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Funeral Today for Football Brothers Diogo Jota and Andre Silva; At Least 24 Dead, over 20 Missing in Texas Floods; Hamas Delivers "Positive Response" to Gaza Ceasefire Plan; Trump Signs Domestic Megabill into Law at July 4 Event; Power Restored at Russian-Occupied Zaporizhzhya Nuclear Plant; European Cities Look to Athens amid Soaring Temps; Joey Chestnut Wins Hot Dog Eating Contest; Mourning Diogo Jota. Aired 3-3:45a ET
Aired July 05, 2025 - 03:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
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SALMA ABDELAZIZ, CNN ANCHOR AND CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Hello and welcome to all of our viewers watching from around the world. I'm Salma Abdelaziz in London.
And ahead on CNN NEWSROOM, football fans prepare to say their final goodbyes to Diogo Jota and his brother, Andre Silva, who will be laid to rest.
At least two dozen people are dead in Texas as catastrophic floods hit the area. The search goes on for the missing.
And putting pen to paper, U.S. President Donald Trump signs the big, beautiful bill and wishes Americans a happy 4th of July.
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ABDELAZIZ: Let's begin with the funeral for Liverpool star Diogo Jota and his brother, fellow pro footballer Andre Silva. It is scheduled to begin in just under two hours and will be held in their hometown of Gondomar, Portugal, where Friday's wake also took place.
The athletes were killed in a car accident in northwestern Spain on Thursday. Police are investigating the crash as a possible speeding incident. They suspect the vehicle's tire burst while changing lanes, causing the Lamborghini to veer off the road before catching fire.
The 28-year old leaves behind his three children and his wife, who he had only married two weeks before the accident.
A memorial has grown outside Liverpool's Anfield Stadium as fans gathered to offer their condolences. Jota cemented his legacy with the club following his role in Liverpool's 2025 Premier League title. He also helped Portugal win this year's Nations League, just as he did in 2019.
Joining me now live from Liverpool, England, is CNN's Matias Grez. Matias, thank you so much for being with us early this morning. Just
start by showing me showing me the scene around you.
MATIAS GREZ, CNN PORTUGAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, as I'm sure you can imagine, more than 48 hours on from the sad news of Jota's passing, I stand to the side here and you can see that immense number of tributes that continue to pour in outside Anfield Stadium.
This grass verge behind me runs for well over 100 meters along Anfield's main stand and you can see that it's full and overflowing with tributes.
Among them, flowers laid down by former Liverpool captain, Jordan Henderson. And like you mentioned, with that funeral happening not long from now, we're expecting to see many more of Jota's former teammates there.
And it's been really nice to read and listen to all of the tributes from former players and former teammates and former managers. Jota is rarely referred to as a player by his managers and as a teammate by his fellow professionals.
Instead, they often refer to him as a brother, which I think tells you just how well loved he was within the football community.
And here behind me, there's not just Liverpool fans that have been coming to pay their respects; we've had Manchester United fans turning up. We've -- and I'm sure you can see the blue of Everton's scarves and shirts dotted throughout here, two clubs that are usually bitter rivals with Liverpool on the pitch.
But I think that just goes to show how much respect people had for Diogo Jota, not only in Liverpool but around the world. And speaking to fans here in Liverpool, of course, it was Jota's success on the pitch that made him so well loved here at the club.
In five years at Liverpool, he scored 65 goals and won four major trophies, including, like you said, that recent Premier League triumph. And Jota, the person I think, was what fans here really connected with, a man from humble beginnings, a hard-working family man.
And I think a lot of the people here in this city saw some of themselves in him. And the timing of his death, like you said, just 13 days ago he married his childhood sweetheart and the mother of his three children.
And he was on top of the world professionally, too, like you said, winning the Nations League with Portugal and the Premier League with Liverpool, which only makes his passing all the more tragic.
And look, as football fans, we're often stressed about results. We can turn on managers and players when they don't perform up to our expectations.
But I think on days like today, when you see the streams of young fans coming to pay their respects and you see the families here, I think football and football results really take a back seat and you start to really see what's important on days like today.
ABDELAZIZ: Thank you so much, Matias, for showing us that very emotional scene ahead of the funeral.
