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Ten Palestinians Starve to Death Overnight; 100+ Aid Organizations Call on Israel to Open Flow of Aid; Trump Accuses Former President Barack Obama of Treason; FDA's AI Project Makes Up Nonexistent Studies; CNN Investigates U.S. Claim "No One Has Died" from Aid Cuts; Bryan Kohberger to Be Sentenced for Idaho Student Murders; Remembering Ozzy Osbourne; Voice Actor's Ad Goes Viral on TikTok. Aired 10-11a ET
Aired July 23, 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): And welcome to the second hour of the show from our Middle East headquarters. I'm Becky Anderson in Abu
Dhabi, where the time is just after 6:00 in the evening.
The Gaza health ministry says 10 people have died from starvation in the enclave in the past 24 hours. I'm going to get you live to Gaza on what is
the dire situation there.
The U.S. president trying to take the pressure off himself and the Epstein files by baselessly accusing former President Obama of treason and
sedition.
Following cuts from U.S. aid, CNN goes inside Afghanistan to take a look at how this has impacted the country. Our own Isobel Yeung speaks to doctors
and families about what is going on in the hospitals there.
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ANDERSON: Want to begin this hour with a report that will be incredibly hard to watch. The people of Gaza are reportedly starving to death. Ten
Palestinians have died from starvation in the last 24 hours alone, according to reports. When we went to air yesterday, it was 15 people in
the same timeframe, according to local health officials.
As malnutrition takes one life after another inside Gaza, thousands of pounds of aid sits mere miles away on the border. The extent of the
suffering is unfathomable but we think it is important to show exactly what is happening there. Again, the images that we are about to show you are
difficult to look at.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON (voice-over): This is 6-month old Drury Abu Hajar. She is alive but suffering from severe chronic illness and malnutrition. Her mother sits
behind her, filling a baby bottle with water because there is no formula. Unless something changes quickly, her chances of survival are frankly slim.
And that is the fate for so many children right now in Gaza. Like this boy, 14-year old Abdul al-Kalbani. The boy is dead. He starved to death
yesterday. A medic is cleaning his fragile, emaciated body in the morgue at Nasser Hospital in Khan Yunis after Abdul could no longer hold on.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON: Well, more than 100 aid organizations are calling for Israel to open the free flow of humanitarian assistance into the enclave. Last hour,
I spoke to CNN's Jerusalem correspondent, Jeremy Diamond, about whether an increase in aid is allowed in anytime soon, whether that is likely.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JEREMY DIAMOND, CNN JERUSALEM CORRESPONDENT: Well, we have certainly heard more comments in recent days from the Israeli military, from COGAT, which
is the military agency that coordinates humanitarian aid into Gaza, talking about efforts to work with the United Nations to better facilitate the
entry of aid.
The reality is we tend to see these, you know, agencies within the Israeli government, within the Israeli military, speed up only at the very end, at
the most acute point of crisis.
But it is the policies of the Israeli government over months now that have led to the situation that we are in now. And that is not me saying that;
that is, you know, the two dozen plus Western nations that we heard put the humanitarian crisis in Gaza squarely at the feet of the Israeli government
just earlier this week.
It is the 100-plus humanitarian organizations who have said that. It is not that the U.N. mechanisms for getting aid into Gaza have failed but that
they have been actively prevented from succeeding in the Gaza Strip.
And indeed, there is aid not only waiting outside of the Gaza Strip right now, to go into Gaza, but also there is aid inside Gaza. And this is
something that the Israeli military pointed out. They said that 958 trucks are waiting inside of Gaza for pickup and distribution by U.N. agencies.
This is not something that these humanitarian organizations deny but they make clear that it's not because they don't want to pick up that aid, that
they don't want to distribute that aid inside of Gaza.
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It is because the Israeli military has time and again failed to give them safe, deconflicted routes to be able to go and pick up that aid, to be able
to distribute it inside the Gaza Strip where necessary.
And because of the ways in which Israeli -- active Israeli military operations have been prioritized over the flow of humanitarian aid inside
of Gaza.
And, indeed, in addition to the fact that we are seeing these, you know, the lack of aid inside of Gaza, we are also seeing people who are trying to
access that aid be killed on a near daily basis now by the Israeli military, according to Palestinian health officials, according to
eyewitnesses and according to U.N. organizations.
It was the World Food Programme just the other day that attested to the fact that Israeli tanks and snipers had opened fire on a crowd on Sunday,
that mobbed a convoy of 25 humanitarian trucks from the WFP.
