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Nearly Two Weeks to the Elections, Presidential Candidates Tackled Swing States; U.S. Defense Secretary Arrived in Ukraine in an Unannounced Visit; Flooding in Northern Italy Resulted in Overflowing of Some Rivers and Killed One Person; Cuba Struggles with Oscar as Residents Experienced Power Outages, Food Spoilage, and Lack of Water; Several Medical Aid Groups Banned from Entering Gaza. Aired 3-4a ET

Aired October 21, 2024 - 03:00   ET

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

[03:00:00]

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ROSEMARY CHURCH, CNN ANCHOR: Hello and welcome to our viewers joining us here in the United States and all around the world. I'm Rosemary Church.

Coming up, with just 15 days to go to election day, Kamala Harris and Donald Trump hit the campaign trail hoping to find an edge in a race that's currently anyone's game.

US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin arrives in Kyiv, the unannounced visit coming at the height of a US election campaign and the escalating war in Ukraine.

And Israel launches a wave of airstrikes across Lebanon targeting Hezbollah-affiliated financial institutions.

UNKNOWN (voice-over): Live from Atlanta, this is "CNN Newsroom" with Rosemary Church.

CHURCH: 15 days to go in the U.S. presidential race and the candidates remain separated by only the thinnest of margins. Analysts say the entire election will likely come down to just a few key battleground states. And that's where Kamala Harris and Donald Trump will be focusing their efforts going forward trading barbs and sometimes personal attacks as they work to establish an advantage.

Harris reached out to black voters with a visit to a church in Georgia. She urged supporters to cast their ballots as soon as possible and asked the crowd to think about the future they want as they go to the polls.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

VICE PRESIDENT KAMALA HARRIS (D), U.S. PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Right now each of us has an opportunity to make a difference. In this moment our country is at a crossroads and where we go from here is up to us, as Americans and as people of faith. And now we ask a question, we face this question, what kind of country do we want to live in? A country of chaos, fear and hate, or a country of freedom, compassion and justice?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: Harris sat down Sunday for a conversation with MSNBC where she explained why she feels Donald Trump is simply not fit to lead the country.

Eva McKend has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

EVA MCKEND, CNN U.S. NATIONAL POLITICS CORRESPONDENT: In an interview with Al Sharpton, the Vice President, arguing when the former president demeans her, he is denigrating the office of the presidency and that he lacks a basic standard to return to the White House. And we have seen the Vice President employ this argument with increasing frequency over the last several days.

It seems targeted to a very specific type of voter, a voter that perhaps doesn't agree with her on every policy matter, but is in alignment with this broader argument that the former president is unfit for the White House. Take a listen.

HARRIS: You know, we, representing the United States of America, walk into rooms around the world with the earned and self-appointed authority to talk about the importance of democracy, rule of law, and have been thought of as a role model, imperfect though we may be, but a role model of what it means to be committed to certain standards including international rules and norms, but also standards of decorum and what you see in my opponent, a former president of the United States really is, it demeans the office.

MCKEND: A big component of this Georgia swing over the last two days was for the vice president to reach black voters in this critical battleground state. She did that through these Souls to the Polls events. They are targeted to the faith community, where essentially black voters, they organize and mobilize in church, and then immediately after church, take advantage of early voting.

And this comes at a time when Democrats have been accused of taking black voters for granted the base of the party, but the campaign is not operating in that space. They will argue that black voters are persuadable voters and that the campaign is doing all that they can to reach them in these pivotal closing weeks.

Eva McKend, CNN, Stonecrest, Georgia.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHURCH: Donald Trump spent his Sunday in the critical state of Pennsylvania. And after making headlines this weekend with a meandering story about Arnold Palmer that included a vulgar reference to the golf legend's genitals, the former president kept it more low- key this time, focusing mostly on attacking his opponent. Our Danny Freeman has more.

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DANNY FREEMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: On Sunday evening, frankly, we saw a more disciplined former president Donald Trump on the campaign trail here in Pennsylvania. There were far fewer tangents. The event was even shorter than normal.

And it certainly seemed like the former ESPN host who moderated the event, plus the campaign-selected voters who asked the candidate questions, really were able to keep former President Donald Trump more on track throughout the evening. He emphasized his proposals on the economy, including no taxes on tips and overtime, talked about supporting fracking. And, of course, he mostly railed against the Biden administration when it comes to immigration.

