Return to Transcripts main page

CNN Newsroom

Tuesday: Michigan Dems Vote In Contentious Senate Primary; Interview With Sen. Gary Peters (D-MI); U.S. Planning Fresh Strikes On Iran; Savannah Guthrie Pleads For Public Help; Trump Rejects Pirro's Decision, Insists Reflecting Pool Damage Was Cause By "Vandals"; Russia's New Target: Ukrainian Gas Stations; Witness Who Was In Van With Man Killed By ICE Breaks Silence. Aired 5-6p ET

Aired August 01, 2026 - 17:00:00   ET

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

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[17:00:34]

BRIAN ABEL, CNN HOST: You are in CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Brian Abel in Atlanta.

Tonight, the final weekend push before Michigan Democrats head to the polls Tuesday for the highly-anticipated Senate primary election.

Both Congresswoman Haley Stevens and progressive candidate Abdul El- Sayed out on the campaign trail today vying for the Democratic nomination in the critical Midwestern battleground state.

Many people believe this race could be a litmus test for the future of the Democratic Party. There's new polling that shows most Americans who consider themselves Democrats say the party needs major changes or a complete reform.

Democratic Senator Gary Peters is joining us now. He's retiring this year. So it is his seat that is up for grabs here for this primary.

Senator, you've put your support behind Congresswoman Stevens, calling Michigan ground zero for Democrats flipping control of the Senate.

When you have a candidate here like Stevens who represents so-called established Democrats, but you also have a majority of Democrats saying they want to see big change in their party. How do you square those two realities, Senator?

SEN. GARY PETERS (D-MI): Well, I think what folks want is someone who's out there fighting, someone who is pushing back on the Trump administration aggressively. but someone also who knows how to get things done and deliver for folks.

we know costs continue to escalate. Many families are struggling. They want someone who not only fights but can actually get things done. And that's why I'm supporting Haley Stevens. I've known her for many years.

In fact, I first got to know her back in 2008 when I was first elected to Congress. During the height of the financial crisis, the auto industry was in really rough shape. and Haley ran the -- or was the chief of staff for the task force that President Obama had to rescue the auto industry.

I worked with her regularly. She's passionate about Michigan. She fights for Michigan. And she is ranked as one of the most effective members in the House and actually getting things done.

And she's Michigan through and through. And I believe that she is a strong candidate.

And as you mentioned, Michigan is ground zero. We have a real shot to take the majority in the United States Senate, something that we didn't necessarily think was going to happen a few months ago. But it's real right now. But that doesn't happen if we lose Michigan.

So Michigan is certainly the center, as you say, the center of the political universe right now. And through election day in the general election in November.

ABEL: You know, I do want to ask you something that you just mentioned there that you believe that the Senate and that Michiganders need a fighter and somebody that's going to talk about affordability.

Also in a poll, and I'm not sure if we have the full screen here, but we do have -- we asked the question of what Democrats need to be talking about more, or talking too much about.

And, you know, it was pretty balanced on pushing back on President Trump, but it was overwhelmingly lacking when it comes to this general idea that Democrats are not talking about the cost of living enough. And I'm curious what your thoughts are on that if there is a change in rhetoric that needs to happen here with the Democratic Party.

PETERS: Well, I can speak to Haley Stevens is talking about the cost of living all the time. That is a focus of her campaign.

Certainly, what my colleagues are doing in the Senate, we're focusing on that as well, understanding that housing is too expensive for most folks. Weve got to have housing reform, which we work to pass legislation to do that.

We understand energy prices --

(CROSSTALKING)

ABEL: And Senator -- I don't mean to interrupt.

(CROSSTALKING)

ABEL: Our viewers on the screen right now what I was just talking about there, with the cost-of-living 8 percent versus 52 there.

Go on sir. Sorry.

PETERS: No, not at all. And that we have to be focused on that. It's tough though, when you have a president who is engaged in a war

that is driving up energy prices right now, gas prices are up. There doesn't seem to be any end in sight to this forever war.

