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Palestinian Authority President Speaks at the U.N. General Assembly; Zelenskyy Warns of a Most Destructive Arms Race; Jimmy Kimmel's Return Yields High Ratings. Aired 3-4a ET

Aired September 25, 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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CHRISTINA MACFARLANE, CNN CORRESPONDENT AND ANCHOR: Hello and a warm welcome to our viewers joining us from all around the world and to everyone streaming us on CNN Max. I'm Christina MacFarlane, just ahead.

The Palestinian Authority President taking center stage at the United Nations, what we're expecting to see during the General Assembly today.

And Ukraine's President says the world is in the middle of a modern day arms race, what action he's calling for against Russia.

Plus keeping kids safe in the age of the internet is as difficult as ever, how A.I. could be an asset as well as a new risk.

UNKNOWN (voice-over): Live from London, this is "CNN Newsroom" with Christina MacFarlane.

MACFARLANE: In the coming hours, the Palestinian Authority President is expected to deliver a pre-recorded speech to world leaders at the U.N. General Assembly, after the Trump administration refused to grant Mahmoud Abbas a visa to travel to New York for the U.N. meeting. His remarks will come just days after a number of Western countries formally declared their recognition of a Palestinian state, it's part of an effort to revive a two state solution and provide a pathway to peace.

The Trump administration is hopeful for a breakthrough in the Gaza war after promising a 21 point peace plan to regional leaders. The U.S. plan calls for a permanent ceasefire and the release of all hostages and offers a framework for how Gaza can be governed without Hamas. It also includes a proposal for Israel to gradually withdraw from the enclave.

Well regional leaders endorse large parts of the plan, but made suggestions on provisions they want added to it. Their points include increased humanitarian aid to Gaza and no annexation of the West Bank by Israel. They also want to address Israel's illegal settlements. Well meanwhile, Palestinians fleeing Gaza City describe intensifying

Israeli military operations in the area. Israel is pushing its ground offensive deeper into what have been the enclave's most populated city. Hospitals report 92 people were killed throughout Gaza on Wednesday, including 55 people in Gaza City alone.

CNN's Oren Liebermann reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

OREN LIEBERMANN, CNN JERUSALEM BUREAU CHIEF: Even as a number of world leaders at the U.N. General Assembly talk about the importance of bringing a ceasefire to Gaza that would end the war after nearly two years, Israel is continuing to press its assault on Gaza City. The Israeli military chief saying forces will push deeper into the city itself and carry out larger strikes targeting what it sees as one of Hamas's last remaining strongholds.

But we see what's unfolding as a result of these strikes, Gaza hospitals say nearly 100 have been killed on Wednesday, most of those in northern Gaza. Shortly after one in the morning, Gaza's civil defense says an Israeli strike killed 22 people, including nine children in the Firas market in the old city of Gaza City. And we have seen the results of that strike.

Israel's military says they were targeting two Hamas terrorists in that strike, but they did not name who they were targeting or specify the two people that they were targeting in that strike. They also say that they are aware of reports regarding casualties. But their numbers do not align with what we're seeing reported from Gaza's civil defense.

Meanwhile, a drone launched from Yemen struck the Israeli city of Eilat in southern Israel on Wednesday, resulting in at least 22 injuries, according to Israel's emergency responders, including two seriously injured as a result of shrapnel from that strike. Israel has intercepted most of the drones and ballistic missiles launched from the Iran-backed Houthis, but we have seen several in recent weeks pierce Israel's aerial defense and carry out strikes in Israel. So that continues to escalate between Israel and the Houthis.

Oren Liebermann, CNN, in Jerusalem.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MACFARLANE: Well, Italy and Spain are sending ships to help a flotilla that was trying to deliver aid to Gaza when activists say some of the vessels were targeted by drones. Volunteers with the global Sumad flotilla claim the attacks are part of a sustained campaign of intimidation by Israel. The group have been trying to get aid into Gaza using ships sailing from ports across the Mediterranean, the boats were days away from reaching the enclave when the latest reported attacks occurred on Tuesday.

[03:05:05] Israel's foreign ministry says the country would take necessary measures to stop the latest flotilla from reaching Gaza, but would be willing to transfer the aid through the Ashkelon port. It accused organizers of refusing the offer.

Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa is calling for the remaining international sanctions on his country to be lifted, he spoke at the U.N. General Assembly on Wednesday.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

AHMED AL-SHARAA, SYRIAN PRESIDENT (through translator): We restructured civil and military institutions, dissolving all previous formations. Through intensive diplomatic activity, Syria restored its international relations and forged regional and global partnerships and achieved the gradual lifting of most sanctions. And we call now for the complete lifting of sanctions so that they no longer shackle the Syrian people.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MACFARLANE: Well the Syrian leader, a former jihadist who once had a $10 million bounty on his head, also met President Donald Trump during a reception hosted on the sidelines of the event.

Meanwhile, Israel announced for the first time on Wednesday that it's in talks with Syria after reported Israeli cross-border strikes. The U.S. is pushing for a de-escalation agreement between the two countries as the first step towards peace.

Iran's President took to the podium at the U.N. General Assembly on Wednesday and denied his country is seeking nuclear weapons. President Massoud Pezeshkian slammed European nations that are trying to reimpose sanctions on Tehran over nuclear issues. He added that accusations against Iran are often made by those who already have nuclear arsenals.

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MAHMOUD PEZESHKIAN, IRANIAN PRESIDENT (through translator): A future not in pursuit of peace imposed by force, but founded upon strength derived through peace. In such a strong region, slaughter and bloodshed shall find no place. It is for this very reason that my country has for many years been among the staunchest advocates of establishing a region free of weapons of mass destruction.

Yet those who themselves possess the largest nuclear arsenals and who in flagrant breach of the NPT make their weapons even deadlier and more destructive have for years subjected our people to pressures on the basis of spurious allegations.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MACFARLANE: Turning now to somber warnings from Ukraine's President, Volodymyr Zelenskyy told the United Nations that international institutions like the U.N. are weak and so Russia's war in his country is still ongoing. He also says we're living through the most destructive arms race in human history, adding that powerful friends aren't enough, one also needs weapons. But perhaps his strongest warning centered on Russia.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

VOLODYMYR ZELESNKYY, UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT: So Ukraine's main message is this. Do not let war become part of the norm, Russia very much wants to make war the new normal. And this is exactly what we must resist.

Not allowing killings and Russian occupation to become something the world can simply turn a blind eye to. There must be no normalization of Russia's war or of Russia's brazenness to wage it.

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MACFARLANE: Russia's foreign ministry says that during the talks on the sidelines of the summit, Sergey Lavrov told the U.S. Secretary of State that Ukraine's prolonging it. U.S. State Department says Marco Rubio urged Russia to make meaningful steps to end the fighting.

President Zelenskyy also issued a plea to restore international cooperation. CNN's Nic Robertson has more on that message.

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NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: You know, I think that Zelenskyy was speaking to a number of audiences. Obviously, his prime audience is President Trump, another audience will have been the European allies. And as well, he was speaking to the whole room there.

Look, I think, you know, what Zelenskyy is saying here is even with him, and this is what I think I heard, even with powerful friends, it's still not enough unless you have weapons. So I think that was a very clear message to President Trump. I've heard your words that you've been inconsistent and what we need are your weapons.

And from President Trump saying that he's going to continue to supply weapons to NATO, they'll buy them and then they'll pass them on to Ukraine and good luck to them. So in a way, President Trump is being a thoroughfare to enable the war to continue. That's what Zelenskyy wants, although he also spoke about the need for international institutions, the writ of international law, which he said is failing.

International institutions are not a sort of favorite of President Trump, if you will. We look at the way that he pulled apart various sort of elements and ideas at the U.N. yesterday as just one example of that.

[03:10:01]

So what Zelenskyy is getting at here is that all those in the room, you have to be tougher. We as international countries have to reform the way that we enforce or are able to enforce international laws and that's through those strong international institutions. But I do think it was a very clear message that even with strong

friends, unless they let those weapons get to you, you cannot be effective. You don't have security.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MACFARLANE: Well, the U.S. President's recent assessment that Russia is a paper tiger and in big economic trouble is not consistent with the dire warnings of Ukraine's president. I spoke with the chair of the Ukrainian Parliament's Foreign Affairs Committee last hour, and I asked, was Donald Trump wrong?