Now there were of course several exaggerations when it came to the subjects of the economy, immigration, immigration and crime and there were some of his normal asides. He spoke about bragging about his poll numbers. He also aired some of his grievances against ABC News for the last presidential debate, but there was nothing particularly vulgar or odd like we saw at Saturday evening's rally in western Pennsylvania. For example, that odd Arnold Palmer story.

Trump did however continue to boost his new campaign surrogate Elon Musk the billionaire who has been stumping for him in Pennsylvania over the course of the weekend in fact even including offering a raffle of a million dollars to supporters who signed a petition to get into some of the events which some legal experts tell CNN it might be illegal but take a listen to what the former president said this evening about both Harris and Elon Musk.

DONALD TRUMP (R), U.S. PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: This woman is so incompetent she's so bad. You cannot, and I would normally not like to speak like that. If they get chosen, our country's finished. You know, Elon Musk is a very smart guy. You got to see his endorsement. He said, if this election isn't won by Donald Trump, our country is essentially finished.

FREEMAN: And earlier on Sunday, former President Trump stopped by a McDonald's in all important Bucks County in the suburbs of Philadelphia. He was seen doing a photo op, making fries in the fryer, and also serving some patrons from the drive-thru.

Danny Freeman, CNN, Lancaster, Pennsylvania.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHURCH: Michael Genovese is a political analyst and president of the Global Policy Institute at Loyola Marymount University. He's also the author of "The Modern Presidency, Six Debates That Define the Institution." And he joins me now from Los Angeles. Always good to have you with us.

MICHAEL GENOVESE, POLITICAL ANALYST AND PRESIDENT, LOYOLA MARYMOUNT UNIVERSITY-GLOBAL POLICY INSTITUTE: Thank you, Rosemary.

CHURCH: So just 15 days to election day in America, and Donald Trump was campaigning in the battleground state of Pennsylvania on Saturday. His closing message, veering into profanity, talking about Arnold Palmer's genitals. Is this the closing message that Republicans want to hear from their presidential nominee with just two weeks to go? What's going on here?

GENOVESE: For the last couple of weeks Donald Trump has become more and more unhinged, more and more showing his age, and as you prefer to his present speech today. He's also shown his insecurities. He's always been obsessed with size. We remember his post-inaugural claim that his inauguration's crowd was bigger than anyone else's biggest ever bigger than Obama's and we saw the pictures and saw that certainly Trump's was smaller.

But his comments about Arnold Palmer's private areas are both disturbing, but also revealing. It reveals a lot about Donald Trump. And also I think gives us a glimpse as to why he is always going on the attack on the view that the best defense is a good offense. So before someone can attack him or make fun of him or laugh at him, he goes on the attack and takes the aggressive stance.

The problem is our adversaries also know how insecure Trump is about size, and they know that they can play him. They know that they can get under his skin. They can rattle him. And so this is not just a funny or an off-color personal quirk. This is something that has broader implications.

CHURCH: And Kamala Harris is focusing on the dangers posed by Trump. Her main message now is that he's not fit for office. But is that resonating with men? She's not doing as well with white male voters as she is with female voters, while black and Hispanic men are showing some interest in voting for Trump. So how can she overcome that gender gap and convince men that she will champion their cause better than Trump will?

GENOVESE: It's a challenge that she probably can't meet, because we've seen for the last 12, 15, 18 years, white males especially, are really in a kind of questioning mode. They feel challenged. They feel threatened by the rise of women in the workplace, in politics and minorities feel also are fielding challenges to white male status.

And so white males who have always been in charge of things now find that their status is being challenged. And that has really been something the Republicans and Trump especially really been able to take advantage of.

[03:10:00]

Trump's done a great job. You remember his conventions where they had a bunch of wrestlers trying to talk about, you know, manhood and manliness. And so Trump is basically putting almost all of his shoes in one basket. Harris can't dent into that very much because there's that white male status anxiety that is so powerful, especially among the less educated in America. CHURCH: And with most polls showing the two presidential candidates in

a dead heat, what needs to happen in the next 15 days to sway voters either way in all the critical battleground states and where do you see this going?