And as energy prices go up, the price of everything goes up. The price of groceries, the price of everyday kinds of things that people use each -- each and every day.

And so you have these cost drivers, the Republicans clearly are fueling the inflation that we're seeing right now. And as Democrats, we're talking about how do we lower the cost of health care?

[17:04:45]

PETERS: And as we fought for that, your viewers may remember, Republicans basically killed our tax cut for folks who have health insurance to make it more affordable. Every Republican voted against Democratic efforts to lower the cost of health care.

So there's a clear divide in where our parties are. There's a clear divide in our candidates for what we stand for and what they stand for. And we stand on the side of everyday folks who are struggling to meet their everyday expenses.

ABEL: Senator, I do want to focus back to this primary race for a minute before we push back out again to the general election and dig deeper into why you think Congresswoman Stevens is the best candidate in this race.

Because in that same poll that we referenced earlier, about a third of Democrats and Democratic-leaning adults said they identify as Democratic Socialists, so more on the progressive side of things.

Do you think she represents the future of the Democratic Party when you hear numbers and polling like that?

PETERS: Well, it's, you know, ultimately the test of where the party goes is who wins general elections and who wins general elections in purple states.

You know, what we have seen in the past few weeks are folks do very well in very deeply Democratic places, whether districts or states.

The world is a lot different in Michigan. It's a lot different in purple states. And basically the majority is determined in purple places like Michigan.

And what we look for here and normally the type of candidate that wins is a practical, common-sense person who's about working, not about yelling and screaming, but actually working to solve the tough problems that our country faces right now.

I call it Midwest pragmatism. And that's the type of candidate that wins general elections. And ultimately, you know, primaries are important, but the only thing that matters is who wins the general election. And the stakes are so high right now. We have to win Michigan if we

have any shot of having a majority in the U.S. Senate and being a true check on the -- on the -- really the extremes that we're seeing from the Republican Party right now.

ABEL: And, Senator, you were just talking there about the state being purple. And I do want to hearken back for a minute, because I'm reminded of the previous Senate race between Elissa Slotkin and who's waiting for whoever wins this primary on the other side, Mike Rogers. And if you take a look there of how close the margins were here, back for that Senate race, you know, Representative Stevens hasn't necessarily faced a similar split district or split state vote like Senator Slotkin has.

So do you still -- do you believe that she is the candidate that can bring in the Trump voters that Slotkin did the last time around?

PETERS: Well, she has been in a competitive congressional district. She actually flipped a congressional seat from Republican to Democrat. She represented an area that was truly purple. She flipped that state.

So she actually has proven that she can win in that kind of district. She's the only candidate that has done that that's on the ballot for the -- for the Senate.

So, she does have a track record. And if you look at the kind of support she has, and you mentioned some of the polls, some of the polls show that she is the strongest person in the -- in the general election.

ABEL: All right. Senator, I do want to turn to another story that we are following this week on Capitol Hill.

We saw Dr. Anthony Fauci appear before Congress. You are the ranking member of the committee that he was in front of.

Senator Rand Paul has since vowed to force a vote next week, holding Fauci in contempt of Congress over his refusal to testify, asserting the Fifth Amendment. Do you believe there is a contempt case to be made here?

PETERS: I'll have to hear what Chairman Paul is arguing. You know, he asserted his Fifth Amendment rights, his -- and those are constitutional rights. And so it's difficult to think that you're going to have a contempt charge.

Traditionally, the Congress has always supported people's ability to exercise their constitutional rights. So we'll have to hear what the argument is.

But I think it's a tough thing for Senator Paul to argue.

ABEL: Ok. And also, while we have you. Earlier today, President Trump said he would work to get the $1.8 billion anti-weaponization fund passed into law if Todd Blanche isn't confirmed as attorney general.