And we have seen similar scenes happen just in the last 24 hours, as 34 people have been killed while trying to access aid, according to that
Palestinian ministry of health.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ANDERSON: Well, my next guest is Caroline Willemen, the project coordinator in Gaza for Doctors without Borders. Her organization, one of
the signatories of the letter calling for Israel to end the blockade and allow aid into the enclave. She is in Gaza City right now.
And Caroline, thank you.
Can you just walk us through what you are seeing on the ground right now?
CAROLINE WILLEMEN, PROJECT COORDINATOR IN GAZA, DOCTORS WITHOUT BORDERS: Honestly, it's unfathomable and unconscionable what we are seeing here.
Right now, I work in a primary health care clinic, where we have a malnutrition program.
We are enrolling 25 new children under the age of 5 or pregnant and lactating women into our malnutrition program every day. Every single day,
I'm having to tell desperate parents, your child is not malnourished yet, so it can't -- it cannot enroll in the program.
We know very well that this child will be malnourished within a matter of time, because there is simply not enough food for people to feed
themselves, to feed their children. I have been doing this work for nine years.
Never in my life have I seen, have I been in a place, where my own colleagues come to work hungry. My colleagues, who have a job, who have a
salary, cannot find food, are not able to feed their families. And these are the very health care workers supposed to take care.
ANDERSON: Caroline, can I just ask you, at what point do you assess a child to have malnutrition?
WILLEMEN: So the way that my medical colleagues assess this is through the middle upper arm circumference.
So we measure the circumference of the -- of the arm. That's the medical way of establishing whether a child has either moderate or severe acute
malnutrition. We see both cases, despite being a primary health care center. We see both moderate and severe cases.
It's extremely difficult to take care of the severe cases who need very specialized inpatient care, that, at this moment also, we are not able to
provide.
ANDERSON: Can you just describe for us what a child is going through who is malnourished and what death from starvation is like?
WILLEMEN: OK, I am not a medical professional. But what I know is that, for example, also a lot of the other medical issues that we see are
compounded by malnutrition.
We also have a small inpatient ward that is full of people who have horrendous burns, including very many small children, that they get from
the airstrikes. We have very many people who have orthopedic injuries, whose bones are being kept together by external fixators.
These wounds also don't heal, so it's important even to look beyond the issue of malnutrition as people dying from malnutrition. Also, any other
medical issue will be horrendously compounded.
And I mean, you've all seen the images of children wasting away because they also get to a point where it becomes incredibly difficult to start
feeding them again, to start to get them back to a point where they can catch onto life.
ANDERSON: People clearly know that they are putting their lives at risk in order to get food or food aid. Hundreds have been killed at aid
distribution points recently.
What, though, are their options?
I mean, you are on the ground. If they don't eat, they will starve to death.
WILLEMEN: Exactly. I mean, there are no options.
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And people, as you say, they know very well that they risk their life going to these sites. My own colleagues were onsite at an emergency room that we
support here in Gaza City when, two days ago, dozens and dozens of dead and wounded arrived.
These were all people who had gone toward aid trucks of the World Food Programme, who had just been entering the Gaza Strip. And they all died or
were wounded by gunshots.
So the fact that this is happening on top of the malnutrition crisis, it's -- honestly, I do not have words to describe the shame on humanity that we
see here on a on a daily basis.
ANDERSON: And we spoke to the chief of the WFP about what you've just described, that incident. She described it to me as the worst tragedy yet
as far as her agency is concerned.
And she talked about humanitarian workers, whose lives are being put at risk. And she described it as being targeted.
She also talked about how, you know, local staff, as you have just suggested, aren't getting enough to eat themselves as they try and find
food for their families.
Can you just describe what impact that has on those who are trying to help medically at this point?
I mean, you must be seeing that happening yourself.
WILLEMEN: Absolutely. I mean, these are the discussions I have with my colleagues every single day. Unfortunately, this genocide also does not
make a difference between people who are delivering assistance and everybody else. That's the nature of a genocide. Everybody is at risk.
As always, the Palestinian staff, first and foremost, 12 MSF colleagues have died since 7th of October, 2023. And indeed, this is -- these are
people who have been shot, who have been killed in airstrikes. Every single one of my colleagues has lost family members, has had to move 10 times, 15
times because of the evacuation orders.
Struggles to find food every single day, I have colleagues coming to me, asking for cans of baby milk for their baby. And I have absolutely no way
to support them with something as simple as that.
And in the last few days, when our team had nothing to eat because the markets were closed, also, as an employer, I was not able to provide them
anything at all.
ANDERSON: Israel entirely blames Hamas for this ongoing conflict. The GHF, the Humanitarian Foundation, as it is known, is set up by Israel and
private security contractors.
