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World Awaits Israel's Response to Attacks from Iran; Federal Judge Unseals Special Counsel's Motion on Immunity; Biden Visits Carolinas, Takes Aerial Tour of Devastation; Port Strike Results in Panic Buying in the U.S.; IDF: Eight Israeli Soldiers Killed In Southern Lebanon; Ukraine Confirms Russian Troops Captured Vuhledar; X Worth Nearly 80 Percent Less Than When Musk Bought It; World Awaits Israel's Response To Attacks From Iran; Federal Judge Unseals Special Counsel's Motion On Immunity; Biden Visits Carolinas, Takes Aerial Tour Of Devastation; Port Strike Results In Panic Buying In The U.S. Aired 12-12:45a ET

Aired October 03, 2024 - 00:00   ET

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

[00:00:34]

LYNDA KINKADE, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: Hello, I'm Lynda Kinkade live in Atlanta.

Ahead on CNN NEWSROOM, Israel strikes at the heart of Beirut targeting a Hezbollah affiliated building in Lebanon capital.

New evidence in Donald Trump's election cases unsealed detailing the former U.S. president's alleged attempts to overturn the 2020 election.

And toilet paper and bottled water flying off the shelves. A major port strike sets of a wave of panic buying here in the U.S. that experts say is totally unnecessary.

ANNOUNCER: Live from Atlanta, this is CNN NEWSROOM with Lynda Kinkade.

KINKADE: It is 7:00 a.m. in Beirut, Lebanon where Israeli airstrikes have hit the heart of the city for the first time since the two countries were at war in 2006. The Lebanese Health Ministry reports that at least six people have been killed in a residential area. A resident in a Beirut neighborhood says the building was home to their Hezbollah affiliated Islamic Health Authority and that the area is known to be dominated by Hezbollah's Shia allies.

Lebanese officials say at least 46 people were killed by Israeli airstrikes in a 24-hour period. Eight Israeli troops have been killed in combat in southern Lebanon. The IDF has issued new evacuation orders for a number of buildings in Beirut's southern suburbs as it plans to take action in the near future against more Hezbollah facilities in the area.

CNN's Paula Hancocks is live for us in Abu Dhabi with more.

Paula, good to have you with us. So Iran's attack was meant to act as a warning to Israel to end its war against Hezbollah in Lebanon. But it appears that Israel's incursion into Lebanon is only just beginning, despite the death of those eight Israeli soldiers.

PAULA HANCOCKS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Lynda, we have seen some significant fighting between Israel and Hezbollah at this point, that confirmed by both sides, the Israeli military calling it close range engagements, claiming they've destroyed about 150 Hezbollah related sites at this point. Hezbollah itself says that they have carried out more than two dozen attacks against Israeli troops.

Now what Hezbollah appears to be doing is trying to attack those troops in northern Israel using short range rockets, also artillery fire trying to repel the invasion into Lebanon. We've heard from Lebanon's army, though, that the Israeli troops have three times they believe crossed into Lebanon and gone about 400 meters, about a quarter of a mile into the country carrying out these attacks.

So at this point, it does appear as though it is quite intense fighting. Certainly we have seen from the Israeli side eight soldiers have been killed, the first loss of life on the Israeli side since this ground incursion started. And we know that there are at least five more severely injured. There are a number of villages that we understand the Israeli military have been focusing on and that Hezbollah say that they have repelled attacks within.

Now we also know that the evacuation orders in these areas are increasing. Israel has carried out another 51 villages that have to be evacuated of Lebanese civilians saying that they have to move further north. If you look at a map, it's effectively a quarter of Lebanon's territory at this point that they are trying to evacuate telling residents to go further north, certainly north of the Litani River.

Now Israel still claims that this is a limited and localized operation at this point, but we do know that one more battalion, thousands of soldiers, has been moved north to add support to this operation at this point -- Lynda.

KINKADE: And of course, you know, what started as a conflict between Israel and these Iranian proxies has transitioned now into this direct confrontation between Iran and Israel. What's the risk of a prolonged, costly conflict given both sides are vowing tit-for-tat revenge?

HANCOCKS: Well, the question at this point is, what will Israel do? And that will really determine the answer to your question.

