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Terror Attack on Turkish Aerospace Company; Kelly: Trump Demonstrated Fascist Tendencies; Blinken Meets with Saudi Crown Prince; U.N. Warns Gaza May Be Destroyed by "Death and Displacement"; Trump Team Accuses U.K. Labour Party of Interference. Aired 10-11a ET
Aired October 23, 2024 - 10:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[09:59:45]
ELENI GIOKOS, CNN ANCHOR AND CORRESPONDENT: All right, moving on now and admiring Hitler, seeking Nazi-like difference from the military and fitting
the definition of a fascist. These are the latest claims about Donald Trump with just 13 days until the election that could return him to power.
[10:00:03]
They come from John Kelly, the retired military general, who served as Trump's chief of staff from 2017 to 2019. Take a listen.
(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)
JOHN KELLY, FORMER TRUMP CHIEF OF STAFF: Certainly the former president is in the far right area. He's certainly an authoritarian, admires people who
are dictators. He has said that. So her certainly falls into the general definition of fascist for sure.
(END AUDIO CLIP)
GIOKOS: Well, Kelly raising a red flag there in an interview with "The New York Times." The paper said he felt compelled to talk because of the recent
comments from Trump.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD TRUMP, FORMER U.S. PRESIDENT: It is the enemy from within and they're very dangerous. We have China, we have Russia, we have all these
countries. If you had a smart president, they could all be handled. The more difficult -- or the, you know, the Pelosis, these people, they're so
sick and they're so evil.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GIOKOS: "The Atlantic," meantime reporting that, while he was president, Trump said, quote, "I need the kind of generals that Hitler had, people who
were totally loyal to him, that follow orders."
"The Atlantic" attributes this quote to two people were heard it said, being said by Donald Trump. The Trump camp denies it. And there is more.
John Kelly says this.
(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)
KELLY: He commented more than once that, you know, that Hitler did some good things too. And of course, if you know history -- again, I think he's
lacking in that. But if you know what Hitler was all about, if you -- it'd be pretty hard to make an argument that he did anything good.
(END AUDIO CLIP)
GIOKOS: All right. For more, I want to bring in CNN reporter Steve Contorno from Florida, standing by.
I mean, these are really incredible revelations. I want you to give me a little bit of a sense of what this ultimately means 13 days before the
election.
STEVE CONTORNO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, it's coming from not only someone who worked for Trump but his longest standing chief of staff, the retired
military general, John Kelly.
And it comes amid an outpouring of individuals who worked for Donald Trump, who no longer support the former president. So this is just one of many
people who want to align themselves with Trump (ph) now, either saying he is unfit for this office or who, in some cases, are actively campaigning
for Vice President Harris.
And she has highlighted those individuals at her campaign. She has cut advertisements that feature them. And it has been a big part of her
outreach to connecting with independent and even some Republican voters.
I should point out that the Trump campaign has vehemently pushed back against the assertions made by General Kelly. Here's a statement that they
said.
Kelly has, quote, "totally beclowned himself with these debunked stories he has fabricated because he failed to serve his president while working as
chief of staff and currently suffers from a debilitating case of Trump derangement syndrome."
I should point out though as well that these comments come as Donald Trump continues to talk about the authority of the executive branch in ways that
does give some people alarm and concerns them that he is playing into authoritarian tendencies.
Take a listen to what he said yesterday about the kind of power that presidents have when it comes to dealing with immigration.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: As president, you have -- it's called extreme power. You have extreme power. You can just with, by the fact you say close the border and
the border is closed, that's it, very, very simple. You don't need all of this nonsense that they talk about.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CONTORNO: Extreme power, that is nowhere in the Constitution. I should say, in fact, there is very specifically in the American system checks and
balances between the branches of government to control the power of the executive branch.
And Congress could easily pass a law that would prohibit a president from taking those kinds of steps. So that is why you are hearing people like
John Kelly come out in this moment. We are just 13 days before this election, raising the alarm.
And you're hearing it from other people who worked for him as well and give you a sense of why they're doing that.
GIOKOS: All right. Steve Contorno, thank you so much.
I want to go deeper now. We've got Brian Stelter, CNN's chief media analyst, joining us now from New York.
Brian, good to see you. Everyone's asking a lot about the timing of this.
So why is John Kelly speaking out now so close to the election?
And why didn't he say anything earlier?
BRIAN STELTER, CNN CHIEF MEDIA ANALYST: Kelly has certainly been resisting this moment for a very long time.
[10:05:03]
And none of us can get into his head and know why he has been so careful over the years, especially in the years since Trump left office.
Kelly has chosen a few moments to talk to a few interviewers, a few authors, like our own Jim Sciutto of CNN. But he's been very careful and
that might be because he didn't think Trump would actually become the nominee again.
