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Trump Again Insists Iran Nuclear Sites "Obliterated"; Trump Takes Victory Lap at NATO Summit; Stunning Upset of New York City's Mayoral Primary; Boulder Attack Suspect Faces Hate Crime Charges; Boulder Attack Suspect Faces Hate Crime Charges; U.S. and Iran to Meet Next Week on Nuclear Deal; U.S. Homeland Security to Close Many Asylum Cases; Homeland Security Secretary Noem Visiting Guatemala Thursday; Police Fire Tear Gas, Water Cannons at Protestors in Kenya; Stunning Pics of Earth's Extreme Environments. Aired 12-1a ET

Aired June 26, 2025 - 00:00   ET

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

[00:00:39]

JESSICA DEAN, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: Hello, and welcome to our viewers joining us from all around the world. I'm Jessica Dean here in New York.

Ahead on CNN newsroom, President Trump is doubling down on his assertion Iran's nuclear program was likely obliterated. And Israeli intelligence says Iran's program is so damaged, it's been set back years.

The president also taking a victory lap after getting NATO members to agree to increase their defense spending. And the American Academy of Pediatrics has strong words for the new CDC vaccine advisory panel.

U.S. President Donald Trump back on American soil after a forceful defense of the U.S. strikes on Iran during his time at the NATO meeting in the Netherlands. The president once again insisting the Iranian nuclear facilities were, quote, "totally obliterated" by the U.S. military over the weekend. Trump's CIA director backing the claim, saying a body of credible evidence shows severe damage.

The director of National Intelligence adding Iran's nuclear facilities have been destroyed. Iran's Foreign Ministry is weighing in. A spokesperson saying the nuclear installations were, quote, "badly damaged" after repeated attacks by the U.S. and Israel. President Trump lashing out at the media for its reporting on the early intelligence assessments.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KAITLAN COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR AND CHIEF WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Earlier you said U.S. intelligence was inconclusive. Are you relying on Israeli intelligence for your assessment of the impact of the strikes?

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: No. No. No. This is also Iran made the statement. And it's also, if you read the document that was given, that Pete can talk about, if you'd like, the documents said it could be very severe damage, but they didn't take that. They said it could be limited or it could be very severe. They really didn't know other than to say it could be limited or it could be very, very severe.

And you didn't choose to put that because it was very early after. Since then, we've collected additional intelligence. We've also spoken to people, have seen the site, and the site -- the site is obliterated, and we think everything nuclear is down there. They didn't take it out.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

DEAN: Israel is also offering up its initial assessments of the U.S. strikes on Iran.

CNN's Jerusalem correspondent Jeremy Diamond has that report.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JEREMY DIAMOND, CNN JERUSALEM CORRESPONDENT: Well, as President Trump continues to insist that Iran's nuclear program has been totally obliterated, Israel is out with two new assessments of the damage to Iran's nuclear program. We heard first from Israel's Atomic Energy Commission, which claimed that Iran's nuclear program has been set back by, quote, "many years."

That assessment, interestingly, was shared not only by the Israeli prime minister's office, but also by the White House, making clear that this was intended to try and bolster some of those claims by President Trump. But then we also heard from Israel's top general, General Eyal Zamir, the chief of staff of the Israeli military, who said that according to Israeli military's initial assessment of Israeli and American strikes to Iran's nuclear programs, once again saying that Iran's program has been set back by many years.

He said that the damage that has been done to that program was not just that of a pinpoint strike, but rather a, quote-unquote, "systemic blow." He said that the program has suffered severe, broad and deep damage, saying that it has set back the program by many years.

Now, this doesn't address the question of those stockpiles of enriched uranium, which Iranian officials have claimed were moved away from some of those sites. Still, some questions about exactly where that stockpile is, whether it was lost in those strikes. And that will also, of course, be critical to knowing how far back Iran's nuclear program has truly been set back. And it's also clear that a lot more information still needs to be gathered.

And that was clear in those U.S. intelligence assessments that these are early assessments that will require further investigation going forward using various types of intelligence. But ultimately, the Israeli prime minister has made clear that should Iran try and reconstitute its nuclear program, that Israel will act to prevent it from doing so, leaving open the possibility clearly of future Israeli strikes in Iran, even as this tenuous ceasefire has now set in. The other question in Israel is what this ceasefire between Israel and

Iran could deliver in terms of a potential ceasefire and hostage release deal regarding the Gaza Strip.

