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Four People Killed in the Latest Round of U.S.-Iran Strikes; CNN On Scene at the Disputed South China Sea; Jewel-Less Louvre's Apollo Gallery Reopens, Nine Months After the Heist. Aired 3-4a ET

Aired July 24, 2026 - 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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BEN HUNTE, CNN ANCHOR: Hello, wherever you are in the world. You are now in the "CNN Newsroom" with me, Ben Hunte in Atlanta, and it is so good to have you with me.

Coming up on the show, the U.S. completes its 13th straight night of strikes on Iran, while Iran says it is hitting back at U.S. allies in the region.

A confrontation at sea between Chinese and Philippine vessels over a disputed island. Our Ivan Watson was on board and will have his report.

And the Louvre's Apollo Gallery reopens for the first time since last year's brazen jewel heist. We'll talk to an art recovery expert about what museums can do to keep it from happening again.

UNKNOWN (voice-over): Live from Atlanta, this is "CNN Newsroom" with Ben Hunte.

HUNTE: Welcome. The U.S. is extending its relentless campaign against Iran with no immediate end in sight. The U.S. military says it completed a 13th straight night of airstrikes. Iranian state media reports at least four people have been killed.

This video allegedly shows Iran firing a new wave of attacks towards Bahrain and Jordan, as it continues to bombard U.S.-allied Gulf nations. Iranian state media claims Tehran targeted U.S. assets in those countries. This all comes as the "New York Times" reports Iran rejected a new

U.S. ceasefire deal delivered by Iraq. It's not clear what was in it.

Meanwhile, the White House is making a major about-face on a nuclear deal with Saudi Arabia. On Thursday, President Trump said the deal is off unless the kingdom normalizes diplomatic ties with Israel.

CNN's Leila Gharagozlou was here for us, live from London. Good to see you. Trump says he is not ready to negotiate a new ceasefire with Iran, what more can you tell us? LEILA GHARAGOZLOU, CNN PRODUCER: Yes, so as you said, President Trump

has been very reticent to negotiate a ceasefire, so much so that he even said that the Iranians themselves weren't ready for a ceasefire. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: We're doing very well against the Islamic Republic of Iran. We're doing extremely well. They would like to do something, but I say they're not ready yet.

They need more of the same. They're not ready yet.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GHARAGOZLOU: So, President Trump very clearly looking to extend this ongoing strike campaign that we've seen for almost two weeks now. And we have heard, obviously, as you said, the "New York Times" has said that the Iraqi prime minister went to Iran with a proposal of a ceasefire, despite the fact that President Trump himself has said that he wants to keep this going and Iran's not ready.

Now, Iran has allegedly rejected the ceasefire proposal, which isn't very surprising, because Iran has been really clear about where it stands when it comes to any sort of ceasefire. They don't accept a no peace, no war situation, they don't want to be in limbo, they'd rather either have peace or go through it.

And they do often say that the only way is through. And they're prepared to go to the lengths that they need to not be in this kind of limboed balance of no war, no peace.

Now, we did see what happened with the last ceasefire and that MOU, the vague language in that. So the Iranians are going to be very, very clear that anything that comes out of this, whether it's a ceasefire or a deal, needs to have very specific language around the implementation.

Now, we are expecting to continue seeing strikes over the next couple of days per President Trump. And the Iranians have, again, been very clear that they're willing to take that. And if it escalates, they're willing to escalate in kind.

So it's a very fragile situation. Things are rapidly looking to some sort of expansion and escalation of this conflict, Ben.

HUNTE: Okay, Leila, thank you so much, I appreciate it.

Joining us now is Sanam Vakil, director of the Middle East and North Africa program at Chatham House. It is good to see you. Thank you for being with me.

You wrote that the U.S. and Iran MOU was doomed to fail because it put off the hardest issues instead of actually resolving them. Looking back now, what do you think was the biggest flaw that meant it was always likely to collapse?

SANAM VAKIL, DIRECTOR OF MIDDLE EAST AND NORTH AFRICA PROGRAM. CHATHAM HOUSE: Well, good to be with you. I know you want one, but I'm going to give you a few more.

HUNTE: Give it to me.

VAKIL: I think the language of the MOU was decidedly vague enough, particularly on the Strait of Hormuz. So it led both sides to have their own interpretation.