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

OLEKSANDR MEREZHKO, CHAIRMAN, UKRAINIAN PARLIAMENT FOREIGN AFFAIRS COMMITTEE: He means in this statement that he believes that the war is winnable, that Ukraine can win the war. But to do that, we need more support from our European partners and, of course, from the United States.

As for paper tiger, yes, Russia right now is a paper tiger, but for a very simple reason. During three and a half years of the full-scale invasion, it was Ukrainian army which turned one of the biggest armies in Europe, Russian army, into a paper tiger.

MACFARLANE: You say he's a paper tiger, but then your president came out yesterday saying that you are in desperate need of more arms, not less, and more friends, not less. Donald Trump, of course, has given one of the strongest statements of support, I guess, as you mentioned this week. But it was also a pivot from his previous position and one that seems to minimize the U.S.'s role in Ukraine's ongoing war, not increase its support for it.

You know, at a time when your president is calling for more arms, how worried are you about the fact that Donald Trump may be disengaging from the fight, given the comments we heard from him this week?

MEREZHKO: Yes, unfortunately, of course, we have some concerns that President Trump might walk away from this important for European security and American security issue.

But at the same time, it doesn't mean that we should stop making diplomatic political efforts, trying to persuade President Trump at least to follow through on his previously made promises with regard to severe consequences against Russia and Russian allies, which provides to Russia and which allows Russia to wage war against Ukraine, but not only against Ukraine, because Putin, he's waging war against the West and the leader of the West of the United States. So in the final analysis, it's a war also against the United States.

MACFARLANE: Yes. In backing you to retake all of Ukraine, which is what President Trump said, it also reveals really his view that the war should continue for Ukraine, which potentially is a problem for you. I mean, how realistic is it for you to retake all of Ukraine, as he says? MEREZHKO: It is realistic, but again, it depends on the adequate

support, including contemporary sophisticated weaponry for the United States. There are some kind of weapons which can be available only in the United States.

And also we need security guarantees, I'm absolutely confident that it's inevitable that Ukraine will restore our territorial integrity in full and we will return temporarily occupied territories.

It needs collective efforts, it needs more weaponry, it needs certain patience. But, you know, in the final analysis, this is about international law and international law will be restored one way or another, no matter how many years it might take.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MACFARLANE: Well, police say drones are now gone from Denmark's Aalborg airport, which was temporarily forced to stop its operations on Wednesday. It was the second time this week that a Danish airport was forced to close because of drones in the area. Police are still investigating reports of drone sightings near at least three other airfields on Wednesday and Thursday.

And it's all happening after similar sightings closed airports in Oslo and Copenhagen earlier this week. The Danish prime minister noted similar suspected Russian drone incursions and airspace violations in Europe. Moscow denies any involvement.

Well, picking up the pieces after a deadly storm, recovery efforts are underway in Taiwan after the most powerful storm on the planet this year swept through the island. We'll show you the impact of Typhoon Ragasa next.

First, the European Commission president takes a tough line on Russia's incursions into NATO airspace. How she believes those incidents should be treated, that's next.

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MACFARLANE: Tropical storm Umberto was formed in the Atlantic and there might be another storm to come. Umberto is forecast to become a hurricane by the weekend, but it's unclear whether it poses a threat. Meteorologists are also watching a patch of thunderstorms near the Dominican Republic, they say it could become a tropical storm or depression in the coming days.

And on the other side of the planet, Typhoon Ragasa has been downgraded to a tropical storm as it moves through the Atlantic Ocean. As it moves through southern China, two million people were forced to flee their homes before the storm reached southern China on Wednesday, Typhoon Ragasa toppled trees and smashed shop windows in China's tech hub of Shenzhen. But Taiwan is also cleaning up after the enormous storm killed at

least 14 people, cars were tossed aside as Typhoon Ragasa sent floodwaters ripping through the town on Tuesday.

