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CNN International: U.S., Allies Call For 21-Day Israel- Hezbollah Ceasefire; U.N.: More Than 90,000 Newly Displaced In Lebanon; Cat 2 Storm Churning Through Gulf Of Mexico Toward Florida; Zelenskyy To Make Urgent In-Person Plea To Biden And Harris; Israeli Military Says Its Carrying Out "Precise Strikes" In Beirut; Team Trump Trying To Get $454M Fraud Judgment Overturned; World's Longest-Serving Death Row Inmate Acquitted. Aired 8-9a ET

Aired September 26, 2024 - 08:00   ET

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

[08:00:00]

KATE BOLDUAN, CNN ANCHOR: The CST, according to CST, the antisemitic incidents nearly doubled in the first half of this year compared to last year across the U.K. And this war is now threatening to expand in the Middle East. What more can you do?

MAYOR SADIQ KHAN, LONDON: Well, firstly, we mustn't conflate what's happening in the Middle East and what Israel is doing with how you treat Jewish people. Jewish people should not have hatred set against them, should not be the victims of vile abuse and racism and so forth.

Unfortunately, history tells us, when there's a rise in tension in the Middle East --

MAX FOSTER, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: Hello, you're watching CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Max Foster in London.

Just ahead, Israel's Prime Minister dismisses reports that his country is considering a ceasefire with Hezbollah, that Israel is threatening to launch a full ground incursion into Lebanon. Then Hurricane Helene is intensifying and is now a category 2 storm. It's set to make landfall in Florida in the coming hours. We'll have a live update from there in just a moment.

Plus, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is in Washington where he'll reveal his plan for victory over Russia in the coming hours. We've got the details for you.

The U.S. and its allies are calling for a 21-day ceasefire on the Israel-Lebanon border. Even as Israel launches a new wave of strikes against Hezbollah on Thursday, including areas of Lebanon bordering Syria. Three people were killed in the Tyre district of southern Lebanon. Overnight, the IDF says it hit at least 75 targets.

Israel says it's dismantling and degrading Hezbollah infrastructure. The Lebanese health ministry says at least 81 people were killed on Wednesday.

Tens of thousands are fleeing as the conflict escalates. Lebanon's Interior Minister says more than 70,000 people are registering in official shelters. Meanwhile, Israel's Prime Minister is heading to New York for the U.N. General Assembly. He is pushing back on reports of a pause saying he's told the military to fight with full force.

Our CNN teams are covering all the angles of the story. Nic Robertson is in Tel Aviv. Jomana Karadsheh is in Beirut. Nic, just bring us the latest situation then on the ground at least.

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: Yes, dozens of incoming missiles fired by Hezbollah into Israel, Northern Israel today. They seem to be short and medium range, not the big ballistic missile that was fired early yesterday. That seemed to be the sort of -- if there was a lull overnight, it was a very sort of little lull. Israel said that it overnight targeted 75 different Hezbollah targets inside of inside of Lebanon.

And today has announced that it's hit some targets along the border with Lebanon and Syria, where it says that those targets have been places along the border where Hezbollah gets weapons smuggled to it from or with the help of Iran coming in from Syria. So, the military temper was continuing.

Look, there's been a political backlash against the prime minister. This is talk of a 21-day ceasefire. The prime minister's office has been very clear and pushed back on all of this. He said, look, the officer said, look, the Prime Minister hasn't answered this. He hasn't responded to this U.S.-French diplomatic effort for a 21-day ceasefire.

It's also saying that the Prime Minister, one of the reasons that he's going to New York is about diplomacy. Israel has said all along it would rather solve this by diplomatic means than military means. However, the Prime Minister has faced a massive push back from right wing members of his government who said, absolutely not. This is not the time to be going into a ceasefire of any kind.

Look, I think if you just sort of peel back the layers of discussion around this today and just more broadly analyze it, the military believes, the IDF believes that it has the momentum at the moment. It is poised, it appears to put ground troops into Lebanon. No decision on that yet.

It believes that it is able at the moment to at least compromise and degrade Hezbollah's command and control. They don't want to have any kind of pause that would allow Hezbollah to reconstitute. So, and then add on to the bigger picture there, the notion that a ceasefire here with Hezbollah could therefore help trigger some kind of diplomatic initiative with talks with Hamas in Gaza.

It just doesn't sound feasible. One of the main players, if there's going to be a player with Hezbollah -- influencing Hezbollah with a deal for a ceasefire in the north, Iran's going to be the influence there. Iran is just not going to get into meaningful negotiations with the United States when they're in the throes of a presidential election, when they don't know what sort of president they're going to get next. Iran always negotiates over the long term. So I think the hopes of a 21-day pause or ceasefire, or call it what you will, in the near term. It just does not feel realistic at the moment. It is not impossible, but the mood music just doesn't point in that direction, Max.

[08:05:08]

FOSTER: OK, Nic, thank you.

Jomana, within Lebanon, there's a massive movement of people, tens of thousands by official figures, but it's probably much higher than that.

JOMANA KARADSHEH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: You know, Max, just listening to Nic there, you know, this talk of a possible ceasefire, very few people here would have hopes of that happening when they consider the positions of both Israel and Hezbollah. And a lot of people would tell you they've heard those same sort of promises and that sort of talk when it comes to a ceasefire in Gaza and they haven't seen it happen.

