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Connect the World

U.S. Surgeon General: Likely we will Need Booster Vaccines; Thousands on the Front Lines Working to Fight the Blazes; Wilson: Collapse of Democracy in Tunisia would send Signal to Authoritarians and Terrorists that system Doesn't Work; AXIOS Report: Israel, Palestinians Resume Negotiations; Sao Paulo Governor Speaks to CNN about COVID Crisis; France's Vaccine Mandate, "Green Passes" Spark Protests. Aired 11a-12p ET

Aired July 30, 2021 - 11:00   ET

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

[11:00:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BECKY ANDERSON, CNNI HOST: A warm welcome back, you're watching the second hour of "Connect the World". Stunning new revelations that may change the

course of our fight against the COVID pandemic, I'm Becky Anderson. Hello and welcome back.

A leaked document from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows the COVID Delta variant is even more serious than the public knew.

The document, the slide presentation was first reported by the Washington Post, the CDC director confirmed its authenticity to CNN.

Now the document advises that CDC should "Acknowledge that the war has changed". CNN Health Reporter Jacqueline Howard is in Atlanta, the home of

the CDC.

This information coming out of the U.S., of course, could be a game changer for every country dealing with this Delta spike, not just the U.S. where

you are. So what does this document tell us at this point?

JACQUELINE HOWARD, CNN HEALTH REPORTER: The document really gives us the data to back up. What we already knew that the Delta variant is more

contagious, but you're right, this is a game changer. It's a wakeup call, because the data really paint a more alarming picture. The document really

goes into detail.

For instance, it says that if a person is infected with the original strain of the Coronavirus that sick person can spread to about two to three people

on average. But if someone is infected with the Delta variant, they could spread the virus to about five to nine people, Becky that is a huge

difference.

And that's not the only way the Delta variant is different from other strains. The document also goes through this list. It says that the variant

is not only highly contagious, but likely can cause more severe illness. And breakthrough infections in vaccinated people may be as transmissible as

unvaccinated cases.

That's the big wakeup call here. But it's also important to say the document also notes that vaccines still reduce your risk of severe disease

or death. Here are some other numbers for you.

The document says the risk of severe disease or death is reduced tenfold if you're vaccinated and the risk of infection is still reduced three fold. So

there's still a benefit to getting vaccinated.

ANDERSON: What's the impact this going to have on vaccinations, do you think? Or do you hope, I guess? And there's a big question out there isn't

there in the states and around the world as to whether a third booster shot will be necessary at this point?

HOWARD: That's it, Becky, I think this adds to the third dose conversation. And Israel for instance, we know that there are plans to offer third doses

to older adults aged 60 and older. And here the United States health officials still say we're not quite there yet. But U.S. Surgeon General Dr.

Murthy said the conversation is happening. Have a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DR. VIVEK MURTHY, U.S. SURGEON GENERAL: I think it's very possible that we're going to require boosters and it's possible we're going to know that

fairly soon. As soon as that decision is made, though by the FDA and CDC, one thing I can tell you are there will be supply available and ample

quantities for the population.

And right now what we're considering also is whether there are specific groups that should be prioritized, if and when boosters are required.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HOWARD: So specific groups who could be prioritized, like he said that could include older adults or it could include the immune-compromised, who

might not have had a strong immune response to initially having that first or a second dose of vaccine.

But overall, Becky, these conversations are happening and this CDC document, excuse me, adds to the conversation and provides the data around

really how this war and the pandemic is at a turning point with the Delta Variant. Becky.

ANDERSON: Jacqueline, thank you for that extremely important story, China moving swiftly to contain a growing outbreak of COVID there. Right now more

than 40,000 people are under lockdown in Beijing. Authorities trying to stop the virus after two cases were confirmed there for the first time in

six months.

[11:05:00]

ANDERSON: Mass testing is underway in Nanjing, the center of a major outbreak. Officials linking nearly 200 new infections back to an inbound

flight from Russia on July the 10th. From there the viruses spread to at least 15 other cities. Steven Jiang is joining us live from the capital

Beijing, Stephen.

STEVEN JIANG, CNN SENIOR REPORTER: Becky, as I said, this newest cluster just shows no sign of abating as new cases being confirmed by authorities

throughout the day. And as you mentioned, they have now a trace the origin of this to that early July flight that carried confirmed cases on board.

