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Trump Threatens Iran As Its Supreme Leader Vows Revenge; Source: Oman Proposes Deal For Strait Of Hormuz Shipping Routes; Trump Fires Leaders Of Election Assistance Commission; Trump Makes Public Promise To Zelensky On Patriot Missiles; Long-Awaited Chicago Torture Justice Memorial Breaks Ground; Dem Rep. Ro Khanna Says He Was Blockaded By Israeli Settlers & IDF During West Bank Visit. Aired 6-7p ET

Aired July 11, 2026 - 18:00   ET

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

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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: So when all of a sudden we are knocking on their door, there is a little bit of like, uh, well, this is different.

Hey, buddy! You want to walk?

But as time goes on and I think that its seen that we mean it, it is really pretty profound, some of those changes.

This wouldn't exist without the tenants.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You are a great leader, sir.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Peace is now what I have. It is like freedom to just exhale, like your nervous system is now able to rest.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Let's go get this toilet fixed, shall we?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I still don't love being called a landlord, but it is true, that's what we are and I think that what this population needs is landlords who care. And it is absolutely what we do.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

OMAR JIMENEZ, CNN HOST: For the full story about Andrew's work and to nominate your hero, go to cnn.com/heroes.

Another hour of CNN NEWSROOM starts right now.

[18:01:15]

OMAR JIMENEZ, CNN HOST: Welcome to the CNN NEWSROOM, everyone. I am Omar Jimenez in New York.

Tonight, Iran and the United States holding off on any strikes for now. But that hasn't stopped both countries from threatening each other. Earlier today, a message from Iranian state media attributed to Iran's Supreme Leader, Mojtaba Khamenei vowed revenge on the U.S. and Israel for the killing of his father, the late Ayatollah.

Khamenei, has not been publicly seen or heard from since the war began. And then last night, President Trump warning Iran that "1,000 missiles are locked and loaded and aimed at the Islamic Republic of Iran. Should the Iranian government act on its threat to assassinate or attempt to assassinate the sitting President of the United States of America, in this case, me," as the President laid out there.

This all comes as negotiators look to get both sides back to the negotiating table. And today, Iran's Foreign Minister, Abbas Araghchi, was in Oman meeting with his counterpart there. According to Iranian state media, the two discussed the state of negotiations and the Strait of Hormuz.

Now, satellite images obtained exclusively by CNN appear to show Iran rebuilding nuclear and missile sites throughout the country in the past several weeks. That time frame would put Iran in violation of the Memorandum of Understanding agreed to by the United States and Iran as they have laid out an agreement that is now in serious jeopardy amid the renewed fighting.

Here is CNN investigative reporter, Katie Polglase.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KATIE POLGLASE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): This image, one of several shared exclusively with CNN, may show signs of Iran attempting to rebuild its nuclear facilities. This is one of several locations across the country where we've identified recent activity, both in nuclear and missile sites. The activity at nuclear sites, in particular, raises questions as to whether Iran violated the Memorandum of Understanding it signed with the U.S. in late June.

Even before President Trump seemed to signal it's end by launching fresh strikes. In it, Tehran had agreed not to procure or develop nuclear weapons. This site in Parchin is believed to be holding explosive material for nuclear weapons. Before the U.S. Israeli strikes, Iran built this concrete shield around it, a sign of its importance.

It was then struck multiple times during the U.S.-Israel bombing campaign. This year, the targeting was precise. You could see the holes left behind by bunker busting bombs. Now, a new imagery from June and July, analyzed by CNN in conjunction with the Institute for Science and International Security, we can see Iran appeared to be taking steps to repair and reconstruct the site.

You can see temporary covers placed over the impact holes. Then weeks later, with the Memorandum still in effect, the covers are removed and replaced with a mesh. Concrete mixing trucks are visible nearby. Experts say these trucks are a sign the Iranians are intending to seal the holes.

