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Harris Turns Focus to September Debate; Trump Rejects Advice to "Be Nice"; Harris Fundraising Hits High Numbers; Israel-Hamas Ceasefire Talks "Moving Forward"; Ukraine Marks Independence Day as U.S. Sends More Aid; Indian Prime Minister Wraps Up Visit to Kyiv; Final Body Discovered in Sicily Yacht Sinking; Flooding Kills at Least 36 in Bangladesh; NASA's Starliner Astronauts' Fate; Afghan Glassblower Keeping the Craft Alive. Aired 3-4a ET

Aired August 24, 2024 - 03:00   ET

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

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IVAN WATSON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Hello and welcome to all of our viewers watching from around the world.

I'm Ivan Watson in Hong Kong.

Ahead on CNN NEWSROOM, fresh off a triumphant Democratic National Convention.

Kamala Harris turned her attention toward next months debate showdown with Donald Trump. The Republican nominee meanwhile picks up an endorsement from one of the most famous names in American politics. Why Robert F. Kennedy Jr. suspended his campaign.

And Israel offers a new proposal in the Gaza ceasefire talks. Why some say it's just a ploy to keep a deal out of reach.

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WATSON: All right. We're entering a new phase of the 2024 U.S. Presidential race. Now that both party nominating conventions are in the rearview mirror. Vice President Kamala Harris is turning her focus to the upcoming debate with Donald Trump after successful Democratic convention.

Nielsen says the final night of the DNC drew more than 26 million TV viewers peaking at nearly 29 million while Harris was speaking.

Meantime, Donald Trump held rallies Friday in two key battleground states, Nevada, in the afternoon and Arizona in the evening. That's where he was joined by Robert F. Kennedy Jr. who suspended his independent presidential bid Friday and endorsed Trump.

Trump's team hopes that Kennedy's exit from the race could help them win in some key battleground states. If races are close and decided by a few thousand ballots, which is what happened in 2020. CNN's Kristen Holmes reports from Trump's rally in Arizona. (BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KRISTEN HOLMES, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Former president Donald Trump speaking at a rally in Glendale, Arizona, just outside of Phoenix, talked for roughly more than an hour. But the most notable part of his traditional (INAUDIBLE) his campaign endorsed Donald Trump earlier in day.

We spoke about why it was that he was backing the former president.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ROBERT F. KENNEDY JR. (I-OK), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: The best way to build a safe America is to rebuild our industrial base and rebuild the middle class in this country.

And don't you want a president who's going to get us out of the wars and who's going to rebuild the middle class in this country?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HOLMES: Now this endorsement came after weeks of high-level conversations which Trump received and RFK orbit namely spearheading this on Donald Trump's side, was done here in Wisconsin. And Tucker Carlson believed that (INAUDIBLE) RFK on board with Donald Trump.

There wasn't a sense of urgency in getting this endorsement particularly as Kamala Harris ascended to the top of the ticket. They did believe that most of the votes RFK was going to siphon off the candidates were going to come from Donald Trump, not Kamala Harris.

Now I just want to give you a little bit of insight to what they think is moving forward. Obviously we do not know where our CNN reporters are going to go with a lock but they look at polling like here in Arizona that show that RFK was polling at roughly 6 percent.

In that same "The New York Times" poll, we saw Donald Trump at 42 percent and Kamala Harris at 45 percent. They believe they can get just a little bit of that 6 percent back could make the difference in the election in November which they believe will be decided by a razor thin margin -- Kristen Holmes, CNN, Arizona.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WATSON: All right. Ever since the beginning of his first campaign, Donald Trump has made a habit of using personal attacks against his political opponents and many of his supporters are all for it.

But with positive energy swirling around his new opponent, Kamala Harris, some of Trump's advisers are urging the former president to dial back the angry language and focus more on the issues. Yet at a rally in Arizona on Friday, Trump showed no desire to change tactics.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: They say to me, sir, please stick to policy. [03:05:00]

Don't stick to personality. You should be nice to people, sir. You have to be nice.

