean that they would not prefer that outcome in the past.

UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Officials told ABC News confirming how the troops there had mistakenly identified the drone as one of their own. Can you talk about how this might have gotten past the defense systems?

KIRBY: I think I will let the Defense Department talk about the forensics on this. I am sure they are already picking it apart and trying to figure out how this happened. It would be inappropriate for me to get into that.

UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Can you (INAUDIBLE) you didn't rule out a strike in (INAUDIBLE). Can you talk a little bit about the array of options in front of the press today and, for instance, could this be in phases? Could we see a smaller scale or a larger scale? What are the options --

(CROSSTALK)

KIRBY: No, I'm not going to do that. I appreciate the question. That's why I tried to take that out of consideration in my opening statement. I am not going to -- I'm simply not going to talk about that.

UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Could this complicate the ongoing ceasefire negotiations to release more hostages?

KIRBY: There's no reason that -- whatever our response is, there is no reason for that of an impact in our ability to try to get these hostages released.

As I said last week and I can say today, those discussions are ongoing and we believe they have been constructive and are moving in a good direction.

Don't want to sound sanguine here. There is a lot of work left to be done. We do not have an imminent deal to speak to. But based on the discussions we have had over the weekend and in recent days, we feel it is moving in a good direction.

UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Thank you, John. How does the president balance the desire to not see escalation in the region with a decision to respond?

KIRBY: That is the hard part, isn't it, Jeff. That is what being commander-in-chief is all about, is acting in accordance with our national security interests.

What is unacceptable to those interests and what has to be done to protect those interests. There is no easy answer.

That is why the president is meeting with his national security team and weighing the options before him. He will do that as he has in the past in a careful and deliberate way, so our interests are best preserved. UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Has the president or administration

communicated via third-party to Iran what message you are saying about not wanting to have escalation?

KIRBY: I am not aware, as you and I are speaking, that there has been a private message relayed to leaders in Iran. We have done that in the past. As you and I are speaking right now, I am not aware of such a mechanism.

UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: On the hostages, can you give us an update on the latest there and what you expect in terms of ceasefire?

KIRBY: Again, the discussions have been pretty constructive. I want to be careful here because I do not want to say anything that would torpedo the deal we are trying to put in place.

But what we are trying to work on is another humanitarian pause of sufficient duration that will allow a large number of hostages to be released.

As you have seen in the past, and we did this back in November, you have got to have a pause in the fighting to get them safely out. That is what we are aiming at.

And of course, if you get that period of time, whatever it ends up being, you can take advantage of it to get more humanitarian assistance.

Certainly, when there is a pause in the fighting, there will be a reduction in civilian casualties, which is also a goal of ours.

M.J. LEE, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Admiral, can you confirm, is the president currently actively considering potential attacks inside Iran?

KIRBY: We are not looking for a war with Iran. We are not seeking a conflict with the regime in a military way. As I said in the opening, we are not looking to escalate here.

[13:55:08]

This attack over the weekend was escalatory, make no mistake about it. It requires a response, make no mistake about that. I will not get ahead of the president's decision-making.

LEE: You are not saying either way whether striking inside of Iran --

(CROSSTALK)

KIRBY: We are not looking for a war with Iran, M.J. I am not going to speak to the president's decisions.

LEE: The administration assessment for a number of days has said that Iran does not want a direct war with the U.S. either. Does yesterday change that assessment?

KIRBY: I am not at liberty to discuss or to speculate about what the supreme leader wants or does not want.

Clearly, these attacks continue and now they have had lethal consequences. We know these groups are supported by Iran, make no mistake about that. We know that.

This administration has taken action in the past to hold them accountable and we have taken action over the last three years to hold Iran accountable for a range of activities.

We have issued more than 500 sanctions, or 500 entity sanctions just since we came into office, as well as changing our force posture in the Middle East appropriately.

I mean, we will continue to look at the options that are available to us.

LEE: Can you say now whether the attack yesterday was at Iran's direct urging or was this more of a proxy group that was mostly acting on its own?

KIRBY: I am not going to talk about intelligence issues. We know Iran supports these groups. To the degree at which they order and direct is something that intelligence analysts will look at.

We know they support them, we know they resource them and we know they trained them and we know they are not discouraging these attacks, whether it is attacks by the Houthis, what Hamas did on the 7th of October, what Hezbollah has proven capable of doing and now what these militia groups continue to do in places like Iraq and Syria and now in Jordan.

LEE: On the UNRWA controversy, Israel says that they have information about 13 employees who are connected to the October 7th attack. Do you have any reason to believe that might have been more widespread? That there could be information that later would indicate it is beyond those 13 people?

KIRBY: I have not seen any information that affirmatively makes that case. That it is more than 13. Last week, we were looking at a dozen.

That is why investigation is so important here, so we can look at the scope of the problem set. But you have 13,000 employees, the U.N. Relief and Works Agency. You have 13,000 in Gaza alone.

As I said last week, let's not impugn the good work of a whole agency because of the potential bad actions here by a small number.

I am not dismissing the seriousness of the allegations against those employees. And whether there will be more that are found, hopefully the investigation will give us more insight.

It is important -- the UNRWA staff and commissioner-general and the U.N. Secretary-General Gutierrez, last week, made it clear that they are taking this seriously. That is our expectation, too.

It is really important that this investigation be as thorough and as transparent and as credible as possible. And we're going to be watching closely.

LEE: Thank you.

UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: John, can I push you more on the hostages and the linkage between the hostages and whatever action you guys decide to take?

One of the things that you talked about on October 7th is how intertwined the region is, whether it is Lebanon, Hezbollah, Hamas, or Iran, the Houthis, and the difficulty with not wanting to set fire and a spark in one place that then goes around the region.

What gives you any confidence that if you are close to a deal on hostages and the president orders a strike that that deal does not fall apart as a result of outrage and anger in the region at the actions of the United States?

How does the president make that calculation, given six Americans are still in Gaza and the other hostages and everything else?

KIRBY: I did not say we are confident. We are mindful of the way some actors in the region are trying to make connections across the region.

What I said was, there is no reason why our work on a hostage deal needs to be affected or impacted by what happened over the weekend or what we do about what happened over the weekend, and we will respond.

We want to keep the work going, our shoulder to the wheel on this hostage deal and we will have to see where it goes.

I also want to repeat what I said earlier. We are not overly sanguine here. We're not cocky.