POLGLASE (on camera): For weeks, we've only had glimpses of what's been happening on the ground inside Iran. Providers have been withholding satellite imagery across the region at the request of the U.S. government. Now, those restrictions are loosening, and we've been able to see new images across Iran of which sites they've started to clear and repair first. A sign, perhaps, of which they see as the most important.

POLGLASE (voice over): This is Pickax Mountain, another site where Iran is believed to be advancing its nuclear capabilities deep underground. And in recent weeks, vehicles could clearly be seen going in and out of the tunnels. Experts told CNN this was likely a violation of the terms signed with the U.S., which required Iran to maintain the status quo regarding the nuclear program.

In contrast, other prominent nuclear sites did not seem to have been touched, like Isfahan here, Fordow here, and Natanz.

[18:05:04]

There has been activity at some missile sites. The U.S. and its allies have long been concerned about Tehran's missile capacity and the latest imagery suggests Iran has already started repairing some storage sites. This is new paving laid out at Tabriz missile base in recent days. And at another missile base in Kermanshah, we can see excavators and tunnel entrances being cleared.

Lastly, we've also spotted repairs at air bases in recent days. You can see a crater being filled in here at Tabriz Air Base, with the U.S. resuming its attacks on Iran. A peace agreement is seeming increasingly out of reach.

Katie Polglase, CNN, London.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

JIMENEZ: Now, The White House told CNN the administration is watching these sites closely because Iran cannot keep the enriched uranium. The Iranian government has not responded to a request for comment.

A lot to talk about here.

I want to bring in CNN national security analyst, Alex Plitsas. He is also Director of the Counterterrorism Project at The Atlantic Council.

And, Alex, I just want to start on that new CNN visual investigation. I wonder what stands out to you about that reporting, and does it tell you anything about Iran's ultimate goal or positioning in this moment?

ALEX PLITSAS, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY ANALYST: Actually, it isn't as bad as I think, as it would look at face value to a lot of folks who are watching. So, there was a lot of leaks that came out about a potential U.S. raid to go into the facilities to go get the deep buried, you know, highly enriched uranium that's there. And so the Iranians were told or excuse me, were alleged to have been using concrete and other things to sort of block the tunnel entrances and then make repairs to runways or some of the missile silos or things of that nature.

They are not necessarily in the agreement per se, s unless they have actually taken steps to, you know, increase the highly enriched uranium and again, all of their enrichment arrays have largely been destroyed or degraded, it really probably isn't a violation.

The U.S. is watching if there had been more action, I think we would have seen something from the U.S. at this point. And that's why we haven't seen more substantive comments.

JIMENEZ: And, you know, obviously, the nuclear portion of this is just one aspect of what the United States and Iran -- I mean, really, multiple parties are trying to get to some form of final agreement on that initial portion, of course, comes through the Strait of Hormuz as well. And a source tells CNN, Oman has drafted a proposal to manage traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, through two separately controlled channels.

Do you see that as something that could actually work here?

PLITSAS: Well, it is definitely an interesting proposal, and that's the reason that they were meeting now, is because the mediators I spoke to both yesterday and today and U.S. government officials had just become incredibly frustrated. It was clear in the MOU that they were supposed to maintain freedom of movement in the Strait, as it was pre-war. The Iranians basically said to have been trying to impose their version of the MOU, or their thoughts on it was that they can dictate the terms and if people don't show up in places they tell them to be, they can fire on ships, and that simply doesn't work.

So in this case, what the Omanis proposed, the graphic we have up on the screen now on the right, if we look at that light colored island almost in the center, there is a little bit of bright blue around it, as you get to the narrow point around there, that's actually across that tip that juts out to pointing north is actually Oman on the other side of the border, not the UAE.

And so it is that point there where you've got channels basically that go around there.

