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U.S.-Backed Aid Group Operations Continue in Gaza; New Lebanese Government Works to Regain Control of Country; Hezbollah Ties Disarmament to Israeli Withdrawal; Mexican Voters to Choose Judges in Historic Elections; Israel Kills Elusive Hamas Leader Mohammed Sinwar; U.S. Embassies Told to Pause Student Visa Appointments; U.S. Doctor Who Worked in Gaza Speaks at UNSC; U.S. Vice President to Speak at Bitcoin Conference; Musk Claims Trump Agenda Bill "Undermines" DOGE Mission; SpaceX Starship Destroyed in Latest Test Flight. Aired 10-11a ET

Aired May 28, 2025 - 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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UNIDENTIFIED MALE (voice-over): Live from CNN Abu Dhabi, this is CONNECT THE WORLD with Becky Anderson.

BECKY ANDERSON, CNN HOST (voice-over): Welcome to what is the second hour of CONNECT THE WORLD from our Middle East programming headquarters here in

Abu Dhabi. I'm Becky Anderson, time just after 6 pm.

Well, the U.S.-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation will carry on delivering aid despite a chaotic start. The site was overrun by crowds of hungry

people on the first day.

Also coming up, my wide-ranging interview with the prime minister of Lebanon. I ask if he believes peace and the normalization of relations with

Israel are possible.

And the White House ramps up its battle with U.S. universities in a move that is set to affect students from across the world.

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ANDERSON: Well, the Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, says a military operation in Gaza has killed Hamas leader Mohammed Sinwar. We will

bring you more details on that a little later in the show.

Meanwhile, a controversial aid group backed by the U.S. and Israel now says it has two sites up and running and distribution of aid will continue

today. The Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, or GHF, also denies there were any casualties during its first relief drop on Tuesday.

Earlier, Palestinian officials reported one person killed and 48 injured by gunfire as chaos broke out around desperately needed aid. The scheme

circumvents established relief organizations and international groups, including the U.N. has warned it would not work.

The head of the main U.N. agency serving Palestinians condemning the rollout as undignified and unsafe. But the U.S. ambassador to Israel says

the goal of delivering aid to those who need it is being achieved.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MIKE HUCKABEE, U.S. AMBASSADOR TO ISRAEL: I'm so glad it started officially yesterday. There were lines of people that got food. It was not

stolen by Hamas. The manner in which it was distributed is effective so far.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ANDERSON: Well, this comes as Israel marks 600 days since the Hamas attack on October the 7th, 2023; 58 of the Israeli hostages who were taken that

day are still being held in Gaza. Up to 20 of them are believed to be alive.

CNN's Jeremy Diamond brings us the view from a protest in Israel, where a crowd is demanding their government bring the hostages home.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JEREMY DIAMOND, CNN JERUSALEM CORRESPONDENT: I'm at one of dozens of marches and rallies taking place all across Israel to mark the 600 days of

captivity for the remaining 58 hostages; 600 days ago, Hamas militants stormed through this very area where we are in southern Israel near the

Gaza border.

Carrying out a massacre and also kidnapping more than 250 Israelis. And now we are seeing people continuing to demand that the Israeli government reach

a deal with Hamas for the release of the remaining hostages, including one man, Omri Miran. And I'm here with Omri's wife, Lishay Miran.

Lishay, your husband has been gone for 600 days now.

What is your message on this day?

LISHAY MIRAN, HAMAS HOSTAGE'S WIFE: That we need to seal the deal. We need action, not just word. You know, for 600 days, I hear just words. Omri is

not here. And there is 58 hostages over there that need to be home. They need to finish this war and we need to bring them back.

And I really, really hope that Omri and all other know that we're doing everything that we can against Hamas and to do everything that we can here

in Israel and around the world to bring them back. The simple answer, when, so we can imagine what it's meant for a young daughter that that really

miss their father.

DIAMOND: Hopefully their father comes home soon.

And Lishay is one of so many families who are raising their voices today, calling for a deal, calling for the hostages to come home on this 600th day

since Hamas' October 7th attack -- Jeremy Diamond, CNN, along the border with Gaza.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ANDERSON: Well, over the past several months, Israel has continued to carry out strikes inside Lebanon, despite the ceasefire with Hezbollah

signed last November.