[00:05:04]

Israel, according to the Israeli U.N. ambassador Danny Dannon, is weighing its options at this point. He said that there will be retaliation soon, seeing it will be very strong, painful response, it will be soon, but also saying it will be a calculated response because Israel doesn't want to see full war with Iran. And he said that he believed Iran didn't want to see that either.

Now, the Biden administration is being involved in this decision or at least that's what we're hearing from the Biden side. We did hear from the U.S. president being asked what he believed the response might be.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Would you support an attack on Iran's nuclear sites by Israel?

JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: The answer is no. They have a right to respond. But they should respond proportionately.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HANCOCKS: And two senior administration officials say that this time the U.S. is not actively trying to pull Israel back from any kind of response. They're not trying to restrict in some ways what they want to do. Certainly back in April when there was the drone and missile attack by Iran against Israel, there was a concerted effort by the Biden administration to ask Israel to be restrained so that the conflict would not spread any further, and we did see a relatively restrained response from Israel in targeting missile defense system in Isfahan.

But of course Isfahan is an area where there are significant Iranian nuclear facilities so it was also seen as a message to Iran that Israel could strike its nuclear facilities if it wanted to. So at this point, it is a wait and see what the Israeli response will be, but we certainly don't appear, according to Biden officials speaking to CNN, it doesn't appear as though the Biden administration is trying to pull Israel back and restrain them as much as they were back in April -- Lynda.

KINKADE: All right. Paula Hancocks for us in Abu Dhabi, thanks so much.

We're going to stay on this story. I want to bring in CNN senior national security analyst, Juliette Kayyem. She's also the former assistant secretary at the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.

Good to have you with us.

JULIETTE KAYYEM, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY ANALYST: Thanks for having me.

KINKADE: So, Juliette, Iran's attack on Israel is the second this year, the last one in April had little impact. It was a drone and missile attack all intercepted and resulted in Israel firing back with what was a limited strike. This time, the Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu said Iran's ballistic missile attack was a big mistake, and that Iran will pay for it. We've just heard from the U.S. president who said that it should not attack Iran's nuclear facilities.

Will Israel heed that warning?

KAYYEM: It's unclear now. What we do know is that Israel's response will be public, very public, and forceful. This is not like April when the Iranians used ballistic missiles, it was targeted towards civilian areas. The IDF has admitted that some military sites may -- were impacted. So it's just -- it's a different calculation for Israel and therefore the United States than it was in April. So all we know now is that it will be forceful and it will be public.

It's not like there aren't enough potential targets. It won't just be nuclear. You could go after oil fields. You could go after their missile sites. But Israel is keeping its options open one hopes to avoid a regional direct conflict between Iran and Israel. The consequences of that just unknowable to anyone at this stage.

KINKADE: And of course, Juliette, we know that there are some 40,000 U.S. troops stationed around the Middle East, many on naval vessels. What is the risk if Israel strikes an Iranian nuclear enrichment site?

KAYYEM: Yes, the risks are in some ways known. That will be viewed as a direct attack on military targets, so to speak, in Iran. And we don't know then how they will respond. Part of Israel's calculation right now is what kind of support will they get from the United States so the United States is keeping relatively quiet. They were not trying to pull back Israel. They know that they are going to do something, as I said, public and forceful.

Those are the two criteria, it is clear, Netanyahu wants at this stage but perhaps as we're hearing behind the scenes and maybe even from President Biden's statements about not going after the nuclear facility, trying to direct that forceful response to something that won't essentially start a spiral of violence and direct conflict between the two countries.

[00:10:09]

KINKADE: We know of course that the U.S. helped Israel defend itself during that Iranian attack. Talk to us about the influence that the U.S. has here to help potentially bring down the temperature?

KAYYEM: Well, so it's difficult to calculate at this stage. We've seen since about a year ago with the Hamas terrorist attack into Israel, the United States' ability to control Netanyahu's military strategy is pretty limited. We are supportive of Israel in terms of weapons and weapons supply. For a brief moment, there was a hold on some weapons that eventually got to the Israelis. So our ability to control Israel in terms of its military strategy is showing itself to be quite limited.