And they say the Nanjing airports cleaning staff that cleaned that flight did not follow protocols. That's how they got infected and then

contaminated their work environment which happens to be one of the country's busiest aviation hubs leading to this virus spread not only among

their coworkers, but also travelers passing through the terminals.

Now of course, the radius of transmission keeps getting wider. So that's very alarming because one, this is the Delta variant.

And two, it really causing the question of China's homegrown vaccines because according to the airport authority, more than 90 percent of the

staff at the Nanjing airport, that's more than 5000 employees have been fully vaccinated, but this cluster obviously still breaking out despite

this high rate of vaccination. So a lot of unanswered questions about these so called breakthrough infections, Becky.

ANDERSON: And just how concerned are Chinese authorities at this point?

JIANG: They are certainly very concerned because we are seeing them obviously one taking a familiar page from their playbook in terms of

multiple rounds of mass testing's, but also extensive contact tracing.

And increasingly we're seeing local authorities re impose draconian measures that we hadn't seen for a long time, you mentioned 41,000 people

under lockdown in Beijing for just two cases. But Beijing is not alone in another city, for example, in Central China Zhangjiajie.

There, the government has locked down their entire population of one and a half million residents and closing down all the popular tourist

attractions. They're in the middle of the peak summer travel season. Not to mention that one's very busy, Nanjing Airport has been closed down as well.

So all of this really presenting this challenge to the leadership here in terms of striking a balance between containing the virus and growing their

economy.

And so far, there are no signs they're going to change their current approach of zero tolerance towards locally transmitted cases. So expect to

see more lockdowns and a sharp drop in domestic travel, Becky.

ANDERSON: I think it's important to point out that because we haven't seen high numbers of cases, of course, in China, this is a blip in what was

otherwise a relatively well contained process.

So I guess it's important at this stage to understand how many of these cases actually severe cases that we are seeing are and again, how concerned

authorities are that even those who are vaccinated and you talked about the efficacy of these, these China produced vaccines being now in question.

You know, just how difficult this might be as far as the health authorities are concerned. Is it clear at this point?

JIANG: That's exactly right. Now of course, the health officials here as well as the vaccine makers in China have come out to defend their product,

saying one, it's too early to draw conclusions.

And also pointing to real world data from other places that have used Chinese vaccines to say their vaccines are effective in dealing with a

Delta variant and especially in terms of preventing deaths and severe cases.

That's why despite this latest cluster, the government is calling on more people to get vaccinated. And of course, already in this country, more than

1.6 billion doses have been administered, Becky.

ANDERSON: Thank you for that. Steven Jiang is in China for you. While in Turkey COVID-19 cases seem to be surging out of control. The country

recorded more than 22,000 new cases in the last 24 hours. That is a three month pie. 76 people have died.

Their Health Minister says 95 percent of people hospitalized are not fully vaccinated. And this is a story we are seeing all over the world

particularly of course in places where vaccines are freely available.

The bigger concern is with this Delta variant for places where vaccines aren't as freely available. Well, Turkey also dealing with another big

crisis unbelievable scenes in the southern part of the country. Authorities say they are now getting an upper hand on these wild fires which have been

burning for several days.

Well, now the President Recep Tayyip Erdogan says investigators are looking at where that sabotage played a role. Four people have been killed in these

places. CNN's Arwa Damon is in Southern Turkey with the very latest. Arwa?

[11:10:00]

ARWA DAMON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Becky and yes, as you mentioned, there have been some pretty dramatic scenes here. And even

though the Turkish government may be saying that they do have these fires under control.

If we just look at what's happening over my shoulder, you can see the smoke billowing over those hills. We were here just a few hours ago. And those

fires were not as close as they currently are.

So we have been witnessing the fires actually moving. We've been seeing helicopters flying overhead in some parts because the fires points are

quite spread out throughout this vast terrain. You even have civilians who are trying to use buckets.

You have volunteers who are trying to help out the firefighting effort .We spoke to one man in another village that has now been evacuated; his entire

home was burnt down.

He says he barely got out alive and describing the moment when the fire reached his home as being extremely sudden and similar to a bomb.

And when we actually walked into his home, Becky, there's nothing left. This fire was so strong, so powerful. As he put it, it burnt things that he

did not even know could be burnt. Now yes, we are hearing the government speculating about possibilities of sabotage.

But one forestry expert, who we spoke to, said that there are a number of factors contributing to this year's fire season. He was saying that may the

month of May was especially hot, there has been a drought going on in large parts of the country.