Well, then Trump became the nominee. Maybe he thought, OK, Trump's not actually going to have a chance to be president again. Well, Trump is on
the verge of becoming president again.
So here we are in this final -- I guess we're in the eighth inning of a nine-inning ball game and Kelly feels he has to speak out more forcefully.
He's doing so by choosing his interviewers very carefully.
He's choosing journalists he trusts -- Jeffrey Goldberg of "The Atlantic," Michael Schmidt of "The New York Times." And maybe he will speak with
others, I don't know. I'm curious to see if Kelly will appear on television at all in the next 12 days or so.
But it's notable that "The New York Times" released not just these quotes but these audio clips because that has generated a ton of television news
coverage in the last 16 hours or so. So Kelly's message, even though it's coming late, it is getting out very widely in the U.S. and beyond.
GIOKOS: I mean, the question is, what does this mean for people watching on and the electorate and what they think of Donald Trump?
What do all of these comments ultimately tell us about a potential Trump presidency, a second term and what that would look like?
STELTER: I think this is all about centering the questions about Trump and his authoritarian tendencies, his authoritarian impulses. That's been a
narrative that has been with us for years when Trump was in office and again, when he was out of office.
But sometimes these concerns about Trump's desire to be a dictator or this idea that he has a fascist attitude, they get buried by the day-to-day
debates about the economy and immigration and other matters.
When Trump is at rallies and he brings up a dead golfer's genitalia or when he insults Kamala Harris and uses curse words about her, those stories
sometimes get a lot of attention, a lot of oxygen.
And I would argue they distract from the bigger story here.
The bigger story is, are there a sizable number of Americans who would prefer an autocrat, who would prefer more of a dictatorial approach?
Trump is speaking to those Americans. He's speaking to that impulse. We don't know how big of an audience in America actually wants that. But
that's one of the questions in this election.
And I think when John Kelly or Mark Milley raise these issues, it helps make that front and center in this election, in the final inning of this
campaign.
GIOKOS: Yes, Brian, really good to get your analysis on this. As you say, we are in the final stretch and I think any rhetoric narrative that we hear
now is going to be really important for people to make their final decisions. Brian Stelter. Thank you.
Now more of our breaking news out of Turkiye. We want to bring you some more information as we're getting it in real time, where the interior
minister says a Turkish aerospace company has been targeted in a terror attack in the capital, Ankara.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GIOKOS (voice-over): These are the pictures from the scene. We're getting these images just in to CNN and there you can see ambulances gathered
there. This is after we heard the news of this building being struck.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GIOKOS: We've got Salma Abdelaziz to give us more information.
Salma, what more have we learned?
SALMA ABDELAZIZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: You can see from those images there that this is very much still an active situation. Ambulances coming in, you
can see other agencies coming in as well. You can begin to see a cordon there. We're still trying to find out more about what happened.
But here is what we do. This Turkish aerospace company that's located in Ankara at some point, just a few hours ago, it was struck in what the
country's interior minister has called a terror attack.
He says that there are casualties, wounded, potentially people who have been killed in this attack. He did again describe it as a terror attack,
not explaining further. But that's absolutely going to strike fear in the hearts of many Turkish families today.
Also want to read you a statement that's just been issued by Ankara's mayor, saying that he wanted to wish God's mercy upon the dead and a speedy
recovery to those wounded by the attack.
He went on to say, we condemn terrorism. Again, this is going to be very, very terrifying; middle of the day, as you can see those images there,
those sirens going. This is absolutely going to terrify people in that area.
What we know about this company, it's called the Turkish Aerospace Industries. Its abbreviation is T-U-S-A-S. Is that it's a company
potentially that provides engines to Turkiye's defense industry. Unclear why that was a target, what this target was about, who has carried out this
attack.
[10:10:02]
But social media is already filled with videos that we're working right now. We're kind of combing through them to see what we can verify. But
social media already filled with images showing an explosion on the ground, showing the moments of this attack around this large building, again, in
the center of Ankara.
Very much an active situation but right now the focus for those authorities on the ground is going to be finding out, has the situation ended?
Is this still an active situation in any way, as in are there shooters, are there more attackers on the ground, have they been able to contain that
situation?
And then of course, the priority survivors, the missing, the wounded, who has been harmed, who can emergency workers get to, absolutely terrifying to
see those pictures right now, Eleni, and wonder what's happening there as we wait for more information.
GIOKOS: Absolutely. I mean, we're seeing these images coming through to CNN. As you say, the priority will try -- for authorities to try and
contain the situation, to see whether add something onto the big picture question, Salma, who was behind the attack, how it was carried out.
And, of course, the Turkish president currently in Russia for the BRICS summit, which is interesting, of course. This is going to be something
we'll be following for you and keeping on top of the story. Salma Abdelaziz in London. Thank you so much for that update.