I go, I call them up. My geniuses, they get paid a fortune. Actually, not that much.

But I call up my people. I say, They're knocking the hell out of me and you say, I shouldn't get personal?

I have to get personal, don't I?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WATSON: Moving to Kamala Harris. She's looking ahead to the next phase of the election with the benefit of an incredible burst of momentum and a major pile of cash. Democrats say they raised $7.2 million during Harris' 38-minute long acceptance speech at the DNC alone. And more than $100 million over the past week.

Priscilla Alvarez has more on what's ahead.

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PRISCILLA ALVAREZ, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Harris campaign officials and advisers celebrated the Democratic National Convention and the vice president keynote remarks, calling it a home run.

They also know there's a lot of work ahead.

The vice president has been described as being clear-eyed on what needs to be done over the next several weeks as they try to win in November, knowing, of course, that is going to be a tight race.

Now of course, in the media, future the vice president, according to sources, I've spoken with, is going to be focused on debate preparation. That is something that is already starting to get underway for that September 10 presidential debate.

Knowing, of course, that is going to bring in large audiences and offers the vice president yet another opportunity to speak to voters and also go head to head against former president Donald Trump.

Now she will still be hitting the road over the next couple of weeks ahead of that September 10 debate, just not at the same pace as the last couple of weeks in which she hit every battleground state.

But in the interim, certainly the campaign will be building out infrastructure, including in battleground states like North Carolina, where the battleground campaign director said that they are trying to be bullish on states like North Carolina, hoping that they can make inroads with voters who may be turned off by former president Donald Trump.

We saw much of that, too, with the suspension of RFK Jr.'s campaign. Biden campaign director saying in a statement, quote, "For any

American out there who is tired of Donald Trump and looking for a new way forward, ours is a campaign for you," a message the campaign will be delivering over the course of the next several weeks.

And again, the vice president tries to bridge the gap with any independent voters, trying to be moderate in her messaging. Now the vice president will be hitting the trail over the next couple of weeks and quite aggressively over the weeks ahead of November.

But for now, the campaign celebrating what they saw as a successful Democratic National Convention -- Priscilla Alvarez, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

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WATSON: Leslie Vinjamuri is head of the U.S. and America's Programme at Chatham House, the Royal Institute of International Affairs. And she joins me from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Great to see you, Leslie, let's get started on kind of developing news that's come out and that is the independent candidate, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., dropping out of the race partway, I guess, and getting on stage and endorsing Trump, the Republican candidate.

What is that going to do in these last months of the campaign?

LESLIE VINJAMURI, CHATHAM HOUSE: Either to be to be perfectly honest, probably not very much.

I think many people including former president Donald Trump hope that all of those votes will go toward him. It's not at all clear that they will. They're more likely to splinter and some of those people who were out of the third candidate simply won't vote.

I think it's unfortunate for his family. They've all come out in an extraordinary show of unity for Kamala Harris, for the Democrats. But it was rumored throughout the convention that this was going to happen. And so unsurprisingly it did. I think Donald Trump will feel like it's a bit of a bump for him.

But I don't expect it to have any significant impact.

WATSON: Let's move on then. The Democratic National Convention has ended and, boy, it really felt like a sugar high.

What is next?

What are the next real challenges for the Democratic candidate?

VINJAMURI: It really was a sugar high. I mean, it was an extraordinary several days. If you looked at -- if you look at ActBlue, the PAC that raises money for the Democrats, one of them, they totaled over $100 million during just those few convention days.

We saw a sign posted throughout the convention. It was a very joyful, hopeful, inspiring, extraordinary convention really.

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But we saw President Obama, Hillary Clinton, Kamala Harris, every single one of the lead speakers saying, despite that very joyful, hopeful message, saying, never underestimate your adversary. It's going to be tough. This is going to be a fight. We know that from the polls. We know that in the swing states. It's going to be very close.

WATSON: I guess the next big event on the political calendar that we're looking forward to is the presidential debate.

What are the potential risks here for Harris and Trump?

