Return to Transcripts main page
CNN Newsroom
African Leaders Look for Promises on Grain Supplies at the Russia-Africa Summit; Niger's Military Announces the Ouster of its President on National TV; Southern Europe Continues to Struggle with Extreme Heat and Wildfires; Federal Reserve Hiked the Highest Interest Benchmark Rate in 22 Years; Singer and Activist Sinead O'Connor Dies; USA and Netherlands match at the Women's World Cup ends in a Draw. Aired 3-4a ET
Aired July 27, 2023 - 03:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[03:00:00]
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ROSEMARY CHURCH, CNN ANCHOR: Hello and welcome to our viewers joining us from all around the world. You are watching "CNN Newsroom" and I'm Rosemary Church.
Just ahead, Ukrainian soldiers advance toward Bakhmut, taking over Russian positions as the counteroffensive makes progress.
An apparent coup d'etat in Niger on state television, an army general announces the government has been overthrown and the constitution dissolved. We'll bring you the latest in a live report. Plus --
(VIDEO PLAYING)
Lots of excitement at the Women's World Cup as Team USA meets the Netherlands in a rematch of the 2019 final.
UNKNOWN (voice-over): Live from CNN Center, this is "CNN Newsroom" with Rosemary Church.
CHURCH: Thanks for joining us. Well, Ukraine's port infrastructure in the Odessa region has once again come under attack. Ukrainian officials say a Russian missile struck overnight, killing a civilian security guard. And this comes as Ukraine has been stepping up its counteroffensive with more troops and new pushers in critical areas. U.S. officials say combat power that had been held in reserve for weeks has now been deployed.
And Clare Sebastian is following developments for us, she joins us live from London. Good morning to you, Clare. So what is the latest on that overnight missile attack in the Odessa region? And what more are you learning about Ukraine committing more forces to its counteroffensive?
CLARE SEBASTIAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yeah, Rosemary, after a two-night break from these missile barrages that we've seen launched at the Ukraine South, in particular the Odessa region, there was another one overnight, this time according to the Air Force, involving eight attack drones which they shot down. But they were not able to thwart two cruise missiles launched from submarines in the Black Sea.
We're hearing of some damage to port infrastructure in the region. We don't know exactly which port, but according to the regional military administration, one person was killed who was at one of the administrative buildings adjacent to the port.
So obviously that fits with part of the pattern that we've seen and Ukraine's missile defenses, air defenses are being severely tested by this. But this comes of course as we're seeing renewed pushes in some of the key areas along the front lines as part of this counter offensive now almost two months in.
If of course as the U.S., U.S. officials have told us Ukraine is now committing more forces into the fight by definition, depleting their reserves. ramp up the pressure on them now to really try to break through. We're hearing about areas on the southern front line near the town of Orikhiv in Zaporizhzhya where apparently according to Russian sources, Ukraine launched a major offensive there.
You can see in that direction towards Melitopol. To the east of that, around the town of Veliky Novosilkhe, they've been pushing south along a river there and are now pushing around a small settlement just inside Russian control there.
I think we can show you this video which shows really what we're dealing with here. These are very rural areas. And this video that we've geolocated purports to show Russian troops actually leaving their positions as Ukraine advanced. The Ukraine actually not claiming to have taken this whole settlement yet. They are still just holding their positions around it.
So this is very gradual and very slow. But after a number of weeks of really not hearing much about any territory being taken, it does seem that there are renewed efforts here on multiple front lines, including, I should mention, to the east around Bakhmut as well, where Ukraine is still trying to encircle Russian forces in that city.
CHURCH: All right, Claire Sebastian, joining us live from London, many thanks.
Joining me now is CNN military analyst, Lieutenant General Mark Hertling. He's also a former commanding general of the U.S. Army, Europe and Seventh Army. A pleasure to have you with us.
LT. GEN. MARK HERTLING, CNN MILITARY ANALYST: And it's a pleasure to be with you, Rosemary.
CHURCH: So I do want to start by getting your military assessment of Ukraine's counteroffensive and where things stand right now, because on Monday the country's Defense Minister told CNN the counteroffensive is behind schedule, but going according to plan. Do you agree with that assessment? HERTLING: I do, Rosemary. This has been a tough offensive operation
against very reinforced and mined defensive positions that the Russians had months to put into place.
[03:05:03]
So truthfully, before the offensive started a few weeks ago, I was concerned about how tough it would be for the Ukrainians to continue to maneuver against some of these defensive positions enhanced by the Russians.
So yes, it is going much slower. It's the first time Ukrainians have attempted something of a scale and offensive operation with new equipment that they've just recently received.
So I've kind of thought it might go a little bit slower than anticipated, but it is going along the routes that they're looking to achieve and with a gear toward the major objectives that have always been a part of the campaign.
CHURCH: And General, what are Ukraine's military equipment needs at this time and could the eventual delivery of F-16 fighter jets and associated training represent a game changer in this war, do you think?