What the Omanis proposed is that on their side, the southern approach, that they would sort of have movement they would control, and then the Iranians would control their portion of it on the other side.

from what I was told, even though it ended with no statements, because the Iranians have to go back to Iran, they couldn't get agreement there because there are other parties they have to consult with. So it is not done by any means. I was told there was some forward progress, and that's because, again, they are looking for a statement of clarity because the negotiators are saying one thing when they are meeting with the U.S. and with they are with regional mediators, and then they go back home and the IRGC is firing on ships.

And finally everybody said, enough, we are not going to deal with this divide anymore. We need a clear public statement as to where the Islamic stands and that is what we are waiting for right now.

JIMENEZ: How would you characterize Oman's relationship with both Iran and the United States, especially if they are sort of putting forward a proposal like this? Is it a realistic scenario to where both sides would actually respect and actually listen to what is being put forward there?

PLITSAS: Well, it is certainly a face-saving measure, and as ridiculous as that sounds to many people listening, that's actually a big part of what has to go on here. And in speaking to Iranian-backed channels and officials over the last six months or so, face-saving has got to be part of the measure here. They can't be perceived to have lost in this.

So for them, if they are able to control their portion of the waterway, is it going to be open with or without tolls or fees? Is there another passage that can be used? Those are sort of maybe up for discussion, although I think the international community has made it clear, and certainly all the gulf partners I have spoken to and the oil and shipping executives, there were no mandatory tolls or fees before the conflict started, if they were to exist afterwards, that would be seen as a step backwards or a loss.

So that's been sort of going back and forth and that is -- one is face saving, the second is cash. The Iranians are suffering from economic loss at this point, one from the pre-war sanctions, then the conflict itself and then you had the blockade on top of it and they have been seeking ways for liquidity. So when we removed the oil sanctions, they were able to sell legally. That cut off some illicit funds with the middlemen for the IRGC.

[18:10:15]

There are compounding factors that come off of all of this. So some is face saving and some is cash, to be honest.

JIMENEZ: You know, if you zoom out here, someone maybe just tuning in or not quite keeping up to with the granular details, you know, we've had strikes back and forth at points. We've had multiple pauses at points, kind of like where we are right now but that could change at any moment. They may have seen previous announcements of a Memorandum of Understanding, the process of which still seems to be on track despite the multiple flare ups and as we get closer to what was announced as that sort of 60-day period to try and get to some form of next stage of negotiation.

I just wonder, how would you characterize or assess where things actually stand tonight?

PLITSAS: So, there is a lot left to do in a very short period of time. We are nearly halfway through that 60-day period, we will be at the end of this coming week. What began as a Memorandum of Understanding, 14 high level points of agreement between the United States and Iran, basically over things that they would agree to sort of talk about, and then the order in which things would have to proceed.

Then the Vice President, you know, flew over for a round of negotiations where they basically broke that 14 points down into four distinct channels. So one dealing with the Strait of Hormuz, one over the nuclear issue, and then one was basically economic as well because they wanted relief on the back end, but unless they got action on sanctions. And then the third, sorry about that, is the regional security issues that the proxies' missiles and the drones.

So what I am hearing from folks is that unless there is movement on the proxies' missiles and drones on that front, on the Strait of Hormuz, on the nuclear, then there is not going to be significant financial relief.

The next stage after that is supposed to be technical negotiations. This is where the experts in these topics show up and try to come to an agreement on highly specific language over how this is going to get resolved. That has been really delayed at this point. There hasn't been substantive movement, and we are down to less than just a little bit more than 30 days.

For context, the last time there was an agreement, the JCPOA or the Iran deal, as it is known to most folks under the Obama administration, that took about 18 months and was 157 pages. So most of the mediators I talk to say, look, there is no way we are getting through this in 30-something days. There is going to have to be significant progress to make President Trump want to continue the negotiations beyond that period, so the next couple of weeks is going to be very telling.

So either the Iranians step to the microphone and declare a common understanding that the Strait of Hormuz is going to be free, and technical negotiations are going to commence, or this goes back potentially into kinetic action, which is where nobody needs to see things right now.

