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Heavy Metal Icon Ozzy Osbourne Dies at 76; Afghans Suffer in Wake of Trump Administration's Dismantling of USAID. Aired 2:30-3p ET

Aired July 22, 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]

STEPHANIE ELAM, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): ... shot the family to fame. After years of speculation about his health, Osborne revealed his Parkinson's disease diagnosis in an interview with Good Morning America in 2020. But Osborne was committed to making more music. And three years later, he won two Grammys for his album, Patient Number Nine, bringing his Grammy total to five.

Osborne reunited with his bandmates over the years to record their last album, Thirteen, and for Black Sabbath's final The N concert tour in 2016. Osborne made over 20 albums and is among the elite group inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame twice. From Prince of Darkness to reality TV show Dad, Ozzy Osborne was a man, a myth and a legend.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

JIM SCIUTTO, CNN HOST: Joining us now, CNN's Lisa Respers France, and entertainment journalist Segun Oduolowu. Good to have you both on. And Lisa, 76 years old, it was just weeks ago we had this farewell tour performed with some of his own bandmates from Black Sabbath.

It was a charity event, interestingly for Parkinson's, among other causes, given that he himself had announced his battle with Parkinson's. What do we know about how he passed away and what does his family say?

LISA RESPERS FRANCE, CNN ENTERTAINMENT REPORTER: I'm sorry, are you talking to me?

SCIUTTO: Yes, I was talking to you, Lisa.

FRANCE: I'm sorry, it went out. The family says that he was, I'm sorry, the family says that he was surrounded by love. He's been ill for quite some time and, you know, he did not look to be in great shape when he was -- did his show just a couple weeks ago. People were talking about how ill he looked.

But the family has come around him, they've been celebrating all types of, you know, moments with him. His daughter Kelly just got engaged right after he did his show.

And so, you know, they were really leaning into spending time with him. And we got to see Ozzy, you know, enjoy that engagement. BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN HOST: And Segun, let's talk a little bit about his legacy, because, I mean, I think he was already kind of singular, and then he had this mass appeal from the show -- the reality show that his family did, and everyone was sort of introduced to him in a different way.

SEGUN ODUOLOWU, ENTERTAINMENT JOURNALIST: Yes, that's a great point. The Osbournes became like a modern day Addams family, right? Where you saw Ozzy humanized, the prince of darkness, the heavy metal god that people were used to, you know, biting the heads off bats or doing insane stuff on stage in pyrotechnics. The Osbournes made him just a father trying to figure out the remote and deal with his children.

Like the Honeymooners, you know, that Sharon, that call that he had on the show, like it became synonymous with the Ozzy that a later generation got to know, and through the reality show.

I remember Headbangers Ball on MTV, and you would rush home from school and listen to, you know, his Ultimate Sin album that had, you know, all of this incredible music that, if you're a hip hop fan, Crazy Train was sampled by Lil Jon. There are all of these aspects of Ozzy that interweave throughout music and pop culture that resonate and make him such a beloved figure.

So from where he was and where he came from to what we finally have lost, it's such an incredible arc of a very talented musician with a signature voice, but who also had the ability to humanize and laugh at himself. So he will definitely be missed.

KEILAR: Yes. In the family statement, we just want to read here.

It is with more sadness than mere words can convey that we have to report that our beloved Ozzy Osbourne has passed away. This morning, he was with his family and surrounded by love. We ask everyone to respect our family privacy at this time.

This is a sad loss. He went out on a high note after that concert, certainly.

SCIUTTO: And he was with us for decades, right? He was an icon of the 70s, right? Black Sabbath, hard rock, and then to sort of be resurrected in this new era in the 2000s with the Osbournes and still performing right up until, well, sadly, the final weeks of his life.

KEILAR: That's right. Segun, thank you so much. Lisa, thank you.

He'll still be -- oh, sorry. Go on, Segun.

ODUOLOWU: Can I just tell people to go back and listen to his old -- yes, I just want people to go back and listen to his albums from the 80s.

[14:35:00]

I want them to listen to songs like Shot in the Dark and Killer of Giants and the Ozzy after Black Sabbath, the solo Ozzy that was also, again, inducted into the Hall of Fame.

I want you to just listen to the power of his voice. We talk about a Freddie Mercury and how singular that voice is, but for heavy metal, for rock and roll, Ozzy Osbourne, I put him right up there with that unique level of voice and a supreme talent. I just invite our viewers to go back and listen to his solo albums, that young Ozzy in the 80s, the voice held through the entire career.

