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CNN International: IDF Rescues Four Israeli Hostages During Deadly Raid In Gaza; Israeli War Cabinet Member Benny Gantz Quits Emergency Govt.; U.S. Seeks To Ratchet Up Pressure For Gaza Ceasefire. Aired 11a-12p ET

Aired June 10, 2024 - 11:00   ET

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

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RAHEL SOLOMON, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning or good evening, depending on where you're watching. I'm Rahel Solomon live in New York.

And ahead on CNN NEWSROOM, freed but at what cost? Questions mount over a deadly operation to rescue four Israeli hostages held in Gaza. We are live in Tel Aviv with the latest here. Plus, the new rise of Europe's far right, right-wing parties see a surge of support in parliamentary elections. But, the European Commission President assuring, quote, "the center is holding". And Hunter Biden's defense team just decided that the President's son will not testify at his gun trial. We are live outside the courthouse with the very latest here.

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken says that the best way to get all the hostages in Gaza back home is through a proposal, a ceasefire proposal that is now on the table. Blinken landed in Israel a short time ago to his second stop of his four-nation regional tour. He is expected to meet soon with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Tel Aviv. Mr. Netanyahu still under political pressure at home after a key member of his war cabinet resigned. That pressure despite a dramatic raid that rescued four Israeli hostages. Earlier, Secretary of State Blinken met with Egypt's President in Cairo. Egypt is one of the main mediators trying to broker a ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas. Blinken is urging Hamas to accept the proposal. But, he also says that it's critical that there are plans in place for the day after the war.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ANTONY BLINKEN, U.S. SECRETARY OF STATE: In the absence of those plans, then one of three things. Either Israel would have to stay, which it says it doesn't want to do and we believe it must not do and would be left holding the bag in Gaza and would probably have a major insurgency on his hands for years to come, or in the absence of a plan, it leaves, Hamas returns; or we have a total vacuum, and you just have chaos, lawlessness, criminality, jihadist groups, etcetera. So, it's imperative that there be a plan, and that has to involve security, it has to involve governance, it has to involve reconstruction.

(END VIDEO CLIP) SOLOMON: Now, the shakeup in Israel's war cabinet could lead Prime Minister Netanyahu more reliant on far-right members who have threatened to bring down his government if he accepts the latest ceasefire proposal. Former Defense Minister Benny Gantz resigned Sunday, accusing Mr. Netanyahu of lacking a clear war strategy. That announcement was originally scheduled for Saturday, but it was postponed, given the dramatic rescue operation in Gaza that we just spoke about. We're learning much more about that read today that freed four hostages who had spent eight months in captivity. Joyous and emotional reunions with family members now dominating the airwaves in Israel. Listen to the mother of one of the freed hostages.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ORIT MEIR, MOTHER OF ALMOG MEIR JAN: Yesterday was my birthday and my wish came through. I haven't stopped smiling since my Almog was returned to me. All I can do now is to hug him.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SOLOMON: But, for Palestinians, the raid in a crowded refugee camp marked one of the deadliest days of the war. Gaza officials say that more than 270 people were killed during that operation. Israel says that the number was below 100. Now, CNN is unable to verify the casualty numbers.

But, let's get more now from Paula Hancocks, she is in Tel Aviv, and Ben Wedeman, who was in Beirut. Paula, let me start with you and this raid. What more are we learning?

PAULA HANCOCKS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Rahel, when it comes to the mission itself, we're starting to see some dramatic footage from the moment that it started, both from the military and also some terrifying images from those on the ground as well. It was a significant mission. There were hundreds of Israeli personnel involved in this. Apache helicopters. There were airstrikes from above as well.

And what we're hearing is that the four hostages were being held in two separate buildings. They said that they were in multi-storey residential buildings that were about 200 meters apart from each other, the three men in one, locked in one apartment, and the one woman in another one. So, they said they made the decision to make this a daytime raid which is, as they say, unusual, given they'd usually do something like this under the cover of night but they wanted the element of surprise.

Now, we're hearing from one eyewitness on the ground that the Israeli military, they say, were wearing disguise.

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They were actually wearing Hamas fighter uniforms or civilian uniforms as well. So, it has not caused any concern on the ground that what was about to happen was about to happen. Now, the IDF is not confirming or denying that at this point, but we know they have used disguise certainly as a tactic in the past. But, there are more questions being raised about this operation

itself. I mean, from an Israeli military point of view, they consider it to be a success because they did manage to rescue four Israeli hostages. They did lose one soldier in the mission itself as well. But, of course, the questions are being asked about what they left behind in Nuseirat itself. So, as we do see, the celebrations of Israeli hostages here in Tel Aviv in a hospital, three of them still in a medical condition -- a medical center, having their condition checked at this point. So, well, that celebration is ongoing. There are questions about exactly how this operation went down. Rahel.