[03:20:06] Well hurricane force winds ripped through Hong Kong on Wednesday, injuring at least 90 people. And earlier, CNN's Hanako Montgomery ventured out into the storm to visit one of the hardest hit areas.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

HANAKO MONTGOMERY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: We're in one of the worst hit areas in Hong Kong called Tseung Kwan O, and as you can tell just over there, the sea, I mean, it's very close to this waterfront and there's a concrete seawall, but it didn't really do much to protect these restaurants from these massive sea swells and storm surges. We've seen photos and videos emerge from the typhoon showing massive waves just inundating these restaurants and causing very extensive damage.

In fact, I want to show you just over here, you can see the doors to these restaurants have come off their hinges. Glass is just shattered everywhere and there's a massive amount of debris. I mean, just furniture strewn about everywhere.

In fact, over in the distance, you can kind of see these metal barriers that were actually installed to prevent flooding, but clearly it didn't really do much to prevent any of this damage from affecting these restaurants.

Now, we did speak to the owner of this specific restaurant a little while earlier, and he told us that when he saw those images of his restaurant just getting hit with massive amounts of water, it looked almost like a tsunami. And he said that it could take several weeks for his restaurant to get back and running again.

VIVIANO ROMITA, OWNER, FRITES RESTAURANTS: Across the group, we're pretty upset. We get like I said, we'll get through it. We've had damage before in other venues and we've gotten together and make sure that we get up and running as fast as possible.

But, you know, everyone's devastated. It's hard to come with when you see something that you build getting destroyed overnight pretty quickly.

MONTGOMERY: And in this neighboring establishment, you're also seeing some flooding here. And again, furniture just completely strewn about, destroyed. And the doors as well, completely gone from this storm.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MACFARLANE: Well, China is pledging to reduce its climate pollution by 10 percent over the next decade. The goal announced Wednesday falls short of the 30 percent the Biden administration had pushed for. China is the biggest emitter of global warming pollutants, but it's also the dominant player in the renewable energy. Experts note China has already reached peak levels of planet warming pollution and its numbers are starting to decline five years ahead of schedule.

Despite an abundance of evidence to the contrary, Donald Trump is sticking to his stance that global warming is a hoax. Speaking at the U.N., the American president dismissed the dangers posed by climate change as the greatest con job ever perpetrated on the world.

Trump railed against wind turbines and solar energy while labelling green energy a scam. He says climate science comes from, quote, "stupid people."

Well, I spoke last hour with Peter Krull, partner and director of sustainable investing at Earth Equity Advisors, and I asked him for his response to President Trump's comments.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PETER KRULL, PARTNER AND DIRECTOR OF SUSTAINABLE INVESTING, EARTH EQUITY ADVISORS: When you hear him talking about climate and talking about something that unfortunately doesn't know really much about when reality is 97 percent of climate scientists agree that climate change is happening and that it's primarily caused by human activities such as burning fossil fuels.

I live in Asheville, North Carolina, where almost a year ago to the day, Hurricane Helene, which was a climate fueled storm, devastated our area. And, you know, according to the World Weather Attribution Organization, the likelihood that it happened was dramatically increased due to climate change by a factor of 18. That is something that you really can't deny.

MACFARLANE: Despite Donald Trump's comments, the most important announcement on climate change this week came from China. On Wednesday, they vowed for the first time to reduce their carbon emissions, I think, by 7 to 10 percent by 2035.

I mean, China contributes 12 billion tons of CO2 a year, that's actually double what the U.S. contributes. So I just wonder how consequential you thought that announcement was.

KRULL: Well, the reality is we are dealing with an existential crisis in climate change and everybody has to be making, you know, contributing their part to the solution. I mean, that's what I talk about from an investment perspective all the time, is that we have to do what, you know, SRI, sustainable, resilient innovation.

Those are the things that are actually going to push us to the point where, you know, as soon as possible, 2035 is a decade away. But it's also in terms of this problem, not a very long time. And so everybody needs to be doing their part.

MACFARLANE: And do you think this is enough from China, do you think, in doing their part, given the role they play in the world economy?

KRULL: They are doing much more than we're going to be doing, obviously, it looks like in the next few years. So but no, I don't think everybody is doing as much as they can. But everybody is trying to balance out this idea that, you know, we can only do so much because of economics.

