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Largest Day of Slain Iranian Supreme Leader's Funeral Underway; U.S. World Cup Star Reinstated; Super Typhon Bavi Slams Into U.S. Pacific Territories; Venezuelan Officials: Death Toll At Least 3,342 Nearly Two Weeks On; Cape Verde Team Welcomed Home After Tournament Run. Aired 2-3a ET

Aired July 06, 2026 - 02:00   ET

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

[02:00:00]

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IVAN WATSON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Hello and welcome to our viewers joining us in the U.S. and all around the world. I'm Ivan Watson in Hong Kong. Just ahead on "CNN Newsroom," you are looking at live pictures of massive crowds in Tehran where Iranians are taking part in a procession for the funeral of the late supreme leader. Also, Team USA is hours away from the World Cup quarterfinals following a stunning decision by FIFA. And record- breaking temperatures on two continents in recent days. We'll look at the dangers and possible solutions to our ever-warming planet.

UNKNOWN (voice-over): Live from Hong Kong, this is "CNN Newsroom with Ivan Watson."

WATSON: All right, we begin in the Iranian capital, in Tehran, where we're seeing live images of the third and largest day of public mourning for Iran's slain supreme leader, Ali Khamenei. A massive funeral procession will follow a 10-kilometer route to Azadi Square, home to one of Tehran's most iconic landmarks. Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was Iran's longest-serving supreme leader. He and members of his family were killed in a U.S. and Israeli airstrike that launched the war with Iran. The late ayatollah's son and successor, Mojtaba, has not been seen in public since the week-long public funeral began on Friday.

Now, CNN's Paula Hancocks is following developments from Abu Dhabi. Good to see you, Paula. What are we witnessing right now? This is days of funeral ceremonies. The symbolism is huge. Martyrdom is a very big part of kind of Shiite symbolism and culture. What are you noticing in the crowds that we're seeing in the streets of Tehran right now?

PAULA HANCOCKS, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Ivan, this is going to be lasting for a week. This is a funeral procession. It's a commemoration of the late supreme leader, as you say, that was killed at the beginning of the war, on February 28th. We have been seeing vehicles carrying the coffins, draped in the Iranian colors, moving very slowly through these crowds. Now, some of these streets are absolutely packed to capacity. We see mourners there that are carrying flags, that are carrying images of the late supreme leader. We're also, over the past few days, have been hearing chants as well, chants like death to America, death to Israel.

This is a crowd that is supportive of the regime. It's a crowd that is angered at the killing of their late supreme leader by the U.S. and Israel at the beginning of the war. This is going to be a very slow procession. You can see just how packed those crowds are. As you say, it's a 10-kilometer journey that we will be seeing throughout this Monday. This is expected to see, the biggest crowds.

And, of course, what the regime wants to be showing is unity, is solidarity within the population itself. Now, of course, there are many within Iran that do not support this regime, that will not be here at this funeral procession. But, certainly, this is a very public show of unity and of the fact that the regime has survived after this war. Ivan?

WATSON: But amid this big show and these massive crowds, there's a massive absence, really, and that is the new supreme leader, the son of the slain Ayatollah Khamenei. What is the Iranian government saying about the fact that their successor to this position is nowhere to be seen?

HANCOCKS: So, this is Mojtaba Khamenei. He took over from his father when he was killed. He was also injured, we understand, during that particular strike.

[02:05:01]

We understand from U.S. officials -- their assessment is that he is still in control. He is managing to run, at least make some decisions when it comes to the country's talks with the United States. But we haven't seen him since February 28th, since that attack took place. We've heard from U.S. officials saying they believe that he was seriously injured in that attack.

It will be interesting to see over coming days if we do see him at all. We certainly have statements from the current supreme leader, which are not even audio statements. So, what we are hearing is really his words, but through other voices. So, of course, that does raise questions as to how his health is, how his state is, and whether he is able to make these decisions going forward.