So very precarious moment and it is basically all eyes on Iran to see what they are going to come back with after these negotiations.

JIMENEZ: Yes, a lot more work to be done, maybe understatement of the last few months. Alex Plitsas, good to see you, always appreciate the analysis. Thanks for being here.

PLITSAS: You too. Thanks for having me.

JIMENEZ: Of course. All right, still ahead, a historic groundbreaking in Chicago. We are going to take a look at the new Torture Justice Memorial and how the city is hoping to bring some important lessons from some of the darkest periods in American history involving police brutality.

And then Democrats sounding the alarm bells after the President fires several members of an independent election commission. We are going to talk to an expert, straight ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[18:18:02 ]

JIMENEZ: This week, the Trump administration fired the leaders of the bipartisan Election Assistance Commission. So, the EAC, it provides funding and security guidance to election officials including certifying voting equipment and with the trump administration having gutted the U.S. Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency as well, the EAC is really one of the few remaining federal agencies providing election security support to states.

I want to bring in David Becker, the executive director and founder of the nonpartisan Center for Election Innovation and Research, who joins us now.

I just want to start with why is this move significant? How could it affect upcoming midterm elections, in your view?

DAVID BECKER, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR AND FOUNDER, CENTER FOR ELECTION INNOVATION AND RESEARCH: Well, I think the answer to those two questions is different. First, it is significant because President Trump continues to expand the boundaries of presidential power. He continues to try to exert power over agencies that Congress intended to be independent by firing duly Senate-confirmed commissioners and leaders and the Supreme Court has seemed to endorse those actions by the President and, of course, that completely readjusts the balance of power that we've come to expect that the founders created when they forged the Constitution nearly 250 years ago and that is of great concern.

But we should also note that while this agency has some responsibilities with regard to setting voluntary voting systems, guidelines, et cetera, its mandate is very limited. It is a very small agency. It does not run elections. Many of the things that it does are ministerial and will continue to go on without commissioners.

As you noted, the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency within DHS has been gutted with regard to the election expertise and support that it was providing and that was quite significant. But since then, the election officials in the states and counties all over the country who actually run elections, they have come to expect that the federal government is not going to be assisting them in any way.

[18:20:10 ]

And they have filled that gap with their own capacity with networking amongst themselves and what that means is while this is troubling from a presidential power perspective, this is going to have absolutely no effect on the 2026 election. Zero. It is not going to be noticed by voters. Election officials in the states have already compensated for the gap that the federal government has ceased to provide where it has ceased to provide support.

And so when I've talked to election officials since this has happened, they're not concerned at all. I don't think this is going to have any effect on the election itself.

JIMENEZ: So then how would you contextualize this action with some of the other actions that have been taken by the federal government? You were sort of describing the President testing the powers of a President and the federal, I guess, overreach or reach into state run elections.

Just contextualize this versus some of the other issues or efforts that you've been tracking.

BECKER: Yes, I think what we are seeing here is, of course, the Constitution gives the power to regulate elections to the states. It is very clear in the Elections Clause, Article I, Section 4, State Legislatures have the primary power.

Congress can also set some rules, but the President has zero power, absent that which Congress has expressly authorized. And now, we are seeing this administration having spread lies about elections for a long time, even before it came into office, of course, even in the first Trump administration, spreading lies that our elections are not to be trusted, even though they are among the most trustworthy in the world and they are the most trustworthy American elections have ever been, with paper ballots nationwide and audits nationwide to confirm the results.

And they've now been in complete control of the federal government for 18 months. And in that 18 months, as they've tried to turn over every rock to find evidence of election fraud or election theft, they found absolutely nothing. They have tried everything, every tool in their toolbox has failed.