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We're following a devastating situation that could get worse in central Texas, where 24 people are dead and at least 23 children are unaccounted for after severe flooding hit the area. Right now, teams are on the ground and they will continue searching throughout the weekend for those missing kids.
The children were at a summer camp when the heavy rains submerged the area, turning a river into a torrent. A disaster declaration has been issued for some of the hardest-hit counties, as more than 230 people have been rescued or evacuated from their homes.
U.S. President Donald Trump called the flooding terrible while pledging the federal government's support.
And anxious parents are waiting at a relocation center. You can see it there in Ingram, Texas, hoping to be reunited with their kids. Texas officials briefed the public late on Friday about the search and rescue efforts.
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COL. FREEMAN MARTIN, DIRECTOR, TEXAS DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY: We brought in over 100 troopers.
This morning.
And they.
Worked all.
Day, rescues, high water vehicles, boats.
Rescue.
Drivers, divers, seven rescue helicopters with hoist capabilities.
And that was just today. We have another shift coming in tonight and another shift in the morning. And we'll really ramp it up in the morning but we will not stop.
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ABDELAZIZ: Now that camp sits next to a river near Kerrville, Texas, which, according to forecasters, rose more than 20 feet or six meters in only 90 minutes. CNN's Ed Lavandera has the latest from Texas.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) ED LAVANDERA, CNN SENIOR NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: This July 4th holiday in central Texas has turned in to a nightmare as families across the state are grappling with the horror that unfolded as raging flood erupted out of the Guadalupe River west of San Antonio and Austin.
Here, near the town of Kerrville, Texas, and Kerr County, where the Guadalupe River bends its way through here, we have seen devastating scenes of destruction as the floodwaters rose rapidly in the middle of the night, catching many people by surprise and just wreaking absolute horror on many communities.
Here, the most intense focus of the day has been on a campground called Camp Mystic. This area has several popular summer camps. Camp Mystic is an all-girls camp and we have seen families descend from all over the state.
We are outside of the school that is serving as a reunification center. Many of those young girls have been brought here by bus or airlifted here and they have been reunited with their families today.
And the images that we have seen, young children in tears, sobbing, being held by their parents, just looks of utter trauma and despair on their faces as they walk away from here.
And given what they saw and what they endured last night, you can completely understand why. There have been -- authorities have confirmed 24 dead so far and about 23 of those campers from Camp Mystic are still unaccounted for.
And authorities here say they will continue search and rescue operations throughout the day into Saturday and in through the weekend until everyone is accounted for. And those operations have been going on throughout the day.
State emergency officials say that helicopters and boat rescues have amounted to almost 240 high water rescues in this area; 170 of those roughly have been airlifted out by helicopters. So it gives you a sense of just how damaging and how intense this flooding scenario has been here in central Texas.
We've been able to drive up and down some parts of the Guadalupe River and the scope and the magnitude of the damage that was inflicted by these raging floodwaters is simply profound to see in some places, where you can see that the river at some point might have reached as much as a half-mile wide.
And incredibly deep and powerful water, boats and kayaks and canoes wrapped around trees, massive trees just splintered apart in these raging floodwaters. As I mentioned, this has been a nightmare holiday weekend already for the people here in central Texas -- Ed Lavandera, CNN, Ingram, Texas.
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ABDELAZIZ: Now to Gaza, where U.S. president Donald Trump says he's optimistic that a ceasefire agreement could be reached there next week. He spoke Friday night after Hamas gave what it called a positive response to the U.S. ceasefire proposal. The militant group also said it is ready to start implementation talks right away.
But inside Gaza, at least 20 people were killed in Israeli strikes on Friday. That's according to local health officials. One of the targets was a tent city for Gazans, who were forced to flee their homes because of the fighting. Oren Liebermann has more on the details around the U.S. ceasefire proposal.
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OREN LIEBERMANN, CNN JERUSALEM BUREAU CHIEF AND CORRESPONDENT: Late Friday night, local time, Hamas issued an official statement, a response to the latest offer put forward by Qatar earlier this week. That response a positive one, according to that statement.
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I'll read you a part of it.
