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Connect the World
Putin's Threat To Western Troops; US Immigration Crackdown; Hamas Releases New Video Of Israeli Hostages. Aired 10-11a ET
Aired September 05, 2025 - 10:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[10:00:32]
CHRISTINA MACFARLANE, CNN ANCHOR: Welcome to the second hour of Connect the World. I'm Christina Macfarlane in London.
Vladimir Putin says Western troops will be legitimate targets if they go to Ukraine as another Trump deadline for peace talks is about to pass. Hamas
releases new video of two Israeli hostages while Israel vows to intensify its operations in Gaza City. And hundreds of undocumented immigrants are
detained in a massive raid by ICE at the Hyundai plant in Georgia. We'll take you live to Atlanta.
Today marks the deadline President Donald Trump said he was setting for Russia to engage in direct peace talks with Ukraine or face economic
consequences. Mr. Trump says he plans to speak with Vladimir Putin in the near future.
As we wait for that to happen, the President told a meeting of Ukraine's allies on Thursday that Europe must stop buying Russian oil and needs to
put economic pressure on China to bring about an end to the war. It's a plan that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy says he supports.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY, UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT: America wants to seriously cut Russia's income from energy exports, and this is the right path. The less
money Putin makes from oil, the less he can spend on war and on destabilization other countries. Please keep these in mind. Energy
independence from Russia is also key to strong relations with the United States.
Now in Ukraine, I have meetings with Antonio Costa, the president of the European Council, and with the prime minister, by the way, with the prime
minister of Slovakia, Robert, and we will talk about this as well. And it's important that Prime Minister Orban also hears these signals from the
United States directly from President Trump, the signal about Russian.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MACFARLANE: Well, CNN's Nic Robertson is following the story for us, joins us now from London. Nic, President Trump says he plans to speak with
President Vladimir Putin in the near future. What more do you know about the timing of that and what we can expect here? Because, you know, it's
been three weeks since the two leaders met in Alaska, and so far that meeting has yielded very little result.
NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: We don't really have a sense of the timing. I don't think we can expect very much to come from it.
It's almost as if Vladimir Putin has played President Trump through the course of the summer, buying more and more time for the war in Ukraine.
The position that President Putin has arrived in now, you know, sounds contrary to what his spokesman was saying just hours earlier in the day,
that actually there's so much small, detailed work that needs to be done before President Putin could actually have a meeting with President
Zelensky that he seemed to be sort of ruling it out.
Yet President Putin has invited President Zelenskyy to Moscow, and said it provides security for him there. If he comes to talk, I think we can expect
President Putin to play on that point with President Trump.
He'll say, hey, I'm up for talks. I've invited Zelenskyy here to Moscow. But I don't think anyone in rational person would expect the Ukrainian
president to go to Moscow. It would not be somewhere he would, A, feel safe or, B, want to negotiate the future of his country, and the terms that the
position that Russia is in at the moment isn't one that's conducive to that.
And as you were just saying, Putin's outlined that the security guarantees that 26 countries who were meeting yesterday virtually in person in Paris
had said that they would provide security guarantees, either man and material on the ground, United States, possibly in the skies, money coming
from other countries.
If Putin's ruling all of that out, I think we are further away from where we have hoped to be in terms of the aspirations of President Trump and
European leaders and President Zelenskyy. And it's back to the economics of it. It's back to the economics of saying that Putin can't, you know, cannot
continue to spend down his military personnel capital and his financial capital in the country. And that can only come about by harsher sanctions.
MACFARLANE: Yes. And we heard President Trump again pressuring Europe to stop buying Russian oil, instead saying they should be pressuring, putting
the economic pressure on China to bring about an end to the war. I mean, how important is that pressure campaign and what is it actually -- how
effective is actually proving to halting Russia's war machine?
[10:05:07]
ROBERTSON: I think there are many ways to break down this, particularly when you look at sort of Europe's energy dependence on Russia, particularly
in 2022, just as the war began. Europe has really sort of drawn down its energy dependence on Russia, but it's still massively dependent on it.
They put a cap on the price that they're willing to spend for oil and liquefied natural gas. They're the biggest importer of liquefied natural
gas. President Trump saying to the Europeans, you should buy less of Russia or none of Russia's energy products and the place to turn would be the
United States.
But the European Union cannot handle the sort of port facilities of bringing in that much liquefied natural gas, that much oil by tanker from
the United States and other countries. It is dependent not just on the raw material in those pipelines, but the pipelines themselves for Europe's
energy supplies.