And so we are seeing them send letters now to every single state, including allied states, that they are liable for criminal prosecution if they have noncitizens on the voter lists. Even states like North Dakota that don't have voter lists, no election official I know of has taken that seriously. Some have even openly laughed at that letter that was sent earlier this week.

We are seeing the FBI surge agents to Atlanta to apparently look for evidence regarding the 2020 election, pulling agents off important things like counterterrorism and violent crime to do that when a Trump appointed judge just earlier this week said that they couldn't seek more evidence like data on information on election workers from 2020 because there was no way to prosecute a crime there.

We are seeing them run out of tools and I think this is getting desperate and pathetic, quite frankly, to see this much federal resources be focused on finding evidence of a crime that was never committed. I expect very soon we are going to see more desperate attempts to try to spread more lies about our elections. But the reality is our voter lists are more accurate than ever. Every single person who registers a vote needs to provide I.D. when they register under federal law since 2002. Every state except Louisiana has paper ballots and every single state audits those paper ballots, reviews them by hand to confirm that the mechanical count was correct.

We run really good elections in this country. They are decentralized. They are very secure and I think that is causing more and more problems for the President, who would like us to doubt our elections, perhaps because he is worried what the outcome of the election in November might be.

JIMENEZ: David Becker, I really appreciate the perspective and analysis for us, especially laying out some of those individual efforts and how people should be thinking about those. Thanks for taking the time.

BECKER: Thank you so much.

JIMENEZ: Of course.

All right, still ahead for us, another deadly Russian attack on Ukraine. We will tell you what we are learning as Ukraine struggles to fend off ballistic missiles from Moscow.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[18:28:35]

JIMENEZ: Ukraine says at least five people were killed and dozens more were hurt by Russian strikes earlier today. Surveillance video captured the moment of the attack. Watch.

(VIDEO CLIP PLAYS)

JIMENEZ: It has become a frequent part of life for many in Ukraine.

Meeting on the sidelines of the NATO Summit this week with Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, President Trump said the United States will allow Ukraine to manufacture Patriot interceptors. These are critical for defense against Russian ballistic missile attacks.

To talk about this and more, I want to bring in former U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine, Bridget Brink. She held the role for three years, resigning in April 2025 in protest of what became the Trump administration's U.S. Policy towards Russia and Ukraine. She is now running as a Democrat for a congressional seat in Michigan.

Ambassador, thank you for taking the time.

Look, a lot has happened in this war, and U.S. support of Ukraine since you left the post. I just wonder, how do you assess the current environment and how it has changed since 2025?

BRIDGET BRINK, FORMER U.S. AMBASSADOR TO UKRAINE: Well, look, President Trump said that he was going to end the war on day one, and we are over 500 days later and Putin has only escalated.

[18:30:15]

And why? Because we have had a policy of appeasing Putin's aggression, because we've reduced our support and because we've turned our backs on our -- our friends and our allies.

This is not the way to end this war. And what we need to do is actually increase the pressure on Putin and on Russia. Those images you just saw, they're horrifying. And they really brought back the feeling of what I saw and felt for three years working in Ukraine and leading our mission.

We need to have a strategic approach that actually increases our sanctions on Russia and stops funding to this war machine. And that also helps to ensure that the Ukrainians can be armed and defend themselves. And this is going to mean taking the Russian frozen assets. We have -- there's about 300 billion that are in Europe and using that to buy arms for Ukraine.

This is not the way to end this war. Trump's shoot from the hip approach is exactly why I had to resign, speak out and come home and run for office.

JIMENEZ: You know, we were talking a little bit about it, sort of the possibility of Patriot missiles to help with -- with Russian ballistic missile defense here. President Trump's language and speaking about it has been kind of vague at this point. I just wonder, from your perspective and experience, how realistic do you think this is? And would it be coming too late in your view?

BRINK: Well, that's exactly the problem. So, it's not exactly clear what Trump meant by providing Patriots. Is it the missile system or is it interceptors, both of which Ukraine could use more of? But having production in Ukraine or co-production of this system would take years. This is not an immediate solution. We need to have a strategic approach, not a shoot from the hip approach that addresses the immediate need.