And he's attributing that to climate change. Climate change did not start these fires 95 percent of fires in Turkey happened due to human error or

sheer negligence when it comes to actually respecting nature.

But the factors that are allowing for this aggressive spread; he said that is most certainly climate change. And then of course, we had this perfect

storm with high winds happening and very low humidity.

Another thing that we are also witnessing on the ground, though, Becky, is people really rallying together; you have villagers who are coming out from

other areas to assist villages that are under assault by this fire.

You have people that are gathering, distributing water, distributing food to the firefighters and to the other volunteers; everyone here is quite

shaken up. Because no one who we spoke to has witnessed fires that is this severe in this area before not even people who were born and raised here.

And what the forestry expert Becky is warning about is that this year's fire season may very well actually be significantly longer than fire

seasons in the past. And again, he and so many others will bring this back to the issue of climate change.

Our warming planet that is creating the conditions for these fires to once they have started spread very quickly and very aggressively.

ANDERSON: I know that you have been out filming this morning, and I just want our viewers to get a sense of what you found. Let's take a look at

Arwa's report.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DAMON (voice over): Just look at the damage that has been done here. This is more --. David, he lives in the building. He was here and he ran away to

that side, climbing over the fencing to break through some of fencing just to try to save him and the fire was just chasing him down. And he was

describing how it felt like an explosion of flames.

The thing that made these fires also so hard to control is that there were so many of them in just the span of a few days. There were dozens of fires

that broke out not just in this part of the country, but other parts as well.

That was the bedroom and we're saying that even things that we never thought could melt melted. And they didn't pull out any of their belongings

from yours just sit there literally is nothing. There's just nothing left.

That plume of smoke that you see right there that is yet another fire that just erupted in the few short minutes that we have been here and just one

of the firefighters think that they're beginning to get the situation under control.

It just jumps out once again and this is our entire fault. According to forestry expert that we spoke to 95 percent of forest fires in Turkey are

due to human error or complete and total carelessness and disregard for nature.

[11:15:00]

DAMON (voice over): What is making them especially aggressive and difficult to control? Well, that is also on us. That is due to climate change. Here

in particular, temperatures have been abnormally hot. There has also been a drought, two factors that experts attribute to climate change.

But then add to it, what caused a perfect storm, high winds and low humidity. What we are seeing on the ground though, are villagers coming

together trying to support one another because no one knows when this is going to end. And experts say fire season this year is going to be much

longer than it was in the past.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ANDERSON: Fascinating to see what you actually shot earlier on and very, very frightening. And you point out Arwa, that people's concern is they

just don't know how long fire season may go on this time. Can you just give us a sense briefly of how dense a population is in that area?

DAMON: Well, they're very tense, and they're very angry. And they're also frightened and understandably so because Becky, we're going to pan over and

show you the exact same shot that we showed you at the beginning of our report.

It was mostly smoked that you were seeing in the distance now. And so you might have assumed that maybe the fire was beginning to get under control.

Now you can see the flames even bigger than they were just a few moments before and they're getting closer and closer to this one village.

Remember, there's already been dozens of villages that have been evacuated. If we go further up the hillside, that smoke there also a fire just behind

that tree line appears to be getting closer and closer.

And so there's this battle that's happening where you have the firefighters, the teams of volunteers, civilian populations that are really

trying to get this all under control.

But when you're actually here, it ends up feeling like right now the fire does have the upper hand. And yes, maybe in terms of numbers of fires that

are actually raging, those numbers have decreased.

But if we look at the starting points for all of them and the way that they're spreading, it doesn't seem as if the government actually does

currently have a handle on it. And we were in another area speaking to another group of people who said that they were largely fighting it on

their own.

One of the men there owns a water tanker company and he just filled it up, brought it down. And they were trying to hose down the fire; people are

bringing whatever they can to try to put these flames out.

But this most certainly is going to be one of the most difficult years in Turkey's history when it comes to trying to battle these flames. And it's

just so dry. It's so easy for this landscape to go up in flames.

ANDERSON: Arwa Damon on the spot Arwa, thank you. Well, just head on "Connect the World", Tunisia facing an uncertain future. We'll hear from a

U.S. Congressman who says it's in America's interest to do more to preserve democracy there. Plus our Israeli and Palestinian officials talking again,

I talked to the writer of axial stories says negotiations are now underway.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[11:20:00]

ANDERSON: Tunisia's President is telling officials to set up an operations room for managing the Coronavirus crisis. Cases have been spiking in

Tunisia, a country reeling from the President's decision to sack the government, people then now under curfew and waiting to see what happens

next.

