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Palestinians Desperate for Food as Eid Al-Adha Holiday Begins; Teen Arrested in Alleged Shooting Plot on Mall in Washington; Jane Testifies About Forced Sex Acts, Drug-Fueled Hotel Nights; AI Gone Rogue Sparks Fears About Control, Safety. Aired 2:30-3p ET

Aired June 06, 2025 - 14:30   ET

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

[14:30:00]

JESSICA DEAN, CNN HOST: Today is a time of celebration for Muslims. The holiday of Eid al-Adha has begun. But in Gaza, Palestinians who have endured Israel's 11 week blockade on humanitarian aid have little to share.

Just two sites distributing food supplies for more than two million people are open today by the controversial Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, which initially announced them closed.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MOHAMMAD AL-BOURAEI, GAZAN IN DEIR AL-BALAH (through translator): Today is supposed to be a day of Eid, of joy, happiness, celebration, a special day in the life of every Muslim. But under this aggression, after more than 600 days of attacks on Gaza and the ongoing killing and injustice upon our people, we are deprived of the most basic rights.

We can't even bring joy to our children on Eid. We can't buy them new clothes, give them Eid money to buy sweets.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

DEAN: For three straight days this week, Palestinians trying to feed themselves have come under fire, leading to the deaths of at least 60 people. That's according to the Palestinian Health Ministry.

Israel's military denies shooting on civilians at the aid sites. In one instance, they say they fired when suspects were deviating from the access route. Joining us now, Arwa Damon, the founder and president of the International Network for Aid, Relief and Assistance, also known as INARA. She's visited Gaza four times since the conflict began.

Arwa, thank you so much for being here with us. We really appreciate it. I just want to start first -- I know you work a lot with children. How are they experiencing this catastrophic food shortage and the desperate need for food there?

ARWA DAMON, FOUNDER AND PRESIDENT, INTERNATIONAL NETWORK FOR AID, RELIEF AND ASSISTANCE: It's indescribable. I mean, think about what a child needs to sort of maintain their innocence and joyfulness. They need a sense of security. They need a loving home. They need a healthy learning environment. And they need stability.

Children in Gaza have none of that. And none of the sort of pillars of stability, be it parents or institution like a school, that used to be able to provide, you know, a sense of safety for a child. Children know that their parents can't keep them safe.

And they're hungry. They are starving. And they turn to mom and dad, you know, assuming that they're both alive. In many cases, you know, children have been orphaned. And your mother or your father can't feed you. I mean, it's absolutely devastating. It's crushing. And this is going to cause a very long-term devastating physical and psychological effect for children.

DEAN: And we know that aid sites run by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation have been intermittently closed this week, as we were talking about coming into your interview. What are the challenges around how these aid sites have been set up and distributing this aid?

DAMON: Well, I mean, first of all, let's be clear. The humanitarian community has by and large been very vocally against the work that the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation has been doing even before they started working, which is why no other humanitarian organization is really cooperating with them. And that is because this is not how you deliver food to 2.2 starving people.

First of all, it's a heavily militarized operation. And we have seen exactly why you should not be creating aid distribution hubs in military zones. People do get shot and people have been getting shot.

In fact, a friend of mine messaged me this morning that her cousin was shot and killed trying to go and get assistance. Plus, anyone with a modicum of understanding of how humanitarian distribution works, and even the best of circumstances, knows that you cannot set up a handful of hubs to feed, again, 2.2 million starving people. It just doesn't work.

This is not how you distribute aid to a community. There is a logic behind the reason why UNRWA, the United Nations, the World Food Program, other humanitarian organizations have more than 400 aid distribution points set up throughout Gaza.

[14:35:00]

And then we also need to look at sort of the fundamental, you know, faulty logic behind why these hubs were ostensibly set up by the U.S. and Israel. And that was to, as they falsely allege, prevent Hamas from stealing the aid and then selling it on the market and having financial gain. We heard today from the Netanyahu government and from Netanyahu himself an admission that he was the one who authorized the arming of, you know, tribal elements in Gaza.

And it is these very tribal elements that we, the humanitarians, have been talking about for over a year now, because they run criminal gangs and they are the ones that have largely been stealing the aid and looting the aid trucks as they were crossing through Israel- controlled zones.

And so, you know, it's -- I'm at a loss for words as to how to further describe what this situation is actually like, and just how unnecessary it is, or how much of a deliberately manufactured scheme of deprivation is being implemented and put into place by Israel, backed by the U.S.

DEAN: And you spent years covering the Syrian civil war, and I've heard that you've said if journalists were let into Gaza that the war, in your opinion, would end tomorrow. Why do you say that?

DAMON: I say that for a number of reasons. First of all, because for some reason, journalists on the outside don't necessarily -- and media organizations as well, obviously -- do not necessarily take the word of Gazan journalists as being credible, or of the Gazan population, which for, you know, nearly 19, 20 months now has been saying either, you know, civilian locations are being bombed, or we're being starved, or, you know, we're being prevented access to medicine, to hospitals.