GENOVESE: Well, you know, the path to the White House runs through the Midwest of America. Three states especially, Pennsylvania, Michigan, Wisconsin. For Harris to win, she pretty much has to run the table to winning all three of those. He has to sweep them.

Trump has a few other options. He's got a broader range of things that he can do and paths to the White House. But those three states are going to be the key. In 2016, Trump won all three and won the White House. In 2020, he lost all three and lost the White House.

Right now, the polling in those three states are unbelievably close. Shockingly, all three of those states, the polls averaging out to less than 1 percent difference between the three candidates. And so this race in those three key states are closer than teeth. And that means that the key to winning will be turnout. Whoever can get the best turnout is going to win this race.

CHURCH: Michael Genovese, thank you so much for joining us. We appreciate it.

GENOVESE: Thank you, Rosemary.

CHURCH: U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin arrived in Kyiv just a short time ago for an unannounced visit to the Ukrainian capital. This follows a meeting in Brussels last week with his counterparts in NATO. High on the agenda, questions from allies about the upcoming election and how it might impact Ukraine aid, specifically concerns that a potential Trump victory could jeopardize future USAID to Ukraine.

Sources familiar with the meeting tell us Austin said that while he can't predict the future, there's still bipartisan support for Ukraine in Congress. NATO officials say they're preparing for the U.S. to take on a lesser role.

And CNN's Natasha Bertrand is traveling with Secretary Austin and joined us now by phone. Good to talk with you Natasha, so what is the significance of this visit?

NATASHA BERTRAND, CNN U.S. NATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT (on the phone): Well, this is the last time that Secretary of Defense Austin is going to be visiting Kyiv before the U.S. election, of course, which is just in 15 days now.

And so this is an opportunity for him to meet with President Zelenskyy, to meet with Defense Minister Umarov, and get a sense for how Ukraine is grappling with its very serious manpower shortages, as well as get a sense for what they need at this moment to better meet their war aims. Because Ukraine, you know, right now is kind of on the back foot on the battlefield.

Russia continues to make small but steady gains on the battlefield and they are recruiting up to 30,000 troops per month, whereas Ukraine is really struggling to ramp up its, you know, enlistment of additional troops. And so these are all things that the Secretary is going to be thinking about while he is here today.

But it's also a chance for him to reaffirm the United States' support for Ukraine, particularly, you know there's a lot of anxiety here about what the presidential election is going to bring it particularly in the next year.

And President Zelenskyy has said that he would like this war to end by the end of 2025, but the future of U.S. aid which has been so critical to allow Ukraine to send off the Russians over the last two- plus years, that really hangs in the balance.

You know, President Trump had said repeatedly that he believes that President Zelenskyy is a, quote, "salesman", that he should have never let the war start, which of course we know the Russians are the ones that invaded.

And so all of this really paints a picture of doubt and anxiety heading into the next year about whether the U.S., which has been the biggest backer of Ukraine, is going to continue to play that outsized role. It really is a very uncertain moment here at this point.

CHURCH: Natasha Bertrand, joining us on the line there from Kyiv.

And CNN's Clare Sebastian joins me now live from London. So Clare, what does this visit mean for Ukraine and what are you learning about conditions on the ground there both along the front line and Ukraine's energy infrastructure as winter approaches?

[03:14:59]

CLARE SEBASTIAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yeah, Rosemary, we see a lot of foreign officials arrive on that train platform in Kyiv, but I think, as Natasha said, this visit carries a lot of importance, not only because of the timing for the U.S. electoral calendar, but also for Ukraine.

This is a very precarious moment in the war. Russia is inching forward, not just on the eastern front, but it's pushing up in the northeast, in the sort of Kharkiv region. It recently claimed to have captured a settlement down in Zaporizhzhya. Aerial attacks are up exponentially over the past few months.

Case in point, according to our analysis of Ukrainian Air Force data, Russia fired more than three times more drones in September than it did in May, and all of this of course heading into winter where the International Energy Agency says that Ukraine is operating with less than a third of its pre-war electricity generating capacity, partly thanks to attacks this year.