We saw a terrible sort of backlash at the beginning of the war with Ukraine. Energy prices spiking, political consequences all across Europe.
It's a difficult situation for the EU to get out of. But absolutely, they've spent more money over certain years, more money sent to Russia for
its energy products than they've spent on arming Ukraine.
There's an obvious imbalance there, and President Trump's calling it out. But at the same time, the European leaders are calling on President Trump
to put secondary sanctions and be much firmer on cracking down on Russia's shadow fleet that gets its oil out to other markets around the world.
So, you know, the very fact that everyone is calling on everyone to do what they can is indicative of the fact that the whole peace process is
stationary at the moment.
MACFARLANE: Yes. And that deadline, of course, passes today. Nic Robertson, appreciate it. Thank you.
The August US Jobs Report is out, and the numbers show a sharply downward trend. The US economy adding just 22,000 jobs last month, far fewer than
the 76,500 new jobs analysts expected. And the unemployment rate ticked up to 4.33 percent.
Wall Street digesting this news, you can see how the market's reacting in early trading. All three indices still up in the green. Matt Egan is back
with US markets optimistic.
Matt, talk to us, though, about what these numbers mean for the US economy and, of course, for President Trump.
MATT EGAN, CNN SENIOR REPORTER: Yes, Christina. Look, this report was weak and it's really reinforcing these concerns that the job market is stalling
out after years of just incredible historic resilience. The US economy adding 22,000 jobs last month, as you mentioned, that's just a fraction of
the forecast.
The unemployment rate moving from 4.2 to 4.3 percent, still relatively low but moving in the wrong direction. In fact, this is the highest
unemployment rate since October of 2021. And when you look at the trend for job growth, you can see that it really has slowed down significantly in the
past few months.
And what's really notable is some of the revisions. So July was revised slightly higher, but June was revised to show negative job growth. So this
is the first month where the US economy has actually lost jobs since COVID back in December of 2020.
It breaks a five year streak of uninterrupted job growth. That was the second longest streak in American history. But now it's over. And we were
just looking at some of those sectors and, I mean, the good news is, yes, we are seeing continued job growth for leisure and hospitality, and also
especially health care and social assistance.
The problem is that, really all the job gains have just become so concentrated to just one or two industries, and that is not healthy. And
actually some industries are losing jobs. You see construction losing 7,000 jobs during the month of August, manufacturing losing 12,000 jobs. That is
the fourth consecutive month of job loss for manufacturing which is somewhat ironic when you think about it, right?
I mean, the overall economy is suffering from all of this uncertainty caused in large part by the trade policy, by tariffs moving up and down.
But that trade policy is designed at propping up manufacturing, at causing a job boom in manufacturing. But that's not happening, at least not yet,
right? We're actually seeing the opposite where the uncertainty and the higher input costs are causing manufacturers to cut jobs, exactly the
opposite of what the White House is looking for.
Another thing that really stood out here is black unemployment. So as recently as May, black unemployment rate was 6 percent, but it has surged
to 7.5 percent. That's actually should say as of August, 7.5 percent as of August. This is something that economists have said is really a canary in
the coal mine that suggests that the job market is really facing significant pressure.
[10:10:04]
One last point, Christine. You mentioned the market reaction. So US stocks moving a bit higher today. I don't think we should read all that much into
that.
I think this is one of those frustrating moments where bad news for Main Street is actually being interpreted as good news over on Wall Street. And
that's because investors are pricing interest rate cuts. Not just a cut at the next meeting in almost two weeks, but likely interest rate cuts in the
coming months ahead.
In fact, there's, now, there's actually a 12 percent chance of an interest rate cut of half a percentage point in September. Just a day ago there was
no chance. But this is not really happening for a good reason. It's not happening because the Fed thinks that inflation is suddenly solved and is
low. It's because they're worried that hiring is low. Christina?
MACFARLANE: Yes. Well, all eyes on the Federal Reserve who will meet, as you know, in a couple of weeks time to see what they do on interest rates
there. Matt, for now, appreciate it. Thank you.
EGAN: Thanks.
MACFARLANE: The Pentagon says Venezuelan military aircraft approached a US Navy ship on Thursday, calling it an attempt to interfere with US
operations against drug traffickers. It comes after a U.S. strike destroyed a boat in the Caribbean Sea earlier this week, killing 11 people.
The White House said the vessel was connected to a Venezuelan drug cartel. It's not yet clear which US ship was approached by Venezuelan planes
yesterday. We'll see in our national security reporter Zach Cohen is joining me now.
Zach, do you know anything more about the, about what actually happened in this incident?