Have you spoken with any of your Republican colleagues about this and what this might mean for Blanche's chances?

PETERS: Well, I hope they push back aggressively. We've seen some of that already, and I am encouraged by some Republicans that realize this weaponization fund is absolute pinnacle of corruption, to be able to take money from taxpayers, to give it to your political friends.

And, you know, part of that fund is also to give immunity from the IRS audits of President Trump.

It is absolutely outrageous that a president could do something like this. In fact, it's never occurred in history.

[17:09:50]

PETERS: I think we've never had a president in the past who would think like -- that something like this would even be acceptable.

The fact you have Donald Trump again pushing to put his hand in the till of taxpayer money is something that we should all push back aggressively against. Some of my Republican colleagues agree. I just hope they stand tough.

ABEL: All right. We will see how all of this plays out from the primary race to Capitol Hill. Senator Gary Peters, appreciate your time. Thank you.

PETERS: Great to be with you.

ABEL: The State Department telling Americans in the Middle East to consider leaving as the war with Iran threatens the broader region. Sources telling CNN the U.S. is planning new strikes on Iran as soon as this weekend.

President Donald Trump previewing those potential strikes, saying, quote, "we will be hitting them very hard". But officials cautioned those strikes could still be called off.

CNN's Julia Benbrook has the latest from the Trump administration. She is joining us now. And Julia, what are we learning about where things stand at the moment?

JULIA BENBROOK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, as you mentioned, the State Department is warning Americans in the region to exercise caution and to consider leaving the Middle East. I want to pull up part of that social media post now.

The State Department said "Americans in the region should consider departing or be prepared to depart should there be an escalation."

And this comes as officials have told CNN that President Donald Trump, his administration, are considering a new wave of strikes that could come as soon as this weekend.

Now, the scope of these strikes and the potential targets that the United States may go after are still uncertain. But those officials did also say that this could all be called off at any point. So a lot is being considered.

We do know from those officials that there have been talks and plans that have related to the potential of targeting Iran's energy sites.

The Trump administration has been wary of targeting Iran's energy infrastructure, in part over a concern that Tehran could retaliate by targeting other infrastructure that could then really impact global energy markets, which have already been under great strain during this conflict.

And Trump himself, he did preview the potential of a new wave of strikes while speaking during a cabinet meeting yesterday that took place at Camp David. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We'll be hitting them. We'll be hitting them very hard.

And, you know, at some point they're going to say, we just can't take it anymore.

We just want to win. We don't want to have them. It's very simple. They cannot have a nuclear weapon.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BENBROOK: And it is important to note, as he threatens this further escalation, that throughout this now five-month conflict, the president has kind of gone back and forth between threatening more military action and then expressing hope that there could be a diplomatic breakthrough.

At least at this point, right now, it does not seem that he is leaning on diplomacy or has a lot of hope for that diplomacy to work out, as he did say during those same remarks, that he is not happy with Iran's leadership, that he is losing faith in them, that they have really just been making him angry.

As he considers these next steps, he's spending the next couple of days here in New Jersey at one of his properties nearby. And as he considers next steps, polling shows that Americans have not been happy with the steps that he has taken so far. This has shown up consistently in different surveys.

A recent CNN poll showed that just 28 percent of Americans approve of how he has handled Iran so far.

ABEL: There's a wide gap there.

Julia Benbrook for us in New Jersey. Julia, thank you.

Six months after Nancy Guthrie disappeared from her Arizona home, her daughter Savannah, pleading for any information.

Plus, President Trump is now rejecting his own Department of Justice's findings and doubles down on blaming vandals, not shoddy construction for problems surrounding the Reflection Pool renovation.

And Russia says it has launched a quote, "massive strike" on Ukraine's capital. What we know at this hour ahead.

You're in the CNN NEWSROOM.