But, of course, when it comes to this kind of commemoration, this kind of funeral procession, there are those in the crowd that will be holding up his picture. They don't necessarily need to see him. It is the fact that he is the symbol of this regime, the fact they have been told that he is in charge and he has taken over from his late father.

We have seen some of the other sons that have been mourning at this funeral over the weekend, the past couple of days. But, certainly, there will be many that will read a lot into the fact that we have not seen the current supreme leader and what does that tell us about his health. Ivan? WATSON: And Paula, I might point out, it's around 9:30 in the morning as we are watching these live images of the crowds on their funeral march through the streets of Tehran. And you periodically see these jets of kind of water being sprayed over the crowd. Presumably that is to cool people down at this early hour. It's already in the high 80s Fahrenheit, low 30s Celsius, and the heat will only continue to go up as we are in a hot summer month. Paula Hancocks in Abu Dhabi, thank you very, very much.

We are going to turn now to Cairo where we are joined by H.A. Hellyer, a senior associate fellow at the Royal United Services Institute for Defense and Security Studies. Good to see you there. I wanted to ask, you know, just at the beginning of the year, Iran was convulsed by these anti-government protests and a deadly crackdown. And now, some six months later, we're looking at these massive crowds in the streets mourning a symbol of the Islamic Republic of Iran. How do you kind of square this contradiction over these six months?

H.A. HELLYER, SENIOR ASSOCIATE FELLOW, ROYAL UNITED SERVICES INSTITUTE FOR DEFENSE AND SECURITY STUDIES: Thank you very much, Ivan. It's always a pleasure to be on your show. So, a few things. One, Iran is a divided society. It doesn't mean that -- this funeral procession doesn't mean that there is an opposition. Rather, I think it means something else, which is the idea, which unfortunately was very common in certain capitals, that the regime was simply going to be toppled by this campaign.

This war on Iran earlier this year, because Iranians were just waiting to overthrow their government, I think, was folly. I think what you see is the significant domestic support on a public opinion level, on a public level. These people aren't being forced to go to the streets. I think they're going voluntarily.

But it's a large country and in a large country where you have a huge amount of opposition to the regime, probably more than what you have in terms of support of the regime. But, of course, we don't know that for sure. We aren't able to see public opinion polls that could be reliable in this regard.

But it does show that there's a significant substantial opposition and significant substantial support, at least in the areas where we see these processions and these expressions of support for not the country just on its own, but indeed the regime itself. And I think participating in this -- in this procession would show support for the regime itself. It doesn't erase that there's a lot of antipathy towards it, too, domestically.

One should also keep in mind that, indeed, Khamenei died as a martyr. The Iranians see him as such. And I don't think it's simply about Shiite sympathy for martyrs. I think you'd see this sort of expression of support in many countries around the world and probably in the United States as well if God forbid a high-ranking official were killed by an enemy state in some sort of conflict or war.

[02:10:00]

But it does mean that that adds to, I think, the fervor at a time like this.

WATSON: That's a really good point. This will not just be these funeral ceremonies combined confined to Iran. They will go across the border, to Iraq and to Najaf and Karbala, those holy cities. What is the symbolism of that in your mind, the fact that Ayatollah Ali Khamenei will also be commemorated across the border in Iraq?

HELLYER: So, the international picture is interesting because you've seen, for example, on the one hand, many countries didn't show up. They didn't offer their condolences in person. They might have sent messages, but they didn't -- they didn't show up in person. You had others that send low-ranking officials, particularly from within the Arab Gulf. And that doesn't show support for the regime. It simply shows that they're engaging in realpolitik and recognizing that this regime isn't going anywhere.

On the other -- but if you go further along the spectrum, you also see -- there were those who expressed tremendous support and great sympathy for the passing of Khamenei, and they expressed that in delegations that came to Tehran, including members of the -- quote, unquote -- "axis of resistance."