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Iran understood that for the 60-day period of negotiations that it would have negotiating leverage and authority over the Strait of Hormuz. While during that 60-day period, the United States was trying to reduce Iran's leverage and working with Oman to open this southern transit corridor. So that was problem number one.

But problem number two was the time lapse in negotiations. They were not persistent, both sides were thinking 60 days is plenty of time. Perhaps there would be a 30-day extension.

And frankly, the ceasefire and the MOU were so weak that without the persistent negotiations, it was inevitable that there would be misinterpretation, miscalculation. And that happened very quickly. So here we are back again in a quagmire, if you will.

HUNTE: You argue that transactional diplomacy can manage conflict but not actually resolve it. Are we now seeing exactly that?

VAKIL: Well, yes, we've been seeing this for quite some time in the context of Middle Eastern conflicts that have become very entrenched. And policymakers don't have the bandwidth or the energy to invest in unraveling them.

You know, way back when there was the Oslo peace accords, the Iran nuclear agreement, those took a long time to negotiate. And, of course, they fell apart.

So, these transactional quick bargains to reduce the active military dynamics, bring about a ceasefire, are the current approach. And it's an approach that's very much encouraged and celebrated by the transactional Trump administration.

But they're not delivering settlements. They're just delivering temporary management strategies that then rebound into active conflicts, as we are seeing right now.

HUNTE: You've also compared today's Middle East with Europe before the First World War, warning that mistrust and loose partnerships and military responses can make conflict spiral. Do you think that the region is already entering that kind of dangerous cycle here?

VAKIL: Yes, we are on the precipice of a larger conflict. First of all, all of these Middle Eastern conflicts, be it between Israel and its activities in Gaza and the West Bank, with Lebanon, with Iran, with the Houthis, there is a sort of connective tissue, and that is, of course, Iran's intervention abroad and Iran's underlying conflict with the United States and Israel.

So, yes, we are in this sort of escalatory cycle. The Houthis in northern Yemen have already tried to slow down traffic through the Bab el-Mandeb. If that waterway does close, it's designed to cause another energy shock, shipping and insurance shock, to spread the impact of this war, again, horizontally across the globe and on the economy in order to pressure President Trump.

But that would then bring the Saudis more directly into the war, because Yemen is effectively Saudi Arabia's backyard, and that would just lead to a cascade of broader military dynamics that would be escalating before you could get to the de-escalation. And that's the sort of not perfect analogy, but analogy.

HUNTE: Well, let's talk about solutions as well. If you could advise leaders in Washington and Tehran and across the region today, what is the one step that they should take immediately to stop this becoming another long-running Middle East war?

VAKIL: Well, I first of all think the impulse is to segregate all of these crises and try to find solutions to each crisis. If that's the strategy, then the solution-developing process needs to start now, and that includes in Yemen, where there is no coordinated negotiation taking place or no real discussions with internal political leaders or even the Houthis on what comes next. So that's problem number one.

But if you want a broader regional settlement with Iran, you need to get everybody into the room together, the Iranians and Americans specifically, because negotiating, I think, through all of these mediators serves a purpose but can't really deliver peace.

And they need to sequence a larger deal. It's not just about opening the Strait of Hormuz. The Strait of Hormuz is the operating theater where today the underlying mistrust and tensions between the U.S. and Iran are taking place.

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And they need to be sort of quick, verifiable deliverables. If the United States wants the Strait of Hormuz to actually open, they are going to have to offer something in return.

And that's where, of course, some of these compromises are untenable for President Trump. But he got the United States and the world into this war. He needs to find a way to get out of it. And Iran is willing to play for time and impose costs, and they are gambling that the President doesn't have the appetite or the attention span for a bigger war.

But let me just say one more thing. The bigger war could be around the corner, because embassies back in Tehran are withdrawing their staff. The President continues to signal that further serious strikes are coming. And Iran has just rejected a supposed ceasefire offer that came through the Iraqis. So we could be in for another more serious round.

HUNTE: Well, fascinating as always. Sanam Vakil, thank you.

VAKIL: Thank you.

HUNTE: Ukraine's capital is bracing for more protests over the firing of the country's popular defense minister. Protesters plan a new way in the coming hours, unless Mikhailo Fedorov is reinstated on the job. The young minister was ousted last week after clashing with the military's old guard. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy later offered him a different role, which Fedorov rejected.

