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Authorities Released Footage of the Actual Shooting Happened when Charlie Kirk was Killed; More than 300 South Koreans Detained by ICE Returned Home. Aired 3-4a ET

Aired September 12, 2025 - 03:00   ET

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

[03:00:00]

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UNKNOWN (voice-over): This is CNN Breaking News.

BRIAN ABEL, CNN CORRESPONDENT AND ANCHOR: I'm Brian Abel in Washington, D.C. Let's get straight to our breaking news.

More than a day after conservative activist Charlie Kirk was shot dead at a university event, authorities have yet to identify the gunman. But they do have images of a suspect, and they are asking for the public's help in naming him.

Surveillance footage shows him wearing a baseball cap. You see some of these images here, jeans and a dark shirt emblazoned with an American flag. And then on his feet, convert-style shoes with a white sole.

And the FBI is offering up to $1000 for information leading to the shooter's identification and arrest. Officials say he used a high- powered rifle to fire from the rooftop of a nearby building. And here we see video of the man on that roof, dropping to the ground, then moving across some grass and a parking lot, eventually making his way into a wooded area.

Utah's governor says the killer, when caught, could be subject to capital punishment.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GOV. SPENCER COX (R-UT): We've been working with our attorneys, getting everything that we need, affidavits ready, so that we can pursue the death penalty in this case. And that will happen here in the state of Utah.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ABEL: And CNN's Ed Lavandera has been closely following this investigation and reports from Orem, Utah.

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ED LAVANDERA, CNN SR. U.S. NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: We are now into day two of the massive manhunt to find the killer of conservative political activist Charlie Kirk here on the campus of Utah Valley University. The shooting happened Wednesday afternoon, and there is still no clear indication that authorities are any closer to finding out who this suspect is or where he might be.

We were told earlier in the day that there were rapidly changing developments, and gave us the impression that perhaps there might be some breakthrough in finding out who this person is and whether or not he had been taken into custody. But this press conference that was delayed some eight hours did not give us that kind of clarity and information. So we are left with new information and new details and evidence that authorities are releasing in hopes that people will see these pictures and it will force them and inspire them to call the FBI tip line and the state police tip line here in Utah.

So I'll walk you through some of this new video evidence. Authorities here releasing video of this suspect walking across the rooftop, they believe that the gunman used to get the vantage point on Charlie Kirk as he was speaking with students in this courtyard area of the campus. You can see the suspect running across the building and then getting to the edge and hoisting himself down and dropping to the ground from the top of the rooftop there and then confidently and casually walking away toward the street, and that's where the video cuts off.

And there are also a number of enhanced still pictures showing the gunman with jeans, a black shirt, a hat, and they're hoping that people will recognize this and call it in in hopes that this will lead to identifying who this suspect is. But what is interesting is that the video does cut off as the suspect heads off onto the eastern edge of the campus into this neighborhood where authorities found in a wooded area on the edge of this neighborhood the rifle that was used to kill Charlie Kirk. That is being processed and analyzed and there's also a great deal of focus on that neighborhood because in that area it appears that that gave the suspect the cover and the ability to escape from the shooting location as thousands of other students started to run away from the shooting scene as well.

But the major headline here in Utah tonight is that they have released these new video images and they're hoping that someone in the public will see this and that it will trigger some sort of identification of this suspect as the manhunt for this killer continues.

Ed Lavandera, CNN, in Utah.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ABEL: Officials in Utah briefed the public late Thursday on where this investigation stands. Utah's governor stressing the importance of getting help from the public. Take a listen.

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COX: This case also highlights the dedication of our law enforcement community. We have 20 federal, state, and local law enforcement partners that are working shoulder to shoulder to find the person who committed this horrific crime. With their support, we've completed nearly 200 interviews.

[03:05:01]

As you're aware, as has already been reported, the FBI is offering a $100,000 reward for information leading to the identification and arrest of the person responsible for the murder of Charlie Kirk. We also continue to implore the public to support this investigation and come forward with any information. We are truly hopeful that this video and new photos will lead to even more tips.

