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Manhunt Ongoing For Shooter Who Murdered Charlie Kirk; House Speakers Calls For Civility, End To Political Violence; Lawmakers React To Death Of Activist Charlie Kirk; Trump Family and White House React to Charlie Kirk's Killing; Manhunt Ongoing for Shooter Who Murdered Charlie Kirk; Interview with Qatari PM; Police President Speaks with Trump after Russian Drone Incursion; Protests Hit France as New PM Takes Office. Aired 1-2a ET

Aired September 11, 2025 - 01:00   ET

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

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is CNN Breaking News.

OMAN JIMENEZ, CNN HOST: Welcome to the CNN Newsroom, everyone. I'm Omar Jimenez.

Right now, a manhunt is ongoing in Utah for the person who shot and killed conservative activist Charlie Kirk. Really, a brazen attack on a university campus that's left people on both sides of the political aisle shaken. The 31-year-old Kirk was a hugely successful Republican youth organizer. He created the nonprofit Turning Point USA in 2012, a group that President Trump has credited as a major factor in his reelection to the White House last year.

Now, Kirk had been invited to speak at Utah Valley University on Wednesday, an event that drew hundreds of his supporters. And he was responding to a question about mass shooters when a single gunshot rang out. And I want to play you the moments leading up to the shooting, but I want to warn you, this video is disturbing.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Do you know how many transgender Americans have been mass shooters over the last 10 years?

CHARLIE KIRK, CO-FOUNDED THE CONSERVATIVE ORGANIZATION TURNING POINT USA IN 2012: Too many.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The number is five, okay. Now, five is a lot, right? I'm going to give you -- I'm going to give you some credit. Do you know how many mass shooters there have been in America over the last 10 years?

KIRK: Counting or not counting gang violence?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Great.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

JIMENEZ: So that was the single gunshot. Then you hear the screams afterwards. Afterwards, his body went limp. He appeared to recoil backwards, seemingly shot in the neck. And the FBI is now leading the search for his killer. And officials believe only one person was involved. But authorities are scouring surveillance camera footage and looking for anyone who may have more information about the shooting.

President Trump, meanwhile, condemned the attack as part of a video recorded in the Oval Office.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DONALD TRUMP, U.S. PRESIDENT: This is a dark moment for America. Charlie Kirk traveled the nation joyfully, engaging with everyone interested in good-faith debate. His mission was to bring young people into the political process, which he did better than anybody ever.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

JIMENEZ: Now, authorities briefly detained two people of interest after Kirk was killed before determining they were not involved. Two others who attended the event and witnessed the incident told CNN's Anderson Cooper they didn't see much security around.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

AMY KING, WITNESS:Literally two minutes before I looked around, and I had scanned with the thing, my phone, and there was no security. We were able to walk right in. I had a ticket. Nobody checked my ticket. We were able to go through the door and go through some students and go all the Way down to the front row.

JEREMY KING, WITNESS: Now, I will say, Anderson, I looked over and I watched his security the whole time, scanning the crowd. I know that the guys around him were doing their job.

A. KING: Yes, but he had a lot of security.

J. KING: It feels like other than his immediate security, it was wide open for anyone to go to that event.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

JIMENEZ: I want to bring in CNN's Ed Lavandera, who's in Orem, Utah, and joins us now live. Ed, can you give us a sense of what you're seeing there on the scene? Obviously, it's been quite some time since this happened, but I can see law enforcement presence behind you. Just what are you seeing right now?

ED LAVANDERA, CNN SENIOR U.S. NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, the presence of law enforcement is still rather significant, much of the camp is still cordoned off. If you look here in the distance, those the lights of those buildings, the courtyard area behind those buildings is where the shooting took place earlier today. And if you look there in the distance on the rooftop, you'll see two lights kind of illuminating a peak there one of those buildings. That is the building that is getting a great deal of attention. In fact, here in the last hour, we've seen what appear to be investigators up there with flashlights walking around.

And investigators have said in these that there is somebody who was seen on the rooftop from that particular building that would have had a vantage point down into the courtyard where Charlie Kirk was talking to the people who'd come out here to see him on this campus this afternoon. And in one of those videos, you can see somebody running away just after the shots were fired.