It said, "The movement that is Hamas has delivered its response to the brothers mediating, which was characterized as positive. The movement is fully ready and serious about immediately entering a new round of negotiations on the mechanism for implementing this framework."
According to a Palestinian American official directly in touch with Hamas about this latest effort, Hamas has asked for some adjustments to the language here. But that official says it's not expected to derail the efforts.
Similarly, an Israeli source familiar with the negotiations said Israel was expecting a positive response and some tweaks to the language. Again, not expected to derail this effort.
And we have seen widespread expectations that this is the closest Israel and Hamas have been to a ceasefire in six months since the last one went into effect on January 19th.
And then there was the expectation that this would proceed. Qatar put forward the latest proposal earlier this week. Israel responded positively on Tuesday, saying they had accepted the framework.
And now we're at this point, it does not mean a ceasefire is about to start. The next stage would be what are called proximity talks, where negotiators, likely in Cairo or in Doha, go back and forth between Israel and Hamas to hammer out the final details of the negotiations.
That's what Hamas is referring to when they say negotiations about the framework of this deal.
Broadly speaking, what we're looking at is not that different from the proposal that was on the table over the course of the last several months; 60-day ceasefire, 10 living hostages released, 18 deceased hostages and an unspecified number of Palestinian prisoners and detainees released. The key here is that the release of hostages will be spread out over
that 60 days. Eight on the first day, two more hostages will be released on the 50th day and then the deceased hostages again will be spread out over those 60 days.
Israel and Hamas, according to the agreement, will immediately enter negotiations to try to get to a permanent ceasefire. That was a key demand here.
And if there is no agreement on a permanent ceasefire by the end of that 60-day period, then there are stipulations in here that the ceasefire continues and that president Donald Trump himself will try to hold the parties to the ceasefire, to try to get to a comprehensive end of the war. That was a key demand of Hamas.
Additionally, on day one, Israeli troops will begin repositioning and withdrawing from certain positions in northern Gaza. A week later, they'll withdraw from parts of southern Gaza. All as this ceasefire moves forward if we get to that point.
And then on day one, more aid will go in, not only under the controversial Gaza Humanitarian Foundation but through the U.N. mechanism and others as well, to try to get as much aid to the Gazan population as quickly as possible -- Oren Liebermann, CNN in Jerusalem.
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ABDELAZIZ: For more analysis on this, we're going to head over to Istanbul, where we're joined by Paul Salem, a senior fellow at the Middle East Institute.
Thank you so much for joining us so early, first of all, on the program. First, I want to just ask you about how you feel about these negotiations. We've heard from president Donald Trump that he is optimistic that a result could be found in next week, that we could see some progress.
But these negotiations have stalled. They've fallen apart. They've dragged out.
Are you hopeful that a ceasefire deal could be reached in a week?
PAUL SALEM, SENIOR FELLOW, MIDDLE EAST INSTITUTE: Well, I would say there's kind of the small picture and the big picture. In the small picture, yes. I am hopeful that another ceasefire agreement will be reached.
But in the bigger picture, this war has been going on, in a couple of months. it'll be two years with no really visible end in sight. This agreement is a temporary 60-day ceasefire. President Trump has promised that he will try to negotiate a permanent end to this war.
But that is not something Israel has committed to. The conditions between Hamas and the Israeli government remain irreconcilable for the time being. So I'm optimistic about a temporary deal but I'm pessimistic about the long-term scenario in Gaza.
ABDELAZIZ: And when you lay that out, the long term, the short term, we know, of course -- or we're expecting, at least, prime minister Netanyahu to be in D.C., to meet with president Trump on Monday.
When that takes place, how do you think that will impact the ceasefire?
And how will the relationship between these two men play out?
Prime minister Netanyahu is widely accused of trying to hold back on any ceasefire, continuing the war for political gain while president Trump seems to want the war to end yesterday.
How will that play out?
SALEM: Well, I think it will be -- it will generally be a positive meeting. They are probably going to celebrate together the joint military attacks on Iran; the assessments on those attacks are still coming in. But certainly it was a very serious blow to Iran and the nuclear program there.
So they will, I think, crow about that. And I think there will be an announcement or agreement on a ceasefire in Gaza.