And I think that when you look at what happens in Iraq and in Lebanon, it's really going to be tied up with that. There'll be many in Iraq and Lebanon who will not be mourning the passing of Khamenei because he oversaw a regime that, to their mind, is quite a maniacal one. You won't see support for him in much of the Arab world despite the fact that much of the Arab street is very much opposed to what the war in Iran was earlier this year.

But within Iraq in particular, of course, Khamenei was highly regarded. He wasn't regarded, I have to say, as the most -- how should we say -- most advanced scholar in Iranian Shiism. And neither was he, by the way, when he was appointed a supreme leader in the 80s. But I think that there will be respect there and particularly among those Iraqis that have benefited from Iranian support over the last decade or so.

Iran has a very strong power base within Iraq as president. It's a very contested one. There's a big push to try to minimize that sort of influence in Iraq, much as there is within Lebanon as well. So, you can see this being part of the broader geopolitical picture. A bit complex, but something that has been going on for quite some time.

WATSON: Thank you. And important to note that Ali Khamenei is only the second supreme leader in the history of the Islamic Republic of Iran to be laid to rest. So, we are watching a historic moment and, of course, a leader who was killed by an assassination carried out by U.S. and Israeli warplanes.

H.A. Hellyer live from Cairo, thank you very much for your analysis.

HELLYER: Thank you, Ivan. Always a pleasure. Be well.

WATSON: OK, to Ukraine now because the Ukrainian Air Force is reporting explosions across Kyiv after Russian drones and ballistic missiles struck the capital city.

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WATSON: OK, you're looking at pictures where -- live pictures now, this morning, at daybreak in Kyiv, where city officials say at least 10 people were killed and dozens were injured. Others remain trapped beneath a badly damaged multi-storey residential building. Rescue workers were able to evacuate some residents, but search efforts are ongoing.

Russia's defense ministry did admit to attacking Kyiv, but said it used high-precision, long-range weapons to conduct strikes --

(EXPLOSION)

-- on what it called Kyiv's military fuel and energy sites. Moscow says the latest barrage was in retaliation for Ukrainian strikes on civilian infrastructure in Russian territory.

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WATSON: Now, Russia's war on Ukraine is expected to shape the talks at the upcoming NATO summit in Turkey. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is expected to speak with U.S. President Donald Trump on the sidelines of that gathering. The U.S. president is set to fly to Ankara later Monday.

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He says he intends to put more focus on ending the war in Ukraine now that he has secured a temporary ceasefire with Iran. Mr. Trump spoke with Mr. Zelenskyy on the phone over the weekend. He also spoke with Russian President Vladimir Putin in a phone call that the Kremlin says lasted nearly 90 minutes. Russian officials said the conversation was -- quote -- businesslike and highly constructive.

All right, coming up, a shakeup at the World Cup. Monday is the biggest match yet for the U.S., and they just got back their biggest weapon after sources say Trump got involved.

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WATSON: Welcome back. The countdown is on. We're just hours away from Team USA's round of 16 match against Belgium. And a stunning reversal by FIFA is already overshadowing it with controversy. FIFA leadership elected to delay a one game suspension for Team USA star striker Folarin Balogun, invoking an obscure rule that will allow him to play despite the red card he received during Team USA's last match.

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A source tells CNN U.S. President Donald Trump spoke with FIFA President Gianni Infantino this week and asked for a review of Balogun's red card. On Sunday, President Trump took to Truth Social to praise FIFA's move, saying they had -- quote -- "reversed a great injustice." The Royal Belgian Football Association released this statement in response to FIFA's ruling, saying -- quote -- "The decision is in direct contradiction with the provisions of the FIFA World Cup 2026 Competition Regulations" and that -- quote -- "In order to safeguard the legitimate rights of all participating teams and to protect the fundamental principles of fair play in our sport, both at this FIFA World Cup and at future editions of the tournament, the RBFA is investigating all potential options."

CNN World Sports' Patrick Snell takes a look at how this decision may impact Team USA's chances in the games ahead.