So a great deal of attention being paid to all of that. And the way this campus is situated is, you know, there's a major thoroughfare here and then there's an interstate on the western edge of the campus. So in that chaotic moment after the shooting, it was clearly that the shooter and the suspect was able to slip away.

[01:05:08]

Now, whether or not he was able and how exactly he got away, we do not know at this point. And that is something that investigators are clearly intensely working on at this hour, even into this late hour. But now there have been a number of hours that have passed since all of this, and that just makes it even more difficult to track this suspect down.

But let me walk you through a couple of the details that you alluded to there. In the moments after two people were apprehended or taken into custody and questioned about the shooting, in those chaotic moments after the shot was fired. But both of those people, according to law enforcement authorities, did not have anything to do with the shooting, and they were released. So, you know, very confusing situation in the hours after this as we were watching all of this unfold. But the bottom line is that the suspect is still on the run. And exactly where this goes next is not clear. There are a number of places where, you know, the suspect could theoretically escape to along the interstate or, you know, some other place or maybe, you know, they're close by.

I imagine all of those possible scenarios are the kinds of things that investigators are looking at. Meanwhile, here, the campus has been cordoned off. And you heard from those witnesses talking to Anderson Cooper tonight about the -- what they viewed as the lack of security. According to law enforcement, there were six police officers, campus police officers who were here at the event, plus the private security that came with Charlie Kirk to this number to this event.

And I'll leave it to others to determine whether that was enough for an event of this magnitude. But that's the details and the information that we're getting at this point. But right now, the campus very quiet.

Officials here say they are shocked, they are stunned that all of this happened, and a great deal of concern for a lot of those young people who were very close and witnessed what was a gruesome ending to this event here today when that shot rang out. And so many people had a very up close front view of the horrific scene that unfolded there before them. One witness described, you know, just seeing blood gushing from the

neck of Charlie Kirk. You know, those kinds of images will haunt a lot of these witnesses for many years to come. Omar.

JIMENEZ: I mean, just that single gunshot changing the course of the day and obviously the life of Charlie Kirk and the lives of his families and those that knew him. Ed Lavandera, appreciate the reporting. Thank you for being there.

Meanwhile, Utah's governor joined law enforcement at a briefing on the manhunt late Wednesday and didn't really hold back in describing Kirk's killing.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SPENCER COX, UTAH GOVERNOR: I've been in touch with President Trump, with FBI Director Kash Patel. We are completely aligned with our state and federal partners as we work through this case. Now, this is a dark day for our state. It's a tragic day for our nation. And I want to be very clear that this is a political assassination.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

JIMENEZ: Now, Charlie Kirk's death has reignited calls from lawmakers for an end to political violence. House Speaker Mike Johnson, for example, called on every political figure to push for civil discourse, to resolve disagreements, and to spread that message to their constituents. The House also observed a moment of silence in Kirk's honor. Our Manu Raju has more reaction from Capitol Hill.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MANU RAJU, CNN CHIEF CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: A very emotional House of Representatives in the aftermath of the shooting and murder of Charlie Kirk. Of course, Kirk is aligned with the most conservative members of the House GOP and Senate GOP, given his very conservative politics. But Democrats and Republicans alike, condemning in the strongest possible terms the political violence that we are seeing, really is a trend, an increasing trend here in this country. Whether it was just, even just this summer, two Minnesota lawmakers shot in their homes, but also the assassination in terms of Donald Trump last year, the shooting at a Republican baseball game in the first Trump turn.

Gabby Giffords, a Democratic congresswoman from Arizona, shot during the Obama administration. But also the January 6, 2021. Of course, the violence that we saw here in the Capitol. We're seeing these. These episodes occur time and time again. Now we're hearing more and more lawmakers saying it is absolutely time to stop.

Now, in the aftermath of this, there was rule. There's some fiery moments, including from Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, who was pushing back against some Republicans who are blaming Democratic rhetoric for putting Charlie Kirk in that position. ALEXANDRIA OCASIO-CORTEZ, U.S. HOUSE DEMOCRAT: People can finger point

all they want. Look at the record. Look at the actions of what we are doing. I don't think a single person who has dedicated their entire career to preventing gun safety legislation from getting passed in this House has any right to blame anybody else but themselves for what is happening.