We are processing, we have an incredible team, a state and federal team working together to process those tips. We are going out in tandem to interview any potential person of interest or suspects, but we need, again, we need as much help as we can possibly get. There is a lot of forensic evidence that is being processed right now at both the state lab and federal labs on the east coast.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ABEL: Now, just before he was shot, Kirk was asked a question about transgender mass shooters, but that conversation was abruptly ended by the fatal gunshot.

Hunter Kozak, a student at Utah Valley University who asked Kirk that question, is now speaking out in a video shared with CNN, and stressing that while he does not agree with Kirk's views, violence is not the answer.

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HUNTER KOZAK, WITNESS: It's a tragedy, and I don't, it's hard to grapple with, and I'm part of a community that's struggling to grapple with it right now. And people have obviously pointed to the irony that I was, the point that I was trying to make is how peaceful the left was right before he got shot.

And that, that only makes sense if we stay peaceful. As much as I disagree with Charlie Kirk, I'm on the record for how much I disagree with Charlie Kirk, but like, man, dude, he is still a human being. Have we forgotten that?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ABEL: I want to bring in now National Security Analyst Arif Halaby, who is also a crime crisis analyst and a friend of Charlie Kirk. So first I do want to offer my condolences to you, sir.

We just heard from a witness there. Investigators are saying they can't do their job without the public's help. Yet we also know there are some elements of this investigation that are not being released to the public.

So can you walk us through the calculations there and what you believe is happening right now? What investigators are doing to try and find this person? ARIF HALABY, NATIONAL SECURITY AND CRIME CRISIS ANALYST, AND FRIEND OF

CHARLIE KIRK: Yes, there's some massive DNA databases. And Brian, I appreciate you having me here.

Those databases are going to be utilized to track DNA, touch DNA they call it, fingerprints that are left as well as DNA on the bullets, on the casings. There was some writing, reportedly there was some transgender writing and some anti-fascist writing on the bullets and potentially even on the rifle.

One of the things, Brian, that I don't hear a lot of people talking about is the potential collapsibility of this. If we were to watch this suspect walk through with a backpack, a rifle doesn't just fit in that backpack, but there are makers of collapsible rifles that would be folded down, put directly into that backpack and dropped off later. And so the putting together and taking apart of that collapsible rifle should also leave a DNA, and I think authorities are looking at all of that.

ABEL: Arif, there are so many cameras around in this modern age, right? And that's led to the suspected shooter's movements being able to be tracked by investigators, at least to a certain point. He is still out there somewhere.

So what roadblocks, what challenges are investigators facing right now trying to find him?

HALABY: Well, this just wasn't an assassination attempt and hence successful assassination attempt on a good man who was just trying to bridge the left and right with ideas.

You know, Charlie Kirk was not a right-wing anything. He was a conservative and that's a difference. It's interesting how many in the media will say progressives, but then when they refer to conservatives, they go right-wing, they don't say conservatives.

So there's always this demonization across the board. So why did this person attempt to kill and hence succeed in a public venue like this? There are plenty of times that you could have killed Charlie Kirk if that was your goal.

But if your goal was to put the fear of God and the fear of life into every conservative and those that supported Charlie Kirk, I think you would do it in a public venue where you knew there was cameras, you knew there were people with their iPhones and video phones and cell phone coverage everywhere.

So this person is not afraid of being caught. That's why they would write on the bullets. I mean, you understand they expected someone else to find that, they didn't just write it for themselves.

ABEL: Yes, I do want to pull from your security background a little bit and ask you this. You've seen the setup for this event. It's a college campus, security around Kirk as well.

[03:10:04] But with an event like this, where does the onus fall on for wider security, that perimeter security? Is this something that is up to organizers of events like this one? Is it a university? Is it local police departments? What insight can you share on that?

HALABY: Well, the men that are around Charlie Kirk, I've met them many times over the years, and they are very well trained, very well armed, and succeeded in their ability to protect Charlie over the years with minor incidents. This was not an expected method of assassination, although maybe in hindsight it should have been.