I want to move now to the U.S. secretary of state's message to Israel in his 11th tour of this region since the October 7th attacks. Antony Blinken
saying today that Israel must now turn its military success in Gaza into a strategic success and end the war after the death of Hamas leader, Yahya
Sinwar.
Blinken is now in Saudi Arabia, heading there from Israel after meeting prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu and other top officials. And he's been
meeting the Saudi crown prince and foreign minister today.
Blinken also referenced the ongoing conflict in Lebanon, which shows no signs of easing. Israel today striking what it says are Hezbollah targets
in the Lebanese city of Tyre after the IDF issued evacuation orders there.
Tyre is one of Lebanon's main tourist destinations. I'm now joined this hour by Jeremy Diamond. He is in Jerusalem for us. We've got Kylie Atwood
at the U.S. State Department for an update.
A lot happening in the region today, Jeremy, I want to start off with you, the latest Israeli airstrikes in Lebanon.
Could you give us an update?
What more can you tell us about the targets?
JEREMY DIAMOND, CNN JERUSALEM CORRESPONDENT: It certainly seems like every single day, we are watching an escalation in terms of the Israeli strikes
inside of Lebanon.
We have seen them expand their target list, expand the areas and the cities that they are targeting. And today that expansion was related to central
Tyre as the Israeli military struck what they claimed were Hezbollah targets.
We know that these strikes came following an evacuation warning that the Israeli military issued on Wednesday to residents in several areas of that
city. They said that anyone near Hezbollah members, its facilities or its weapons would be putting their lives at risk if they did not move.
And so what we have seen today are multiple strikes in the area of Tyre. We know that the Israeli military has also said that they have now killed
three Hezbollah commanders in just the last 48 hours.
But it needs to be underscored as we always do, of course, that there is a significant impact on the civilian population of Lebanon as the Israeli
military carries out these strikes.
And what we have also been told in the last 24 hours or so is the -- an accounting of the impact on Lebanon's hospitals that has been coming as a
result of these Israeli strikes. According to Youssef Bakhash, the head of the Lebanese Doctors Syndicate, at least two dozen hospitals have now been
impacted by Israeli strikes in Lebanon.
And five hospitals are now out of service as a result of those strikes. The Israeli military is clearly pursuing not only a military strategy in
Lebanon in terms of trying to go after Hezbollah's capabilities and to diminish their military capabilities.
But they are also clearly trying to bring Lebanese societal and political pressure to bear on Hezbollah as well in combination with the diplomatic
efforts that we have seen being carried out by the United States.
With the special envoy, Amos Hochstein, in Beirut now in recent days, to see if there is a ceasefire that can be brokered between Hezbollah and
Israel but there's no question that Israel's terms for that ceasefire have hardened in recent weeks as they have been able to deal one devastating
blow after the next against Hezbollah.
The question is whether or not that Lebanese societal and political pressure will actually come to bear in the way that the Israelis hope and
whether it will be effective on Hezbollah.
GIOKOS: Yes, really good point there and, of course, what's happening on the diplomatic front.
And Kylie, we know that Antony Blinken is talking about a post-war future in the Middle East, even though we're seeing the war raging on not only in
Gaza as Jeremy was describing what we're seeing in Lebanon.
[10:15:04]
So what does he hope to accomplish in Saudi Arabia?
KYLIE ATWOOD, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: Well, listen, we already have a readout from the State Department of the secretary's meeting
with crown prince Mohammed bin Salman.
And there's a few pieces that they discussed. According to the State Department, they talked about common efforts to bring about peace in the
region when it comes to these ongoing conflicts.
Specifically to bring an end to the conflict in Gaza, to drive forth a diplomatic resolution when it comes to the ongoing conflict between Israel
and Hezbollah in Lebanon. And it also spoke about the need for lasting regional stability, indicating that they did talk about the potential for
normalization of relations between Saudi Arabia and Israel.
But no real specifics on any of these. And that's really where the question mark comes in. They've been talking about a lot of these efforts for a
while now.
The question is how they turn these efforts into actual action that could bring about peace, particularly when the Israelis at this moment in time
haven't demonstrated a willingness to be on the same page with the United States when it comes to specifically bringing an end to the conflict in
Gaza.
I want you to listen, however, to the secretary of state as he was leaving Tel Aviv after his meetings with multiple Israeli officials, including
prime minister Netanyahu.
He continued to drive home the message that we have heard time and time again over the last few days for the Biden administration, that this is a
moment of opportunity, they believe, to bring this conflict to an end.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ANTONY BLINKEN, U.S. SECRETARY OF STATE: But more broadly there remains, despite everything that's happened, an incredible opportunity in this
region to move in a totally different direction, one that actually provides in a durable way for Israel's security, for its place in the region.
A country that's integrated, working with its Arab partners, accepted by them, isolating Iran and those who are trying to disrupt and destroy
people's lives. You've got an axis of resistance on the one hand. You can see a partnership for peaceful coexistence on the other hand.