So this is the situation in which it finds itself. There's also evidence emerging that Russia may be getting ready to bring North Korean soldiers into the fight. We have videos, one of which was sent to CNN by the Ukrainian government, showing what purports to be North Korean soldiers. You see it there at a training ground near Russia's border with China.

So Ukraine may now have to fight a second, or elements of a second national army on its soil. And of course, we don't have evidence yet that they are actually on the battlefield. So it is a very precarious moment. U.S. remains the biggest backer by far.

And it certainly, when it comes to crossing the next weapons Rubicon that Ukraine is looking at, that issue of lifting restrictions and using Western long-range missiles inside Russia.

President Zelenskyy hinted last week that the three countries that provide them, the U.S., the U.K., and France, they want unanimity. And the U.S. at this point may be the holdout.

Secretary Austin saying on Friday that he believes Ukraine is doing perfectly well with its own drones when it comes to hitting these targets deep inside Russia. So all of this will be extremely closely watched during this visit. Now just over two weeks out from the U.S. election.

CHURCH: All right. Our thanks to Claire Sebastian joining us from London with that live report.

And still to come, we are following the latest developments in the Middle East as first responders search for survivors in Lebanon after new Israeli strikes overnight.

Plus, extreme overnight rainfall and severe flooding bring death and destruction on two continents. We'll have details when we return.

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CHURCH: Lebanese state media reports a new round of Israeli airstrikes overnight have caused casualties and damage. Right now, efforts are underway to rescue people trapped under the rubble. This video, geolocated by CNN, captures the moment a strike hit a building near Beirut's International Airport Sunday, sending it crumbling to the ground.

You can see the airport in the background of another video with plumes of smoke rising from a building in front. The Israeli military says it's targeting financial institutions linked to Hezbollah.

The Lebanese Health Ministry says more than 1,800 people have been killed since Israel ramped up attacks on the Iran-backed militant group last month. But the IDF is vowing to continue defending the Israeli people, saying Hezbollah fired about 200 projectiles into Israel on Sunday.

CNN's Salma Abdelaziz joins me now live from London. Good morning to you Salma. So what is the latest on this new wave of Israeli airstrikes in Lebanon? SALMA ABDELAZIZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, so more airstrikes overnight

in Lebanon. I have to begin by saying, Rosemary, that these have just occurred so rescue workers are still trying to assess the damage and find survivors but what we do know is that Baalbek, this area in eastern Lebanon, was struck. Multiple buildings hit. Rescue workers are trying to find survivors under the rubble.

Tyre, as well, in southern Lebanon, that was an area that was struck as well. Israel says that it issued what it calls evacuation orders for these areas. And it's part of this wider push that we saw over the weekend. Rosemary, Israel says that it is targeting Hezbollah's financial institutions, particularly those that are based in southern Beirut and in southern Lebanon in its crosshairs is the Al-Qadr Al- Hasan Association.

Now, Israel says that this financial institution is responsible for purchasing weapons for Hezbollah, for paying its fighters, for evading sanctions but it also serves another system. This is a banking institution for some 300,000 potential customers in Lebanon. It provides loans to the poor in the Shia community. It pays salaries.

So the goal, Israel says, is not just to destroy the very structure, the concrete structure of these financial institutions, but also to evade the trust between Hezbollah and the Shia community in Lebanon.

Now, Israel is not backing down. In fact, it is doubling down. The country's defense minister, Yoav Gallant, was on the border with Lebanon just the other day speaking to Israeli troops, saying in his words that the goal is to, quote, "clear that area of southern Lebanon to allow Israelis to return to northern Israel, these areas that have become ghost towns." But the fire continues to come into northern Israel as well.

There were some 160 rockets fired over the weekend into northern Israel, but Israel continues to say its goals are being met, including, again, going back to Yoav Gallant saying that Hezbollah was not just being defeated but destroyed.

Israel also claimed that it killed some 65 Hezbollah fighters in a single day over the weekend but the cost, the consequence of this, Rosemary, is absolutely dire. The death toll in Lebanon now exceeds more than 1,800 people and more than 9,000 wounded.

CHURCH: All right, our thanks to Salma Abdelaziz, bringing us that report from London.

[03:25:04]

Well, Cuba's blackout continues with millions in the dark and Tropical Storm Oscar hampering efforts to restore power. We'll have details after the break.