So not many people have faith in that happening anytime soon. And, you know, the fear, the apprehension here is just palpable. People are terrified of what might be coming, what is unfolding in this country right now when we're talking about the number of people who've been displaced. I mean, just in a matter of days, you've had tens of thousands, possibly up to hundreds of thousands of people who've had to flee their homes.

There's no exact figure. We've heard estimates 70,000 to 90,000 people, but that is those who have registered and are staying at government or U.N. run shelters. That doesn't take into account as we've heard from Lebanese officials, the number of people who have had to go and stay with family, with friends, with relatives, who have had to rent apartments, stay in hotels.

For example, in our hotel in Beirut, we have had many displaced families from southern Lebanon and from the southern suburbs of Beirut who are staying here. And, you know, the Lebanese government estimates that that number is approaching 500,000, nearly half a million people. That's almost 10 percent of Lebanon's population.

People who don't know when they're going to be able to return to their homes. They fled airstrikes, they fled because of Israeli warnings and the Israelis telling them yesterday, do not return to your towns and villages, those areas that have been pretty much emptied out after this recent escalation.

And then you also have the casualty toll that is continuing to rise by the day. Max, you've got the country's hospitals, the health sector here that was already struggling before this recent escalation. Considering the situation in Lebanon, the economic situation, the brain drain, the crises they've had to deal with in recent years, it is very right now, as we're hearing, they're overwhelmed.

They're struggling to deal with the sheer number of injured in their thousands just in this past week. And the numbers continue to rise as Israeli strikes have intensified in recent days. I mean, we are finding it really hard to keep track of the number of airstrikes that have taken place just in the last 24 hours.

They are focused primarily in the southern part of Lebanon and in the eastern Beqaa region, where you do have Hezbollah presence. But there are also residential areas there, residential neighborhoods. Yes, Hezbollah has taken a really hard hit with these attacks and airstrikes in recent days. But this has also been devastating for Lebanon and for the civilian population.

I mean, to give you one example, one of the deadliest strikes overnight happened in the Beqaa region in Eastern Lebanon in a town Unine (ph). The mayor there telling us that at least 23 people were killed in a strike on a building. They were all Syrian nationals. Members of one family, including women and Children.

The men were day laborers, Max. These are people who live on a day's wage, and they were killed in this airstrike. And the mayor tells us he knows of no links to Hezbollah. And you hear so many of these accounts from different parts of the south and the east where these airstrikes are taking place.

One young man we spoke to who had fled from southern Lebanon to Beirut yesterday, telling us what we saw happening, he says, in Gaza, we are seeing it happen here right now. And you hear that from a lot of people. There is this fear of what some are describing as the gasification of Lebanon. Real fear of that.

FOSTER: Jomana, thank you so much. Nic, also.

We were watching images there from Tyre, and you can see that this is an ongoing conflict and this is the area that's been targeted by the Israelis over the last few hours, and you can see, actually, behind that banner actually how it is quite a built-up area.

Let's take a closer look at the diplomatic push to prevent a regional war from erupting then in the Middle East. As we mentioned, the Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is on his way to New York where he's scheduled to speak to the U.N. General Assembly on Friday. Hardliners in his government say Israel should reject any truce and keep up his fight with Hezbollah.

[08:10:08]

Let's bring in CNN's Alex Marquardt who joins us now from New York. It seems very unlikely that from the Israeli side, this is a deal that's going to happen in New York, but it's obviously something that Israel's allies are pushing for hard.

ALEX MARQUARDT, CNN CHIEF NATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: Well, Max, what's also interesting here is that during these feverish negotiations of the past 48 to 72 hours, the Israelis have been involved. Top U.S. officials have been talking to their Israeli counterparts. The government of Lebanon has been involved. Obviously, they've been speaking with Hezbollah. So you've had all these parties who have been on these phone calls trying to put together this text, which would not come as a surprise to Hezbollah and Israel when it was put forward last night. So, when White House officials woke up this morning, I imagine they were quite disheartened to hear what Netanyahu's office is saying, which is that there are -- that it's incorrect, that there is an imminent ceasefire. That -- and he -- they went on to say that the IDF should continue fighting with full force.

Now, let's be clear about what we're talking about here. This is not a permanent truce between Israel and Hezbollah. This is a call for a 21- day pause to then restart the negotiations to be able to get to a more permanent ceasefire. So this was just a first step, and it really reflects the fact that there was so much fear of a potential escalation, that we were entering such a dangerous period.

Where this conflict that we're seeing in northern Israel, southern Lebanon could really spiral out of control. So, you have U.S. officials with French counterparts as well as others. This is a statement that was put forward by the U.S. and 10 other allies, including the G7 countries and three Arab countries, and they put together a briefing call for reporters very quickly late last night at 9:30 p.m.

And they were speaking with some confidence saying when the governments of Israel and Lebanon accept. They talked about this as being a breakthrough and yet here we are looking right there on the screen at continued fighting. Noises from from the Israeli government saying that there's no sign of an imminent ceasefire and that the IDF should keep fighting.