Saudi Arabia would be right at the heart of that and that includes potentially normalization of relations with Israel.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ATWOOD: So now what we'll be watching for is what U.S. officials say at the end of this visit, if they were able to talk with Israelis, talk with
the Saudis, talk with the other countries that the secretary will be visiting, to come up with some ideas to really drive forth end to the
conflict but particularly the ongoing one in Gaza.
But, of course, the conflict in Lebanon is directly related to it. But we also will be watching to see what U.S. officials say about the willingness
of the Israelis here to actually drive forth end to both of those conflicts because we know that that has been a major impediment over the last few
months.
And it appears to still be one, even though the Biden administration continues to beat the pavement on this and really try and drive forth an
end. The background, of course, here in the United States is that the presidential election is just two weeks away. So time is truly of the
essence for these U.S. officials.
GIOKOS: Indeed it is. Kylie Atwood, thank you so much.
And still to come, we're counting down to CNN's town hall with Vice President Kamala Harris as she prepares to face some tough questions from
undecided voters. A preview is coming up just ahead.
(MUSIC PLAYING)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[10:20:00]
(MUSIC PLAYING)
GIOKOS: Now more out of Turkiye on our breaking news story, where the interior minister says a Turkish aerospace company has been targeted in a
terror attack in the capital, Ankara.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GIOKOS (voice-over): These are the pictures from the scene. Casualties have been reported.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GIOKOS: I'm now joined by Galip Dalay, a senior consulting fellow at Chatham House in London.
Galip, great to see you. Thank you so much for taking the time today. We are getting these images in of what seems to be an active scene right now.
The interior minister calling this a terrorist attack.
What more do you know?
GALIP DALAY, SENIOR CONSULTING FELLOW, CHATHAM HOUSE: Well, that's where we are following the news. It's clearly an horrific act of terrorism. But
the crucial here is the timing of it.
I mean, obviously any terrorists, terrorist activities means to create terrorism, create casualties, create balance (ph). But the timing is
crucial. The timing is sensitive because just recently yesterday, the leader of the Nationalist Action Party, who is a coalition partner of
Afghan (ph) government, spoke above a new Kurdish opening.
Quite a daring Kurdish opening again. The countries are once again talking about a new Kurdish opening. Therefore, the political logic behind this
terrorist, terrorism, it's clearly to undermine this process, to clearly to prevent the -- a political settlement of the Kurdish issue.
Thus far, we don't know which group is responsible for it. Obviously for Turkiye, there is usually the usual suspects when it comes to terrorism of
that nature, whether it could be the PKK or other far-right or far-left organization.
Previously, Turkiye has been also very much victim of the ISIS types, radical terrorist organizations. But the picture that we are receiving from
the crime scene, from the scene indicates probably it's one of these far left or the PKK or similar terms organization.
But that's why we don't know the identity of the group behind it. But the political logic is the crucial one. The political logic is basically to
prevent or undermine any possible opening on the Kurdish issue and any possible settlement of the Turkiye's long-standing Kurdish issue.
And particularly the call for PKK to lay down arms in Turkiye is growing. Even the pro-Kurdish party is actually making similar demands. Whoever is
behind this operation clearly has a very clear political goal, which is to prevent this.
And that's why it's crucial, basically irrespective of this terrorist act. The result to take political steps on this front should be actually
strengthen rather than weaken in order not to give into the terrorist calls and terrorist aims.
GIOKOS: So, Galip, I just need you to stand by for me. We've got Salma Abdelaziz who has been tracking the story for us.
Salma, what more can you tell us?
ABDELAZIZ: Yes. See, again, a very active scene. You have medical workers there, police there, security services, they're all trying to, A, of
course, contain the situation, make sure that this is no longer an active situation.
And of course, come to the aid of those wounded, of those potentially killed. I want to read you some of the reaction that we have so far from
Turkish officials.
This one from Ankara's mayor, who says he was saddened by the terrorist attack that targeted Turkish Aerospace Industries. He goes on to say he
wanted to wish God's mercy upon the dead and a speedy recovery to those wounded by the attack.
It's Turkiye's interior ministry -- interior minister, rather, who, also commenting on this attack, saying, unfortunately, we have martyrs and
injured people in the attack. It was the interior minister who posted this on X, alerting the news media internationally to what's happening there on
the ground.
But so far, of course, we don't know how many people are injured. We don't know how many people are wounded. What I do want to show you that we have
at this time is social media video that we've just verified.
[10:25:00]
If we have that to show our viewers, what it shows is first an explosion at this facility, at the Turkish Aerospace Industries facility. We've
geolocated this video, we know that this is the location that is being shown on that video that you can see on your screen.