[03:25:08]

But what the reality is that from a long term perspective, the faster we make this transition, the less that we're going to have to deal with from a, you know, an infrastructure perspective. You know, when Hurricane Helene hit Asheville, we have failure of our transportation infrastructure, we had a failure of our utility infrastructure and we had a failure of our communication infrastructure.

That's going to be really expensive year after year after year to have to fix. And, you know, spending time to actually make that work right or spending the money to make that work right is probably something that we should all be considering from a long term investment perspective.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MACFARLANE: All right. Still to come, Republican officials blame the far left for a deadly shooting at an ICE facility in Texas. We'll bring you the latest on the investigation.

Plus, a right wing comedian calls out U.S. officials for using clips of him in a video about deportations. He says they never asked for permission.

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MACFARLANE: Welcome back to "CNN Newsroom," I'm Christina MacFarlane. Let's have a check of today's top stories.

The Palestinian Authority president is set to address the U.N. General Assembly via video message in the coming hours. The remarks from Mahmoud Abbas will come just days after a number of Western countries formally declared their recognition of a Palestinian state. Despite objections from Israel, Trump administration refused to grant a visa for Abbas to travel to New York for the U.N. meeting.

Syria's president wants the remaining international sanctions on his country lifted. President Ahmed al-Sharar made the plea during his first appearance at the U.N. General Assembly on Wednesday. Meanwhile, Israel announced that it's now in talks with Syria as the U.S. pushes for a de-escalation agreement between the two countries.

Ukraine's President says the world is living through the most destructive arms race in human history. Volodymyr Zelenskyy told the United Nations that international law doesn't fully work unless you have powerful friends and even then, you still need powerful weapons. He also urged the U.N. not to let Russia make war the new normal.

NATO allies are split over how to respond to future Russian violations of the alliance's airspace, the issue was discussed at an emergency meeting called by Estonia after three Russian fighter jets violated Estonian airspace last week. There were also recent Russian drone incursions into Poland and Romania but two NATO officials say Poland and Estonia were among those countries that would want future violations to be met with force but Germany and some other countries did not. The final statement said NATO will use both military and non- military tools to defend itself.

In an exclusive interview with CNN's Christiane Amanpour, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen made it clear where she stands.

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CHRISTIANE AMANPOUR, CNN CHIEF INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: How do you react to this constant testing by actual military of the NATO airspace? I know you're not officially NATO, but many of your nations are. Drones into Poland, into Romania and fighter jets into Estonian airspace.

URSULA VON DER LEYEN, EUROPEAN COMMISSION PRESIDENT: So as you rightly said, I'm not NATO, but I have a personal opinion.

Yes, my opinion is we have to defend every square centimeter of the territory. And that means if there's an intrusion in the airspace after warning, after being very clear, of course, the option of shooting down a fighter jet that is intruding our airspace is on the table.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MACFARLANE: Well, angry protesters are taking to the streets across Ecuador, voicing their anger over a big spike in the fuel -- in the price of diesel fuel. The escalation came after the government eliminated the decades old diesel subsidy that caused the price to rise by nearly 50 percent.

It's a tough adjustment in a country where nearly one third of the population is living in poverty. President Daniel Noboa announced the cuts last year, he said he wanted to use the money to help finance his military offensive against Ecuador's criminal gangs.

President Trump is blaming a deadly shooting in Texas on rhetoric from the radical left. At least one detainee at an immigration facility in Dallas was killed, and two more are in critical condition. But while the president is quick to point fingers, some Texas lawmakers are calling for an end to the divisive rhetoric.

CNN's Ivan Rodriguez has the details.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

IVAN RODRIGUEZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Christina, right behind me is the ICE facility where the shooting took place Wednesday morning, and we're learning a little bit more information from the Department of Homeland Security into the moments that led up to this deadly shooting. We know, according to them, that a, quote, "sniper" was on a nearby rooftop and was shooting indiscriminately, they say, not only into the ICE building here, but also into a van that was in a sally port and that's where the victims were shot.

[03:35:10]

We know that one of the detainees here was killed during that shooting, two other detainees are currently in serious condition. We don't know much of details as to who those detainees are. What we do know is that one of them is a Mexican national, according to the Mexican government.