ZACH COHEN, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY REPORTER: Yes., Christina, we've heard Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro publicly condemned that buildup of US
forces international waters around Latin America. But we're now seeing for the first time what appears to be him using his own military to reinforce
that message.
And obviously, as you mentioned, the this encounter comes just days after the US military destroyed an alleged drug boat international waters in this
area of operation where several US Destroyers and cruisers are operating on this anti-drug mission. And, look, the details around this particular
encounter still remain murky.
Look, but it is clear that the aircraft came close enough to the US warship, that the Pentagon felt it was necessary to publicly condemn the
move as highly provocative, and to warn the Maduro administration from taking any further steps, they say, to interfere with the ongoing anti-
drug, anti-cartel mission.
Now, look, this is not happening in a vacuum though, right? We're still waiting to hear from the Trump administration what its legal justification
for carrying out that strike on the alleged drug boat earlier this week was. And take a listen, though, to what Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth
said yesterday when he was really pressed to explain why the US had the right to conduct this unilateral military mission against a suspected drug
smuggler.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
PETE HEGSETH, SECRETARY OF DEFENSE: Every boatload of any form of drug that poisons the American people is an eminent threat. And at the DOD, our job
is to defeat eminent threats. A foreign terrorist organization poisoning your people with drugs coming from a drug cartel is no different than al-
Qaeda, and they'll be treated as such as they were international waters.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COHEN: So this is something we've really heard from the Trump administration over the last several weeks, trying to tie together this
idea that the drug, anti-drug mission that the military is currently conducting around Venezuela is almost akin to what a counterterrorism
mission should be.
And also trying to link Nicolas Maduro, the President of Venezuela, to these cartels that it has already designated as foreign terrorist
organizations. So really, the big question here is what will happen next if and when the US conducts its next military strike against suspected drug
smugglers? And how will Nicolas Maduro respond after this latest encounter, by sending two Venezuelan fighter jets to buzz a US warship.
MACFARLANE: Yes. As you point out, the US has legal authority in all of this. Zach, we appreciate your reporting. Thank you.
As tensions rise in the Caribbean, one group is uniquely exposed. Stefano Pozzebon has been speaking to fishermen who make their living on the seas
where the warships are now gathering. Take a watch.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
STEFANO POZZEBON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: US warships heading towards Venezuela. Tensions are rising in the Caribbean Sea after President Trump announced
the US conducted a kinetic strike that took out an alleged drug trafficking speedboat, killing 11 people.
But on shore, the sea looks calm. Work has not stopped for these artisanal fishermen, says Eduardo Loa (ph).
EDUARDO LOA (?) (through translation): You can be a bit nervous, of course, but we still have to go out fishing. Otherwise, what are we going to eat?
POZZEBON: Authorities have not issued warnings to keep these boats at bay. And with Venezuela's economy still in dire straits, nobody can afford an
idle day. Small scale fishermen like Loa (ph) normally stay within 20 nautical miles from the coast. They hardly risk encounters with the US
flotilla, but still spend hours at sea without any comms.
[10:15:05]
EDUARDO LOA (?) (through translation): You stand up on the boat and look around, all you see is the sky and the sea.
POZZEBON: The government's line, more belligerent. On Wednesday, Nicolas Maduro inaugurated a monument to its alliance with China, boasting close
ties to Beijing on the day of Xi Jinping's massive military parade and issuing a direct warning to Washington.
NICOLAS MADURO, VENEZUELAN PRESIDENT (through translation): We're good people of peace, but let it be known we are warriors. Fierce when they mess
up with our land, our history and our rights.
POZZEBON: For now, the seas are calm in Venezuela but choppy waters may lie just ahead. Stefano Pozzebon, CNN, Chichiriviche, Venezuela.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MACFARLANE: Meantime, US President Donald Trump is expected to sign an executive order in the coming hours changing the name of the Defense
Department to the Department of War. That's what a White House official told CNN. Here are some of the reasons the President gave last week for
that change.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF UNITED STATES: I think because, you know, Department of Defense, we won the World War I, World War II, it was called
the Department of War. And to me, that's really what it is.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MACFARLANE: Well, ahead on Connect the World, possibly the largest single ICE raid ever ends in hundreds of arrests. We'll bring you that. Plus,
excitement gives way to fear as immigrant students head back to school in the US. We'll have one family's heartbreaking story just ahead.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
MACFARLANE: US immigration authorities have rounded up around 450 people at a Hyundai metal plant in Georgia and it halted construction of a factory
being built to produce batteries for electric vehicles. CNN's Isabel Rosales has been following this story, joins us now.