These are distribution sites to ensure that they say Hamas does not intervene in the distribution of aid. Israel blaming Hamas for looting
things like the WFP trucks.
Are you seeing evidence or hearing evidence of that?
WILLEMEN: I mean, first and foremost, the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, there's absolutely nothing humanitarian about it. What we need is to
reinstate humanitarian assistance that is coordinated by the United Nations, like we do with everywhere in the world, in a neutral way.
Humanitarian assistance is not delivered by one party of the conflict, who uses it in a way to push forward their military goals, which is exactly
what we see at those sites of the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, where people are getting killed every single day.
We do hear, indeed, of the accusations that it's Hamas themselves who are shooting at these people, who are looting the trucks. I have not seen
evidence for that.
Are there trucks being looted inside the Gaza Strip by Palestinian people?
Absolutely, because people are desperate and people who have not fed their children in days will do whatever they can to stop a truck and to get off
that truck a bag of flour.
ANDERSON: Thank you for joining us today. Thank you for explaining from your perspective what is going on the ground.
And, you know, a temporary truce, which is being worked on in Qatar, would help, certainly, at this point. Part of that truce would be a flooding of
aid to the enclave. That would, one assume, improve conditions.
We haven't got a -- an agreement on that ceasefire as of yet. That would be a ceasefire and hostage deal, of course. Meantime, you continue with your
work. And we thank you for that. Thank you for joining us today.
Still to come, former U.S. President Obama is the latest target as Donald Trump tries to turn everybody's attention away from the Jeffrey Epstein
scandal.
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We're going to take a closer look at that after this.
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ANDERSON: Apparently when the going gets tough, blame Barack Obama. Critics of U.S. president Donald Trump accusing him of trying to distract
attention away from the Jeffrey Epstein scandal by going after the former president.
On Tuesday, Trump accused Obama of treason by weaponizing intelligence, he said, and leading an effort to interfere in the 2016 election, which, of
course, he won by claiming that Russia was seeking to influence the result.
Well, Obama's office issued a statement calling Trump's allegations "bizarre and ridiculous."
Well, CNN Politics senior reporter Stephen Collinson back with us this hour.
Stephen, President Trump trying to deflect here and trying to raise questions over Russia's interference in the 2016 election and former
President Obama. This is what he said very specifically in the Oval Office yesterday.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: The witch hunt that you should be talking about is they caught President Obama absolutely cold after what they did to me. And whether it's
right or wrong, it's time to go after people.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON: I think he very specifically said, ahead of that, I don't know why you're concentrating on all of this other nonsense or words to that
effect.
When X, Y and Z -- you just heard him.
Will this pivot work for him?
STEPHEN COLLINSON, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: I don't think so.
He's really tried over the last three weeks to try and get rid of this whole Jeffrey Epstein saga and nothing he does really works. I think the
reason for that is partly because it's a conspiracy theory. And truth and evidence and more statements from the government only seem to cement the
conspiracy theory.
This is also quite irksome for Trump, because it's distracting from quite a successful period, from his point of view, for his presidency. He just
passed his massive agenda bill.
He's getting trade deals done with nations like Japan, the Philippines -- although you can quarrel about the definition of those deals, whether they
really are deals and not just pushing tariffs up.
But domestically, his presence -- he is on quite a good streak and he would be basically doing all the things that he told his supporters that he would
said he would do.
But this Epstein saga, questions about what the government is doing, whether it's trying to cover stuff up, is really superseding all that. And
I think that's one of the reasons why the president is so frustrated, going after former President Obama. Going back now nearly a decade, to talk about
the Russia issue, I don't think is going to make it go away.
ANDERSON: I mean, this was a document dump by the DNI chief Tulsi Gabbard.
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Was there -- was there anything new in it, out of interest?
COLLINSON: No, no, not really. And there are two reasons why the Obama office, I think, is correct in calling this bizarre.
First of all, what Tulsi Gabbard's document effectively did was say, well, there was no successful Russian interference in voting machines and it
didn't change the vote. So therefore there was no election interference.
But the Obama administration, before it left office, said exactly the same thing. What it pointed to were cyber attacks on Democratic officials, the
release of Hillary Clinton campaign emails; you know, these attempts to spread discord and social media. It said that was the interference and not
meddling with election machines.
So Gabbard is essentially saying exactly what the Trump -- the Obama administration said before Trump took over at the beginning of his first
term.
The second reason why this is rather ridiculous is because Trump went to the Supreme Court last year and got a favorable ruling, which said that
presidents have substantial immunity for official acts conducted in office.