Now behind the scenes, maybe there are -- you know, there is evidenced that there's been abilities to draw the Israelis back. But certainly as regards safe, for example, their attacks, Israel's continuing attacks in Gaza and the impact that's having on Palestinians, the United States' domestic concerns about the humanitarian aid needed there has essentially gone unheeded by the Israelis.

KINKADE: Yes, exactly. And while we're watching this all play out between Iran and Israel and Israel and Hezbollah, people in Gaza are being forgotten including the hostages.

KAYYEM: Yes.

KINKADE: Juliette Kayyem --

KAYYEM: And I -- thank you.

KINKADE: Go ahead, finish that thought.

KAYYEM: No. And then, you know, the Lebanese or what's happening in Lebanon is being only described as a limited ground excursion, but we're now on day two with an increase of troops. So the idea that that's something that is promised by the Israelis, that it's actually limited we will see, but we're seeing the impact in Lebanon and on Lebanese civilians as well.

KINKADE: Exactly. Juliette Kayyem, appreciate you. Thanks so much.

KAYYEM: Thank you.

KINKADE: Well, the judge in Donald Trump's 2020 election subversion case has unsealed a court filing detailing the government's evidence. It's offering the fullest picture yet of the prosecution's case against the former president. The 165-page document from the office of Special Counsel Jack Smith was previously filed under seal and was only made public with some information redacted.

Among the details included in the motion that Trump was told many times by many people that his claims were false. He even acknowledged that one of his favorite conspiracies was crazy. He was told that the conspiracies were, quote, "effing nuts." He plotted to declare victory even if he hadn't won.

He and his allies look to spread conspiracies to create chaos. One even saying, quote, "Make them riot." When Trump was told Mike Pence was in danger at the Capitol Trump responded, so what? And testimony and phone evidence shows Trump refused to take action during the insurrection,

CNN's Paula Reid has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

PAULA REID, CNN CHIEF LEGAL AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT: This filing is the first time the public is getting to see Special Counsel Jack Smith's full argument for why he believes former president Trump was acting in in his private capacity when he allegedly tried to undermine the 2020 election.

Now, this is important because the Supreme Court ruled in July that Trump cannot be prosecuted for things he did in his official capacity or for official acts. So prosecutors in this filing emphasizing things that Trump did as an office seeker, not an office holder, saying, quote, "At its core, the defendant's scheme was a private one. He extensively used private actors and his campaign infrastructure to attempt to overturn the election results and operated in a private capacity as a candidate for office."

This new filing also includes some never-before-seen evidence including conversations he had with then vice president Mike Pence and his White House chief of staff, Mark Meadows. It's unclear, though, if the prosecutors will be successful in using that because the Supreme Court also said you can't use anything you do in your official capacity as evidence. And those are of course two of the president's top advisers.

Now this is all coming out because the judge overseeing this case, Judge Tanya Chutkan, is allowing this to be released. The special counsel submitted nearly 200 pages detailing his argument, but it was up to the judge to allow this to be released. Lawyers for former president Trump had the objective to the release of this evidence, especially so close to the election. And after it was disclosed today, they started shifting to political arguments. Trump arguing that this was, quote, "a political hit job." And then the campaign framing it as an effort to interfere with the election.

Now they write in a statement, quote, "The release of the falsehood ridden unconstitutional January 6th brief immediately falling Tim Walz's disastrous debate performance is another obvious attempt by the Harris-Biden regime to undermine American democracy and interfere in this election."

[00:15:05]

Now this is similar to the arguments we've heard across all of Trump's four criminal cases. They have repeatedly argued that he is somehow the target of some effort to interfere with the November election. But it is important to note that it was up to the federal judge to release this, not the special counsel.

Paula Reid, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KINKADE: Well, still to come, new video showing the incredible damage caused by Hurricane Helene. We'll have the latest on recovery efforts there after the second worst hurricane in 50 years. Plus the U.S. port strike leads to panic buying binge on toilet paper. But why it's totally unnecessary, we'll explain next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KINKADE: Heavy waves crashing there against the coastline as Taiwan braces for a typhoon which is expected to make landfall in the coming hours. The storm has been approaching the island at a snail's pace, dumping heavy rain on southern Taiwan for days. Some areas have already received one meter of rainfall with half a meter more expected as the storm moves inland.

