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Thailand School Shooting Leaves Six Dead; Peace Talks Still Ongoing With Iran; Trump Urges for Limitations on Birthright Citizenship; FIFA's Gianni Infantino Still Facing Backlash to Step Down. Aired 4-4:30a ET

Aired August 07, 2026 - 04:00   ET

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

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ANNOUNCER: This is CNN Breaking News.

SALMA ABDELAZIZ, CNN ANCHOR, BREAKING NEWS: Hello. And a very warm welcome to our viewers joining us around the world. I'm Salma Abdelaziz in London. I want to start with some really horrifying breaking news. A deadly school shooting just north of Bangkok, Thailand. So far, six people have been killed. This is according to Thai police, three of them teachers, three of them victims. 22 people have been wounded and at least six -- at least nine of those, rather, are critically injured.

The youngest victim is only 12 years old, and the suspected shooter is 14 years old. He stormed the secondary -- Or the suspected shooter stormed the secondary school after allegedly killing his grandparents in the home he shared with them. You are watching the moment that students inside the school were taking shelter under their desks as gunshots can be heard in the background. The Thai Prime Minister is condemning the shooting. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ANUTIN CHARNVIRAKUL, THAI PRIME MINISTER: I'm very sad that this has happened. I'm not only sad for the deceased, I'm sad by the fact that this kind of incident could happen in our country. This is the reason why the government does not permit the extension of firearms possession. This is exactly why.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ABDELAZIZ: Our Kristie Lu Stout is closely following this story from Hong Kong and joins us now live. I know that this story is changing by the hours. What is the latest that you're learning about this really horrific school shooting?

KRISTIE LU STOUT, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yeah, Salma, this was a terrifying and horrific outburst of violence targeting a school and its community in Thailand. Earlier today, around 10 a.m. local time, a teenage shooter, a student, opened fire at a school, targeting students and teachers. And there are fatalities at this school shooting that took place at a school just north of Bangkok. Authorities saying at least six people are dead, three students, three teachers, 22 at least have been wounded, some critically.

We also learned that the shooter turned the gun on himself and then later was sent to a hospital. Now, a couple hours ago, that was when we heard from Thai police and they said that the situation was, quote, under control. Just a moment ago, you saw that chilling video of the evacuations underway at the school. Boys and girls in their school uniforms being rushed out of their halls, shepherded out by a staff member to safety. And we've also been able to hear from the students themselves about this harrowing experience. I want you to listen to this.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

STUDENT: And then it started getting more frequent, like, bang, bang, bang. And then it went quiet at one point and the shooting started again. I didn't think it was the sound of a gun. After that, we went to the toilet, we thought it was over. I walked over there when a teacher shouted, quickly run here. He's gone to building four. So, we had to run here.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LU STOUT: Now I want to bring up an image, a rather chilling one that was given to us by Thai police. This is Thai police handout image of the gun, the weapon that was used in this shooting rampage. You can see it there. It was a handgun. You see it on the floor, along with ammunition all scattered on the ground. In the next video, again, it is very distressing to watch, but one that is important to share about what these students experience this day.

This social media video that CNN has managed to verify showing the students crouching and cowering under their desks while this school shooting unfolded. You could hear the ringing in the background, the ring from the gunfire in the background and the students, their sounds of distress as well. We're learning more about the school. The name is the Debsirin Nonthaburi School.

Again, it's located just outside Bangkok. It's located on a busy highway. It's made up of junior students, senior students. These are high school students, both boys and girls. The total student population there about 3,000. It's part of a wider and very famous public school network in Thailand. And mass shootings and school shootings are rare in this country. But Thailand, especially when you compare it to its other neighbors in Southeast Asia, does have higher rates of gun ownership.

In fact, according to a survey from 2017, we learned that some 10 million civilians across Thailand do have some sort of a firearm. And that would be roughly 15 guns for every 100 people.

[04:05:00]

What happened today just north of Bangkok is the second school shooting to take place in Thailand. Earlier this year, in February, a school shooting took place in the country's south. A student was wounded, a teacher was killed. We'll continue to monitor for additional updates from this latest school shooting. Salma..

ABDELAZIZ: Kristie Lu Stout, just chilling those images of the students cowering underneath their desks as this shooting took place. Thank you so much for those updates from Hong Kong.

For more on all of this, we do have our senior digital travel producer, Karla Cripps. She is at the scene just outside of this school. Good morning to you, Karla. So, you are there at the school gates. Talk me through what you are seeing around you. I understand that there may be parents gathered where you are awaiting news. What are you seeing?