VINJAMURI: Yes, the debate, I mean, we so far assume it's going forward.

Trump and Harris both committed. There's always a chance with Donald Trump that he pulls the plug, decides not to do it. it will be a difficult debate. It will be nasty. It -- we will be watching in the next few days to see exactly what the rules are. There are likely to be some very careful rules.

Remember, if you go back to that debate between Donald Trump and President Biden, the rules, it was very carefully controlled. So that is one key question.

Will there be an audience?

Probably not.

And but again, watching Donald Trump, can he maintain a degree of measure?

He did that in the debate with President Biden, largely because President Biden was struggling and stumbling. He's now, as he knows, going to face a very difficult opponent. And Kamala Harris, she's demonstrated her power with language, with both the big picture and the specifics.

And so this will be something that makes Donald Trump phenomenally uncomfortable. And when he's uncomfortable, he tends to react, shall we say not very well.

Kamala Harris is going to face in Donald Trump a former president, who was out to label her as a socialist, as a Communist, even, as somebody who will do great damage to the economy, who will not, in trying to deliver the benefits she's talked about, $25,000 going to homeowners. She talked about a number of spending plans.

And he's already doubled down on this line of attack, which seems to actually be having some -- it's gaining traction with working class voters, what we call in the United States the middle class, whose interests are actually represented by the kinds of policies that Kamala Harris is putting forward. But president Trump is very skillfully managing to turn this into,

she's a lefty. But even again, much more damaging, that she's a socialist. And then some of that messaging he's labeling her as a Communist. This is with his base very effective.

The question is whether it dampens some of the enthusiasm for Kamala Harris.

WATSON: Leslie Vinjamuri from Chatham House, thank you very much for your analysis.

VINJAMURI: Thank you.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WATSON: To Solingen, Germany, now. That's where Special Forces -- special police forces are on the hunt for a male suspect in a deadly stabbing attack. It happened at a music festival on Friday. Three people were killed and eight others were injured, five of them seriously, according to police.

Authorities have backed away from an initial assessment that it was terror related. They say the knife attack was deliberate but the motive is unclear. CNN's Fred Pleitgen is following the story from Berlin.

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FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: The police had originally thought it could be some sort of rampage because it appeared as though the suspect was randomly stabbing at people.

They later turned this into an attack, into investigation into attack because they said that they believed that the suspect was deliberately attacking the neck areas of the victims.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WATSON: Coming up, the White House says Gaza ceasefire talks are moving forward. Israel has offered a new plan for some of its troops. But major obstacles remain and we will have the latest from the region. Next.

Plus experts say Israel is taking a strategy from its 2006 war with Hezbollah and repeating it in Gaza. When we return, the memories from the past looming over the current conflict. Stay with CNN.

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WATSON: Welcome back. Tensions are running high in the Middle East as Gaza ceasefire talks

are expected to continue over the weekend.

The Israeli military says more than 115 projectiles were launched toward Israel on Friday, the vast majority of them coming from Lebanon. The launches happened the same day ceasefire negotiators met in Cairo.

The talks are expected to continue following reports of progress made on Friday. Meanwhile, U.S. President Joe Biden spoke with Egyptian and Qatari leaders on Friday about trying to close the remaining gaps. U.S. officials are expecting, are expressing optimism after the latest round of talks.

But even if an agreement is reached, which is still far from certain, it could end up lasting only weeks before the fighting resumes. CNN's Nada Bashir has the latest from Cairo.

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NADA BASHIR, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Ceasefire talks here in Cairo continue. There are indications that discussions could be moving in a more positive direction. White House national security spokesman John Kirby told reporters on Friday that discussions have so far been constructive and that the process is moving forward.

U.S. officials, including White House Middle East coordinator Brett McGurk and CIA director Bill Burns, are expected to continue discussions with Egyptian officials over the weekend.

[03:20:03]

Now this latest round of talks has been focused on the so-called bridging proposal put forward by the U.S., aimed at closing gaps in the deal. And one of the key sticking points continues to be the presence of Israeli troops on the Philadelphia corridor, a buffer zone on the border between Egypt and southern Gaza.

