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Russia Strikes Ukrainian Military College, Scores Killed; Israel and Hamas Harden Stance, Protesters Demand Deal; Biden Criticizes Netanyahu's Lack of Effort toward Deal; Mass Prison Break Attempted in DRC, 129 Killed; Migrant Boat Capsizes off France, at Least 12 Dead; Harris Campaign Launches Reproductive Rights Bus Tour; Fake Political Ads Claim Philadelphia Eagles Endorse Harris; New "Beetlejuice" Sequel. Aired 10-11a ET
Aired September 03, 2024 - 10:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
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ANNOUNCER: Live from CNN Abu Dhabi, this is CONNECT THE WORLD with Becky Anderson.
BECKY ANDERSON, CNN HOST (voice-over): Welcome. I'm Becky Anderson in Abu Dhabi, where the time is six in the evening.
And a massive Russian strike on a military college in Ukraine kills scores of people. We will get you live to Kyiv and have more details from the
Ukrainian foreign minister this hour.
On the streets of Israel, protesters demand a ceasefire deal with Hamas, despite apologies from the prime minister.
And U.S. President Joe Biden echoing sentiments of those protesters, claiming Benjamin Netanyahu isn't doing enough to move negotiations on a
ceasefire and hostage deal in the right direction.
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ANDERSON: Well, it is being called one of the deadliest single attacks since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine began back in February of
2022. A military college in central Ukraine has been hit by Russian airstrikes.
Ukraine says at least 47 people were killed when two ballistic missiles hit the college and a hospital hours ago in the central city of Poltava. Fred
Pleitgen brings us the very latest in the wake of that attack.
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FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Apparently there was an air raid alert but the time between the alert and the actual
two missiles impacting the site was so short that people were still on their way to air raid shelters and were obviously very much caught off
guard.
And that is why you have this very high toll of people who were injured and, of course, people who were killed as well.
The emergency services, though, Kate, were pretty quick to be on the scene, the Ukrainians say, and were able to rescue 25 people, 11 of whom were
trapped underneath the rubble.
As you can imagine, a lot of that operation is still very much going on. The Ukrainian President has come out and ripped into the Russians for this
attack.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON: Right. Well, Christiane Amanpour standing by for us in Kyiv this hour.
And Christiane, you've spoken with Ukraine's foreign minister and you very specifically asked him about this attack. Your interview just after this
had happened.
What did he tell you?
CHRISTIANE AMANPOUR, CNN CHIEF INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, he had come from a meeting with the president during the day of essentially the
war cabinet.
And he essentially said this was yet another demonstration of Russia's determination to try to destroy Ukraine and to also really try to go on the
offensive in a huge way before winter comes.
Anyway, this is what I asked him and part of our conversation.
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DMYTRO KULEBA, UKRAINIAN MINISTER OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS: This is just another reason why delivery of air defense systems to Ukraine must be expedited.
AMANPOUR: Do you think if you had them there, this would have been intercepted.
KULEBA: Well, ballistic missiles are very difficult to intercept and Poltava is in the east of Ukraine, so much closer to the -- to the Russian
territory. According to what I know, the time range for the ballistic missiles to reach the target was very short.
And the only way to intercept them was to have -- to have a Patriot system or SEMT (ph) air defense system, because they're the only one capable of
intercepting ballistic missiles.
So I don't know how many more tragedies like this have to occur for all promises to be fulfilled and for all new commitments to be made.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
AMANPOUR: And so this is the constant refrain from the Ukrainians.
And as we've been saying, this is one of the biggest single attacks on a location inside Ukraine that have killed so many people at once. And what
they want is for the allies to actually keep sending the weapons systems that they promised at timely instances.
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They say that they'll get promises but the deliveries are late and especially they say they absolutely need more air defense systems because
the Russians since have stepped up not just their usual cruise missiles and drone attacks but these ballistic missile attacks, which are much more
powerful, much quicker, much more difficult to respond to.
And only the most significant and sophisticated air defense systems can deal with that, as he said. So they need Patriots; they need all these
other things to put a shield around what they expect to see a stepped-up bombing campaign as winter approaches -- Becky.
ANDERSON: Yes, this is the military story here on the political or diplomatic front. You and I spoke yesterday about a four-part plan that has
been presented by Ukraine to the United States. This -- the narrative for this or the spirit of this is with an effort to try and get a peace summit,
further peace talks, up and going.
What do we know about that four-part plan?
Do we have any further detail from Ukraine's perspective about what peace talks might look like at this point?
AMANPOUR: No and, honestly, they're very clear to say -- and I asked the foreign minister about that -- that this is a four-part victory plan that
the president has, as the foreign minister told me today, floated and teased.