There's no presidential level security where there's counter snipers on rooftops, where there's welding of manhole covers and removal of mailboxes. It's not that type of event, and Charlie was not that level of a security threat to the public in the sense that they would have to change their lifestyle because the president is coming to town.

Charlie was simply a person who had ideas, and those ideas, listen, this is very important, the ideas are what scared people. Not him as a person, he never raised a hand to anybody. He just said, I will pray for you. His faith was in Christ, period.

You don't have to like that, this is not a discussion of left and right. This is a discussion of good and evil, and I think we saw that come to bear on 9-10-2025.

ABEL: Arif, you knew Charlie Kirk personally. What would you like people to remember about him beyond what the public saw?

HALABY: Yes, that his number one goal in life was to honor Jesus Christ, his Lord and Savior. I didn't become a believer until I was 18, so for me, I had a younger life of not being a believer, and Charlie didn't quite have this exact same childhood, but look, Charlie, his father built Trump Tower and was the architect, was the builder, if you will, for many of Mr. Trump's properties, and so Charlie grew up around President Trump, grew up around power, influence, and success, and he cared deeply about this nation.

First, his faith in God. Second, the nation and his family, and that was very important because why would you step out and speak to young students, to young men, and ask them to stand courageous?

I took that from him, even though I might be two decades older than him. His ability to be courageous was something that I hope every young man will carry with them, courageous in their faith, courageous in their belief, unabashedly ashamed, unashamed of being a man and being somebody who stood up for their family. I think Charlie would be honored by that.

ABEL: Arif Halaby, thank you again for being with us, and again, our thoughts are with you and all of those who are close to Charlie Kirk.

HALABY: Thank you. Thanks, Brian.

ABEL: As the investigation continues, we are getting new insight into some of the clues left behind at the crime scene. CNN's Chief Law Enforcement and Intelligence Analyst, John Miller, explains.

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JOHN MILLER, CNN CHIEF LAW ENFORCEMENT ANALYST: This won't particularly aid in identifying the person. Now, there's always the possibility that you could extract DNA if you had an ungloved hand off of there, but it does help establish the crime, the place where the crime took place. When they get a suspect, you know, the measurements may help, but the big deal today is they have a gun.

The gun is likely connected to the crime. The bullet that was fired from that gun came from a shell casing that remained in the chamber. He never, after seeing that shot, ejected the shell casing.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ABEL: Flags are at half-staff at the White House as the Trump administration mourns Charlie Kirk. We'll look at how he's being honored there, next.

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ABEL: The U.S. President says authorities are making big progress in the Charlie Kirk murder investigation and announced that he plans to attend the conservative activist's funeral. CNN's Kristen Holmes brings us more reaction from the White House.

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KRISTEN HOLMES, CNN SR. WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: The White House is still reeling after the assassination of Charlie Kirk. All eyes on the investigation, trying to get answers.

We talked to a number of people within the White House who said they're monitoring every move that the FBI makes, every piece of this investigation incredibly closely, but part of them is still in disbelief. We talked to advisors who talked about how difficult the last two days have been, some of them moving from sadness to anger.

During an interview with Scott Jennings, the chief of staff, Susie Wiles, said this about Charlie's death.

SUSIE WILES, WHITE HOUSE CHIEF-OF-STAFF: Charlie was very much a part of this family and maybe the highest profile MAGA person outside of those that are working here. So I think it shook everybody to their core.

I called everybody in before they went home last night and said, go home, hug your children, hug your spouse. Be careful. Take precautions and don't let your voice get softer.

HOLMES: And on Thursday, Vice President J.D. Vance canceled his plans to go to New York for a commemoration of 9/11, instead going to Utah to meet with Charlie Kirk's family. He was a close personal friend of Kirk's, of his family, and then take Kirk's remains back to Arizona. Charlie Kirk is based in Arizona.

[03:19:58]

A very powerful video scene of J.D. Vance carrying the casket, loading it onto Air Force Two before that plane took off and headed to Arizona for Charlie Kirk's final resting place.