Well, my next guest is watching the situation in Tunisia very closely. U.S. Republican Congressman, Joe Wilson is urging the Biden Administration to

publicly condemn what he describes as a power grab.

Wilson wrote a letter which I have here in my hand to Secretary of State, Anthony Blinken saying and I quote "While the White House has expressed

concern, unfortunately, the Administration has yet to issue a clear statement, condemning the actions of President Saied.

Refusing to act in Tunisia will lead to devastating consequences, which will not only destabilize Tunisia, but also could lead to further

destabilization of North Africa."

Well, Representative Wilson joins me now from Washington. It's good to have you with us. Well, Joe Biden did give a muted response to what is happening

in Tunisia. Secretary Blinken actually did use stronger words in a phone call, with President Saied saying that he urged him to take action that

would return the country to a democratic path.

In your letter you went on to say and I quote, "Tunisian success has been a beacon of hope exemplifying that democracy, rule of law and open markets

are possible in the region".

But sir, actually it hasn't the country's economy has been suffering for years, many Tunisians live in poverty is often called a democratic beacon

of hope. But you, as others have must concede that this is more a mirage than a reality.

JOE WILSON, U.S. HOUSE REPUBLICAN: No, no, hey, I and you were there for the Arab Spring 2011. And to see the inspiration of the people of Tunisia

to promote democracy and we know that it will take time and then economic recovery.

But I had the opportunity to be there two years ago, it was such an inspiration to me to see the wonderful people of Tunisia to see the

democratic processes of so many political parties, maybe too many. But the bottom line was people were involved.

And so it's so disappointing and this is bipartisan Democrat and Republican also - U.S. House U.S. Senate, we are appalled at the - on Sunday. We want

the best for the people of Tunisia and it's not through an authoritarian rule.

And so they need to return to the presidency, the prime minister of the Parliament, and sadly, Saied, the deterioration is even clearer now. He had

indicated 30 days, and then he changed and said, well, multiple 30 days. We've heard that before from dictators.

Additionally, the arrest of a parliamentarian, the arrest of news media, the closing of news media to deny the people of Tunisia knows what's going

on. And so members of Congress are very concerned.

And we look forward to working with Secretary Blinken with President Biden. And hey, thanks can be done with the Millennium Challenge funding. This

should be in question, because it was intended to promote freedom and democracy, not an authoritarian rule. Additionally, there can be sanctions

against individuals.

ANDERSON: Well, I'm just going to say yes, you gave Secretary Blinken until 5 p.m. Friday, August the 13th to respond to your letter, you have seen is

slightly more robust response. Then the president's to what is going on. What more is it specifically that you want to hear and see from Anthony

Blinken?

WILSON: Well, well, I I'd like to, again, to see the administration to take a firm stand. Because we see democracy under threat, President Biden

promised in his inaugural address, to promote democracy around the world and because we know that that's beneficial for the people of countries

around the world.

And then we know that it's beneficial to America and American families and reduces threats to American families. But hey, we want the best for the

people of Tunisia. And it's not being done by an authoritarian rule.

[11:25:00]

WILSON: In fact, this is following the pattern of Venezuela, one of the wealthiest countries in the hemisphere, but with socialist policies with

authoritarian rule. Now, there are shortages, obviously, of items, millions of people had to flee the country and that that model should not be

repeated in Tunisia.

ANDERSON: The last time the U.S. got involved in Middle Eastern countries political inner workings like this was the very confused response by the

Obama Administration, in the end of the Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak and then the overthrowing of his successor, Mohamed Morsy.

The aftermath was brutal as was the aftermath of 2011 in Libya, when the U.S. assisted in - or got involved in the NATO Coalition's activities

there. Joe Biden has made it clear that he wishes to reduce the U.S. footprint in the Middle East and wider region during his presidency. The

U.S's legacy is tainted, is it not by its often chaotic involvement in this region?

WILSON: Well, I would disagree. I have visited all the Persian Gulf States to see these countries have extraordinary development. My visit to Jordan

to Morocco, to I've had wonderful to see personally, but to see the positive influence the United States has had the liberation of Kuwait, the

liberation of Iraq.