I don't believe has yet been formally presented to the administration. It will be. But they do want to show, you know, and build on what they
consider to be success and demonstrate -- demonstrating that they can actually do a successful military operation, which the Kursk was all about.
And they want to try to really focus people's minds. We don't know what this four point plan has in it and we don't know exactly the dates when
it's going to be presented.
The last time we spoke, which was about an hour ago, about this current situation, the electricity went down and our line was cut.
And it's really interesting because what the foreign minister told me and just confirmed is that Russia's relentless attacks on the grid have
actually diminished the electricity and energy supplied by about half for this country.
That's dramatic and it's going to get much more difficult to sustain as the cold weather starts to come -- and it comes here pretty quickly in October,
November, et cetera. So they really need to try to work this out.
But when you talk about a peace plan, they say, well, look, what peace plan?
Putin has shown absolutely no desire to negotiate whatsoever. So this is where we are at the moment. Becky.
ANDERSON: It's good to have you, Christiane. Thank you very much indeed.
Colin Clarke is director of policy and research at The Soufan Group, a global security and intelligence company. And he joins us now live.
Christiane has been speaking to Ukraine's foreign minister and he said, quote, that "delivery of air defense systems for Ukraine must be
expedited."
What do you make of that very pointed request?
COLIN CLARKE, POLICY AND RESEARCH DIRECTOR, THE SOUFAN GROUP: Thanks for having me. This is a tension that we've seen since the very beginning of
this conflict, since the Russians reinvaded Ukraine in February 2022, particularly within the West; more broadly with the United States, some of
its European and NATO allies.
But also within the United States, there's a big division over should we expedite weapons to Ukraine?
And should be -- should they be the most sophisticated or should this be a kind of strategy of doling them out, trying to measure Putin's appetite for
further conflict?
Both have their faults. It is worth noting that the Ukrainian incursion into Kursk was the first time -- and this is a big deal -- a non nuclear
your country ever invaded and occupied a territory of a nuclear power. And so there's a lot of angst within the Biden administration over what the
Kremlin's response could be, how escalatory it might be.
ANDERSON: Well, let's talk about that Kursk offensive. A couple of weeks ago, unbeknownst to, it seems, even Western countries -- so one has to
assume their intelligence organizations as well -- Ukraine launched this offensive into Kursk, which is Russian territory.
Is it clear just how successful that was?
And perhaps by asking that, I'm asking, is it clear what the goals were and whether those goals were achieved?
CLARKE: I think it's still too early to tell. There's often a lag effect with these kinds of events.
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I think on the Ukrainian side, the thinking was along the lines of "We need to shake this up. We need to do something different with our strategy."
This kind of grinding war of attrition doesn't favor Ukrainian forces, either in terms of manpower, equipment, what have you. Russia is just such
a large country that's producing endless amounts of weapons and ammunition and getting it from its close allies as well.
And so I think it was to kind of shake things up, also reseize the momentum here, to lift morale amongst its own forces but to show the United States
and the West that, look, when given the proper tools, Ukraine can actually do quite a bit and that it's being constrained.
ANDERSON: "Given the proper tools." This has been an ask, of course, as you rightly sort of alluded to since the outset of this war.
At this point, what sort of appetite is there in Washington and in capitals around the West?
Because let's be absolutely clear about that. This is where the support for Ukraine is coming from.
What sort of appetite is there for further support at this point?
CLARKE: I think not nearly as much as President Zelenskyy and Kyiv would like. Clearly there's some hesitance on the part of major countries to
provide too much to the Ukrainians too fast.
That sounds a little bit strange because we are, you know, multiple years into this conflict. But it's been a very deliberate kind of parsing out of
various weapon systems and components.
There are still talks about getting various cruise missiles to Ukrainians in the coming months. I think there's clear frustration on the Ukrainian
side of, as you're kind of delaying this and having these debates in Western capitals, Ukrainians are dying every day.
So, you know, it's interesting that we're still having some of these same conversations. But again, there's a lot left to examine when we look at
potential escalatory responses on the part of the Russian side. I don't think we can be cavalier here.
There is a real, you know, there's a real prospect that the Russians could escalate further, as hard as that is to believe.
ANDERSON: Right. At this point -- and you've just outlined and Christiane and I were having this discussion as well -- the military situation, what
prospect anytime soon of a political diplomatic solution?
CLARKE: I have to be honest, I'm very pessimistic about that.
Even when we hear Putin obliquely reference a negotiated settlement or what he views as some kind of end to the current conflict, I just don't believe
him. I think that the Russians thought that this war would be over and done by now.