[17:14:20]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ABEL: Six months to the day since Nancy Guthrie vanished, her daughter pleading for help. Today, show anchor Savannah Guthrie, posting this morning, quote, "We are begging for help. We are desperate. We need someone to come forward. Someone knows something. Someone suspects something. Someone recognizes the writing in the ransom demand notes. There is a way to end this situation and do the right thing."

Investigators have made public the full ransom notes they believe are from the kidnapers, asking everyone to look closely for any clues that could give them a break in the case.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CHRIS NANOS, SHERIFF, PIMA COUNTY, ARIZONA: We think somebody knows something. We hope that by releasing some of this information, it will jog somebody to think about what --

[17:19:49]

NANOS: -- a lot of people have called us with information. But we also know a lot of people are hesitant to do so.

And so I hope that by constantly reminding the public we're here, we're not going anywhere.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ABEL: CNN's Josh Campbell has more now.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JOSH CAMPBELL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: We now know the contents of two letters addressed to the family of Nancy Guthrie by her purported kidnapers, According to law enforcement.

This week, the Pima County Sheriff's Office in Arizona is releasing the Details of two kidnapping letters that were received by different media outlets shortly after the disappearance of Nancy, who, of course, is the mother of NBC anchor Savannah Guthrie.

Now, this comes on the six-month anniversary of Nancy Guthrie's disappearance.

Authorities want people to look at the syntax, the actual wording. All of us have unique writing styles. They want anyone with information on who might have written this to pick up the phone and call law enforcement.

Now, in the first letter that was received by the media on February 2nd, the letter says that "We have your mother. She is safe but scared." They demand $4 million of ransom be paid via bitcoin.

The letter goes on to say, "If payment is not received, the ransom will be increased to 6 million U.S. dollars, which will need to be paid by 5 p.m. on Monday the 9th.

Once payment is received to the bitcoin address below, she will be released to a safe drop off location back in Tucson. If payment is not received by the last deadline on Monday the 9th at 5 p.m., she will be killed.

Your mother is aware of this and her life is in your hands."

Now, just a few days later, on February 6th, media also receives another letter, this one much different in tone. They say, "We did not fully grasp the seriousness of her physical condition. We never intended to hurt her. That was not our intention.

She perished shortly after she was taken. We believe it was heart related. She is buried in nature now. Nothing you could have done could have changed the outcome. We want your family to know this and hope you can all find peace."

They say that we are truly sorry, which of course will likely come as little consolation to the Guthrie family, which has just been grief- stricken since this incident first happened.

Now again, authorities are asking anyone with information to call law enforcement, to call 1-800-FBI. Authorities say in addition to continuing to analyze this letter, they are also processing DNA from the scene, trying to gather any leads in hopes of actually identifying the perpetrator or perpetrators here.

Of course, authorities also released that dramatic video where you actually see a person in a mask at Nancy Guthrie's front door, believed to be the time when she was abducted.

Authorities are asking anyone who might know the identity of that person to also call law enforcement.

Josh Campbell, CNN -- Los Angeles.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ABEL: Josh Campbell, thank you.

Cold case expert and CSI investigator Sheryl McCollum is joining us now. She's also the author of "Swans Don't Swim in a Sewer: Solving the Cold Case of the Flint River Killer's Daughter".

And Sheryl, thank you so much for taking the time to be with us. These newly-released ransom notes, what stands out to you?

SHERYL MCCOLLUM, COLD CASE EXPERT AND CSI INVESTIGATOR: that they don't ring true of a ransom note?

First of all, it says, "Hello, Savannah." That's like a greeting. That's like a salutation. It's not a demand for money.

The fact that they give two separate deadlines for money, but then say further in the letter, they won't negotiate.

But they did. They negotiated within the ransom note.

And then they say, you know, unusual things like we, we, we, and then they end with me. Well, when you train, you know, change a pronoun, that's significant to me. That doesn't sound like it's going to be more than one person.

They also say they're going to keep her for a maximum of seven days. But Brian, their math is wrong. If they took her on the 31st or the morning of the 1st, and they're given the deadline of the 9th, that's more than seven days. So their math doesn't add up.