SOLOMON: Also, Paula, questions about just the future of the government there, now with this fallout of Benny Gantz quitting his war cabinet role, something that we should say he had threatened to do. I mean, what did he say in his resignation address?

HANCOCKS: Well, he said it was with a heavy heart that he decided he had to leave the emergency government. He said he had given warning, which he had last month. He said to Benjamin Netanyahu that there were conditions for him to stay in the government. There needed to be a day-after plan, which incidentally many other countries are calling for as well, which Netanyahu has been very vague about in recent months. He says there has to be a decisive plan to get the hostages out. He is a true supporter of this deal that's on the table that at this point for a hostage deal with Hamas, and he said there has to be some kind of calm on the northern border with southern Lebanon so that tens of thousands of residents can return home. None of those conditions, he says, were met. So, that is why he had to pull out of the emergency government.

It doesn't collapse the government. Netanyahu still has a majority. But, Gantz was really seen as a counterweight to the more far-right elements in his coalition. So, there is a concern that this far-right government could become even more influenced by those extreme views at this point. There are also, of course, concerns about what his departure means for a potential hostage deal as well.

SOLOMON: Certainly something we will discuss in just a moment. But, for now, let's go to the northern border with Lebanon. Paula Hancocks live for us there. Paula, thank you. Let me bring in Ben Wedeman. He is live for us in Beirut. Ben, give us a sense of where the proposal stands right now.

BEN WEDEMAN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, this proposal put forth by President Biden on the 31st of May is mired in ambiguity, frankly. On the one hand, the war cabinet in Israel has authorized the deal. However, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has not explicitly endorsed it. And of course, with the withdrawal of Benny Gantz from that war cabinet, he is under more intense pressure from the extremist elements in his government who don't want any sort of deal that leads to a permanent ceasefire. And Prime Minister Netanyahu has made it clear that his ultimate goal after the release of the hostages is the complete destruction of Hamas.

Now, Hamas, for its part today, there was a meeting in Doha, Qatar, between leaders of Hamas and Islamic Jihad, and they stressed that they have yet to reject the deal, but they haven't agreed to it either. They said that they're looking for a permanent ceasefire, a total withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza, a lifting of the siege, which we're talking about a siege, basically a closure of Gaza that goes back to June 2007 when Hamas took over the Gaza Strip, in addition to a comprehensive prisoner exchange. Both sides, there seems to be a wide gap between the two.

Now, Mr. Blinken is now on his eighth visit to the region in the last eight months, and what we -- and we -- it's not at all clear whether he will encounter any success. We know that William Burns, the head of the CIA, was recently in the Qatar. That trip was inconclusive. Brett McGurk, the Middle East Coordinator for the White House, was in Cairo. No results from that trip as well. So, short of any progress at this point. It appears that Biden's initiative at the moment doesn't seem to be going anywhere. Rahel.

SOLOMON: Yeah. And perhaps made more complicated after this weekend. Ben Wedeman live for us there. Ben, thank you.

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For some perspective now, we're joined by former Middle East Negotiator at the U.S. State Department, Aaron David Miller. He is a Senior Fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. David -- Aaron, excuse me, always good to see you. Good to have you back. Let me start with just sort of where we are, the morning after this weekend, the likelihood of progress now on these ceasefire deals. As our correspondent said, this is Blinken's eighth trip to the region. How are you feeling this morning about the prospect of progress?

AARON DAVID MILLER, FORMER U.S. STATE DEPT. MIDDLE EAST NEGOTIATOR: Yeah. I think Ben's assessment is probably correct. The reality is Middle East negotiations, when they're relatively normal, and this is not a normal negotiation, usually only has two speeds, slow and slower, and this is not a typical negotiation. The principle Palestinian decision-maker, Yahya Sinwar, is ensconced in a tunnel somewhere, 20 or 30 meters below ground. You have the Qataris, the Egyptians, all with their own specific motives about how they would like to see this play out. And you have the administration, the Biden administration, more or less desperate to try to figure out a way to end this.

The problem, Rahel, is very simple, I think, simple to explain. Negotiations succeed when there is urgency, when parties are in a hurry, and urgency is usually shaped by how much pain there is on one hand and how much gain there might be on the other. And the simple inconvenient reality, in my judgment, almost nine months into the war next month is it neither the government of Benjamin Netanyahu, now minus Benny Gantz, and the Islamic resistance movement, Hamas, neither of the two major combatants are in a hurry to do this deal.

And I think the only hope, it seems to me, would be a phase one. That is to say, limited exchange of hostages for Palestinian prisoners, six weeks of a ceasefire, surging humanitarian assistance into Gaza. I don't think, under these circumstances either Hamas nor the Netanyahu government is prepared to go to phase two, which is to end the war, think about withdrawal of Israeli forces, a cessation of hostilities, and what Hamas wants most of all, which is safety and security for the senior leadership and a role, perhaps informal role and whatever post October 7 conflict environment there is in Gaza. So, right now, I think those types of objectives are mutually irreconcilable.