[10:05:05]

Now that agreement came after nearly two months of an intense aerial campaign and ground operations, in which Israel wiped out most of

Hezbollah's senior leadership. On the heels of that, the country's parliament elected president Joseph Aoun and prime minister Nawaf Salam,

finally breaking years of political paralysis.

Salam seen as a reformer. and it was widely seen as a rebuke to Hezbollah. Well, now the country's new leadership is trying to wrest back control of

its country. It is, though, facing pressure on multiple fronts.

First of all, the Israeli military has not fully withdrawn from southern Lebanon. They've kept five military outposts south of the Litani River,

Hezbollah's stronghold. And the Israelis say that is because the Lebanese government does not have full control of the area.

But Hezbollah has tied its disarmament, a critical part of that ceasefire agreement, to Israel's complete withdrawal. Well, earlier today, I sat down

with Nawaf Salam, the new Lebanese prime minister. I asked him what his priorities were and what progress he has made in regaining sovereignty over

all of Lebanon's territory. Have a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

NAWAF SALAM, LEBANESE PRIME MINISTER: It's a pleasure being with you. Lebanon obviously has lost a number of opportunities. Once, long ago, by

not fully implementing the famous Taif agreement that put an end to this civil war, then we have another opportunity with the withdrawal of the

Israeli army in 2000.

Later, the withdrawal of the Syrian troops. We lost these opportunities. Now definitely there is an opportunity before us and we are determined not

to lose this opportunity. This is why my government's agenda is driven by two guiding principles.

One is restoring Lebanon's sovereignty over all its territory and all its ports of entry. And the second is, I mean, we are committed to the needed

structure reforms, whether in the financial sector, in the administration. And this is a, I would say, a workshop for not state building but

rebuilding.

ANDERSON: Let's talk about restoring sovereignty then, just very specifically.

What progress has your government made, for example, in taking control of Hezbollah weapons depots north and south of the Litani River?

I'm trying to get to what's been achieved to date.

SALAM: The goal one more time is that the state should have exclusive monopoly over arms, over all its territory. Now what has been achieved in

the north of the Litani River, I think is a lot. Over 500 military that were dismantled.

The army now is expanding its control and consolidating its control south of the Litani. North of the Litani, progress has been made on the border

with Syria. We have a much greater control of the border.

Also, during Abbas, president Abbas' visit to Beirut a week ago, we agreed on a plan to handing over Palestinian arms, which has been long overdue.

And hopefully it's going to be implemented soon, starting with camps around Beirut.

ANDERSON: Disarming Palestinian factions in Beirut refugee camps, that's a major policy shift for a government after decades of a policy of

nonintervention effectively.

Is Lebanon ready and able to force that disarmament in those camps?

And when does that start?

SALAM: Well, I mean, there had been an agreement between us and president Abbas on the this disarmament. Actually president Abbas, some 10 years ago,

had clearly stated that he was ready to hand over Palestinian arms and to allow the Lebanese government to have full sovereignty and authority over

the camps.

Now we are we entered into the stage of implementation. Hezbollah have insisted that Israel's military presence in Lebanon is a red line as far as

they are concerned.

[10:10:05]

ANDERSON: If Hezbollah disarmament is tied to Israel ending its military presence in Lebanon, how do you convince Israel to do that, to withdraw at

this point?

And what are the what are the Americans saying about this?

SALAM: The Israeli presence in Lebanon, it is a design for everyone. It's not a redline for Hezbollah alone. We had reached an agreement with the

Israelis in November to -- which, I mean, the full withdrawal of Israeli troops from Lebanon.

On the other hand, Lebanon committed to fully implemented resolution, Security Council resolution 1701. We have been honoring our commitment.

Unfortunately, Israel has not honored its commitment in fully withdrawing in two months.

We are always not only asking the U.S., we are asking the U.S. and all our Arab friends and international friends to put pressure on Israel to help to

deliver on these promises.

ANDERSON: I asked you this because Hezbollah has accused you of being a mouthpiece for the Americans. You come at the Americans to put pressure on

the Israelis. And yet the Americans are saying loosen the grip, get rid of the grip that is Hezbollah on Lebanon.

And I think pretty forceful about that. I mean, that's a threat from the Americans.