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PATRICK SNELL, CNN SPORTS ANCHOR AND CORRESPONDENT: This is a huge boost for Team USA at this World Cup. In a stunning twist on Sunday, Folarin Balogun, who was facing a one match suspension for Monday's match in the round of 16 in Seattle, is now able to play for the Americans against Belgium. The 25-year-old forward, who plays his club football for Monaco, was given a straight red card. This was during the round of 32 win over Bosnia and Herzegovina after stepping on the ankle of a Bosnia defender.

But then came the plot twist over the weekend. Tournament organizers of FIFA saying it has decided to use Article 27 of its code, which allows for a full or a partial suspension of an on-pitch disciplinary measure under a probationary period, in this case, a year. America's president, Donald Trump, taking to Truth Social to applaud FIFA's decision. Thank you to FIFA for doing what was right and reversing a great injustice, he posted.

Now, a source familiar with the matter saying Trump spoke by phone with FIFA President Gianni Infantino this week following that controversial red card call, asking Infantino to review that call. CNN has reached out to FIFA for comment. We'll stay across the very latest on all of these as I send it right back to you.

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WATSON: Thanks, Patrick. Now, despite that off the pitch drama, the games must go on. So, Sunday's round of 16 matches ended the World Cup dreams for a host nation and one of the highest favored teams in the tournament.

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WATSON: Look at those fans in London going absolutely bonkers after England secured its place in the quarterfinals, winning their match three to two despite a truly valiant fight from Mexico. England scored twice in just 98 seconds during the first half and held on to its early lead with only 10 men on the field in the final half hour of play. It was a nail biter following a red card expulsion.

And Norway is headed to its first ever World Cup quarterfinal after knocking out five-time champion Brazil two to one. This is the earliest Brazil has been eliminated from a World Cup since 1990. Norway's star striker Erling Haaland delivered a standout performance, scoring both goals for his team, giving him seven across the tournament so far.

So, for more, I want to bring in Tracey Holmes. She is an industry professor in sport and the media at the University of Queensland and host of "The Sports Ambassador" podcast. Great to see you, Tracey. I'm going to put you in the hot seat. Do you think President Trump tipped the scales and influenced this FIFA decision to lift the match ban from the U.S.'s star striker?

TRACEY HOLMES, INDUSTRY PROFESSOR IN SPORT AND THE MEDIA AT UNIVERSITY OF QUEENSLAND, PODCAST HOST: I think this is a question, Ivan, that everybody is going to be asking themselves for a very long time, particularly if the USA gets through its next match with Belgium because of this rescinding of the red card. Now, what's interesting is that Donald Trump -- President Donald Trump has taken credit or at least thanked the FIFA president for doing what was right.

But if we just park that to one side for the moment and we do look at the rules that govern football, FIFA does have this opportunity for the judicial committee to be able to reverse decisions like this if it seemed to be particularly unfair. Now, people will argue whether that was the case in this instance or not. But the rule does exist, and this is what we've seen play out. We don't know the timelines of who spoke to whom.

If President Donald Trump spoke to the FIFA president and the FIFA president then tried to influence the judicial committee, there's a major problem. We don't know if that happened.

[02:25:00]

We do know that the judicial committee looked at it and reversed the decision. So, you know, whenever there's a -- there are stories of potential political influence, it's a very hard stench for a governing body like FIFA to get rid of.

WATSON: Right. And we do know that this clause was used, I think, on Cristiano Ronaldo's behalf some time ago to lift a match ban, a ban. I want to transition then. I watched the end of that thrilling Mexico- England match. And the English fans here in this newsroom, they were yelling. It was hard to get any work done, but with good reason, I think. But there was a red card there. And you had England's defender, Jarell Quansah, taken out with a red card. Does that mean that he won't be able to play in perhaps the next match or more? And does it also mean that that decision could get overruled if, say, a U.K. prime minister puts in a call?