So, again, one of my favorites. I just hope the viewers will go back and listen his -- to listen to his work.

KEILAR: We really appreciate that, Segun, because his legacy is going to live on through his music. I appreciate the recommendations. It's Iron Man and Crazy Train that gets played in my car with my kids. They love it. And that is going to continue for so many people.

SCIUTTO: That opening riff in Crazy Train is memorable.

KEILAR: Nothing better. Nothing better. Heavy metal icon Ozzy Osbourne passing away at 76. We'll be back here in a moment.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KEILAR: Trump administration dismantled USAID earlier this year. The agency responsible for distributing American aid overseas.

And that has had a huge impact on Afghanistan. Even with the Taliban in charge, four years after withdrawing, the U.S. claims it was still responsible for nearly half of the country's foreign assistance. CNN's Isobel Yeung traveled to Afghanistan to investigate.

And a warning. Some of the images that you're about to see are disturbing.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ISOBEL YEUNG, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Why are people trying to stop her? She's allowed. What is the issue?

YEUNG: What are you studying?

YEUNG: Operating as a journalist here is incredibly difficult right now.

YEUNG: Is that the Taliban's message?

YEUNG: Is he breathing?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He needs to go.

YEUNG (voice-over): We're in Afghanistan, where the Taliban have consolidated their power. And it looks like they're here to stay.

But since the U.S. and its allies withdrew and the Taliban took over, Afghanistan's economy has collapsed. Financial hardships have impacted everyone. one, even those dreaming of their big day. YEUNG: Wow, this is a massive wedding.

YEUNG (voice-over): Everyone here is making the best of their situation, but weddings like these are usually reserved for just one couple. Today, it's dozens.

YEUNG: So many people showing up today to celebrate 80 couples tying the knot, and a bit of a bittersweet occasion, I think, because although there's a lot of joy in the room, the reason that they're having these group weddings is because the economy in Afghanistan is doing really, really badly, and so this is all a bit of a cost-cutting exercise.

YEUNG: Congratulations.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.

YEUNG: How are you feeling today?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I have a great feeling today. It was my great aim to experience this day.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: More than 70 percent of Afghanistan is living in poverty.

YEUNG: Right, because traditionally, Afghan weddings are very big, very expensive.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, traditionally, it's big. That kind of wedding party is not suitable for us today.

YEUNG (voice-over): Economic hardship is what makes weddings like this necessary, a fact that's impossible to separate, both from the oppressive Taliban regime, as well as decisions made in America.

The scenes of America's chaotic departure under President Biden in 2021 are difficult to forget. But even since then, the U.S. has been responsible for almost half Afghanistan's humanitarian aid. Now things have changed.

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We give Afghanistan about $2 or $2.5 billion. Do you know that? For aid, aid. We need aid ourselves.

YEUNG (voice-over): Earlier this year, Elon Musk took a chainsaw to U.S. government spending. And President Trump's administration then cut almost all U.S. aid going to Afghanistan. Over $1.7 billion in aid contracts suddenly terminated, $500 million of that yet to be dispersed.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Has anyone in the world died because of what Elon Musk did?

Yes or no, reclaiming my time? If you won't answer, that's a loud answer.

MARCO RUBIO, SECRETARY OF STATE: No one has died because of USAID.

YEUNG (voice-over): Other countries like the U.K., Germany and France have also cut back. So what happens to a nation when aid dollars are suddenly gone? We're here to find out.

Most Afghans live in rural areas, where 20 years of war with America and its allies was most fierce, and where foreign aid has been critical.

YEUNG: The clinic we're actually heading towards was until just a few months ago funded by the U.S. government. Now that Trump administration has pulled the funding, a lot of people in this area are left with not even basic health care facilities.

[14:45:00]

YEUNG (voice-over): The U.N. estimates that an Afghan woman dies every two hours from pregnancy or childbirth. This clinic has now closed.

YEUNG: So this is where women were giving birth?

SAMIRA SAYED RAHMAN, ADVOCACY DIRECTOR, SAVE THE CHILDREN AFGHANISTAN: Yes. You know, this is the only clinic in this area, and now it's gone.

YEUNG: Afghanistan has one of the highest maternal mortality rates in the world, right? What happens to these women now that the delivery room is gone?

RAHMAN: It means that these communities don't have access. It means that women are going to be giving birth at home, meaning more and more children are going to die during childbirth.

YEUNG: We were just talking to community leaders who were telling us that seven people have died since this clinic closed. And just a couple of days ago, a woman died in childbirth because there was nowhere for her to give birth.