KARLA CRIPPS, CNN TRAVEL SENIOR DIGITAL PRODUCER: Ah, yes, well, first off, I'll start by saying I have a personal connection. My son actually attends this school. He's 17 years old, so he's in his senior year. But he's away in Japan this week. So, it's been a really surreal day for myself, all the parents, everything kicked off just after 10 a.m. this morning.

My son called me saying he heard a rumor from another student that there was an active shooter. And immediately, and of course the parent chat groups, the parents are talking about receiving these messages and the uncertainty, the fear, it was palpable in that it was just really difficult to go to.

When I arrived here today, there's still ambulances pouring in, just everybody looking really stunned. Parents, students, my own son, I'm sorry to say, he said one of the casualties was one of his own favorite teachers. So, it's been a really hard day for all of us. It's a wonderful school. They have a really lively community. They're very supportive of the students. Very close knit. It is a school of 3,000 boys and girls, as Kristie said. But still, it's -- it's just shocking. It's really shocking.

ABDELAZIZ: Karla, I can hear your voice quivering, and I cannot imagine how difficult it is to comfort your son at this time, to be around your community at this time. Can you talk to me about what support is being provided to parents and victims right now? Is there a help center that's been set up? What information is being provided? What help is there right now?

CRIPPS: Well, it's still in the very early stages. We just, a lot of parents now are just asking what comes next? Right now there's still -- The place is swarming with police. Yeah, there's just a lot going on, so they haven't really communicated what comes next just yet. So we're all waiting to see. As I said, it's just a really surreal atmosphere here at the school, everyone's -- Yeah, it's -- it's unbelievable.

ABDELAZIZ: Karla Cripps there, just outside a school where a shooting took place in the early hours of Friday morning. As you said, your son goes there and our hearts and thoughts go out to you and your community during this very difficult time. Thank you so much.

CRIPPS: Thank you.

ABDELAZIZ: President Trump is complaining behind closed doors about public disclosures that U.S. munitions are dwindling after months of war with Iran. He says that it makes the U.S. look weak and he wants to project strength. CNN reported this week the U.S. military has burned through nearly 80% of its THAAD missile inventory compared to pre war numbers and roughly half of its Patriot interceptors since the start of the conflict. On Thursday, President Trump acknowledged that certain types of munitions are, quote, in tighter supply.

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DONALD TRUMP, U.S. PRESIDENT: We have certain types of munitions that are very powerful, that we have unlimited, virtual unlimited supply. We have others where it's a little bit tighter and we're getting them in on a daily basis. We have certain types of munitions which are very, they may not be as accurate. They may not be -- You know, they're not as elite. We have elite too (ph), but we're -- we're watching that very closely.

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ABDELAZIZ: Now, we are receiving conflicting reports from Washington to Iran over whether those talks to reopen the Strait of Hormuz are actually taking place. And amid all of this uncertainty, Iran's top negotiator is mocking President Trump. Iran's parliament speaker on social media says, quote, massive attack coming. Wait, never mind. They want to negotiate. That is theater diplomacy on loop, he writes, referring to Mr. Trump's recent conflicting statements.

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Meanwhile, Iran backed groups are reportedly ramping up efforts to target U.S. partners in the Gulf region. Saudi Arabia is bracing for attacks by Houthis in Yemen and Iraqi militias under the guidance of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.

For more on all of this, I want to bring in our Leila Gharagozlou. Good morning to you, Leila. First of all, a lot of contradicting messages here. We're hearing from Iran that they are very close to finalizing a deal with Oman on commercial shipping through the Strait. But at the same time, we've just said that the kingdom is preparing for the possibility of more attacks. What are you learning this morning?

LEILA GHARAGOZLOU, CNN PRODUCER: Hi, Salma. Yeah, so there is quite a lot going on and yet not a lot has changed over the course of the last week. Iran and Oman have been engaged in what Iran is calling bilateral talks around opening certain pathways around the Strait of Hormuz to get ships and vessels moving through. They've been very clear throughout this whole process that it does not include the U.S., and if the U.S. wants to be involved, they're going to have to do a number of things.

And a lot of those things were originally laid out in that memorandum of understanding that collapsed just a few weeks ago. Alongside that, it is the naval blockade ending that, addressing the sanctions, resuming negotiations, and addressing the U.S., quote, failure to ensure stability in Lebanon.

So Iran saying, until that is done by the U.S., this is always going to just remain a bilateral agreement with a longtime neighbor and partner. And really this agreement is centered around also asserting their sovereignty and control over the Strait of Hormuz. Obviously, geography is geography. Iran is where it is and can control the Strait.