Now there is an explosion. And after that explosion, there is an individual. That individual appears to be carrying a weapon. Unclear who
that individual is or what their role is.
But you are looking there at the moments of the attack, again, in video found on social media. But also geolocated, analyzed by CNN. Really, really
scary scenes that you're looking at there. You can see it's heavily fortified, building, big walls, big security.
So how was this carried out?
I know your previous guest was talking about potential motives. Of course, the PKK will be top of mind, ISIS and other terror groups will be top of
mind.
And I also want to alert our viewers that we are actually expecting to see president Recep Tayyip Erdogan speak shortly, because he's at the BRICS
summit. He's expected to show up alongside President Putin. You can expect reporters will be asking questions. We may get a comment very soon.
GIOKOS: Yes, Salma, thank you so much for that update. And I know that you're working really hard to try and get more information as it comes in.
Galip, I want to come to you again. And you were talking about the potential motive, what this means politically.
But when we're seeing this explosion and these images that we're showing right now, this aerospace company that was struck -- and usually these
kinds of buildings are very fortified, as Salma had alluded to.
The question is, how come Turkish intelligence didn't pick up these types of threats and risks?
Turkiye has seen other terrorist attacks in the past. Salma also said that this is obviously going to create a lot of fear.
Could you give us a sense of what this means for Erdogan politically and also what this means for the safety of people in Ankara and the threats
that clearly like this one not intercepted?
DALAY: Dealing with terrorism is not an easy task. And unfortunately, in the, in the countries where you have the best (INAUDIBLE) measures in
places like we're in London that has been also subject to many terrorist activities or Paris or many other countries.
So there is no direct solution where you can stop all the terrorists, activists completely. But nevertheless, there will be quite significant
discussion whether there was security breaches, security lapses and the responsible agents, the responsible actors for this.
Turkiye, it's not the first time that it's been targeted by the horrific terrorist attack unfortunately. There has been subject to such terrorist
attacks for a long time. So therefore, there will be all these questions and political that will be discussed.
So that will -- all this question I think will be settled soon. But most important that this stage, which is the terrorist acts but also the
identity of the terrorist group, because that will tell us quite significant about the motives behind it.
And that will also shape the public discussion and political discussion around it. Because if it is an ISIS attack, that is different things. If it
is a PKK attack, that will have different implications.
So in terms of the security implication we might talk about, you know, how are -- that Turkiye will be progress (ph), discussing how to prevent such
future attacks. But for in political implications, it's crucial that we know also the identity of the group that has carried out this terrorist
attack.
GIOKOS: Yes. And that's -- and that's a reality, Galip. We don't know who is behind this attack. And we're still trying to gather information. No one
has accepted responsibility. From our understanding, this aerospace company that was struck, many questions around why this was the target.
But importantly, Erdogan right now is in Russia for the BRICS summit. As Salma had said, the BRICS anticipating to hear from him shortly and surely
he's going to address this issue as well.
What is going to be important messaging right now in what has still been described what looks like an active scene?
Galip?
DALAY: Yes.
GIOKOS: Have I lost you?
Yes, yes.
So tell me, what are you expecting to hear from President Erdogan?
DALAY: I'm sorry. What I think first one that from the President Erdogan is whether by that time we'll have any clarity about who's behind these
terrorist activities. And second, they obviously, the many condemnation, many vowing to make sure that this terror organization are paying the price
that will come.
But I think we have to wait, first and foremost, to really have the full picture of the terrorist group that is involved.
[10:30:04]
Because as I said, that will be very crucial to define the government's responses if it is, again, like it is a far left terrorist organization, it
will be different than if it is the PKK.
Because if it is the PKK, that will have an implication about a recent move toward, once again, to take a political step on the Kurdish issue and to
take steps to convince the PKK to lay down its arms in Turkiye and to basic -- to basically put an end to the computer (ph) phase between Turkiye and
the PKK for all.
So this is crucial and I think the initial assessments that Erdogan will have will very much focus on, A, obviously, the casualties, probably the
number of the casualties. We still don't know how many people have lost their lives. And then the injuries. That will be the first on the top of
his mind and the necessary steps there.
But the secondly, it will come to the response to the terror attacks. And that will require what assessment the Turkish secret and intelligence
officers will have in terms of the terrorist groups and the motives behind it.
And also the international connection, the possible international connection that this terrorist attack might have because usually the
terrorism is not just a national phenomenon. It has the internet and linkages. So we will have quite a comprehensive discussion.
And also given the fact that the target is the aerospace industry, which is a very strategic and significant place and that Turkiye has a very growing
defense industry, Turkiye has quite a strong defense industry. So that will also raise whole another question about the protection of this site, about
the protection of these companies.
So we will have quite many discussions that will focus on different teams from how to prevent similar attacks in the future, the political
implication of it, the secret implication of it and the regional and international implication of it, depending on whether Turkiye says also a
friend hand (ph) behind fighter terrorist activities.