Well, if President Obama did something wrong -- and he didn't -- it would be impossible to prosecute him anyway for treason or anything else,
although perhaps Mr. Trump believes that immunity only attaches to him and not every president.
But that is now the precedent of the Supreme Court. So none of this makes sense on its face. And none of it, I think, seems likely to help Trump
purge this Epstein drama that is now haunting his presidency.
ANDERSON: Well, speaker Johnson, very close to Donald Trump, of course, is, it seems, trying to dump this Epstein story and, you know, hoaxes, as
Donald Trump calls it, files as others call them, on the Democrats. Have a listen.
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REP. MIKE JOHNSON (R-LA), HOUSE SPEAKER: Go back and look at their social media accounts. We have. And their public comments, they had exactly zero
posts on the subject for the last four years, the Biden administration.
Interesting, isn't it?
We all understand that the America First agenda and the American people are best served by putting an end to the Democrats' sideshows. And that's what
we're doing by not allowing the rules committee to continue with that nonsense this week.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON: Yes, this is also a man, who only, what, less than a week ago, said he really thought there should be more transparency in all of this. It
would help.
Is this a smart move from the GOP's part at this point?
COLLINSON: Yes. What the Speaker is essentially doing is shutting down the House early in the hope that, by the time they come back from their recess
in September, all of this will have gone away and it will be a moot issue.
The problem is he's shutting it down early because of rebellion, largely in his own ranks, over this issue. I think it's going to be interesting when
lawmakers go back to their constituencies. They typically hold town hall meetings throughout the summer recess to meet their voters.
Are we going to see lots of questions to Republican lawmakers from MAGA supporters, who have watched the conservative media and are demanding
answers and transparency when the congressmen get back to Washington?
If that's the case, you could see some pretty embarrassing scenes, tape of these meetings. And by the time they get back to Washington in September,
the Speaker's move potentially might have backfired.
And it doesn't take many Republicans to put pressure on the Speaker, because, as we know, he's only got a very tiny majority, a handful of
seats.
ANDERSON: Yes. Well, let's see. I mean, it's very likely that this could indeed backfire. As you say it could be a long summer for many of those
representatives. Thank you, Stephen.
All eyes on AI this week, artificial intelligence, with president Trump heading to an AI summit in Washington today. Now this comes as the White
House is expected to release its AI action plan in the coming days.
But in the meantime, U.S. food and drug regulators are sounding the alarm over their own artificial intelligence project. It is supposed to help
increase the speed of drug approvals but the reality is a little less revolutionary. Our Meg Tirrell has more.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MEG TIRRELL, CNN MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, AI has been a major talking point of Trump administration health officials, saying that it's going to
streamline work even at the FDA, increase the speed of drug approvals.
And this comes at a time that the Department of Health and Human Services has cut thousands of workers across health agencies.
[10:25:05]
But conversations with employees at the FDA who are familiar with this tool suggest perhaps it's at an earlier stage, maybe, than is being promised, at
least when it comes to using it for things like drug approvals.
One FDA employee telling us, quote, "Anything that you don't have time to double check is unreliable. It hallucinates confidently."
Another employee saying, quote, "AI Is supposed to save our time but I guarantee you that I waste a lot of extra time just due to the heightened
vigilance that I have to have, because it can sometimes hallucinate these fake or misrepresented studies."
And so what we're hearing is that perhaps it can be useful for maybe summarizing meetings or helping with emails but it's not yet at the point
where it can analyze data that's been submitted by a company on a drug or a product, for example.
The FDA does say that it's working on updating it. But we had a conversation with FDA commissioner Dr. Marty Makary about where this stands
right now. Here's what he said.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DR. MARTY MAKARY, FDA COMMISSIONER: The main purpose in which it's used, according to many of the scientists that I talked to, is its organization
ability. It is identifying a study in the literature.
And so it's the responsibility of the scientific reviewer to click on that link that ELSA provides and look at the study and read the abstract. You
have to determine what is reliable information that I can make major decisions based on. And I think we do a great job of that.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
TIRRELL: So this is a tool called ELSA that was introduced in early June. Still, clearly in the early days. And the FDA is saying it's working on
updating it. But at this point, according to this great reporting from our D.C. colleague, Sarah Owermohle, maybe not at the point that it is speeding
up drug approvals to a great degree.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ANDERSON: That's Meg Tirrell for you.
Well, the Trump administration claims no one has died from U.S. aid cuts. Our reporter's trip to Afghanistan suggests otherwise. A revealing CNN
investigation is up next.
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ANDERSON (voice-over): Welcome back. You're watching CONNECT THE WORLD with me, Becky Anderson. Here are your headlines this hour.