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CHURCH: At least one person is dead in northeast Italy after heavy rain caused extensive overnight flooding across the region. Meanwhile, in Roswell, New Mexico, at least two people are dead and nearly 300 have been rescued. After extreme overnight rainfall sparked severe flooding late Saturday. CNN meteorologist Derek Van Dam has the latest.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DEREK VAN DAM, CNN METEOROLOGIST: We're monitoring flooding on two different continents. We're going to start in North America where the wettest day ever in Roswell, New Mexico's history unfolded on Saturday and into early Sunday morning. Look at the video of the flooding that occurred. That is a submerged truck. And there were several instances where there were swift water rescues and water entering buildings and homes.

A significant situation unfolding as a flash flood emergency was in place for this area. Look at how much rain fell. This is again, incredible 5.78 inches, roughly 150 millimeters from the storm that moved through their average October rainfall only a little over an inch and a quarter.

So again, this is the wettest day that Roswell, New Mexico has ever recorded and the wet weather continues. Even though the storm system that is responsible for the flooding that occurred Saturday into early Sunday morning hours, still could produce a bit more rainfall over Eastern New Mexico, it will quickly move on by Monday afternoon and bring rainfall to the central parts of the country.

[03:30:00]

Now we are focusing our attention on southern Italy where they are also contending with flooding the Salto river in Sicily actually overflowed its banks, and this is the result of look at the flooding across this agricultural area significant impacts to the region it's all thanks to a low pressure system that's turning across the central Mediterranean.

There is the potential here for more rain. Some of the totals here have exceeded 125 millimeters, especially across the central portions of the country. But Sicily, impressive rainfall totals as well with more rain to come and the potential for more flooding as well.

In fact, chances of flooding through about Tuesday with orange and red alerts in place for the area as we get this onshore flow from the Mediterranean allowing for precipitation to build up across the region. So covering flooding from North America to Europe on this latest weather report. Back to you.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ROSEMARY CHURCH, CNN ANCHOR: Thanks for that. And CNN's Barbie Nadeau joins me now from Rome. So Barbie, what is the latest on the flooding in Italy and of course, its impact on the region?

BARBIE LATZA NADEAU, CNN REPORTER: Yeah, you know, I mean, the concentration this morning is really on central Italy in Emilia- Romagna and especially the city of Bologna. Now, this is a city that's filled with lots of canals, and those canals have overflowed, which has caused some dramatic flooding in the region.

You know, we've seen some rescues, a three-year-old little girl with her family rescued by helicopter late on Sunday night, and we've had one death reported, a 20-year-old young man who was trapped in his car. There are lots of rescues going on. As we speak this morning, lots of checks being done, especially in the rural areas, and they're under flood watch until at least through Tuesday.

It's important to remember, of course, that this is an area that suffered incredible flooding just a year ago. 17 people died and, you know, the infrastructure still hasn't come back online in many of those, especially rural areas. And so they're really concerned about the continuing rain here, Rosemary.

CHURCH: And Barbie, how prepared is Italy for flooding like this on this scale?

LATZA NADEAU: Yeah, you know, I mean, flooding is not an unnatural thing to happen, especially in the north of the country. You know, they're having more of a problem in places like Sicily. Their flooding there doesn't happen as frequently as it does in these northern regions.

Now, some of those images we saw out of Catania, where those roads had turned to rivers that really did cause some incredibly dramatic rescues. People on their mosepeds being swept away, being rescued in the streets there.

They're less prepared probably in Sicily than in northern Italy, but you know when the rain is just so incessant and the ground is so saturated, you know even the best laid plans are going to be difficult for those rescuers and first responders who now are working across the country just trying to get people to safety and try to keep them safe, Rosemary.

CHURCH: Alright, our thanks to Barbie Nadeau for bringing us that live report. I Appreciate it.

A wooden boat carrying 231 migrants, including 14 women and three children, was intercepted off Spain's Canary Islands on Sunday. It's the largest number of people to be rescued from the same boat off the island this year.

More than 30,000 migrants have taken the boat journey from West Africa to the Spanish Islands since January, marking a rise of nearly 40 percent from the same period last year.