So it is far from clear at best, Max, that this ceasefire is going to go into effect anytime soon. But, as you noted, Prime Minister Netanyahu is on his way to New York. U.S. officials are still here in New York. We know that the Secretary of State is meeting with Netanyahu's top aide, Ron Dermer, later today.

So those diplomatic conversations, those diplomatic efforts are still very much continuing, Max.

FOSTER: Alex, appreciate it. Thank you.

We are also tracking a major storm right now that could cause catastrophic damage in the U.S. Hurricane Helene is intensifying and is now a Category 2. It's set to make landfall in Florida tonight. We're expecting damaging winds, record rainfall, and life-threatening flooding. Thousands of Florida residents have been forced to evacuate.

The storm will grow into a massive, sprawling monster as it tracks north into the southeast of the U.S. 86 million people across five states are on alert. Hurricane Helene already unleashed its fury on parts of Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula and Cuba on Wednesday, causing flooding and power outages.

Let's get more from CNN's Allison Chinchar. And you haven't seen anything like this all year, have you? ALLISON CHINCHAR, CNN METEOROLOGIST: No, not so far this year, Max. And we just got a brand-new update at the top of the hour. That's what's triggered this into a Category 2 hurricane now with sustained winds of 100 miles per hour gusting up to 115. But further strengthening is expected because it is just churning in these very warm open waters of the Gulf of Mexico.

Another update we got just at the top of the hour, a brand-new tornado watch in effect for really two-thirds of the state of Florida. This is valid until 8:00 p.m. this evening Local time. This includes cities like Miami, Fort Myers, Tampa, even Orlando. So a lot of areas impacted here. We've had multiple tornado warnings off and on throughout the day.

We still have some in effect across portions of Florida, but also up into South Carolina. So it's not out of the question. More tornado watches could become in effect for states like Georgia and even the Carolinas as we go through the coming hours, and that threat begins to increase.

Now, the system itself, as we mentioned, is going to continue to strengthen into a major hurricane at some point later today before making landfall tonight across the Big Bend region of Florida. Now, when it makes landfall, that forward speed, which is right now, 12 miles per hour is expected to get upwards of 25 miles per hour.

This is important because this means it can make it pretty far inland before weakening back to a tropical storm. So you have several cities here that are hundreds of miles away from the ocean and are likely to have strong wind gusts up around 60 to even 80 miles per hour. That includes Atlanta, Maken (ph), Columbia, Greenville, Spartanburg, all of these areas likely to have some big impacts.

Another impact is going to be the rain. We have a lot of rain coming from Helene. But for a lot of these areas in the southeast, they just recently had a cold front go through. So that ground is already saturated, meaning the risk for flooding is already increased. And now we're adding more rain on top of it.

[08:15:03]

A lot of these areas widespread across Georgia, the Carolinas and Tennessee and Florida looking at a lot of that rainfall to be about 4 to 8 inches. But there will be some spots that could pick up 10, even 12 inches of rain before this storm system finally exits the area.

We talked about the threat for tornadoes today that exists mainly across Florida, Georgia and portions of the Carolinas. Areas like Savannah, Jacksonville as well as Orlando, all looking at the potential there for tornadoes as well as water spouts. Max?

FOSTER: Allison, thank you so much.

Let's go to CNN's Carlos Suarez. He's in the Tampa Bay area in Florida. He's a brave man. How are they preparing there, Carlos? CARLOS SUAREZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Max, good morning. That's right. So we are in Pinellas County. We're in the city of Gulfport. That is just to the west of the city of Tampa here in Florida, where, as you can see here behind me, we're already starting to feel the effects of this hurricane.

This part of Gulfport is known to flood. And to give you a sense of just where things are at this hour, my photographer is going to go ahead and try and push in just to the west of me here rather. You're taking a look at the bay there, and that is a volleyball beach court. And you can see how the water has already started to creep onto that part of where we are.

So it will no doubt at some point today cross over to the street where I am standing, which, as you can see, is flooded. This part of Pinellas County is expected to see anywhere between 4 to 6 feet of a storm surge. And that is on top of what you're looking at right here, this right now is really the result of high tide, which got underway around 7:00 Eastern Time, and some of the rain that we've seen the last couple of 12 to 18 hours.

Once that storm continues its track north, just to the west of where we are, we expect that storm search to go ahead, push all of that water in here. You add that with all of the rainfall that we're going to get. And Max, you can get a sense of exactly why the flooding that we're seeing here is one of the reasons why city officials have ordered this part of Pinellas County to evacuate over in Hillsborough County, which is about a half hour drive, which is home to the Tampa area.

There is also a mandatory evacuation order in place for some residents that live along the bay there because that part of Florida is expected to get the same amount of storm surge as you all have been talking about the sheer size of the storm really means that no matter where you live in the state of Georgia, and even parts of Georgia, chances are you are going to feel the effects of Hurricane Helene. Max?

FOSTER: OK, Carlos, stay safe. Thank you very much indeed for bringing us that.

Now, next stop for the President of Ukraine, Washington. He's got an urgent plea for U.S. leaders. We'll tell you all about it just ahead.