And 10 people in Gaza have reportedly starved to death in the last 24 hours. That is according to local health officials. Over 100 aid
organizations are now calling on Israel to end its partial blockade of aid and allow the free flow of food, clean water and medical supplies into the
enclave.
President Trump is heading to an AI summit today in Washington, where he will also sign executive orders. Now this signals a huge push on AI policy.
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Coming just as the White House is expected to release its AI action plan in the coming days.
In a landmark opinion for climate action, the International Court of Justice began reading the opinion a short time ago, underlining the
existential threat that climate change poses.
The court said that all countries that signed the Paris agreement must ensure that their contributions are progressive and represent the highest
possible ambition.
ANDERSON: Well, earlier this year, the Trump administration dismantled USAID, the U.S. agency responsible for international aid. And other
countries followed suit, cutting their own foreign aid budgets.
American aid had been a steady presence in Afghanistan, something people relied on even after the U.S. withdrew four years ago. It still contributed
nearly half the country's total aid. And it canceled $1.7 billion in contracts, of which around 500 million had yet to be disbursed.
Well, the U.S. secretary of state, Marco Rubio, insists that no one has died because of these cuts. Well, my colleague, CNN's Isobel Yeung,
traveled to in Afghanistan to investigate. And a warning that you are very likely to find parts of her report disturbing.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ISOBEL YEUNG, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): We're in the Taliban's Afghanistan. A nation now dealing with huge foreign aid cuts.
YEUNG: The clinic we're actually heading toward was, until just a few months ago, funded by the U.S. government. Now that the Trump
administration has pulled the funding, a lot of people in this area are left with not even basic health care facilities.
YEUNG (voice-over): The U.N. estimates that an Afghan woman dies every two hours from pregnancy or childbirth. This clinic has now closed.
YEUNG: So this is where women are giving birth?
SAMIRA SAYED RAHMAN, SAVE THE CHILDREN AFGHANISTAN: Yes. You know, this is the only clinic in this area and now it's gone.
YEUNG: Afghanistan has one of the highest maternal mortality rates in the world, right?
What happens to these women now that the delivery room is gone?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It means that these communities don't have access. It means that women are going to be giving birth at home. Meaning more and
more children are going to die during childbirth.
YEUNG: We were just talking to community leaders who were telling us that seven people have died since this clinic closed. And just a couple of days
ago, a woman died in childbirth because there was nowhere for her to give birth.
YEUNG (voice-over): When we followed up, the woman's neighbors and family told us that if the clinic had been open and she'd had the support of a
midwife, she would have survived.
Across Afghanistan, over 400 clinics have closed because of U.S. aid cuts. Millions of people were reliant on these clinics for health care. Now their
only option is to travel hours, sometimes days, to public hospitals like this, where there's an influx of new patients.
The U.S. was funding doctors, nurses and essential drugs here but now that's also gone.
YEUNG: How are you?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This has the capacity for just one baby. And we have under ours three babies here.
YEUNG: Yes, it's crowded.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, crowded, yes.
YEUNG: Is this normal?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Normal?
Not normal. When they cut the aid here, our mortality rate, about 3 or 4 percent.
YEUNG: So three to 4 percent more --
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Rise --
YEUNG (voice-over): -- babies are dying since the U.S. cut the aid?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, yes (INAUDIBLE).
YEUNG: Wow.
YEUNG (voice-over): Malnutrition has soared here. 9.5 million people are severely food insecure. Several NGOs previously funded by the U.S. are now
turning away many people in desperate need of food.
Mohammad Omar has severe malnutrition and meningitis. The family are poor and were only recently able to bring him the long distance to this
hospital.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translation): When did he become like this?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translation): Early in the morning.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translation): You said it was diarrhea at first and then it got worse.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translation): Yes, it stated with diarrhea.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translation): Since when has he not been able to eat?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translation): It has been a long time since he could eat on his won.
YEUNG: Hi. I'm so sorry for what you're going through. Can I ask what your name is?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translation): My name is Nazogul. He's my grandson.
YEUNG: How old is he?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translation): He just turned 1.
YEUNG: What is his situation?
What has the doctor said?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Doctors say that a microbe has infected his brain. He's unconscious now. You can see that the child's condition is very bad.
YEUNG (voice-over): In the middle of speaking, we looked over and realized the child had stopped breathing.
YEUNG: Is he breathing?
Is he breathing?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We need CPR (ph).
YEUNG: You need CPR. Sorry, move, move, move.
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UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: (Speaking foreign language).
YEUNG: He died?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes.
YEUNG: My God.
YEUNG (voice-over): Mohammad's mother returns to the room and the most devastating news.