Now according to an Israeli source familiar with the talks, Israel has now presented a new proposal which includes a map of where they want to see Israeli troops deployed. And crucially in this new proposal, the number of troops and military posts has been reduced in comparison to Israel's previous position.

Now that earlier proposal was actually rejected by Egyptian negotiators, who viewed it as a non-starter. However, according to a source, Egypt is now planning to submit a revised proposal to Hamas for consideration.

Now it is important to note, of course, that Hamas officials have previously rejected any suggestion of a long-term presence of Israeli troops within the Gaza Strip. And there are still believed to be other key areas of disagreement, including the terms surrounding the release of Palestinian prisoners.

But despite these disagreements, Hamas officials have said that they are still in favor of reaching a deal but have stated that they wish to see a deal which reflects the proposal put forward by U.S. President Joe Biden in late May, adding that the three phase deal currently on the table does not include guarantees for a permanent ceasefire.

Now under the terms of the proposed deal, the first phase would see a six-week pause in fighting with the proposed transition to a permanent ceasefire in the second phase.

However, in late June, Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu told local media that, while he is ready to agree to a partial deal, his government remains committed to continuing the war after a temporary pause.

And there is no indication that Israel's position has actually changed since. But pressure is mounting on both sides as the humanitarian situation in Gaza continues to grow more desperate with the death toll now topping 40,000.

Add on for family members and representatives of hostages still held captive in Gaza continue to campaign for a deal to be struck -- Nada Bashir, CNN, in Cairo.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WATSON: Thank you, Nada.

Palestinian civilians are paying the highest price of Israel's war on Hamas. Officials in Gaza say the majority of the 40,000 people killed so far are women and children.

Israel says it takes precautions to avoid civilian casualties. But tactics it used in the 2006 war on Hezbollah in Lebanon may suggest otherwise. Ben Wedeman reports from Beirut.

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BEN WEDEMAN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): This is Gaza today and this was Beirut's southern suburbs, known as Dahiyeh, in 2006, following the 34-day war between Hezbollah and Israel.

And from that ravaging of an entire densely-populated neighborhood, where Hezbollah is based, came Israel's so-called Dahiyeh doctrine, a strategy of massive, disproportionate use of force, including targeting civilian populations and infrastructure.

Until now, the conflict between Hezbollah and Israel has been largely limited to the south. Yet, after the Israeli strike in late July on Beirut that killed a senior Hezbollah military commander and the groups vowed to retaliate, war threatens to engulf the rest of the country.

WEDEMAN: In the past few weeks, Israeli warplanes have frequently broken the sound barrier in the skies over Beirut, a grim warning to all Lebanese of what could come.

WEDEMAN (voice-over): A warning voiced Wednesday by Israel's Defense Minister.

"Our center of gravity," he said, "is gradually shifting from the south to the north."

The Dahiyeh doctrine, for all intents and purposes, is being put into practice in Gaza, where tens of thousands have been killed and much of the Strip reduced to ruins.

Yet after almost 11 months of war, Israel has yet to achieve its goal of destroying Hamas. Hezbollah represents a far greater challenge to the Israeli military than Hamas, says analyst Imad Salamey.

IMAD SALAMEY, LEBANESE AMERICAN UNIVERSITY: Hezbollah will be commanding a very wide area. Hezbollah is much more equipped, much more capable, much more experienced than Hamas is.

WEDEMAN (voice-over): As Lebanon teeters on the edge of a broader war, there's a sense of resignation.

"Once they finish in Gaza, maybe they'll come here," Fouad (ph) tells me, adding, "if they can finish in Gaza."

Such apathy aside, the memory of past wars and the threat of yet another one loom large -- Ben Wedeman, CNN, Beirut.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WATSON: Earlier I spoke with H.A. Helyer, Middle East studies scholar at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.

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I asked him about what he sees as obstacles to reaching a deal. Here's what he said.