Their demand is not even a demand. And I'm not sure if it's we or me. They should know those things and they don't.

ABEL: And I do want to get into some of the other evidence that might give a clearer picture of when she may have actually passed as we just recently came to find out, based on those ransom notes, that they believe that she had.

We did see, you know, a reaction by Savannah when they received that ransom note saying that she had died shortly after being taken, though none of that has been confirmed. But that does kind of go to the mystery of the timeline you're talking about.

I do want to ask you, why would the investigators release these notes now. If they're hoping somebody familiar with the alleged kidnapers may recognize some clues in the notes, why wouldn't they have released them sometime in the last six months? Why wait till now?

[17:24:47]

MCCOLLUM: I think they should have. I think they should have been released when the video was released.

You're talking about somebody that doesn't recognize his stature, his gait, his way of dress. They don't recognize the backpack or the holster. But they're going to recognize "she's buried in nature" now. That's kind of a red, you know, Hail Mary for me.

But again, release it. We need to find out the author of these letters because they need to be prosecuted as well. If they are not the kidnaper and this is just the torture of the family, they need to be arrested like the other man.

But if you look at the totality of what has occurred, I think they're releasing it now, Brian, because they don't have anything.

We don't have a person of interest. We don't have a vehicle. We don't have a race. We don't have anything to go on.

And you know, here's the other issue for me as a crime scene investigator, I have yet to see a formal search. And I mean a grid search, a shoulder-to-shoulder search.

The other thing that I would like to see is the Guthrie family, the sheriff and the FBI on the same stage delivering information. Not the FBI saying nobody's, you know, been ruled out. And the sheriff saying, well, the family has been. And then the sheriff backtracking, saying they haven't been.

Savannah having to put out videos of her own. That is not the way this should go for them. It's not.

(CROSSTALKING)

MCCOLLUM: They should be on the same page at the same time, in the same place.

ABEL: What would -- what would having that scene, what would that do for the case itself?

MCCOLLUM: Well, you know, you remember when they went out and they had the whale or sewer, whatever it was, and they had the long pole and they were just rummaging around trying to see if they could find a body in there? That was horrible.

That shouldn't have happened for her children or grandchildren. At the very least, you should have had a tent over something.

So what it would do, it would show that something has actually been searched and there's no evidence there.

Guthrie with her status as a media person, she could get 5,000 people out there searching, you know, people that are long distance runners, that they're camping. If they're driving across country or riding motorcycles or horses. Somebody may be able to find something.

(CROSSTALKING)

ABEL: So you're saying if they're all together with the sheriff, everybody on stage together, then she could use her celebrity power to further push for more evidence, be found, more help.

MCCOLLUM: 100 percent. People want to help. I mean, all you got to do is look at the Internet when it comes to Nolan Wells or Nancy Guthrie.

We want to help. We want to turn in whatever evidence we can think of. If it's on the phone, or something we noticed, or something we saw, of course they should utilize that.

But more importantly, they have got to stop. You know, one person, you know, putting out, oh her bed cover was off the bed. Then the next person saying, well, we've got a person of interest. The next person saying we're nowhere near an arrest. For example, when the sheriff comes out and says, oh, I think Kash

Patel had some misinformation. Why are you putting that out in the public? Why don't you call the man? You could get him on the phone and you all need again to get together, make a plan of how this investigation is going to roll out. And it shouldn't be piecemeal.

ABEL: I would love to explore more about this. Unfortunately, we have to leave it here for now.

Sheryl McCollum, thank you so much for your time and expertise.

MCCOLLUM: Thank you, Brian.

ABEL: Hours after the U.S. attorney in Washington says the Reflecting Pool renovation was, quote, "hasty and botched", the president rejects that conclusion.

You're in the CNN NEWSROOM.