[01:10:11]

When a politician tries to blame words for inaction, they need to look at their action and their record. We like enough of this. This is horrific. This is awful. And the assassination of Charlie Kirk risks an uncorking of political chaos and violence that we cannot risk in America.

RAJU: Now, that came in the aftermath of a pretty heated moment on the House floor involving Congresswoman Anna Paulina Luna, who pushed back against some Democrats who had been objecting to how the speaker of the House was moving forward with the prayer that was about to happen. Luna cursed the Democrats and blamed them for what happened on for Charlie Crook, someone she's actually very close to and credits to recruiting her into politics.

I asked her about that episode on the House floor as she walked off after the votes.

ANNA PAULINA LUNA: Yes, they did cause this. That type of rhetoric, you calling people fascists, you basically saying that we're Nazis taking away people's rights. Charlie Kirk was literally murdered. And you can see that footage online. And I would encourage people instead of sharing that, please share pictures of his family and the legacy that he left.

RAJU: But despite the back and forth, there's a really increasing call for more security for members of Congress. And all these episodes, including calls to increase the amount of money for members of Congress to spend on additional security measures, some members saying that this is something that they are not taking seriously enough, the escalating violence against officials here in the United States. Manu Raju, CNN, Capitol Hill.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

JIMENEZ: All right, thank you, Manu.

Joining me now is CNN senior political analyst Ron Brownstein. He's also an opinion columnist for Bloomberg.

Ron, thank you for being here. I just wonder, you know, we're hours on at this point, just what is your initial reaction to what we have seen in the wake of the shooting, and your initial reaction to the shooting itself?

RON BROWNSTEIN, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST: Yes, I mean, it is a terrible tragedy. No one anywhere, certainly not in the U.S. should be a target of violence for their political views. But it is, unfortunately, a reflection of a larger reality that we are living in. I remember the day after January 6, a senior official in the Trump Department of Homeland Security said to me that we are transitioning into our own American version of the troubles from Northern Ireland, where political violence is much more common, much more of a backbeat to our lives than it had been at any point in our history. And we are seeing horrific events follow together much more closely than in the past.

We have seen dark periods like this before. We've come out of them. Whether it was the assassinations of the late 60s or the many bombings, 2,500 bombings in the U.S. in 1970 and '71, we can get to the other side, but it is not going to be easy. And it really will require an effort from leadership on all sides of the political divides to tone down the rhetoric and tone down the way they think about the other side. But, you know, there's no reason to think that's where we're headed.

JIMENEZ: I mean, what do you make of what, in large part, I'll say in large part has seemed to be condemnation on both sides of the aisle here? Because, look, you can't control what everybody is saying online, including powering certain algorithms and things of that nature. But when you have Gavin Newsom, in a sense, on the same page in many respects as President Donald Trump, I just wonder what you make of what we're seeing in reaction to the shooting from the political space.

BROWNSTEIN: Well, I actually think Trump's an outlier here. So let's come back to that. I mean, Trump's comments tonight were much more as the leader of a faction than the leader of a nation. I mean, I think historically, almost anybody else who has sat in that job through American history would think their responsibility at this moment was to bring the country together.

And Trump just basically channeled some of his version of what you are hearing online. The fury of the Republican base and the conservative base about this happening didn't mention that there are plenty of Democratic targets that have been the target of violence, whether it was the murder of the Minnesota state legislator, or what was aimed at Josh Shapiro and Gretchen Whitmer and the CDC days ago. This is not a problem unique to one side of the political spectrum.

It is that we have crossed some kind of Rubicon where violence is seen by more people. Still obviously a fringe as a way to express political disagreement. And, you know, pulling out of a spiral like that is not easy. And it really requires the investment of all elements of society. And it becomes impossible.

[01:15:21]

If you have the loudest megaphone of all being used to essentially fan the flames by ignoring the comprehensive nature of this and blaming one side and saying that they're the cause of the violence. We all need a way to step back from the brink without diminishing the very real disagreements we have. The question is, do we want to continue to go down this path? Because there is nothing good at the end of it. JIMENEZ: And, you know, as you've talked about, we have seen a number

of attacks on political figures on both sides of the political aisle in recent years. Too many. And we had, we just ran a graphic showing even just some of the folks that were -- that were targeted, that have been targeted as of late.