We had the Prime Minister of Iraq, in Washington yesterday. Totally unimaginable to go from a sadistic totalitarian of cerebral saying to the

level of development today, hey, it's not going to be perfect.

ANDERSON: Hang on a minute. So let me just stop there for one second, because there are many criticisms and concern about that the league towards

authoritarianism in Iraq. Again, this is a show that's based in the Gulf. It's based in Abu Dhabi, in the UAE, which is broadcasting from London

today.

So this show knows better than most, what is going on in that region. And what we are seeing around the Middle East, North Africa and the Gulf, which

I think is certainly a different situation. Following president sides actions, there have been protests both in support and opposition to his

actions.

And his supporters say that actually the western term for a democracy doesn't really work for them and they are quite happy supporting a leader

who they believe will provide them with a better standard of living, even if that means doing something unconstitutional to get there.

Those are the supporters of the president's - hang on. Now we know those supporters exist, I'm just putting this to you. What are your thoughts on

that?

WILSON: Well, hey, I think of Margaret Thatcher, she said socialism will work until you run out of spending other people's money. And back again to

the Middle East, the Abraham accords and Abu Dhabi and UAE, how incredible Bahrain, Sudan.

We've had a level of stability under the Trump Administration. And I'd like to see that return to the benefit of all the people of Middle East. And

particularly to think of the millions of people are victimized in Syria, the millions who have had to flee to Turkey to Jordan, and hey, the

instability of Lebanon, we need to adjust it.

ANDERSON: I think when you're looking at the, the situation in Tunisia and you're talking about as many do the sort of beacon of democracy, and then

you talk about the Gulf States where there is nobody there in leadership suggesting that they are running democratic countries.

I think there's a disconnect here. I guess my question is this. I mean, I've read your letter, I can see your appeal to the Biden Administration.

How involved do you want to see the U.S. in the Middle East, North Africa and wider region going forward? Are you an advocate of significant action

by the U.S. in that region?

WILSON: Let's put it in historically, we've had a great interest in North Africa since the late 1700s. And so and then, obviously, during World War

II to liberate North Africa, from a German Italian occupation.

And so this is not new, but even better, there should be hope for the people of Tunisia. And we want to provide that and if it requires strong

action of limiting funding of providing for sanctions against persons who are complicit in overturning a constitutional democracy.

And then back to the Persian Gulf States, these are monarchies that are constitutional monarchies and in perpetual evolution in a very positive way

that the leadership of all the countries I have visited from Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain, Cali. These are really positive persons who are making a positive

difference for the people of their country.

[11:30:00]

ANDERSON: With that, we'll leave it there, sir. Thank you. Still ahead, as the change in Israeli leadership opened the door for negotiations with the

Palestinians I'll speak to an insider up next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ANDERSON: Israel and the Palestinians are talking again that is according to a recent report in AXIOS. And that report says relations have shifted

substantially to the point Israeli officials are calling it eight renascence, report cites the participation of left wing parties in Israel's

coalition government that somewhat softer songs from the Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett than that of his predecessor, Benjamin Netanyahu.

Well, the writer of that AXIOS report Barak Ravid joining me now, via Skype from Tel Aviv. I want to talk about this and a number of other issues. But

let's just start with this. What more do we know about what you have described now paraphrase you here is I suppose burgeoning relationship.

BARAK RAVID, CONTRIBUTING CORRESPONDENT, AXIOS: Yes. Hi, Becky, thank you for having me on your show. I think what we're seeing now is sort of an

awakening after 12 years that Benjamin Netanyahu was the Prime Minister and had a very clear policy of trying to weaken the Palestinian authority and

create this divide between the West Bank in Gaza.

And during Netanyahu's time as Prime Minister it became almost a legitimate point Israeli politician to meet or have any connection with a Palestinian

government official, the only connections in recent years whereby our security services were working together and by Former President Rivlin.

The last time Netanyahu spoke to President Abbas was in July 2017, more than four years ago. So I think there's a big change because in the last

month alone, we've seen four phone calls between Israeli government officials and President Abbas.

We've seen those meetings last Wednesday between three Israeli Ministers and their Palestinian counterparts. We saw Israel taking real steps to try

and help the Palestinian Authority like for example, on Sunday, the government will approve giving 15,000 new working permits for Palestinians

from the West Bank to come and work in Israel.