[17:28:42]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[17:33:08]

ABEL: Tonight, President Trump is slamming a major decision by his justice department on the Lincoln Memorial reflecting pool.

The agency says it's dropping vandalism charges against former Olympian David Hearn, acknowledging damage at the pool was caused by hasty and botched work, not vandalism.

Trump rejecting those findings on social media. Saying, "I disagree 100 percent with Jeanine Pirro, the U.S. attorney for the District of Columbia, on the reflecting pool. I don't know what she was thinking. To me, it was a pure case of vandalism, that included the grass, which had a big 86 47 emblazoned in giant letters on it, and other elements of the surrounding area. There may have been some contractor difficulty, but the major damage was caused by vandals!" Exclamation point.

Now, to be clear, Hearn wasn't charged with damage to the grass. And shortly, after the reflecting pool renovation was completed, a severe algae bloom and chunks of peeling pool lining started coming up. The justice department has dropped charges against the former Olympic canoeist and at least two others.

CNN's Katelyn Polantz has more now.

KATELYN POLANTZ, CNN SENIOR CRIME AND JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT: The former Olympic canoeist who was indicted for vandalizing the reflecting pool this summer-that case it's being dropped-and the Trump administration is walking back everything that they had said or tried to say about how vandals were the ones that caused this pool liner, Donald Trump wanted for the Fourth of July to be peeling up and an embarrassment across Washington. In this situation, the Jeanine -- the Jeanine Pirro, the U.S. attorney in Washington D.C., she is saying that after her office indicted David Hearn, the former slalom canoeist and someone who was critical of Donald Trump and also was fighting the case against him, she says that after he was indicted, the U.S. Attorney's Office and the justice department got documentation from inside the Department of Interior, the National Park Service, that they knew back when the reflecting pool work was being finished, days before Hearn even visited the National Mall to see the pool, that they knew that there were peeling issues with a liner that had been sprayed on to make the bottom of the pool very, very blue.

[17:35:24]

People like Hearn had gone to that site, because there was algae that was filling the pool at a time when Donald Trump wanted to renovate it and a lot of other monuments in Washington, D.C. This case is now falling apart, though, and the example the justice department had tried to make of Hearn is no longer.

Here is a quote from the filing: A recent visual inspection done by Pirro herself showed damage throughout the reflecting pool. Now that it has been drained of water, even in the middle of the pool, where a vandal would not likely attempt to peel the lining.

Given all of this newly discovered information, it's difficult to attribute the widespread damage to the reflecting pool to vandalism, let alone to establish that fact beyond a reasonable doubt.

Attorneys for Hearn they are asking for an apology from the justice department. We haven't seen anything like that in court filings, but we are seeing the dismissal of other charges against at least one other person who was charged with a misdemeanor version of this vandalism related to the reflecting pool, and the debacle that happened in Washington this summer. Back to you.

ABEL: All right. Katelyn, thank you.

Russia ups its attacks on the Ukrainian capital. That's ahead.

You are in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[17:41:16]

ABEL: New police tonight from Ukraine for military aid from the West. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, warning his people are being killed by Russian attacks.

A Russian bombardment overnight killed at least nine people and wounded 30. The second major Russian assault in two days.

The attack came hours after President Trump subtly backed away from his public promise to let Ukraine make the Patriot interceptors that can shoot down Russian drones. Zelensky said, "Every package of ballistic missile interceptors saves the lives of our people."

Russian drones have a new explosive target in Ukraine, gas stations. The attacks have concentrated on fueling stops near the front lines, within easy reach of Russia's attack drones.

And as CNN's Nick Paton Walsh reports, these drone hits are just as much about intimidating Ukrainian civilians as they are about disrupting fuel supplies.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

NICK PATON WALSH, CNN CHIEF INTERNATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT (voice over): Even stopping for gas in Ukraine can now be lethal. More than 200 fuel stations have been attacked by Russia since June. That's about three a day. In a country where the war has shut down commercial flights, they are a lifeline with a huge role in a vast country.