[00:05:09]

And that's for a few reasons. First of all, the Israeli prime minister finding himself now perhaps in the strongest political position in the wake of this ceasefire between Israel and Iran in the wake of Israel's military successes there, something that was broadly popular with the Israeli public.

Could that give the prime minister more leeway to strike a deal with Hamas, perhaps even a deal that would end the war altogether and bring back the remaining 50 hostages? And, of course, on Hamas's side as well, there are new calculus that they will have to make to, given the damage that has been made to their number one sponsor, and that is, of course, the Iranian regime.

And so the Qatari mediators are now saying that they have been in contact with all relevant parties. President Trump also weighing in, saying he believes the momentum is now on the side of heading to that ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas. The coming days and weeks, of course, will be critical to seeing whether or not that can be achieved.

Jeremy Diamond, CNN, Tel Aviv.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

DEAN: All right, Jeremy, thank you so much.

Rob Kelly is an associated senior research fellow with the Nuclear Weapons Project at the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute. He's joining us now live from Vienna.

Rob, thank you very much for being here with us to walk through some of this. It goes without saying that this assessment of the damage in Iran has become quite politicized at this moment. How would you assess that situation and what was achieved?

ROBERT KELLY, ASSOCIATED SENIOR RESEARCH FELLOW, SPRI NUCLEAR WEAPONS PROJECT: The important thing is people are forgetting there are three sites. And so you look at the sites very differently. The Isfahan site, which is the feed material plant that takes ore and converts it to all the forms of uranium you need. For example, in centrifuges, has been badly destroyed.

You look at the imagery and you can see about half the buildings have been hit with the cruise missiles that were fired on the U.S. event. About half the buildings aren't touched, but they don't look like important buildings. The big buildings, the fuel fabrication and the conversion facility, are in bad shape.

On the other hand, when you go to Natanz, you see the above ground buildings haven't been damaged since the first Israeli attack on the first day. You can see some holes on the ground where the penetrators went in. One of them left a plume of dirt that blew in the wind. The other hole in the ground has no plume around it, no dust. So I'm wondering if that bomb even went off. We'll see.

And then finally there's Fordow, which is this underground facility, and there's very little to see there. You see some holes in the ground. You see that the main building, really the only aboveground building of note is untouched, at least after the U.S. left. That's the building supplies air, water and electricity to the centrifuges in the cavern down below.

DEAN: And so what are the other pieces of information you're wanting to know at this point are you think would be helpful in helping us glean more?

KELLY: You'd like to know where that material is, where the 60 percent material for 400 kilograms is. It's the stockpile. But people get mixed up on that word stockpile. It sounds like a big deal, like a stockpile of weapons. Theres 400 kilograms is about the weight of four large men. You could put all of that into one vehicle. You don't put all of that in one vehicle because of nuclear safety reasons. But one truck, two trucks would be enough to cart it all away.

It was supposedly at Isfahan, not at Fordow. It was being checked by the IAEA, but the IAEA said that the Iranians told them that it was moved for safety reasons. So that's probably the case. Think about how the materials produced underground. It's only being produced at the rate of about five or 10 grams per hour. So that material will be collected in the course of a day or two, put into a container and taken out of Fordow, and taken to a much safer place. I don't think there's very much material under Fordow.

DEAN: Yes, and I think so many people are just trying to take away the bottom line. Did this set back the Iranian nuclear program, and if so, by how much time? And that seems to be what's a little bit -- being debated right now. Is it months? Is it years? What is the time frame?

KELLY: Sure. There's no question that the program was badly, badly damaged. When you destroy the feed material plant, that means there's no new ore being turned into uranium chemistry. So that is not going to be possible anymore. Then you have to ask, what is the program that's being destroyed? If it's a civil program to make reactor fuel and things like that, it's in very bad shape.

If there was a nuclear weapons program, which we've seen no indication of, it's maybe not as bad shape because that 400 kilograms of HEU is still out there somewhere.

[00:10:10]

DEAN: And so what do you think? What's the next development here? Obviously, President Trump has announced that they're going to meet with Iran and try to come to a deal. Do you think that's the most likely outcome at this point?

KELLY: It seems very clear from the news this morning that that's what they're going to do is meet. What I would hope would come out of that is what they should have agreed to in the very first place, which is to take the 400 kilograms and dilute it or down, blend it back down to 20 percent or less.