[11:35:00]

RAVID: That's a huge number of defects tens of thousands of people in the West Bank. And I think that on the one hand, you see the new Israeli

government trying to prove relations with the Palestinian Authority. On the other hand, the situation is still very, very tense.

In last few days, several Palestinians were killed by IDF fire in clashes in the West Bank. So you have those two different trends on the one hand,

the situation on the ground the other hand, on the political level trying to improve it.

ANDERSON: One of Mohammad Abbas' closest advisors is saying I'll shake spoke in an exclusive interview recently that you referenced in your

reporting, saying that the PA is ready for direct talks with Israel. And you've just alluded to that again.

My sources in Israel, telling me that they're not sure that that is a reality, any time soon and when I say that being direct talks between Abbas

and Naftali Bennett, whatever is going on in the background, Bennett, does have a constituency that he still needs to speak to and get support from.

So I guess the bottom line here for our viewers is where are we at? I mean, is this - this is inch by inch, slowly, slowly? And you know how far away

from direct talks do you genuinely believe we might be?

RAVID: It depends what you call direct talks, if you're talking about, you know, final status, political negotiations, that's not going to happen in

the foreseeable future. And when I say in the foreseeable future, I would say I do not see that happening, you know serious final status negotiations

in the next in the next four years.

I just don't see that. But it - this does not mean that they're not going to be talks between Israel and the Palestinians on a whole lot of other

issues that are important for people who actually live there, and for the situation on the ground for the economy, for the day to day situation for

improving the living conditions, improving human rights, there's a lot of things that can be done.

And this is why the talks right now in the meetings that took place on Wednesday, were between, for example, the Israeli Minister of Health and

the Palestinian Minister of Health. The last time such meeting took place was 2012, nine years, nine years in Israeli and the Palestinian Minister of

Health did not meet and did not speak.

And in those days when we're dealing with, you know, the Delta variant of COVID, this is more important than ever.

ANDERSON: Yes, absolutely.

RAVID: The Minister - Minister of the Environment, from Israel, and from the Palestinian Authority met for the first time since 2014. Every day you

have an environmental issue that needs to be taken care of. But when people are not talking to each other, nothing is done.

ANDERSON: Yes, correct you make a very good point. Yes. I'm going to - I'm going to move on because I want our viewers to get a sense of one of your

other scoops. Recent - the recent decision by "Ben & Jerry's" to stop selling ice cream, you're reporting, you know, very much involved in this

in the occupied West Bank.

This is part of an op-ed, written by the founders of "Ben & Jerry's" in "The New York Times", "The Company's stated decision to more fully align

its operations with its values is not a rejection of Israel. It is a rejection of Israeli policy, which perpetuates an illegal occupation that

is a barrier to peace and violates the basic human rights of the Palestinian people who live under the occupation. As Jewish supporters of

the State of Israel we fundamentally reject the notion that it is anti- Semitic to question the policies of the State of Israel".

This has been the response to more there's been some serious backlash to the organization, from Israeli groups, or Jewish group. I'm curious to know

what your thoughts are on this.

RAVID: I agree with every word.

ANDERSON: Go on.

RAVID: Yes, I just you know, that's, you know, I think that what "Ben & Jerry" wrote in their op-ed is just - it's factually true. What the company

did, as far as I understand, is basically saying, we are not supporting BDS because BDS says, let's boycott Israel. That's what the BDS movement is

doing.

They said, no, we want to continue our relationship with Israel with the State of Israel and with Israel within its recognized borders - lines, but

we differentiate between Israel and the Israeli settlements in the West Bank, which are illegal under international law.

[11:40:00]

RAVID: That's what they did. They basically said we're going to continue working with Israel; we're not going to work in the Israeli settlements in

the occupied West Bank. And, you know, my personal opinion is that, you know, calling this anti-Semitism is not only a hyperbolic, it's just a

black lie.

ANDERSON: I've got time for just one more question to you. And I want to just get your sense on what is going on with regard the Iran Nuclear Deal.

I know that you've been speaking to your sources in Washington; they've been telling you that Iran won't win more concessions by attempting to

renegotiate the understandings reached in Vienna.

It's a discussion that we've been having on this show this week as well. What are you hearing out of Washington?

RAVID: I think that we're at a situation where the Biden Administration did not think it's going to find itself six months in office. I think the Biden

Administration thought that by now, there will be a return to the 2015 Iran deal. And several things happened.