And so, you know, given that level of lack of credibility that, you know, the outside world has wrongfully sort of placed upon Gaza's very courageous journalists, if the foreign press were let inside, they would see for themselves exactly what has been unfolding for, you know, the last year and a half.

And add to that, too, it would also, you know, make the ability of mostly the Western media's ability to push back on the consistent and persistent false narratives that we're hearing from Israel. And so, you know, maybe in that instance, Israeli officials that are saying things like Hamas is stealing the aid and selling it on the market, or we targeted this location because Hamas was in it, you know, maybe they'd be a bit more pushback on that, and a bit more pressure being put on the U.S. and Israel to actually come to an agreement over a ceasefire, not just to let in humanitarian assistance, but also to lead to the release of the hostages.

Look at the most recent, you know, United Nations Security Council vote, the U.S. still continues to veto any sort of resolution that would bring about a ceasefire that would see the resumption of large quantities of humanitarian assistance and the release of the hostages.

DEAN: All right, Arwa Damon, thank you for joining us. We appreciate your time. And we'll be right back.

[14:40:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

DANNY FREEMAN, CNN HOST: We have breaking news into CNN. President Trump announcing a meeting between U.S. and Chinese officials to discuss the trade war between the two countries. Saying that Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick will be among those traveling to London for these talks. We'll bring you more details on this as we receive them -- Jessica.

DEAN: Officials say an Oregon teenage boy has been arrested in connection with a mass shooting plot targeting a mall in southwestern Washington. That suspect was arrested on May 22nd. His identity has not been disclosed due to his age.

CNN security correspondent Josh Campbell is joining us now. Josh, I know you've got some new reporting on what this plot included. What are you learning about this?

JOSH CAMPBELL, CNN SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: Yes, this is interesting. The arrest happened about two weeks ago. It's unclear why authorities are just now coming out publicly to announce it.

And we are waiting on specific court records kind of laying out the plot, at least as far as what was filed in court. But we did get some new information from authorities who are saying that this Oregon teen had allegedly planned to attack a mall in southwestern Washington state. They described this as someone who was trying to potentially set off some type of chlorine bomb, which would then cause chaos and then open fire on people at that mall as they were fleeing.

The tip came into the FBI on May 19th, and then they began investigating, identified this alleged suspect. They placed this individual under court-authorized surveillance as part of that investigation. That ultimately leading to an arrest.

As far as motivation, the authorities have described the potential motivation here as, quote, nihilistic, violent tendencies. That's kind of a broad, overarching, newish phrase that the FBI has used to describe people who have, you know, various different grievances.

You'll recall the recent attack at a fertility clinic in Palm Springs, California. That was the same description that authorities gave as far as what motivated that individual.

As far as this person here, what authorities say is that they believe that there was at least the intent and capability in order to conduct some type of attack. They did seize weapons at the home of the individual.

We're waiting on a court appearance later this afternoon. We're hoping to get some more details -- guys.

DEAN: All right, Josh Campbell, thank you so much. Again, Washington state that plot, we appreciate it.

[14:45:00]

Emotional testimony today in the Sean Diddy Combs trial. His former girlfriend has been testifying through tears as she describes drug- fueled, often forced, sexual encounters with multiple men, during what she's calling hotel nights.

The woman is testifying under the pseudonym Jane to protect her anonymity and says Combs would record nearly every time she had a sexual encounter with another man. Jane told the jury she acted like she enjoyed this because she, quote, wanted to put on a good show. FREEMAN: The witness also testified that she set up hotel nights as a surprise for Combs on two occasions because she, quote, loved him very deeply.

Joining us now is criminal defense attorney Bob Bianchi. Bob, just to start here, what has stuck out to you so far about this witness Jane's testimony today, especially just how emotional it's been?

BOB BIANCHI, CRIMINAL DEFENSE ATTORNEY: I think what you noted at the start, as a former prosecutor who used to handle cases like this, what I'm going to be concerned about is that the defendant has to knowingly be doing the things that he's accused of in the indictment. Let's start with that.

When she's sitting there saying that she did these things because she loved him and that she knew that he would enjoy that and that he didn't specifically -- she didn't specifically tell him that she didn't want to do those things. That is hitting at the heart of the prosecution's case and proving knowing.

I think one of the difficulties that we have as lawyers looking at this case is it doesn't fit the traditional model of sex trafficking and organized criminal activity for these very reasons.

If you go to page 6 of their indictment, just last point on this issue, it says under the pretense of a romantic relationship, there isn't a pretense here. This was in fact a romantic relationship. You may not agree with it. It may have been twisted and perverted, but this is why a lot of lawyers are looking at this case and say it's like they're putting a square peg in a round hole here.

DEAN: And Bob, how much does kind of the psychology of a potentially abusive relationship play into all this? Because to your point, when they're kind of going through all of this, this was a romantic relationship, etc., etc., but just the idea of somebody who's been abused being afraid to say no or kind of not wanting, kind of being dependent on the other person, how much does that play into it?