SOLOMON: Yeah. Really difficult to hear that. Aaron, let me ask, the impact of Benny Gantz now stepping down, what impact do you see that having in terms of moving forward, whether it's Netanyahu is day-after plan or just the likelihood of some sort of deal?

MILLER: No. I think you have to distinguish, Rahel, between the headline here and the trend line. In terms of the headline, I'm not sure how much impact it is going to have. Knesset arithmetic is the key here. 120 seats in the Israeli parliament, the Knesset, you need 60 plus one to govern. The Netanyahu government even minus Benny Gantz's National Unity Party has 64 seats. And it's a very cohesive coalition, two ultra-religious parties, two messianic Zionist parties, and Mr. Netanyahu's party, the Likud, which is still the most dominant coherent and cohesive party in Israel, and it does not -- Likud does not have a history of devouring zone.

So, right now, Mr. Netanyahu, I think, is actually quite secure. I think his goal, Knesset goes into recess on July 25. It does not come back until 10 days before the U.S. election. I think his goal basically is to buy time. Maybe they'll free more hostages. Maybe they'll locate Yahya Sinwar and kill him. Maybe it will be some other success. But, I think Mr. Netanyahu wants to direct to draw this out and probably make a judgment on who the next President of the United States is going to be. And I know he cannot vote in America. But, one thing I'm pretty sure, he isn't going to be voting for Joe Biden.

SOLOMON: Aaron, let me ask before we let you go, the likelihood of another country intervening here and perhaps working out some sort of deal with Hamas. That does not include Israel to maybe free some of these hostages, as starting to be reported. I mean, what do you think about that, the likelihood of that?

MILLER: I think an alternate network reported today that there were discussions underway indirectly, of course, between the U.S. and Hamas or via Qatar or Egypt, to consider the possibility -- there are five Americans being held that the Israelis believe, and the Americans believe are alive and three who are not.

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And this NBC report, I think, indicated that there were these discussions going on. I find it is still difficult to believe, though, outside of the context of a prisoner exchange, which included -- and the Americans, I think, several are dual nationals, Israeli American citizens. So, I think it's hard to imagine a separate deal being cut, although the Russians, I think, may have cut one with Hamas to free a Russian hostage. I'm not sure about that.

SOLOMON: Yeah. Well, we shall wait to see. Aaron David Miller, always good to have your perspectives certainly on a day like this after such an eventful weekend. That's Aaron David Miller. Thank you. MILLER: Thanks, Rahel.

SOLOMON: Yep.

MILLER: Thanks.

SOLOMON: All right. This just in from Hunter Biden's federal gun trial. Closing arguments are expected to begin soon. That's because the defense has now rested. The prosecution has finished with its only rebuttal witness. And the President's son did not testify in his own defense, as is his right. Right now, the judge is reading jury instructions. Then they will go for a lunch break and then the jury will begin its deliberations. Hunter Biden is charged with purchasing a firearm while using drugs. We're going to have much more from outside the courthouse in just about 20 minutes. So, stick with us.

All right. After a short break, political turmoil across Europe after far-right groups win big in EU parliamentary elections. Plus, those election results triggered protests in Paris, along with a shocking announcement from the French President Emmanuel Macron. We're going to have a live report from the French capital when we come right back.

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SOLOMON: Welcome back. The far right surge in European Union elections is fueling political chaos in some major European capitals. In France and in Germany, the vote is a setback for the ruling parties. But, it's a win for Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and her far right Brothers of Italy party. It appears that far-right groups will secure about 150 of the European Parliament's 720 seats. That would be a record. In Germany and in France, some left-wing groups such as the Green suffered huge losses at the polls. The European Commission President says that centrist parties are still standing strong despite far-right election gains. Listen.

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URSULA VON DER LEYEN, EUROPEAN COMMISSION PRESIDENT: The center is holding. But, it is also true that the extremes on the left and on the right have gained support. And this is why the result comes with great responsibility for the parties in the center. We may differ on individual points, but we all have an interest in stability, and we all want a strong and effective Europe.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SOLOMON: Protests erupted in Paris after France's far-right National Rally party ran away with the vote.

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That led to a stunning decision by the French President Emmanuel Macron to hold snap legislative elections by the end of the month.

Let's bring in CNN's Melissa Bell, who is in Paris with more now on the hi-stakes riding on these snap elections. Melissa, I mean, first of all, what can we glean from his calculation here? I mean, well, what's he saying?