YEUNG: This is just one family of so many thousands of families that are having to live through this and it's utterly, heart-wrenchingly
devastating.
YEUNG (voice-over): It's impossible to definitively blame one single factor for Mohammad's death. He was suffering from a range of serious
illnesses. But aid cuts have dealt a devastating blow here.
Canceling aid to Afghanistan has long been a goal for Congressman Tim Burchett --
REP. TIM BURCHETT (R-TN): $5 billion in cash.
YEUNG (voice-over): -- claiming $5 billion U.S. taxpayer have gone directly to the ruling Taliban, a designated terrorist group. But the U.S.
government's own watchdog says it's more like $11 million. The vast majority of money goes to those it's intended for.
YEUNG: Are you intentionally misleading the American public when it comes to inflating these figures so that you can get what you want?
BURCHETT: No, ma'am, I'm not. As a matter of fact, $11 million is still a whole lot of money to the average American. If it's one penny going to the
Taliban, they'll hate us for free.
YEUNG: What would you say to -- I mean, there are millions of Afghans who are going to be affected by this.
BURCHETT: I would say you're going to have to make it on your own.
YEUNG: Hundreds of clinics across the country have now closed down. I literally watched a baby die from malnutrition.
What would you say to these families who are living through desperate circumstances, devastated by the results of your actions?
BURCHETT: I think it's horrific but it's not due to my actions, ma'am. We don't have any more money. We're borrowing that money. And again --
YEUNG: But it is due to your actions. I mean, you have been advocating for this for the last couple of years.
BURCHETT: No, ma'am. No, ma'am. It's not our response -- we have Americans in the same position. We have Americans that are having trouble with
childbirth. We have Americans going hungry and you want us to borrow money and send it overseas.
YEUNG (voice-over): With the U.S. turning away, the fate of Afghans is now left in the hands of their own government, the Taliban, who say they're
capable of running the country without foreign aid. They denied our requests for an interview.
But it's the country's most vulnerable, women and children, who stand to lose the most, now facing an isolated future without the support of those
who once came to their aid.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ANDERSON: Well, CNN's Isobel Yeung joining me now.
And, Isobel, first up, I do want to note that the U.S. State Department did not respond to CNN's request for comment on this story. It is heartbreaking
to watch your reporting, particularly the scene of the mother and her child.
What did you learn about mortality rates there?
YEUNG: Hi, Becky. Well, yes, obviously completely devastating to watch this mother go through the worst day of her life. I mean, any parent's
worst nightmare, really. But she's not the only one.
In fact, the doctor that we were with literally pointed out four other babies who were likely to die in the coming months because of these aid
cuts, because of a lack of resources, because of the terrible condition that they're in.
Parents were telling us that they can no longer afford the treatment, that they can no longer get hold of the resources that they desperately need.
And so many families across Afghanistan were telling us the same stories over and over again, that these are really primitive conditions that they
have, that they don't know how to get help for their sick children, that they don't know how to feed their children.
And remember, this is not just the destruction of health care. This also impacts food aid. This impacts women's work programs. This impacts
education programs, psychological support for women who have experienced sexual and violent abuse. So it really is a complete dismantlement of USAID
going to Afghanistan.
ANDERSON: Yes. And in addition, of course, to the void left by USAID, you know, a significant issue in the country, of course, is women's rights and
education. And you were on the ground for some time.
Just what did you find out about what is going on to that regard?
YEUNG: Yes, I mean, you've got to remember that this is now the Taliban's Afghanistan and they are ruling with what many in the international
community have described as gender apartheid.
So they've really cracked down on women's rights, which means that many women can't leave their house without a mahram, a male guardian taking them
somewhere.
[10:40:00]
They can't show their faces in public, they can't go to parks, they can't work in public spaces. Girls over the age of 12 can't go to school.
And in fact, one of the things that the U.S. was funding up until now was various education programs -- so online education programs, overseas
scholarship programs, secret schools within the country.
And some of the girls that we were speaking to in Afghanistan were saying that this really was one of the last loopholes, a last glimmer of hope for
them. And now, you know, a lot of that has disappeared, which really does mean that their fate rests in the hands of the Taliban.
ANDERSON: CNN, of course, hasn't had a reporter inside Afghanistan for a long time. It is extremely difficult to get access on the ground. Just
explain, if you will, for our viewers or just describe what challenges you faced in gathering your reporting.
YEUNG: Well, Becky, it's incredibly challenging to report in Afghanistan right now. You know, this is an authoritarian regime. So even getting there
is difficult. Getting the right permits is difficult.