Do you feel well supported enough by this administration in Washington?

Are you getting enough support?

SALAM: Tell you the truth, I mean, we would like to see more from the American administration, especially in putting pressure on Israel to abide

by its, I mean, what it agreed to in the November understanding known as the understanding to end hostilities, which were brokered by the Americans.

And now there is a so-called mechanism of supervision. I mean, including both the French and the Americans and I mean, both are on the ground and

I'm sure they can testify to the fact that Lebanon has been honoring its commitments, while Israel has not honored its commitment.

ANDERSON: Your government has sent signals that it is not opposed to eventually recognizing Israel.

Under what conditions do you see that happening, normalization with Israel?

SALAM: OK. Well, Lebanon is committed to the Arab peace plan. And actually, I mean, the Arab peace plan was adopted in a summit that was held

in Beirut. And it's often called at the Arab Beirut Peace Initiative.

We are committed to the Arab peace initiative. So we are committed, I mean, to peace but peace based on the two state --

(CROSSTALK)

ANDERSON: It's based on a two-state solution, which isn't going to happen at the moment.

SALAM: Sorry?

ANDERSON: It's not going to happen at the moment, not under Benjamin Netanyahu.

SALAM: OK.

Would you normalize -- I guess the question is, would you --

(CROSSTALK)

SALAM: Well, I know that Benjamin Netanyahu is opposed to this two-state solution coming (ph) hope to change the truth (ph) and neither the Arab

position nor the international position. Since your question was about normalization, normalization is the outcome of a peace.

And peace cannot be based but on this famous equation of land for peace, it cannot be peace for peace.

ANDERSON: So I guess my question is you wouldn't be normalizing relations without at least a credible pathway to, if not a Palestinian state and a

two-state solution, correct?

SALAM: I don't like the idea of pathways. I mean, I would like to see a two-state solution, Israeli withdrawing occupied territories in exchange

for peace. And peace, I mean, will lead to normalization or normalization is part and parcel of the peace we would like to see tomorrow and not the

day after.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

[10:15:00]

ANDERSON: And that was a wide-ranging interview with the Lebanese prime minister. You've seen the first part of it and you can see the rest of that

interview on tomorrow's show when we talk about reforms, rebuilding Lebanon and bridging the country's deep sectarian divisions. That on CONNECT THE

WORLD at this time tomorrow.

You're watching CONNECT THE WORLD with me, Becky, Anderson, live from our Middle East broadcasting headquarters here in Abu Dhabi. Still ahead, the

leaders of Germany and Ukraine meet for the third time this month. What the German chancellor is saying about long-range weapons in Ukraine's fight

against Russia.

Plus, an unprecedented vote to reshape Mexico's judiciary is making electors nervous.

Will the results open the door to populism?

That is the question. More on that is after this.

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Well, this just in to CNN. Israel says someone sent suspicious envelopes to its embassies in France and Belgium. A spokesperson for the Israeli foreign

ministry says everything is OK and the envelopes are now being examined by local authorities in both cities. We're going to bring you more details on

that story as and when we get them.

Well, Mexico just days away from holding its first judicial elections after a major overhaul of the justice system. Voters will elect nearly 900

federal judges and another 800 will be elected two years from now.

But the speed and scope of these reforms have raised concerns about the qualifications of candidates and the potential for outside influence. More

from CNN's Valeria Leon.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

VALERIA LEON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It's a first for Mexico and for the world.

Voters will make history Sunday by directly electing judges, magistrates, even Supreme Court justices in an unprecedented vote to reshape the

country's judiciary.

More than 3,000 candidates are vying for 881 positions, all without party backing or campaign funding.

"I'm funding everything with my salary. That alone is complicated, because from the same salary, I have to pay for my everyday costs, my rent, my

living expenses and I help support my mother, who's a widow."

Adding pressure, strict rules from Mexico's electoral authority, the INE, no radio or TV ads, no painted murals and even family members can't hand

out fliers. For first time candidate Arcelia Santillan, it's been a crash course in campaigning.

"It's really about learning from political campaigns, how to talk to people, how to approach them, how to explain what it is that I do.

But the new plan is also drawing criticism. Legal experts and human rights groups warn that putting judges on the campaign trail could politicize the

bench.