MELISSA BELL, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, the calculation what the Elysee Palace, what people around Emmanuel Macron say officially is that they've heard the anger of the people in that vote. Remember that the far right scored double what Emmanuel Macron's party scored in these European elections, and that they want now to put to the peak, give the people the opportunity to express themselves at a national level.

But, just to your question of the calculation, clearly, this is a gamble that is designed if it goes Emmanuel Macron's way to take the sales out of the far right ahead of the next presidential election. That'll be in 2027. If he is wrong, though, and in his upcoming parliamentary elections, he fails to get the traditional parties to rally around his party and the far right go ahead and take the biggest majority, have the next Prime Minister, the next Prime Minister that could be coming in the shape of the far right, that could lead to, if his calculation is correct, the paralysis, the chaos, the anger in the country that will lead people not to want to vote for them at a presidential level.

But, it could of course go the other way, and there are many people around him and here in France that were extremely surprised by the decision. Clearly, if the National Rally does as well as it did in European polls in these forthcoming parliamentary elections, that will lead to a period of what the French call cohabitation, which means that President Macron will be governing with a far-right Prime Minister, depending on how the vote goes, and that could lead to more difficulty than he has had still, since the start of his second term, in getting legislation through and certainly will change the way he is able to govern. It will also likely have implications, Rahel, for the position France has as a leading motor of the European Union.

SOLOMON: Fascinating. Speaking of getting legislation through and just governing in general, I mean, Melissa, it wasn't just France, right? It was Germany. It was Italy. What are the practical implications of these results?

BELL: So, at a European level, what happens is that the far right becomes the second largest bloc in the European Parliament, and that does have implications, no doubt, going forward for the way the European Union functions. Remember that a lot of these parties are more or less Euroskeptic. A lot of them believe in a return of power to within the national boundaries of the member states. So, there is an existential question there about how the European Union functions, how much power it has going forward, and their ability, according, again to their levels of Euroscepticism to get in its way up.

But then, there is also, for instance, on the question of Russia and Ukraine, a wide variety of views inside these far -- this new second far-right bloc, the second largest in European Parliament. Some of them are much closer to Moscow. Some are much more clearly calling for an end to the help in Ukraine. But again, at a very fundamental level, the positions of the European Union will be brought into question by this larger presence within the European Parliament. Now, one of the first jobs of the year -- of MEPs is going to be to

vote for the new European Commission, President Ursula von der Leyen standing for reelection. Her party, her bloc has come out the great winner, the central right of these elections. So, she has a good chance of winning the second term that she seeks. Of course, there is a lot of executive power in her hands. And yet, a parliament made up of central right and a substantial far right bloc does change on a number of different questions, no doubt, things like the European Union's approach to things like immigration policy, climate change. There will be on specific policies, no doubt going forward, a different hue and perhaps less ability to push ambitious legislation through, Rahel.

SOLOMON: Wow, really well put there. Melissa Bell live for us in Paris. Melissa, thank you.

I want to now bring in Matthew Karnitschnig. He is the Chief Europe Correspondent for POLITICO, and joins us from Berlin. Matthew, good to see you again. I just first ask broadly, I mean, how much of these results do you think were a surprise versus how much of this was actually brewing, maybe just under the surface? I mean, how do you read it?

MATTHEW KARNITSCHNIG, CHIEF EUROPE CORRESPONDENT, POLITICO: Well, good afternoon. I think that it wasn't really a huge surprise to people. If anything, the results were somewhat better for the center right than a lot of people had feared, because some of the polls in countries like Germany, Austria, Italy and so forth, sort of pointed to an even bigger rise for the far right.

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So, I think there was, in some quarters, a bit of a sigh of relief as threatening as a lot of people see these results ultimately in terms of the successes of the far right.

SOLOMON: And then, what can we glean from what issues seem to be driving these results? I mean, is it clear, and maybe it's hard nation to nation, but is it clear sort of what was driving some of these voters, what the issues were?

KARNITSCHNIG: I think there is no doubt that the main issue driving voters to these parties is migration. If you look at Italy, Germany, the Netherlands, France, any of these countries where you've really seen strong support for the far right, the one thing they have in common is that there is a big domestic debate about asylum seekers, about migration in general, and how to better manage it. And if you look at a country such as Spain, for example, which also has a fairly strong far-right party known as Vox, they didn't do as well because this debate over migration has not been as present over the last couple of years. So, I think that's a big issue.

There is also some lingering sort of frustration over COVID and the way that was handled in some of these countries. And the other big issue, I think, in a lot of places is the climate policies of the European Union, what they call the Green Deal that was pushed through by Ursula von der Leyen's Commission. And there is a lot of concern about a plan, in particular, to get rid of the internal combustion engine, in other words, to get rid of fuel-burning cars, and that's something that the far right has seized on.