But they really want to codify their control of the Strait. And Oman also being on the Strait has that ability as well. So they're really looking to make a bilateral agreement here. Now, obviously, as you mentioned, we have the Saudi element of this. Over the last few weeks, there's been some serious concerns that new fronts of this war could open up. Yemen and Saudi being one of those kind of conflict friction points.

We're seeing that kind of come to fruition now. But the Saudis have told CNN that they are very intent on de escalating and ramping tensions down and really finding a way out of this conflict that nobody has really wanted. And I think that really is the key. This is a conflict that neither the U.S. nor Iran nor the neighbors really want to engage in but have now been mired (ph) in, Salma.

ABDELAZIZ: Leila Gharagozlou there with the latest on attempts at diplomacy on the Strait of Hormuz. Thank you so much. Productive is the term that the U.S. State Department is using to describe a third round of peace talks between Israel and Lebanon. The U.S. says that the two sides are a lot closer on next steps to expand the so called pilot zone process, which calls for Israeli forces to withdraw from southern Lebanon and give control of the area to Lebanon's military. These talks come as the Israeli military has ramped up its strikes on Iran backed Hezbollah in Lebanon over the past few days, including new airstrikes on Thursday. Israel has accused Hezbollah of violating the ceasefire.

Meanwhile, Lebanon's prime minister also held parallel talks with the British government on efforts to stop the fighting in the region. Ukraine is keeping up its strikes on Russia's largest online retailer. New video coming into CNN shows an attack on a Wildberries logistics facility. This is just east of Moscow. It happened in recent hours. The building is located about 1,700 kilometers from the Ukrainian border. A regional governor there says three drones hit the roof of the warehouse. It caused a fire.

Ukraine has been stepping up its strikes on Wildberries' facilities as it tries to bring that war closer to home for Russians. It seems sorry is just not enough. FIFA's president is still facing backlash for a scheme to inject private money into future World Cups. We're going to talk about whether Gianni Infantino can survive the backlash. Plus, the Trump administration is coming after birthright citizenship yet again, despite a recent Supreme Court ruling that rejected his previous attempts. That story and much more right after the break.

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ABDELAZIZ: Taking yet another swing at the 14th Amendment, President Donald Trump unveiled a pair of executive orders on Thursday that aim to rein in birthright citizenship. The orders tighten laws already in place and narrow recognized exceptions and appear to be more limited compared to a similar order the president signed last year. The Supreme Court struck it down less than six weeks ago. White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller described the administration's goals here.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

STEPHEN MILLER, WHITE HOUSE DEPUTY CHIEF OF STAFF FOR POLICY: The president is using his authority as commander in chief to sign first an executive order using the new ruling the Supreme Court issued to expand the definitions of people who are ineligible for birthright citizenship. That includes, for example, alien enemies of the United States, members of foreign terrorist organizations, and large categories of people who lobby and act on behalf of foreign governments. And so, with taking this action, it ensures that large numbers of people who wrongly would be getting birthright citizenship will no longer be eligible for those benefits.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ABDELAZIZ: Now, just for context, the 14th Amendment was added to the Constitution in 1868 and it guarantees citizenship to anyone born on U.S. soil. A short time ago, CNN spoke with Jessica Levinson. She is a professor of law at Loyola Law School, and she offered her perspective on what Supreme Court Justices might think about this new order after rejecting Mr. Trump's previous orders only a few weeks ago.

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JESSICA LEVINSON, PROFESSOR OF LAW, LOYOLA LAW SCHOOL: We know that it was a 6 to 3 decision where a majority of the court found that President Trump didn't have the power by executive order to change the definition of birthright citizenship. It was actually 5 to 4 and 6 to 3 where Justice Kavanaugh said, I think the executive order is improper under a statute. And he didn't move on to the constitutional question. I think that's important because if you look at what the Supreme Court might think.

Well, again, I think the travel ban is probably a good example. Where the first iterations of the travel ban were struck down. The Trump administration then went narrower. They covered fewer countries and not just Muslim majority countries. And that ultimately was upheld in the Hawaii v. Trump case. I think what the Justices, if and when this comes to them, what the justices will do is look at this frankly as, if it comes to them anew, and they will say, are these executive orders proper under the Constitution and current statutory law?

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ABDELAZIZ: He is still facing a firestorm. Despite an apology for four mistakes from FIFA's president and a show of support from other FIFA leaders, UEFA is refusing to back down from its threat to boycott all future tournaments. European football's top authority remains outraged over Gianni Infantino's short lived plan to sell commercial and operational rights to upcoming World Cups. UEFA demanded assurances that such attempts to, quote, disfigure the game will never happen again and it says that those conditions have not yet been met. UEFA also says, quote, made it abundantly clear in its statements on Saturday it has lost confidence in Gianni Infantino's presidency.