Isabel, I mean, this is a huge rounding up of people at one time. What more details are you learning about what happened and what's going to happen
next?
ISABEL ROSALES, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Christina, good morning to you. We expect to hear a lot more, hopefully, here in about 15 minutes where Ice
will be hosting a press conference in Savannah. So hoping to get more firmed up information then. But what we do know is that around 450 people
were apprehended.
And to your point, Christina, this is a significant operation because this marks one of the largest ICE raids at a single site in the agency's 22 year
history. And according to the Associated Press, this raid stopped the construction of this battery facility plant, a plant that is being designed
and created to build the batteries that would go into electric vehicles. This is the same facility that Georgia's governor Brian Kemp once touted as
being the largest economic development site in the state's history.
CNN just obtained a brand new video showing a little bit of the inside of that factory, apparently shot by one of the workers there, showing the
moment that they were told to stop work. Watch.
[10:20:05]
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Immediately. We need all work to cease immediately. We need all work to end on the site right now.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROSALES: Gents right there. You can see agents that are masked ordering people to get in line as they execute this search warrant, this criminal
search warrant, that DHS tells CNN is quote, due to allegations of unlawful employment practices.
We also have this bit from the special agent in charge what he had to say about this immigration raid. Watch.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
STEVEN STRANK, ICE HOLAND SECURITY INVESTIGATION ATLANTA SPECIAL AGENT IN CHARGE: We are making many arrests of undocumented individuals. We have
encountered many lawful employees working here, United States citizens, and lawful permanent residents and they are, of course, being released.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROSALES: And the car company, Hyundai, is cooperating. It says it's cooperating with law enforcement, telling CNN we are committed to abiding
by all labor and immigration regulations.
And, Christine, I'll leave you with this. The same day, just 100 miles away in upper New York State, there was another large raid done at a worksite
there. This was a family-owned business, a plant that creates nutritional bars, where we're told by our local CNN affiliate about 60 people were
detained there.
This drew the ire of the governor there of New York who says that this does not make our streets safer, and also the ire of the owner of this company
who said his workers have legal documentation to work in the US and called, described this raid "overkill." Christina?
MACFARLANE: As you say, Isabel, this is, though, what's happened here at Hyundai in Georgia, a significant operation. We will look ahead to that
press conference by ICE Homeland Security, you said, in about 15 minutes time and we will take that life if we get it.
For now, Isabel, we appreciate it. Thank you.
And as I mentioned, we bring you that press conference live as and when it happens. Now it's back to school season across the US, but for many the
excitement is tampered by fear this year as immigrant families fear an ICE raid at any moment. CNN's Maria Santana has one story from one family.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translation): Scared, full of fear, anxiety.
MARIA SANTANA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: This immigrant mother of two breaks down in tears, torn between taking her children to school and the risk of being
taken away by ICE agents.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translation): I'm afraid the same thing will happen to me as to my husband, that they'll arrest me. Or I fear that at
school during these raids, they talk about they could take my children. All of this haunts me every day.
SANTANA: She says her husband was detained by federal immigration agents over Memorial Day weekend during a family outing in New York. At the
family's request, we are not using their names. Originally from Venezuela, she says they both had temporary protected status and pending asylum
claims.
The US Department of Homeland Security has not replied to our request for details about the father's arrest. Court records show that he had no prior
criminal history, but he remains in federal custody.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translation): I used to pick them up. He took them to school. I feel this year will be very hard for me.
SANTANA: The children heading into third and eighth grades say they are excited to go back to school and see their friends, but they desperately
miss their father.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translation): I wish he was here to see us, to see how we're doing, because whenever we left school and he picked us up,
sometimes went to the park or he took us out somewhere.
SANTANA: Their mother says that they are also terrified, worried that she might get arrested, too.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translation): Since what happened to their dad, they don't want to leave my side. They say, mom, what if I'm at school
and you go and you don't come back? What if they take you? Mom, why is this happening to us?
MANUEL CASTRO, COMMISSIONER, NYC MAYOR'S OFFICE OF IMMIGRANT AFFAIRS: We understand our families have a lot of fear, a lot of anxiety.
SANTANA: City officials acknowledge that some parents may want to keep their children at home, even as they insist that schools are safe.
CASTRO: There are strict protocols that our teachers, our principals, our school systems must follow because it is the law. We cannot cooperate with
immigration enforcement in any of the families and children in our school systems.
SANTANA: But for this mother, this year feels more like a leap of faith, praying that her family can stay together as her children continue to grow
and learn.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translation): Children are meant to be happy, why does this happen? I don't understand it because we all have children.