And I don't see Vladimir Putin as somebody that you can trust in any way, shape or form, including dangling this possible carrot of negotiations. I
don't buy it.
ANDERSON: It's good to have you, sir. Thank you very much indeed for joining us.
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ANDERSON: Well, now to the ongoing and elusive quest for a breakthrough in the Middle East. Protesters are expected back on the streets of Israel for
the third day, demanding their government make an agreement to bring the remaining hostages in Gaza back home.
But Benjamin Netanyahu is digging in on a key sticking point, insisting Israeli forces must remain in what is known as the Philadelphi corridor
between Egypt and Gaza, should he sign up to a ceasefire.
Well, Hamas is demanding no less than a full Israeli withdrawal from that area. Also warning, if the IDF tries as to rescue more hostages as they
did, of course, at the weekend, there will be no hostages coming home alive.
All of this coming in the wake of what was that shocking weekend discovery of six more hostages killed by Hamas militants and as the Israeli offensive
in Gaza grinds on. Israel announcing it has killed the Hamas commander who led a deadly cross-border paraglider invasion on October 7.
Nic Robertson is in Tel Aviv, where protesters, Nic, are expected to regroup shortly.
This is another protest called for what is the third day. We've seen 72 hours effectively of protests at this point.
Arlette Saenz is at the White House, covering some apparent bristling from President Biden to Mr. Netanyahu's rigid stance with regard ceasefire
talks.
So let me start with, you Nic. And as we begin to see people gathering on the streets of Tel Aviv, at least once again today.
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What's been the response to Benjamin Netanyahu's speech last night, in which he made it clear he is not backing down on that key sticking point in
negotiations for a ceasefire, keeping troops in the Philadelphi corridor?
NIC ROBERTSON, CNN SENIOR DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: Well, undoubtedly people are disappointed and remain angry at him. I don't think it changes anything
that people think about the prime minister, whether they think that he is taking care of his own personal political interests ahead of the lives of
the hostages.
I don't think it changes that one bit. But I think there's a growing realization that, under this extreme international pressure, there was a
lot of support for what President Biden said yesterday, implying that he didn't think Netanyahu was going far enough in the negotiations, not being
flexible enough.
I think there was a lot of support among the protesters for that position. And therefore, the position that prime minister Netanyahu has adopted last
night is in completely the opposite direction.
He has decided to be intransigent, stick to his -- stick to his beliefs about the Philadelphi corridor, stick to those beliefs that won't bring a
deal with Hamas at the moment and, therefore, for protesters right now, it's a case of continuing.
It's a case of continuing to try to get the message out. But let's face it and be realistic. Protesters in larger and smaller numbers, over many, many
months now, more so at the weekends but also during the weeks like now, have been trying to do this same thing.
And in a way, there's an impasse. You'll find a core of protesters out there, absolutely. You'll probably find more gathering at key traffic
intersections in areas across the country, as they've been called to do today, as they were yesterday, as they were the day before.
But it -- but I think there's a recognition that this is not going to change the prime minister's position. There was hope over the weekend that
the horror of finding these six hostages dead would be enough to make him shift position.
But what he said last night was very clear.
What is the lesson that Hamas is going to learn if they murdered the hostages and we make concessions?
That's absolutely clear. He's not backing down. I don't expect the protesters will, either, but it doesn't mean -- it doesn't mean they're
gaining ground.
ANDERSON: And it's interesting. Just as you've been speaking, I'm just getting word that Benny Gantz, who is, of course, chairman of national
unity, and one other MP will give a statement to the media in about three hours from now, in which -- and this is according to Benny Gantz's
spokesperson -- in which Gantz will refute Netanyahu's arguments.
And reveal the truth, he says, about the Philadelphi access and the outline for the return of the hostages. So I'm sure many keenly awaiting detail on
that on that press conference that will be given by Benny Gantz, of course, who was in the security cabinet for many, many months post October 7.
Arlette, what's the perspective there in Washington?
President Biden gave a one word answer to a question lobbed at him yesterday. They said, I think -- certainly revealed quite a lot about his
position with regard how Benjamin Netanyahu is handling negotiations. Just explain what happened and what was said.
ARLETTE SAENZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Becky, this really is just the latest tension point in this ongoing relationship between Israeli prime
minister Benjamin Netanyahu and President Biden.
It comes at a time, as Nic was mentioning, that Netanyahu is facing significant pressure from within his own country to act, to achieve some
type of ceasefire and hostage proposal.
And President Biden here at the White House was asked by reporters whether he feels Netanyahu has done enough to try to get this proposal across the
finish line. The president answered in a very short word, very bluntly saying, no.
