Return to Transcripts main page

CNN Newsroom

CNN International: Five Americans Freed from Iran En Route to U.S.; Republicans Harshly Critical of U.S.-Iran Deal; World Leaders to Attend UN General Assembly Opening; Zelenskyy to Attend UNGA, Meet Biden to Shore Up Support; UAW Threatens More Walkouts by Friday; Residents of Flood-Ravaged City Protest Against Officials. Aired 4- 4:30a ET

Aired September 19, 2023 - 04:00   ET

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

[04:00:00]

MAX FOSTER, CNN ANCHOR: Hello and welcome to our viewers joining us in the United States and all around the world. I'm Max Foster in London. Bianca is off this week, but just ahead on CNN NEWSROOM.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Smiles, hugs and tears as five Americans detained inside Iran for years are finally freed.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's very good to be able to say that our fellow citizens are free.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: World leaders gathered in New York are set to kick off the United Nations General Assembly in the hours ahead.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The war in Ukraine, as always, is going to be something that overshadows much of the next few days.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: In a startling accusation, Canadian officials say the killing of a prominent Canadian Sikh leader may have been an assassination carried out on the orders of the Indian government.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ANNOUNCER: Live from London, this is CNN NEWSROOM with Max Foster and Bianca Nobilo.

FOSTER: It is Tuesday, September the 19th, 9:00 a.m. here in London, 4:00 a.m. in Washington, where a group of Americans who were detained in Iran are expected back on U.S. soil very soon. They were freed as part of a deal with the U.S. They'll see $6 billion in Iranian assets unfrozen. Two of the Americans have spent five years in detention, a third was jailed for eight years. They are Siamak Namazi, Morad Tahbaz and Emad Shargi. Two other freed Americans haven't been publicly identified.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) ANTONY BLINKEN, U.S. SECRETARY OF STATE: Their freedom, the freedom of these Americans for so long, unjustly imprisoned and detained in Iran means some pretty basic things. It means that husbands and wives, fathers and children, grandparents, can hug each other again. Can see each other again. Can be with each other again. So it's a day that I'm grateful for.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FOSTER: Well, CNN's Becky Anderson has more now on this difficult deal and how it came together.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BECKY ANDERSON, CNN MANAGING EDITOR, ABU DHABI & ANCHOR (voice over): Smile, hugs and tears, as five Americans detained inside Iran for years are finally freed and on their way home.

Among them, Siamak Namazi. He was arrested in 2015 while on a business trip to Iran and charged with having relations with a hostile state. After nearly eight years in prison, Namazi was Iran's longest held American prisoner. Feeling abandoned by the U.S. earlier this year, he appealed directly to President Biden in an unprecedented interview with CNN from inside the notorious Evin Prison.

SIAMAK NAMAZI, AMERICAN HELD PRISONER IN EVIN PRISON (via phone): Honestly, the other hostages and I desperately need President Biden to finally hear us out to finally hear our cry for help bring us home.

ANDERSON (voice over): Also freed, dual Iranian-American citizens Morad Tahbaz and Emad Shargi. Tahbaz, an environmentalist, was arrested while on a trip to Iran in 2018. Shargi, a businessman who moved with his wife to Iran from the U.S. in 2017 was also detained in 2018 on similar charges to that of Namazi.

ANDERSON: For years their fate tied to tensions between the two countries, but with the help of a common friend in Qatar, breakthrough diplomacy brought us to this very moment.

ANDERSON (voice over): Iran freed the dual citizens in a deal to release five Iranians held in U.S. prisons, and to unblock $6 billion in frozen Iranian funds from South Korea. That cash moving from Seoul to Switzerland before being transferred to Doha, after the Biden administration last week issued a sanctions waiver clearing the way for the money to move.

The role of Qatar now changing from mediator to guarantor ensuring Washington's demands that Iran's billions are strictly controlled and spent only on humanitarian goods, like food and medicine.

[04:05:00]

But critics worry even with Doha's oversight, the moneys could be spent however Tehran decides. There is also concern this latest deal enables what many critics have dubbed Tehran's hostage diplomacy. But for the freed Americans today at least, politics will likely be a secondary concern, as they finally get to go home after years of mental and physical anguish.

Becky Anderson, CNN, Doha.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

FOSTER: CNN's Chief international diplomatic editor Nic Robertson is with us. And undoubtedly good news personally for these families, you got to feel for them and what they've been through. But in terms of the political fallout that now follows, it's all about the deal and whether or not it's seen as appeasement or indeed a ransom payment.

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: And it's in a very extreme political environment. It's the politics of the United States is so divided at the moment. We're in a campaign season, we're essentially running up to the next presidential election more or less, this time next year. So Republicans are taking a shot at Democrat President Biden over what he's done here. But the reality is Democrats and Republicans have negotiated with hostile governments to get Americans freed from captivity.