HERTLING: It could eventually, Rosemary, but I don't think that's the priority right now. There's a lot of people talking about the need for F-16s. And with an understanding of how long it takes to get pilots trained, mechanics trained, supply systems in place, airfields in place, I think Minister Reznikov and Secretary Austin have been very articulate in terms of what is being provided to Ukraine.
It's things that can help them right now on the ground to achieve the most success. And whereas a combined arms force with aircraft and multiple role aircraft and a lot more equipment would certainly be desirable. It's just near impossible to provide all of that. What Ukraine has asked for is a modern army and a modern air force while they're fighting a very intense campaign.
So, whereas it would be great if they had the capabilities to incorporate a fleet of F-16s, those are not available and the supplies and the maintenance would be very difficult to provide at this stage.
CHURCH: And General, we have witnessed attacks on Russian soil that Ukraine has claimed responsibility for, and more recently, the drone attacks in Moscow. But some analysts suggest those drones were only capable of coming from the local area. What do you make of those drone attacks, and how might Ukraine's targeting of Russian sites change the trajectory of this war?
HERTLING: Well, what I'd say, it would suggest more of a great coordination between insurgents within the Russian territory, the territorial forces that are behind Russian lines and the capability to have protesters within Russia counter their government for this war that many Russian citizens think is also illegal, but they can't actually describe that in the press or they'd be condemned by their leader for going against the war.
So I think many of these drones that we're seeing hit within the Russian territory, at fuel locations, at ammo caches, in terms of government buildings, I think it's an attempt by Ukraine to use all of the resources at their disposal to attack Russia and help them not feel safe anywhere.
What it also does, Rosemary, and this is critical, it draws some of the forces that are on the front lines away from the front lines back into Mother Russia. So when you have to defend not only against a potential Ukrainian assault, but also bring air defense equipment, as an example, back to some major buildings, like we saw in and around (inaudible) in Moscow, then you know that you're affecting the ability for Russian to defend inside of Ukraine, and that's very important.
CHURCH: And generally, General, just finally, what will it take, do you think, to end the war, and how long do you expect this to take?
HERTLING: Well, you know, President Zelenskyy has basically stated there are three major objectives. Number one, to secure the Ukrainian people. Number two, to regain all the territory that Russia has basically captured. And in both those cases, I think he's succeeding. And the third objective is to get Mr. Putin charged with the many war crimes he has committed.
And as long as we're mentioning that, I think President Biden's approach and submitting evidence to the World Court and the U.N. today was a big step in that direction of contributing to Ukraine and President Zelenskyy getting the Russian leaders criminally charged for some of the war crimes they've committed.
CHURCH: Lieutenant General Mark Hurtling, we appreciate your military analysis. Thanks for joining us.
HERTLING: A pleasure, Mary -- Rosemary.
CHURCH: African leaders are arriving in St. Petersburg, Russia, for a summit with President Vladimir Putin. They're expected to ask for concrete promises on grain supplies after Russia withdrew from the Black Sea Grain Initiative earlier this month. Wheat prices have risen about 20 percent in less than two weeks.
[03:10:03]
Some leaders also want clarity from the Russian president on the future of the Wagner mercenary group in Africa, after its short-lived mutiny in Russia last month. Wagner provides security for a few African countries.
So let's go live now to Johannesburg and CNN's senior international correspondent David McKenzie. Good to see you David. So what will African leaders be asking for exactly and what will they likely get from President Putin?
DAVID MCKENZIE, CNN SR. INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Rosemary, I think first it's worth mentioning this is the biggest gathering of its kind in Russia with Vladimir Putin since the start of the Ukraine war, and that is significant. You only have about 17 heads of state, according to the Kremlin, heading to that meeting. That's down substantially from the 2019 Russia-Africa summit, the inaugural summit.
But the Kremlin is saying that is in part because of, quote, "brazen interference from western powers persuading African leaders from showing up." It still will be though a significant moment for the Russian president. You saw those images already we've been playing of the Emerson Menengagwa, the president of Zimbabwe. You saw the prime minister of Ethiopia, Abiy Ahmed, the South African president Cyril Ramaphosa is also there. These are significantly important leaders in the African context and they will be there on a stage with Putin, showing that he is not totally isolated from the rest of the world.
On those issues you bring up, Rosemary, certainly the grain deal will be one that presidents and prime ministers of African countries will be unhappy about. While much of the grain has not gone to African countries in that Black Sea grain deal, the cancellation of the deal has pushed the wheat prices up substantially. So it will affect these countries that don't necessarily have the cash to get food in for their people.
Before the summit started, Vladimir Putin railed against the grain deal and blamed Western powers for his need to cancel it. So he obviously knows that is a sore point.