HOLMES: Yes. Well, this is the interesting thing, isn't it? But I think if you -- if you go back to actually the playing of the game, the rules as they stand, how players and referees interpret these decisions, people will say if you're not from England, of course, that that was a valid red card for the English player. England still went on to win that game despite being down one man for most of the second half. The red card that was given in the case of the USA was not given by the referee in the first instance. It was a VAR intervention. Most people, including former players from a variety of countries who've played at this level, have said they don't believe that was a fair red card and they believe justice has been done by rescinding that red card and allowing the American to play in the next match.

So, of course, these are debates that will go on for a very long time, even beyond the final whistle of this World Cup, but they're all valid debates to have. And, of course, you know, it does bring up conversations about ethics, about transparency, about fair play. These are constant debates that we wrestle with in world sport, especially the biggest sport in the world.

WATSON: OK. And what about Brazil being knocked out by Norway and its star striker, Erling Haaland? What are your takeaways from that? And boy, there must be mourning in Brazil right now, huh.

HOLMES: Yes. I think, you know, it's common. People say that Brazil is everybody's second favorite team just because they've won the World Cup more times than anybody else. They do play what people have come to regard as the beautiful game.

But if you look at the talent that is on show at this FIFA World Cup and, you know, it goes from continent to continent, and there are some fantastic teams in this World Cup, and Brazil was outplayed today, Haaland, of course, is an absolute sensation at this World Cup. Who knows how far they can go? They'll be hanging on mightily. There are still some great matchups to come.

But I think what we can say is that this World Cup has been fabulous. The expansion to 48 teams has showcased talent that exists in other parts of the world that we might not have seen previously. That has been a success. The crowds have been hugely successful. And, overall, I think a lot of the criticism ahead of time has proven to not play a very big impact on what we've seen play out so far. It has been a sensational World Cup to date.

WATSON: And we still have some big matches to come. Tracey Holmes, thank you very much for sharing your expertise.

HOLMES: Thanks, Ivan.

WATSON: All right. Now, as summer sets in, excessive heat is affecting multiple parts of the planet. Just ahead, we'll hear from a climate expert to get some solutions. Stay with CNN.

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[02:31:58]

IVAN WATSON, CNN ANCHOR: Okay. it's typhoon season in the Pacific and one of the strongest super typhoons this year has hit U.S. territories in the Pacific islands. You can see them -- you can see from this social media video taken in Guam. The winds and the rain were picking up. And this video is also from Guam. Super typhoons can produce powerful winds and life-threatening

flooding due to rain. The area the storm hit is home to some key U.S. military bases. More than 7,000 active-duty military personnel are stationed there, with more than 150,000 people residing on the island.

The extreme heat in Europe is threatening the production of wine in Greece and Italy. Even techniques that have served vineyards for decades are failing to work.

CNN meteorologist Allison Chinchar has the details.

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ALLISON CHINCHAR, CNN METEOROLOGIST: On the Greek island of Santorini, winemakers grow vines in a basket shape called a kouloura to protect grapes from the summer sun. But even this 90-year-old kouloura couldn't survive the rising heat. Over the past couple of years.

YIANNIS BOUTARIS, WINEMAKER: The lack of rain, in combination with the lack of cultivation in the last couple of years, has led to these old vineyards really dying, basically, as a winery, and every winemaker around the world will tell you that old vines are special. The reason why old vines are special is because the because of the grapes that they give.

CHINCHAR: Low rainfall has created a growing competition for the island's dwindling water supply, especially during the warmer months when over. Tourism brings millions of tourists to the Greek islands. The struggle to keep vines alive has caused wine production to go down, and the price of grapes to go up. Making the wine harder to sell.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translator): If we had the reputation that French wines have acquired in more than 100, 150 years, we could justify the price for Santorini to be higher.

CHINCHAR: Winemakers across the rest of the mediterranean are also facing similar problems. In Italy, vines are flowering more than 20 days earlier than usual, and extreme temperatures are forcing workers to push their day earlier. An order by the Sicilian government has banned work during the hottest part of the day in high risk areas. Now, workers must start their day at 5:30 a.m. and finish before the sun makes the labor unsafe.