Oscar remains a tropical storm hours after making landfall as a category one hurricane on the northern coast of eastern Cuba. The slow-moving storm has brought heavy rainfall and life-threatening flash flooding. The National Hurricane Center also warns it could cause mudslides.

It's expected to continue moving across eastern Cuba through Monday, eventually turning to the northwest. It's then expected to make another turn to the northeast on Tuesday when it's forecast to move near the southeastern and central Bahamas.

And Oscar's landfall comes as Cuba continues to cope with ongoing power outages. The countrywide blackouts are causing worry about food spoilage and a lack of water, as the storm is expected to delay urgent efforts to restore power.

CNN's Patrick Oppmann reports from Havana.

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PATRICK OPPMANN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Cuba on Sunday afternoon lost power across this entire island for the fourth time in as many days. That's 10 million people that were left without light, some of whom have never had their electrical service restored. We briefly had power here in our offices for the first time since this crisis began on Friday.

And of course, it felt like a moment of celebration to have power and not rely on a generator as we have for the last several days. But it was short-lived. The power went out immediately, not just for us, but across this entire island that really speaks out aging and outdated infrastructure is in Cuba. There are power plants from the 1970s that they are trying to put back into usage according to officials here with the Ministry of Energy.

[03:35:04]

They spoke to us earlier today and said that they were confident that power would be restored soon, that 52,000 different workers from the Ministry of Energy are working around the clock to restore power, but at this point it is becoming less and less clear whether power can be restored and whether it can stay on.

This is a huge problem for Cubans, most of whom do not have generators, most of whom are now having to throw out food because it is spoiling. You do not get water here when the power is out because there are no pumps to bring that water to your house. A lot of people use gas from lines on the street to cook with.

They do not have that right now. So while people are staying stoic, increasingly people are asking for answers from some sense of when power will be restored.

All they're hearing from the government at this point is that school will remain closed throughout much of this weekend until at least Thursday. People should not go to work in most workplaces unless they are quote unquote essential employees who are needed to try and restore power here.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHURCH: Fans from across the world are paying tribute to the late singer-songwriter and former One Direction member Liam Payne. In Indonesia, hundreds of mourners held a prayer vigil in Jakarta on Sunday. And in Spain, dozens of heartbroken fans gathered in central Madrid to honor the late singer's impact and legacy. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

VAITIARE ACOSTA, LIAM PAYNE FAN (through translator): For me, Liam Payne was a member of the band that saved my life when I was a girl. They were part of my childhood and gave me the stability I didn't have at the time. This loss means a lot to me as he was like someone I knew all my life. He was a vital part of my life and his loss has broken my heart.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: Payne was just 31 years old when he died after falling from his hotel room balcony in Buenos Aires on Wednesday. Investigators in Argentina are working to reconstruct his final hours. However, the public prosecutor believes Payne was potentially experiencing some kind of episode due to substance abuse at the time.

After the break, it's a move that could worsen an already dire situation. Sources say several medical non-profits have now been banned from Gaza. We'll have details on the other side of the break.

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[03:40:00]

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CHURCH: As the humanitarian crisis deepens in Gaza and aid routes are cut off, countries are using air drops as a way of getting vital food into the enclave. The Palestinians are describing the air drops as dangerous and humiliating. One devastated family in central Gaza is speaking out after an air-dropped aid pallet killed their three-year- old child.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNKNOWN (through translator): They dropped parachutes of aid and the aid killed our children. We don't want this aid. A little boy who was running for safety in his tent, a ton fell on him and killed him. Look at this little girl. Her mother was injured. What for? I don't want aid. My son is gone.

UNKNOWN (through translator): This is what our child died for. Beans. Take your aid. We don't want it. Is this our dignity? Packs of tea? Packs of sugar?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: Sources tell CNN Israel has banned at least seven medical aid groups from entering Gaza. As for members of those organizations who are already inside the enclave, they will not be permitted re-entry once they leave. All of this comes as the U.S. demands that Israel improve the humanitarian situation within Gaza.

The Israeli agency that coordinates the inspection and delivery of humanitarian assistance into Gaza has denied the accusations, saying Israel does not limit the number of humanitarian teams that can enter Gaza subject to technical arrangements required for security reasons. It adds that significant efforts have been made to allow medical teams into the enclave.