Meanwhile, we have just received new video of Ukraine's latest strikes in Russia on Wildberries, the country's top online retailer. Russia says three people were injured near St. Petersburg and the warehouse is on fire. Ukraine says the company's warehouses are used to make military drones.

A fast-moving wildfire in southwestern France has forced more than 10,000 people to evacuate. The town's mayor says the fire spread much more quickly than expected amid an ongoing heat wave. This is happening on France's Atlantic coast in an area that's popular with tourists.

Back-to-back heat waves in Europe have intensified drought conditions and driven wildfires all across the continent. The heat has also been blamed for thousands of deaths.

All right, the most visited museum in the world reopens one of its top galleries, but without the main attraction. How the Louvre intends to protect its artifacts nine months after the brazen theft of the French crown jewels. See you in a moment.

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HUNTE: Welcome back. The fabulous Apollo Gallery at the Louvre Museum in Paris is open again today, but without its main attraction, the French crown jewels. The gallery reopened on Wednesday after it was shut down nine months ago. That is when eight pieces worth more than $100 million were stolen, and they do remain missing.

A ninth item, a crown, was recovered after the thieves dropped it on their way out. Four people have been charged in connection with the robbery. Other gems from the Apollo Gallery will eventually be displayed in a separate, high-security area.

Well, let's talk about it. Bring it in Christopher Marinello, he is a lawyer and CEO of Art Recovery International, and an expert in recovering stolen art. Good to see you, sir.

At this point, how likely is it that the remaining jewels will ever be found? And what usually determines whether treasures like these can actually be recovered?

CHRISTOPHER MARINELLO, CEO, ART RECOVERY INTERNATIONAL: Well, every week that goes by, the chances of recovering these jewels becomes less. Something needed to happen in the first few weeks for them to be recovered.

We find maybe 5-10 percent of everything that is stolen in the world is ever recovered. And when it comes to jewelry and gems, the percentage is much smaller because they are recut and hidden in that way.

HUNTE: These jewels are so famous all around the world, and they were displayed in one of the world's most visited museums. How significant is this theft in the history of museum heists?

MARINELLO: Well, it's major because of the museum that they attacked. They hit the Louvre. If they can hit the Louvre, criminals can get into any museum in the world, it's one of the most well-funded museums in existence.

HUNTE: How difficult is it for a museum like the Louvre to balance public access with the level of security that's needed to protect its priceless objects?

MARINELLO: Well, unfortunately, times have changed. And we need to treat our museums like bank vaults.

And that's unfortunate because you have to, as you said, blend accessibility with the value of these items. But unfortunately, what we've seen is that museums cannot protect the items that they're entrusted to hold for future generations.

Criminals are getting into museums everywhere. Even since the Louvre theft, there have been some major thefts in Europe this summer.

HUNTE: What kind of major thefts have you seen?

MARINELLO: We've had a museum in Italy that was robbed fairly recently. In France, the Lalique Museum was robbed since the Louvre theft. So, we're really not learning from these thefts. We have to find a way to protect our cultural heritage, which is there for future generations.

HUNTE: How surprised are you that these artifacts haven't been recovered?

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MARINELLO: I'm not surprised at all. When it comes to diamonds and rare stones, the first thing the criminals are looking to do is to break them up and have them recut.

The criminals that were arrested here are alleging that there was some mastermind behind this theft. And they've refused to divulge the name and location of this mastermind. And if there is someone behind this entire theft, well, they're breaking up the jewels, getting them out of France, trying to hide where they are and where they came from.

HUNTE: So, all of that being said, what can museums actually do differently? How will this one robbery change how other major museums do approach security for their most valuable collections?

MARINELLO: Well, number one, I'd like to see the law enforcement in this case issue a reward. I received a very viable tip just two days ago, and the tipster was looking for protection and a reward for information that might lead to the recovery of these gems.

But what museums need to do, they need funding. With wars going on around the world, an immigration crisis, health crisis, there's no money for our museums.

And we need to start thinking differently. Treat them like bank vaults, because that's really what they are. Criminals are going shopping in our world museums, and the items that they steal will most likely never be seen again.

HUNTE: Do you feel like the level of coverage that these kind of heists are getting actually encourages people to then have a go themselves?

MARINELLO: You're absolutely right. Especially when we hear stories about how there's not enough jail space and criminals are being let out early or out Europe.

And so, you know, where we once used to say, well, crime doesn't pay, they're beginning to think, well, maybe it does.