In terms of the shooter, we know that he was a 29 year old man. He's a Dallas resident, and he died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound. The FBI is investigating this as a targeted attack.

We have also heard into this evening here a little bit more from Secretary Kristi Noem from Homeland Security. She went on to say again that she believes that the shooter was against ICE agents based on the evidence that they have been able to gather here. She also says that the shooter wasn't specifically targeting any area of the building and that there were bullet holes again all over the building here at this ICE facility.

In Dallas, Texas, I'm Ivan Rodriguez.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MACFARLANE: Authorities are increasing security at an ICE processing center in Southern California in response to Wednesday's shooting. The San Bernardino County Sheriff's Office says there is no current threat to the area, but increased patrols is a precaution. The sheriff's office isn't actually assigned to the area where the facility is, but they have contracts with the city and ICE doesn't own the processing center either, but contracts with a third party group that owns it.

Now, a video on the U.S. Department of Homeland Security's X-Page featuring comedian Theo Von has been removed after complaints. Von is a well-known right-wing comedian and podcast host and even a close ally of President Trump. The video used footage of the comedian to brag about deportations.

Von posted online saying he didn't approve of the use of his likeness, adding in part, quote, "When it comes to immigration, my thoughts and heart are a lot more nuanced than this video allows." It's unclear if DHS removed the video or if the platform removed it.

Now, sources say the Justice Department is hoping to indict one of the president's long-time perceived energies. But the deadline to file charges against former FBI director is just days away. We'll have a report from Washington.

Also ahead, how a new app is using A.I. to make social media a safer space for kids.

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MACFARLANE: Yes, federal prosecutors are looking to indict former FBI director James Comey on perjury charges. That's according to people familiar with the Trump administration's investigation. Prosecutors have until Tuesday to bring a charge.

Here's more from CNN's Katelyn Polantz.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KATELYN POLANTZ, CNN CRIME AND JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT: The clock is ticking for the Justice Department here and there is an open investigation that could be put before a grand jury for a possible indictment of the former FBI director Jim Comey, someone who has been a political foe of Donald Trump, the president for many, many years since he served in that position. What they are looking at is testimony that Jim Comey gave under oath to the Senate Judiciary Committee on September 30th of 2020.

So that's next Tuesday will be five years to the day of that. That means that's essentially the last date that we understand through our sources that an indictment against Comey related to that congressional testimony could be brought.

And so what the Justice Department is doing right now, what federal investigators are doing is looking at whether they have the case and potentially taking it before a grand jury. Our understanding is this would be in the eastern district of Virginia so that is northern Virginia, Richmond, the Tidewater area of Virginia in a federal court potentially.

Comey has not been charged yet, however and what we do understand, too, is that he stands by his testimony, both from 2017, after he was fired by Donald Trump as President, and also in 2020, when he told the Senate Judiciary Committee that he was standing by his earlier testimony and that he wasn't leaking to the media. We do think that there's a possibility this could relate to a leak investigation. But at the end of the day, what our understanding is right now is that Jim Comey is potentially facing an indictment or a possible coming indictment related to perjury or making false statements to Congress in 2020.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MACFARLANE: CNN has learned that top congressional Republicans and White House allies are working to prevent a House vote on the release of the Jeffrey Epstein case files. A number of GAP lawmakers, including Lauren Boebert, have backed a petition to compel the House to vote on the issue. House Speaker Mike Johnson says the petition does not adequately protect victims' personal information.

The family of Epstein victim Virginia Giuffre are urging lawmakers to back the petition.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) SKY ROBERTS, VIRGINIA GIUFFRE'S BROTHER: We had the opportunity to sit down with Representative Boebert's staffers. They were incredibly sensitive to the topic. They were very knowledgeable.

We do feel confident that she will continue to back that. And quite frankly, I think we've said this all along, but this is not a party issue, this is a human issue.

[03:45:02]

And I think we are very proud of Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene, of Lauren Boebert, Massey, Nancy Mace. I think they're showing a lot of courage right now. We ask that we flip that script, I think we should ask more representatives to come forward and push this to a majority vote, not just a small majority, but a large majority.