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And I think prime minister Netanyahu will give Trump kind of that PR victory in exchange for Trump's joining the war in Iran, granting him, in a sense, to be able to announce that the ceasefire in Iran is holding, that there is a ceasefire in Gaza.
President Trump has to satisfy his base, that he's not dragging the U.S. into more wars. But in the longer, longer term, on both fronts, the two leaders are in, I would say, a deep disagreement.
Prime minister Netanyahu cannot end the war in Gaza with Hamas still in place, because he will lose two of his government partners and he will, you know, the government will fall and he will lose his position. He can't do that.
Whereas president Trump wants a permanent ceasefire on Iran. President Trump wants a negotiated agreement and is willing to be somewhat flexible on the terms. Prime minister Netanyahu is opposed to an agreement.
ABDELAZIZ: Just very quickly, if you could tell me, do you expect that we could see a major announcement on this ceasefire from the White House on Monday or in next week?
SALEM: Yes, I do think that there that this will be timed to be a media victory, PR victory to announce a ceasefire in Gaza. That would be my expectation, yes.
ABDELAZIZ: Thank you so much for your analysis and insight. We're going to keep following this with you. Now president Donald Trump takes a victory lap at the White House on
Friday, signing his domestic megabill into law during a 4th of July holiday event that featured fireworks and military flyovers.
Plus Ukraine's president Volodymyr Zelenskyy says he had an important call with president Trump. And it came just hours after a major Russian drone attack.
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TRUMP: God bless the United States military and God bless the USA. God bless the USA. And to all Americans, I want to wish you a very happy Independence Day. Happy 4th of July. This is going to be something special, the spirit in this country. We haven't seen anything like it in many, many years and decades.
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ABDELAZIZ: That is president Donald Trump, celebrating Independence Day Friday at the White House with fireworks and a flyover by military bombers. And he signed his so-called big, beautiful bill into law.
The measure moved through Congress quickly, despite a few Republican holdouts in both the House and Senate. It boosts funding for immigration enforcement and national defense while making 2017 tax cuts permanent and creating new tax cuts.
It also adds more than $3 trillion to the deficit and makes deep cuts to Medicaid and eliminates green energy subsidies. Our senior White House correspondent Kristen Holmes has been monitoring these developments all day and has more for us from the White House.
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KRISTEN HOLMES, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: President Trump doing a victory lap on the South Lawn of the White House this July 4th, signing his domestic policy agenda into law.
And it should be noted that president Trump and his team at the White House believe that this is his legacy wrapped up in this bill. That's why it was such a big deal for them to get this passed. Here's what Trump said.
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TRUMP: It's really promises made, promises kept and we've kept them. This is a triumph of democracy on the birthday of democracy. This is the most single, most popular bill ever signed. And it includes the largest tax cut in American history, the largest
spending cut, $1.7 trillion. And yet you won't even notice it. Just waste, fraud and abuse.
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HOLMES: Now, of course, as we know, we've seen the polling. This bill is not that popular among voters right now. But when you talk to Republicans, when you talk to this administration, they are aware that they are losing the messaging war when it comes to this bill.
Democrats have been out there hitting every aspect or most aspects of this bill. So there is a belief among Republicans that they can kind of turn the narrative, particularly by focusing on some of the core issues that president Trump ran on, as well as increasing that spending to ramp up deportations.
So what you're really going to start seeing here over the next couple of weeks is those ads, is outside groups spending money is campaign- style events to try and pitch this bill to the American people.
Republicans are very aware that this could play into the midterm elections in 2026. But they do think they have some time to change the narrative -- Kristen Holmes, CNN, the White House.
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ABDELAZIZ: President Trump says the United States is considering Ukraine's request for more Patriot missile defense systems. It comes after what Mr. Trump says was a very good phone call on Friday with Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
The two spoke just hours after Russia launched a record number of attack drones at Ukraine and a day after Mr. Trump said he did not make any progress toward a ceasefire with his phone call with Russian president Vladimir Putin.
Mr. Zelenskyy says he and Mr. Trump discussed opportunities for both countries to work together on security.
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VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY, UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT (through translator): It was an important conversation. We agreed to arrange a meeting between our teams to strengthen air defense capabilities. We had an in-depth discussion about joint production, something both us and the United States need.