Iran had done a little bit of that to see if anybody would notice, and that would have been the best thing. Get rid of the 60 percent because that is the thing that screams possible weapons program at you. So if you can get rid of that material, reduce it to a much less lethal form, that would be a really, really good start.

DEAN: Yes. All right. Rob Kelly, again, thank you so much for getting up early where you are. We really appreciate it. Nice to have you here with us.

KELLY: Thank you, Jessica. Nice to be with you.

DEAN: Thank you.

President Trump says he's with NATO, quote, "all the way" after the alliance agreed to increase its defense spending during its summit in the Netherlands. Trump saying it was, quote, "very big news" that NATO members, with some exceptions, pledged to raise their spending goals to 5 percent of GDP. That's up from 2 percent. That's been a longtime demand of President Trump.

And he reaffirmed his support for NATO's collective defense pact known as Article Five. President Trump saying he would not have attended the summit if he did not believe in Article Five. A day earlier he hedged on his answer about that article, saying it depends on your definition. But as he departed the summit, Trump suggested he's leaving with a more positive impression of NATO.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: I came here because it was something I'm supposed to be doing, but I left here a little bit different, differently. I said -- I watched the heads of these countries get up and the love and the passion that they showed for their country was unbelievable. I've never seen quite anything like it. They want to protect their country and they need the United States. And without the United States, it's not going to be the same.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

DEAN: President Trump also said it's possible Russian leader Vladimir Putin could have territorial ambitions beyond Ukraine. Mr. Trump meeting with Ukraine's president for almost an hour on the sidelines of the summit Wednesday. Volodymyr Zelenskyy saying it was a long and substantive meeting that covered a range of what he called, quote, "truly important issues," including a potential ceasefire with Russia.

President Trump says the U.S. is considering providing Patriot missile systems to Ukraine, but he cautioned there could be supply constraints as systems are in high demand and currently being supplied to Israel as well. President Trump said he would speak with Putin soon about ending

Russia's war in Ukraine. NATO's secretary general saying the alliance will continue to support Ukraine in what he describes as its irreversible path to NATO membership.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MARK RUTTE, NATO SECRETARY GENERAL: I think the message that comes out of this summit is clear. NATO's commitment to Ukraine endures, and it's now in the summit declaration with a clear link to the money, and I think that is important for the next five to 10 years. Not that we expect the fight to take so long. But that whatever is necessary, we will keep you in the fight.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

DEAN: Let's go live now to Washington and Iulia-Sabina Joja, a former NATO adviser, now senior fellow at the Middle East Institute, and professor of European Security at Georgetown University.

Thank you so much for being here with us this evening. Really appreciate it. I want to ask you first, just as an observer, what did you take away from this NATO meeting?

IULIA-SABINA JOJA, FORMER NATO ADVISER: Well, the meeting was designed entirely to please the American president given the past of how Trump sees NATO or has been seeing NATO. In 2018 at a previous summit, he was threatening to leave the alliance because allies wouldn't pay enough for their defense budgets. So now it was entirely designed towards the pledge that he had mentioned, even in his campaign last year of 5 percent of the total budget towards defense.

So it was a bit of an exchange or a bit of a deal. President Trump would call it. The other allies, Europeans and Canadians alike, are pledging to spend 5 percent of their GDP on defense in exchange for the United States pledging once again that it would respect Article Five of the NATO treaty and consider an attack against one of the countries as an attack against itself and act accordingly.

DEAN: Yes. How significant would you say this increase in spending is from these other nations?

[00:15:02]

JOJA: Well, there's a lot of asterisks. It's an important change. Just to give a comparison, after Russia's first invasion of Ukraine over 10 years ago, countries have pledged to spend 2 percent. So now we have 5 percent, but it's not exactly 5 percent because it's 3.5 on hardware only and then 1.5 on things like critical infrastructure. And the pledge is also being negotiated to be finalized or to -- for these countries to reach only in about 10 years from now.

So it's sort of a soft -- a soft deal if you'd like for the Europeans. It's doable given that they have a lot of economic problems at home and it's legitimate because the Americans, Republicans have been arguing more harshly than Democrats. But the argument remains the same that the Europeans are prosperous and that they should be spending more on their own defense.

DEAN: And we heard these comments, we just played that clip before we came to you from President Trump about his thinking and his words, that it had changed, that he, as you noted and as we've seen play out over the last several years leading up into his election, that he didn't always speak warmly about NATO, threatened to leave NATO.