There will also be the extended trade links between Russia and African countries brought up during this deal. And while European nations and the U.S. and others see Putin really as someone that is too nuclear, probably the wrong word to use in this context, to touch, African leaders, even those who aren't attending, will see Russia as a potential trade partner and they kind of want to stay out, I think, in general of a new Cold War and to be drawn in to the fight which many in the African context at least see as a proxy conflict between NATO and Russia.
It will be interesting to see Vladimir Putin's statement which happens later today and if he says anything concrete about improving ties with African nations. But there certainly is a struggle between the U.S., the E.U., and Russia to gain influence in many of these countries, including here in South Africa. Rosemary?
CHURCH: All right. David McKenzie, joining us live from Johannesburg. Many thanks.
Well, more global condemnation in the wake of an attempted military coup that's apparently underway in Niger. The U.S., Britain, France, the U.N., and West African leaders all denouncing the move by the country's military.
A group of officers appeared on national television Wednesday night saying President Mohamed Bazoum was ousted. His election two years ago was an historic first for Niger and concerns are growing that his removal could be a massive blow to the fight against Islamic insurgency in the region. And CNN's Larry Madowo joins us now from Nairobi. So Larry, what is
the latest on this apparent ouster of President Bazoum and of course the resulting fallout?
LARRY MADOWO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: The big question, Rosemary, is where is President Bazoum and what will happen to him? We reported Wednesday that he was being held by the presidential guard at the presidential palace and then this obviously escalated into the nighttime security officers, these military men on state television, declaring that they had removed him, suspended the constitution and closed the country's borders.
President Bazoum was last seen on Tuesday meeting with the outgoing Belgian ambassador. This was probably his last public official event. In fact they talked about the security situation in the country and the reintegration of young men from conflict zones in the country, how they will be reintegrated into society, into the country's military.
Niger has faced an insurgency, a jihadist threat as well, with the groups affiliated to both ISIS and al-Qaeda. But it's not nearly as unsafe as its neighbors, Mali and Burkina Faso, where the jihadist threat is at its peak.
So what happens next is still a big question here, especially since this country finally, in 2021, saw a peaceful democratic transfer of power.
[03:15:06]
The U.S. Secretary of State in March became the first U.S. Secretary of State, Antony Blinken, to visit the country. And he's been talking about this while traveling in New Zealand. Watch.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ANTONY BLINKEN, U.S. SECRETARY OF STATE: We are very closely monitoring the situation and developments in Niger. I spoke with President Bazoum earlier this morning and made clear that the United States resolutely supports him as the democratically elected president of Niger. We call for his immediate release. We condemn any effort to seize power by force.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MADOWO: The U.N. secretary general has also strongly condemned this illegal transfer of power, and he says that President Bissoum should be released without any preconditions. We've been seeing a short while ago tweets from the official account of the presidency in Niger. This one said that the hard-won achievements will be safeguarded. All Nigerians who love democracy and freedom will see to it.
This account also reposted a statement from the foreign minister of Niger, who maintains that they are the legitimate power in the country. That said, this act of fascism officers aims as elsewhere called into question our hard-won freedoms, our democracy, and the progress made. And that's a big thing here, right? The progress that the country has made. It's become the centerpiece of the West's security strategy in the Sahel. And with this democratic backsliding, now a big headache for the economic community of West African states, ECOWAS, and the African Union to try and get it back on a path to democracy. Rosemary.
CHURCH: All right. Our thanks to Larry Madowo for that live report.
Coming up here on "CNN Newsroom," more wildfires in southern Europe causing destruction across parts of the Mediterranean, we will bring you the latest.
Plus, the U.S. Federal Reserve raises interest rates for the 11th time in the past year and a half. And it appears more hikes are likely until inflation is under control. Those details, next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHURCH: Welcome back everyone. Well dozens of new wildfires are cropping up across southern Europe, fueled by an unrelenting heat wave.
The Greek Fire Service reported 61 new fires in the past day alone. They're spreading in central Greece, killing two people on Wednesday and threatening the country's main agricultural hub. Parts of the country reached 46 degrees Celsius on Wednesday. Italy is also seeing some of the highest temperatures in Europe right now. Ten fires are burning in the south of the country and four elderly people died on Tuesday.
Nada Bashir, joins me now live from Rome. So Nada, what is the latest on all these wildfires burning across parts of southern Europe?
[03:19:55]
NADA BASHIR, CNN REPORTER: Well look, Rosemary, it seems like we are hearing more about more fires each and every day across the Mediterranean region. We're seeing fires across Italy, Greece, now Albania, Portugal, Spain. And of course, it's not just Europe that is being affected. Algeria and Tunisia have seen devastating wildfires, and Algeria, dozens were killed as a result. And in parts of Turkey as well, in the southern Antalya region, we are seeing wildfires there, and this is a huge concern.
Thousands of people across this region evacuated, some because the fires are coming dangerously close to their homes, others as a precaution. And we're seeing that here in Italy as well. As you mentioned, there are 10 fires raging in the southern parts of the country, particularly in Sicily. And now we are seeing fires across Sardinia as well. This is a huge concern. In Sicily, thousands of people who had been evacuated have now been told they are able to return home. But, of course, the damage and the devastation brought by these fires is immense.