HUNTE: I mean, very heavily so. A hundred billion dollars is a hundred billion dollars. Goodness me. Christopher Marinello, thank you so much. I appreciate it.

MARINELLO: Thanks for being here.

HUNTE: Skirmishes at sea and competing claims over a critical waterway. CNN gets a first-hand look at the dispute. See you in a moment.

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HUNTE: Welcome back, I'm Ben Hunte. Let's take a look at today's top stories.

Iranian state media reports the latest wave of U.S. strikes have killed at least four people. The U.S. military says it has wrapped up the 13th consecutive night of strikes. Iran claims it also launched new attacks targeting U.S. assets in Bahrain and Jordan.

Severe flooding in India has left 40 people dead and over 100 injured. Heavy rainfall triggered the devastating floods, leaving widespread damage across the country's northeastern region. Officials say between 70 and 80 people are still missing in the Indian state of Assam.

A fast-moving wildfire driven by an ongoing heat wave is forcing thousands of evacuations on France's Atlantic coast. More than 10,000 people have had to leave the area. Extreme heat across Europe has made drought worse and is being blamed for thousands of deaths.

As global trade faces disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz, a separate maritime dispute is putting another crucial sea route at risk.

The South China Sea is home to a strategically significant island, Scarborough Shoal, which is claimed by both the Philippines and China. The shoal is not far from the Philippine coast and falls inside the Philippines' economic exclusion zone. But that's not stopping China from throwing its weight around.

On Thursday, the U.S. Secretary of State said, The United States will stand by its mutual defense treaty with the Philippines. Marco Rubio called China's claims of sovereignty in the region a growing challenge.

Well, CNN's Ivan Watson is covering this dispute as he travels through the South China Sea.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

IVAN WATSON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: We're in the South China Sea. I'm aboard a Philippine government vessel. It is currently being shadowed by a coast guard ship from China, which is kind of a speck on the horizon here.

The situation a couple of hours ago was dramatically different. You had Chinese coast guard ships surrounding this ship as well as several other ships from the Philippine Bureau of Fisheries and operating in very close proximity to the ship where I am right now. I would say seven, ten yards away off the port bow and blasting it with water cannons repeatedly was tense.

At times, it looked like the Chinese ship might ram us, perhaps even accidentally. All told, it was a confrontation where the Chinese maritime security forces were trying to prevent this and several other Philippine government boats from approaching Scarborough Shoal, which is one of several hotspots in the South China Sea that both China and the Philippines claim for themselves.

03:29:54]

In the case of Scarborough, Chinese forces have basically controlled this uninhabited rock for the last couple of years, stopping Filipino fishermen, fisherfolks from being able to fish there, and rejecting a competing claim from the Philippines where they claim to own it.

The fact of the matter is that China basically claims almost all of the South China Sea for itself, disregarding competing claims from the Philippines, Malaysia, Taiwan, Vietnam, Brunei.

And what we've seen out in this part of this rare opportunity is how these two governments are engaged in a test of wills where neither side is willing to back down, and they frequently have their ships and planes coming in very close contact. There have been skirmishes that have led to damage to the ships, injuries to personnel as well.

And this is a bizarre scene that plays itself out over and over again out in these contested waters week after week. And we got a very rare up-and-close view of just how strange this is. Giant ships.

According to the Philippines, at least 26 Philippine and Chinese ships out here in the last couple of hours in very close proximity coming within yards of each other. Fortunately, nobody reported to be hurt, but a strange maritime drama that plays itself out in these waters week after week.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HUNTE: The makers of some very popular weight loss drugs may be headed to court just ahead while the maker of Ozempic is suing a major rival. See you in a moment.

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HUNTE: Welcome back. Here are your business headlines.

New U.S. tariffs on 60 countries are now in effect. Goods shipped to the United States are now facing levies of 10 to 12.5 percent. This is President Trump's latest workaround after the Supreme Court rejected his most aggressive tariffs back in February.

The widening conflict in the Middle East is taking a toll on oil prices. Brent crude jumped more than 6 percent on Thursday, hitting $100 a barrel before retreating. There are growing fears about the world's oil supply, that's after Houthi rebels in Yemen targeted Saudi tankers in the Red Sea.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is holding a two-day meeting of outside advisers to decide whether compounding pharmacies should be allowed to dispense certain peptides. The outside advisers narrowly voted on Thursday in favor of loosening restrictions on some peptides that had been banned and will vote on three more in the coming hours.