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H.A. HELYER, MIDDLE EAST STUDIES SCHOLAR, CARNEGIE ENDOWMENT FOR INTERNATIONAL PEACE: We've seen over recent weeks but also frankly over recent months, is that the bridging proposal to the original proposal that your reporter mentioned, which was validated by the United Nations Security Council.

They don't really bear all that much similarity to each other. As your reporter noted, the ceasefire proposal doesn't envisage a permanent ceasefire.

This current bridging proposal envisages a strong Israeli military presence in the Philadelphi corridor along the border with Egypt, which the Egyptians quite understandably see as a contravention of the Camp David accords between them and the Israelis.

There's also the Netzarim corridor, which is a newly established corridor that cuts Gaza into two. And the Israelis there insisting on having a strong military presence there as well.

So I don't see why we would expect, with any degree of optimism, that this would be acceptable to the other side; which, of course, we are seeking agreement between the two sides. It sounds simply about these Israelis doing something that they think is appropriate.

But trying to bring an end to hostilities. But unfortunately, this has been the case for quite a number of months.

We've seen in the Israeli press multiple times leaks from the Israeli negotiating team, talking about how their prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu has made it extremely difficult for the Israeli negotiators to come to an agreement because he introduces these new elements into the mix.

Which they seem to think are designed to ensure that a deal doesn't actually go through.

WATSON: There has been quite a bit of reporting about senior figures in the Israeli military and security establishment, accusing prime minister Netanyahu of basically obstructing the peace talks.

Assuming that is somewhat true, in your analysis, do you think that prime minister Netanyahu believes he can continue this war indefinitely with some 40,000 Palestinians killed in Gaza thus far?

Do you think he thinks he could perhaps double that number and his government will not face any consequences?

HELYER: So one would have to interview Netanyahu himself. But what we've seen over the last few months is that the United States has set red lines in terms of what Israel can or cannot do.

And Benjamin Netanyahu has crossed those red lines on a number of occasions, including, for example, going into Rafah some months ago. The response from the United States hasn't been one that has given him cause for pause.

On the contrary, there's been full-throated support for Israel by the United States without any degree of accountability or penalty. So in that situation, I'm not sure that there's any reason for Netanyahu to think that he cannot continue the war for as long as he sees fit, as opposed to anything else.

And certainly what we've seen is the continued expression of, we will continue this war until we're done. Even with regards to quote-unquote these "ceasefire talks."

And I say quote-unquote, because Netanyahu has made it very clear multiple times, as your own reporters have pointed out over the past few months, he's said he's not going to stop the war. He's going to put a pause.

It can be a matter of weeks and what the hostages back but then he intends to restart those hostilities fairly quickly because, as far as he's concerned, the war cannot end until Hamas is completely out of the picture in terms of their governing capability and their military capability.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WATSON: OK.

Coming up in the broadcast, India's prime minister tries to make a point during a visit to Ukraine by hugging its president. We will look at the symbolic message behind that embrace.

And later, the U.S. Fed chair signals that a cut in interest rates is coming. We'll take a look at how soon that could happen and how the markets reacted.

Stay with CNN.

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WATSON: Welcome back to our viewers in the United States, Canada and around the world, I'm Ivan Watson in Hong Kong.

And you're watching CNN NEWSROOM.

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WATSON: The U.S. announced a new batch of military aid for Ukraine ahead of Saturday's Independence Day holiday in the country. The package is worth $125 million and includes anti-drone technology, ammunition for artillery and a HIMARS rocket systems and anti-armor weapons.

Washington is also slapping new sanctions on some 400 people and entities that are accused of helping Moscow's war effort. They're located in several countries, including Russia and China. The

U.S. says some Chinese companies are providing Moscow with technology and tools it needs for weapons manufacturing.

Ukraine says it is behind the fiery sinking of a Russian civilian ferry near occupied Crimea. Russia says the vessel was hit in the port of Kavkaz on Thursday while it was carrying fuel tanks.