GIOKOS: Really important information you're sharing with us then, as you said, importantly and priority here is to ensure everyone's safety and, of
course, figure out who is behind this and what this ultimately means down the line.
Again, a developing story for us, this terrorist attack in Turkiye on an aerospace company. We will bring you more information as we get it in to
CNN.
Galip Dalay, thank you so much for joining us.
Well, moving on and less than two weeks to go until Election Day. As Donald Trump gears up to hit the campaign trail in battleground Georgia, Kamala
Harris prepares to take the stage and face tough questions from undecided voters. A look at what to expect from tonight's CNN town hall event, that
is coming up next.
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(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[10:35:00]
(MUSIC PLAYING)
GIOKOS: Welcome back to CONNECT THE WORLD. I'm Eleni Giokos.
I want to bring you up to speed now on our breaking news story out of Turkiye. The interior minister says people have been killed and injured in
what he calls a terror attack in the capital, Ankara.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GIOKOS (voice-over): This video showing explosions as well as gunfire. You can hear that. Details are still coming in but we're being told that the
attack targeted the company Turkish Aerospace Industries. We are going to monitor the story for you and bring you the latest on this attack as we
hear it. We will bring you up to speed again in a short while.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GIOKOS: In the meantime, we're in the final stretch with just 13 days to go until America picks its next president, Kamala Harris, and she's hoping
to get the last few undecided voters on her side. Tonight she'll answer some of their questions in a CNN town hall, moderated by Anderson Cooper.
And it's being held in the key battleground state of Pennsylvania. It was initially intended to be a debate but Donald Trump turned down the
invitation. And joining us now, CNN's U.S. national politics correspondent. Eva McKend. She's in Essen (ph), Pennsylvania, at the site of the CNN town
hall event.
Good to see you, Eva. A big question about how she's going to plan to connect with these undecided voters and whether she can move the needle on
verse. Give us a sense of what we're potentially going to hear tonight.
EVA MCKEND, CNN NATIONAL POLITICS CORRESPONDENT: Well, her closing argument is coming into focus here. She is leaning heavily into her
personal biography as a mechanism to connect on a human level with some of these undecided voters, these persuadable voters who have not made up their
minds as yet.
She is also talking about her policy vision for America. She describes it as an opportunity economy. And then she's also making a forceful case
against former president Donald Trump, arguing that he is unfit, unhinged, showing increasingly worrisome behavior over the last several weeks.
Though that isn't the entirety of the argument. She's talking about Trump but she's also making an affirmative case for why she wants to be president
and talking about how she would govern -- Eleni.
GIOKOS: Eva, thank you so much. Good to see you. Much appreciated for your time.
We are going to go to a very short break and we'll be back right after this. Stay with CNN.
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(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
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GIOKOS: Welcome back. I want to bring us more news on our breaking news story. We are now seeing video of what Turkiye's government calls a deadly
terror attack in Ankara.
[10:40:04]
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GIOKOS (voice-over): This happened at an aerospace company a short time ago, this video showing an explosion at the facility. Now in another video,
gunfire can be heard. The company apparently targeted is a key manufacturer of combat aircraft and has thousands of employees.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GIOKOS: All right. I want to bring in Ragip Soylu, joining us now from Ankara, the Turkiye bureau chief for "Middle East Eye."
Good to see you. We are starting to get a bit of more information coming through.
What are you learning right now?
RAGIP SOYLU, TURKIYE BUREAU CHIEF, "MIDDLE EAST EYE": I mean, it's clearly an ongoing situation. We are expecting shortly a statement from the Turkish
interior minister on what happened and what occurs.
But initial reports suggest there are a number of casualties. And we also expect, we also hear that there are some hostages also inside of the
headquarters of the Turkish Aerospace Industries.
It is the key defense company that produces armed drones, especially specifically used in Iraq and Syria against the armored extremist groups.
The attack itself is extremely shocking because we had no such incident in Ankara in recent years specifically targeting an arms company that belongs
to the Turkish state.
There are some numbers of casualties. I mean, they're not verified but I hear that at least five people are dead. There are two gunmen that had been
basically videotaped from the security footage. And apparently they hijacked a taxi and also killed the taxi driver as well.
And then exploding a bomb, they basically surprised security personnel outside of the gates and they entered the building. At least one of them is
alive and still clashing with the secret force.
GIOKOS: What you're describing now is basically still an active situation on the ground. And from the images we are seeing, ambulances, vehicles, car
vehicles, police on the ground as well to try and clearly ensure that the situation is under control.
But you're describing something very different right now that seems to be far bigger than just an explosion. We also heard the gunfire.
Could you just explain to us right now, from what we understand -- and you saying the interior minister is going to be releasing a press release to
give us an update.
But what are you hearing in terms of the efforts on the ground right now?