And he said he came in thinking one thing but left understanding in his words that people really loved their country, that he said it's not a rip off, that America needs to help defend them. What did you think about that shift in his perspective?

JOJA: Well, you pointed out yourself that this was a shift in a matter of a few days, right? As he were traveling there, he had hesitations, and he was mentioning just a couple of days ago that it depends on the interpretation of said Article Five, sort of the linchpin of the alliance. And then he said he arrived here. It's not his first NATO summit. He arrived in the Hague in Netherlands and he realized that Article Five has something to it.

But when we're looking a little bit more in depth, the sort of unmentioned elephant in the room remains Russia. Right? It was barely mentioned in this summit's declaration. Last year by comparison, we had a much longer declaration after the NATO summit that took place here in Washington, D.C., and Russia was mentioned 54 times in a much more assertive way.

Now it was sort of pushed under the rug, a little bit of a taboo, because there's a big question for Americans and Europeans alike how will this continue -- Trump promised that he will bring peace to Ukraine, but he has, at least rhetorically, favored Russia. And Russia continues to pound Ukraine in a more aggressive way than ever before while so-called negotiations are taking place.

So the big elephant in the room is, will the United States indeed send help if, say, in a year or two, Russia is attacking a NATO member on NATO's eastern flank, such as the Baltic country or Poland?

DEAN: Yes. I mean, that is the big question. And we noted that Volodymyr Zelenskyy was there and -- but did have a smaller profile than, as you know, certainly than this issue certainly didn't even last year. And there has been this question around, will Ukraine be able to join NATO? What does that look like? Where do you see this going in the next year?

Do you think -- did you glean anything, I guess, from what the president of the United States had to say, if there was any shift, any shift in his thinking? Of course, he had promised to end this war on day one when he was campaigning, and it has proven to be much more complicated than that.

JOJA: Yes, so it's kind of a two-edged sword. I think when it comes to membership, Ukraine's future membership, that's something that was or Ukraine per se in itself was something that was the most difficult to negotiate before in the preparation towards the summit. So allies decided to just push it aside for now because President Trump doesn't seem to be willing to discuss this topic.

And so this will probably not be on the table in the near future. But I think the more key issue here is how does help for Ukraine, particularly military help for Ukraine continue? The declaration notes that within this 5 percent, allies can count the aid, the military aid that they will be sending to Ukraine. So that's an encouragement. But right now the United States, leader of NATO, is not sending military aid.

Even more so, the United States has redirected missiles that were needed for Ukrainian air defense in the last few weeks towards the Middle East.

[00:20:07]

And Russia is taking advantage of that and violently pounding Ukrainian civilians, cities, energy, infrastructure and so on. And so I think the more urgent question is whether President Trump will move on this and at least accept or give the green light for Ukraine to buy military equipment that it urgently needs for its own defense, and the defense of civilians, or whether this will continue in a limbo.

And the Europeans are trying to catch up or trying to do their best. They're already delivering the big bulk of military aid for Ukraine. But U.S. would really make a big difference.

DEAN: All right. Iulia Joja, thank you so much for your time. We really appreciate it.

JOJA: Thank you for having me.

DEAN: And still to come, details on the new federal charges for the man accused of attacking demonstrators who were marching in support of people being held hostage in Gaza. That attack happening in Boulder, Colorado. We'll talk more about that when we come back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[00:25:02]

DEAN: A 33-year-old state assemblyman delivering a political earthquake Tuesday in New York City's Democratic mayoral primary. Zohran Mamdani is on the brink of victory after his top challenger, former governor Andrew Cuomo, conceded the race.

CNN's Gloria Pazmino has details.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

GLORIA PAZMINO, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A political stunner in the Democratic Party.

ZOHRAN MAMDANI (D), NEW YORK MAYORAL CANDIDATE: We have won.

PAZMINO: Zohran Mamdani on a path to clinch the Democratic nomination for mayor of New York City, poised to beat out former New York State Governor Andrew Cuomo. The 33-year-old Ugandan immigrant served three terms in the state assembly. If Mamdani goes on to win in November, he will be one of the youngest and the city's first Muslim mayor.

MAMDANI: I must thank those who brought me into this world.

PAZMINO: Mamdani's mother is Mira Nair, a successful Indian-American filmmaker whose credits include "Mississippi Masala."

MAMDANI: I will fight for a city that works for you. That is affordable for you.