The ferry crossing to Crimea was temporarily closed after the attack. Ukraine says the ship played a major role in supplying Russian troops with fuel and weapons. So it was a legitimate military target.

Meanwhile, Indian prime minister Narendra Modi, he has wrapped up his visit to Kyiv.

He went there just weeks after making a friendly visit to Russia, where he was seen hugging president Vladimir Putin. As Marc Stewart reports, Mr. Modi is now trying to build a bond with

Ukraine's leader.

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MARC STEWART, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: A message of compassion from Indian prime minister Narendra Modi during this visit to Ukraine.

[03:35:00]

We have some images of the prime minister with Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy as they paid tribute to children who had been killed in the conflict.

There's a moment where the two men hugged, a contrast to a similar image from July when the prime minister embraced Russian president Vladimir Putin in Moscow.

The Indian prime minister also issued a tweet that reads, "Conflict is particularly devastating for young children. My heart goes out to the families of children who lost their lives. And I pray that they find the strength to endure their grief."

This is a complicated relationship. India has called for a ceasefire but it hasn't condemned Russia for its invasion. It's abstained from all resolutions with Ukraine at the United Nations. Geopolitics may be behind it as the Kremlin helps India with military equipment.

India also buys crude oil from Russia. Nonetheless, discussions are moving forward with prime minister Modi promising to continue humanitarian assistance to Ukraine -- Marc Stewart, CNN, Beijing.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WATSON: Let's move on to market news. The Dow Jones industrials closing strong Friday afternoon, gaining more than 460 points. The S&P and Nasdaq also up. It was all in response to Fed chair Jerome Powell signaling strongly that it was time to cut interest rates.

Powell made the remarks during a speech at an annual gathering of bankers and economists in Wyoming. Jerome Powell's speech on Friday gave hope to investors and the general public about the future of the economy.

He addressed both unemployment and interest rate cuts. As CNN's Matt Egan explains, that could happen as soon as next month.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MATT EGAN, CNN BUSINESS SENIOR WRITER: This is a big moment for the economy.

Remember, for the past two years, the Fed has been waging war on inflation. Monster-size interest rate hikes trying to get inflation back down and today, Jerome Powell, he all but declared victory in battle, saying he is more confident that inflation is going back to where it belongs, back to 2 percent.

And the mission, he's saying, has shifted. It shifted from fighting inflation to fighting unemployment.

And that means a different strategy. Instead of raising interest rates, the Fed is going to be cutting them. Take a listen to what Powell said at Jackson Hole.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JEROME POWELL, U.S. FEDERAL RESERVE CHAIRMAN: The time has come for policy to adjust, the direction of travel is clear and the timing and pace of rate cuts will depend on incoming data, the evolving outlook and the balance of risks.

We will do everything we can to support a strong labor market as we make further progress toward price stability.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

EGAN: So Powell essentially just preannounced a rate cut at the next meeting in September. This would be the first interest rate cut since COVID. And it's in the final meeting before the election. Still a lot of debate over just how big of a cut this will be.

But another one of the big questions outstanding is whether or not they're going to be able to pull off a soft landing. And listen, Powell, he struck a cautiously optimistic tone on that front. He said that there's, quote, "good reason" to believe that the economy will get back to 2 percent while maintaining a strong jobs market.

So this would essentially be the soft landing that we've all been hoping for that for a long time, looked very unlikely. Powell said that they are not looking to see any more weakness in the jobs market. And he suggested they're going to be prepared to come to the rescue. If they do see more weakness by cutting interest rates even further back to you that Egan with that update.

Now all victims of the sinking of the yacht in the waters off Sicily have now been accounted for. The investigation into the cause of the tragedy is now underway more when we come back and thousands of people struggle to make their way to higher ground as torrential rains caused deadly flooding in eastern Bangladesh he looked at the devastation and why some in the country say India, is to blame. That's coming up next on CNN.