[10:20:00]

Favoring name recognition over experience and opening the door to populism, influence or pressure from interest groups.

"I'm satisfied with what I've done. And so I'll find out after the vote whether I managed to reach all the people I hoped to."

Low budget, high stakes and a bold experiment in democracy -- Valeria Leon, CNN, Mexico City.

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ANDERSON (voice-over): Let's get you up to speed on some of the other stories that are on our radar right now here on CONNECT THE WORLD.

And authorities in Shandong in China say they are reviewing industrial safety measures after Tuesday's explosion at a chemical plant. At least

five are dead and more than a dozen injured in the blast, which shook buildings miles away, according to local people.

Authorities say 55 fire and rescue vehicles responded to the accident. The cause of the explosion is not yet known.

Well, the Czech Republic is accusing China of conducting a malicious cyber campaign, targeting communications inside the Czech foreign ministry. It

summoned the Chinese ambassador to condemn the attacks, which it says have been happening since 2022. Chinas embassy in Prague not commenting.

Testimony is underway in Sean Diddy Combs' racketeering and sex trafficking trial. On the stand right now, Los Angeles arson investigator, who helped

look into a car bombing that destroyed rapper Kid Cudi's Porsche on Tuesday.

Another witness testified that Combs threatened to kill the fellow musician after learning that he was dating his ex-girlfriend, Cassie Ventura.

Well, Germany and Ukraine have moved a step closer to Ukraine adding long- range weapons for use against Russia. At a meeting of the countries' two leaders today in Berlin, Chancellor Friedrich Merz says they have agreed to

common production of long-range weapons inside Ukraine.

This is the third time this month Chancellor Merz and the Ukrainian president have met. Mr. Zelenskyy, greeted with military honors today in a

strong show of support from his German counterpart. Fred Pleitgen is back with us this hour.

And this is really big news. There has though been some nuance behind the chancellor's comments about long-range weapons production.

Fred, just explain what we understand to be the situation here.

FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, it certainly appears as though the Germans are significantly stepping up. It

was quite interesting because the German defense ministry has since come out and said that all of this is part of a 5 billion euro arms package,

which is quite large, from the Germans for Ukraine.

That also includes some munitions but does also include building up those capacities for common production of what the German chancellor today called

longer range weapons.

Now many here had thought that today Friedrich Merz might announce that the Germans are giving what's called the Taurus cruise missile, which is air

launched to the Ukrainians. But he did not do that and instead said that in the future, Germany and Ukraine will look to produce longer range weapons

together.

Let's listen in to what he had to say.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

FRIEDRICH MERZ, GERMAN CHANCELLOR (through translator): We are financing a considerable part of the country's Starlink cover. And our defense

ministers will today sign a memorandum of understanding on the procurement of long-range weapon systems from Ukrainian production, so-called long-

range fires.

There will be no range restrictions. Ukraine will thus be able to defend itself fully, even against military targets outside its own territory.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PLEITGEN: So a lot in there from the German chancellor, "long-range fires," he calls them and saying that there are no range restrictions to

all of this.

I've since gotten a little bit of more nuance about all this. The German defense ministry in that statement also saying that the first of these

weapons apparently are going to be with the Ukrainian military in a matter of weeks. The Germans also saying no additional training is necessary for

the forces that are set to use these weapons.

And also saying that a significant amount of these munitions are going to be in Ukrainian hands and, of course, ready to use before the end of the

year.

So it certainly seems as though this project to scale up that production together is something that the German side and the Ukrainian side believe

is going to move forward very quickly and possibly drastically enhance Ukraine's capabilities of longer range strikes.

Of course, also, as the Germans and the Ukrainians are saying, deep inside Russian territory, Becky.

ANDERSON: Yes, this is quite the development. It's good to have you. Thank you very much.

Well, still to come. President Trump pulled another weapon from his arsenal to try and deter foreign students, this time from coming to college in the

United States. We'll have details on that after this.

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ANDERSON (voice-over): Welcome back. You're watching CONNECT THE WORLD with me, Becky Anderson. Your headlines this hour.

Pope Leo has made an appeal from the Vatican for a ceasefire in Gaza. It came in the pontiff's weekly general audience in St. Peter's Square. He

called on both Israel and Hamas to stop the war and respect humanitarian law, noting the suffering of Palestinians and the hostages still held in

Gaza.