A number of regions are calling for the government to declare a state of emergency in these areas in order to allow them to provide additional support and to seek additional resources to tackle these fires and the aftermath. At this stage, no word from the government on whether that will be granted, but of course as we look at the devastation across the region, it is a reminder to governments across the Mediterranean that more action needs to be taken. Take a look.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BASHIR (voice-over): Through Italy's blackened hills, the scorched remnants of charred land, as emergency teams continue to battle wildfires across the country's southern regions.
In Sicily on Tuesday, terrifying scenes as one resident raced through fire-lined roads to Palermo airport, which itself was brought to a standstill by the crisis.
Authorities say the vast majority of evacuated residents on the island have now been able to return home.
But in other parts of the country, anxious locals look on as flames spread dangerously close to their homes. In Palermo, a local church sustained significant damage. Residents say they can only be thankful but no one was hurt.
REV. VICENZO BRUCCOLERI, SANTA MARIA DI GESU CONVENT (through translator): The damage is enormous and we literally lost the church, but on the other hand we are happy that there was no one injured.
BASHIR (voice-over): But Italy is not alone. Across the Mediterranean, countries including Greece, Spain, and Portugal are battling extreme weather, from devastating fires to deadly storms.
In the Portuguese town of Cascais, more than 500 firefighters were drafted in to tackle a now-contained wildfire.
Meanwhile, on the Greek island of Rhodes, emergency teams are still working tirelessly to tackle the blaze. Some residents here have been forced to evacuate their homes. But others have stayed to volunteer, desperate to save their communities.
STAVROS NIKITARAS, VOLUNTEER: We don't have any help in the island. You see all the people that are living here, they come to help. I'm not from this village, but I have friends here, so I came to help.
MARIA PARDALOU, VOLUNTEER: Every year they say we will do, the things will be better. Nothing. Every summer the same. The same, every summer.
BASHIR (voice-over): Beyond Europe, wildfires are also ravaging parts of Turkey and North Africa. In Algeria, authorities say they have managed to contain the deadly blaze, which has so far killed dozens. But some residents who sought shelter from the devastation say they came back to nothing.
TAWUS TIMIZAR, ALGERIAN RESIDENT (through translator): When we returned home, we found everything was burned and there was nothing left. No furniture, no money, everything was burned. BASHIR (voice-over): The loss and devastation brought by wildfires is
becoming an all too familiar reality across this region. As experts warn that extreme heat events will only become more frequent and more severe over the coming years, unless urgent changes are made. It is a troubling prospect for a region already in the depths of a climate crisis.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BASHIR (on-camera): And look, Rosemary, we already saw those devastating fires last summer, and as a result, E.U. leaders committed to providing more resources to their member states. They doubled the number of firefighters available to member states. They called on major cities that could be impacted to make the necessary preparations for further fires in the coming years. And that is certainly the message that we are hearing from experts. This is going to become a more frequent occurrence. These fires, these extreme heat events are going to become more severe and more intense.
And of course, when you look at the devastation that we've seen over the last week, it is a worrying and concerning prospect that this is set to become a new normal, according to experts.
CHURCH: Nada Bashir in Rome. Many thanks.
And it isn't just the world's land areas that are scorching in the summer heat. The oceans are suffering too. The water temperature around Florida has risen above 100 degrees Fahrenheit. That's more than 37 degrees Celsius, threatening the world's third largest coral reef and all the wildlife that depends on it.
CNN's chief climate correspondent, Bill Weir, shows us the frantic rescue efforts.
[03:25:07]
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BILL WEIR, CNN CHIEF CLIMATE CORRESPONDENT: Were here in Cartagena, locals and tourists are used to bathtub warm waters in the Caribbean, but nothing like the numbers scientists are seeing now. North of us in Florida, around Florida Bay, triple digit temperatures Fahrenheit, 101 degrees, that's the sea surface, highest ever recorded, 38 degrees Celsius, and as a result of that, some scientists are already seeing complete total coral reef loss, 100 percent bleaching in some areas. There's no telling how much of Florida's reef system, what's left of it will survive because we still have the two hottest months yet to go.
All of this is a result, of course, of generations of heat trapping gas in the atmosphere holding down as much extra heat every second as 10 Hiroshima sized atomic bombs.
The depths of the ocean, that cold water has masked a lot of that obvious heat but this year obviously you can't ignore it anymore and this is just the beginning of a trend that scientists worry could have half of the planet's surface in a marine heat wave.
That puts enormous stresses on coral systems which are not just pretty for snorkels and scuba divers but are the cradles of the sea, the nurseries of so much sea life and on top of that if you add acidification from all that carbon going in, sea creatures are facing stresses that are just off the charts right now.