But I just wonder, how do you characterize where the United States political climate is right now?

BROWNSTEIN: Look, we are in a moment where we are not only deeply polarized as a country, but a large share of the voters on each side view victory for the other as not only kind of the ebb and flow of politics, but an existential threat to their vision of what America has been and should be. And in that environment, there are more people willing to kind of say any means necessary to, you know, advance your cause. It does no one any good to diminish the degree of difference that we have and the degree of disagreement between the two coalitions.

But, you know, as I like to say, in any other aspect of your life, a disagreement is where the conversation starts, not where it ends. I mean, think about the way you deal with your neighbors or your friends or your coworkers or your family members. You know, when you disagree, you find a way to work through it. And, you know, increasingly our politics is not about that. And, you know, ultimately we have to face the question, like, do we want to continue to live together as one country? Because if we do, the path we are on is unsustainable.

And I thought that, as I said that the President's remarks tonight could not have been more out of tune with what the job of what you would expect from your national leader at this moment to try to bring a way, find a way to bring the country together, to express our common and which I think is genuine horror and outrage at this action, and instead to basically view yourself in the smaller role of a factional leader expressing opposition against another group of Americans.

We don't have to live this way, but we have to make a very conscious choice as a society if we are not going to. Because as I said, these are hard cycles to pull out of, Omar.

JIMENEZ: Ron Brownstein, always appreciate the time and insight. Thank you for being here.

BROWNSTEIN: Thanks for having me.

JIMENEZ: And we'll have more on our breaking news coverage of Charlie Kirk's death and how the school where the shooting happened is handling the tragedy. More details ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[01:22:45]

JIMENEZ: Utah Valley University, where Charlie Kirk was killed says it will remain closed until Monday, as the school's vice president says they do not condone any form of violence there. (BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

VAL L. PETERSON, VP OF ADMIN. AND STRATEGIC RELATIONS, UTAH VALLEY UNIV.: On behalf of Utah Valley University, we are shocked and saddened by the tragic passing of Charlie Kirk. We express our sincere condolences to the Kirk family. We agree with our students, faculty, and staff who bore witness to this unspeakable tragedy. He was invited by the student group Turning Point USA to speak on our campus.

We firmly believe that UVU is a place to share ideas and to debate openly and respectfully. Any attempt to infringe on those rights has no place here.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

JIMENEZ: And video recorded after the shooting shows people frantically searching for shelter from the danger. At the very least, where to go next. Kirk was invited to speak by students who are part of the university's Turning Point USA chapter.

Now, President Trump has credited Charlie Kirk with mobilizing the youth vote in the 2024 presidential election. And CNN's Donie O'Sullivan has more on the youth movement that Kirk built.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DONIE O'SULLIVAN, CNN SENIOR CORRESPONDENT: The movement Kirk built was admired on both sides of the political spectrum. And we were at one of his conferences, Turning Point USA's conference in Tampa, Florida, back in July. And here's what one young conservative told us about the importance of what Kirk had built.

DANI BERNECKER, YOUNG CONSERVATIVE: I'm here because I love Turning Point USA. I have a chapter where I'm from, and I. I just love Turning Point USA. I love everything about it.

I love the energy that we bring. I love the fact that we are now becoming, like, we're becoming the cool kids now. Like, for a very long time, especially during the Biden presidency, we were told that we aren't cool anymore. We were defeated, and now we're just -- to be at an event like this is just such a celebration of what we've overcome.

O'SULLIVAN: What Kirk had built was the envy of Democrats. In fact, we reported over the summer how some Democratic activists were finally trying to build an infrastructure in place to try and reach campuses and to reach young voters in the way Kirk had.

So, I mean, even people who vehemently disagreed with Kirk and his political policies still talked about how impressive an organizer and a mobilizer he was for young voters.

[01:25:12]

Did the Democrats have anything like this? ZEE COHEN-SANCHEZ, DEMOCRATIC ORGANIZER, KIRK CRITIC: Nothing. And I

will say, like Charlie Kirk is honestly one of the best organizers of our generation. And I think that, you know, as much as I disagree with Charlie Kirk, I believe that what he's doing has worked and that's why I'm here to replicate what he's doing.