And later, the mayor of New York City faces criminal charges this morning. But we don't yet know exactly what he's been charged with. Details on his defiant response, though, when we come back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[08:20:06]

FOSTER: Volodymyr Zelenskyy expected to make an urgent plea for more help when he meets the U.S. President and Vice President in person later in the day. The Ukrainian president will present what he calls his victory plan to defeat Russia. But first, Mr. Zelenskyy is expected on Capitol Hill in the next hour, where he plans to meet with a bipartisan group of lawmakers.

With the U.S. presidential election just weeks away, Ukraine's wartime leader is looking for all the help he can find in a time of political uncertainty. That's why President Biden has ordered the Pentagon to allocate all remaining Ukraine funding approved by Congress before he leaves office.

And we're getting word of a new wave of deadly attacks on Ukraine. Officials say Russia launched more than 80 missile and drones -- missiles and drones. That was overnight.

CNN's Arlette Saenz standing by for us at the White House. First, though, to Clare on the latest wave of attacks.

CLARE SEBASTIAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I mean, look, these are pretty regular now, and they have been increasing in size. We know from Ukrainian data that the number of drone launches has gone up significantly in August and now in September, which of course coincides directly with the Kursk incursion. So this seems to be continuing with that pattern.

One interesting thing, given that we heard President Zelenskyy at the UNGA claiming that he had information that Russia was planning to target Ukraine's three nuclear power plants that are not under Russian occupation. Of course, it still occupies the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant.

Energoatom, which is the state nuclear energy company, said that they recorded a drone flying at a critically low altitude near the Rivne nuclear power plant, which is in the west of Ukraine. So, obviously, this is a major concern for nuclear safety, but also, given the sort of sustained assault that we're seeing on Ukraine's energy grid ahead of winter.

There was also a drone attack on substations in the Kyiv region, and one woman was killed in a missile attack on the Odesa region overnight, Max. So this is very much a pattern that we see in this war.

FOSTER: Yes, and he'll be talking about it, Arlette, won't he, in the U.S. They've been -- they've got some sort of agreement about the funding that needs to get through, and this is all because Zelenskyy's so concerned that things could shift after the election and the current plan won't stay in place.

ARLETTE SAENZ, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Yes, that's right, Max. And president -- Ukrainian President Zelenskyy is expected to make that personal appeal to President Biden to really offer more support for his country in their efforts to fight Russia. And it comes at a time when there is uncertainty about what the future of American support for Ukraine would look like, depending on the outcome of this upcoming election.

So Zelenskyy is set to meet face to face in the Oval Office with President Biden this afternoon where he will lay out that victory plan, trying to detail how he thinks Ukraine can still win and what exactly they will need from the U.S. and Western allies to do so.

Now, Zelenskyy has yet to publicly unveil what this victory plan entails, but sources who have been briefed on the matter tell us that, in addition to seeking more aid from the U.S. and Western countries, Zelenskyy is also poised to push for long-term security guarantees that could withstand any changes in American leadership, as Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump, who has been quite critical of Zelenskyy, are facing off in this very close election.

Another big question on the table will be whether Ukraine can use Western made long range weapons to fire deeper into Russia. That is something that would require U.S. approval. And so far, President Biden has not granted that, though, he has shown some openness to the possibility that he could down the road.

It's unclear if Biden were to decide to do that. Whether he would announce that publicly, there's concerns about whether this could inflame tensions further with Russia at this moment. But ahead of Zelenskyy's meeting, President Biden was rolling out a new surge in aid.

You had the Defense Department yesterday announced about $375 million in an aid package for Ukraine. President Biden is saying that they also need to spend the $5.5 billion that Congress has already approved. He wants that spent in the coming months before he leaves office.

There's another $2.4 billion that the Defense Department has that they can also use through Ukraine's security initiative and Biden in a statement this morning announced that U.S. is providing more long- range weapons, more patriot missiles to Ukraine as well as helping to further train more Ukrainian fighter pilots in fighter jets.

So for President Biden, really this war in Ukraine has been a key foreign policy issue for him throughout his presidency. He has sought to really rally that Western support for Ukraine, and so he's hoping in this meeting to once again show that the U.S. is willing to stand by Zelenskyy's side, even at a time when there's a lot of uncertainty about the future of that relationship depending on this year's election.

[08:25:03]

FOSTER: Arlette, thank you.

Clare, Russia, obviously not in New York. Putin's not in New York. But they've made a pretty clear statement, which feels like a counter threat, if you like?

SEBASTIAN: Yes, it absolutely is. This update that Putin announced on Wednesday to their nuclear doctrine, it hasn't been codified yet, and so we don't have the full sort of written details of this. But, look, we've seen a lot of nuclear saber rattling throughout this war.

This is the first time that we are seeing what looks to be concrete action to go with that. So on the one hand, it is alarming and Dmitry Peskov making it very clear that this, he said, is a signal to unfriendly countries. So read a direct counter to the possibility that the West could give permission for Ukraine to use Western long-range missiles on Russian soil.

Russia is laser focused on trying to prevent more Western aid to Ukraine. What was announced, Belarus is now going to be under the nuclear umbrella, the Russian nuclear umbrella. The idea that a nuclear armed country supporting, it's not clarified exactly what that means, an attack on Russia by a non-nuclear power would be seen as a sort of joint attack.