SALVATORE RANDAZZO, MANAGER, BUCECI WINE CELLARS (through translator): We are moving toward a very tropical climate and temperatures, especially in the mountains, are rising much more than they did many years ago, working in 40-degree heat under the peak of the sun in summer is becoming very stressful for a human being.

[02:35:03]

CHINCHAR: Back in Santorini, vineyards are also adapting to the new normal. Farmers are introducing new techniques such as planting vines in rows rather than scattered, irrigating the vines from underneath and testing out a new pilot project. The practice takes waste water from homes and hotels to irrigate the vines.

BOUTARIS: The main thing for our winery is that we're not abandoning tradition. We are adapting to the changes, we're learning from the tradition, and we're adapting the vineyard to the new circumstances. What we have to do is find new ways to survive, right? Because if we don't survive, and if we don't adapt, we're simply going to stop existing.

CHINCHAR: Allison Chinchar, CNN.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WATSON: Okay. To the U.S. now, where parts of the country will get a break from the extreme heat, but the weather may still cause some problems. Over 30 million people remain under heat alerts in the eastern half of the U.S., while millions more faced severe storms on Sunday. Parts of the mid-Atlantic and Northeast are facing a risk of dangerous flash flooding through Monday night. Damaging winds and hail are also possible.

The threats come as many people travel home from the holiday weekend, raising the potential for flooded roads, travel delays and additional power outages.

Ashley Ward is director of the heat policy innovation hub at Duke University's Nicholas Institute for Energy, Environment and Sustainability.

Ashley, thank you for joining the program. We've had these intense heat waves all up and down the East Coast and in big parts of Europe. A lot of complaining about it.

Is this something new or is this just part of summer? End of June, early July, in big parts of North America and Europe.

ASHLEY WARD, DIRECTOR, HEAT POLICY INNOVATION HUB, DUKE UNIVERSITY: I mean, the real answer to that is both and right. We have, you know, a very typical atmospheric system, high pressure system that hovers over and creates what's known as a heat dome. The challenge is that we have climate change, increasing temperatures that are supercharging these kinds of events, making because the baseline is starting high at a higher temperature to begin with.

And so, whenever you have these high pressure systems linger over top of an area, it's much easier to get into these really extreme temperatures. They tend to last longer. Overnight temperatures tend to stay higher and humidity rates tend to stay higher.

So those are all things that really have big impacts to our human health, but also to our infrastructure and other systems that we rely upon.

WATSON: The records are being broken in some cases. I mean, I saw some reporting that 250 years ago at the signing of the Declaration of Independence in Philadelphia, the temperature Thomas Jefferson noted it was in in the mid-70s, around 76 Fahrenheit, and it was triple digits 250 years later.

But you mentioned the overnight temperatures. Can you go deeper into that? Because it seems like it's also having an impact on plant life, on animal life as well, right

WARD: Overnight temperatures, I think, are really one of the lesser appreciated but more dangerous aspects of these events when there's not a reprieve, everything needs a reprieve. Overnight. Our bodies need a reprieve overnight. Our plants and animals do. Our energy systems do.

It's also a moment where things like energy affordability and poor housing intersect with an environmental exposure, right? These higher overnight temperature. So, if you're somebody who works even in like the food industry or it doesn't have to be an outdoor job, and I think that's a -- you know, something that people don't fully understand is you can be in a heat exposed job, but not work outside. So, manufacturing, food exposure, delivery services, things like that, and you come home and it's hard to cool your house, it's too expensive to cool your house and you can't get the benefit of raising your windows and using passive cooling like you could in the past.

And so, we have sort of the combination of a bunch of different factors that kind of create the worst-case scenario.