SANTANA: Maria Santana, CNN, New York.
[10:25:07]
MACFARLANE: The US immigration detention center, nicknamed Alligator Alcatraz, will remain open for now after a federal appeals court blocked an
earlier order for it to be shut down. The controversial facility in Florida has been subject to intense criticism for its difficult conditions,
including high temperatures, insects and meager meals.
Operations were set to cease within 60 days under a previous injunction following calls from Congress and state representatives who visited the
site. Despite the controversy, two new immigration detention centers have been announced by Florida Governor Ron DeSantis.
Still to come, for the first time, a European Union official joins the chorus of voices calling Israel's actions in Gaza a genocide.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SANTANA: Welcome back to Connect the World with me, Christina Macfarlane. Here are your headlines.
The two week deadline that US President Donald Trump gave Russian President Vladimir Putin to hold peace talks with Ukraine expires today with no
apparent signs of progress. Mr. Trump says he plans to speak with the Russian leader in the near future, but he acknowledged on Thursday that he
had thought ending the war would be easier.
The US economy added just 22,000 jobs in August. That's far below the 76,500 jobs forecast. At the same time, unemployment ticked up 4.3 percent.
The jobs numbers for June were revised down to 13,000 job losses, ending a nearly five year streak of gains.
Tensions are escalating between the US and Venezuela over the American military strike on what the US claims was a drug boat in the Caribbean.
Eleven people were killed in Tuesday's attack. The Pentagon says that on Thursday, two Venezuelan military aircraft flew near a US Navy vessel in
international waters, a move the US called highly provocative.
And we're getting an update from US authorities on the massive immigration raid in Southern Georgia. Let's listen in now.
(BEGIN LIVE COVERAGE)
MEG HEAP, CHIEF FEDERAL LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICER, SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF GEORGIA: -- Service, Criminal Investigations, the United States Department
of Labor, the Office of the Inspector General, the United States Marshals Service, the Georgia State Patrol and Assistant United States Attorneys,
Tanya Groover, Ryan Bandura, Kelsey Scanlon and Greg Gilluly.
This outcome is the direct result of their hard work and commitment. Such an undertaking can only be accomplished through combined efforts, resources
and dedication of these agencies working together with a shared goal. The Department of Justice mission is to reduce illegal employment and prevent
employers from gaining an unfair advantage by hiring unauthorized workers and exploiting those workers.
[10:30:10]
This is an ongoing investigation and we are limited as to what we can discuss. At this point, I'm going to turn it over to Steven Strank to give
more information on the matter. Thank you, Steve.
STRANK: Thank you, Meg. Good morning and thank you all for coming. My name is Steven Strank. I'm the Special Agent in charge of Homeland Security
Investigations for the State of Georgia and Alabama.
Yesterday, Homeland Security Investigations, in coordination with our law enforcement partners, executed a judicial search warrant as part of an
ongoing criminal investigation into allegations of unlawful employment practices and serious federal crimes. This operation underscores our
commitment to protecting jobs for Georgians and Americans, ensuring a level playing field for businesses that comply with the law, safeguarding the
integrity of our economy and protecting workers from exploitation.
The investigation resulted in the arrest of 475 individuals, and is focused on ensuring accountability for those who violate the law and uphold the
rule of law. Complex cases like this require strong collaboration and extensive investigative efforts. We extend our gratitude to ICE Enforcement
and Removal Operations, the United States Department of Labor, Office of Inspector General, FBI, DEA, Customs and Border Protection, ATF, IRS, US
Marshals and the Georgia State Patrol for their invaluable support.
Each agency contributed specialized experience that was critical to the success of this lengthy operation. Together, we are sending a clear and
unequivocal message that those who exploit our workforce, undermine our economy and violate federal laws will be held accountable.
I'd like to add that this was not a immigration operation where agents went into the premises, rounded up folks and put them on buses. This has been a
multi month criminal investigation where we have developed evidence, conducted interviews, gathered documents and presented that evidence to the
court in order to obtain a judicial search warrant. Yesterday, we executed that search warrant and gathered additional evidence that will support this
investigation.
There are no criminal charges being announced today, but this is an ongoing matter. While were on the premises, we did encounter many hundreds of
individuals. Of those, as I previously mentioned, 475 were illegally present in the United States or in violation of their presence in the
United States, working unlawfully who have entered through a variety of different means into the United States.
Some that illegally crossed the border into the United States, some that came in through visa waiver and were prohibited from working, some that had
visas and overstayed their visas. And each individual was questioned on their status. Their documents were checked, their backgrounds were checked.