And the main one is that the hardline Ebrahim Raisi won the elections in Iran basically said, that's it, nobody's negotiating anymore, until I am

inaugurated until I'm putting together a new government and putting together a new negotiations team.

And until now, all the signals coming out of Tehran, about Raisi's intentions is that he's going to try and basically renegotiate all the

things that were agreed upon in six rounds of talks in Vienna during the last few months.

So basically, we're going back to square one, with the rate - with the new Iranian Government promising to have a much tougher position. And the Biden

Administration says that if this is what Iran is going to do, there's not going to be a deal because the Biden Administration is not going to move

any further than what has been agreed upon until now.

And I got to tell you that I'm not sure that this is exactly what's going to happen. I'm not sure that they're not going to move any further.

ANDERSON: That's interesting. OK. Well, we have the inauguration of the President Designate, of course, on during August 5th, and that is next

week, and now after that, we will see who he puts on that foreign file who indeed, will negotiate that deal with the U.S. and the other members going

forward? Thank you, sir

Well, staying in the region Lebanon's President says he is ready to testify and the investigation the Beirut Port explosion, which happened one year

ago, this coming Wednesday. Michel Aoun's office says he told the judge overseeing the case that no one is above justice, no matter how high out

they are.

Now, this news comes on the heels of a "Reuters" report that says a prosecutor will question the country's central bank chief on suspicion of

embezzlement, money laundering and other charges. That is - it was set to happen on Thursday, a day after the port explosion anniversary.

Coming up after the break, new challenges for one of the nation's hardest hit by the COVID crisis I'll talk with the Governor of Brazil Sao Paulo

state about the country's latest health issues that is coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[11:45:00]

ANDERSON: Well, Brazil is still struggling with one of the worst COVID outbreaks in the world and now it is being hit with more bad news. Brazil

and other countries in the Americas could soon have an avalanche of worsening health issues. That is the latest warning from the Pan American

Health Organization.

With so much focus on COVID routine immunizations have fallen dangerously low more than 300,000 children mostly in Brazil and Mexico, have now missed

shots for diseases such as measles. Well, we're joined now by the Governor of Sao Paulo Joao Doria, he's on the front lines of dealing with a host of

issues facing resilience from trying to get enough vaccines right the way through to climate change for example. He's joining us from his home state

via Skype today.

The last time we spoke and you will say that of Sao Paulo was struggling to get enough vaccinations. Just where are you at this point?

JOAO DORIA, SAO PAULO, GOVERNOR: Becky thanks for having me again. Vaccination in Sao Paulo back is accelerated. We have already vaccinated 37

million people in the State of Sao Paulo almost 80 percent of the entire population as had the first dose of the vaccine and 25 percent the two

doses of the vaccine. With these we are making the economy more flexible and gradually safely returning to normal.

Your President Jair Bolsonaro summoned of the country's press yesterday saying he would show that Brazil's voting system is rigged. He said he

didn't manage to present though any evidence to that claim. He is currently under investigation for mismanagement, particularly during this COVID

pandemic.

You and I have talked about his management or mismanagement of this pandemic and you are no fan of course of the president. Protests have taken

place recently in dozens of cities calling for his impeachment. Governor, is that likely to happen?

DORIA: Becky it is another big mistake of Mr. Bolsonaro. At this moment, when it comes to the pandemic, President Bolsonaro made wrong choices. He

could have avoided this number of DAX if he had taken the right decisions by vaccines instead of chloroquine.

And the elections we have elections next year in Brazil, using the digital way. This is the best way to do elections in Brazil, as we are doing in the

last 25 years here in Brazil.

ANDERSON: How has the president's action impacting Brazil's fight against this pandemic? And indeed, its effort to get people vaccinated. I mean, you

are talking about numbers which have significantly increased it has to be said, but it's what's happening in Sao Paulo reflected in other parts of

the country?

DORIA: Well, Becky in Brazil was a disaster, the administration of Mr. Bolsonaro during this pandemic period. But here in Sao Paulo, we did the

right way, protecting the people give him vaccines, support the use of masks, and doing the right thing to protect the people here in Sao Paulo,

Brazil.

But the numbers in this pandemic is a disaster in Brazil. At this moment we have 555,000 deaths in Brazil, by the pandemic period.

ANDERSON: The twin crises that we are seeing around the world at present while we continue to report on the COVID pandemic of course is that of

climate crisis and I know that is absolutely dear to your heart.