I'm not here to, you know, disrupt Charlie Kirk's events. I'm here to say that there are alternative ideas and that we need to build the same thing that he has because he is good at it.

O'SULLIVAN: I will say, for as crude and as crass and sometimes as heated as these debates often would get, and Kirk was recently featured on South Park, such was his influence in this was that at least there was these debates happening on campuses.

And certainly, the Democrats I spoke to who showed up at these events, they wanted to have that dialogue. They wanted to not just fight online, but actually argue their points back and forth on campus in person. And that's what Kirk allowed them to do.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

JIMENEZ: Donie, appreciate it. We're also following news out of Colorado after a high school shooting in the Denver area on Wednesday. At least two students were injured after a gunman opened fire at Evergreen High School. The suspect, a male student at the school, was taken to the hospital with a self-inflicted gunshot wound, but has since died, according to officials. The tragedy marks the 47th school shooting in the United States this year.

And we're going to have much more on the killing of Charlie Kirk, including reactions from the White House, how the conservative activists became close political allies with President Donald Trump and his family. We'll have those details just ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[01:31:31]

OMAR JIMENEZ, CNN ANCHOR: Welcome back to our viewers all around the world. I'm Omar Jimenez, and you're watching CNN NEWSROOM.

President Trump has ordered all American flags to be lowered to half- staff through Sunday in honor of conservative activist Charlie Kirk after his shooting death on Wednesday. Kirk was an ally and personal friend of the president.

Trump released a four-minute video expressing his grief and anger over Kirk's killing, while blaming as well what he calls the radical left for the latest political violence.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: It's long past time for all Americans and the media to confront the fact that violence and murder are the tragic consequence of demonizing those with whom you disagree day after day, year after year, in the most hateful and despicable way possible.

For years, those on the radical left have compared wonderful Americans like Charlie to Nazis and the world's worst mass murderers and criminals. This kind of rhetoric is directly responsible for the terrorism that we're seeing in our country today and it must stop right now.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

JIMENEZ: To be clear, we've seen levels of political violence aimed at members of both sides of the political aisle. And with this manhunt ongoing, we still don't know the motivations of this particular shooter.

But CNN's Kristen Holmes has more on the reaction from the White House.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KRISTEN HOLMES, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: The White House is mourning the loss of Charlie Kirk, somebody who sources told me President Trump viewed as his own son.

We just saw post -- an emotional post from Don Jr., President Trump's son, saying that Charlie Kirk was like a brother to him. and the thing to keep in mind here, it's not just political for so many of these White House staffers and advisers. It's also familial. It's also personal.

Charlie Kirk was a part of a very small group of loyalists, people who were loyal not only to Donald Trump, but to each other, who helped get Trump elected in 2024. He spent time with these various staffers and advisers with his family.

They say that he was a devoted father, a devoted husband, and he gave up a lot of his time and energy to help President Trump not only get elected, but also to help with his transition, getting the right people -- that they believed were the right people into office, into the cabinet positions with vetting and interviews.

President Trump has said on multiple occasions that he credits Kirk, at least in part, for his 2024 win. Take a listen.

TRUMP: I won the young people by 37 percent. No Republicans ever won, and I won by 37 percent. And Charlie Kirk will tell you, TikTok helped. But Charlie Kirk helped also.

He's done great and I appreciate all the help.

Charlie is fantastic. I mean, this guy == don't believe the stuff -- when you hear the kids are liberal, they're not liberal. Maybe they used to be, but they're not anymore.

I want to express my tremendous gratitude to Charlie Kirk. He's really an amazing guy.

HOLMES: It should be noted that Kirk was one of a small group of people who had a direct line to President Trump. We are told that Trump respected Kirk. Even if Kirk had a difference of opinion, there were many who believed that Kirk had his finger on the pulse of young conservativism of the MAGA movement, even more so than some of the people who serve on Donald Trump's cabinet.

[01:34:53]

HOLMES: This is a dark day talking to these White House officials, to these advisers, to these people who were close to Donald Trump and to Charlie Kirk. For them, this is deeply personal.

Kristen Holmes, CNN -- the White House.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

JIMENEZ: And meanwhile, U.S. first lady, Melania Trump focused on the impact of Kirk -- on Kirk's family in the aftermath of his killing. In a social media post, she said, "Charlie's children will be raised with stories instead of memories, and photographs instead of laughter." That there will be silence where their father's voice should have echoed.