As we just saw from these images, there have been multiple attacks in the last 10 days that have killed now, I think, 60 people, men, women and children. We should be able to provide support and use things like the NATO summit to have a strategic plan together with our partners and our allies. I believe that this is the wrong way to approach dealing with a dictator. We need to stand up to dictators and be on the right side of history. And again, it's exactly why I had to resign and speak out.

JIMENEZ: You know, we're more than four years into the war at this point, and one dynamic that -- that I'm curious if you've heard from voters out on the campaign trail, and we've seen this a little bit with Israel as well, is sort of questioning the amount that the U.S. government is sending to these countries in support of their own wars. So, whether that's Israel, with Hamas in Gaza or with Ukraine and Russia. Again, we've seen some skepticism among voters. And I just wonder, how have you approached that topic with people you encounter on the trail, people who see it as maybe struggling with everyday costs here at home, but also wonder why money is going to some of these allies consistently in the way that they have? What is the case that you make to them?

BRINK: Well, I think that what we're seeing and what I hear on -- on the ground in mid-Michigan and on the doors is that people are primarily concerned about three things, rising costs, the cost of health care, and the erosion of our democracy, and that the chaos and the corruption that's coming out of Washington, and specifically from Donald Trump, are making all of these things worse. And the fact of the matter is, is that this shoot-from-the-hip foreign policy is what we're also seeing in domestic policy. And the result is that it's just costing mid-Michiganders and people across the country.

So, the war in Iran, which was entered into without a strategy, without an endgame, without thinking about how we could use other tools of American power first, has meant that we have lost 13 service members. It's cost us over $28 billion. And in my district, it's costing farmers and others because prices have gone up, and we're all feeling it when we go and we fill up our cars at the gas station.

So, we need to have an approach and a policy for all of our interests at home and abroad that's strategic and that actually is benefiting people back home. And that's exactly what people are frustrated about. This is exactly what I intend to do if I'm elected to Congress. We've got to stand up for what's right, and I will stand up to this chaos and corruption so that we can deliver for the people of mid-Michigan.

[18:35:00]

JIMENEZ: Ambassador Bridget Brink, really appreciate you taking the time. Thanks for being here.

BRINK: Thank you so much.

JIMENEZ: Of course. All right. Still to come, we're going to take a look at the new Chicago Torture Justice Memorial. As more than a dozen police torture survivors attended the emotional, groundbreaking ceremony, we'll bring you the details. You're in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[18:39:56]

JIMENEZ: A big moment in Chicago this week, recognizing one of the darkest chapters in American policing history. A groundbreaking was held for a memorial honoring the survivors of police torture. Specifically, Commander Jon Burge from the Chicago Police Department and his unit were at the center of a pattern of police torture that resulted in at least 130 documented victims tied to either him or his unit in the 1970s and '80s. Now, Burge and his "Midnight Crew" as he was known tortured many people, mostly black men into false confessions as the city has documented. Some served years, even decades in prison for crimes they didn't commit.

In 2015, Chicago City Council voted to recognize the torture with reparations, setting up a $5.5 million fund and issuing a formal apology. Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson had this message for survivors at the ceremony.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MAYOR BRANDON JOHNSON (D-CHICAGO): We are grateful for your survival, but we deeply, deeply apologize for the torment and the torture that you and your family experienced. The memorial cannot completely undo the harm, but it certainly can ensure that the harm doesn't perpetuate.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

JIMENEZ: We're joined now by Stanley Howard and Jen Ash. Stanley is an advisory board member of the foundation and a survivor of police torture who spent 39 years in prison, 16 of them on death row for a crime he didn't commit. He's also the author of "Tortured By Blue." Jen is the executive director of the Chicago Torture Justice Memorials Foundation.