But operating on the ground now is very, very challenging. You know, the Taliban are very aware that they have a negative image by much of the
world, you know, still designated a terrorist group by the U.S. and many other countries as well.
And, you know, they are aware that the international community does not look kindly to their treatment of women's rights. And so their response to
that has really been to crack down and try to control this narrative.
And we saw that with ourselves. You know, we were followed everywhere we went. We had a minder with us, often interrupting our interviews even.
And one of our main concerns was, how can we talk to people safely and to ensure that they're able to tell us their stories if they want to?
Many people we spoke to in secret, on secure lines. And many people were brave enough to speak with us. And again and again they told us similar
things, which was that a real sense of helplessness, both in terms of how the Taliban regime is now handling their -- the country, as well as how the
international community have left them.
ANDERSON: Yes. And the impact of this loss of USAID, of course. Thank you very much indeed for joining us.
And you can find more about Isobel's reporting across all our digital platforms, including more footage from inside Afghanistan on the website or
on the CNN app.
We'll be right back.
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ANDERSON: Bryan Kohberger will be sentenced later today for the November 2022 murders of four University of Idaho students, in a case that you may
remember. It certainly shocked the United States, he admitted to burglary and first degree murder in a change of plea hearing on July the 2nd that
spared him the death penalty.
Well, today marks his final opportunity to speak in court and potentially answer the question that the victims' families desperately seek.
Why?
[10:45:00]
Well, CNN's Veronica Miracle is in Boise, Idaho. For us this hour.
Veronica, what are we expecting today?
Just walk us through these proceedings.
VERONICA MIRACLE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Becky, that single question of why is what everyone wants answered. And Bryan Kohberger will get a chance
to speak to a judge.
But will he take that opportunity?
That's really the question here, because this entire 2.5 year case, he has hardly said any words in court. We did hear him speak during the plea
agreement, which he admitted to killing all four of those students. But he has not spoken more than a few words in court.
So what will happen today?
That is the big question. We also understand that the victims' families and the victims, they will get an opportunity to speak about how this has
impacted them. They will get a chance to speak directly to Bryan Kohberger.
We've seen at least representatives from three of the families enter the courtroom today, including the father, Steve Goncalves, the father of
Kaylee Goncalves. He's been very outspoken throughout the entire proceedings. He was not happy about the plea agreement and he's hoping that
Bryan Kohberger says something.
Ethan Chapin's family will not be in attendance. But for those who are here, they will get a chance to speak to Bryan Kohberger. Then the
prosecution, they can lay out their case as to why this is the best sentence and the defense will also get an opportunity.
We understand, though, that there are so many people here -- in fact, there was about 70 people in line here before the sun even came up. They've all
gone inside as they await for this hearing to begin.
But so many driving from all over, saying that they wanted to see exactly what happened today and to support the victims' families, including some
University of Idaho students, who said this is personal to them. Take a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
RACHEL HAMMACK, STUDENT, UNIVERSITY OF IDAHO: We stayed in line all night because we thought it would be important as college students, especially at
the University of Idaho, to come support the families of the victims.
Especially to those close to us that knew the victims, to be able to support them and support these families in person instead of just watching
a live stream. I think it means more to do it in person.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MIRACLE: Now it's not clear exactly how long this hearing will go. Everybody will get a chance to speak. But at the end of the hearing, we
understand that the judge will impose a sentence. Becky.
ANDERSON: Good to have you. Thank you very much indeed.
We are going to take a very quick break. You're watching CONNECT THE WORLD with me, Becky Anderson from our Middle East programming headquarters here
in Abu Dhabi. Time is just after 6:45. We will be back after this.
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ANDERSON: Well, the world of rock is remembering an iconic voice that spanned generations.
(VIDEO CLIP, "MAMA, I'M COMING HOME")
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ANDERSON (voice-over): You know who I'm talking about. Ozzy Osbourne being called unique, fearless and funny and, of course, legendary. The Black
Sabbath frontman reached audiences of all stripes over his nearly 60-year career.
And after his passing on Tuesday, tributes pouring in from the halls of rock royalty, including Elton John, who says -- and I quote him -- "Here he
was a dear friend and a huge trailblazer who secured his place in the pantheon of rock gods."
Well, Salma Abdelaziz is in Birmingham, England.
[10:50:00]
Ozzy's hometown and where he played his last concert just weeks ago, not very far from where Elton John, of course, grew up.
Salma, how are people reacting there?
SALMA ABDELAZIZ, CNN ANCHOR AND CORRESPONDENT: It's extraordinary to see the impact that Ozzy Osbourne has on his hometown. Becky, I'm just at a
bench here on Black Sabbath Bridge. This is a bench, of course, meant to honor a band that fans say started a genre of music and lifted the head of
this city up high all over the world.