YEUNG (voice-over): The woman's neighbors and family told us that if the clinic had still been open and she'd had the support of a midwife, she would have survived.

Across Afghanistan, over 400 clinics have closed because of U.S. aid cuts. Millions of people were reliant on these clinics for health care. Now their only option is to travel hours, sometimes days, to public hospitals like this, where there's an influx of new patients.

The U.S. was funding doctors, nurses and essential drugs here, but now that's also gone.

YEUNG: Samim, how are you?

DR. ANIDULLAH SAMIM, NANGARHAR REGIONAL HOSPITAL: This has the capacity for just one baby. And we have under ours three babies here.

YEUNG: Yes, it's crowded. SAMIM: Yes, crowded, yes.

YEUNG: Is this normal?

SAMIM: Normal? Not normal. When they cut the air here, our mortality rate, about three or four percent.

YEUNG: So three to four percent more --

SAMIM: Rise.

YEUNG: -- babies are dying since the U.S. public aid?

SAMIM: Yes, yes.

YEUNG: Wow.

YEUNG (voice-over): Malnutrition has soared here. 9.5 million people are severely food insecure. Several NGOs previously funded by the U.S. are now turning away many people in desperate need of food.

Mohammed Omar has severe malnutrition and meningitis. The family are poor and were only recently able to bring him the long distance to this hospital.

SAMIM (through translated text): When did he become like this?

NAZOGUL (through translated text): Early in the morning.

SAMIM (through translated text): You said it was diarrhea at first and then it got worse.

NAZOGUL (through translated text): Yes, it started with diarrhea.

SAMIM (translated text): Since when has he not been able to eat?

NAZOGUL (through translated text): It has been a long time since he could eat on his own.

YEUNG: Hi, I'm so sorry for what you're going through. Can I ask what your name is?

NAZOGUL: My name is Nazogul. He's my grandson.

YEUNG: How old is he?

NAZOGUL (through translated text): He just turned one.

YEUNG: What is his situation? What has the doctor said?

NAZOGUL (through translated text): Doctors say that a microbe has infected his brain. He's unconscious now. You can see that the child's condition is very bad.

YEUNG (voice-over): In the middle of speaking, we looked over and realized the child had stopped breathing. YEUNG: Is he breathing? Is he breathing?

SAMIM: You needs to go.

YEUNG: He will take you outside.

SAMIM: Sorry, move, move, move.

YEUNG: He died? My God.

YEUNG (voice-over): Mohammed's mother returns to the room and the most devastating news.

(MOTHER IS CRYING AND CRYING)

YEUNG: This is just one family of so many thousands of families that are having to live through this. And it's utterly, heart-wrenchingly devastating.

YEUNG (voice-over): It's impossible to definitively blame one single factor for Mohammed's death. He was suffering from a range of serious illnesses.

But aid cuts have dealt a devastating blow here. Canceling aid to Afghanistan has long been a goal for Congressman Tim Burchett.

REP. TIM BURCHETT (R-TN): Five billion in cash.

YEUNG (voice-over): Claiming five billion U.S. taxpayer dollars have gone directly to the ruling Taliban, a designated terrorist group. But the U.S. government's own watchdog says it's more like 11 million. The vast majority of money goes to those it's intended for.

YEUNG: Are you intentionally misleading the American public when it comes to inflating these figures so that you can get what you want?

BURCHETT: No, ma'am, I'm not. As a matter of fact, $11 million is still a whole lot of money to the average American. If it's one penny going to the Taliban, they'll hate us for free.

[14:50:00]

YEUNG: What would you say to -- I mean, there are millions of Afghans who are going to be affected by this.

BURCHETT: I would say you're going to have to make it on your own.

YEUNG: Hundreds of clinics across the country have now closed down. I literally watched a baby die from malnutrition. What would you say to these families who are living through desperate circumstances, devastated by the results of your actions?

BURCHETT: I think it's horrific, but it's not due to my actions. Ma'am, we don't have any more money. We're borrowing that money. And again --

YEUNG: But it is due to your actions. I mean, you have been --

BURCHETT: These are people that

YEUNG: -- advocating for this for the last couple of years.

BURCHETT: No, ma'am. No, ma'am. It's not our response -- we have Americans in the same position. We have Americans that are having trouble with childbirth. We have Americans going hungry, and you want us to borrow money and send it overseas.

YEUNG: Is there not any moral responsibility, given that, you know, the U.S. did fight a 20-year war there?