Mrs. Trump also said that Kirk's life should be a reminder that what she called compassionate awareness elevates family life and country.

The governor of Utah is calling Charlie Kirk's death a political assassination. Governor Spencer Cox said Kirk's killing marked a dark day for our state and a tragic day for our nation.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GOV. SPENCER COX (R-UT): We mourn as a nation. If anyone in the sound of my voice celebrated even a little bit at the news of this shooting.

I would beg you to look in the mirror And to see if you can find a better angel in there somewhere. I don't care what his politics are. I care that he was an American.

We desperately need our country. We desperately need leaders in our country. But more than the leaders, we just need every single person in this country to think about where we are and where we want to be. To ask ourselves, is this -- is this it? Is this what 250 years has wrought on us.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

JIMENEZ: The U.S. congressman who represents the district where Charlie Kirk was fatally shot, says he and his constituents will keep speaking their minds despite the dangers.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. MIKE KENNEDY (R-UT): Violence will not silence the people Of the United States of America. Charlie Kirk, he spoke his mind, and under threats he continued to speak his mind. And I find that to be admirable.

And he and I and my constituents will not be intimidated by violence.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

JIMENEZ: Over the years, Charlie Kirk created a new model for political advocacy among conservatives. He blended commentary with get-out-the-vote drives and public gatherings, where he issued an invitation to critics to debate with him.

CNN chief media analyst Brian Stelter looks at how Kirk came to play such a pivotal role in conservative media and politics.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BRIAN STELTER, CNN CHIEF MEDIA ANALYST: "Prove me wrong."

Those are the three powerful words that Charlie Kirk used to promote his events on college campuses, and some of his appearances in his videos on social media.

He invited people to try to prove him wrong. You can see those words actually printed on the tent at the university in Utah, where he was slain on Wednesday. That event was supposed to be the first stop on Kirk's fall semester tour of colleges across the U.S.

There were more than a dozen other tour stops listed on his Web site. And some of them were specifically billed as "prove me wrong" events, where he would encourage people from other ideological backgrounds to come and take him on.

Kirk liked doing these "prove me wrong" events because, as he once told me, he wanted to encourage dialog between people who disagreed with him.

Now, a lot of liberals doubted his intentions in doing so. They thought he was just trying to gain clicks. He was trying to create content for social media. And indeed, the videos of his appearances did oftentimes go viral and helped build his personal brand as well as his nonprofit organization's presence.

Kirk was able to build up Talking Points U.S.A. into one of the most powerful parts of the GOP political advocacy operation and get out the vote operation.

And really, Kirk pioneered a merger between multi-platform media commentary and in-person events and political advocacy on the ground at the grassroots level.

You know, one minute I would see Kirk on Fox News promoting Trump's agenda, the next minute he would be on Instagram encouraging high school students and college students to launch their own chapters of TPUSA. Kirk was many things rolled up in one. He was a TikTok influencer, a

nonprofit leader. He was a radio host and a podcaster and a popular public speaker. And he really did prioritize live events like the one on Wednesday.

In an interview ahead of time with a Utah newspaper, he described his ambitions for his organization going forward.

[01:39:42]

STELTER: He said, quote, "We want to be an institution in this country that is as well-known and as powerful as "The New York Times", Harvard and tech companies. And we believe we are creating that."

It's a tough quote to read now, in light of his death. But it speaks to the ambitions Kirk had at age 31 to try to build the conservative political movement in the U.S. even beyond Trump's four years in office.

Now, of course, both his friends and his rivals and some of his wannabe imitators all speaking out, all testifying to his importance and influence, and how Kirk's death will leave a big void in the conservative advocacy space.

Brian Stelter, CNN.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

JIMENEZ: All right. Brian, thank you.

Coming up, we're going to keep you updated on some other headlines we're following around the world, including Gaza ceasefire talks now in limbo. We're going to have an exclusive interview with the leader of Qatar about whether mediation efforts can continue and what this means for the hostages.

Stay with us.

[01:40:43]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

JIMENEZ: Thursday marks the 24th anniversary of the 9/11 terror attacks on the United States. Memorial services are planned for New York, Washington and Shanksville, Pennsylvania. U.S. President Donald Trump is set to attend a ceremony at the Pentagon in the morning, before traveling up to New York to attend a New York Yankees baseball game. The vice president is set to visit Ground Zero.

