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Ousted Ukrainian Defense Minister Calls for Wartime Elections; IDF Admits Firing on Car Carrying 5-year-old Hind Rajab; Turkey and U.S. Condemn Israeli Strike on Syrian Air Base; Trump-backed Donalds Wins Florida Republican Governor Primary; Shares in Robotics Giant Unitree Surge 600 Percent in Market Debut. Aired 9-9:45a ET

Aired August 19, 2026 - 09:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

[09:00:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CHRISTINA MACFARLANE, CNN HOST, CONNECT THE WORLD: You're looking at a live view of vessel traffic in the Strait of Hormuz as analysis finds Iran's

grip on the strait appears to be weakening. It's 02:00 p.m. in London. I'm Christina Macfarlane. Thank you for joining us.

This is "Connect the World". Also coming up, ousted Ukrainian Defense Minister Mykhailo Fedorov calls for wartime elections in Ukraine. The

Israeli military is acknowledging for the first time that its forces open fire on a car carrying five-year-old Hind Rajab in Gaza.

And on World Humanitarian Day, we look at the growing dangers facing aid workers. 350 were killed last year alone. We'll speak to the president of

the International Rescue Committee, David Miliband, about why. But we begin with a startling request from Ukraine's ousted defense minister, after 4.5

years of war with Russia, Mykhailo Fedorov is calling for wartime elections.

This marks the biggest internal challenge to President Volodymyr Zelenskyy since Russia's invasion. In his announcement on YouTube, Fedorov said

Ukraine must revise its laws prohibiting elections during wartime. Listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MYKHAILO FEDOROV, FORMER UKRAINIAN DEFENSE MINISTER: We are facing a systemic governance crisis. The old system lives by its own rules too

often. It protects itself, fears change, makes decisions slowly, and may punish the initiative while rewarding loyalty.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MACFARLANE: Fedorov was fired in July, just six months after his appointment to the post. The dismissal exposed a bitter rift between

Fedorov and the Armed Forces Commander in Chief over their differing approaches to the war. Well, Orysia Lutsevych is Deputy Director of the

Russia and Eurasia Programme and Head of the Ukraine Forum at Chatham House here in London, she joins us.

Can you just explain, or begin by explaining to our viewers, as we hear this request from Fedorov, why there hasn't been elections in Ukraine since

2019?

ORYSIA LUTSEVYCH, DEPUTY DIRECTOR OF THE RUSSIA & EURASIA PROGRAMME AT CHATHAM HOUSE: Ukrainian Constitution prohibits having elections in war

time, and as the result of Russia's aggression against Ukraine back in February 2022, the parliament imposed martial law, which curtailed certain

democratic and civic freedoms because of the war.

So legally and constitutionally, it is impossible to hold elections for as long as Russian active war fighting, invasion, and aggression continues. So

that is why both parliamentary, presidential, and local elections have all been put on hold.

MACFARLANE: OK, so if it isn't possible to have the legal, safe, and sort of realistic mechanism to resume the democratic process, which is what

Fedorov's calling for here. Why is he doing this now?

LUTSEVYCH: Yeah, Christina, that's a very interesting question. First of all, it's important to understand the democratic process is much wider than

just elections, and there are other ways to improve institutions and fight corruption. Ukraine still maintains a functional parliament, government,

and active civil society as we see all these protests in support of Fedorov and also independent media, there's very active pluralism.

So, it's interesting why Fedorov decided to gamble, so to say, on the proposition that is unlikely to take place. Possibly, my explanation would

be he wants to ramp up pressure on Zelenskyy to create additional, you know, checks and balances on his way of governing Ukraine in order to force

him to expand the group of people who take important decisions and to actually commit to this very reform that Fedorov is promoting, efficiency,

speed, technological innovation, and accountability of Ukrainian governments.

MACFARLANE: Yes, it's an interesting perspective. I mean, Fedorov's ousting, we know, led to major protests across the country, though they're

still going on. How politically dangerous a moment is this for Zelenskyy? Do we know how he's polling in Ukraine right now?

[09:05:00]

LUTSEVYCH: Well, Zelenskyy, so far, is falling quite well, you know. He has over 50 percent trust amongst Ukrainians, and this is partially because he

has been quite successful in managing relationship with Trump, in consolidating a European alliance in support of Ukraine.

And most of all, actually turning the tide of war in Ukraine's favor by inflicting long-range damages on Russian economy, oil refineries, and

regaining some ground actually on land in the south, especially. So, he is not in such a weak position to completely bend to pressures.

But he has to explain and be honest with the society why he is taking decisions he is taking and why a successful manager and successful minister

such as Fedorov was has been ousted. It will not be easy conversation because over time Zelenskyy insulated himself from different political

groups and is increasingly relying on a small number of people around him.

MACFARLANE: Yeah. One other question is: much has been made of Fedorov's relationship with Elon Musk. Can you tell us more about that?

LUTSEVYCH: So, Mykhailo Fedorov comes from the tech community. He is from the very beginning of the war was reaching out to the Silicon Valley

because he understood the importance of digital, the importance of communications, Starlink, and he's been quite good in managing that

relationship, including beginning of this year, convincing Elon Musk on one hand, to disconnect connection of Starlink inside Russia that enabled that

favorable tactical situation for Ukraine.