And then broadening the range of scenarios potentially under which a first strike could be justified. Take a listen to Putin on that point.

(BEGIN VIDEOCLIP)

VLADIMIR PUTIN, RUSSIAN PRESIDENT (through translation): The conditions for Russia's transition to the use of nuclear weapons are clearly established. We will consider this possibility upon receipt of reliable information about a massive launch of air and space attack weapons and their crossing of our state border. I mean strategic or tactical aircraft, cruise missiles, drones, hypersonic and other aircraft.

(END VIDEOCLIP)

SEBASTIAN: So it's still a little vague, I have to say, Max. I think it won't be 100 percent clear how this actually affects the doctrine until we see it published. But one thing, of course, that Western intelligence is watching really closely is Russia's test readiness, the state of its nuclear arsenal, which is in the midst of a multiyear modernization.

Take a look at these satellite images from earlier this week, which experts have said, really show they think the catastrophic failure of the launch of an intercontinental ballistic missile. And if we have those, there they are. And if you wait, you'll see that there was -- it looks like an explosion and smoke.

This, the Sarmat missile really one of the centerpieces of Russia's modernizing arsenal. So I think that will show that obviously that modernization is not 100 percent going to plan and feeds into the idea that a lot of this is still just rhetoric coming from Russia.

FOSTER: Clare, thank you.

Still to come, acquitted after decades on death row. The case that's throwing a spotlight on Japan's criminal justice system.

And later in the program, find out what's inside this crate, which arrived in Hong Kong earlier, to a red-carpet reception.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[08:30:03] FOSTER: Breaking news out of Lebanon, Israel says it's carrying out precise strikes in Beirut. The military did not add any detail about what they were targeting in the Lebanese capital. CNN teams have been seeing plumes of smoke though, rising from one of South Beirut's suburbs.

Let's go to Jomana, because she's there. What can you tell us, Jomana?

KARADSHEH: Well, Max, a short time ago, right after we finished our live shot, after we were speaking with you, we got these reports from the Israeli military saying that they're conducting precise strikes in Beirut. We did not hear anything, but when we looked behind us into Beirut's southern suburbs, known as Dahieh, we could see a large plume of smoke rising from that direction.

And we are hearing from the Lebanese state news agency, saying it was 3 missiles launched by Israeli warplanes, and they say it was an airstrike targeting an apartment in a residential building in the Al- Qa'im neighborhood near St. Joseph school in the southern suburbs of Beirut.

We still don't have much information. We are waiting to hear more from the Israeli military on who or what the target of that strike was. But we have seen over the past more than week now, these strikes carried out by the Israeli military in Beirut on the southern suburbs, where you do have a presence of Hezbollah there.

They carried out a strike last week that was a major blow to Hezbollah, taking out some of their senior commanders, one of its top commanders of the special -- what is known as the special force of Hezbollah, the elite Radwan force and other commanders as well. So we'll have to wait and see what the Israeli military says was the target of the strike.

And of course, as well, hearing from the Lebanese authorities saying that this was a residential building, we will have to wait and see also reports of civilian casualties. But this is just happened in the last few minutes, Max. We'll have to wait and see what more we get from Lebanese authorities and the Israeli military.

FOSTER: Well, we do know it's a built-up area, don't we? Thank you so much, Jomana.

Let's get more from former U.S. Defense Secretary Mark Esper. He's a CNN Global Affairs Analyst. I mean, how much is all of this worrying you? We have seen Israel's allies, including the U.S. call for a ceasefire. There is no ceasefire on either side, and it's getting more intense every day.

MARK ESPER, CNN GLOBAL AFFAIRS ANALYST: Well, Max, there is a concern, of course, that this is escalating and could escalate to an all-out regional war that would involve Iran and probably the United States and others. I understand the want by the United States and many others to put a 21-day ceasefire plan on the table, but it's hard for me to see why Israel would accept that. We got to keep in mind going back to October 6th, which was the day before October 7th, the region was at relative peace. On October 7th, Hamas attacked into Gaza -- I'm sorry, Hamas attacked into Israel from Gaza and killed over 1,200 Israelis, took over 200 captive. And then the next day, Hezbollah launched its attacks on provoked against Israel as well, and has been shooting rockets and missiles into Israel ever since.

Now -- every day since. Now, from those early months on, Israel has been anxious to strike back at Hezbollah because as you know, over 60,000 Israelis have been displaced now going on 11 months. And just a few weeks ago, Israel said one of the war objectives now is to return those people safely and securely to their homes in Northern Israel.

And they've been signaling this for quite a long time. And I might add that political parties, political leaders across the spectrum in Israel support this. So I don't see why Israel would take the pressure off now, allow a ceasefire that would permit Hezbollah to regroup, to reestablish their command and control. They're going to want something much more out of these negotiations and out of the ceasefire.

FOSTER: And if you look at it from a purely military perspective, from the Israeli side, you've got to take this opportunity presumably. They've taken out a lot of the communications. They've weakened a lot of the positions and then they keep the momentum. So, they're going to be pushing back very hard. Any politicians asking them to pull back?

ESPER: Yes, no, you're right. I mean, they've knocked down the command and control. They've caused disarray within Hezbollah's ranks, with the pager attacks and the walkie talkie attacks. They've softened infrastructure. They've gone after rocket and missile launchers, which is arguably Hezbollah's greatest asset that threatens Israel.