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All right. A seventh body has been recovered from the luxury yacht that sank in

the Mediterranean off of Italy's Sicilian coast all who were on board have now been accounted for. The latest being Hannah Lynch, the 18- year-old daughter of British tech entrepreneur Mike Lynch. Lynch who also died in the incident. Barbie Latza Nadeau reports from Porticello.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BARBIE LATZA NADEAU, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Specialized dive teams have now wrapped up their search and recovery operation five days after a

tornado struck a luxury yacht here off the coast of Sicily, sinking into the bottom of the sea. The first victim that was brought up on Monday after

the incident was that of the onboard chef, the final victim, 18-year- old Hannah Lynch, the daughter of Mike Lynch, whose family owned the yacht.

Fifteen people survived the accident including a 1-year-old baby girl whose mother held her above the waves while they tried to reach a lifeboat. Also

surviving, the captain of the ship, who has been the focus of an investigation. As we know right now, they have opened up a criminal

investigation into the events surrounding the disaster to try to determine if there was criminal negligence that led to the death of these seven

people.

The focus has largely been on what the captain and the crew did before the disaster. There were other yachts nearby when the storm struck those which

did not sink. We've also heard from the ship maker who said his yacht was unsinkable and alleged that in fact, it only sunk because of human error.

We'll understand over the weekend exactly where the criminal investigation is going and if the captain will hold any responsibility. Barbie Latza

Nadeau, CNN, Porticello, Sicily.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

To South Asia. Now where 27 Indian tourists were killed in Nepal when their bus left the road and plunged 150 meters into a riverbank below. The bus was en route from Pokhara to Nepal's capital, Kathmandu, with more than 40 people aboard.

The steep incline and fast flowing river made rescue and recovery efforts treacherous; 16 people were airlifted to Kathmandu and are currently undergoing treatment. The cause of the crash is as yet unknown.

More rain is expected in the coming days across India and Bangladesh, where catastrophic flooding is having a deadly impact. Officials in Bangladesh say nearly 4.5 million people have been impacted by the fast rising waters.

Our Anna Coren was on a rescue boat run by volunteers as they worked to pick up people, unable to escape from remote locations.

[03:45:02]

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ANNA COREN, CNN ANCHOR AND CORRESPONDENT: We are in Feni, the epicenter of the floods here in Bangladesh. We've boarded a boat which is attempting to go to areas that are completely cut off.

Here we have and the army and they've obviously rescued --

We're from CNN.

-- they've rescued these families, these women and children are aboard the boat. There's such an acute shortage of boats. On the way out on the highway, it was truck after truck, carrying boats.

As you can see, people are carrying whatever they can gather, whatever they can walk out with.

We understand at the Feni hospital that the water is chin high, so we don't know what the state, the situation is there for the patients. But people here are angry. They say they have never seen this sort of flooding in their lifetime.

We're on the border with India and, as far as the Bangladeshis are concerned, this is being caused by India.

There are reports that the floodgates of one of its dams just across the border was opened on Wednesday. And that created the surge of water that is now spread over 10 districts, affecting more than 4 million people.

That is the latest number that we are getting from the government. India denies this but they do say that, when the water levels reach a certain height, there is an automatic release. There has been no apology from India. And as far as the Bangladeshis are concerned, they are -- they are livid, they are furious.

Their homes have been flooded, their livelihoods, their shops, everything is underwater. And Bangladesh is no stranger to floods. It, in fact, has one of the best early warning systems in South Asia. But there was no warning this case.

The need is great and we just heard from a Bangladeshi a little earlier, a volunteer, there have been so many volunteers that have come here to help with this effort.

And they have said, Bangladesh needs your help, a plea to the world -- Anna Coren, CNN, Feni, Bangladesh.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WATSON: Thank you, Anna.

Still ahead, a glassblower in Afghanistan is struggling to keep his craft alive. We'll look at why his way of life is under threat because of the Taliban.

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WATSON: Welcome back. I'm Ivan Watson. You're watching CNN.

We're going to learn more later today about the fate of two astronauts stuck on the International Space Station ever since their Boeing Starliner capsule malfunctioned. The U.S. space agency, NASA, will update plans to get Butch Wilmore and Sunita Williams back to Earth.