Well, Germany's chancellor says his country and Ukraine have reached an agreement for, quote, "common production" of long-range weapons inside

Ukraine. Friedrich Merz met Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Berlin today.

Mr. Zelenskyy says his defense minister spoke to a Russian negotiator about a proposed memorandum of peace that Russia has so far failed to provide.

Well, four women and three girls have reportedly died in a migrant boat accident in the Canary Islands. The boat apparently capsized during a

Spanish rescue operation just offshore. Local media estimated more than 100 people were packed onto what was the small vessel.

ANDERSON: Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu has confirmed that a recent airstrike killed the de facto leader of Hamas. Mohammed Sinwar was

the brother of the former Hamas leader, Yahya Sinwar, who was killed by the Israeli military last October. Let's go to Jeremy Diamond, who joins us

with more from Tel Aviv. Jeremy.

DIAMOND: Yes, Becky, the Israeli prime minister, for the first time today, saying that Israel has indeed killed Mohammed Sinwar, Hamas' de facto

leader in the Gaza Strip.

Until about two weeks ago, when the Israeli military targeted him in an airstrike that hit the yard of Nasr Hospital in the southern part of the

Gaza Strip.

Now we have no official comment from Hamas yet, which, on the day of the strike, when reports surfaced that he had indeed been the target, they had

said that they would be the only ones to be able to confirm his death or not.

The Israeli prime minister made these comments as part of a speech in which he was talking about having changed the face of the Middle East. He listed

the fact that Israel has, quote, "eliminated tens of thousands of terrorists," talking about Mohammed Deif, Hamas' former military commander.

Ismail Haniyeh, Hamas' former political leader; Yahya Sinwar, Hamas' former leader in Gaza, who ultimately became the successor to Ismail Haniyeh. And

he said Mohammed Sinwar, who effectively succeeded his brother as Hamas' de facto leader in the Gaza Strip, although there were also other Hamas

leaders.

[10:30:00]

Including Khalil al-Hayya, who is leading Hamas'' negotiations in Doha, who were viewed as the leaders of the kind of political side of Hamas.

Now this is obviously a very significant development. Not only that he was targeted but now with the Israelis saying that he was indeed killed in that

strike on May 13th on Nasr hospital.

And, of course, questions about what the impact will be, of course, on the war itself and on those delicate ceasefire and hostage release negotiations

as we move forward.

ANDERSON: It's good to have you, sir. Thank you.

Jeremy Diamond on the story out of Tel Aviv.

Well, the State Department has this morning ordered U.S. embassies and consulates around the globe to pause new student visa appointments. Now it

blamed the halt on the extra time needed for staff to examine foreign applicants' activity on social media. It's a move that will soon impact

colleges well beyond Harvard.

Students at the Ivy League school rallied Tuesday in support of their international colleagues and against Trump's attacks on Harvard's funding

and its ability to take applicants from overseas. International students currently enrolled there say they are looking at an uncertain future.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ABDULLAH SHAHID SIAL, PAKISTANI HARVARD UNIVERSITY STUDENT: I haven't had the time yet to think about my backup plans but, as of now, I don't think

anyone is sure if they can return for their fall semester back into Harvard and more broadly back into the U.S.

In that case, I would have to look for other options. I haven't looked at the list yet for the next available ones, because the most transfer windows

for most colleges have already been closed.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ANDERSON: Well, for more on all of this, my guest, my next guest is David Hawkins. He's the founder of The University Guys, a firm that helps

students navigate what is, anyway, a challenging and complex admissions process. We're talking top universities in the U.S., Europe and Canada.

David, I'm sure all of this is making your job a lot more difficult.

Can you just be very clear, very specifically for those students out there who may want to apply for U.S. universities and those students who may

already be at U.S. universities, what you believe today to be the process?

DAVID HAWKINS, FOUNDER, THE UNIVERSITY GUYS: Absolutely. Thank you. Becky.

Yes, I think the real challenge and the clip you just played there emphasizes it is the lack of certainty, that applying to university and

going to university isn't like visiting somewhere for a holiday.