Kristen Holmes, CNN, the White House.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ABEL: For more on this, let's bring in Mark Shanahan, associate professor of politics at the University of Surrey.

And Mark, in some of the more high profile political and emotional flashpoints in American history, as you know, we've seen unifying speeches from presidents, such as George W. Bush, for example, following 9/11, where he also urged the public to not direct vitriol blanketly, specifically Muslims who are being harassed, to put it lightly.

We haven't yet heard a speech speaking to our better angels from President Trump. Absent that, it appears the political temperature has gone the opposite direction of down. What does this, all of this, say about where we are as a country right now?

MARK SHANAHAN, ASSOCIATE PROF. OF POLITICS, UNIVERSITY OF SURREY: I think America is at an inflection point at the moment. And as you say, rather than call for calm and try and bring the country together, if anything, the President's immediate remarks after Charlie Kirk's death were ratcheting things up.

It was blaming the radical left, it was making Charlie Kirk a martyr for the rights. And that's not about unity. So the next few days now are crucial in how people react to this.

Do we get some more balm, some more soothing words coming from the White House? Do we get some sensible heads who are thinking rationally rather than acting emotionally? And how does that impact people across the country, where there are 300 million legal firearms, which most people use most of them very responsibly, but clearly some people don't.

This would not have happened in many other Western democracies. We have a big knife problem where I am in the U.K., but if you'd put a knife in the hand of that assassin 150 feet away from the victim, Charlie Kirk would still be alive.

But now is the time for politicians, for spokespeople to come out and to try and calm the situation, because America is a tinderbox.

ABEL: I do want to explore solutions a little bit more. First, how do we arrive here? Is there anything you see that can realistically be done, given the hyper-partisanship of our country, to pull us back, whether it be policy or dialogue?

SHANAHAN: It's an awful long time since you had a president who really reached across the aisles and tried to govern in a bipartisan manner. We don't have that at the moment, we have lost all nuance from debate.

You're probably looking back as far as Eisenhower before you've got that hands-across-the-aisles style of government, and the country has moved on hugely since then. The rhetoric is very extreme, and our politicians need to start toning that rhetoric down, not to be calling out enemies all the time. The United States is not at war, it is not a civil war.

Things like renaming the Department of Defense the Department of War just emphasizes the anger and emphasizes potential destruction, and we have this awful situation of Kirk's death where discourse just moved to destruction in a moment. It needs a lot of calm hands, calm voices, but talking to young people particularly about how we need to bring nuance back into the debate, that it's about listening to the other side far more than immediately shouting them down. We have a real problem with social media where people just exist within their bubbles, within their echo chambers.

A lot of the tech bros running these huge social media platforms have an awful lot to answer for in fanning the flames, and one wonders if they thrive because they do fan the flames. So there is something quite fundamental that needs to happen in the country about bringing people together to listen. Listen first, then you can talk and discuss afterwards.

ABEL: Well, Charlie Kirk was certainly someone who brought young voters of a particular ideology together at minimum. Does that get disrupted now that he's been killed? How will the concept of bringing young voters to a party, to a cause, continue in his absence?

[03:24:58]

SHANAHAN: I suspect that Turning Point will never be more popular than in the coming months. There will be people, I am sure, who will step up to the cause. It would not surprise me at all if his widow steps up and takes on the mantle of leadership there.

What Turning Point did was start some of these conversations. Okay, often in a confrontational way, quite often using disinformation, very much tied to the Trump cause.

Maybe it will evolve now to be more of a discourse. The voices of the right need an organization to coalesce around. But it's now breaking across the walls and also talking to liberal students, school kids, the kind of audiences it was trying to reach before, but perhaps widening that message and just engaging in the whole dialogue rather than a series of angry monologues.

ABEL: All right, Mark Shanahan, really appreciate your time. Thank you for being with us, sir.

SHANAHAN: Thank you. ABEL: Well we now know the name of one of the two victims of Wednesday's school shooting in Colorado. The family of Matthew Silverstone says the 18-year-old was injured in the violence at Evergreen High. At last check, he and another student are in critical condition in local hospitals.