It really comes, as you have seen, the president refrain for the most part from criticizing Netanyahu publicly, instead trying to exert that pressure
privately. But it does lay bare some of the tensions between the two men as this conflict has played out.
Now the Israeli side said that they were a little caught off guard by those comments by Biden, saying that they have approached these conversations
about a hostage deal with all seriousness.
The White House, a U.S. official then pushed back, saying that the president has made clear that Hamas is responsible for the deaths of those
hostages but also stressing that the Israeli side needs to have some urgency in these talks.
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For President Biden's part, he convened a meeting of his national security team yesterday in the Situation Room to talk about the next steps they can
take to try to achieve a ceasefire and hostage deal.
President Biden himself told reporters that they are in the middle of negotiations, that he believes that they could be close to presenting a
final deal. The ultimate goal on the U.S. side is trying to bridge some of the gaps between Hamas and Israel in these negotiations.
So we will see how soon the U.S. might be able to present something. But you also have officials who have been working the phones, trying to get
this deal across the finish line. Just yesterday, national security adviser Jake Sullivan spoke with Israeli minister of strategic affairs, Ron Dermer,
as well as the Qatari prime minister.
A U.S. official saying that that was really to push negotiations along the road.
But there are still many questions that, even as President Biden is expressing this cautious optimism that they might be able to present a
final deal soon, still many questions about what that ultimate path would look like toward achieving a deal at a time when both Israel and Hamas so
far have seem to be dug in on their positions.
ANDERSON: Good to have you both. Thank you.
Well, you're watching CONNECT THE WORLD with me, Becky Anderson, 6:20 here in the UAE. Coming up, a massive escape attempt at the largest prison in
the Democratic Republic of Congo ends in chaos and dozens of deaths. More on that is coming up.
And in Turkiye, images emerge of an anti-American attack on two U.S. Marines. Reaction from the Pentagon is coming up.
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ANDERSON: An attempted prison break in the Democratic Republic of Congo, horrifically, after at least 129 people were killed when convicts attempted
to force their way out of the prison.
Authorities say most of the casualties were crushed in a stampede. In a social media post, the interior minister said it happened early on Monday
morning at the country's largest prison in the capital, Kinshasa.
And he said at least two dozen people were shot dead as they tried to escape. Well, as we understand it, an investigation is underway, CNN's
Larry Madowo joining me with more from Nairobi. Larry.
LARRY MADOWO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Becky, authorities in the DRC are calling this premeditated acts of sabotage.
It happened early Monday morning in the Makala Central Prison in Kinshasa. It is the largest prison in the Democratic Republic of Congo. And at least
129 people were killed after this attempted prison break.
At least 24 of them were shot after warning, according to the government there. And 59 people were wounded and are receiving medical treatment. Some
women were also raped as part of this stampede and chaos that happened at that prison.
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Many of those dead were killed by crushing and suffocation when this took place. There was also fire that burned through the administrative building,
the food depots and hospital in that prison.
This is what was the final result after this chaotic night. Here's the interior ministry in the DRC.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): The provisional human toll stands at 129 dead, including 24 by gunshot after warning. The others died by
jostling, suffocation and some women were raped.
The commission has also identified 59 injured, currently being cared for by the government for appropriate medical care.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MADOWO: Authorities there investigating what happened and have suspended sending any more prisoners to Makala Central Prison. It is already
dangerously overcrowded, built for about 1,500 prisoners.
It had almost 10 times that. According to Amnesty International, more than 12,000 people are in that prison. Many of them have not even been
sentenced. They're still awaiting trial.
And the government says it's the process of decongesting prisons, improving living conditions in them and are also building a brand new prison in
outside Kinshasa. This is not the first jailbreak out of the Makala Center Prison in Kinshasa.
In 2017, members of a religious sect broke in and freed some of their members. And there also have been other prison breaks in other parts of the
country, including in 2020 and Benin. That's in the northeast of the DRC, where hundreds of people were freed by a rebel group affiliated to ISIS.
So a lot of people still coming to terms with this tragedy that happened in the Congolese capital, Becky.
ANDERSON: Good to have you, Larry, thank you.
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ANDERSON: Let's get you bang up to speed on some of the other stories that are on our radar right now.
Pope Francis has started his 12 day tour of Asia with a stop in the world's largest Muslim majority country, Indonesia. His visit comes as the Catholic
Church seeks to grow its presence across Asia and strengthen ties with other religions.
The pope expected to meet with Indonesia's president and other officials while he is there.