PAZMINO: Mamdani is on the brink of a come-from-behind win, which would send shockwaves through a Democratic Party struggling with how to run candidates in the age of Trump.

REP. HAKEEM JEFFRIES (D-NY): What's clear is that the relentless focus on affordability had great appeal.

PAZMINO: The Republican Party already weaponizing the Democratic socialist's likely win, as Democratic leaders extend their congratulations to Mamdani. Mamdani's campaign focused on affordability and spoke to working class New Yorkers often in their own language.

Mamdani's ground game was matched by a relentless social media campaign that captured the attention of the city's youngest voters.

MAMDANI: I'm freezing your rent as the next mayor of New York City. Let's plunge into the details.

PAZMINO: Powered by an army of volunteers --

MAMDANI: We can knock a million doors by Saturday.

PAZMINO: -- Mamdani eclipsed Cuomo's universal name recognition, his pitch for experienced leadership, and a campaign that cast the city as being out of control.

ANDREW CUOMO, FORMER NEW YORK GOVERNOR: He put together a great campaign and he touched young people and inspired them.

PAZMINO: The last days of the campaign were dominated by negative ads. Cuomo, casting Mamdani as a threat to Jewish New Yorkers and public safety.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Zohran Mamdani, a risk New York can't afford.

PAZMINO: Mamdani declining to condemn the phrase, globalize the intifada during an interview, instead, defending it as a cry for Palestinian rights and freedom.

MAMDANI: You have my word to reach further, to understand the perspectives of those with whom I disagree, and to wrestle deeply with those disagreements.

PAZMINO: Cuomo has left the door open for an independent run in the general election.

CUOMO: We're going to take a look. We'll make some decisions.

PAZMINO: It would mean competing for votes with incumbent Mayor Eric Adams, also running as an independent.

(On-camera): Now the next phase in this election has already started. Mayor Eric Adams is expected to launch his reelection campaign on the steps of city hall on Thursday. He has been attacking Mamdani as an inexperienced legislator with untenable ideas. But the question will be whether Eric Adams can get enough supporters and run a similar ground game to the Mamdani campaign, and whether or not many of the voters who supported him in his first mayoral election will be willing to support him again.

Gloria Pazmino, CNN, New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

DEAN: U.S. prosecutors have filed hate crime charges against a man accused of attacking demonstrators who were supporting Israeli hostages held in Gaza. Authorities say Mohamed Sabry Soliman threw Molotov cocktails at the rally in Boulder, Colorado, injuring at least eight people.

And CNN's Whitney Wild has more on this.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

WHITNEY WILD, CNN LAW ENFORCEMENT CORRESPONDENT: This is largely the same fact pattern that had already been presented, but the big question had been whether or not law enforcement is going to move forward with these federal hate crime charges because, according to police and federal officials, Mohamed Sabry Soliman had said as he carried out this act, free Palestine. So let me just walk you through the day as it unfolded and why law enforcement now says that it was those acts that constitute a hate crime.

It was June 1st that Mohamed Soliman, according to federal prosecutors, had gone to this event in Boulder. He had targeted the Run for Their Lives event. This was an event to raise awareness and protest Israeli hostages who are still being held in Gaza. When he approached them, he was wearing a hazard vest. He was carrying a backpack. It was basically a weed sprayer backpack that was full of flammable liquid.

And he also had a black container that had 18 vials of flammable liquid. Many of them had been turned into full on Molotov cocktails with that red rag in the top that he intended to ignite. He threw two Molotov cocktails at this group. Again, according to federal prosecutors, saying free Palestine. And then it was on further investigation that law enforcement found a handwritten note that was recovered. And this is according to this criminal complaint filed today associated with these hate crime charges. And here's a quote. -- a handwritten note was recovered and included the following statements: 'Zionism is our enemies until [SIC] Jerusalem is liberated and they are expelled are expelled from our land,' and further described Israel as a 'cancer entity.'"

[00:30:12]

Mohamed Soliman, remarkably, spoke with law enforcement after this event and gave a pretty detailed account of his intentions. And here's another quote supporting these hate crime charges, according to federal prosecutors.

"The defendant, Mohamed Sabry Soliman, stated that he had hoped that he 'burned them all. I killed them all. This was my dream.'"

Meanwhile, the defense has previously argued that he targeted this group because of their political views. That does not constitute a hate crime. But even still, the judge had previously said hate crime charges could move forward. And now we know today, federal prosecutors were prepared to actually file those charges formally.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

DEAN: All right, Whitney Wild, thanks so much.