Now, in New York, there will be a reading of the names of the victims, along with moments of silence and a tribute to those who are sick or have died as a result of illnesses related to 9/11.

Meanwhile, Israel's strike on Hamas in Doha has left the Gaza ceasefire and hostage release talks really in limbo. Qatar's prime minister is accusing Israel of killing any hope for the hostages, and says the Israeli prime minister has been, quote, "wasting our time with meaningless talks".

A senior Hamas official confirms no one is talking about a cease fire right now, as Benjamin Netanyahu says, countries that quote, "harbor terrorists" must expel them or bring them to justice, because "if you don't, we will". That last part is a quote.

Qatar has confirmed the identity of one of the five Hamas members killed in the attack. He was the director of the office of Hamas' chief negotiator.

And the Qatari prime minister spoke exclusively with CNN's Becky Anderson. Here's part of their conversation.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MOHAMMED ABDULRAHMAN AL THANI, QATARI PRIME MINISTER: It's not only an undermining for our sovereignty and our sovereignty (INAUDIBLE), it's undermining for the entire negotiations, undermining for the U.S. effort. Honestly, I have no words to express how rage we are from such an --

(CROSSTALKING)

BECKY ANDERSON, CNN ANCHOR: If you could describe it in one word, what would that be?

AL THANI: This is state terror. That's what I call it.

ANDERSON: Do you feel betrayed?

AL THANI: We are betrayed, yes.

ANDERSON: By the U.S.

AL THANI: No, I cannot, I cannot say it's by the U.S. The U.S. has expressed in many occasions their support to us.

And by the way, at the same day I was -- I was meeting one of the hostages' family. That morning, the morning of the attack, carrying a message that the families they are counting on this mediation, they have no other hope for that.

And I think what Netanyahu has done yesterday, he just killed any hope for those -- for those hostages.

ANDERSON: Well, in the past hour, he has doubled down on. His position. He has said, and I quote the Israeli prime minister here, "I say to Qatar and to all nations who harbor terrorists," his words, not mine. "You either expel them or bring them to justice, because if you don't, we will."

Do you take that as a threat of further action here?

AL THANI: Well, we don't accept, first of all, such a threat coming from someone like Netanyahu. And he's calling about bring them to justice. He needs to be brought to justice. He's the one who is wanted to the ICC.

ANDERSON: Where are the Hamas members right now? And will you shut down their offices?

AL THANI: Right now, we are reassessing everything about the whole process.

ANDERSON: The future of these talks. At this point, not clear.

AL THANI: I mean, I don't have an answer for this because really, I don't see -- I see a meaningless talk. Right now -- right now what we are doing and I think that I've been rethinking even about the entire process for the last few weeks, that Netanyahu was just wasting our time. He wasn't serious about anything.

There is a collective response that should happen from the region. And this collective response we are hoping for something meaningful that deter Israel from continuing this bullying.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

JIMENEZ: And thank you to Becky Anderson for bringing us that reporting.

Meanwhile, Poland's president says his conversations Wednesday with U.S. President Donald Trump confirmed the NATO allies are united following a Russian drone incursion into Polish airspace. Now, the incident is seen as a significant provocation for Europe and NATO amid Moscow's war on Ukraine.

[01:49:51]

JIMENEZ: And President Trump reacted with a degree of bemusement on social media, writing, quote, "What's with Russia violating Poland's airspace with drones? Here we go," end quote.

Now Poland invoked Article Four of NATO, calling on the alliance to meet to discuss the situation and its next steps as authorities in Poland have identified several of the drones as Russian made or as Russian made versions of the Iranian design Shahed drone. And the investigation is ongoing.

There also were scenes of unrest across France on Wednesday, with protesters in the streets as the new prime minister took office. They're frustrated with the country's political class.

And CNN's Melissa Bell explains why.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MELISSA BELL, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: A day of protests across France that's been called "Let's block everything". Riot police out across the country, some 80,000 police men and women have been put on the streets of France, and already there have been a number of arrests, not just here in Paris, but in many of Frances smaller cities, where a lot of very determined protesters have been trying to get in the way, essentially of the functioning of France and of its economy.