And now they've called up two reserve brigades to -- for a possible incursion into Southern Lebanon. And as compared to Gaza, where I think the likelihood of a ceasefire is very, very small, unlikely given the distance between the two sides, I think it's possible to have an agreement here and the Israelis have been very clear.

[08:35:10]

They want Hezbollah to withdraw north to the Litani River, to get Hezbollah fighters out of direct fire range of anti-tank weapons that they are using against Israeli settlements and get some distance between the two.

It's not an unreasonable request. And then maybe begin whatever ceasefire talks there, because we know there are some border disputes that need to be resolved. But I don't see them taking the pressure off Hezbollah or agreeing to a ceasefire that would allow Hezbollah to regroup.

FOSTER: Well, what about U.S. leverage here? Because we're hearing a lot from the White House, aren't we, about a need for a peace deal in Gaza, a need for a ceasefire here. Israel seems to be ignoring pretty much everything that they're putting out there, and yet America keeps the funding going towards Israel, which is the leverage it obviously has. Just explain that to the wider world who doesn't understand why America isn't achieving more with what it's asking for.

ESPER: Well, I suspect the reason why the White House isn't achieving more is because over 70 percent of all Israelis support action against Hezbollah that would allow 60,000 plus Israelis to return to their homes after 11 months of being displaced.

You have political leaders across the spectrum, many of whom oppose one another vehemently on any other issue, support this action. So, you know, it's hard to see the -- Bibi Netanyahu despite his critics on other issues, being persuaded by the White House to not take this action when his country is being rocketed and under a drone attack every other day or so from Hezbollah.

They want this problem resolved. They don't want a wider war. So while I understand the push by the White House to put pressure on Israel, I actually think the U.N. and the international community should also be putting pressure on Iran, who supports, supplies, funds, inspires, directs Hezbollah to get them -- to get Hezbollah to back off because at the end of the day, Iran could do that. But I think we need to put pressure there as well to get a resolution of this conflict, not just a temporary ceasefire.

FOSTER: How different would things look if president -- you know, if we go ahead to after, you know, next year, President Trump is in power? Do you think he would be handling this very differently if he wins this election, because we can assume that if Harris wins, it'll take a similar line to what we're seeing already?

ESPER: You know, it's hard to say, Max. I've seen -- I've been there at times when President Trump has been gunshy, and I've seen other times when he's taken bold action like he did with regard to --

FOSTER: OK, Mark, I'm so sorry, I have to interrupt only because the Israeli government spokesperson is speaking to these --

DAVID MENCER, ISRAELI GOVERNMENT SPOKESPERSON: -- I've been updating you on this for months now, 490 trucks and they've stayed at that level, awaiting to be picked up from the Gazan side of Kerem Shalom. Now, 480 of these trucks belong to the U.N. They've been there for months.

As I said, while international organizations and other NGOs pick up the aid from Kerem Shalom, we urge the U.N. to do the same and collect the aid, which is just waiting there to be delivered. Now, Israel, on its part, stands ready to facilitate these coordinations and any other measures to assist the U.N. with upscaling their aid collection abilities.

You can get all of the details of Israel's humanitarian efforts on COGAT's website. And that's the end of our briefing here today. And I'll take your questions. Please put them in the chat as usual with your news outlet. Thank you for that. Thank you for that. Now, first question here I can see is from Joel Pollak at Breitbart News. Joel says, what a difference a day makes yesterday. I asked about diplomacy and today there is a ceasefire proposal and also a rejection. What are the terms under which Israel would accept to ending fighting? And why does the ceasefire proposal fail to mention Hezbollah?

Thank you for that question, Joel. Look, to those that say that Israel must deescalate our defensive action in Lebanon and go for a diplomatic resolution right now, let me share with you our position as it stands. If you follow that sort of analysis to its ends, it's actually works to the contrary of what I think is the objective we're all trying to go for.

After a whole year of receiving Hezbollah rocket fire on our border with 9,000, more than 9,400 rockets, missiles and drones fired at us, with 65,000 Israelis forced to flee their homes, we've had 49 dead Israelis murdered by this Hezbollah fire, including actually an Indian national with hundreds of Israelis wounded, with 200,000 dunams of our land burnt, with close to a thousand fires started on our land by Hezbollah.

[08:40:29]

If you want a diplomatic resolution after a year when Hezbollah has fired at us, almost every -- well, actually every single day for a year, it is actually Israel that's creating the political and the strategic realities that will facilitate that.

So, by hitting Hezbollah, the way we are in the very calibrated way, but also in a way that causes Hezbollah, the terrorist organization devoted to our destruction by hitting them in the way that really hurts. It's actually Israel which is making the possibility for a political diplomatic resolution much more realistic.

Now Hezbollah simply won't pull out of southern Lebanon because we've asked them to, by email or by any sort of document that could be signed right now. Because they've spent the last year firing at us, even though the U.S. and France and others have asked them actually to stop.

So our requirements are very, very clear. They are -- and they're reasonable as well. We want to create a situation where our citizens in the north, tens of thousands of our people who've been dislocated and left their homes for a year now, that they're able to return to their homes and safely -- and safety. And we also say in a loud and clear voice that this will be achieved when Hezbollah understands that it cannot attack Israel.