WATSON: All of this is happening, these record breaking temperatures at a time when the Trump administration isn't just skeptical about climate change, but actively denying it in some well-documented cases. When government isn't leading the way, what can ordinary people do to cope with these new environmental challenges that are just apparently getting worse?

[02:40:07]

WARD: It's such a good question. I'm glad you're asking that question.

I want to say that communities and local governments are already on the front lines of this. Many of them are already doing really important work, creating action plans and helping get out through early warning systems and heat alert systems through their otherwise hazard planning. They're really trying very desperately to protect the people in their communities, making sure that they open cooling centers. They have transportation to cooling centers, but they too need investment and they need support.

And I think that it takes this isn't all of us together kind of moment when it comes to things like battling extreme heat. The private sector has a big role to play. The private sector can help. They employ a lot of people that work in high exposure jobs, but they can also partner with their local governments to help think about how they can support other kinds of initiatives in the communities, like how do you get to people who are homebound? How do you get the word out so that people understand when they're vulnerable and where to go?

You know, the -- we need to think about the exposure of people in urban areas where there are fewer trees, for example, and more cement. The urban heat island effect is a real thing. But we also need to think about there's an awful lot of vulnerable people that live in rural areas and in those areas, faith-based institutions and churches play a critical role in doing outreach to people in their communities. Civic organizations and clubs and other organizations like that can really be important community anchors during times like this.

WATSON: Ashley, when you look at the scale of the challenge and the change in the climate, what gives you hope when studying this?

WARD: Well, there's a couple of things. First, I think, you know, mother nature is kind of done the work for us. You know, for years, people in my field have been talking about how dangerous heat is. And in the last few years, you know, mother nature has really demonstrated for us exactly what that means.

And unfortunately, you know, that does come at quite a bit of suffering. But what gives me hope is that now we actually do have people from all jurisdictions and levels of government talking about this issue. The private sector is talking about this issue. The finance and insurance sectors are talking about this issue and publishing reports about heat as the hidden risk, right?

And so, finally, I think after a long time working on this topic, I think for the first time, we're really seeing people from all different sectors come together, understand that we each have a role to play. And now what they're doing is trying to find where the best, best solutions and where to invest.

WATSON: Great. Well, thank you so much for your work and for sharing your knowledge and expertise on this and try to stay cool.

WARD: Thanks. You, too.

WATSON: All right. Still to come, the humanitarian crisis deepens as the death toll rises in Venezuela. We will bring you more stories of survivors still searching for loved ones after the deadly earthquakes.

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[02:46:19]

WATSON: Welcome back.

Venezuela's acting president has ordered additional troops to be deployed to help emergency responders in the aftermath of deadly earthquakes. On Sunday, Delcy Rodriguez announced a new military unit would be formed to respond to both the current earthquake emergency and to future disasters. It comes in the wake of harsh criticism of the government's response to the disaster.

Officials say the death toll has risen higher than 3,300 lives. More than 17,000 people have been displaced. Some are sleeping on the streets, others are venturing back into their homes to recover what they can. Even though many buildings are unsafe.

CNN contributor Stefano Pozzebon has more on how survivors are trying to move forward.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

STEFANO POZZEBON, CNN CONTRIBUTOR (voice-over): Sue Santander (ph) has not seen her son in 10 days. They were separated in the twin quakes that shook Venezuela on June 24th, but her nine-year-old Xavier was trapped under the rubble.

Four days later, she saw a video of a child being rescued at night. She believes it was her son, but in the chaos that followed, she hasn't been able to find him. She's not going to rest, but from here there is little she can do.

POZZEBON: These used to be a golf course, La Guaira was a tourist hot spot by the Caribbean Sea. And, so here is where tourists will come and play golf and relax. Now, of course, it's a tent city for hundreds of displaced, many of whom actually used to live there in those blocks. And every day they wake up and they see their homes and flats broken down by the brutality of the earthquakes.

POZZEBON (voice-over): Sheyna Ceballos is also looking for a loved one. She's lost hope of finding her mother alive but will not leave the golf course until she recovers her remains.