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ABDELAZIZ: President Trump has made a number of phone calls with world leaders this week. He also spoke with the German chancellor and the French president on Thursday. A French official says Ukraine was one of the topics that was discussed.
Ukraine is reeling from a massive Russian aerial assault. Ukraine's air force says Russia launched more than 500 drones and 11 missiles in the early hours of Friday. At least one person was killed and 23 others were wounded.
Meanwhile, power has been restored at the Zaporizhzhya nuclear power plant in Russian-occupied southeastern Ukraine. Officials at the plant say radiation levels are normal.
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Ukraine's energy minister said on Friday that a Russian strike on a power line took the plant offline.
Russia is ramping up drone strikes in Ukraine and now Kyiv says there's evidence that some of those drones were made in China. CNN's Nick Paton Walsh has this report.
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NICK PATON WALSH, CNN INTERNATIONAL SECURITY EDITOR (voice-over): Hear the buzz and all you can do is wait. Kyiv has seen this almost every night for months. But there was something about Thursday night's ferocity that seemed new and unchecked even underground.
No sleep is the norm, huddling in basements, too. If you're not so immune to the sirens, you turn over in bed when you hear them.
Hearing Russia broke another record of drones fired has also happened a lot this past month. What was different was the possibility the capital's air defenses behind interceptions like these might be in trouble.
Gunners tried to pick off drones but the American supply of Patriots that take down Russian ballistic missiles is at best in doubt, leaving nights here longer and louder and solace something you find in the subway.
A record assault that came moments after presidents Trump and Putin spoke. That, too, did not go well.
TRUMP: I'm very disappointed with the conversation I had today with President Putin because I don't think he's there. I don't think he's there. And I'm very disappointed. Well, it's not -- I'm just saying, I don't think he's looking to stop. And that's too bad.
WALSH (voice-over): Among the smoldering remains of civilian worlds terrorized, Ukraine's foreign minister claimed fragments of a Geran-2 combat drone were found made in China.
The growing global footprint of a war, where Kyiv's daylight is darkened still by the smoke of the night before and where the damage done, is measured in intimate personal loss.
Here, what that feels like for those whose broken homes lie in pieces around them.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (from captions): Today's attack is the most terrifying attack for us in the three.5 years that this war has been going on. There is info that he will launch 700 to 800 Shahed drones. I'm sorry but neither we, nor our air defense can withstand it.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (from captions): Today, the drones were flying like swarms of bees. It was such a horror. Let all Americans know how we live here, how we suffer.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (from captions): It's very scary when people are left with nothing. It's very scary. Right now there is no gas, no electricity. We have practically no hope left for America. Our only hope is in our own people.
WALSH: Nick Paton Walsh, CNN, London.
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ABDELAZIZ: Now to Europe, where extreme heat has led to wildfires in some countries. Ahead, a closer look at the damage they are doing. Plus how people are coping with the current heat wave.
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ABDELAZIZ: Welcome back to CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Salma Abdelaziz in London. Let's check today's top stories.
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ABDELAZIZ (voice-over): Crowds are gathering in Portugal ahead of the funeral for football star Diogo Jota later today. He and his brother, professional footballer Andre Silva, were both killed in a car accident on Thursday. Police are investigating the crash but say they suspect the driver was speeding.
Search and rescue teams in Texas are still searching for the over 20 children who are still unaccounted for after severe flooding hit the area. The children were at a summer camp near Kerrville, Texas, when heavy rains caused flash flooding.
So far, 24 people have died. The search is expected to continue throughout the weekend.
And president Donald Trump signed his domestic megabill into law on Friday during an Independence Day event at the White House. The measure boosts funding for immigration enforcement and national defense while making 2017 tax cuts permanent and creating new tax cuts.
It also adds more than $3 trillion to the deficit and makes deep cuts to Medicaid. Residents across much of Europe are struggling to cope with soaring
summer temperatures in rural areas of Greece. Firefighters are battling to contain wildfires that are devastating the landscape. And the threat is not contained to the countryside. Urban populations are also vulnerable.
In Italy alone, more than a dozen cities are on high alert because of the heat. Many cities are looking to Athens, who appointed a chief heat officer in 2021 to help the city cope with these extreme temperatures.