Dr. Mossab Nasser is the CEO of FAJR Scientific, a non-profit providing medical care for Palestinians affected by the war. It's also one of the organizations that has now been banned from entering Gaza. And Dr. Nasser joins me from Houston, Texas. Appreciate you talking with us.

DR. MOSSAB NASSER, CEO, FAJR SCIENTIFIC: Thank you Rosemary, thank you for having me.

CHURCH: So you and your team have spent significant time in Gaza. So what is your reaction to news that at least seven medical non- governmental organizations, including your own, have now been banned from entering the enclave and what impact could this have on critical medical services that you and these other NGOs provide in Gaza?

NASSER: Rosemary, the decision has been really shocking, especially it comes at the time where the operation -- the Israeli operation in the north of Gaza has been really, really devastating to the over 400,000 people in the north. And that is the time more than ever before where we needed to be on the ground.

According to the WHO, which is the organization we operate under its umbrella in Gaza, it says that 29 percent, over, let's say, close to 30 percent of the health care services provided by the organizations in Gaza will be cut because of the denial of those seven organizations. So, think of it like the fact that we are not on the ground.

This could be translated into thousands of deaths over the next couple of months if this decision is not reversed immediately.

CHURCH: And that of course is shocking. I did want to ask you why you think these seven NGOs, including Iran, have been banned from entering Gaza while others are still able to do so. And at a time, as you mentioned, when Israel's renewed military offensive is ramping up in the Palestinian enclave.

NASSER: Honestly, this is a million dollars question. We still don't know the reason. Israeli authorities did not communicate with the WHO the reasons for our denial. We, you know, initially when we received the news as an organization, FAJR Scientific, we thought it could have been, it could be something related to something that maybe you've said on social media or something we have, you know, talked about.

But when we discovered that, you know, several other organizations, actually a total of eight have been banned or effectively denied entry rather than banned. It came shocking to all of us. You know, we are apolitical organizations. We're humanitarian organizations, primarily medical.

[03:45:00] FAJR Scientific specifically is specialized in complex surgeries. And it's highly needed in Gaza at this time, because 80 percent of the injuries that are brought to the hospitals in Gaza are blast injuries, and primarily women and children. This is what we have seen. And we continue consistently -- consistently see at the hospitals.

CHURCH: And as you point out, your organization is apolitical, is focused on providing this life-saving medical treatment in countries with limited access to health care, and your teams risk their lives to perform life-saving surgeries. But you also document the ongoing events in Gaza. Could that perhaps be why Israel has banned your organization, do you think?

NASSER: Again, I'd like to stress on the fact that we have not been banned, we have been denied entry. And that's why we're hoping that this is temporary, it's not permanent. And yes, we're a humanitarian organization. Part of our work is to document what we see on the ground. We don't take sides. We don't, you know.

The only thing that we report for our own research and analysis and publications, we report what we see on the ground, we document it, and we publish it. That is the minimum that we can do as humanitarian organizations on the ground without taking any sides. So we maintain our apolitical position and we maintain our neutrality, similar to the organization that we operate under its umbrella, which is the WHO.

And we have seen consistently over the past 12 months that those organizations have effectively stayed in their lane, which is the humanitarian medical lane taking care of women children those who require immediate attention due to the blast injuries that we see literally on a daily basis when we are when we are in Gaza.

I can tell you our team on the ground in the north has reported that the Indonesian Hospital, the Al Awda Hospital in the north as well as Kamal Adwan Hospital that have been bombarded multiple times or bombed multiple times in the past few days. The upper floors of the Indonesian hospital as well as Al Awda Hospital have been destroyed.

The Indonesian hospital does not have electricity. Patients are trying really hard to effectively, you know, survive in this terrible environment and many families have to pull their loved ones out, you know, in literally, in the crossfire.

And it's just, as humanitarian organizations, especially American organizations, to be denied entry, especially at this point, it really breaks our hearts. And I call upon the U.S. government specifically, since we are U.S. organizations, to help us reverse this decision as soon as possible.

CHURCH: Dr. Mossab Nasser, thank you so much for talking with us and for the work that you do. I appreciate it.

NASSER: Thank you.