There is new science about a big circulation system in the Atlantic known as the AMOC. This is a triangular sort of shaped conveyor belt that takes warm water from the Caribbean here, and up to Canada and even to the U.K. and across. That has been weakening as a result of Greenland shedding so much fresh water. If that shuts down, it's sort of an apocalyptic scenario we've seen in movies like "The Day After Tomorrow."
There is some debate as to when that tipping point could happen. A new paper has it as early as 2025 but as late as 2090. But either way, all the latest science points to warnings that we're heading towards to that key vital tipping point that must be avoided to preserve life as we know it on the planet.
So in the meantime, some scientists even in Miami are desperately trying to save what corals they can, bringing them into laboratories, a futile effort given the scope of the problem right now. But again, we are just heading into the two hottest months of the year.
Bill Weir, CNN, Cartagena, Colombia.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CHURCH: Gang violence in Haiti has driven residents from their homes to the grounds of the U.S. Embassy in Port-au-Prince. They're calling on the Haitian government to help control the violence so they can return home.
CNN's Rafael Romo reports.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
RAFAEL ROMO, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Terrified people flee an area around the U.S. Embassy in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, after what appears to be tear gas is deployed.
For the last several days, people have camped out outside the embassy, apparently because they feel it's one of the last few places where they can be safe.
Local residents say gangs are laying siege to the Tabar neighborhood in Port-au-Prince, the same neighborhood where the U.S. embassy is located.
This local resident says gangs are brazenly killing people just a few steps from the embassy, and that's why many have decided to flee their homes. The U.S. Embassy in Port-au-Prince called Tuesday for embassy
personnel to remain inside the compound after three days of gang activity and gunfire near the building.
UNKNOWN (through translator): I don't know the reason. They just shoot and they asked for the area. They took our house and we're in the street. We want help to go back home. To the Haitian government, we send this message because we want to come back home.
ROMO (voice-over): Haitian security forces have struggled to contain the gangs in the last few years, especially after the assassination of President Jovenel Moise in July 2021.
Those criminal groups have assumed control of vast swaths of the country.
(on-camera): In early July, the medical humanitarian charity Doctors Without Borders, also known as Medecins Sans Frontieres, had to stop their work at one of their hospitals in the Tabar neighborhood. MSF said around 20 armed men forcibly entered the hospital to remove a patient being treated for gunshot wounds from the operating room.
(voice-over): U.N. Secretary General Antonio Guterres made an urgent plea after visiting the country in early July.
ANTONIO GUTERRES, UNITED NATIONS SECRETARY GENERAL: We are not calling for a military or political mission of United Nations. We are calling for a robust security force deployed by member states to work hand in hand with the Haitian national police to defeat and dismantle the gangs and restore security across the country.
ROMO (voice-over): Guterres added that the Haitian people are trapped in what he described as a living nightmare calling humanitarian conditions in the Caribbean country beyond appalling.
Rafael Romo, CNN, Atlanta.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
[03:30:00]
ROSEMARY CHURCH, CNN ANCHOR: And CNN has reached out to the Haitian authorities and the U.S. Embassy but has not yet heard back.
Still to come, it has been seven decades since the ceasefire that halted the fighting on the Korean Peninsula. How North Korea is marking what it calls Victory Day.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHURCH: North Korea, China and Russia are attending a grand party in Pyongyang. They're commemorating the anniversary of the armistice that halted the fighting in the Korean War 70 years ago today.
North Korea is hosting high-level delegations from its two closest allies, who also came to its aid during that war, which ended in a stalemate, even though North Korea has long claimed victory.
And CNN's Marc Stewart is tracking this live from Tokyo. He joins us now. Good to see you, Marc. So what is the latest on these two high level delegations from Russia and China visiting North Korea at this time to celebrate what the country calls Victory Day, and how is this day being marked?
MARC STEWART, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Indeed, Rosemary, you know, North Korea always looks for an opportunity to show off its military arsenal and this visit that's taking place right now, the visits from China and Russia, are really no exception. In fact, in the last 90 minutes or so, we have received some video from Pyongyang, of which we have seen North Korean leader Kim Jong-un and Russia's defense minister touring what is being described as a military exhibition. In fact, according to state media, they looked at what are described as new types of weapons and equipment.
North Korea has long shown its support for Russia and vice versa. In fact, the Russian defense minister made a statement today about the KPA, the Korean People's Army, the North Korean military force, saying, quote, "the KPA has become the strongest army in the world."
Now, it is not just Russia who has been visiting North Korea. China is also here at a time when all of these nations are trying to find friends and allies around the world. And then that leads into this other issue of Ukraine. These three nations really have been unified together in their support for Russia.
In the case of North Korea, according to the United States, North Korea has helped to, or has perhaps helped supply Russia with arms that have in turn been used in the Ukrainian conflict. And then China, while it has not necessarily condemned the war, it has maintained a very strong relationship with Russia and with Vladimir Putin.