SOLOMON: Help me understand, is it clear that these far-right parties in different nations even share the same visions, the same ambitions, the same goals. I mean, just because they are far right don't necessarily mean that they all agree. So, does that create more gridlock? I mean, how does that come into play here?

KARNITSCHNIG: Well, that's a very important point, because the reality is that they don't agree. Right now, there are two different groups of what we would call far-right parties in the European Parliament, and even within those groups, they have very divergent views, in many cases, on issues such as NATO, Russia, the United States. Some of these parties tend to be more pro-American. Some look more to Russia and China. The one issue that does unite them is migration.

And there is also a general sort of Euroscepticism, as we just heard, that runs through these parties, and in a sort of sense that more power should be given back to the national capitals. But, at the end of the day, I think for a lot of these far-right leaders, people like Viktor Orban in Hungary, for example, what they really want from the EU is money, because they are not doing as well economically as their populations would like, and they do get a lot of money from the EU. So, there is this kind of tension there.

SOLOMON: Is it possible at all, Matthew, to draw any parallels with what we've seen sort of take place even in the U.S. just in terms of what's driving people to the polls and some of the voter sentiment that's been shared?

KARNITSCHNIG: Absolutely. I think at the end of the day, these debates about migration, what we see in the U.S. in terms of the border and concerns about that, a lot of it in Europe has to do with identity and people's concerns that their cultures are changing because of this influx of migrants over the recent years and decades. And that's very similar, I think, to what's happening in the U.S. And if you listen to the rhetoric of Donald Trump, it does sound quite similar to what you would hear from Viktor Orban or a Giorgia Meloni and other far-right leaders in Europe.

SOLOMON: Any sense of what you think the message may be coming out of these results for the more centrist figures for the more establishment figures, Matthew, if I still have you?

KARNITSCHNIG: Yes. I think immediately what they're going to do is try to pare back some of the policies that they've passed in recent years on the environment. And I was talking about, there is a sense that some of these regulations on climate might have gone too far. And the other question is just, how stable are these national governments going to be that lost a lot of support? You mentioned both Germany and France, and those are the two countries that I would really focus on here because both of those governments suffered massive losses in these elections. And that's why Macron, obviously, has called these parliamentary elections. And the big question now is, what Germany is going to do? The ruling

coalition there is already been sort of beset by a lot of infighting, and they lost a lot of support yesterday.

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This is only going to make matters worse. So, many people here are wondering, how long the German government is going to survive, or will the Chancellor have to step back and call new elections as well?

SOLOMON: Wow. A lot to watch. Great to have your insights and perspective today, and help us understand that all. That's Matthew Karnitschnig, thank you, from POLITOCO.

All right. Let's take a quick look at how the European markets are reacting today. Let's look at --yeah, it's pretty much red across the board, the FTSE 100 off about one third of a percent, let's call it, not quite but almost, DAX off about four tenth of a percent in Paris, the worst performer among them, off 1.5 percent.

Let's bring in Anna Stewart from London. Anna, talk to us about what seems to be the concern among investors that's reflected in the market?

ANNA STEWART, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, clearly, as you would expect, there was some reaction on European markets, really across the board this morning, responding to the European Parliamentary elections. But, as you saw there, when you look at France, the situation is a little bit different. You saw the CAC quarante. It was down 2.5 percent when it opened this morning. It's pared back some of those losses. But, we're seeing a much bigger reaction in France, given they have now called for a snap election. Now, French bond yields, which is borrowing costs, have spiked.

And if we delve a bit deeper into some of the stocks on the Paris, CAC quarante, you saw some steep losses, particularly from banking stocks like BNP Paribas and Societe Generale.

Both of those bank stocks were down more than five percent earlier today. And the pain also spread to big group, LVMH as well. So, we really saw quite a big sell-off.

Now, the question is, why? Why would the announcement of a sudden French election cause such angst among investors looking at France right now? And the situation really is, Rahel, that there was a problem even before this weekend. France has a big debt problem. In fact, at the end of last month, the credit rating agency S&P actually downgraded France's long-term credit rating because of its ballooning debts. Just to give you some numbers, the government debt burden in France stood at 110 percent at the end of last year. That's actually the third highest in the Eurozone. It comes after Greece and Italy. The budget deficit, it was around 5.5 percent earlier this year.

So, it's got a lot of problems to deal with, and potentially a President who is going to lose control of parliament, maybe have a hostile parliament in charge. How is it going to push through those reforms to bring those debt levels down?

SOLOMON: Well, there is at least the Olympics. There is that. We can look forward to that. Anna Stewart in London, thank you.

All right. Still ahead for us, bags of trash dropping into South Korea, apparently not enough for Pyongyang. How North Korea may be looking to escalate its balloon battle with the South, coming up. Plus, closing arguments expected soon as both sides wrap up their cases in the trial of President Joe Biden's son Hunter. We're going to have a live report from outside the courthouse in Delaware coming up next.