The pumps, now a place to listen out for the buzz of drones and know where the bomb shelter is.

In Zaporizhzhia, policeman Mykhailo (PH) ran in to help after a drone struck one station, but then he heard a second.

MYKHAILO TSYPLISKOV, PATROL POLICE OFFICER, UKRAINE (text): When I heard the drone was already descending, I saw a flash, got up and saw injuries to my arm, legs. Maybe Russia is doing this to intimidate, to sow fear and create panic.

WALSH (voice over): We verified 30 of the estimated over 200 attacks in June and July, they fall across Ukraine, but most are close to occupied areas, the cities of Kramatorsk and Kharkiv, worst hit. All, in reach of Russian drones and intensifying fuel trucks and containers targeted.

On a simple level, impeding the war effort by making it hard to get gas, but also sowing fear far away from the front lines.

The growing range of Russian attack drones making once safe areas part of the kill zone.

YAROSLAV STAROVOITENKO, PRESIDENT, UKRAINE'S OIL AND GAS ASSOCIATION (text): Gas stations became these key points of refuge as people fled the war. Then, Russia tried to cause an intentional blackout, cutting off electricity and heating to freeze us out in the winter. And gas stations became the first facilities to be 100 percent equipped with generators. These were places where people could drink hot tea, fill up their cars, warm up, and even prepare milk for their babies.

WALSH (voice over): Near Kyiv, that has not always worked.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE (text): There is always a risk. No one knows where the attack will strike

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I was discharged from the army after being seriously wounded. If a strike comes here, what is the difference? It did not kill me on the frontline, so it won't kill me here. WALSH (voice over): But many see this as a Russian response to the fuel crisis and queues imposed in Russia by Ukrainian drone strikes on refineries. Putin's escalation inflicting the same back.

Russia's elite drone units make a public point of their strikes on Ukraine, releasing a video here of nine being hit.

WALSH: The damage is real, unexpected, and growing.

Another sign absolutely nothing is off limits in Moscow's invasion of choice.

Nick Paton Walsh, CNN, London.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

[17:45:01]

ABEL: And our thanks to Nick Paton Walsh there.

Spain's prime minister is calling other European allies like Italy and France selfish for tightening their borders on travel from Spain. This, after tens of thousands of people poured into Spain's tiny territory in North Africa, Ceuta. From Morocco, and then tried to cross the border. At least 67 people died, many by drowning.

Spanish authorities say most who tried to cross have already returned to Morocco, and they are working to expel the rest.

Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez blamed the mass crossing on misinformation spread about a recent Supreme Court ruling that migrants who arrive in Spain by sea cannot be deported without due process.

CNN talks exclusively to an eyewitness who was inside the van when Lorenzo Salgado Araujo was shot and killed by an ICE agent in Houston.

You are on the CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[17:50:33]

ABEL: A witness to the fatal ICE shooting in Houston speaking out for the first time and exclusively to CNN.

Jose Trinidad was a passenger inside the white van when Lorenzo Salgado Araujo was shot and killed by a federal immigration agent last month.

ICE claims Salgado rammed a law enforcement vehicle and refused their commands.

CNN's Ed Lavandera has the story.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) JOSE TRINIDAD ROJAS PLIEGO, KEY WITNESS IN TEXAS ICE SHOOTING: I feel bit traumatized or something like that. I am sad about what happened, and especially about what I saw, since I was the one who witnessed it all.

ED LAVANDERA, CNN SENIOR NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice over): Jose Trinidad says things will never be the same. That he's traumatized by the shooting because he saw it all. The 52-year-old construction worker witnessed the final moments of Lorenzo Salgado's life from inside the van driven by the man he simply called El Patron -- the boss.

It was just before 7:00 a.m. on July 7th, when ICE officers in unmarked cars started pursuing the four-man crew of construction workers in East Houston. Trinidad says he was sitting a few feet behind Salgado in the van.