BURCHETT: No, ma'am, my responsibility is to my own country and to the district I represent.

YEUNG (voice-over): With the U.S. turning away, the fate of Afghans is now left in the hands of their own government, the Taliban, who say they're capable of running the country without foreign aid. They denied our requests for an interview. Ruling with an iron fist, the group have increased their surveillance, making it difficult for anyone to speak critically.

Whenever someone tried with us, they were abruptly cut off by a minder lurking behind our camera.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translated text): Since the Taliban came the entire economy has been weak.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translated text): This is not our topic.

YEUNG: Wait, we're talking. Why are people trying to stop the talking?

She's allowed? What is the issue?

What are you saying?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No, you don't take that message.

YEUNG: Please just let him, please just let him, please. Please. You're telling him what to say.

YEUNG: The Taliban obviously have a very tight grip on the situation here. A lot of restrictions, particularly for women and girls.

And to be honest, even operating as a journalist here is incredibly difficult right now. We know that the Taliban has been tracking our every movement. The GDI have frequently been checking up on us.

There's even a directive issued, which means that you're not technically allowed to take any photos or videos of living beings. And so operating freely here is really, really difficult.

YEUNG (voice-over): With our every move being watched, we spoke secretly on secure lines to many people across the country. Women especially told us their lives are now at risk, both from U.S. funding cuts as well as strict Taliban laws, meaning they can't travel alone, even when they have urgent medical needs. This is the voice of one woman.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translated text): There's no longer a clinic near us. My babies who were miscarried were full-term and I had to deliver them. They were twins.

YEUNG (voice-over): For 20 years, Afghan women and children were promised progress. But they now live under a Taliban regime that stands accused of carrying out gender apartheid. Basic rights, like leaving the house and going to school, have been stripped away from Afghan women and girls. Their options are increasingly limited.

YEUNG: What are you studying?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translated text): Holy Quran.

YEUNG: So here in the Taliban's Afghanistan, they are still not allowing girls over the age of 12 to attend school in a modern sense. And until recently, USAID had been funding a series of secret schools across the country for girls to attend, but obviously that funding has now dried up.

So one of the only options for girls is to attend these madrasas, these religious schools, where predominantly the focus is on learning a very strict interpretation of Islamic rules and Islamic principles.

YEUNG: Hi. Hi. How are you? You're cramming for exams right now?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes, sure.

YEUNG: And how old are you guys?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm 17.

YEUNG: She's --

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm 14.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm 16.

YEUNG: OK, and you're all in the same class?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes, same class.

YEUNG: What do you want to be when you grow up?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I have a lot of dreams. Either I want to be a surgeon or a translator. I like languages and also like doctors.

YEUNG: So if you want to be a surgeon, what are your options?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Abroad, I guess, no options here. UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I want -- I wanted to be a doctor in the future.

But when the Taliban came to Afghanistan, all the doors of the schools closed.

YEUNG: Will you stay in Afghanistan?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I want to stay. I love my country. I want to stay here forever. But, like, I do also want to study.

YEUNG: Do you think the U.S. has abandoned Afghan girls and Afghan women?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Kind of.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Kind of.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Kind of.

[14:55:00]

YEUNG (voice-over): We wanted to speak with the principal of the madrasa. A long-time supporter of the Taliban, he sees nothing wrong with the status of women's rights or girls' education in Afghanistan.

YEUNG: So many of these girls have so many hopes, so many big dreams. How can they hope to achieve them when so much of the curriculum is about learning religious studies and they're not able to go on to higher education, to college, because the Taliban forbids that?

SHAFIULLAH DILAWAR, MADRASA PRINCIPAL (through translated text): I reject the idea that the Taliban imposed restrictions on girls to prevent them from studying.

YEUNG: Because the Taliban have given you the curriculum, what a lot of people who might be watching this will think is that these girls, bright as they are, are being brainwashed into the Taliban's ideology and the Taliban is weaponizing education here.

DILAWAR (through translated text): The Students are very happy with our environment, our curriculum, and us. There were some problems in the curriculum. The curriculum that is set in the madrasa is very beneficial. For the role of mothers in society so they can raise good children.

YEUNG (voice-over): Perhaps more than anyone, this generation of young Afghan girls are living under a Taliban regime that seeks to largely erase them from all forms of public life, like so many others now abandoned by those who once came to their aid.

Isobel Yeung, CNN, Afghanistan.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KEILAR: Our thanks to Isobel for that report. The U.S. State Department did not respond to CNN's request for comment on that report. We'll be right back. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

END