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SOLOMON: Welcome back. You're watching CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Rahel Solomon live in New York.

Jury deliberations are set to begin soon in the federal gun trial of Hunter Biden. This after the defense rested its case without calling the President's on to the stand. We expect closing arguments after the court returns from lunch. Biden has pleaded not guilty to multiple charges related to the purchase of a gun while allegedly using drugs in 2018.

Let's bring in CNN's Marshall Cohen, who has been keeping a close eye on this case from the very beginning. He joins us live from Wilmington, Delaware. So, as I said, Marshall, closing arguments set to start really in a short time from now. What are we expecting?

MARSHALL COHEN, CNN REPORTER: Hey, Rahel. That's right. The judge just wrapped up the jury instructions, giving them critical information that they need to interpret the laws that are at the heart of this case and how they should go about their deliberations. Now, that is behind us. We are on a break, a lunch break. And when we come back shortly after 12 o'clock p.m., that's when the closing arguments are expected.

Obviously, both sides will be giving their final words to the jury so that they can make their final push. For the prosecutors, they want a conviction. Obviously, the defense is hoping for an acquittal. So, that should start at about 12:05 when everybody resumes, and of course, that would pave the way for jury deliberations, what we've been looking forward to for a while now. Those should begin this afternoon after the closing arguments, Rahel.

SOLOMON: Marshall, remind us, I mean, there was a witness on the stand today. What did she have to say?

COHEN: The prosecution brought back their first witness for a little rebuttal testimony. They can do that after the defense presents its case. The prosecutors start, then the defense, and then the prosecution can come back and do a little rebuttal. So, they brought back an FBI agent who testified about some of Hunter Biden's texts. She was trying to place Hunter Biden at a 7-Eleven store here in Wilmington, where he claimed around the time that he bought that gun that he was meeting with a drug dealer. They probably brought her back because the defense had tried to poke some holes in that theory. They said, maybe this drug dealer doesn't exist. Maybe he never even went to that 7-Eleven.

And the prosecutors could not prove that he was at that specific 7- Eleven on that specific day. But, they did show the jury texts from other days in the same month where he did appear to be meeting up with drug dealers at that 7-Eleven. So, just a little bit more evidence that they're trying to get in front of the jury before those deliberations begin. But, the evidence is now over. The testimony in this case is complete. And as we've said, once they're back from lunch, it's full speed ahead to the closing arguments, the jury deliberations, and eventually a verdict for the President's son.

SOLOMON: Yeah. The jury will soon have this case in their hands. Marshall Cohen live for us there. Marshall, thank you.

And the presumptive U.S. Republican presidential nominee is scheduled to meet later today with his probation officer. Donald Trump is set to attend a virtual pre-sentencing interview after his conviction last month on 34 felony counts of falsifying business records. The probation department will then submit a report to the judge, Juan Merchan, ahead of sentencing on July 11, CNN's Chief Law Enforcement Analyst John Miller now explains some of the questions Trump will likely face.

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JOHN MILLER, CNN CHIEF LAW ENFORCEMENT AND INTELLIGENCE ANALYST: What is your home situation? Do you live in a stable environment? Do you have employment? Can you get employment? Are you suffering from any drug addiction? What is your criminal background? Is it violent? In this case, Donald Trump is going to be different from a lot of defendants, in fact, the vast majority. He lives in a triplex at the top of a building with his name on it. He has no criminal record. And yet, like many other defendants, he does have multiple other open felony cases.

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SOLOMON: We are a little over two weeks away from the first U.S. presidential debate of the year. One major topic that candidates are tackling on the campaign trail is immigration. Now, after taking executive action last week to curb crossings at the U.S.-Mexico border, U.S. President Joe Biden is on the verge of another big announcement. According to CNN reporting, Mr. Biden is considering a move that focuses on providing legal status for long-term undocumented immigrants who are married to U.S. citizens.

Let's bring in CNN's Arlette Saenz, who is tracking the story, and joins us live from the White House. So, Arlette, what are you hearing and what more can you share with us about this new reporting on apparently another immigration move by President Biden? ARLETTE SAENZ, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Yeah, Rahel. Sources have told CNN the Biden administration is weighing this potential new move which would essentially extend legal status to certain undocumented immigrants who are married to U.S. citizens.

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Now, what this is called is they would tap into an authority known as "Parole in place", meaning that they would extend legal status shielding undocumented immigrants who have spouses, who are U.S. citizens, from deportation and allow them to work in the country legally while they pursue citizenship. It's estimated that this could potentially impact about 750,000 to 800,000 people. Now, these final decisions have not yet been made. They have not been presented to President Biden, but it is something that administration officials are reviewing at this time.