That position holds. Wednesday's announcement that some people employed by the FIFA president and whose careers depend on his favor agree with him changes nothing. Infantino is up for re election early next year. We're joined now by Miguel Maduro. He is the former chair of FIFA's governance committee. He is live with us from Lisbon. Good morning, first of all to you, Miguel. What a fascinating episode. Because UEFA is still threatening to boycott. The FA (ph) has withdrawn support. The South American League, CONMEBOL, has also refused to back him. Why is Infantino still facing so much furor when he's backed down from this investment plan? He's apologized. What is the beef still here?

MIGUEL MADURO, FORMER CHAIRMAN, FIFA'S GOVERNANCE COMMITTEE: Well, I think there's two interesting developments in the last, what (ph), days. The first one is that it is clear that Infantino wants to hold on to power. That he is not going out of his own will. But also that UEFA and the majority, overwhelming majority of the football associations of UEFA, but also of other confederations such as CONCACAF. I have my doubts on CONMEBOL because they were critical of the project, but they also made clear that they don't want any change at the moment.

But some of the football associations clearly want him to go. And I think the reason why they want him to go is a good reason is that what happened with respect to the project to open up the commercial rights of the World Cup and other FIFA competitions to private investors was only an additional step on a strategy of, on the one hand, hypercommercialization of football, but also, at the same time, of increased concentration of power on the president.

So, we do have this conflict going on at the moment where some football associations led by UEFA want him to go, but Infantino is making clear that he thinks he has the numbers to stay. But at the same time, very interestingly, we also heard from players organizations and from human rights organizations and that are claiming, and rightly so, from my point of view, that it's not enough for Infantino to go, that what we need is a deep and profound reform of FIFA itself.

ABDELAZIZ: So, a deep and profound reform of FIFA is needed, according to some. You were, of course, an official within FIFA. Could you talk to me about what the issue is? What is the problem that needs to be fixed here? How do you fix it? What are these reforms, and could this be done under Infantino? Miguel Maduro: Let me stop by the final question. No, it cannot be done under Infantino, but very likely it could not be done from anyone from within the organization. And that has to do precisely with the three major problems that the organization faces.

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The first one is a deep systemic conflict of interest between being the guardian of football, the regulator of football, on the one hand, and the main commercial actor. And the reality is that the second dimension, being a main commercial actor, has led FIFA to prioritize profits maximization over other interests that it ought to protect, the interests of fans and the interests of players. This is a key problem at the heart of FIFA, but goes together with two other governance problems.

One is its lack of genuine democratic character. It does not really represent all the stakeholders in the world of football. And the second one is the absence of appropriate mechanisms of checks and balances that lead to an extreme concentration of power at the top. Without solving these three structural problems, we will continue to see FIFA being played by scandals. It will be only a matter of time, it doesn't matter if they replace Infantino. Sooner or later we will have another scandal.

ABDELAZIZ: Thank you so much for breaking that down so clearly. Miguel, you say there are three structural issues. It comes down to a lack of democracy, a lack of checks and balances, and a lack of clarity when it comes to its commercial wing or its commercial representation. So, in that vein, is the boycott from UEFA a genuine boycott threat, or is it simply something being used for leverage to try to force these reforms that you're speaking about here?

MADURO: Well, the first thing is that we don't really know the extent to which UEFA itself wants those reforms of the organization or it's acting most on behalf of protecting its own commercial interests. That's one of the doubts that we have. UEFA has been the one most strongly opposing FIFA.

It says that he's doing so in the name of protecting the integrity of the game, but at the same time, that coincides with its own commercial interests, because the maximization of the commercial, interests of FIFA competitions, such as club competition, for example, that he created at the global level, it's a challenge to UEFA-owned (ph) commercial interests on the Champions League, for example.

So, something that we need to wait and see is if UEFA is only interested in replacing Infantino because it doesn't want him to pursue those kinds of competitions that challenge the commercial interests of UEFA, or if UEFA is actually engaged on a deep structural reform of FIFA, and that has not been clear in my view until now.

ABDELAZIZ: Unclear intentions from UEFA there, from Miguel Maduro on the controversy engulfing the footballing world. Thank you so much. Still ahead, talks to reopen the Strait of Hormuz. Iran and Oman are working on a deal. But Tehran wants assurances from America first on how markets are reacting. That's coming up.

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