And now he was also trying to convince Musk to allow use of Starlink for Ukraine's long range drone attacks inside Russia, which at this point we

understand Musk is not in favor. So, he positions himself in Ukraine as a person who can make -- who can create the tipping point in war by bringing

in technology on Ukraine's side, bringing people like Musk to back Ukraine's war strategy.

But you know this is so far has not been a case, especially for long range strike inside Russia.

MACFARLANE: Yeah, well, it's certainly an interesting and potentially very important moment in Ukraine's political spheres. So, we will continue to

watch this. Orysia Lutsevych, thank you very much. Now, Israel's military is now admitting, for the first time, it fired on the car carrying five-

year-old Hind Rajab in Gaza.

She pleaded on the phone for hours for help after her family had been killed in the car. A Palestinian ambulance dispatched to save her also came

under attack. Her body was found 12 days later. The IDF had previously denied involvement in her death in 2024. CNN's Jeremy Diamond is standing

by in Jerusalem.

So, Jeremy, what more are you hearing about this?

JEREMY DIAMOND, CNN JERUSALEM CORRESPONDENT: Well, this is indeed the first time that the Israeli military has admitted to opening fire on the vehicle

that was carrying five-year-old Hind Rajab, as well as six other of her family members. This is an incident, of course, that gained extreme

international attention.

And Hind Rajab, in many ways, became a symbol of the thousands of children who've been killed in Gaza since that war began in 2023. The Israeli

military's acknowledgement came as it announced that it has launched a criminal investigation into the killing of Hind Rajab and her family

members, as well as a number of other decisions related to preliminary investigations into alleged war crimes in Gaza.

In its statement, the Israeli military said that the findings of this initial investigation indicate that quote, IDF troops fired at a vehicle

that was approaching them, referring to this January 2024 killing. Now, this incident gained so much notoriety in part because of these absolutely

heartbreaking recordings of Hind Rajab's call with paramedics while she was inside this vehicle with several of her family members having already been

killed, pleading with paramedics to come rescue her.

Here is a clip of one of those recordings.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

HIND RAJAB, 5-YEAR-OLD GIRL KILLED IN GAZA: Come take me. Will you come and take me?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Do you want me to come and take you?

RAJAB: I'm so scared, please come. They are shooting at us. The tank is next to me.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Are you hiding?

RAJAB: Yes, in the car. The tank is next to us.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Are you in the car?

[09:10:00]

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Hello.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

DIAMOND: And two paramedics ultimately did travel in an ambulance to try and rescue Hind Rajab. That ambulance also came under fire, and two of

those paramedics were killed. Altogether, nine people who were killed as a result of this incident, and it took 12 days for paramedics to ultimately

reach the area where Hind Rajab was killed.

Her body was found inside a bullet-riddled car alongside her other deceased family members. Now, in addition to this incident, the Israeli military has

also announced that it is launching a criminal investigation into the March 2025 killing of 15 paramedics and first responders.

This was an incident that you may recall because initially the Israeli military said that it fired on a suspicious convoy of vehicles that did not

have emergency lights or headlights on. But then video emerged of the incident, showing multiple clearly marked emergency response vehicles with

flashing lights that came under fire from the Israeli military.

At the time after an initial investigation, the Israeli military acknowledged professional failures and said that the shooting, but that

there was no quote, ethical gaps, I should say. However, now the Israeli military is saying that this shooting quote, raises reasonable suspicion of

criminal misconduct, and so you see these two criminal investigations being launched.

The Israeli military declined to pursue criminal investigations in three other incidents that they released as part of this report today, including

the killing of seven World Central Kitchen workers in 2024 and two previous strikes on Doctors Without Borders over the course of this war in Gaza.

We will of course be tracking to see whether these criminal investigations actually result in any charges for any of the Israeli soldiers involved.

MACFARLANE: Yeah. Yeah, a significant move forward today, but as you say, will continue to track. Jeremy, elsewhere, the Israeli Prime Minister has

been breaking his silence about the Israeli attack we saw on Syria. What more has he been saying?

DIAMOND: Well, we first learned about these Israeli military strikes not from the Israeli government, but from the U.S. government actually. The

U.S. Ambassador to Turkey, Tom Barrack, who also serves as special envoy to Syria, he condemned these Israeli strikes on a Syrian military base in

northeastern Syria near the Turkish border, saying that this was an unnecessary escalation.

And then last night the Israeli Prime Minister's office acknowledging that Israel did conduct a strike, saying that it carried out this strike because

Syria was quote, on the verge of allowing a deployment of Turkish troops to that Syrian airbase. The Israeli Prime Minister's office saying that doing

so would have violated a security understanding between Israel and Syria brokered by the United States.

But the acknowledgement by Israel of this strike is that they said they believed Syria and Turkey were about to violate this understanding, not

that they had already. And again, the United States has condemned this strike as escalating matters unnecessarily.