Because if you don't, you are standing with pedophiles, period.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MACFARLANE: Well, Virginia Giuffre was one of the most outspoken accusers of Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell. Giuffre took her own life earlier this year, and her family were outraged about photos emerging of Maxwell at a new lower security prison that she was recently transferred to.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

AMANDA ROBERTS, VIRGINIA GIUFFRE'S SISTER-IN-LAW: I think it's quite ironic that she's standing next to a sign that talks about honesty when she's a known perjurer. I think it's extremely hurtful to every single survivor that she has hurt, I think it's disgusting to know that she has any sense of comfort, and I think it's a travesty to think that she is on freedom's doorstep.

And that is another battle that we intend to undertake. I think she is trying to use the Alex Acosta sweetheart deal to overturn her conviction, which would be another travesty of justice. And so we're not going to be quiet, I think she should not get too comfortable.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MACFARLANE: Well, the National Park Service has removed a statue of President Donald Trump and Jeffrey Epstein from the National Mall in Washington, D.C. The statue, titled Best Friends Forever, showed the two men holding hands. An organizer from the Secret Handshake, the group that erected the statue, said he would expected it would stay up for at least a week but the Department of the Interior says the statue violated its permits after the artwork was quickly dismantled.

And the developers of a new app powered by artificial intelligence say their technology is providing a safer online experience for kids in social media. They say Sway.ly identifies harmful social media content, filters it and retrains users' feeds to keep it away.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) MACFARLANE (voice-over): A new A.I.-powered app aims to help parents protect their kids online called Sway Lee. The app is designed to alert both kids and their parents when harmful content appears on platforms like TikTok, Instagram and YouTube.

DANIELA FERNANDEZ, CO-FOUNDER AND CHIEF STRATEGIC OFFICER FOR SWAY.LY: Sway.ly is what I love to say is a very different app out there in the market, it's A.I. powered. And what it does is it helps families take control of social media and make it healthier and safer for them. So it helps both the parent and the child and any out there.

MACFARLANE (voice-over): Instead of banning or restricting access to social platforms, the app retrains content algorithms and gives parents insight into their child's online activity.

FERNANDEZ: We have 36 different filters that we identify and then we alert and we do tips and tricks in terms of how to deal with this type of content and how to try and remove it from your own feeds. So you can start to choose what is it that you're being exposed to? What is the quality of the information that you're receiving?

MACFARLANE (voice-over): A recent survey commissioned by Sway.ly questioned more than 2000 U.S. and U.K. families. 77 percent of kids surveyed said social media harms their health, but it found most feel powerless to stop it. While parents worry about explicit content, kids say it's the constant stream of toxic narratives that does the real damage.

PETER WHITMELL, DEPUTY HEAD AND SAFEGUARDING LEAD AT NOTTING HILL PREP.: I think the benefit of Sway.ly is that it makes it very clear for the parents what's going on online and it has the capability through its A.I. to understand the latest trends in a way that, frankly, even I as an educator who works with children every day, we can't stay on top of it and that's where Sway.ly comes in, in a really helpful way.

MACFARLANE (voice-over): Sway.ly is currently available to download on Apple and Android devices.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MACFARLANE: Promising development.

Now Jimmy Kimmel pulls in record viewership in his first show back after being suspended by ABC. We'll tell you just how many people watched his return despite some stations refusing to air the show.

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[03:50:00]

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MACFARLANE: Jimmy Kimmel's return to late night television has set a new record for the show, ABC says about 6.3 million viewers tuned in to watch his first show back after the network pulled him off the air last week. His first monologue back made (inaudible) remarks about the government's threats to free speech Jimmy Kimmel continued his critique of President Trump on Wednesday. Here are some of the highlights.

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JIMMY KIMMEL, HOST, "JIMMY KIMMEL LIVE": The mad red hatter wrote, I can't believe ABC fake news gave Jimmy Kimmel his job back.

You can't believe they gave me my job back. I can't believe we gave you your job back.

This was his big closer, let Jimmy Kimmel rot in his bad ratings. And he does know bad ratings. He has some of the worst ratings any President has ever had.