CHURCH: And still to come, how conservationists are using an art installation to combat an invasive species and bring attention to the plight of elephants. Back with them in just a moment.

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[03:50:00]

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CHURCH: An Indian environmentalist is speaking out about the pollution in New Delhi's Yamuna River. She says the formation of toxic foam in the river should be declared a public health crisis as it can lead to skin and breathing disorders and possibly cancer. Less than half of New Delhi's daily sewage output of 3.6 billion liters is treated. The rest gets dumped in the river.

Conservationists in India are taking a novel approach to dealing with two environmental issues, invasive plant species and the plight of elephants. CNN's Bill Weir shows us how this intrepid group is taking an art installation to New York designed to draw attention to both issues.

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BILL WEIR, CNN CHIEF CLIMATE CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): In the south hills of India, a conservation success story stomps through the tea fields. A couple hundred elephants living in relative harmony with a quarter million humans, the densest concentration of wild pachyderms and people in the world.

RUTH GANESH, CO-FOUNDER, CO-EXISTENCE COLLECTIVE: They know all the elephants by name and personality. And I just thought that was the most incredible story. And if we could tell that story, we might be able to inspire a little bit more sort of close living with other animals as well.

WEIR (voice-over): So Ruth and her wildlife lovers decided to spread the message of coexistence in a way that turns heads. A 100 elephant migration across America, each one a life-sized replica of a beloved individual all handmade by the people who know their wild neighbors best.

TARSH THEKAEKARA, WILDLIFE RESEARCHER AND CO-FOUNDER, REAL ELEPHANT COLLECTIVE: The thing is we used to make furniture before, right? Indigenous people don't use furniture in their lives. But when we started making elephants, they're the experts.

They know the elephants better than we know it. So it's an amazing sense of pride and their kind of position in society has changed. From being at the bottom rung manual laborers, they've become these very skilled artisans making these things that are traveling around the world.

WEIR (voice-over): They hope to sell hundreds of these to raise millions for conservation efforts everywhere. And since their art supplies come from a toxic invader, there's also a powerful message in the medium.

WEIR: These are made out of an invasive tree or shrub?

GANESH: Yeah, they're made out of an invasive weed called Lantana, which is the second most invasive plant in the entire world. And it's choking about 40 percent of India's forests right now. So we're trying to create an economy and demonstrate a use for it so it can be removed at scale.

WEIR (voice-over): Lantana can also be turned into a powerful weapon against climate pollution as something called biochar, the ancient technique of reviving farm soil with charred plants, which also locks away planet warming pollution.

THEKAEKARA: There are vast areas that are taken over by Lantana. If we can convert all of that into carbon and put it back into the ground, it's hugely exciting as a way of mitigating climate change as well.

[03:55:04]

The idea is that if people are able to live with elephants... Hopefully people other places can live with other forms of life. Even in New York, can you better live with birds? Can you have more greenery around you? All of these are very relevant questions everywhere in the world.

WEIR (voice-over): The coexistence parade heads next to Miami, Dallas, Los Angeles, and maybe the world.

Bill Weir, CNN New York.

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CHURCH: King Charles and Queen Camilla are in the Australian capital, Canberra. They visited the Hall of Memory at Australia's National War Memorial and paid their respects at the Tomb of the Unknown Australian Soldier.

The British monarch was greeted in a variety of ways, first by a friendly alpaca before going on to meet with Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese. And during a ceremony inside parliament, he was heckled by Australian Senator Lydia Thorpe, who shouted you are not my king as she was escorted away by security.

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The King will travel back to Sydney on Tuesday before heading to Samoa for a Commonwealth leaders meeting.

Well the ugliest dog in Britain could soon earn another accolade film award winner. You might recognize Peggy, the five-year-old pug and Chinese crested mix from her breakout role as dogpool in this summer's blockbuster hit "Deadpool and Wolverine".

She's been nominated for a Fido Award created specifically to honor dogs in films. The organizers say this year boasts their largest pool of nominees ever. But don't worry, Peggy's owner says the fame hasn't gone to her head. She still loves to meet people and cuddle on the sofa.

Thank you so much for spending part of your day with me. I'm Rosemary Church. "CNN Newsroom" continues next with Max Foster.

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