Think here of President Trump when he met with Kim Jong-un. It was only a few days or weeks or so before when several Americans were released by the North Koreans. You know, Kim Jong-un got a different price there. He got to be on the world stage. You got to meet President Trump. He got to, you know, he got the attention that he was seeking. So there are different deliverables other than money. And the case that the Biden administration is making which is accurate, is that this was Iranian money that have been -- that they'd that they'd paid -- that that was being held by South Korea.

And all that's happened now is being put in account that Iran can get access to it, but there are controls and monitoring on what it does with that money. It has to be used for humanitarian -- for humanitarian goods. So there's a there's a win narrative on the part of the White House, but there's -- it has put them in a position where they will be pilloried for this, as they are pilloried for many things in this tense political season.

FOSTER: Absolutely. Nic, thank you so much.

U.S. Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell is criticizing the deal with Iran. He says President Biden is rewarding and incentivizing Tehran's bad behavior. And former U.S. Vice President, Mike Pence, who's now running for president, also spoke out in a speech at the Hudson Institute in Washington.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MIKE PENCE, U.S. REPUBLICAN PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Just days after the Biden administration announced its secretive deal with Iran, including releasing Iranian operatives and paying Tehran $6 billion. It was once again proven that it's no real surprise that weakness arouses evil. It's truly remarkable to think, as we gather here today, the Biden administration just extended a visa to the President of Iran. A man responsible for genocide. Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi, who just arrived in New York to speak at the United Nations. When I'm president, I won't give criminals like Raisi a visa to allow them to set foot on American soil, and we will never, ever pay ransom to terrorists or terrorist states.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FOSTER: Now to the Georgia election subversion case. A federal judge says he'll decide soon on Jeffrey Clark's bid to move his criminal case to federal court, where he could encounter a more favorable jury pool. But we're told the judge appeared skeptical and was visibly annoyed during the hearing. Clark is a former Trump era Justice Department official and one of the ex-President's 18 co-defendants indicted for allegedly trying to overturn the state's 2020 election results. Two legal experts weighed in on Clark's chances.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

RYAN GOODMAN, FORMAL SPECIAL COUNSEL, U.S. DEFENSE DEPARTMENT: So I think that it's bad news for Clark. It looks like he's going nowhere. He's going to be tried in Fulton County, Georgia. And it also is a sign for Donald Trump. If you're going to try the same idea of a bid to remove your case to federal court, you might have to testify. Part of the problem for Clark is he didn't testify and the burden is on that individual to prove their case. Without that evidence, without that testimony, it looks like it's really going nowhere.

ANTHONY MICHAEL KREIS, ASSISTANT PROFESSOR OF LAW, GEORGIA STATE UNIVERSITY: I think the judge was very frustrated over the fact that we were having an evidentiary hearing without much evidence. And so that was really not a particularly I think great dynamic for Clark and his team. I think that the testimony today by the former Civil division chief was really very significant because it made it very clear that the prerogative that exists to, you know, enforce election law on a federal level would come from the Civil Rights division and not the division that Jeffrey Clark was part of, or the Criminal Law Division, which again is not the division that Jeffrey Clark was part of.

[04:10:00]

I think the other thing that was really very important, is that the letter that really centered here in the Fulton County indictment, where Jeffrey Clark was -- drafted a letter to urge the General Assembly here in Georgia to convene and overturn the election that he did not do that at the direction of former President Trump. In fact, at the time that he was concocting this letter and drafting it, Donald Trump probably didn't even know his name or barely knew who he was. So he so he really couldn't claim that he was doing it at the president's direction either.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

FOSTER: Donald Trump's former lawyer Rudy Giuliani is being sued by his former attorneys for unpaid legal fees. A law firm that represented Giuliani since 2019 says he owes more than $1.3 million. In that time period, Giuliani has faced serious or various lawsuits and criminal investigations, including the election interference case in the U.S. state of Georgia. Giuliani has said publicly that he's struggling to pay his legal fees.

World leaders gathered in New York are set to kick off the United Nations General Assembly in the hours ahead. The U.S. President Joe Biden is amongst those delivering remarks today before holding a bilateral meeting with the UN Secretary General. Mr. Biden is the only leader of the permanent five members of the UN Security Council to attend.

Leaders will be discussing a host of issues, from climate change to the war in Ukraine, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy will attend the annual meeting in person for the first time and is set to address the assembly in the coming hours. He'll be seeking more support for his country amid the ongoing war with Russia. On Monday, Mr. Zelenskyy visited Ukrainian soldiers undergoing treatment and rehabilitation in New York. He also honored some soldiers with awards. Mr. Zelenskyy is set to meet with President Biden and U.S. lawmakers later this week.