There are still a lot of people who think I should be pulled off the air for making fun of Donald Trump. So I want to explain. I talk about Trump more than anything because he's a bully.

Donald Trump is an old-fashioned 80's movie style bully taking your lunch money.

(Inaudible) Trump will not release the Epstein files but we will be doing a thorough and complete investigation into who stopped his escalator.

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MACFARLANE: CNN's Elizabeth Wagmeister breaks down the numbers on Kimmel's comeback.

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ELIZABETH WAGMEISTER, CNN ENTERTAINMENT CORRESPONDENT: The ratings are in and "Jimmy Kimmel Live" drew a massive audience for his return show after his show had been taken off the air following a highly publicized controversy. According to information provided by ABC, an average of 6.3 million viewers tuned in live to watch "Jimmy Kimmel Live" on Tuesday night.

Now to put this into context, this is more than three times the average viewing audience that the show usually receives, which is well under 2 million viewers typically who tune in per night to watch Jimmy Kimmel's late night show.

Now this is even more significant because with station groups Nexstar and Sinclair refusing to air the show, that means that around 20 percent of the country was not able to watch the show on their local T.V. stations live.

Now it wasn't just on T.V. The show has been the most talked about topic in Hollywood and in D.C. and the numbers online prove it. "Jimmy Kimmel Live's" monologue on Tuesday night became his most-viewed monologue on YouTube with more than 15 million viewers and counting, that surpasses his previous held record on YouTube, which was for over 14 million.

Now going back to Nexstar and Sinclair, the station groups are still preempting Jimmy Kimmel Live, but Nexstar did provide a statement to CNN saying that they are in ongoing conversations. They said that they are continuing to evaluate the status of "Jimmy Kimmel Live" on our ABC-affiliated local television stations and the show will be preempted while we do so, but they continue to say we are engaged in productive conversations with executives at the Walt Disney Company with the focus on ensuring the program reflects and respects the diverse interests of the communities we serve.

Back to you.

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[03:55:00]

MACFARLANE: Well, as you heard there, the President suggested his administration might investigate ABC for making what he called illegal campaign contributions to the Democratic Party by allowing Kimmel on air. CNN's Elex Michaelson sat down with former California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger and former British Prime Minister Tony Blair to talk about the growing political division in the U.S.

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ELEX MICHAELSON, CNN ANCHOR AND CORRESPONDENT: We had the situation with Jimmy Kimmel, the sort of lack of trust, this fighting back-and- forth between both sides. We saw President Trump say that he hates his enemies, which is the total opposite of everything that you've always been about. How do you process this moment and this concept of hating one's enemies?

ARNOLD SCHWARZENEGGER (R), FORMER CALIFORNIA GOVERNOR: Look, I think the way I do, and I find it very comforting that I'm a human being and created this way by the influence that other people had on me to be very inclusive. And when I see someone that disagrees with me not to go and look at them suspiciously or look at them like the enemy, but try to figure out and learn something from that person, why do they feel that way?

I think that we are not enough listening to one another. We are just shouting at one another. God gave us two ears and only one mouth so we should listen twice as much than we talk, that's the bottom line. We're wasting our time if we talk about and analyze Donald Trump here.

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MACFARLANE: Now, Italy is celebrating the late Giorgio Armani during Milan Fashion Week. The 91-year-old fashion legend died earlier this month in Milan. The Brera Art Museum is displaying a retrospective of the Italian designer's fashions, it coincides with the label's 50th anniversary.

And it features striking red and silver garments set among masterpieces of Italian art from the Middle Ages to the 19th century. The tribute runs through January.

Rihanna is celebrating the birth of her third child with the rapper and entrepreneur A$AP Rocky. Their daughter, Rikki Irish, joins two brothers who were born in 2022 and '23. The 34-year-old singer revealed her pregnancy in May at the Met Gala in New York, she told "British Vogue" back in 2020 that her 10-year plan included having three or four children.

And that is a nice note to end this, I'm Christina Macfarlane. Thank you so much for your company today.

Do stay with us, "Amanpour" is up next and then stay tuned for "Early Start" with Danny Freeman starting at 5:00 a.m. in New York, 10:00 a.m. here in London.

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