Ukraine is criticizing ICC member Mongolia for failing to arrest Vladimir Putin, who is visiting the East Asia nation. The Russian president faces a
warrant from the ICC for alleged war crimes in Ukraine. ICC member countries are required to act on the court's warrants. But Mongolia appears
to be ignoring that order.
Venezuela's government accuses the U.S. of piracy and of escalating aggression for seizing president Nicolas Maduro's plane. Now the U.S. says
the jet was acquired in violation of sanctions, among other criminal issues.
The plane was seized in the Dominican Republican and was not registered under the name of the Venezuelan government.
Chinese state media report 11 people, five students and six parents, have been killed in a school bus crash. And a warning: you may find the images
that we are about to show you disturbing.
The crash happened in Shandong province, which is in eastern China. Now authorities say the bus lost control when it drove into an intersection,
then crashed into the crowd waiting to walk through the gate of a middle school; 13 people were injured. The driver being held by police.
Well, you're watching CONNECT THE WORLD with me, Becky Anderson. Time here just before 6:30 in the evening, live from our Middle East broadcasting
headquarters here in Abu Dhabi.
Still ahead, another day of protests planned in Israel. What the prime minister is saying about reaching a deal with Hamas that is only
intensifying anger on the streets.
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ANDERSON: Welcome back. You're watching CONNECT THE WORLD with me, Becky Anderson.
Anger growing in Israel again today after the prime minister defiantly rejected making concessions to forge a ceasefire-hostage release deal with
Hamas.
Benjamin Netanyahu, telling his nation that it is Hamas, not Israel, that must make concessions. His speech last night followed a day of protests and
a general strike on Monday in Israel after Hamas murdered six Israeli hostages over the weekend in Gaza with more protests due to start any time
now.
The group representing the hostages' family blasted the prime minister's address, calling it "a speech full of lies and spins" and saying, quote,
"The prime minister chose the legacy of abandonment instead of saving lives and returning the hostages.
"Prime minister Netanyahu proved tonight that he does not intend to return the hostages. This is the true meaning of his words through all the lies
and spins we heard tonight," they said.
Jeremy Diamond back with us this hour from Tel Aviv. Jeremy.
JEREMY DIAMOND, CNN JERUSALEM CORRESPONDENT: Becky, over the last three days, we have witnessed outpourings of grief and anger but also some hope,
some hope that perhaps the deaths of these six hostages could be a catalyst, could be a turning point to get the Israeli government to move
toward a ceasefire agreement.
To reach that agreement with Hamas in order to release the remaining hostages.
But last night, the Israeli prime minister doubling down on his demands for a hostage release deal and, in doing so, perhaps extinguishing many of
those hopes.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DIAMOND (voice-over): Outrage in the streets of Tel Aviv for the second night in a row, tens of thousands raising their voices demanding Prime
Minister Benjamin Netanyahu strike a deal to bring home the hostages alive.
This outpouring of grief, anger and frustration prompted by the deaths of six Israeli hostages whose bodies were recovered over the weekend. Hamas
executed them hours before Israeli troops discovered the tunnel where they were being held.
But to many here, their deaths are a grisly reminder of the Israeli government's failure.
MIMI ZEMAH, PROTESTER: The day before they were alive. You saw their names on the deal that could have been signed. Three names were on that deal and
they're not here.
GIL DICCMANN, RELATIVE OF HOSTAGE: We know that Hamas has agreed to a deal at some point and Israel was the one putting on more and more terms and
actually postponing the deal. And right now we know the decisions that our Prime Minister Netanyahu has made, made it impossible for Carmel and other
hostages to return and put their lives in great danger and that's what killed them.
DIAMOND (voice-over): Netanyahu meanwhile, doubling down on a core Israeli demand that has been a sticking point in negotiations and blaming Hamas.
NETANYAHU (through translator): The evil axis needs the Philadelphi Corridor and for that reason, we must keep control of the Philadelphia
corridor. This is why Hamas insisted we are not going to be there and this is why I insist that we are going to be there.
DIAMOND (voice-over): In Israel, the pressure is building on Netanyahu. Schools closed early.
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Flights delayed and buses disrupted as the largest union went on strike Monday for the first time since October 7. And in the U.S., more pressure.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: If you think it's time for Prime Minister Netanyahu to do more on this issue, do you think he's doing enough?
JOE BIDEN (D), PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: No.
DIAMOND: For the family of 23-year old Israeli American Hersh Goldberg- Polin, grief is now taking center stage.
RACHEL GOLDBERG-POLIN, HERSH'S MOTHER: I will love you and I will miss you every single day for the rest of my life but you're right here. I know
you're right here. I just have to teach myself how to feel you in a different way.
DIAMOND (voice-over): And hope that this moment will be different.