Also Thursday, authorities identifying the shooter as 16-year-old Desmond Holley. They say he carried ammunition with him on the school bus and roamed the campus shooting out windows and lockers, officials believe locked classrooms prevented Holley from hurting more students. They said Holley appeared to have been, quote, "radicalized by some extreme network."

And politicians continue to speak out in the wake of a deadly shooting of Charlie Kirk. Just ahead, where a U.S. senator says she expects to see more security added after recent violence against political figures.

Plus, some young conservatives in the U.S. say Charlie Kirk's shocking assassination is making them worry about the future. Hear what they have to say coming up on "CNN Newsroom."

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[03:30:00]

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ABEL: Welcome back to "CNN Newsroom." I'm Brian Abel. Let's check today's top stories.

Officials in Utah are urging the public to help track down Charlie Kirk's killer. They have released these new photos of the suspect, but authorities say they have no idea whether the suspect is still in Utah or across state lines. Kirk, a prominent conservative political activist, was gunned down during an event Wednesday at Utah Valley University.

Former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro was convicted Thursday for attempting to overturn the country's 2022 presidential election. Prosecutors say the former president's coup attempt involved plans to assassinate then-president-elect Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva in a bid to cling to power. Bolsonaro was sentenced to 27 years and three months in prison.

Qatar's Prime Minister will meet U.S. President Donald Trump on Friday, a source tells CNN. The Prime Minister is clarifying his country will continue its diplomatic work towards peace in Gaza, despite recent Israeli strikes in Qatar's capital. Those strikes targeted Hamas leaders, killing six people.

Alright, back to our breaking news in Utah, where a manhunt is underway after the fatal shooting of Charlie Kirk. New video obtained by CNN shows a person matching the description and images of the suspect, you see him here, walking on a residential street before the shooting. CNN has geolocated the video to a neighborhood near the Utah Valley

University campus. The person in the video appears to pause at a tree here before turning and walking toward the university.

Investigators also shared this new video Thursday night. They say it shows a suspect, at the top of your screen there, running across the roof of a school building and heading into a wooded area. The FBI is offering up to $100,000 for information leading to the shooter's identification and arrest.

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COX: We cannot do our job without the public's help right now. The public has answered our call for action so far. We've received more than 7000 leads and tips.

(END VIDEO CLIP0

ABEL: U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar was asked about the recent violence targeting political figures, including the killing of political activist Charlie Kirk and the killing of her friend, Minnesota State Representative Melissa Hortman. Here's what she told CNN's Anderson Cooper.

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SEN. AMY KLOBYCHAR (D-MN): I think you've got to look at each situation. Oftentimes we go to events that aren't as publicized as the one you saw in Utah, and I believe those will still most likely go on, political events.

[03:35:06]

But some of these very big planned events, they're just going to have to do much bigger security sweeps on both sides of the aisle. Everyone should want that. I know we've seen members of Congress, the threats against members of Congress, go from 1000 to 9000 in one year and this is before all of this happened.

We've seen the attempted assassination on Donald Trump. And so as we await and stand by our law enforcement as they go on this manhunt for this madman, we do have to remember not just what happened here, which was horrific, but that this is going on in other places.

And it is time for people to, yes, engage in civil dialogue, as your last guest just talked about, but it's also time to look at what's online and what the triggers are for these people.

And in some cases, how they got the guns, should they have gotten the guns. But in other cases, what are they reading? And why is that stuff all on the platforms? And why is it not a trigger for us to realize that these people are very dangerous?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ABEL: Authorities have not publicly named the suspect in Kirk's assassination, nor have they publicly shared a possible motive for the killing. But in this era dominated by social media, some on the right say the killing of a conservative activist will push more people to radicalization and divisive politics. CNN's Elle Reeve reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SEAN MCCROSSEN, YOUNG CONSERVATIVE: I didn't want to see that video, it just kind of popped up on my timeline on X. I mean, it was horrific. It was the worst thing you can imagine and seeing that was really devastating.