Ukraine says air defenses shot down 15 of 18 Russian drones flying towards the western city of Lviv just overnight, and the city's mayor says one person was killed. Three industrial warehouses caught fire in the attack, including one full of humanitarian supplies that was destroyed.

Meanwhile, the command of Ukraine land forces says troops have successfully broken through a Russian defense line on the Eastern Front. They've liberated two key villages around the Bakhmut region in the past few days. Military officials say the over the -- and the overall the situation remains difficult because Russian forces are fighting to claw back every inch of territory Ukrainian troops regain.

CNN investigative producer Katie Polglase joins us now. There's lots of narratives going on now, partly because of what's happening on the ground, but also what's happening in New York.

KATIE POLGLASE, CNN INVESTIGATIVE PRODUCER: Absolutely. And it's worth reminding our viewers, really, of the incident in Lviv of the civilian toll throughout all of this. While we are seeing these battleground movements on the southern and the eastern frontline and while we're also seeing the diplomacy now playing out in New York with Zelenskyy courting various leaders from around the globe, there are also civilians who are going about their daily life in Ukraine that are getting impacted by this war and are constantly at risk. We're now hearing reports that one man has died because of the drone attack that Russia allegedly launched over the city of Lviv. The Lviv mayor saying, that there was only humanitarian supplies there. There was nothing military in those warehouses. Huge fires set off as a result of these attacks.

This is ongoing throughout and now Zelenskyy is in New York. He will be showing and demonstrating this kind of incident to leaders to explain why he so desperately needs more weaponry, more support, more allied help throughout his counteroffensive. Because the Russian attacks don't stop. And we've been seeing these throughout the conflict. That he needs more weaponry, he's claiming, these long range missiles he keeps talking about from the U.S. He's now secured some aid from Germany just in the past day 400 million euros worth of military aid from Germany.

He says he needs more from all of his allied countries and also, crucially, as we go into these winter months. Because not only are these Russian attacks quite difficult and quite strenuous for civilians, but also as we go into winter and the cold weather arrives, the energy and infrastructure that Russia may target is again going to make civilian life even harder.

And if again, the counteroffensive was to slow or to stop, and that is the risk if they don't keep making this progress, the fear is on the battlefield, that Russia will then have the time to refortify those defensive lines. So really two risks in the months ahead as we go into these winter months and all of this is going to be on the agenda. All of this is what Zelenskyy is going to be talking about with world leaders as we're seeing him arrive in New York today.

FOSTER: OK, Katie, we'll be watching. Thank you.

The wreckage of a U.S. fighter jet that crashed in North Carolina has been located. Authorities have been securing the debris field to start the recovery process. The plane went down on Sunday near Charleston. The pilot did a -- did actually eject safely, though. There's no word yet on what caused the incident involving the F-35 jet -- like this one. In the wake of that crash and two others over the past six weeks, the U.S. Marine Corps has ordered a temporary pause in flight operations. The pause is scheduled to last two days, whilst the crashes are investigated. They don't appear to be connected though.

[04:15:00]

There is no sign of progress in talks to end the United Auto Workers strike in the U.S. But the news is a bit better north of the border in Canada. We'll explain just ahead.

Plus, protests in Derna, Libya. Local residents are demanding officials be held accountable for a lack of planning after floods destroyed that city.

Then why India and Canada are taking diplomatic swipes at each other after a Sikh leader was murdered on Canadian soil.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

FOSTER: Canadian auto workers are extending negotiations with Ford, delaying a possible strike. 5,000 Union members have been threatening to walk off the job at three plants. Meanwhile, in the U.S., the United Auto Workers strike against the big three automakers is now in its fifth day with no sign of progress. CNN's Gabe Cohen reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) GABE COHEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, still no deals as of Monday night after the Union spent the day negotiating with Stellantis, which owns the Jeep factory behind me here in Toledo, Ohio. The company releasing a statement saying in part, quote:

The discussion was constructive and focused on where we can find common ground to reach an agreement.

[04:20:00]

But there is still a wide divide between the roughly 20 percent pay raises that the Big Three have offered versus the 40 percent demanded by the Union.

So for now, nearly 13,000 auto workers across the U.S., including roughly 5,800 here in Toledo, are still on strike, making about $500 a week in strike pay. And yet so many tell me they are prepared to strike for as long as it takes.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: If we do sign up for a second job, we can't make more than $499 or we will not be eligible for a strike benefits. So I still want to find something else to do while my kids are in school to make a couple of extra dollars to cover, you know, to surprises. With kids, you never know what can happen. So you need some type of backup.