And ultimately through coordination of our experts and attorneys in the background, those that were found to be illegally present were then
detained and turned over to ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations Custody.
But this is all in furtherance of the ongoing investigation where we are looking at employment practices. We made seizures yesterday as part of that
to gather additional evidence and conducted interviews and are continuing this ongoing investigation. We will take some limited questions at this
time.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Of the 475, how many were Korean nationals? The Korean media reporting as many as 300.
STRANK: There was a majority of Korean nationals from the 475. I don't have the exact nationality breakdown for you but we can likely get that after
the fact.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Were these employees of HL-GA Battery? Were they employees of construction contractors that were doing construction work on
the site? Who they work for?
STRANK: As we had determined through our investigation in advance, and certainly experienced yesterday, there was a new network of subcontractors
and subcontractors for the subcontractors there. So the employees worked for a variety of different companies that were on the site. It was not just
the parent company but also subcontractors, and we're unveiling that whole network.
[10:35:03]
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: But some of them were for the parent company, is that right? The battery, HL-GA.
STRANK: Yes. We continue to work on the investigation of who exactly worked for what companies.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Where are these 475 people now?
STRANK: They are in the custody of ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations. Most were brought to the Folkston D. Ray facility last night and they will
be moved based on their individual circumstances beyond that.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, ma'am.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: WTOC has been investigating and reporting on the presence of undocumented workers on the site for about a year now. And so,
this has kind of been something that's been known to some extent in the local community. What is it that prompted Homeland Security investigations
to look into this?
STRANK: Yes. We are aware and we have monitored that reporting as well. We have also received many leads from community members from prior workers. We
have conducted many arrests through immigration operations throughout the state of Georgia.
Employees that when encountered, informed us that they worked there. We have interviewed folks and we have developed evidence over the course of
many months in support of the investigation.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: What are some potential consequences that the company could face? Or is that something you can speak to right now?
STRANK: I don't want to speculate on ultimate. This is an ongoing investigation. No charges have been filed. So that means that no wrongdoing
is being accused at this time.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I have a question. Was anyone injured during the process? Did anyone die during the process of this raid?
STRANK: There were no substantial uses of force. There were no injuries reported other than one individual was overheating a little bit and was
treated on scene. And one agent suffered a minor laceration while conducting it, but no significant injuries.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: OK. And then during the process, you said this was a multi month process. But can you kind of, I guess, give a -- how many
months did it take? I guess that's my question.
STRANK: This has been ongoing throughout this year.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: So can we say January?
STRANK: I don't have the exact start date of the investigation.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: How does this operation compare to other operations in the state of Georgia and across the nation? Was this one of the largest
ones or can you kind of give us an idea of how big this was?
STRANK: This, in fact, was the largest single site enforcement operation in the history of Homeland Security investigations.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Any last question?
STRANK: Across the country, yes.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Last question.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes. Did HL-GA battery, did they use e-verified in their --
STRANK: I don't want to answer for them.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: One quick one.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Is there any evidence of labor trafficking at this point?
STRANK: That is something that is always part of our investigations when we're doing employment investigations. As I've indicated there have been no
charges filing but it is certainly something that we will be looking for.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: OK. Thank you, folks. Appreciate it. We can handle any follow-ons after the fact, OK?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Thank you sir.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Thank you very much.
(END LIVE COVERAGE)
MACFARLANE: That was ICE Homeland Security there providing details over the immigration raid that happened at the Hyundai plant in Georgia yesterday
involving 475 people, the largest single site investigation of ICE in the US. And we will be back with more news after this quick break. Stay with
us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[10:40:51]
MACFARLANE: A top European official is slamming the EU over its inability to stop what she calls Israel's genocide in Gaza. Take a listen to what the
European Commission's executive vice president told students in Paris.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TERESA RIBERA, EXECUTIVE VICE PRESIDENT, EUROPEAN COMMISSION: The genocide in Gaza exposes Europe's failure to act and speak with one voice even as
protests spread across European cities and 14 United Nations Security Council members called for an immediate ceasefire.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MACFARLANE: In Gaza City overnight, a hospital reports that an Israeli airstrike killed at least a dozen people, including seven children. CNN's
Jeremy diamond is back with us this hour.
And Jeremy, the images coming out of Gaza City from overnight are deeply distressing. Just talk to us more about what you're hearing about that
siege.