SOYLU: I mean, we have seen footage of helicopters landing in the site. They are special forces basically being involved in that effort. I'm
hearing that there has been a success in releasing some of the hostages. But we don't know for sure if all of them have been released.
The last I heard is that there has been some gunfight between one of the attackers and the Turkish security forces. But Turkish security forces are
extremely experienced in this kind of circumstances. And I'm sure they're doing their best.
Turkish interior minister is currently on his way to the attack site. And he's expected to make a statement on what really went down because these
information that I'm giving you, these are not official information but from the sources on the ground.
But this is a extremely tricky issue. I mean, in the past, for example, last year, there's been a PKK attack occurred, armed group disguised as a
terrorist organization by Turkiye, U.S. and E.U.
The attack was targeting the Turkish interior minister but it was quickly basically ended. But this attack has been ongoing for a while. And there
has been three explosions. One of the explosions is believed to be some sort of, you know, a way to basically break door by the Turkish security
forces to kill one of the gunmen.
GIOKOS: I want to talk about this aerospace company that was clearly the target, the significance of this aerospace company, what you know and also
what this ultimately means in terms of the -- we don't know who's behind this attack. No group has claimed responsibility as yet.
But it is of note and important to mention that an aerospace company of this nature, supplying also defense equipment, clearly, strategically
targeted.
SOYLU: This is one of the biggest, largest defense companies in the country. And it's producing armed drones and fighter jets. And the company
produces a drone called ANKA, which is heavily used by the Turkish security forces in Syria, in Iraq. And it has been really effective against the PKK
in recent years.
I mean, the headquarters itself is employing thousands of people. But in the same time, it is a major export company that has been selling these
weapons in the region as well.
But I think it was specifically targeted -- this is my estimate or guess, if you may say -- that because it has been, its products have been heavily
used in northern Iraq against the PKK targets.
[10:45:03]
And I don't know -- I don't know if the -- can make a basically a political description out of this as well, because, I mean, this is really connected
to Turkish domestic politics.
But if you think about what Turkish nationalist either there, Devlet Bahceli, who is a key player of the Turkish government, he basically
yesterday called for the imprisoned leader of PKK, Abdullah Ocalan, to basically make a statement and call for disarmament of this group, the PKK.
And immediately after this call, which is extremely important domestically, because this is the most Turkish nationalist element in the country,
basically making a call to the PKK to basically disband. And he is also basically opening a way for imprisoned PKK leader to be released from the
prison.
If you make such a call for the disbandment of the group and that this attack happens because, you know, it's extremely tricky process if you make
a call for a terrorist organization to disarm by basically encouraging this leader to be released in return for. And then this kind of attack happens.
The first thing that people think is that is some sort of a PKK attack, because, you know, there are people within PKK that -- they don't --
basically don't want to come in terms of the Turkish government. They don't want to be disarmed. And then this attack happened.
The pro-Kurdish party in the Turkish parliament basically called the attack as a provocation against the possible resolution of the Kurdish question in
the country as well.
GIOKOS: Big questions there and as we've said, we don't know who's behind this attack.
A lot of questions being asked around that as we're getting these images in. The most important thing and, as you mentioned, this aerospace company
had thousands of employees. We hope everyone is safe as we start to get more information about the casualties there.
Ragip, thank you so much for joining us.
Now to a damning new report by the U.N. that says that Israel's war in Gaza will set back developments in the besieged strip by almost 70 years. The
United Nations Development Programme says that key indicators, such as life expectancy, education, income and standard of living are projected to drop
to a level estimated for 1955.
The poverty rate is at a staggering 74.3 percent in all of the Palestinian Territories, according to the report.
And in the north of Gaza, the situation is increasingly desperate as Israeli bombardments of the area intensifies. CNN's Paula Hancocks
reporting on the worsening situation. We must warn you that some of the images that you're about to see in this report are distressing.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
PAULA HANCOCKS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Hundreds stand in the midst of what looks like a post-apocalyptic world.
Civilians being evacuated from Jabalya refugee camp in northern Gaza by the Israeli military after being trapped for days without food or water.
Perpetual expulsion of desperate civilians. The United Nations human rights office warned the population in northern Gaza may be destroyed through,
quote, "death and displacement."
U.N. teams on the ground claim forceful transfers of people. Israel says Hamas is regrouping and rebuilding in the area, which it is fighting to
prevent. The wasteland illustrates the intensity of the military force being used.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: (Speaking foreign language).
HANCOCKS (voice-over): "There was bombardment every minute, explosions, every second, gunfire, this woman says. "We never experienced such fear and
horror. It was one of the darkest nights we ever lived through."
Remarkable that the hell civilians have lived through for more than a year could still get worse. The reality increasingly resembles the so-called
generals' plan, a proposal to force civilians out of northern Gaza and block aid going in. Sources say the Israeli cabinet declined to adopt the
plan earlier this month.