ELLE REEVE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Young conservatives are in shock at the apparent assassination of Charlie Kirk.

RYAN LEONARD, YOUNG CONSERVATIVE: I take no pleasure in thinking this way, but things might be about to get a lot worse.

REEVE (voice-over): They were drawn in by the way Kirk mixed it up with ideological opponents on college campuses.

CHARLIE KIRK, POLITICAL ACTIVIST AND CO-FOUNDER OF TURNING POINT USA: Your life began not at birth, but at conception, about nine months before your birth.

UNKNOWN: That's your opinion.

KIRK: If I wear blackface and I don't become black, why does a man who wears a dress become a woman?

MADISON CAMPBELL, YOUNG CONSERVATIVE: It was because of his quick wit. His debate style was much different than anyone really in the conservative movement had.

REEVE (voice-over): The 31-year-old founder of Turning Point U.S.A inspired young conservatives to forcefully defend their beliefs, even when outnumbered.

CHRISTOPHER BRAY, YOUNG CONSERVATIVE: I think seeing someone that was willing to stand up to huge crowds at liberal schools was really powerful. Going to a liberal arts college in New York City, in Manhattan, of all places, it can be very difficult to navigate what you can and can't talk about.

LEONARD: It was just this place where I felt like I could be free, and some of my closest friends in my life I met at these events.

REEVE (voice-over): It's hard to escape, especially in alternative media. The members of the MAGA movement who are now talking about war --

UNKNOWN: We're in a war.

REEVE (voice-over): -- good versus evil, and an American tipping point.

DONALD TRUMP, U.S. PRESIDENT: This kind of rhetoric is directly responsible for the terrorism that we're seeing.

STEVE BANNON, FORMER TRUMP AIDE: Charlie Kirk's a casualty of war.

War in this country.

CAMPBELL: There is political violence on both sides, and political violence on both sides is equally reprehensible.

MCCROSSEN: I think people are going to become a lot more radical. I think that goes without saying. Whether that's a good thing or a bad thing, you could determine, but people are upset.

REEVE (voice-over): These young conservatives saw Kirk as a moderate, and are unsettled that someone with his views would be killed.

LUCIAN WINTRICH, NEW YORK REPUBLICAN CLUB: For somebody who I personally consider kind of a normie conservative to be murdered, to be assassinated for those views, we're all struggling to process it.

CAMPBELL: The next person who starts to take his place is going to be much more far right. Because in order to do that, you have to almost be willing to die for your opinion.

I think that is, in a way, beautiful. It's a martyrdom, which is beautiful, to die for your beliefs.

REEVE (voice-over): Elle Reeve, CNN, New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ABEL: The National Football League paying tribute to Charlie Kirk with a moment of silence ahead of Thursday's matchup between the Green Bay Packers and the Washington Commanders.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNKNOWN (voice-over): The National Football League asks that you please join us in a moment of silent reflection following the murder of Charlie Kirk.

The NFL condemns all violence in our communities. It will take all of us to stop hate. Thank you.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ABEL: The New York Yankees also holding a moment of silence on Wednesday when they played the Detroit Tigers.

Well hundreds of South Koreans detained by ICE have just returned home. Still to come, why the immigration raid in Georgia triggered tensions between the U.S. and a key ally.

[03:40:00]

Plus, Israel's Prime Minister makes a move that could deal a major blow to the future of a Palestinian state. We'll explain. Stay tuned. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ABEL: More than 300 South Korean nationals detained in a U.S. immigration raid are now back home. A special Korean Air chartered flight carried the workers back from the U.S.

[03:45:02]

They were detained during an ICE raid at a plant under construction in the state of Georgia, it was being built as a joint venture between South Korean giants L.G. Energy Solution and Hyundai. The raid triggered an outcry from South Korea, a key U.S. ally, and raised questions about foreign investment in the U.S.

CNN's Mike Valerio is live at South Korea's Incheon International Airport with more on this now that these folks are back home. Mike.