This is something that requires an extended period of time in either in terms of doing the applications or your time at university. And so when the

sands shift underneath students, it becomes really, really concerning for them. And timelines and deadlines have passed.

So as of now, the situation we're facing is one where there have been the legal actions taken by Harvard to try and stay the actions against them

being able to sponsor students. We are seeing this temporary pause on students being able to book visa appointments and that's kind of in a

holding pattern right now until we get more clarity.

ANDERSON: So how do you believe this crackdown is likely to affect students' interest in studying in the United States?

HAWKINS: So I think we're going to find that there will be a range of different reactions for students. There will be some students, either

because they have connections to the United States or they've always wanted to go to the United States.

Who will make this work?

They will stay the course, they will play the long game and those things will happen. Even if certain universities, it becomes more challenging to

access where. However, I think this is going to be a concern and perhaps threaten some of the financial stability of many U.S. universities.

Is those floating voters, those consumers of education who might be looking at the U.S. but also at other destinations like Canada, like Europe, like

the U.K., where that lack of certainty is, at the very least, meaning they're going to have to apply to more than one destination.

And so as soon as you're saying, well, I'm doing the U.S. and the U.K. or/and Canada, you create other opportunities for other countries to

attract those students.

ANDERSON: And I -- and that brings you to my next point.

Are you seeing a push by Asian, other universities, European universities, to appeal to students who may be unable or unwilling to pursue their

studies in the United States?

Are you already seeing that?

HAWKINS: Yes. So for students who are hoping to go in this autumn, this fall, there have already been some promotions from certain universities.

[10:35:02]

I've seen something from Hong Kong; seeing a post today from a group of universities in Prague, showing to those like us working with students,

that there are options for students who may be now reconsidering.

I think, however, it's the upcoming students, the classes of 2026 and 2027, where we're going to see -- and we are seeing at The University Guys the

biggest impact, where students just feel I can't rely on this process.

And they have to make decisions to apply by certain deadlines and options across Europe, Asia and other parts of the world have been becoming more

popular over the last few years. That is definitely going to be the case now.

ANDERSON: And finally, this idea of a deep dive on students' social media, I don't know whether you have any more detail on that than we do at this

point.

It's certainly something we are hearing in these cables that are going out to foreign embassies, U.S. embassies, who would be doing these visa

interviews and applications.

What's your advice going to be to students about their social media going forward?

HAWKINS: Yes, it is a headline that creates a lot of concern. I would encourage families and students to delve a little beneath that. This has

been something that immigration authorities, not just in the USA, have been able to do.

The current political climate and the headlines that generates do create some concern about it. But there are a couple of things that we've

consistently advised students with this.

Firstly, in general terms, don't put anything on your social media that you wouldn't want your grandparents to see just in general terms. That's good

advice.

And secondly, if you are an international student, you are almost a guest in somebody else's house. You have to play by their rules. If people want

their shoes taken off when you come in, you take your shoes off.

If a country is hosting you, then you have to be aware that you are in many ways a guest. And whether you agree with it or not, the political climate

of that country is something that's going to influence how you will be treated when you are trying to study there.

ANDERSON: David, it's good to have you. Really good to have you. I know that those who are watching who may be considering applications will be

listening intently to what you say. And your advice, I'm sure, will be really useful for them. Thank you.

Well, more news, folks, after this short break.

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ANDERSON: An American doctor who had volunteered in Gaza and a past guest of this show, Dr. Feroze Sidhwa, is addressing the United Nations Security

Council this hour. He described what he witnessed across separate trips. And I'm going to warn you, this is a disturbing account that he gave to

ambassadors just moments ago.

[10:40:00]

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DR. FEROZE SIDHWA, VOLUNTEER DOCTOR, GAZA: Children died, not because their injuries were unsurvivable but because we lacked blood, antibiotics

and the most basic supplies that are readily available in any large hospital anywhere else in the world.

I did not see or treat a single combatant during my five weeks in Gaza. My patients were 6 -year olds with shrapnel in their heart and bullets in

their brains and pregnant women whose pelvises had been obliterated and their fetuses cut into while still in the womb.

Mothers sheltering in the hospital cooked bread on hot plates in the emergency department during mass casualty events as we dealt with the rain

of fire and death falling around us everywhere.