American consumers are used to being bombarded with T.V. and online ads about weight loss drugs. But most countries around the world do not allow drug companies to advertise prescription medications directly to the public.

Now, the Danish maker of Ozempic and Wegovy is suing Eli Lilly. That's the U.S. maker of Manjaro and Zetbound, accusing it of false advertising.

CNN's Anna Cooban has been closely following this story for us and she joins us live now from London. Anna, good to see you. What more can you tell us?

ANNA COOBAN, CNN BUSINESS AND ECONOMICS REPORTER: Well, this lawsuit is pretty striking. Both of these companies, this is a duopoly, Ben. You've got Airbus and Boeing making aircrafts, Visa and Mastercard. And in the weight loss drug industry, you've got Eli Lilly and Novo Nordisk.

Now, they're going head to head in the U.S. market where they're really advertising their weight loss drugs. What Novo is saying, accusing Lilly of, is using outdated clinical data which compares their drug, the efficacy of their drug, with Lilly's.

But what Lilly says is, look, we really reject this. We're citing a robust head to head clinical trial and they will fight this lawsuit tooth and nail.

But what I find really interesting to British ears, we don't in the U.K. see these prescription drug ads. It's actually banned in the U.K. as it is in most other parts of the world. New Zealand and the U.S. are really the exceptions here.

And I saw this for myself a couple of weeks ago when I went to a place in central London where Novo Nordisk had funded what they called an art exhibition, an obesity exhibition where they spoke about the condition. But they were not promoting the drug at all. I turn up to this maze and I walk through the maze and there's signs and T.V.s with people's experiences about how difficult they found losing weight.

And I spoke to someone who worked at the maze who identified themselves as being from Novo Nordisk. And I said, you know, what does Novo Nordisk do? And he said, I don't know.

I then pressed him and he said, well, okay, I do know. I'm just not allowed to tell you. So when I hear about these ads in America that are promoting these prescription drugs, it's a very different environment to what we have in the U.K. then.

HUNTE: Well, it kind of works because we're talking about it on CNN now. So they've got the promo. How are things different in the U.S. though? Tell me about that.

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COOBAN: Well, in the U.S., you know, I've been speaking to a few analysts about this. And one of the big reasons why there is this more permissive environment for prescription drug advertising is the First Amendment, because it really protects the free speech of individuals, but also of corporations.

And you have to rewind back to 1997 when the FDA really relaxed rules around advertising of drugs on T.V. and radio. But then speaking to analysts, they've also said to me that in the past 10 to 15 years, the advertising has really ramped up. You know, back then you would have these ads for drugs that were more consumer oriented, you know, Botox, for example.

But now you've got more niche drugs for people with cancer. And this is something that the U.S. administration is looking into. They want to sort of tighten the screw a bit around these ads to make it a bit more restrictive. But fundamentally, it is a whole different world out there than as you probably know, being there.

HUNTE: Yes, indeed. Well, that is absolutely fascinating stuff. Thank you so much, Anna, for your reporting there. We do appreciate it. And please keep us updated with more as you get it. It's a new era for the hit zombie franchise "Resident Evil."

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNKNOWN: Yes, where was it going again?

UNKNOWN: Raccoon City General.

UNKNOWN: Hey, no sweat.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HUNTE: This is a trailer released on Thursday. The game is teasing a new storyline starring Austin Abrams as a medical courier whose trip to a remote hospital exposes him to some infected monsters. The horror franchise began as a video game before expanding into the blockbuster films.

And of course, there were television series and comic books, too. "Resident Evil," as the new flick is simply called, opens in theaters on September 18th.

Thousands and thousands of comics and anime fans have descended on San Diego for Comic-Con. This is very exciting. More than 135,000 people are expected to attend the four-day pop culture convention.

Many are dressed in costumes representing all of their favorite characters, with Marvel superheroes among the more popular choices there. Look at these images.

While it is all fine for attendees, this is also a huge boost for the region. Because Comic-Con is expected to generate more than $160 million for the local economy. And that is a lot of money.

That's all I've got for you, thanks so much for joining me and the team. I'm Ben Hunte, in Atlanta. "World Sport" is next. And then, of course, because there's so much happening all around the world, I'll be back with you at exactly the same time tomorrow. See you then.

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