SHEYNA CEBALLOS, EARTHQUAKE SURVIVOR (through translator): If I had the money, I'd dig her out, but I have none.

POZZEBON: This is what's left of Sheyna's home, an entire life shattered in an instant. Now, like her, thousands of Venezuelans are only beginning to grasp the magnitude of this catastrophe.

POZZEBON (voice-over): Before this tragedy, Venezuela was already in a deep humanitarian crisis, facing chronic shortages of food and medicines.

World Central Kitchen has been operating here since 2019. In response to the earthquake, they have stepped up with free meals for survivors and volunteers.

POZZEBON: Can you describe a moment that Venezuela is right now, when it's been ten days since the earthquake?

MIGUEL TORTOSA, COMMUNICATIONS RESPONSE MANAGER, WORLD CENTRAL KITCHN: The numbers keep increasing and we are still in the first phase of the operation. I would say this is still the emergency phase, and our teams are still finding the exact numbers. So, we can get the amount of meals needed to cover all the needs.

POZZEBON (voice-over): Survivors and relatives of the victims have criticized the government response as inadequate and delayed. Many point to the armed forces, who they say showed up too late or didn't do enough.

DELCY RODRIGUEZ, ACTING VENEZUELAN PRESIDENT (through translator): Our officials were deployed immediately. You can count the hours between the quakes and when we signed the emergency decree. There were 4,000 officials out in the first 24 hours, 10,000 officials the following day.

POZZEBON (voice-over): The government also laying out credit agreements with the international monetary fund and plans to begin the reconstruction. But at the golf course in La Guaira, the present is too dark to look ahead.

CEBALLOS (through translator): Now I just want to find her remains. To think about the future makes no sense.

[02:50:01]

POZZEBON (voice-over): Stefano Pozzebon, CNN, La Guaira, Venezuela.

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WATSON: One of the most surprising teams at the World Cup have returned home to a hero's welcome. Up next, fans celebrate the historic performance by Cape Verde's players at a huge parade in the tiny island nation.

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WATSON: Two days after they almost upset the defending World Cup champions, Cape Verde's national soccer team have returned home to a hero's welcome. The underdogs from a tiny island chain off the west African coast captured hearts around the world and became one of the most must watched stories of the tournament.

Ben Hunte has our report.

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BEN HUNTE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A triumphant homecoming for a team that didn't win a single match at the World Cup. But that's not counting hearts and minds.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): My national team was at the World Cup. This is my greatest pride, and I believe it is the greatest pride of everyone who is here.

[02:55:01]

HUNTE (voice-over): Thousands of fans cheered the Blue Sharks as they arrived back in Cape Verde after stunning the football world by nearly upsetting champions Argentina in a thrilling 3 to 2 loss in extra time. It was the tiny African nations debut at the World Cup, but they held their own against some of the giants of the game with three draws, including one against Spain, before making the mighty Argentina sweat for it's hard-fought victory.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): We went game by game, showing our worth. We started against the world champion, current European champion, and we managed to draw. In the second game, we played against Uruguay, which is also a two-time champion, and we drew as well. Everyone started to know us from there. HUNTE (voice-over): Cape Verde defied all expectations from day one.

Coach Bubista scoured the world to find players with Cape Verdean heritage for his squad, coming up with a magic combination that not only qualified for the World Cup, but also won over fans worldwide.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): They showed attitude, courage, strength, everything they represented. The strength on the field, there is no explanation. They united everyone to support Cape Verde.

HUNTE (voice-over): The turnout at home is just one sign of how much has changed for Cape Verde. The team's newfound fame and street cred on the pitch is the beautiful game at it's best. They may not have made it to the round of 16, but that's not what it takes to be number one in this crowd.

Ben Hunte, CNN.

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WATSON: All right. Thanks for joining us this hour. I'm Ivan Watson in Hong Kong. CNN NEWSROOM with Polo Sandoval is next after this quick break.

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