Mr. President, the foundations of life in Gaza, family, health and community, have been shattered. The medical system has not failed. It has

been systematically dismantled through a sustained military campaign that has willfully violated international humanitarian law.

Civilians are now dying, not just from the constant airstrikes but from acute malnutrition, sepsis, exposure and despair.

Between my two visits to Gaza, I witnessed a sharp decline in patients' health, driven not just by injury but by worsening hunger and malnutrition

that left their bodies weaker, their wounds slower to heal and their survival far less certain.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ANDERSON: Sidhwa called on those there at the United Nations Security Council, particularly his own government, to act now to implement a

permanent ceasefire.

Well, global temperatures are expected to reach record or near-record levels for the next five years, according to the latest annual report from

the World Meteorological Association or organization.

They say there is an 80 percent chance, eight-zero percent chance of at least one year between now and 2029 that will be the hottest year on record

and a 70 percent chance that the average temperature over the next five years will exceed 1.5 Celsius above pre-industrial levels.

The Paris climate agreement has not yet been breached but this takes the world one step closer to that line. Extreme temperatures are being felt

more and more frequently across the globe right now; 14.5 million people are under heat alerts across parts of the Western United States.

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ANDERSON: Well, in the coming hours, U.S. vice president JD Vance is due to speak at the bitcoin 2025 conference in Vegas. His appearance comes amid

what is a rollback of regulations in the cryptocurrency industry since president Trump started his second term in office.

[10:45:04]

And on Tuesday, the Trump media and technology group announced plans to raise $2.5 billion to buy bitcoin. That would be one of the largest bitcoin

purchases the largest bitcoin purchases made by any public company. CNN's Matt Egan following the story from New York for you.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MATT EGAN, CNN BUSINESS SENIOR WRITER: Trump media is diving headfirst into bitcoin. The owner of Truth Social announcing plans to launch a $2.5

billion war chest that would buy bitcoin.

To do this, they're raising money by selling shares and convertible debt to dozens of institutional investors. The plan is to create what Trump media

is describing as one of the biggest bitcoin treasury deals of any public company.

Devin Nunes, the former Republican congressman and current CEO of Trump media, he said in a statement, "We view bitcoin as an apex instrument of

financial freedom. And now Trump media will hold cryptocurrency as a crucial part of our assets."

And the company says that this investment will help it defend against what they're describing as harassment and discrimination by financial

institutions and also to create synergies elsewhere.

Now all of this is part of Trump media's broader plan to evolve from kind of a one-trick pony and social media to a broader holding company with an

America First focus. It's also part of a broader trend of companies adding bitcoin to their balance sheets.

In fact, this comes on the same day that PSQ Holdings, which owns a woke- free online marketplace and has Donald Trump Jr. on its board of directors, also announcing plans to explore a digital asset treasury strategy of its

own.

Now this news did not sit well with Trump media shareholders, with the stock falling significantly as existing shareholders are likely to have

their holdings watered down by the share sale. It's also not likely to sit well with ethics watchdogs.

Remember the president, back in December, announced plans to transfer his stake in Trump media to a trust of which he is the sole beneficiary?

And the trust's sole trustee is Donald Trump Jr. And, of course, Trump was backed in the election by the crypto industry. He promised to take a

lighter touch when it comes to regulation and he's largely kept that promise.

The president recently announced the establishment of a strategic bitcoin reserve and he's promised to make America the crypto capital of the world.

And now the company whose stock ticker symbol is the president's initials, is going all in on, you guessed it, cryptocurrency. Back to you.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ANDERSON: Matt Egan reporting for you.

You're watching CONNECT THE WORLD with me, Becky, Anderson. Time here in Abu Dhabi is just before 10 to 7. Still ahead on the show, another SpaceX

starship disintegrates on its latest test flight.

What went wrong with Tuesday's mission and what went right?

More on that after this.

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ANDERSON: Billionaire tech mogul and Trump adviser -- or former adviser, perhaps -- Elon Musk raising concerns about the U.S. president's sweeping

tax cut and spending package, dubbed the big, beautiful bill. Now that bill includes trillions of dollars in tax cuts.

[10:50:00]

And big boosts to the U.S. military and national security spending.

Well, Musk criticizing the bill over how it would significantly raise the national debt.