JEREMY DIAMOND, CNN REPORTER: Yes, without a doubt about it. I mean, we are watching as the Israeli military is intensifying its airstrikes and its
artillery shelling of Gaza City, and also beginning to move ground troops and ground forces into that city now controlling about 40 percent of Gaza
City, according to the Israeli military. But they have not yet entered the densest city center area in the center of the city where the majority of
Gaza's city's population of nearly 1 million people is still remaining.
And we have not seen the kind of enormous movement of people yet. But we do expect that up to a million people could now be at risk of displacement.
Now, overnight we saw the aftermath of some of these intensified airstrikes. More than a dozen people were killed in Gaza City alone. And of
those people, seven, at least seven of these people who were killed were children.
We saw in videos from rescue workers around some of these strike sites, the bodies of small children, some dead, some injured, being taken out on
stretchers. Just devastating scenes, including one video that really struck me where we saw a toddler who was wearing Christmas pajamas who was dead as
a result of one of these strikes.
Now, across Gaza altogether, 69 people were killed, according to the Palestinian Health Ministry. And we also saw that many of the injured
suffered serious burn situations scenes as well. Now, I do want to also talk about the Israeli hostages who are still being held in Gaza because
we've just seen a new video from Guy Gilboa-Dalal, who is one of the hostages being held by Hamas in Gaza.
And in this video, quite remarkably, you see him actually above ground in a vehicle being driven around several locations in Gaza City, which is not
something that we have really seen very often before. And in the video, he talks about this Israeli military assault on Gaza City and he says that
this idea is giving him nightmares. Listen to some of what he said.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GUY GILBOA-DALAL, HOSTAGE IN GAZA (through translation): My name is Guy Gilboa-Dalal, the prisoner held by al-Qassem brigades in Gaza City. Today
is Thursday, August 28, 2025.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
DIAMOND: And that is, as you can see, a portion of that hostage video. Guy Gilboa-Dalal also says that there are eight other hostages being held in
Gaza City, and that their captors have told them that they will not be leaving Gaza City even as the Israeli military closes in.
Now, we obviously cannot independently confirm those figures, and it's important to note that this is a hostage video. And by the nature of it,
Guy Gilboa-Dalal is indeed speaking under duress.
We also see another hostage, Alon Ohel, being seen in that video as well. But there's no question that what he is talking about here speaks directly
to so many of the fears and anxieties of the families of these hostages that we have heard in countless protests over the last couple of weeks. And
that is the fear that this new military offensive into Gaza City will put the lives of the hostages at risk.
[10:45:07]
It is something that the Israeli military's high command has also warned the Israeli government that risk is indeed very much there. And that's why
we have seen this protest movement really ramping up in Israel over the course of the last couple of weeks, as people feel like this is a last
opportunity to urge this Israeli government to take the ceasefire and hostage release deal that is on the table rather than moving forward with
this assault.
But the Israeli government does seem committed to doing just that, to moving forward with this assault. As the Israeli Defense Minister says, the
gates of hell are now being opened in Gaza City.
MACFARLANE: We will, of course, continue to follow this closely. Jeremy Diamond, for now, thank you. Belgium has said it will recognize Palestinian
statehood this month at the United Nations General Assembly. Becky Anderson spoke to Belgium's Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister about the
decision. And she began by asking him about Israel's accusation that recognition for Palestine is a reward to Hamas and an accusation he
rejected.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MAXIME PREVOT, BELGIAN FOREIGN MINISTER AND DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER: We have decided to formally recognize with judicial effects and legal effect the
state of Palestine only when holding hostages will be released and with no more Hamas in the governance of Palestine, especially in order to avoid any
kind of reward to terrorists.
So it's clearly the opposite, of course, when we take a decision in favor of international law, first of all, and also in favor of humanitarian law
and in favor of the Palestinian people. I know that Israel government will not implode us, but it is really important to make distinction.
BECKY ANDERSON, CNN ANCHOR: Well, if you do not have the support of the US for recognizing Palestinian statehood, and Israel dismisses the move as
emboldening Hamas and is bent in direct response to this move by your country and others on annexing the occupied West Bank. I'm really
interested in what you believe is the actual real world impact of your move, particularly and most importantly for Palestinians will be.
PREVOT: You know, the answer of the Israeli government should not be to do worse, and that's today. Today they are already clear violation of
international law. So it's also for preserving the capabilities in the future to have a two state solution with security for both people, Israeli
population but also the Palestinians, that we absolutely need to stop those wishes of expansion and creation of new illegal settlements.
And it's why we've decided to take also different actions in order to sanction Israel with economic measure, but also a consular measure or
persona non-grata for violent settlers, but also leaders of the Hamas. And in order to avoid any misunderstanding, we have also clearly decided to
reinforce hold the measures taken by our security services in order to fight anti-Semitism.