[03:35:06]
So, we have a historic anniversary with the end of the Korean War and now three allies, North Korea, Russia and China, showing a show of support, a show of force of their own Rosemary.
CHURCH: So what could that mean ultimately then, this gathering of these three nations when it comes to the war in Ukraine?
STEWART: Well, it means that they are unified. Now, exactly what they will do, whether or not perhaps North Korea will send more weapons as the United States has accused, that remains to be seen.
But what it does say is that these three nations together are unified at a time when we have seen very strong alliances, such as the NATO alliance, we have seen the ASEAN Nation alliance, we have seen the Quad here in the Asia Pacific. It is a way for them to assert their own power, their own presence on the world stage, with this backdrop of Ukraine taking place.
CHURCH: All right, Marc Stewart, joining us live from Tokyo. Many thanks for that report. I Appreciate it. Well, Israel's Supreme Court has agreed to take up one of the most contentious laws in the country's history, setting up a major legal battle between the government and opponents who warn that democracy itself is at stake. Protesters have been demonstrating against the judicial overhaul plan for months. It would weaken the Supreme Court's oversight of government decisions, stripping its ability to block those it deems unreasonable.
Elliot Gotkine is live this hour in Tel Aviv and he joins me now. Good to see you, Elliot. So what is the latest on the Supreme Court taking up this controversial law in September?
ELLIOT GOTKINE, JOURNALIST: Rosemary, just to underline the urgency of these petitions from seven groups that the Supreme Court is going to hear, the Supreme Court justices were actually in Germany. They cut short their visit to come back to hear these petitions. And as you say, they have accepted these requests from seven groups to hear these petitions to strike down this so-called reasonableness bill that the governing coalition led by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu passed earlier in the week.
Now, what the Supreme Court justices didn't do is impose any kind of injunction. And so, at the same time as the Supreme Court was saying, yes, we will hear these cases, these petitions in September, this law, this reasonableness bill actually came into effect on the very same day.
So we have these hearings due to start in September. It could take weeks, months until they actually issue a ruling. But it does set up the prospect of a possible showdown between the Supreme Court and the government, because, of course, the Supreme Court is now being asked to effectively say that it is unreasonable for the government to strip the Supreme Court's ability to say that government decisions or appointments are unreasonable.
That said, government minister Ron Dermott, he's a minister for strategic affairs, he did say in response to a question from CNN as to whether the government would abide by a Supreme Court ruling striking out this law passed earlier in the week. Ron Dermott said the government will always obey and abide by the rule of law.
But I should also add that if the Supreme Court were to strike it down, it would be unprecedented. Never before has it struck down a so- called basic law. These are the kind of quasi-constitutional laws that Israel has. It doesn't actually have an actual written constitution or anything like that. So that would be unprecedented.
And the head of the Supreme Court has said in the past, in 2021, she said that the Supreme Court would only strike down a basic law in very narrow circumstances. Specifically, she said, if it dealt a mortal blow to free and fair elections, core human rights, the separation of powers, the rule of law, and an independent judiciary.
So those will perhaps be the reasons that the Supreme Court could potentially use in either deciding to strike down this new reasonableness bill or in deciding that it can remain in effect. And just one thing to add, there are more protests planned for later
this evening. And actually today is quite an auspicious day in Israel. It is Tisha B'av. This is the anniversary of the destruction of both Jewish temples, the last one being destroyed almost 2000 years ago by the Romans. And it is considered to be that second temple was destroyed because of divisions among the Jewish people. So many people seeing parallels between what happened almost 2000 years ago and what is happening today in Israel as well. Rosemary?
CHURCH: Elliot Gotkine, our thanks for that live report. I Appreciate it.
Well the U.S. Federal Reserve is still not satisfied that inflation is under control and on Wednesday raised its benchmark rate to the highest level in 22 years. It's the 11th time the Fed has raised the prime lending rate since March of last year.
Speaking to reporters after the announcement, Fed Chair Jerome Powell said inflation numbers have improved, but not enough.
[03:40:03]
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JEROME POWELL, CHAIR, U.S. FEDERAL RESERVE: I would say it is certainly possible that we would raise funds again at the September meeting if the data warranted. And I would also say it's possible that we would choose to hold steady at that meeting. We're going to be making careful assessments, as I said, meeting by meeting. And I'll close by saying we've raised the federal funds rate now by 525 basis points since March 2022. Monetary policy, we believe, is restrictive and is putting downward pressure on economic activity and inflation.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHURCH: Joining me now is CNN Global Economic Analyst Rana Foroohar. She is also a global business columnist and associate editor at the "Financial Times." Great to have you with us.
RANA FOROOHAR, CNN GLOBAL ECONOMIC ANALYST: Great to be here.
CHURCH: So the Federal Reserve raised interest rates by another quarter point on Wednesday as it continues to try to reduce inflation, taking rates to their highest level in 22 years. Was this the right call coming just one month after hitting the pause button and of course as inflation is showing that it is cooling a bit?