Thank you both for your time.

And Stanley, I just want to start with you. This memorial has been a long time coming. I mean, more than a decade since it was announced, sort of. But I just wonder, what was it like to see this work finally starting and beginning here?

STANLEY HOWARD, ADVISORY BOARD MEMBER, CTJM FOUNDATION: First of all, I'd like to thank you for having us. This is a great moment. It's a historic moment in the history of Chicago, in the history of our nation. To have this memorial built and to be actually breaking ground on it, I mean, it cannot be overstated or understated.

I believe that the history of the torture scandal written on the walls of this memorial will serve the city of Chicago and the nation really good. It's just a stone's throw from the Obama library. To actually see this built, you said 10 years. I see that it's been 40 years in the making to where people actually understand what happened here in Chicago.

JIMENEZ: And to your point, I mean, all these decades later, I mean, people are still talking about this and -- and still unwinding themselves from the -- from the mess that was created, which obviously, Stanley, you experienced firsthand. But Jen, I wonder, your work at the Chicago Torture Justice Memorials Foundation was set up in part to document this period of Chicago history. And I just wonder, to that effort, did you worry that this would just be lost to history?

JEN ASH, EXEC. DIRECTOR, CHICAGO TORTURE JUSTICE MEMORIALS (CTJM) FOUNDATION: No, because our community in Chicago has fought, like Stanley said, for decades for this. I stepped into this position a few years ago, but I've been involved in the organizing of the reparations legislation campaign from back in 2014. When we won in 2015, I knew this history would not be erased, not only from the landscape of Chicago, but from -- from the nation's history, despite the fact that many people want that to happen. And in a moment where you have legislatures all over the country and

the federal administration trying to erase history and trying to erase what white supremacy and colonialism and imperialism have done to this country, we're really proud that our city, the city of Chicago, is actually inscribing this onto the landscape.

JIMENEZ: And, you know, when you look at -- at this story, at this saga, that, again, the city is still unwinding itself from, some might say, all right, look, this was a dark chapter in Chicago policing history. You know, I have described it many times as one of the darkest chapters in American policing history. How do you explain the significance of this chapter, Jen, to people who aren't from the city and are trying to understand what happened there?

ASH: Yeah, so Jon Burge came back home from Vietnam, where we believe he learned how to torture, in 1972, and he began torturing black and Latin-A people in Chicago as a police officer, as a police commander area two and three, here on the south side of Chicago. And documenting that history has been a long struggle.

It's really important to remember that and to know that what Jon Burge did was not an isolated incident, that police violence and police torture is endemic across this country. We've known -- we know the history of policing is connected to the history of slavery in this country and the history of Jim Crow and how police have been used against black folks for centuries in this country.

[18:45:09]

And so, understanding what happened here in Chicago also helps you understand the rise of mass incarceration across this country. Jon Burge was torturing as the -- the buildup of the prison industrial complex was happening here in the United States. So, understanding this story helps you understand a national and a global story as well.

JIMENEZ: And Stanley, I just wonder, what do you want people to know about your story that they're not going to get from just reading the description that I said, the time that you served, the journey that you went on to get to where you are right now? What do you want people to understand about what you've been through?

HOWARD: You know, I am really surprised that in this country, in this day and age, that we must remember, we are talking about American history, not just black history. We're talking about American history, where all three branches of government was complicit in the scandal or either turned a black eye to it or simply worked to cover it up.

The racist nature of what happened here in this city, it wasn't just Jon Burge, it was a group of cops that they called themselves the "Midnight Crew." It was fabricating evidence, planning all evidence, committing perjury, and coercing witnesses to lie. It wasn't just torturing a suspect into confessing. This is something that everybody needs to know to stop from repeating it in the future here.