Hezbollah cannot be physically along our border with southern Lebanon. So far, Hezbollah has said no to any such proposal after an entire year. So Israel's carefully calibrated offensive against Hezbollah surgically taking out Hezbollah capabilities when Israel targets and hits Hezbollah, we actually move closer to the reality that we all want. That is facilitating a new security reality, as the prime minister said in southern Lebanon, based on understandings, which we have already reached in the past, but we've never meaningfully implemented. That's clear for all to see. It's U.N. resolutions, 1559 and 1701.

They've been passed, but never implemented, never enforced. So there's no contradiction whatsoever between the desire to reach a diplomatic settlement on an agreed diplomatic settlement based on this new reality and our action to dramatically address Hezbollah's capability to attack Israel.

FOSTER: Let's bring in Mark Esper again, hearing there from the government spokesperson in Israel. I mean, it's a very determined voice, isn't it? And this is the reality they're talking about. A new security reality in southern Lebanon, where effectively you won't have any Hezbollah positions whatsoever, creating a sort of buffer zone.

He says, that's always been the plan. We're just going ahead with it right now. The big question being, does that mean boots on the ground, which would be interpreted, wouldn't it, as the two, you know, Israel and Hezbollah being at war, wouldn't it?

ESPER: Well, first of all, he cited that proposal that's based on U.N. resolutions that have been passed by the United Nations. And so, again, the call is for Hezbollah to withdraw from the border to go north, which is about 18 miles to the Litani River. And of course, we have U.N. peacekeepers in the region.

But, again, I don't think it's unreasonable request that that secure -- that there be a buffer there that would protect Israeli citizens from the direct fire and smaller range indirect fire of Hezbollah forces, and it would allow 60,000 plus Israelis to the return to their homes. And, by the way, it would allow 100,000 plus now displaced Lebanese to the return to their homes as well.

But the fact of the matter is Hezbollah has tethered itself to Yahya Sinwar, who's running things in Gaza right now for Hamas. And Hezbollah has vowed that they will not stop attacking Israel until there is a ceasefire agreement between Hamas and Israel.

And that is very, very unlikely, partly because Sinwar doesn't want that unless he clearly wins in such a negotiation.

[08:45:01]

So, these two are tied up with one another. That's why I go back to the fact that not only should the United States and its partners be talking to Israel, to Bibi Netanyahu, they should be talking to Iran and Pezeshkian, the new president and persuading them to get Hezbollah to back off, to ceasefire, and to withdraw north. And that's the best way to calm this thing down by approaching all sides in the matter.

FOSTER: Mark Esper, as ever, thank you so much for your insights on this seismic story which is developing by the hour. We'll be right back.

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FOSTER: To the race for the White House then, U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris is slamming Donald Trump's economic plan, saying his tariff hikes would lead to a recession. During an interview with MSNBC, the Democratic presidential nominee said his threat to impose a broad hike on tariffs shows he's just not very serious, adding, that's not an idea you just throw it around.

Harris also explained how she intends to pay for her economic initiatives, which include an expanded childcare credit and assistance for first time home buyers.

(BEGIN VIDEOCLIP)

KAMALA HARRIS (D), U.S. VICE PRESIDENT, 2024 PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: We're going to have to raise corporate taxes, and we're going to have to raise -- we're going to have to make sure that the biggest corporations and billionaires pay their fair share. That's just it. It's about paying their fair share.

I am not mad at anyone for achieving success, but everyone should pay their fair share. And it is not right that the teachers and the firefighters that I meet every day across our country are paying a higher tax than the richest people in our country.

(END VIDEOCLIP)

FOSTER: Well, for his part in a speech billed on being about the economy, Donald Trump instead took issue with Ukrainian leader, Volodymyr Zelenskyy's appeals for more funding from the U.S.

(BEGIN VIDEOCLIP)

DONALD TRUMP (R), FORMER U.S. PRESIDENT, 2024 PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Look at the war in Ukraine and I think it's something we have to have a quick discussion about because the president of Ukraine is in our country and he's making little nasty aspersions toward your favorite president.

Those cities are gone. They're gone. And we continue to give billions of dollars to a man who refuses to make a deal, Zelenskyy.

(END VIDEOCLIP)

FOSTER: Well, you remember, the former president has a long history with Zelenskyy. In fact, Trump's first impeachment was for withholding Congress approved military aid to Ukraine, unless Ukraine dug up dirt on the Bidens.

Also, in the coming hours, Donald Trump's lawyers, will try to convince a New York appeals court to overturn a $454 million judgment. Earlier this year, Trump, his two eldest sons and his business were found liable for fraud as well as issuing false financial statements and business records. The judge ruled Trump inflated the value of his assets to get more favorable terms for loans and insurance. The former U.S. president is not expected to appear in court. No decisions likely until after the November presidential election. Over the past month, Trump's legal team has tried to get multiple cases thrown out, including Special Counsel Jack Smith's federal election interference case, as well as the guilty verdict in the hush money criminal case and the defamation verdict.