FOROOHAR: I think it was the right call Rosemary. You know we all know that one of the mistakes of the past in particular the 1970s when we fought inflation hard for the last time was that folks let off the gas too early and I think that's a mistake that Jay Powell of the Fed does not want to repeat.
We're in a very odd period right now, though. It's hard to take the temperature of the American economy, in part because the pandemic really changed a lot of vectors. You know, you had a tremendous amount of fiscal stimulus that cushioned consumers in a way that we probably wouldn't be seeing at this point in a cycle now.
You've also got a lot of worries still about supply chain disruptions, you know, trade tensions. not only with China, but potential disruptions to other supply chains, perhaps due to the Ukraine War situation in Europe. And that's making companies, I think, less likely to want to lay people off. So it could be that you're seeing a brighter picture in some ways, and perhaps a more inflationary picture than you might ordinarily in this portion of a cycle. So it's just very, very difficult to read what's going to happen.
CHURCH: Yeah and the Fed now says a recession is unlikely but isn't there always that risk that if they push rates too high to further reduce inflation that could trigger a recession? How do they make that delicate calculation?
FOROOHAR: Oh boy it is such delicate calculation. I mean you know, if you think about why do you raise rates, it's because the economy is growing too strongly. I mean, we still have a very, very tight labor market. It's really quite unexpected, I would say, at this point in a recovery cycle that we should be at the place that we're at.
In some ways, I think that the U.S. continues to benefit from the fact that a lot of other parts of the world are in worse shape. You've got really runaway inflation in the U.K. You've got a major slowdown in China. You've got inflationary pressures in Europe. So the U.S. is kind of a bright spot.
I think that you're going to see the Fed pause now and probably hold for a little bit, maybe even go into fall and see what the picture is looking like then. I think we're not going to see another few rate hikes in any kind of a quick succession, I wouldn't say.
CHURCH; Right, although Fed Chairman Jerome Powell did say that they are prepared to raise rates further in the future if it's deemed appropriate, which would clearly put considerable pressure on many struggling Americans. How reliable though are these old economic models being followed by the Federal Reserve on how to respond to high inflation when the circumstances, as you point out, are so very different compared to the past, aren't they, with a resilient economy, high employment levels, and consumers continuing to spend?
FOROOHAR: Absolutely. I mean, you know, I have thought and argued for some time the models that the Fed is using are out of date. They don't model a lot of financial implications of higher debt and, you know, just financial markets in general. They tend to be very linear, these models.
And I think we're at a moment where the political economy is changing, geopolitics is changing, technology is changing, you've got A.I., you've got, you know, demographic shifts. I mean, there's just almost every potential change vector in the economy is in play. So it really is a tough moment to be making call. Now that said, if Jerome Powell and the Fed can land this plane without causing a recession, boy. He's going to go down as one of the -- one of the greats in Fed history. I have to say. CHURCH: All right. I'm sure he and many of us hoping that indeed does
happen. Rana Foroohar, always a pleasure to get your analysis. I Appreciate it.
FOROOHAR: Pleasure to be here. Thanks.
[03:45:03]
CHURCH: And later this hour, a big scare for the defending champions. We will see how the U.S. handle the Netherlands in the Women's World Cup. Back with that in just a moment.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHURCH: Irish singer Sinead O'Connor who rose to international stardom in the 1990s has died. The 56 year old's cause of death has not yet been made public.
CNN's Randi Kaye looks at her rise to fame and the deeply troubled life that followed.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
(VIDEO PLAYING)
RANDI KAYE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Sinead O'Connor singing the hit song that catapulted her to international stardom, "Nothing Compares 2 U". The song was written by Prince and in 1990 she topped the music charts with her version of it.
The Irish singer earned four Grammy nominations for the song and the album it was on. She also won the award for MTV's Video of the Year. In 1991 "Rolling Stone" Magazine named her Artist of the Year.
(VIDEO PLAYING)
O'Connor's singing voice was extraordinary, pure power.
(VIDEO PLAYING)
And her stage presence, electric. But behind all of that, or perhaps helping fuel it, there was pain, lots of it.
O'Connor spoke about how her mother abused her in a recent Showtime documentary called "Nothing Compares."
SINEAD O'CONNOR, SINGER: My mother was a very violent woman, not a healthy woman mentally at all. She was physically and verbally and psychologically, spiritually and emotionally abusive.
UNKNOWN: My mother was a beast and I was able to soothe her with my voice. I was able to use my voice to make the devil fall asleep.
KAYE (voice-over): Sometime after her parents divorced, O'Connor, at age 14, was sent away to live in an asylum run by the Order of Our Lady of Charity. UNKNOWN: I was a bit messed up and it wasn't acknowledged what had
happened to me in my mother's house.
KAYE (voice-over): O'Connor's mother died in a car accident in 1985, two years before her debut album was released.