JON GOLDBERG-POLIN, HERSH'S FATHER: For 330 days, Mama and I sought the proverbial stone that we could turn over to save you. Maybe, just maybe,
your death is the stone, the fuel that will bring home the remaining 101 hostages.
DIAMOND (voice-over): That his son's death will not be in vain.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
DIAMOND: And even as the Israeli prime minister doubles down on his current position and leaving things with very little room to maneuver in
terms of these negotiations, the families of the hostages and the protesters who have been coming out to demand change are not giving up yet,
planning more protests.
And in just a matter of a couple of hours, back in front of Israel's military headquarters, where the Israeli security cabinet frequently meets,
and in other key locations around Israel.
But there are also heightened fears now, Becky, for the fate of the remaining hostages as Hamas admitting that they did indeed execute those
six hostages as Israeli troops approached their position.
And warning the Israeli government that more military efforts to free the hostages, more rescue operations will result in more hostages returning
back to Israel in coffins, they say, Becky.
ANDERSON: Jeremy Diamond is in Tel Aviv.
Thank you.
Want to take you now to an incident in Turkiye, where a small crowd attacked two U.S. Marines who had been on a break in the city of Izmir.
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ANDERSON (voice-over): You're looking at video that's being shared on social media. Several people held the Marines as one of them shouted for
help. The attackers chanted anti-American slurs and put a bag over the head of one of the Marines.
The Navy says the Marines were able to break away from the crowd with the help of others in the area. Oren Liebermann has the reaction from the
Pentagon.
Oren.
OREN LIEBERMANN, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Well, this incident all occurred yesterday afternoon in Izmir, Turkiye. These Marines were on the
USS Wasp. That's been operating in the eastern Mediterranean for the course of the past several weeks.
When it pulled into Izmir for several days leave for the Marines onboard the ship, that's when this incident occurred. According to both the U.S.
Navy and local authorities, a mob grabbed two of the Marines, holding them by force.
One of them shouted for help in the video, the other had a bag placed over his head. That's one of the speakers from this mob you can see in the
middle there. And then shortly thereafter in this clip, you can hear the mob chanting, "Yankee go home."
According to local authorities, this mob was from the Turkish Youth Union, a nationalist anti-American organization that has carried out attacks like
this before, according to authorities. There was an incident in Istanbul in November 2021 and this has gone back for years.
There was another incident we reported on back in 2014, where U.S. service members were grabbed; very often that same slogan chanted, "Yankee go
home," and then a bag placed over the head of the U.S. service members.
That has meaning to this anti-American group. It's actually a reference to a 2003 incident shortly after the U.S. invasion of Iraq, where U.S.
soldiers or service members took Turkish soldiers into custody and placed a bag over their head.
So that's what this nationalist group is referencing by doing the same to U.S. service members. According to the Navy, there were other Marines in
the area. They came to the help of the two U.S. Marines, got them out of there, got them checked out at a local hospital. According to the Navy,
they are OK. And then got them back to the USS Wasp.
The local governorship says they took 13 people into custody as a result of this incident and they are being investigated both by local authorities and
by NCIS. So that investigation at this point continues. Again, the service members back on board the USS Wasp.
ANDERSON: Thank you, Oren.
And this just in to CNN. French authorities are reporting a deadly incident in the English Channel. They say at least 12 people have died after a boat
carrying migrants capsized off the coast of northern France; 65 others, they say, were rescued. That involved several boats and helicopters. Many
of the survivors required urgent medical care.
We are following this story, of course, as it develops and we'll bring you more information as it becomes available.
[10:40:00]
Well, the race for the White House now entering a critical stretch. Vice President Kamala Harris takes reproductive rights on the road as it were
with the first stop right in Donald Trump's back yard. More on that after this.
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ANDERSON: The 2024 presidential race is entering a critical stretch with the Vice President Kamala Harris and former president Donald Trump set to
debate in just a week's time.
The candidates taking two very different strategies. While Trump is off the campaign trail for another day, Harris is keeping abortion rights front and
center by kicking off a reproductive rights bus tour in Florida.
Now that state, critically, will be voting on an abortion ballot measure in November. For more on this, CNN's Priscilla Alvarez joining us from
Washington.
We know reproductive rights are front and center for Harris. We have heard from her regularly over the past year or so and certainly when it became
such a hot topic in the 2022 midterms election.
So what is she doing very specifically to raise the issue and keep it front and center in voters' minds at this point?
PRISCILLA ALVAREZ, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Her campaign is trying to do exactly that, knowing, of course, that it is an issue that has
galvanized voters and one that has paid off for Democrats.
As you mentioned, there was the 2022 midterm elections. They want to replicate that in 2024.