It's a move that could appeal to Latino voters in states like Arizona, Nevada, in Georgia. But, it's not just Latino voters that President Biden is trying to shore up support with. They are also looking to tackle, trying to drum up support among progressives and immigration advocates as well. Those are two groups who expressed a lot of frustration with President Biden's executive action last week, trying to clamp down on border crossings. You'll remember that the President announced these new moves that essentially shuts off access to asylum for migrants who are traveling to the country illegally once a certain daily threshold has been met.

This plan went into effect just last week, and you had progressivism in the Democratic Party really decrying it as simply being out of the Trump playbook, since it taps an authority that Trump tried to use when he was President. You also have groups like the ACLU, who have said that they will sue the administration to try to put a stop to this program. Now, over the weekend, Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas once again defended the plan, saying they believe that they have the legal authority to do this.

But, what it really shows is that President Biden is trying to tackle a politically vexing issue for him. Immigration and border security have really risen to the top of concerns for many voters. If you take a look at polls, they tend to give Trump the advantage on those issues over Biden. But, at the same time, Biden and his team are trying to quell any concerns that Latinos might have, that progressives might have, immigration advocates, as they are looking to hold on to those constituencies heading into November's election.

Biden's campaign has sought to try to paint Trump as anti-immigrant, saying he speaks in disparaging ways about immigrants and Latinos. You had Trump over the weekend himself trying to make a play for Latinos as well. Both candidates well aware that those voters will be critical heading into November's election, especially in those crucial battleground states of Arizona and Nevada.

SOLOMON: Yeah. Both aware that the election now less than five months away, quickly approaching. Arlette Saenz from the White House, Arlette, thank you.

Let's now get to some other international headlines now. Passengers on an Austrian Airlines flight are safely back on the ground after officials say that their plane hit a thunderstorm cell. You can see just how much damage, and those were the planes, sustained on Sunday's flight from Spain to Austria. The airline says it was pummeled by hail. All 173 passengers and six crew members arrived safely in Vienna.

Well, Ukraine's military says that it has destroyed an advanced Russian fighter jet with a drone attack. Ukraine's Defense Intelligence Agency says that they hit the Su-57 on the tarmac of a Russian airbase. This attack is said to have occurred 372 miles or nearly 600 kilometers behind Russian frontlines. The Russian plane is a fifth-generation stealth fighter jet.

And a new wave of balloons filled with trash came floating across the border from North Korea to the South over the weekend. At the same time, a cross-border loudspeaker battle also heating up.

CNN's Mike Valerio has the latest from Seoul.

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MIKE VALERIO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, in a rare moment of agreement, we have leaders from both South Korea and North Korea saying that there lies the potential for this balloon tit-for-tat, this balloon feud, to escalate into something larger. But, in case you're just dialing into this section of the news cycle, what this is all about at the heart of this is the practice of South Korean activist human rights groups for years now sending balloons from South Korea over the DMZ to North Korea, and attached to those balloons are packages and parcels that are filled with flash drives and leaflets that give people in North Korea a feel for what freedom is like, what life is like in South Korea.

Now, a few days ago, the North said, you know what? We consider these deliveries to be garbage. So, in return, we're going to send balloons of our garbage from the North over to South Korea. So, in response to that over the weekend, South Korea began loudspeaker propaganda broadcast. North Korea, there may be indications, according to the South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff, that North Korea may be ready to begin its own propaganda broadcasts as well. So, this leaves the opposition leader here in South Korea, Lee Jae-myung, saying this is a game of chicken and this has got to stop.

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Listen to what he said earlier today.

LEE JAE-MYUNG, SOUTH KOREAN OPPOSITION LEADER (Interpreted): What started as a leaflet could escalate into a local conflict or war. Looking at these two sides' responses, I wonder whether the authorities in North and South Korea are considering the safety of the people and the community. VALERIO: So, going to North Korea, the sister of Kim Jong Un, Kim Yo Jong, said that this could be the prelude to a very dangerous situation, adding that Seoul, from their point of view, is creating an atmosphere of chaos. So, what we are watching is whether or not North Korea begins again their own loudspeaker propaganda broadcasts. And for what it's worth, according to our CNN tally, there now have been more than 1,100 balloons that have made their way from North Korean airspace to here in South Korea.

Mike Valerio, CNN, Seoul.

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SOLOMON: And our thanks to Mike there.

Well, still head for us, Apple is expected to make a big AI announcement today. We will have a live report on what that means for the tech giant and for consumers.

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SOLOMON: Welcome back. Apple is charging ahead with new plans to get a stronger foothold in the world of artificial intelligence. A little later today, the tech giant is expected to announce a partnership with ChatGPT maker OpenAI and unveil its first generative AI tools for iPhones. Now, the tools will likely most benefit the Siri personal assistant feature. All this comes just after chipmaker Nvidia surpassed Apple as the world's second most valuable company.