(VIDEO PLAYING)
O'Connor often used her music to address social issues and inspire change. In 1992 on "Saturday Night Live," O'Connor tore up a photo of Pope John Paul II to protest sexual abuse in the Catholic Church.
[03:50:00]
O'CONNOR: Fight the real enemy!
KAYE (voice-over): In 1999, she became the first priestess of a dissident Roman Catholic group. And after the Catholic priest sex abuse scandal broke wide open, she called on the Vatican to stop covering up the truth, telling Anderson Cooper this in 2010.
O'CONNOR: The one thing that the victims really require for healing, and so do the rest of us as Catholic people, is a full admission by the Vatican that there was an active cover-up in operation for decades since 1922.
KAYE (voice-over): O'Connor long struggled with her mental health. She attempted suicide at age 33. In 2017, she posted this video of herself at a motel in New Jersey in the midst of a mental breakdown.
O'CONNOR: The people who suffer from mental illness are the most vulnerable people on earth. We can't take care of our (EXPLETIVE) selves.
KAYE (voice-over): A year later, she converted to Islam and changed her name to Shihada Sadakwa. Last year, O'Connor's 17-year-old son, Shane, died by suicide. O'Connor shared this photo of the two of them just last week on Twitter.
Despite saying in 2021 she would quit making music and touring, O'Connor recently recorded the opening song for the hit show "Outlander" seventh season.
(VIDEO PLAYING)
Sinead O'Connor was 56.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHURCH: The biggest clash so far in the Women's World Cup ended with a one-all draw. The Netherlands and the U.S. faced off once again in a rematch of the previous World Cup final, but the defending champs were trailing at the half, which hasn't happened in this tournament in more than a decade. CNN's Angus Watson joins us live from Sydney. Good to see you, Angus.
So you, of course, have been following all the action. What were the main highlights of this clash between the Netherlands and the U.S.?
AGNUS WATSON, CNN PRODUCER: Rosemary you said it this was one of the most anticipated games of the group stage at this Women's World Cup across New Zealand and Australia and it did not disappoint a great one for the neutrals one-one in the end. But it didn't start out too well for team USA going down one-nil to a great strike by the Dutch player Jill Roord after halftime however the U.S. Women's National team came out with a thigh in their bellies looking for that equalizer.
They got that around the 60th minute from captain Lindsay Horan, her second goal of this tournament with a nicely headed strike and they could have gone two-one up. Alex Morgan so close to scoring got it in the back of the net called back for an offside.
The U.S. team pushed and pushed but they couldn't get the result, perhaps one-all a fair result at the end of play. People here at this fan zone where I am in Sydney Australia are excited by the play. Here's what some of them had to say about the result.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNKNOWN: Yeah I was terrified. I thought they were going to lose because the Americans seemed really like hyped up for this and they were looking like they were going to kill us.
UNKNOWN: And of course the Americans won last time against the Dutch also so yeah it was a good match.
UNKNOWN: I'm hoping to see more of that fire from Iran, that response, a little bit of tiki-taki in the middle. We love to hear that response especially from like the strong women in the U.S.
(END VIDEO CLIP
[03:55:11]
WATSON: So the U.S. team, one of the favorites here at the tournament, the favorite, it must be said to do three in a row, three World Cups on the bounce. No team has ever done that. There aren't enough superlatives really to describe this team and they records trail in their wake. As you said there, Rosemary, it was the first time that Team USA had been down in a World Cup match since 2011, but getting it up back up to one-one made sure that they haven't lost the World Cup match in 19 games, Rosemary.
CHURCH: All right. Thanks so much for that live report, Angus Watson in Sydney. I Appreciate it.
Well, the future seems more uncertain than ever for French footballer Kylian Mbappe. Reports say a massive deal that would have sent the superstar to Saudi Arabia has fallen through.
CNN World Sport anchor Don Riddell has details. (BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DON RIDDELL, CNN WORLD SPORT: The saga continues with the Paris Saint- Germain star Kylian Mbappe, who has spurned a meeting and contract with the Saudi Arabian football club Al Hilal. That's according to multiple reports.
CNN has reached out to Al-Hilal, Mbappe's representatives, and PSG for comment.
We've yet to hear anything back. Earlier this week, Al-Hilal reportedly was set to smash the world record transfer fee and pay $332 million to PSG for the French star. The proposed deal reportedly, including a staggering $775 million salary packet for the 24-year-old cup winner.
The French outlet L'Equipe and the renowned Italian soccer journalist Fabrizio Romano had reported that representatives from Saudi Arabia's most successful club, who are winners of four Asian Champions League tournaments, were in Paris to meet with Mbappe's representatives, but they were rejected.
Mbappe still has one year left on his PSG contract. He has been heavily linked with a move to the La Liga and European giants Real Madrid.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CHURCH: All right. Thanks for spending part of your day with me. I'm Rosemary Church, "CNN Newsroom" continues next, with Max Foster.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