But U.S. secretary of state Antony Blinken felt the need to ask Israel's prime minister about it this week.
Dr. Hussam Abu Safiya runs the Kamal Adwan Hospital in the north, which he says is now surrounded by the Israeli military and under constant shelling.
He says they ran out of blood and medication on Monday, calling the constant stream of injured a massacre.
"The medical staff are few," he says, "and the volume of injuries high. We have had to implement a difficult triage system. We have to let some die,
so some can live."
(INAUDIBLE) the children's ICU himself to show the impossibility of evacuating, despite IDF orders. This boy arrived with burns covering more
than 70 percent of his body, he says. Israel says 47 humanitarian aid trucks entered northern Gaza within a 24 hour period this week.
[10:50:00]
And Gaza's health ministry no medical supplies or food have entered the area for 18 days, claiming aid is being diverted to central Gaza.
U.N. aid workers cannot find food, water or medical care, according to the head of the U.N. Agency for Palestinian Refugees, adding, "the smell of
death is everywhere," as bodies are left lying on the roads or under the rubble.
Gaza's civil defense says almost 600 have been killed in the more than two- week Israeli campaign. No breakdown have militants versus civilians. But the innocent are among the hardest hit in this never-ending war.
This young boy, Adam (ph), was pulled alive but injured from the rubble last week. The man who saved him says his greatest pain was when he heard
his parents did not survive -- Paula Hancocks, CNN, Abu Dhabi.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
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(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
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GIOKOS: Welcome back.
Now British prime minister Keir Starmer is downplaying Donald Trump's election interference claim. This after Trump's team accused the U.K.
Labour Party of foreign interference of a plan by nearly 100 British Labour Party volunteers to come to the U.S. to campaign for Kamala Harris. CNN's
Max Foster has more.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
(MUSIC PLAYING)
MAX FOSTER, CNN LONDON CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): With the U.S. in the midst of election fever, controversy has spread across the pond to the U.K.
It started with a post on LinkedIn. The head of operations for the country's ruling Labour Party, in a post now deleted, calling for
volunteers to, quote, "head to the battleground state of North Carolina," adding that the party will, quote, "sort out housing."
That sparked the Trump campaign to file the complaint with the Federal Election Commission in Washington, accusing the party of, quote, "blatant
foreign interference." Leadership calling for an investigation into what it termed "apparently illegal contributions" made from the Labour Party to the
Harris campaign.
On Wednesday, the U.K. prime minister and leader of the Labour Party sought to play down the allegations, telling reporters that Labour volunteers have
campaigned in almost every U.S. election.
Members of his party told the U.K. press on Wednesday --
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's up to individuals if they want to use their holiday to go and campaign for a party, assist a party in another country.
People are free to do that. It's not against the law here. It's not against the law in the United States. But it certainly wasn't organized by the
Labour Party itself.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
FOSTER (voice-over): And at Prime Minister's Questions on Wednesday, the U.K.'s deputy prime minister defended the move.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ANGELA RAYNER, BRITISH DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER: People in their own time often go and campaign. And that's what we've seen. It happens in all
political parties, people go and campaign. And they do what they want to do in their own time with their own money.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
FOSTER (voice-over): This irony in the accusation, though; Donald Trump has himself received glowing endorsements from U.K. politicians on the
other side of the political spectrum, including former prime minister Liz Truss and, most notably, the leader of the U.K.'s right-wing reform party,
Nigel Farage.
And that leaves a big question.
Could this affect the so-called special relationship between the U.K. and the U.S. if Donald Trump is the next president?
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
QUENTIN PEEL, CHATHAM HOUSE: Donald Trump is a very unpredictable person who is very concerned about his personal image and his personal
relationship.
[10:55:00]
The trouble is, I think, that this British government, the Labour government now and Sir Keir Starmer, are really quite worried about what
their relationship will be like with a future Trump administration.
FOSTER (voice-over): Former presidents Barack Obama and rapper Eminem took to the stage on Tuesday night for Kamala Harris, a mic drop endorsement by
the rapper. But the beats not heavy enough to outshine Keir Starmer's transcontinental controversy -- Max Foster, CNN, London.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
GIOKOS: I want to bring you more on our breaking news. The deadly attack in Ankara, Turkiye, the interior minister says terrorists targeted a top
aviation firm in the capital. Let's take a listen to how it played out.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GIOKOS (voice-over): All right, you can hear the gunshots there. That was also an explosion that we're seeing. It is unknown who is behind the attack
or how many people were injured and killed. We will bring you more on this story, right after the break.
Rahel Solomon will pick up all the latest news lines on this terrorist attack in Ankara, Turkiye. And that's it for CONNECT THE WORLD. I'm Eleni
Giokos and we'll see you soon.
END