U.S. President Joe Biden has visited both North and South Carolina. Those states facing a monumental recovery after being slammed by Hurricane Helene. The neighboring states have governors from different political parties but as the president noted in a moment like this, we put politics aside. There are no Democrats or Republicans, only Americans.

President Biden took an aerial tour of the devastation. North and South Carolina are two states hit hardest by Helene and the president assured leaders there that the federal government has their back and that the support will continue.

CNN's Isabel Rosales and her team gained access to some of the hardest hit parts of North Carolina. Following a FEMA team, they were able to see damage previously unseen since Helene passed through. Here's a look at their exclusive report.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ISABEL ROSALES, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): Rare and exclusive access. CNN guided up the Blue Ridge Mountains by one of FEMA's 24 deployed urban search and rescue teams. We're deep in hard-hit Avery County, North Carolina.

It just collapsed on the sidewalk.

(Voice-over): Portions of Beech Mountain, a remote ski resort town, left unrecognizable by Helene's wrath.

Signs of the road just like washed off.

(Voice-over): These winding mountain roads made further difficult to navigate by obstacles.

We are entering an area that's closed off to regular people. Only first responders are allowed. And it is because it's so treacherous. We're seeing it for ourselves like thick mud all over the place, trees that are down, portions of the road has crumbled down. So I'm really concentrating here. This is difficult to drive.

[00:20:02]

(Voice-over): And even when debris and fallen trees are cleared by chainsaw and manpower to make way for rescuers, another major barrier.

A FEMA supervisor who's been on his cell phone trying to get in touch with his team to figure out where they're at.

(Voice-over): Division Group Supervisor Colin Burress pulls us over.

Can't get a signal? We're seeing for ourselves everything that the governor has been talking about.

COLIN BURRESS, FEMA DIVISION GROUP SUPERVISOR: Right.

ROSALES: Officials have been talking about. How big of a challenge communication is, not just for civilians, but you guys trying to do these rescue operations?

BURRESS: It is. You know, when you don't have cell service, e-mail, text, all of that becomes a challenge and it kind of slows things down.

ROSALES (voice-over): Then by pure luck, a few of his men spot us.

They found him just out of the blue so this is great. We're being reunited and here's a command post right here. (Voice-over): This 80-member FEMA team assisting the North Carolina

National Guard now on day six of rescuing survivors stranded and cut off from help.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: So he's just trying to find live people and of course they're trying to find human remains.

ROSALES: They huddle over maps.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Beech Mountain and Seven Devils is kind of a priority.

ROSALES: Working out the next day's urgent search.

How does this work? You guys are doing grids? I see this black line right here.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, it's just easier for us to keep up. So we'll send squads. We'll say, you know, get to grid one or grid two, grid three, grid four.

ROSALES (voice-over): Before sunset, we roll out.

We came up about three miles, but honestly, it feels like 10.

(Voice-over): Back down the mountain, a second look at what Helene laid to waste. Before we can make it down, another danger getting through these torn and treacherous roads.

JASON STUART, TASK FORCE LEADER, TENNESSEE TASK FORCE 1: This is a special case. Typically, the roads washed out in a mountain atmosphere like this, you know, hurricanes usually happen, you know, towards the coast. But this is definitely more challenges for us that we haven't faced before.

ROSALES: Regardless, first responders across the state push on. More than 400 people rescued so far, says the governor's office, but the work nowhere near done until all the missing are found.

Isabel Rosales, Avery County, North Carolina, CNN.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KINKADE: And we have some more incredible video coming into CNN showing the extent of the damage in North Carolina.

Chris Favor filmed this video from his third-story apartment in Asheville, North Carolina. As you can see there, he saw trees, shipping containers, complete buildings wash by, including what appears to be the exterior wall of a building.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Holy. It just ripped it in half.

(END VIDEO CLIP) KINKADE: That debris was part of a local tea business which lost everything to Helene. The owner told CNN she felt moving everything at least three feet off the ground would be enough to avoid floodwaters. She had no idea that her entire building would be swept away.