And the way that they see that they can do that is by keeping this issue again front and center. Now this is a reproductive rights tour that
launches today in Florida. It will be with Senator Klobuchar as well as the campaign manager, Julie Chavez Rodriguez.
And it's going to include overall at least 50 stops and is going to go on from today until Election Day.
So clearly, they want to continue the momentum on this issue, especially over the last several days, when the former president was flip-flopping on
how he would vote on that abortion measure in Florida.
Now, of course, this is part of a one-two punch this week. The vice president also putting the economy front and center. That, of course, is an
issue that remains top of mind for voters and also one where she polls behind former president Donald Trump.
So she is trying to gain some ground here. The campaign releasing an ad today. And what is notable about that ad is how they are fine-tuning their
messaging on this issue by making it about affordability.
[10:45:00]
It's something that we heard more about yesterday when she was joined with President Biden on the campaign trail, their first joint campaign event
since she became the Democratic presidential nominee.
Now the president for his part is trying to help where he can on the campaign trail. And we're seeing how he is transitioning from the candidate
to the surrogate.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOE BIDEN (D), PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Are you ready to elect Kamala Harris, our next President of the United States?
(APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: Then, your process, are you ready to make Donald Trump loser again?
(APPLAUSE)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ALVAREZ: Now the president is also going to be heading to Wisconsin and Michigan over the next few days. The blue wall states is where the campaign
sees that he can be helpful. Of course, his office as well as the vice president's office and the campaign have been in close coordination as they
try to boost this ticket.
The vice president will be headed to New Hampshire tomorrow to unveil economic proposals, mostly focused on small businesses, entrepreneurship
and innovation. She teased some of it last week when she said that she wanted to propose tax credits for small business startups.
So clearly the vice president trying to gain the upper hand here on the economy against the former president Donald Trump. And especially doing so
only days from that first presidential debate.
ANDERSON: Good to have you. Thank you.
Elon Musk, the owner of X, of course, formerly Twitter, seems to be breaking his own rules with a recent post.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON (voice-over): This is a fake image of U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris, wearing a hat with a Communist symbol.
Musk adding this comment, "Kamala vows to be a Communist dictator on day one.
"Can you believe she wears that outfit?"
Well, X's policy states users can't share any media that has been manipulated or attempts to deceive or confuse people. These posts are meant
to be labeled to notify users. So far, no such label on this post from Musk.
And fake information can flow both ways. Political ads, plastered around Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, seemed to proclaim a major sports endorsement
for Harris. But they are not real. The Philadelphia Eagles say signs placed on bus shelters, calling Harris the team's official candidate, are
counterfeit.
And the NFL team working to have them removed. CNN's Danny Freeman is following this from Philadelphia.
I mean, these look like real ads. You wouldn't expect necessarily to see sort of fake media on a poster. We are beginning to have to get used to
seeing it on social media.
What do we know at this point?
DANNY FREEMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, listen, you're absolutely right, that this is perhaps a small example of what we can expect in a
battleground state like Pennsylvania, and an all important city like Philadelphia as we get into this kind of crazy two month stretch heading to
the Election Day in November.
But in this particular poster, what the city says is going on here is that somebody broke into this bus stop right here, this bus shelter, and they
put up this post. This isn't a digital ad. You can see right here it's covered up. I'll get to this in a moment.
But you have Vice President Kamala Harris in an Eagles helmets and, as you noted, right here on the bottom, it says Official Candidate of the
Philadelphia Eagles. That's what this bus sign says.
Now I should note for our international audiences, the Philadelphia Eagles are probably the most popular sports team in the Commonwealth of
Pennsylvania. Some people may disagree but I think that's a pretty fair thing to say.
So to try to associate a presidential candidate with this team is very, very smart to some extent. But again, the Eagles do not endorse candidates
and they are clearly saying that they did not authorize this.
They sent a statement out on Twitter, "We are aware counterfeit political ads are being circulated and are working with our advertising partner to
have them removed."
Meanwhile, some Philadelphia citizen came in, posted that tweet all over this poster late last night in order to make sure, if anyone mistakenly saw
the poster, they would know.
Meanwhile, Becky, we also spoke with the -- or heard from, I should say, the company that manages these ad spaces.
They said, quote, "We note that the Eagles and Intersection" -- that's name of the company -- "had nothing to do with the creation or posting of this
unauthorized copy. An Intersection staff will be removing the ads soon as possible."