Still to come, a new advisory panel in the U.S. is set to review current vaccine recommendations for children. Why an influential group of doctors is calling them an embarrassment, when we come back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

DEAN: And welcome back to CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Jessica Dean. Let's take a look at today's top stories.

Donald Trump says the U.S. will meet with Iran next week about a potential nuclear agreement, but he doesn't believe a deal is necessary, because he says the U.S. destroyed Iran's nuclear capabilities.

The president also says Iran needs to sell its oil to, quote, "put the country back into shape."

Israel is offering a bleak new assessment of Iran's nuclear program. The country's military chief saying it suffered systemic damage and has been set back by years.

Even a spokesperson for Iran's foreign ministry admits its nuclear installations were badly damaged by U.S. and Israeli strikes.

[00:35:04]

The commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard is warning any -- against any future attacks on Iran. In an address Wednesday, Commander Mohammad Pakpour vowed a, quote, "firm and powerful response if enemies," in his words, "make a mistake," then referenced Iran's repeated strikes on Israel during the conflict. He said Iran will not hesitate to defend its country.

So, what exactly is the U.S. hoping to achieve in talks with Iran, now scheduled for next week, according to the president? CNN's senior White House reporter, Kevin Liptak, has more answers on that.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KEVIN LIPTAK, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Certainly, when you talk to officials who are involved in all of this diplomacy, they don't necessarily think that some kind of --

LIPTAK (voice-over): -- handshake agreement with Iran is going to do it. They are fully prepared to try and proceed with these discussions, to come up with some sort of deal.

And remember, there had been talks before Israel began its campaign, mediated by the Gulf state, Oman --

LIPTAK: -- between the U.S. and Iran, to try and curb its nuclear ambitions.

It's not precisely clear what the format of these talks will be next week. The president says that the U.S. and Iran are meeting for some kind of discussions.

We know that back-channels have been underway between the U.S. and the Iranians, including through the president's --

LIPTAK (voice-over): -- foreign envoy, Steve Witkoff. And we know that the U.S. had been preparing to meet Iran before Israel began its campaign.

LIPTAK: They had been set to meet in Rome. All of that, of course, scrapped when the bombs started falling.

But now, the president suggesting that these talks could be back on.

LIPTAK (voice-over): We also heard from the secretary of state, Marco Rubio, saying that the U.S. preference, at least, is that these are direct conversations with the Iranians.

And we heard from the president that his red line in these conversations remains the same, that Iran not be able to achieve a nuclear weapon. And, in fact, that Iran not be able to enrich nuclear material.

LIPTAK: And that, at the end of the day, had been the enormous sticking point between these two sides. Iran had not been willing to back off that condition.

Now, the president saying that is still his condition as he works to get this diplomacy on track.

But certainly, very interesting as we will seek to learn more of what these talks will look like precisely as President Trump continues on this diplomatic track.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

DEAN: All right. Kevin Liptak from the Netherlands, thanks so much for that.

The academy -- the American Academy of Pediatrics says the new advisers to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention are an embarrassment.

The comments coming after the seven-person committee met for the first time Wednesday. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. dismissed the previous panel earlier this month over alleged conflicts of interest and said that these new members are highly credentialed. The new advisers say they'll be studying children's vaccine schedules.

CNN medical analyst Dr. Jonathan Reiner spoke with CNN about why this particular panel may have been chosen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DR. JONATHAN REINER, CNN MEDICAL ANALYST: The panel is largely picked to basically support Mr. Kennedy's feelings that vaccines are unsafe.

Many of the people on this panel have -- have very well-stated opinions about particularly, you know, the COVID vaccine or mRNA technology, you know, writ large.

And again, they are filling roles to support his long-standing vaccine skepticism.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

DEAN: Protesters gathered in Atlanta, some holding signs that read, "Save the CDC," "Public Health Saves Lives" and "Make ACIP Great Again." That's a reference to the panel's name, the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices.

We have much more to come here on CNN, including an exclusive report on a planned policy change by the Trump administration that could impact hundreds of thousands of asylum seekers.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[00:41:57]

DEAN: The notorious drug lord and Ecuador's most wanted man is now back behind bars. The country's president says. Jose Adolfo Macias, known as Fito, was captured Wednesday. He escaped from prison last year while serving a 34-year sentence for murder and drug trafficking.