Well, before he toured the hurricane damage, President Biden addressed the ongoing port strike, urging workers and shipping executives to come to an agreement soon.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BIDEN: These natural disaster are incredibly consequential. The last thing we need on top of that is a manmade disaster, what's going on at ports. We're getting pushback already. And we're hearing from the folks regionally after having trouble getting product they need of the port strike.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KINKADE: The dock workers are striking at ports right along the East and Gulf Coast. And it began on Tuesday. They are demanding higher wages and assurances that they won't be replaced by robots, such as driverless trucks that move goods from ships. A research firm estimates a one-week strike would cost the economy billions of dollars. One impact already being felt that stores are running out of things like toilet paper even though there's no need to panic.

People are buying it in bulk fearing potential shortage. But the strike will have no impact on toilet paper because the vast majority of it is made in the U.S. The rest coming from Canada or Mexico by train or truck.

Well, Ryan Patel is a senior fellow at the Drucker School of Management at Claremont Graduate University. He joins us now from Los Angeles.

Thanks for your time today.

RYAN PATEL, SENIOR FELLOW, DRUCKER SCHOOL OF MANAGEMENT, CLAREMONT GRADUATE UNIVERSITY: Good to be on with you.

KINKADE: So this is a strike that has shuttered every major container port on the Atlantic and Gulf Coasts from Maine to Texas and we've already seen some people take to social media to show us empty shelves, toilet paper shortages. It's quite reminiscent of that hoarding that we saw through the pandemic, right?

PATEL: Absolutely. I think the number is 90 percent of the toilet paper here made in the U.S. So that's probably not the thing that you want to do, but I think social media is something that's interesting, but I mean the hoarding aspect is, you know, right now is things like perishable items, like bananas and those kind of things.

[00:25:04]

But you can't hoard because they go bad. Those are the things in the long term is what would be the short-term memory vacation. It's not toilet paper. But this is interesting when we have this and this is a totally different situation. Obviously it's not all the ports is supporting the East Coast and mainly why this is occurring on the strike, Lynda, is, you know, last year on the west coast, they had an increase agreement for that union which is separate. And now we're at this stage where they're looking for the similar increases.

KINKADE: Right. Yes. 45,000 people currently striking this time. And of course speaking of the panic buying, I just want to play some video we got from social media. It's shot here in Atlanta. Take a look.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Look at the water. This (INAUDIBLE). They just put this out loud. We're out of the water. Out, gone. The paper towel is gone. A couple of rolls of tissue left, but that's it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KINKADE: I mean, that's at a Sam's Club where people generally like to buy in bulk anyhow, but they're out of water, they're out of toilet paper. And it kind of makes me want to go out and stock up and that's part of the problem, right? It's this mob psychology. The more people are worried about shortages, the bigger an issue it becomes, right?

PATEL: Please don't go and go get -- it's going to be work, but let me tell you something why I think why this is different from the pandemic. The U.S. consumer and obviously companies they have backup supply during the pandemic, not just the ones that you were seeing, but the ones that are actually being affected. The reliance on just- in-time shipping that was a handful of years ago is no longer the case. So we have a little bit more a buffer. Obviously me saying this is not going to affect people to go by those things, so we're not in that stage where you have to go do that.

So that's why I'm kind of shaking my head because I think the supply chain has come a long way. They've gone through a lot of resilience. And these are the things that this kind of panic makes it worse unfortunately and for those prices, right, because now you're running out, supply and demand, it's going to be more expensive. It's a manmade cause, not a supply chain cause.

KINKADE: Yes, exactly. And that's what the U.S. president said today. He was obviously meeting with people in hurricane affected areas, talking about the, you know, natural disaster there. But then of course speaking with these port workers, he said this could create another man-made disaster. Just explain for us what's at stake. You mentioned some of the products that will be affected, but what's sort of price hikes could we see?

PATEL: Yes. I mean, I think in the short term and again, there's a good thing that come out of it. You're not going to see the price hike right away, right? Because there is this, you know, a little bit buffer time to be in. The longer the time the strike goes, the worse it's going to get, you know, some numbers that coming out from a couple of different sources. $4.3 billion was lost in imports and exports. That's about one percentage point for Gross Domestic Product.