MIKE VALERIO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Brian, buddy, I got to tell you, it was quite moving to see not just one or two, but more than 300. We're talking about 316 now-former ICE detainees coming back home on their road back to freedom, back with their families.

We're going to roll the video with the proviso, the addendum, that this video is blurred because nobody has been charged with a crime here. Privacy regulations are quite strict in South Korea.

So what you're seeing, certainly people's legs and also quite striking. Just look at this. You're used to seeing people with their huge luggage, fancy luggage cases, especially here in this beautiful city of Incheon in Seoul, South Korea.

It was so incredible to see people age range from 20s to 50s, engineered professional scientists and people who are trying to make American manufacturing and ingenuity great again with just knapsacks. All of their possessions in plastic bags, courtesy of the United States government. So striking and indelible image of the day.

And this begs the question, Brian, for industries here in South Korea that want to invest in the United States. They're going to be thinking about this. No question.

God forbid this ever happens to their workers in the future.

And the President of South Korea spoke to that yesterday. Let's listen to what he said.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

LEE JAE-MYUNG, SOUTH KOREAN PRESIDENT (through translator): From the perspective of companies, they will be concerned about disadvantageous treatment or facing difficulties when they're building factories in the United States. That could probably have a significant impact on direct investment in the U.S. in the future.

(END VIDEO CLIP) VALERIO: And we want to go to some video from about an hour ago. Dramatic displays of outcry here at Incheon International Airport. It had been a subdued mood, but a guy about an hour ago unfurls a tall banner, probably twice my height, with a person who's supposed to be somebody who works for ICE with a smiling Donald Trump mask. And says, we're friends, aren't we?

That, Brian, is to give you an idea of the undercurrent of betrayal that is felt by so many people. Because when you are asked to invest to help American manufacturing to be handcuffed because of visa problems, that has been met with dismay across the country.

Now, before we go, I want to go to some reporting that our super producer here in Seoul, Yoon Jung-seo, just mailed us. She spoke with a mother of an engineer, 38 years old, from Gyeongju; it's about a two-hour drive south of here.

And the mother says this, it is relief most of all, I could not smile before, but now that he's back, I can. Maybe in the future, it will be okay for him to go back to America again. But for now, I don't want to send him back to the U.S.

For today, what's most important is for him to go home and rest. I think that so many people across Korea, Brian, will take a pause. But those questions about business investment still linger, Brian.

ABEL: And that is something, Mike, that should not be lost in all of this is the humanity of it all, and quite the striking observations, seeing those passengers without the usual luggage. Mike Valerio at Incheon Airport. Thank you.

Well, the United Kingdom's ambassador to the U.S. has been fired over ties to the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. Recently, a group of U.S. lawmakers released a birthday book, which was compiled in 2003 for Epstein's 50th birthday. It included a note written by Peter Mandelson, calling Epstein, quote, "my best pal."

CNN's Clare Sebastian has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CLARE SEBASTIAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, we've seen days of mounting criticism of Mandelson's relationship with Epstein leading up to this decision after a series of revelations this week.

First, the documents released by the House Oversight Committee on Monday contained a 2003 letter from Mandelson as part of a birthday book, describing Epstein as, quote, "my best pal." But the clinching factor was the emails obtained in a Bloomberg investigation released on Wednesday, revealing that Mandelson showed support for Epstein after he pleaded guilty for soliciting prostitution from a minor in 2008. "I think the world of you, and I feel hopeless and furious about what has happened," Mandelson wrote in one of those emails.

Now, the British Foreign Office said in a statement on Thursday, the emails show the depth and extent of Peter Mandelson's relationship with Jeffrey Epstein is materially different from that known at the time of his appointment.

[03:50:05]

Now, the strong sense is that Mandelson had hoped to keep his job despite this, he did not heed calls to resign. And in a long interview on a British podcast on Wednesday, Mandelson clearly tried to get ahead of this, saying he deeply regretted his relationship with Epstein.