And you can see these beautiful flowers that have been laid here all day. And just some of the signs that you can read to Ozzy.
"I will always love your music."
And what is so extraordinary about seeing this as well, Becky, it's just the generational cross between the fans. I mean, I've spoken to people as
young as 12. You can hear the celebrations already happening here.
And I imagine you're going to continue to hear those celebrations all throughout the night, because fans will tell you this is not just about
mourning his death. It's about celebrating his life and enjoying his legacy and his music.
And one of those fans celebrating here today, the life of Ozzy Osbourne is Matilda.
Matilda, just start by telling me what happened when you first heard of his passing.
MATILDA, BLACK SABBATH FAN: I was waiting for the bus to go home when I heard of his passing. And I didn't believe it at first. But now that it's
properly hit me, I was heartbroken because that was one of my rock idols. He inspired so many of my favorite bands.
ABDELAZIZ: I'm sorry. I'm going to interrupt you just so that our cameraman can show you these celebrations that are happening just behind us
here. These gentlemen have been singing and dancing all day and I think they're going to keep doing it.
Matilda, to go back to you, though, you're only 18 years old.
How did you become an Ozzy Osbourne fan?
MATILDA: Kind of by accident. I discovered them just on Spotify really. Because I was listening to -- I think it was Green Day. And it said fans
also like Black Sabbath. So I was like, oh, I'll give them a go. And the rest is history.
And Ozzy's solo crew is incredible. And their albums, especially "Paranoid," I thought -- that was my first Sabbath CD I ever bought and my
favorite song is currently playing right now.
ABDELAZIZ: That's amazing. Thank you so much for sharing that with us, Matilda.
And that's just a reminder again, Becky, that his legacy, his music, his impression upon this city and Birmingham is going to last way beyond his
life.
ANDERSON: Yes, perhaps you can -- we can forgive the emotion there, let's call it that, Salma. It's good to have you. Thank you very much indeed.
Well, the International Court of Justice has issued its opinion on climate obligation. The court called climate change a quite, quote, "urgent and
existential threat."
In the opinion, the court said that all countries that signed the Paris agreement must ensure that climate contributions are progressive, adding
that the climate must be protected.
Look, while the decision made is an advisory opinion, the court said climate inaction is not just policy failure but should be seen as a breach
of international law.
Well, finally this evening, nothing beats a Jet2 holiday. Well, that is how the ad campaign for the U.K.-based travel company goes, which has become
something of a sensation online. If you're on TikTok, you've no doubt heard about that famous line.
But who is behind that now viral voiceover?
Well, CNN spoke with actor -- voice actor Zoe Lister all about her new social fame.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ZOE LISTER, VOICE ACTOR: Nothing beats a Jet2Holiday. And right now you can save 50 pounds per person.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (voice-over): Sound familiar?
That's because you've probably heard the Jet2 slogan in TikTok videos.
"Nothing beats a Jet2 holiday and right now you can save 50 pounds per person."
Used to depict vacationers in precarious situations, the trending sound has been used in more than a million videos on TikTok alone.
LISTER: And now this has just completely blown up out of nowhere and it just feels like wonderful and joyful.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (voice-over): Zoe Lister is the talent behind the viral sensation.
LISTER: I was in a cafe yesterday and there was somebody, like, scrolling their phone and I could just hear them watching Jet2Holiday and I was like,
this has gotten so weird.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (voice-over): Lister, who says she's been doing Jet2 voiceovers for seven years, noticed the recent uptick in popularity for an
ad campaign launched in 2022, which features "Hold My Hand," a song by Jess Glynne.
LISTER: Somebody dressed as her and then somebody else had dressed as a flight attendant doing the voiceover. And then I was like -- and this is in
last October. And I was like, wow, I'm a Halloween costume. This is really cool.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (voice-over): TikTok and other social media users can hear Lister's voice used in videos ranging from people falling down hills
to giant spiders and even elephants.
LISTER: Nothing beats a Jet2Holiday.
[10:55:00]
I've got messages from just every single continent and it's just bringing so much joy to people, which is what I love, is bringing joy to me as well.
There's so much, you know, heavy stuff in the world at the moment. So the fact that, like, we are uniting over this ridiculous meme is just
brilliant.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (voice-over): As for Lister's plans to continue voiceovers for Jet2 --
LISTER: Yes, they can never get rid of me now.
(LAUGHTER)
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ANDERSON: Good for her.
That's it for CONNECT THE WORLD. Do stay with CNN though. "ONE WORLD" is up next. We will see you same time, same place tomorrow.
END