Eleni Myrivili was the first to hold the post. She's now the global chief heat officer for the United Nations Human Settlements Programme and the Atlantic Council's Climate Resilience Center. She spoke with me just a short time ago.
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ELENI MYRIVILI, GLOBAL CHIEF HEAT OFFICER, UNITED NATIONS HUMAN SETTLEMENTS PROGRAMME: What we first focus on is the vulnerable populations.
And during heat waves, how can we protect the ones that are most in dire need to have some kind of support, so that they don't end up in hospital or end up losing their lives?
And increasingly, we see that, more and more, especially older people are affected even by a few hours of extreme heat. So we have to act fast and we have to make sure that people understand how dangerous heat is to their health and to make sure that they have some kind of place to go and some ways to take cover.
ABDELAZIZ: And when you're establishing this, I mean, you're talking about saving lives. When you're talking about elderly people in the heat, you are talking about people's lives here.
So what were some of the obstacles you faced in trying to set up these safeguards?
MYRIVILI: So some of the obstacles or one of the main obstacles is that, often, cities, what they do is they open cooling centers, where you can actually have areas for people to go to that have air conditioning.
And we have in Europe a lot of -- and in Greece, a lot of energy poverty. So we have to make sure that people do have access to places that have some air conditioning. So and in general in Europe, we don't have so much air conditioning as, for example, they have in the United States. We still don't have a lot of northern Europe.
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And that's why heat waves are often extremely dangerous. Most of the public spaces and houses do not have air conditioning. So we have to make sure, especially for the elderly, that they have access.
And having access means that they have to have ways of transport, of transportation to get to these places.
So part of the problem is how do we persuade people to leave their homes and go safely to these places and come back safely?
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ABDELAZIZ: Now in the United States, festivities are taking place across the country as people celebrate Independence Day. Coming up, we'll take a look at some of the dazzling and colorful bursts up in the air.
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ABDELAZIZ: The United States turned 249 yesterday and put on a big show to celebrate Independence Day. Fireworks illuminated the National Mall in Washington, D.C., drawing large crowds to the nation's capital.
They were joined by president Donald Trump and Melania Trump, who watched the light show from a balcony at the White House. These fireworks were launched from both sides of the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool.
And the champ has made a triumphant return to the Nathan's Famous International Hot Dog Eating Contest. Joey "Jaws" Chestnut dominated the annual July 4th competition in New York on Friday, winning his 17th Mustard Belt.
He devoured 70.5 hot dogs and buns in 10 minutes. The next closest competitor had no chance, downing only 24 fewer hot dogs.
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JOEY CHESTNUT, COMPETITIVE HOT DOG EATER: Oh my gosh, I was nervous. The first couple hot dogs, I was fumbling a little bit but I found a pretty good rhythm. I -- my goal was 70 to 77.
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I really wanted a little bit more. But you know, dude, there's next year and I'm just happy I'm here and happy 4th of July.
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ABDELAZIZ: This 4th of July wasn't just about celebrating the U.S. Two adorable panda sisters in China had a birthday bash of their own. Lotus Flower and Lotus Leaf turned 5 at the Chengdu Research Base.
They enjoyed an icy fruit and veggie cake, bamboo snacks and festive decorations. The playful twins, especially fan favorite Lotus Flower, charm visitors from around the world every single day. Part of Jakarta turned into a life-sized board game on Friday as
hundreds of Indonesian fans stepped into the world of "Squid Game." Fans played real-life versions of the games to celebrate the launch of the show's third and final season on Netflix. Events included a digital jump rope and a high-energy three-legged challenge.
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UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translator): When I came here, I felt nervous because I felt I had to experience the games like the series. I love the "Squid Game" series. That's why I had to be here.
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ABDELAZIZ: The third season of "Squid Game" has become Netflix's biggest TV launch ever, racking up more than 60 million views in just one week.
The South Korean series follows cash-strapped contestants, who took part in deadly survival challenges for a chance to win a fortune.
Thank you so much for joining me. I'm Salma Abdelaziz in London. "WORLD SPORT" is next. And there's more CNN NEWSROOM with Kim Brunhuber in Atlanta in about 15 minutes.