So that means it doesn't seem like it's that much, but it is a big deal on certain items that when you think of energy, agricultural, those kind of make an impact and then general rule of thumb that kind of most people think for every strike day, it probably takes nearly a week to get ports operating at the normal levels. So what that all means short term, you're OK, long-term, this goes on that is going to cause an impact.

You know, again, not to make it go down the path of despair, but the longer it goes, they're going to affect our economy. The inflation, all of this is bad, which is what we've just, the GDP of the U.S. just kind of came back and have steadied. This is not what is needed for the economy at this point, but this is a part of the negotiations of the port workers who are trying to get paid more and, you know, this conversation which about technologies and interesting conversation, too.

KINKADE: Yes. Exactly. Hopefully they can come to an agreement sooner rather than later.

Ryan Patel, good to have you with us. Thank you.

PATEL: Thank you.

KINKADE: Well, Israel struck central Beirut for the first time in nearly two decades as the Israel-Hezbollah war ramps up. There are growing fears of a wider war in the region. We'll have the latest on the fighting there next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[00:30:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KINKADE: You're looking at live pictures there out of Beirut, where thick black smoke is rising from the city's center.

For the first time in 18 years, Israel has targeted the Lebanese capital with airstrikes. The country's Health Ministry says at least six people were killed, several others wounded.

It landed in an area where many refugees from bombings elsewhere have fled, hoping to find safety. One resident says the strike hit the Hezbollah-affiliated Islamic Health Authority office building.

Well, eight Israeli troops have died since the war with Hezbollah began. CNN's Nic Robertson brings us the latest from Israel's newest front line.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR (voice-over): Israel's long slog into Lebanon, turning deadly for the IDF on its second day. The limited localized targeted raids, as the IDF characterizes them,

triggering fierce resistance.

Helicopters inside Israel picking up the casualties. A nearby trauma hospital, declaring a mass casualty event. The IDF confirming eight dead, and several others injured in attacks Hezbollah claims took place in three villages.

Hours earlier, overlooking the area of at least one of the attacks --

ORA HATTON (PH), ISRAELI BORDER RESIDENT: (SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE)

ROBERTSON (voice-over): Israeli border resident Ora Hatton already worrying about the troops.

HATTON: I think it's very dangerous for the army to go to Lebanon, because there are many, many traps waiting for them.

ROBERTSON (voice-over): She refused to evacuate last year, was busy preparing the troop's holiday dinner for Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish new year. And hopeful their raids would bring her respite from Hezbollah attacks.

HATTON: I feel more safe. I feel more protected because of the army inside.

ROBERTSON (voice-over): The whole country, however, entering a new era of uncertainty, following Iran's ballistic missile attack Tuesday.

The United States and other allies blunting the impact, intercepting the majority of the fast, long-range, high-explosive ballistic missiles.

BENJAMIN NETANYAHU, ISRAELI PRIME MINISTER (through translator): Iran made a big mistake tonight, and it will pay for it. We will stand by the rule established. Whoever attacks us, we will attack them.

ROBERTSON (voice-over): Israeli officials say all the bases targeted are fully operational, including their long-range combat mission airfield.

The scale of Israel's response likely determining to pace of escalation.

Israel's combat operations on other fronts continuing uninterrupted. Palestinian health officials claiming Israeli strikes killed more than 90 Palestinians in Gaza Wednesday, as a new operation against Hamas opened up in Khan Younis.

In Syria, smoke rising after a strike near Damascus, unclaimed by Israel but blamed on them by Syrian state media. Airstrikes continuing deeper into Lebanon, too. Targets in Beirut and beyond.

[00:35:08]

Civilians in parts of the capital warned by the IDF to evacuate their homes as the country's death toll passes 1,300 and a million people displaced.

Nic Robertson, CNN, Tel Aviv.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KINKADE: Well, Ukraine is confirming the Eastern town of Vuhledar is now in Russian hands.

This social media video shows Russian troops waving their flag over the ruins of the city hall. The Ukrainian military said on Wednesday its troops have pulled out to avoid being encircled.