His escape was followed by a wave of violence in Ecuador, which prompted the president to declare an internal armed conflict in the country.

Ecuador, now working to extradite Fito to the U.S., where he's being sanctioned for drug trafficking and other crimes.

A migrant who was unlawfully deported to El Salvador will remain in U.S. federal custody for a few more days, amid questions over what happens when Kilmar Abrego Garcia is released.

A U.S. magistrate judge is seeking answers and has asked Abrego Garcia's defense team for more information.

He was returned to the U.S. earlier this month and promptly arrested on human smuggling charges. The drug [SIC] says -- the judge says she will file an order that he should not be detained by immigration authorities as he awaits trial.

CNN has new exclusive reporting U.S. Homeland Security may be getting ready to close hundreds of thousands of asylum cases, putting all of those people at risk of immediate deportation. Details now from CNN's Priscilla Alvarez.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

PRISCILLA ALVAREZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: The Trump administration is planning to dismiss asylum claims --

ALVAREZ (voice-over): -- for potentially hundreds of thousands of migrants in the United States.

This latest effort, targeting asylum seekers who crossed U.S.-Mexico border unlawfully and have since applied for asylum.

Now, according to U.S. law, people who are seeking protection from violence and persecution in their home country can claim asylum in the United States, regardless of how they arrived to the country.

But the administration is trying to strip them of that process, essentially taking away the opportunity for them to seek asylum in the United States. And instead, making them eligible for deportation.

On that latter point, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services has been delegated the authority to order what is known as expedited removal; in other words, fast-track deportation proceedings.

That is an unprecedented move, according to experts, who say that typically falls under U.S. Customs and Border Protection, as well as Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

Essentially, instead, placing the federal agency that manages federal immigration benefits at the center of the president's deportation campaign, something that is likely to have a chilling effect for the many immigrants who are trying to obtain relief in the United States; and also a cause of concern for attorneys, who say that the -- those who may have their asylum applications dismissed shouldn't have been in that position to begin with.

But of course, all of this is part of the president's sweeping immigration crackdown, which has included trying to reach new historic numbers of arrests on a daily basis and also stripping protections from those already in the United States.

ALVAREZ: Priscilla Alvarez, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

DEAN: Priscilla, thank you.

U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem will wrap up her visit to Central America in Guatemala in the coming hours. She is set to meet with President Bernardo Arevalo, who spoke with CNN contributor Stefano Pozzebon. Here's his report.

[00:45:12]

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STEFANO POZZEBON, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: Secretary Noem's visit to Guatemala on Thursday, her last stop in a three-day tour of Central America --

POZZEBON (voice-over): -- is a testament to how central the deportation strategy is for the Trump White House.

Guatemala is a major source of migrants at the U.S. Southern border, and this visit comes as CNN is able to confirm that the White House is evaluating plans to end asylum processes and potentially speed up deportations for hundreds of thousands of migrants in the Americas.

Noem will meet with the Guatemalan president, Bernardo Arevalo, and then she will present a joint operations at the Guatemala city international airport, where thousands of migrants arrive every week after the deportation process from the U.S.

POZZEBON: Now, CNN was in Guatemala just on Monday, and we were able to ask President Arevalo what message he hopes to convey to the secretary.

BERNARDO AREVALO, PRESIDENT OF GUATEMALA: While the process of development grows to the point that people begin to opt out of walking away from their communities, we need to ensure that Guatemalan migrants are being, you know, treated with dignity and respect.

POZZEBON: Have the numbers of repatriation flights increased under the new U.S. administration, compared to the previous ones? Because we -- we both know that the word "repatriation flights" and the previous U.S. administration.

AREVALO: Oh, yes. Yes. No, numbers have not increased, have actually decreased.

POZZEBON (voice-over): According to data from the Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency, or ICE, the number of Guatemalan migrants deported from the U.S. in the first three months of this year has decreased 37 percent, compared to the same number --

POZZEBON: -- in 2024, the same period in the first three months of the year. Despite the Trump administration ongoing immigration crackdown.

For CNN, this is Stefano Pozzebon, Bogota.

(END VIDEOTAPE) DEAN: Kenyan police fired tear gas and water cannons at thousands of

protesters, marking one year since dozens were killed demonstrating against a controversial tax bill.

Amnesty International says at least eight people were killed Wednesday. CNN could not immediately verify that number.