Becky, I want you to take a listen, though, to how some voters that our affiliates here spoke with viewed these posters popping up around the city.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Somebody can't use their logo in a way that the Eagles organization themselves might not want their logo used.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's also encoded in people's brains, this picture of Kamala Harris with the Eagles.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
[10:50:00]
FREEMAN: Now, Becky, the ad company, again, that runs this particular bus shelter, they said that this is an act of vandalism. The City of
Philadelphia says that it was illegal, whoever put this up. But let's also be clear.
This type of, let's call it, guerrilla marketing or ad takeover is not uncommon in these big urban cities. It just happens to be that this
particular one -- you're delving into politics and you're delving into sports. And that's a place that clearly, as you can tell by this bus stop,
people are not always that thrilled about. I'll toss it back to you, Becky.
ANDERSON: Yes, absolutely. Good to have you. Thank you very much, indeed.
That's the picture there in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. More news after this short break, stay with us.
(MUSIC PLAYING)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(MUSIC PLAYING)
ANDERSON: The ghost with the most is coming back to the big screen this week. "Beetlejuice Beetlejuice" is the highly anticipated sequel to Tim
Burton's beloved 1988 classic. CNN's Elizabeth Wagmeister spoke with some of the film's stars.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ELIZABETH WAGMEISTER, CNN ENTERTAINMENT CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Three iconic words.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Nobody can say it three times.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I like, what about saying it twice?
WAGMEISTER: Three iconic women returning to that ghostly comedy.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The juice is loose.
WAGMEISTER: -- 36 years after the original.
Catherine O'Hara.
CATHERINE O'HARA, ACTOR: I'm trying to capture the perfect primal scream.
WAGMEISTER: -- and Winona Ryder --
WINONA RYDER, ACTOR: I can't believe I'm doing this.
WAGMEISTER: -- reprise their roles in the long-awaited sequel to "Beetlejuice."
It took a long time but why is now the right time for this?
O'HARA: Jenna had to be born --
RYDER: Yes.
O'HARA: -- and become an actress.
JENNA ORTEGA, ACTOR: I think I'm going to love it here.
WAGMEISTER: Fresh off Netflix's monster hit Wednesday, Jenna Ortega plays Ryder's daughter and O'Hara's granddaughter.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Is your mom Lydia Deetz?
ORTEGA: Unfortunately.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: She's a legend.
WAGMEISTER: All three women sat down with CNN ahead of the film's release.
I love sitting with the three of you because it's the three generations of women of this film.
Jenna, what did you learn from working with Winona and Catherine?
ORTEGA: First of all, comedy legend. Everything that you guys call myself absolutely perfect. I feel like Winona has this quality to her that that's
why you're like the perfect Lydia, because you feel like you know where you feel like you relate to her but there still something there that's
unattainable and it belongs to just you.
WAGMEISTER: The sequel finds the Deetz family back home where Beetlejuice first haunted them. When Ortega's asteroid accidentally opened the portal
to the afterlife, Michael Keaton's Beetlejuice is unleashed all over again.
O'HARA: I honestly did not know that this movie so loved. The right age, I guess, the nostalgic sort of value of it really means something to them.
RYDER: There's just nothing like it. It's in its own genre. That is a testament to Tim.
WAGMEISTER: Tim Burton returns to direct the sequel to the 1988 classic.
TIM BURTON, DIRECTOR, "BEETLEJUICE BEETLEJUICE": Is that a movie that could have been made in like 1989?
It really was the anchor to this three generations of the Deetz.
WAGMEISTER: And also made Wednesday with Ortega a natural choice for Beetlejuice, even though she wasn't born when the original came out, she
saw decades later at age nine.
And what do you remember about watching it?
ORTEGA: I remember sweating a lot because as I saw drunk Beetlejuice costume when I was 6 years old at costume party. And she's terrified me.
[10:55:00]
WAGMEISTER: As for a third movie, likely titled with those three curse words.
RYDER, "LYDIA DEETZ": Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice.
WGMEISTER: -- these generational stars say they could be back for more.
O'HARA: Yes, I'd like to be live in about 30 years.
WAGMEISTER: Elizabeth Wagmeister, CNN, Los Angeles.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ANDERSON: Finally and frankly, Joey Chestnut has devoured his way to another personal best, beating his own world hot dog eating record.
Yep, it was a showdown between the two biggest names in professional competitive eating. During a Netflix Labor Day event in Las Vegas in
Nevada, Chestnut gobbled down 83 all-beef hot dogs and buns in 10 minutes.
His rival could not catch up. He put away just 66 dogs. This was the first time the two superstars of the sport -- in inverted commas -- have faced
off in 15 years.
And yes, I relished telling that story.
That's it for CONNECT THE WORLD. Stay with CNN. "NEWSROOM" is up next.
[11:00:00]
END