[11:50:00]

ANDERSON: You signed a decree this week joining UN program that enlists Sao Paulo in the race to zero worldwide campaign to achieve net zero carbon

emissions by 2050. You'll be meeting virtually the U.S. Climate Envoy, John Kerry later today. What do you hope to achieve and what will your message

be in that conversation?

DORIA: Yes, Becky. We have this virtual meeting this afternoon with Senator John Kerry and the cooperation of Brazil subnational states with the U.S.

government is an exceptional opportunity. I believe Becky there is a clear alignment between the recently announced Biden plan goals and the

initiatives we are taking here in the State of Sao Paulo, to improve the quality of life of our 46 million people.

Well, we have just signed a government decree joining to the race to zero and race to resilience campaigns by the United Nations Framework Convention

on Climate. With this commitment to present a "Net Zero Climate Action Plan 2050" and a "Climate Adaptation Plan" for the State of Sao Paulo Becky by

2022. November coming, we will attend the commitment to COP 26 in Glasgow Scotland.

ANDERSON: Right. Well, you and I are going to talk before that because, you know there's a lot of - there are a lot of commitments, there are a lot of

people signing up to an awful lot of things when it comes to climate crisis at present. I'd like to drill down on some of the details and the sort of

road map that you see that you hope to provide in order to fulfill some of these.

Thank you for the time being it's always a pleasure having you on. We're going to take a very short break back after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ANDERSON: Encouraging news out of England COVID-19 vaccines have prevented an estimated 60,000 deaths that is according to a report from Public

Health, England. To put that in perspective that is enough for people to fill Emirates Stadium here in London, which was actually set up as a

vaccination center last month.

Well, one the European nations are trying to keep that momentum going by imposing vaccine passports in an effort to protect their citizens from the

more transmissible variants but not everybody is on board. CNN's Fred Pleitgen has the details for you.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice over): Unrest on the streets of Paris. The crowd protesting new vaccine mandates

put in place in an effort to stop a surge in Coronavirus infections. But despite the mayhem, France's President says he won't budge and that he's

had it with people refusing vaccination.

EMMANUEL MACRON, FRENCH PRESIDENT: What is your freedom worth? If you say to me, I don't want to be vaccinated. But if tomorrow you infect your

father, your mother or me, he says.

PLEITGEN (voice over): France just passed a law mandating so called virus passes or green passes for visits to restaurants and for domestic travel.

One reason why the government remains steadfast in the face of often violent protests, the vast majority in France endorses the stricter

measures experts.

[11:55:00]

MICHEL WIEVIORKA, SOCIOLOGIST, EHESS: These people speak only in their own private name that don't take into account the collectivity, the fact that

protecting oneself is also protecting the whole society.

PLEITGEN (voice over): As that Delta variant of the Coronavirus spreads fast countries across Europe are turning to green passes, and in some cases

vaccination mandates to get people protected. Starting in early August, Italy will require green passes for all indoor hospitality.

The passes provide proof that people have either been vaccinated have recovered from COVID-19 or have a negative PCR test no older than 48 hours.

Germany, Austria, Denmark, Portugal and others are already using varying forms of green passes for access to dining and other aspects of public

life.

PLEITGEN (on camera): Here in Germany, for instance, we have what's called the digital vaccination certificate, it looks like this and people who have

been fully vaccinated or who have recovered from a COVID-19 infection just have a lot less hassle getting into bars and restaurants and even traveling

around Europe.

PLEITGEN (voice over): More and more countries are turning to green passes. And while thousands recently protested against vaccination requirements

outside the Greek parliament in Athens, at restaurants nearby diners were enjoying dinner, but only for those who are fully vaccinated. Prep like in

CNN, Berlin.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ANDERSON: Well -- Natty John Stead had is rolled umbrella or even Mary Poppins and her flying Trolley for Prime Minister Boris Johnson. Everyone's

a critic, even his trusty umbrella took a stand and it was all a bit of slapstick Mr. Johnson giving the Prince of Wales in the UK Home Secretary a

moment of light relief on Wednesday with a badly behaved bumbershoot.

But that's the - what you're seeing took place. I've got to say during a very serious occasion the unveiling of a Police Memorial to officers who've

died in the line of duty. Timing they say is everything. Stay safe and stay well wherever you are watching in the world and that's it from us "One

World" with Eleni Giokos next from Dubai.

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END