Now, in Japan, the world's longest serving death row inmate has just been acquitted. 88-year-old Iwao Hakamata was sent to death row more than five decades ago over the murder of a family in the late 1960s.

[08:50:12]

His name has now been cleared following a retrial, with the saga throwing a global scrutiny on Japan's criminal justice system.

Hanako Montgomery has more.

HANAKO MONTGOMERY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Iwao Hakamata's acquittal is a cause for celebration for his family and for his supporters. But many in Japan are also asking whether justice was really served. Hakamata spent nearly five decades, more than half of his life behind bars for a crime that he's now been acquitted of.

Now some background information about his case and the timing of this retrial, Hakamata is a boxer turned miso factory worker who was arrested in the 60s for allegedly killing his boss and his boss's family. At the time of his arrest, he initially confessed, but according to the judge, he was forced to confess by the police, who threatened and beat him.

Since making that forced confession, Hakamata has always maintained his innocence, which you can see in the hundreds of letters he's sent and written to his family over the years. Now, he was granted a retrial in 2014 after new evidence emerged in his case. And as we learned from the judge's ruling today, that evidence was in fact fabricated by the police.

They planted articles of clothing at the scene of the crime and said that the bloodstains on the clothes matched his DNA. But, again, as we learned from today's verdict, at least some of the evidence used to convict him was fabricated, which is all the more reason why human rights activists argue that the death penalty should be abolished. Hakamata's case has renewed debate about Japan's criminal justice system and who it serves.

Hanako Montgomery, CNN, Tokyo.

FOSTER: We're tracking Hurricane Helene right now. It's been upgraded to a Category 2 and set to hit Florida in the coming hours, bringing damaging winds, record rainfall, and life-threatening flooding. 86 million people across five states in the southeast are on alert.

Officials warn power outages could last days, if not weeks. Hurricane Helene already unleashed its fury on parts of Mexico and Cuba on Wednesday, causing flooding and power outages. Here's a riddle for you meanwhile. What's black and white and has just had a red-carpet reception? The answer, two young pandas, of course, in Hong Kong. Kristie will tell you the story.

KRISTIE LU STOUT, CNN CORRESPONDENT: The motorcade is arriving. Two very important pandas are being given the presidential treatment here in Hong Kong. These are national treasures that were gifted by the Chinese central government to Hong Kong ahead of the October National Day holiday next week.

Now the pandas, they touched down earlier before midday today, Thursday in Hong Kong. They were given a welcoming ceremony at the Hong Kong International Airport. And then they were given a very special escort by elite police officers on motorcycles to their new home here at Hong Kong's Ocean Park.

The two five-year-old pandas are named An An and Ke Ke. And they're from a conservation and research center in Sichuan province. An An is male, Ke Ke is female. They were both born in June of 2019. They are not genetically related and they're said to have complementary characteristics.

They're also said to be in good health. Even so, they have to spend 30 days in quarantine here at Ocean Park. And then after that, they have a month to acclimate and to get used to their new habitat. But the public won't get a chance to see the dynamic duo of the giant pandas until mid-December.

Kristie Lu Stout, CNN, Hong Kong.

FOSTER: From Transformers to Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, if you happen to have any old toys from the 1980s lying around, take a closer look at them because you might find that many of them are made in Macau.

Now, 25 years after the region's handover from Portugal to China, some toymakers are hoping to revive the long-gone industry. Marc Stewart has more as part of our Next Stop series.

(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)

MARC STEWART, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Street artist Anny Chong and her Costa Rican born husband Felipe Wong are hoping to put Macau on the global stage, one toy at a time.

ANNY CHONG, CO-FOUNDER, NATIVO TOY WORKSHOP: It's a very good blend of the East and the West, you know. And storytelling wise, it's actually quite interesting, too.

STEWART (voice-over): In 2020, the couple founded toy brand Nativo, which translates to native in both Portuguese and Spanish, reflecting their diverse background. Anny and Felipe gravitated toward this nostalgic medium plastic as their canvas and souvenirs with their own spin heavily inspired by hip hop culture. In fact, the plastics industry is nothing new here. For a brief time in the 1980s, Macau was a thriving hub for manufacturing its main export toys, matchbox cars, Hasbro's Transformers G1, and Mattel's Hot Wheels were all made in Macau.

[08:55:14]

FELIPE WONG, CO-FOUNDER, NATIVO TOY WORKSHOP: Some people will see like a super (ph) that is not involved in the culture. It's like it's just a piece of plastic, but these pieces of plastic for us, this is our stories. So it is --

CHONG: Yes.

WONG: -- it is a super important for us.

STEWART (voice-over): Alice Kok leads a non-profit organization helping develop the local art scene in Macau.

ALICE KOK, PRESIDENT, ART FOR ALL SOCIETY: I think this is quite characteristic to our cultural identity, I think. So we can see that the younger artists, they also have this tendency to mix very traditional medium and also from contemporary and the East and the West and a mixture with the Macanese culture.

STEWART (voice-over): It could be big business too. The toy collectibles market is estimated to reach a market value of over $35 billion by 2032 according to analysts. Much of it made in mainland China.

(END VIDEO TAPE)

FOSTER: Well, thanks for joining me here on CNN Newsroom. I'm Max Foster. Connect the World with Becky is up next.

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