Joining us now is CNN Technology Reporter Brian Fung. So, Brian, what do we know about what these Apple AI features might look like? What they might sound like? What do we know?

BRIAN FUNG, CNN TECHNOLOGY REPORTER: Yeah, Rahel. Today is all about showing Apple is on top of the AI challenge. We're expecting the company to make a string of AI-related announcements. That could include, as you said, a potential partnership with OpenAI. It could also mean upgrades to Siri that could turn it into more of a chatbot or make it better at doing tasks like retrieving old photos you've taken. The stakes here are really high. Rivals like Google are already using AI to help you draft emails and messages. So, it's possible Apple could unveil something similar to keep pace.

But, analysts say Apple really needs to showcase something different, something with a wow factor to drive future iPhone sales and to set it up for the long term. This isn't just about what will be in the next iPhone, but potentially about whole new product categories that don't exist yet. Now, historically, WWDC has been about Apple's software because it's a conference for software developers. But, whatever Apple announces today could give us clues as to its future hardware plans because all of the new AI futures will likely need a ton of computing power. Developers will need to know how much computing power they'll have access to when they're designing their new apps for the iPhone or Mac.

So, in addition to the product updates you can see today, we might get Apple to outline more broadly its vision for technology as AI becomes more widespread.

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And one more thing to look out for is Apple has taken a strong stance on privacy and security. So, it'll be interesting to see how it applies that to some of the thorniest questions about AI, including about how to handle things like fake responses, guard against bias, and respect other people's digital data and intellectual property. Rahel.

SOLOMON: Yeah, I mean, those are huge questions. Look, I mean, I don't follow AI certainly as closely as you do. But that, as far as I'm concerned, still haven't been quite figured out yet. So, that is really interesting. Brian, from what we can tell, why is Apple making this move into AI now?

FUNG: Yeah. There -- that's a great question, and there are a couple of reasons. One is, as you indicated, Nvidia's market cap has surged to beyond Apple's. I think they're really feeling the heat here, feeling some pressure that they need to make some progress on AI, especially as rivals like Google and Microsoft have announced their own generative AI tools and features in their own software. And so, Apple has historically not been really a leader on a lot of technologies, but has always introduced sort of the most robust and most privacy and security conscious type features when it comes to rolling out new technologies.

So, they're really kind of up against the gun here, needing to impress investors and make sure that consumers feel confident that when they buy their next iPhone or what have you, it's going to be the best AI product on the market. Rahel.

SOLOMON: Yeah. I mean, look, speaking of investors, I was just looking at shares, which are interestingly off today. We'll keep an eye on that. Brian Fung, thank you. We'll see you soon.

All right. Let's take a look at the broader markets both here in the U.S. and around the world. U.S. markets are mixed. The Dow Jones is off, but fractionally barely. The NASDAQ is up three tenth of a percent, and the S&P is also up about one tenth of one percent. A few things to watch this week in the U.S. economy, Wednesday, Wednesday is the big day this week. Wednesday, we get a key inflation report, the Consumer Price Index, and we also hear from the U.S. Federal Reserve, where they are largely expected to hold rates steady. But, we'll watch that space, nonetheless. We'll see if we get any surprises.

And taking a look overseas, we'll pull up some of the other markets for you, Asian markets also mixed, the Nikkei closing up almost a percent, Hang Seng off about six tenth of a percent, the Shanghai Composite pretty much flat.

And one quick look at Europe once again to see if things have turned around in the last 20 minutes or so. No. Paris still off, about 1.3 percent, DAX off about three tenths of a percent, and the FTSE 100 off about 0.2 percent.

All right. Coming up, tennis superstar Carlos Alcaraz talks to CNN a day after winning the French Open. What he said, after the break.

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SOLOMON: Welcome back. And before we go, tennis superstar Carlos Alcaraz is celebrating two big victories. The 21-year-old Spaniard won the French Open in an almost four and a half hour five-set match. Now, with the victory, he becomes the youngest man to claim a Grand Slam title in all three surfaces. He won the U.S. Open in 2022 and Wimbledon last year. He spoke with CNN's Amanda Davis, and her first question was, what's the overriding feeling this morning?

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CARLOS ALCARAZ, FRENCH OPEN WINNER, THREE-TIME GRAND SLAM CHAMPION: Honestly, first of all, I am exhausted physically. It was a really tough one.

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But, I feel like it is a dream come true for me. I really wanted to lift this trophy one day, and then be able to do it, it's a great feeling, and being in the same court and same bench, just the match, it's a flashback from yesterday that it's great.

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SOLOMON: A major, major congratulations to Alcaraz.

And we know your time is money. So, thank you for spending some time with me today. I'm Rahel Solomon live in New York. Stick with CNN. One World is coming up next.

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