COHEN: How long do you believe this is going last?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I hope not too long. I'm hoping at most a couple of weeks, but we'll have to see. We're in it for the long haul though no matter what.

COHEN: And the head of the Auto Workers Union has said more facilities may strike in the days ahead if deals are not reached, which could create even more disruptions for Ford, General Motors, and Stellantis.

Gabe Cohen, CNN Toledo, Ohio.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

FOSTER: Protesters packed the streets of the Libyan city of Derna on Monday, demanding accountability from officials after deadly flooding. Residents blame government officials for not giving them enough warning to evacuate in time. Critics are also highlighting the fact that experts knew as early as last year that the city was vulnerable to floods and the dams required maintenance.

Reuters reports, Libya's acting Prime Minister in eastern Libya dismissed all members of Derna's municipal council and has called for an investigation.

The European Union has released $5.2 million in humanitarian aid for those affected by the floods in Libya. In a statement on Monday, the EU said the funds will be channeled through partners already active in the country to lend more assistance with shelter, food, water, hygiene and more. Eight Member States have contributed to aid to Libya so far. The EU says they've allocated. 36 million euros in aid in the wake of the disaster.

CNN's Larry Madowo joins me now from Nairobi with more. I mean, we did hear pretty early on that there was concern about the state of the dams, but actually the numbers wouldn't have been as high. Would they, of casualties if they'd managed to evacuate sooner?

LARRY MADOWO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: And that is why there's this anger about the early warnings that were not heeded, that were not properly communicated. Even the head of the UN support mission in Libya said if these early warnings happened, maybe the crisis could not have been avoided. But the numbers of the dead and those missing could have been reduced.

And that's why you see these protest outside the grand, most in Derna. People accusing local administrators of neglect of not having done enough to prevent this catastrophe. Also of not having maintained these dams, these two dams that broke after Storm Daniel dumped record numbers -- record amounts of water in this eastern Libyan city and they want a speedy investigation. They want those officials, they feel they're responsible, that action, legal action should be taken against them. Listen to one of the protesters.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MOHAMMED BEN HAMAD, LIBYAN PROTESTER (through translator): First of all, we pray that all the martyrs will rest in peace and I hope this is the end of our catastrophes. We just ask that if there will be any rebuilding efforts that no Libyan company be ever involved. This is because everyone in Derna from the head of the municipality to all the officials are corrupt. Derna should be either be left as it is or a foreign company should be involved. The souls of the martyrs will not be in vain.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MADOWO: This has more -- almost 4,000 people killed. The numbers could be much higher when a full account is done, more than 9,000 missing. That's just one tragedy. The other, the UN is warning that a second devastating crisis could occur with so many people exposed to contaminated water and lack of sanitation and the likelihood of disease outbreaks remains very high -- Max.

FOSTER: OK, Larry, thanks for bringing us the latest on the situation in Libya.

Still ahead, the Biden administration coming under fire for its arrangement to bring home American prisoners from Iran. But it's not the first deal of its kind.

Plus, Donald Trump is planning to beef up his campaigning in Iowa as he takes aim at rival Ron DeSantis over the issue of abortion. Details just ahead.

[04:25:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) FOSTER: Welcome to NEWSROOM, I'm Max Foster. If you're just joining us, let me bring up to date with our top stories this hour.

U.S. President Joe Biden will deliver remarks at the United Nations General Assembly, kicking off in New York in just a few hours. World leaders will be discussing a host of issues, from climate change to the war in Ukraine.

And we're expecting the plane carrying five Americans to freedom to land any time now in the U.S. The Americans were released from Iranian detention as part of a deal that included unfreezing $6 billion in Iranian funds and the release of five Iranians in U.S. custody.

Joining me now here in London, Sanam Vakil, the director of the Middle East and North Africa Programme at Chatham House. Thank you so much for joining us again, Sanam. It's going to be, you know, great news, isn't it, personally, for all of these five people to land back in the U.S. and there be a lot of celebration, and rightfully so. But the fallout politically is going to continue. All this talk about the Biden administration appeasing the Iranians, that sort of language. I know it's a hot political atmosphere in the United States right now. But where do you sit on whether or not this was appeasement or something that just had to be done?

SANAM VAKIL, MIDDLE EAST AND NORTHERN AFRICA PROGRAMME, CHATHAM HOUSE: Thank you for having me back. I sit strongly on the side of I'm very happy to see the American hostages come home. They -- and I think everyone who has languished in prison would like someone to come for them. And I'm glad to see that President Biden wasn't afraid to put himself on the line. Indeed, Iran is a toxic asset. It is a partisan issue in the United States and many countries around the world. What is really needed is for policymakers in Western capitals to develop a bipartisan strategy to manage policy relating to countries like Iran that are -- take hostages.

[04:30:00]