At the heart of a lot of their anger, the political chaos that we've been seeing in France these last few weeks -- we've had the nomination now of a new prime minister. But at the heart of many of these peoples grievances, and a lot of them come from the left of the far left, the fact that they feel that there's a disconnect between the way the government is running the country and their demands.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE PROTESTER (through translator): With the new government, it's sure that won't change things. We are also here to denounce that. But we will continue to protest because it's our only way of denouncing it.

We try petitions. No one listens to us. We try protests. No one listens to us. We come here in the hope that things will change. But do I really have a lot of hope? I don't know.

BELL: What's made it difficult for the police today, the numbers are not huge. What's made it difficult for the police though in many different areas, has been these disparate groups really trying to get in the way of roads functioning or people getting in and out of different parts of cities as they have here, blocked this (INAUDIBLE) area of Paris.

The much bigger day of protests and industrial action, though, threatens to come next week on the 18th of September, when you're likely to see a lot of unions take part as well.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

JIMENEZ: All right. Melissa Bell, thank you.

Two former Democratic presidents have offered their reactions to the death of Charlie Kirk. Joe Biden posted on X, "There is no place in our country for this kind of violence. It must end now."

And Barack Obama echoed that sentiment, saying that while the shooter's motive still isn't known, quote, "This kind of despicable violence has no place in our democracy." Both also offered their thoughts and prayers to Kirk's family.

In many ways, Kirk rewrote the rulebook for how the conservative movement in the United States can reach young voters. He blended his public appearances and political fieldwork with, we'll call it blunt talk on his podcast and TikTok posts.

As Tom Foreman reports, that earned him a lot of praise from President Donald Trump.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KIRK: Taking guns is the beginning of the end of the rest of your freedoms.

Having children is more important than having a good career.

I think that we should put Americans above foreigners.

There's a revival happening in this country right now, Lawrence, and praise God.

TOM FOREMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Combative, clever, energetic and just barely in his 30s, Charlie Kirk was a major link to younger voters for the political right. Praised by President Donald Trump as a key to retaking the White House.

TRUMP: Charlie is fantastic. I mean, this guy -- don't believe the stuff when you hear the kids are liberal. They're not liberal. Maybe they used to be, but they're not anymore.

FOREMAN: Growing up in a Chicago suburb, Kirk took to conservative ideas early, criticizing what he called liberal bias and education, minority hiring practices and more, co-founding the right-wing political group Turning Point U.S.A. and hitting the airwaves while still just a teenager.

KIRK: A lot of kids are feeling the effects of what we like to call, you know what the Washington economy with a lot of debt, plummeting small business with higher regulation and higher taxes.

FOREMAN: When he did not get into West Point, Kirk dropped out of college and turned to political activism with a fury.

KIRK: Universities are not about the pursuit of knowledge. They're about the forceful pushing of a left-wing worldview.

White privilege is a racist myth that is rooted in bigotry, trying to classify people based on their skin color.

If a woman is going to have an abortion, is it 50 percent the man's decision?

FOREMAN: His outspoken ways drew a huge following and fierce opposition.

CROWD: You spread hate. You spread lies. We see Nazis in disguise.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: How do you feel about being called a fascist? What's your opinion?

KIRK: I don't -- I don't care being lied about.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Why is it a lie?

KIRK: Because I'm not a fascist. I believe in a free society.

Let me ask you, who's the fascist? The guy that's smiling in the sun or the 500 people barking, trying to prevent me from speaking.

[01:54:50]

FOREMAN: Through it all, the married father of two, engaged with not just political friends, but also foes, forever spreading a gospel of more.

KIRK: In order to create more conservatives and more people who love the country you need to have the three Ms. Young people need to get married, they need to mate, and get a mortgage. The three Ms are three things the Democrat Party is against.

FOREMAN: It is, of course, now impossible to know what else Charlie Kirk might have done with his life, just as it is unpredictable to determine what the left and right in politics will do in the wake of his death.

Tom Foreman, CNN -- Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

JIMENEZ: All right. Thank you, Tom, for that reporting.

And thank you all for joining me. I'm Omar Jimenez.

I'll be back with more CNN NEWSROOM after this short break.

[01:55:39]

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