What I'm talking about here that's really problematic is the fact that we had a racist group of Chicago cops running around the South Side of Chicago with impunity, doing everything that they wanted to do. And the sad part is that a lot of black families, a lot of people, city of Chicago paid hundreds of millions of dollars to try to sweep this up under the rug. We still have torture survivors still incarcerated right now today. That is unheard of where we know what happened, but the judges, the prosecutors, even the system refused to acknowledge a wrong when it was wrong.

So, what -- to answer your question, what I want people to take from this is to understand that we still got a long way to go. We may be going backwards right now, but we still be taking those two and three steps forward. And that's why I wrote this book, "Torture By Blue," to be able to explain to the American people exactly what happened to get understanding of how we can move forward with this in the future.

JIMENEZ: And, you know, just for our viewers, Stanley is part of a -- a community that I've interviewed many people of before, people who are now served time tied to this era of Chicago policing. Jon Burge's "Midnight Crew" were either exonerated or now trying to figure out their lives moving forward.

Stanley, I really appreciate you taking the time. Jen Ash, I really appreciate you being here as well. Just thank you.

ASH: Thank you.

HOWARD: I appreciate you. Don't forget ...

JIMENEZ: Of course.

HOWARD: ... get this book and it will also teach you a lot about the criminal justice system.

JIMENEZ: All right. I appreciate you. All right, good to see you all.

Coming up, a sitting U.S. Congressman tells CNN he felt nervous and scared after being blocked and intimidated by a group of Israeli settlers and IDF soldiers during a visit to the West Bank. We'll tell you how Israel's military is responding to the incident next.

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[18:53:11]

JIMENEZ: Democratic Congressman Ro Khanna of California says he was blockaded in the West Bank for over an hour by Israel Defense Forces soldiers and Israeli settlers. The incident happened earlier this week, and Khanna is now calling on the Israeli government to prosecute the IDF soldiers and the settlers. CNN's Jerusalem Bureau Chief Oren Liebermann has the story.

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OREN LIEBERMANN, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Congressman Ro Khanna visited Turmus Aya in the occupied West Bank, a village with thousands of Palestinian Americans who have come under repeated attacks by Jewish settlers. Khanna says he became a target as well, detained by settlers and the Israeli military for more than an hour, according to Reuters.

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REP. RO KHANNA (D-CA): I'm certainly probably the first American politician who's been detained by the IDF and Israeli settlers. I mean, we were at a village that Israeli settlers had destroyed. They had destroyed the school. The -- they had destroyed that village. And we were just looking at it. And these hoodlums come in with machine guns, an M4, an American-made machine gun, and they detain us. They block off the road. And then they call the IDF, and the IDF is on their side, not on the side of the Americans.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LIEBERMANN (voice over): Khanna is on a three-day trip to the West Bank as he weighs a potential presidential run in 2028. Support for Israel in the U.S. has fallen significantly, especially among Democrats, where a progressive young wing of the party has been highly critical of Israel.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KHANNA: I saw the arrogance in the eyes of those settlers, 21- and 22- year-olds with guns, laughing that they had detained us. The arrogance of those young IDF soldiers that my tax dollars are funding, having no respect for the fact that they were detaining Americans, no respect that there was an American congressperson in that bus, and laughing when our translator told them that there are Americans there and the American embassy is concerned.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[18:55:05]

LIEBERMANN (voice over): Khanna says the issue of Israel, Gaza and the West Bank will be a moral test for his party.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KHANNA: It is the arrogance of power, of a power that has had no accountability, total impunity, and has created a toxic culture of oppression.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

JIMENEZ: All right, Oren Liebermann, thank you for that report.

Meanwhile, the Israeli Defense Forces issued a statement saying, upon receiving the report, IDF troops were dispatched at the scene, quickly dispersed the Israeli civilians and reopened the blocked road. It went on to say the IDF did not take part in blocking the road. More reporting to come on that.

Still ahead on CNN NEWSROOM, we've got breaking news in the Middle East. New details on the Strait of Hormuz. We'll bring you that in just a few moments. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)