Jose tells me, during the pursuit he heard the men up front say they were being chased by ICE officers. Video show ICE officers pursuing Salgado's van in unmarked cars. At one point, racing past the van on Canal Street, the last video shows ICE officers taking the three other men into custody and Salgado on the ground, handcuffed, just after being shot.

LAVANDERA: When they -- when the officer shot, where was he standing?

ROJAS PLIEGO (text): On the side.

LAVANDERA (text): Who's side?

ROJAS PLIEGO: Of his brother.

LAVANDERA (text): On the passenger side?

ROJAS PLIEGO (text): The passenger side.

LAVANDERA (voice over): Trinidad says the ICE officer shot Salgado through the passenger window.

The Department of Homeland Security says during the chase, Salgado attempted to evade arrest, then weaponized his vehicle and tried to run over an ICE officer. And that's when an agent opened fire in self- defense.

ROJAS PLIEGO (text): That's a lie.

LAVANDERA (text): That's a lie.

LAVANDERA (voice over): Trinidad says the DHS statement is a lie. There are no known videos that capture the moment of the shooting. The ICE officers were not wearing body cameras.

ROJAS PLIEGO: (INAUDIBLE).

LAVANDERA (voice over): Trinidad says ICE agents were never in front of or behind the van, and that Lorenzo was about to turn himself over to the officers.

ROJAS PLIEGO: (INAUDIBLE).

LAVANDERA (voice over): The three men with Salgado inside the van have been in custody since the shooting. But this week, a judge ordered Trinidad's release, and this is the first time he has spoken publicly in detail about what happened.

After his release, Trinidad paid tribute to his friend at the memorial honoring Lorenzo Salgado on Canal Street, and then, prayed at his friend's gravesite.

Jose Trinidad says he and the other men in the van were simply going to work, and that he is speaking out in hopes of getting Lorenzo Salgado and his family justice.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ABEL: Our thanks to Ed Lavender for that report there.

A warning by the state department to Americans in the Middle East: consider leaving. You are in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[17:58:07]

ABEL: This week's "CNN HERO" is a pioneer in conservation. She was the first wildlife veterinarian in her home country of Uganda, devoting her life to protecting endangered mountain gorillas.

And her light bulb moment was realizing the gorilla's survival was closely tied to conditions in local communities. Now, she helps both gorillas and their human neighbors.

Meet Dr. Gladys Kalema-Zikusoka.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DR. GLADYS KALEMA-ZIKUSOKA, FOUNDER, CONSERVATION THROUGH PUBLIC HEALTH: The mountain gorillas used to be one of the most critically endangered species on Earth. When I first came out here as a vet student, I realized how intelligent they were, and you know, I felt a really deep connection. I was like, wow, I felt it was so important that they are protected.

Bwindi Impenetrable National Park is home to 43 percent of the world's endangered mountain gorillas. Bwindi is threatened by a lot of high human population growth. There is a lot of interaction between the gorillas and the people. We used to find that people were not hygienic. Gorillas were picking up preventable diseases, basically. And this made me realize that you couldn't protect the gorillas without improving the health of their human neighbors.

Gandhi. We started the village health and conservation team approach in 2007. They do a lot of good work promoting health and hygiene practices. And now, we are reaching over 10,000 households

You can make each other sick.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes.

KALEMA-ZIKUSOKA: But we are not making each other sick because you are cleaner.

Over time, we have seen huge changes: having a clean toilet, hand washing station, a separate animal house. At the same time, we want to make sure that they are less dependent on the forest by finding them sustainable livelihoods.

You cannot keep the gorillas healthy when people next to them are poor, hungry, and just can't work.

[18:00:01]

We found out that the coffee farmers were not getting a fair market price and were still entering the forest to poach. So, then, we started to sell the coffee. We give them an above market price, and a donation from every bag goes to support community health, gorilla health, and conservation education.