Larry Madowo shows us the chaotic scenes on the streets of Nairobi.

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LARRY MADOWO, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: This is what happens when the police come. People scatter and disappear. There are tear gas all around us. Tear gas all around us.

Fabs (ph), they're going to come that way. They're going to come that way.

(SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE)

People are not seeing this in real time, because the Kenyan government has banned local radio and TV stations from broadcasting this live.

But it's a scene unlike any I've ever seen here.

A year ago, many protesters were killed here, and many of them have come back to honor their memories and to call out the government for not dealing with police brutality, and also for not paying attention to their needs.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm here today to remember my fellow comrades who lost their lives at these streets. But the police who killed the Gen Zs last year, the day like today. They haven't done anything about those police officers.

MADOWO: This is a major highway that's completely blocked out. There's stones everywhere. This road is important for another reason. It leads directly to President William Ruto's house, the state house.

And some protesters have threatened to go there and to depose him, to remove him from office. And the police are determined to make sure that does not happen.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We don't need Ruto as our president. Ruto is a corrupt leader, and we don't need him in Kenya. As you say, Ruto must go.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Ruto must go!

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Officers advance.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We all have only our phones. We are peaceful. Our hands are up. But we have been -- But we have been cornered, and we are afraid for our lives.

MADOWO: This should be a busy street in Nairobi. It's in the heart of the city. Instead, it looks like this. With those explosions, those bangs that have been ringing out for hours.

A year after the deadliest day of protests in Kenya, these people are back to say their demands have not changed; and the government has not changed. The two sides not speaking to each other.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

DEAN: Still to come, stunning satellite images of the Earth's forests and crucial data on climate change. We'll take a look at that after the break.

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[00:53:54]

DEAN: In the coming hours, Axiom Space Mission Four is set to dock at the International Space Station with a first-of-its-kind crew on board.

The historic private mission boasts the first crew with members from India, Poland, and Hungary to board the space station. Along with them is former NASA astronaut Peggy Whitson, now an employee of Axiom Space.

The crew is expected to be in space for two weeks and conduct roughly 60 experiments before they come back here to Earth. And their launch was delayed as the International Space Station crew attempts to fix a leak in one of its modules.

A European Space Agency satellite is sharing some stunning images of the Earth's forest and some extreme environments. And two young brown bears escaped a zoo in the U.K. and set off on their own sticky adventure. CNN's Patrick Cornell has more in this edition at -- of "Take a Look at This."

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

PATRICK CORNELL, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Brand-new snapshots from space give us a creatively color-coded look at one of Earth's essential elements.

The European Space Agency's freshly launched biomass satellite is tasked with studying carbon storage in some of the world's most remote locations. Its first set of test pics give us a glimpse of what to expect.

Vibrant hues show off Bolivia, with green revealing rainforests; red, forested floodplains and wetlands; blue/purple, grasslands.

The satellite's P-band synthetic aperture radar can also cut through deserts, such as this one in Chad, to detect subsurface features like the remains of ancient riverbeds and lakes.

Or give us a cool new topographic overview of volcanoes in Indonesia. The satellite is still being fine-tuned while in orbit, and scientists say once it's fully up to speed, it will provide crucial data on carbon storage, climate change, and the health of Earth's forest ecosystems.

Back here on Earth, these ornery animals are back where they belong. But with big, full bellies.

Wildwood Devon, a zoo in the U.K., says the sticky situation started when five-year-old brown bears Mish and Lucy escaped their enclosure.

They darted straight towards a humongous selection of snacks, including slurping down a full week's worth of honey. Typical.

These bears, potentially long-lost cousins of Winnie the Pooh, who will also go to great lengths to get a small smackerel of honey.

Caught sticky-handed, both happy bears promptly returned to their den and passed out. Wildwood later saying it's happy for this tale and the, quote, "smiles it brought to many faces." Human and bear.

For "Take a Look at This," I'm Patrick Cornell.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

DEAN: Hmm.

And finally, this rare find is on display at a museum in the Netherlands.

A medieval sword pulled out of a riverbed on a private estate last year. Experts say the meter-long weapon dates back to more than a thousand years.

It has traces of a wooden grip and symbols, including a copper inlaid cross and an endless knot. A local official says the sword tells the -- tells of a time when symbolism and spirituality were deeply intertwined.

Thanks so much for watching. I'm Jessica Dean. I'm going to be back with more CNN NEWSROOM after a quick break.

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