They launched into space on June 5th. Their mission has now lasted some two months longer than originally planned. The delayed return is being blamed on helium leaks and thruster issues on the Starliner.

NASA has admitted the crew may have to wait until February and return home on a SpaceX capsule.

Now one of the largest anime conventions kicks off this weekend in New York. Anime NYC is a three-day gathering featuring Japanese animation and culture. Now in its seventh year, this year's event has already sold 100,000 tickets. Anime is derived from Japanese animation that uses handwritten or computer generated images.

Many fans also show up in their best cosplay of their favorite characters. In addition to anime, there are also panels and screenings featuring of variety of pop culture characters.

Two rare puma cubs were found orphaned in a Peruvian forest. A young farmer reported finding the little ones. Wildlife officials say their mother likely died due to a manmade cause.

The cubs are about seven weeks old and rare and are facing some pretty serious health challenges, including dehydration and malnutrition. They're being treated at a local university. Pumas in Peru are being harmed by illegal hunting, illegal mining and forest fires. And the cubs do look cute.

Cambodia welcomed home centuries-old antiquities, many of which had been looted during the turmoil of the Khmer Rouge era in the 1970s; 70 items were displayed at a homecoming ceremony in Phnom Penh's Peace Palace; 14 of the sculptures linked to an alleged trafficker were brought back from New York's Metropolitan Museum of Art. The Met says it has since hired staff to verify the provenance of

artworks; 56 other previously stolen items came from private collections.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

HUN MANET, CAMBODIAN PRIME MINISTER (through translator): The government of Cambodia considers that the return of antiquities to Cambodia, the rightful owner, is a show of respect.

They are not only showing their morality by promoting the value of the culture of a nation but also preserving the culture of humans as well.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WATSON: And now a glassblower in Afghanistan is carrying on the craft that has been at the center of his family for centuries. But it's been a struggle for him since the Taliban regained control. CNN's Lynda Kinkade looks at how he's trying to keep an ancient tradition alive.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

LYNDA KINKADE, CNN ANCHOR AND CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Sitting in front of a red hot furnace shaping molten glass, this Afghan artist is trying to keep an ancient tradition alive.

[03:55:00]

GHULAM SAKHI SAIFI, GLASSBLOWER (through translator): We are trying to make sure it is not forgotten. If we do not pass it down, it will disappear from the whole world.

KINKADE: Glassblowing in the Herat region of Western Afghanistan has been passed down from generation to generation. This craft has been in Ghulam Sakhi Saifi's family for about three centuries. His family home hosts the last two furnaces in the region. Now he only lights one furnace once a month.

SAIFI (through translator): Unfortunately, there are no sales, there are no foreigners. Locals don't need these products. For the price they would first think of buying two loaves of bread for their children.

KINKADE (voice-over): Saifi blames the slump in sales on the lack of foreign customers. Aid workers and diplomats fled the country when the Taliban took over in 2021. However, tourism is picking up in recent years.

The Taliban says it wants more tourists to visit. According to a Taliban tourism official cited by the Associated Press, 7,000 people did visit Afghanistan last year.

SAIFI (through translator): Today is a bad day but maybe it will get better in the future. Maybe the day after tomorrow, we hope to God.

KINKADE (voice-over): Once glassblowers used quartz to make their creations. Today, relies on shards from recycled bottles which are heated into a liquid state. Using kitchen knives, iron rods and a blow pipe, Saifi creates glowing globes of glass in the mud furnace, turning them into beautiful household items.

NAQIBULLAH, SAIFI'S SON (through translator): This work is better than others because it's a skill that many people don't have. And the art of making things by hand needs to be preserved.

KINKADE (voice-over): Saifi sits with his son, shaping glass, hoping this ancient craft can continue in his family for generations to come -- Lynda Kinkade, CNN.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WATSON: I'm Ivan Watson in Hong Kong.

My colleague, Kim Brunhuber, will have more CNN NEWSROOM in just a moment.

Stay with us.