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ELON MUSK, FORMER PRESIDENTIAL ADVISER: I was disappointed to see the massive spending bill, frankly, which increases the budget deficit, not

just decrease it, and undermines the work that the DOGE team is doing. I think -- I think a bill can be, can be, can be big or it can be beautiful

but I don't know if it can be both. My personal opinion.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ANDERSON: Well, SpaceX's most powerful rocket launched on its ninth uncrewed test flight on Tuesday but the mission didn't go as planned. There

were plus points. For the first time, SpaceX was able to reuse the super heavy rocket booster that had previously flown and been recaptured.

And the Starship spacecraft flew higher and farther than in the two previous tests but it did fail to deploy its dummy satellites or reignite

the engines for reentry. SpaceX lost control of the craft and says it likely broke apart over the Indian Ocean.

Well, obviously, this is a Elon Musk project, a very big one. SpaceX does an awful lot of work in space and is expected to do more going forward. I'm

joined by astrophysicist and associate research scientist at Johns Hopkins University, Paul Sutter.

Do you see, Paul, this latest test launch as a series of failures or rather a successful learning experience?

PAUL SUTTER, ASTROPHYSICIST AND ASSOCIATE RESEARCH SCIENTIST, JOHNS HOPKINS UNIVERSITY: Unfortunately, when it comes to this launch, in particular, I

can't see it as anything other than a failure on almost all marks.

By now, with SpaceX having operated in this industry for a couple decades, we're used to their iterative style, where they move fast and break things,

where they launch a test flight, it blows up, they learn from the mistakes and then the next flight, they advance a little bit more and a little bit

more.

And we were seeing this with the initial development of this Starship rocket, where every launch got a little bit better, a little bit more

capable. But now we're three launches in a row where they haven't made much progress.

So there are some issues that they are not able to iterate around and I don't know where they're going to go forward from here.

ANDERSON: And that's the next question, isn't it?

Where are they going to go from here?

I mean, this spacecraft, Elon Musk hopes, will not only get us to Mars one day, he hopes it will also help us set up a base on the moon, even make it

possible to make a lot of international trips in about 30 minutes.

Do you see that happening?

What are the barriers to his ambitions at this point?

SUTTER: Yes, as stated, the goals of the Starship program are very noble and can create many, many opportunities in space. The ultimate goal is to

be able to send 100 tons of cargo into Earth orbit with a fully reusable vehicle. This is something that we've never had before.

And if we can achieve it, then yes, we can start talking about Mars exploration. We can start talking about lunar exploration in a heavier way,

because we can simply get more stuff to those destinations, everything we need to have long-term involvement on the surfaces of those worlds.

But that's a big "if." What they are trying to do, because it's never been done before, it's very audacious. But there are many, many significant

challenges. And the biggest challenge is getting enough stuff up into orbit.

And then you have a rocket going over 10,000 miles an hour. Having it come back through the atmosphere in a fully reusable way is a major, major

challenge.

ANDERSON: I mean, this is a hugely ambitious project, Starship. SpaceX as a whole has had massive success to date.

I just want to, very briefly, what advantages does SpaceX have compared to other companies and government space agencies at this point?

I just want to get a sense of how much further ahead they are than any other project, .

SUTTER: They have enormous advantages, especially in the private sector. They pioneered the use of reusable rocketry. So they're smaller rockets.

The Falcon Heavy and the Falcon 9 are reusable.

And this allows them to launch things into orbit for up to a 10th the cost of their competitors. So they are swimming in money from private contracts,

from government contracts, from investment.

[10:55:00]

And they have a lot of experienced technicians and engineers, who have been working on these kinds of problems for years, if not decades. So they have

a clear advantage.

The only other rocket that even comes close to Starship is the space launch system as a part of the Artemis project by NASA. And that has been bogged

by years of delays and cost overruns. But it did launch on the first try and did not blow up. So they have that going for them.

ANDERSON: Yes. Well, that's certainly something. It's good to have you, Paul. Your experience and your insight is so valuable. We appreciate it.

Thank you.

And, folks, that's it for CONNECT THE WORLD this evening. From the team working with me here and those working with us around the world, it is a

very good evening. Stay with CNN, though. "ONE WORLD" is up.

END