So there is no doubt about the fact that for us we do not intend to sanction the Israeli people and neither the Jewish community but only the
way the current government of Mr. Netanyahu is acting against the international law.
ANDERSON: The pressure on this apart from the symbolism and you've already described this move in New York end of the month to recognize Palestinian
statehood as a political diplomatic move. What does it actually achieve in real terms for Palestinians to your mind?
PREVOT: Not a direct effect, frankly speaking, because we know that if we want to give humanitarian hate to the people, who are starving on the
ground, it's not the issue related to the recognition of Palestinians that will have a direct effects, but it is really symbolically important from a
politic point of view to say with all the countries in the line of the New York Declaration and the initiative leading by both Saudi Arabia and
France, that it is time to recognize the legitimacy of the Palestinians to have a state.
[10:50:12]
But it will not have direct effort on the ground now. It's why if we want to allow a massive distribution of humanitarian aid, we need to convince
Israel that it is really important to provide them with all the services. Cutting off any access to water, to food, to electricity is unacceptable in
a gains and the international law that's clearly a war crime.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MACFARLANE: That was Belgium's foreign minister speaking to our Becky Anderson. You are watching Connect the World and there is more after this
quick break. Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
MACFARLANE: The National Football League is back in action. The defending Super Bowl champion Eagles defeated the Dallas Cowboys 24 to 20 last night
in Philadelphia, in a highly anticipated season opener. The start of the season eagerly embraced by American football fans. The NFL is, hands down,
the most popular sport in the US in terms of TV viewership. And it appears that popularity is only growing.
So does President Trump have something to do with that? Or maybe Taylor Swift, whose fiance is playing in the season's second game tonight in
Brazil. Let's bring in CNN's chief data analyst Harry Enten for some answers.
You know, Harry, I think many would be surprised if it's President Trump fueling this popularity because as we know, he has come to blows with the
NFL many times in recent years since becoming president.
HARRY ENTEN, CNN CHIEF DATA ANALYST: Yes, I think that's right. And I think it's so interesting to note that during his first term, he of course, was
at war with the NFL, right, over kneeling during the national anthem. He wanted to get those guys off the field. It was a little race, a little
dirtier than that but I'm cleaning up for TV.
But it had a major impact in terms of the popularity of the NFL. You know, you go back to 2013 to 2016, the net favorability rating for the NFL was
plus 28 points. When Trump was at war at the NFL, look at that. It dropped 29 points all the way down to minus one point.
Now look, Trump has re-embraced the NFL. Look at that climb up to plus 28 points. And look at the partisan breakdown because I think it's just so
interesting to note how politics really does touch everything in the United States of America. And Donald Trump touches everything.
Net favorable views of the NFL, you go back to 2018. Republicans are minus 24 points. Democrats like the NFL at plus 19. Republicans hated it. But now
that Trump is back on the side of the NFL, look at Republicans plus 25 points.
Democrats are up as well to plus 34. But that's a 49 point rise. And then I'll just close out by noting this. You know we are saying record
viewership, NFL is really popular. Well, take a look at the Super Bowl viewership.
Oh my goodness gracious, where are we now? 128 million in February of 2025. That is higher than were at the beginning of the Trump administration, 111
million the first one. And again, you saw that drop during that first Trump term to 103 million when Trump was at war with the NFL.
But everyone's made up now. Everyone's doing beautifully. All partisan stripes in America love the NFL. And I will just end by saying this. My
Buffalo Bills are taking on the Baltimore Ravens on Sunday night. And this is finally the year we go all the way.
[10:55:01]
MACFARLANE: I wish you luck, my friend.
ENTEN: Thank you.
MACFARLANE: I really do. Interesting to hear that US President just going to be attending the Men's US Open final this weekend as well. So let's see
if it has all the place similar impact on tennis, Harry. Appreciate it. Thank you.
ENTEN: Thank you.
MACFARLANE: Now, 102-year-old man has become the oldest person to reach the summit of Mount Fuji. He said he almost gave up halfway to the top, but he
managed to keep going with the help of his family. He was climbing with his 70-year-old daughter and friends from his hiking club. I mean look at him
here, that maybe the coolest part of all of this. The man actually just beat his own world record for conquering Japan's most famous mountain.
He previously did the climb when he was just 96. He says now he's hanging up his hiking boots for good. There really is no excuse for the rest of us,
is there? I mean look at him, an incredible achievement.
And that is it for us here at Connect the World. Stay with CNN. One World is up next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
END