Vuhledar is a coal mining town with a pre-war population of 14,000 people, which stood up to brutal Russian attacks for more than two years.

Clare Sebastian explains why the town is so important for Russians.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CLARE SEBASTIAN, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, the loss of Vuhledar is a pretty stinging blow for Ukraine, partly because of its strategic location at the intersection of the Eastern and Southern fronts, partly because Ukraine had spent two years fortifying and defending the hilltop town and holding off several previous Russian attempts to take it.

SEBASTIAN (voice-over): But also, because these images of a Russian flag being raised over the ruins of yet another town draw attention to a reality that Ukraine's presidents had tried, in recent days and weeks, to gloss over.

Just a week ago, President Zelenskyy said on American TV, Ukraine is closer to peace than we think, appealing to his allies for more aid by trying to prove that what has been sent so far is working.

This undermines that strategy, and it will also raise questions in Ukraine about the merits of the Kursk incursion, an operation designed in part to ease the pressure on other parts of the front line, including this one.

Now, this is not a huge strategic breakthrough for Russia. Nor does it show the collapse of Ukraine's defenses overall.

SEBASTIAN: Moscow still, of course, hasn't taken Pokrovsk, a much larger logistics and transport hub to the North of Vuhledar. But it will reinforce to Russia that its strategy of attrition, of trying to exhaust Ukraine and outlast its allies, has potential.

And that makes President Zelenskyy's plan, forcing Russia into peace, look more remote.

Clare Sebastian, CNN, London.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KINKADE: Well, still ahead, it's not looking good for two companies owned by Elon Musk. Warning signs for Tesla and X after a quick break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KINKADE: Well, it's been a rough year for Elon Musk and two of his companies. Tesla reported an increase in sales for the first time this year, though it's still lagging behind in overall sales compared to last year.

The automaker delivered more than 460,000 vehicles worldwide in the third quarter, up from 4 percent from Q2.

But deliveries are down 2 percent year-to-date as the company faces increased competition.

And nearly two years to the day since he bought Twitter and turned it into X, the social media platform has plunged in value, losing nearly 80 percent of its worth, according to investment firm Fidelity.

CNN's Clare Duffy has more from New York.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CLARE DUFFY, CNN BUSINESS WRITER: Yes, not a good year for the value of these two Musk companies.

Let's start with X. Investment giant Fidelity publishes regular updates on what it believes its shares in X are worth. When Musk first acquired what was then Twitter in the fall of 2022, Fidelity estimated its shares were worth $19.6 million.

Today, it says those same shares are worth just $4.2 million. What that means is that Fidelity believes the value of X has fallen by around 80 percent since Musk's takeover.

Musk paid $44 billion for the company. Fidelity believes it's now worth just $9.4 billion less than two years later.

Now, that's just one estimate, but it is a stark reminder of how much Musk's changes to the company have hurt its value. By allowing more controversial content, hate speech, conspiracy theories, and Musk promoting some of these conspiracy theories himself, the platform has turned off advertisers. And Musk's own taunting of advertisers hasn't helped either.

Now, on Tesla, the company actually reported its first quarterly sales increased this year this morning. Its sales were up 6 percent from the same quarter a year ago.

But year-to-date sales figures are still down year over year, because the prior quarters so rough.

Tesla is facing steeper competition from other traditional automakers, who have gotten into the E.V. business, and Chinese automakers.

And Tesla shares fell another 3 percent today, despite the sales jump reported this morning, which seems to be an indication that investors think the hard times are not yet over.

Clare Duffy, CNN, New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KINKADE: Well, a painting discovered decades ago by an Italian junk dealer is likely the work of Picasso, and experts say it's probably worth more than $6.6 million.

The painting was discovered in 1962 on the Italian island of Capri in the basement of a villa. It's signed by Pablo Picasso but the junk dealer who found it didn't realize for years that it might be valuable.

It hung in the family's home for 50 years. But since they realized it might have some value back in the 1980s, a decades-long journey started to authenticate the signature on the artwork.

Hopefully, they can do that soon.

I'm Lynda Kinkade. I'll be back at the top of the hour with much more CNN NEWSROOM. Stick around. WORLD SPORT starts in just a moment.

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