BIANCHI: You know, a lot of us trial lawyers are talking about this very point. It's a great question. It's a prescient question. It's a cutting-edge question here in the law. Lots of times in relationships, people feel pressured, whether right or wrong, for one reason or the other. What the prosecution is trying to show here is that this pressure and this coercion went to a place where the acts were no longer consensual but rather being coerced. That's what the prosecutor wants to show.

The defense, on the other hand, is going to say, you know what, they didn't have a problem taking the money. By the way, this isn't my personal opinion, but this is what they're going to say.

They didn't have a problem taking the money. They didn't have a problem with the fanfare. They didn't have a problem with the proximity to power and getting things from him. They only had a problem when it ended, and when they wanted to leave that relationship, they were allowed to leave that relationship. This was a consensual activity, and essentially it's buyer's remorse. They didn't like what happened afterwards, but that's not a crime.

FREEMAN: Bob, I wanted to get your perspective on this just as a defense attorney, because the judge yesterday warned Combs that he could be removed from the courtroom after, I guess, there was this moment where he was nodding in the jury's direction. If you're his attorney, how do you prep your clients ahead of court after being essentially reprimanded by the judge?

BIANCHI: Yes, this is really hard, and I'm very uncomfortable with this. I understand what the court is trying to do, but it's very difficult. I've had cases where literally -- on a number of cases where the jurors have made a complaint by the way the defendant is acting in front of them, which is not evidence in the case, but nevertheless, the jury's there watching the defendant.

I've heard things like, he looks antiseptic, or he's staring at me, and I'm uncomfortable. So the judge sitting there saying, I don't want you to be emotive, I understand that, because in a sense, what he's doing is communicating to the jury, but by the same token, I try to tell a client, just act yourself, but don't do anything that's going to make you look bad in front of the jury. So of course people are going to have a reaction.

For example, guys, this is what I'm trying to say here. Let's say somebody says one of the most horrific things in the world, that you did not do, and you have no reaction to it. If people see that you have no reaction, they may be saying, wait, he must have done it, because anyone that would hear somebody like that would have reacted to it.

So telling him that he can't react, I just don't envy that position as a defense lawyer.

FREEMAN: Bob Bianchi, thank you so much as always for your analysis on another tough day of testimony.

BIANCHI: My pleasure.

FREEMAN: All right, still to come, ignoring human commands, rewriting its own code, and blackmailing its creators.

DEAN: Yikes. New warnings that artificial intelligence could, you know, cross some dangerous lines. This is CNN NEWS CENTRAL.

[14:50:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

DEAN: Artificial intelligence is evolving fast, and now it could be crossing a dangerous line. Some advanced AI models are ignoring human commands and even rewriting their own code. And experts warn this could be the start of something humans can't easily control, raising some serious safety questions.

CNN's Tom Foreman digs into what's going on and what it might mean for all of us. (BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

TOM FOREMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): Artificial intelligence staging a real-life revolt. In a series of tests, a new, powerful AI model directly refused human commands, according to Palisade Research, which studies the technology. Specifically, Palisade says the new program from the company OpenAI sabotaged a shutdown mechanism, even when explicitly instructed, allow yourself to be shut down. Not every time, but enough to raise alarms.

JUDD ROSENBLATT, AGENCY ENTERPRISE STUDIO CEO: We have no idea how AI actually works. We need to be fairly concerned that behaviors like this may get way worse as it gets more powerful.

FOREMAN (voice over): The idea of intelligent machines resisting human control has been a sci-fi trope for ages.

[14:55:00]

In movies like "I, Robot," but AI developments are sharpening concerns. When another company's AI chatbot was threatened with being shut down, it threatened to expose the engineer in charge for an alleged extramarital affair. It was all just a test.

DARIO AMODEI, CEO, ANTHROPIC: This is an example of how we have to be very careful in how we take control of AI systems.

JAKE TAPPER, CNN ANCHOR: You've spoken out saying that AI could manipulate or possibly figure out a way to kill humans?

FOREMAN (voice over): Almost two years ago, right here on CNN, the so- called godfather of AI warned it will get smarter, could get out of control.

GEOFFREY HINTON, KNOWN AS THE GODFATHER OF AI: And it knows how to program. So, it will figure out ways of getting around restrictions we put on it. It'll figure out ways of manipulating people to do what it wants.

FOREMAN (voice over): Now industry experts suggest that may be happening much sooner than expected, triggering warnings of catastrophic national security risks, a potentially extinction level threat to the human species, and at very least massive job disruptions.

ANDREW YANG, FORWARD PARTY CO-FOUNDER: It's going to affect just about every segment of the economy. And a lot of Americans are going to be looking up wondering what happened to the jobs.

FOREMAN: It is important to know that this incident of the program refusing to do what it was told happened in a test, but the real-world questions about it go on.

Tom Foreman, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE) DEAN: Very interesting, Tom Foreman, thank you.

Coming up in our next hour, we're going to take a look at what artificial intelligence could mean for the future of war, and if we could see a point where U.S. soldiers never have to endanger themselves on a battlefield again. That's coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

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