PETER MANDELSON, FORMER U.K. AMBASSADOR TO THE UNITED STATES: I regret very much that I fell for his lies. I fell and accepted assurances that he had given me about his indictment, his original criminal case in Florida. Like very many people, I took at face value what he said.

SEBASTIAN: But it wasn't enough. Just seven months in, he's now leaving arguably the most consequential posting in the British diplomatic service. It's the third time in his long and turbulent political career that he's had to leave a post over a scandal, and it comes at a delicate moment for the U.S.-U.K. relationship.

President Trump himself, under scrutiny for his past relationship with Epstein, something he calls a dead issue, is expected here in the U.K. in just six days' time on a state visit. It's part of a major effort by the British prime minister to cement ties with the Trump administration, and one that he won't want overshadowed.

Clare Sebastian, CNN, London.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ABEL: Clare, thank you.

Prince Harry has made a surprise trip to Kyiv, sources familiar with the matter tell CNN. The Duke of Sussex visited with a team from his Invictus Games Foundation.

The Invictus Games is a sporting event for wounded military veterans. Prince Harry is expected to unveil initiatives for rehabilitating wounded soldiers in Ukraine.

News of the trip was broken by "The Guardian" newspaper, which said it accompanied the Duke on the train to Kyiv. "The Guardian" said he visited after an invitation from the Ukrainian government.

Israel's Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, is vowing that there will be no Palestinian state. He made the pledge while signing a document on Thursday that commits Israel to expanding its West Bank settlements, including through its so-called E1 plan, it makes a contiguous Palestinian state virtually impossible, because it splits the West Bank and separates it from East Jerusalem.

Palestinians want East Jerusalem as their future capital. Various nations have previously criticized the E1 plan. The European Union's foreign policy chief says it further undermines the two-state solution; some Western countries are also preparing to recognize the Palestinian state later this month. It's all happening as Qatar's Prime Minister will meet U.S. President

Donald Trump later today, that's according to a person familiar with the plans. The meeting comes a day after the U.N. Security Council condemned an Israeli strike this week in Qatar's capital, which targeted Hamas leaders.

Qatar's Prime Minister told the council that his nation will not stop its diplomatic work towards peace in Gaza despite that strike, while the U.S. ambassador to the U.N. said the strike didn't advance either Israel's or U.S. goals. Hamas says Israel went after its leaders just as they were discussing their response to the latest U.S. fire proposal.

Paula Hancocks is following all of these developments, and she joins us from Abu Dhabi live now.

Paula, what are you able to tell us about the meeting between Qatar's prime minister and U.S. President Donald Trump? Because it comes at a tumultuous time right now for ceasefire negotiations.

PAULA HANCOCKS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Brian, it does come at a time when we saw the United States in the U.N. Security Council agreeing with the rest of the members when it came to condemning Tuesday's attack. In the past, we have seen a number of times where the U.S. has vetoed a resolution supporting Israel. But on this particular occasion, it put its name towards the condemnation as well.

We have seen from the U.S. President Donald Trump, he has said he's not happy at all about Tuesday's attack. Clearly, in this meeting later today, we would expect some assurances from the U.S. President to the Qatari Prime Minister and Foreign Minister that this will not be allowed to happen again.

Now, we did hear from the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations. She did agree with the U.S. President, but she was always also trying to walk a fairly delicate line. Let's listen to what she said.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DORTHY SHEA, U.S. AMBASSADOR TO THE UNITED NATIONS: Unilateral bombing inside Qatar, a sovereign nation working very hard and bravely taking risks alongside the United States to broker peace, does not advance Israel's or America's goals. That said, it is inappropriate for any member to use this to question Israel's commitment to bringing their hostages home.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[03:55:03]

HANCOCKS: Israel doubling down, though, their ambassador to the U.N. saying either Qatar expels these Hamas members and brings them to justice or Israel will. Brian?

ABEL: All right, Paula Hancocks in Abu Dhabi for us. Paula, thank you. And thank you all so much for joining us. I'm Brian Abel in

Washington, D.C. Our breaking news coverage of the manhunt and the murder of Charlie Kirk continues in just a moment right here on CNN.

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