The Israeli government, for its part, said that Israel will not tolerate threats to its security and would welcome a quote, return to the status quo

before I guess it carried out these strikes.

MACFARLANE: All right, Jeremy Diamond, there with the important updates out of the region, thank you very much for now. And new today, NATO is vowing

to do what is necessary to defend all allies. That's after reports that Iran is weighing possible attacks on U.S. military targets in Europe if

President Trump escalates the war.

At the same time, efforts to end the nearly six-month conflict appear to be at an impasse. President Trump says there are no talks underway, and

nothing scheduled. Iran's top negotiator, meanwhile, accuses the U.S. of squeezing Iran for concessions that he says were never part of the initial

agreement.

All of this comes as the fight over the Strait of Hormuz remains the biggest obstacle to ending the war. Iran says the critical waterway will

stay closed until the U.S. meets certain conditions.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MOHAMMAD BAGHER GHALIBAF, IRANIAN CHIEF NEGOTIATOR & PARLIAMENTARY SPEAKER: And let me make it clear, until America implements its commitments under

the Memorandum of Understanding, including lifting the blockade on the release of frozen assets, lifting the oil sanctions, ending threats and

military operations on all fronts, and other conditions that America has agreed to under the understanding the strait will not be reopened.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[09:15:00]

MACFARLANE: But new shipping data suggests Iran may be losing some of its control over the strait with more than 80 percent of traffic using an

alternate route maintained by Oman in recent weeks. CNN Business Reporter David Goldman is joining us from New York.

So, David, how significant is that 80 percent figure we've just mentioned, and does it mean that Iran has actually lost control of the state, or is

more accurate to say, you know, its ability to control or deter shipping has weakened.

DAVID GOLDMAN, CNN BUSINESS SENIOR REPORTER: Yeah, it's more the latter. I mean, when we're talking about things like open and closed, I think that we

need to use kind of loose terms because nothing is ever really fully open or fully closed in the Strait of Hormuz.

But what's really important is that we're seeing a significant amount of traffic travel along a route that wasn't really traveled for many, many

weeks. This Omani route, which is right here, this is the one that we're talking about right around the coast, in and out of the Strait of Hormuz.

Now, the route that Iran would like ships to use is right through here. This is the one that Iran has sanctioned. It's the one that Iran has told.

It's the one that Iran says is an acceptable route. Now, this is what just a few weeks ago we had seen just about all oil tankers transiting that

green route right here.

Now we're starting to see an incredible amount of traffic along that red route, or they're turning off their transponders. We believe that they're

going through this route, but we can't ever be sure if they're not telling us exactly where they are. Now, Iran has bombarded this route with attacks,

saying that ships aren't authorized to travel through this route.

But since we had the U.S. military re-enter the strait and start to patrol this route, ships are more willing to take that risk, and that is really,

really important, because we had 20 million barrels of oil transiting the Strait of Hormuz every single day before the war started, and 100 ships

that were going in and out.

That was a lot of traffic, about 20 percent of the world's oil traffic there. Now we're seeing fewer, right? So, 4 million barrels is what we are

able to track. Although the U.S. government says it's more like 9 million barrels, and when you add seven that's been rerouted, well, you get to

something that is a little bit closer.

Either depending on who you believe, 11 million that is what we can actually see, or 16 million according to the government that has eyes on

the water. Either way, it's less than that 20 million, but if we're starting to see increasing amounts of shipping traffic, which we have going

along that other route.

It means that at least Iran isn't fully accurate when it says that the strait is closed. U.S. saying that we have control of the strait. Well,

that's not totally accurate either.

MACFARLANE: Yeah, whose claim do you believe? But as you point out, I mean, you know, nowhere near where we were at the levels in early February.

That's great reporting, David. Thank you.

GOLDMAN: Thank you.

MACFARLANE: And you're watching "Connect the World". Still to come, President Trump's -- put to the test which of his picks won in Tuesday's

primaries and which came up short? The results are in. And Canada has been spared from a bruising 50 percent tariff on its U.S. exports at the 11th

hour. We'll explain why.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[09:20:00]

MACFARLANE: Welcome back. The results from Tuesday's primary elections in the U.S. are showing both the power and the limits of President Trump's

endorsements. In one of the most closely watched races, Trump-backed Byron Donald won Florida's Republican primary for governor on Tuesday.

Donalds faced 10 other candidates vying for the party's nomination. And Trump endorsed Ashley Moody, won Florida's Republican Senate primary

Tuesday. Moody's victory clears a major hurdle in her bid to serve the final two years of Marco Rubio's Senate term after he became Secretary of

State.

But three notable Trump endorsements fell short of winning on Tuesday. Congressman Cory Mills and Catalina Lauf in Florida and Wyoming candidate

for governor Megan Degenfelder lost their races. Analysts say the mixed election results provide yet another test of Trump's influence ahead of

November.

Well, President Trump has postponed a 50 percent tariff on some Canadian goods. He spared roughly 20 billion dollars' worth of Canadian imports just

hours before the measure were set to go into effect. Mr. Trump says the U.S. struck a deal with Ottawa, but Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney

says while substantial progress has been made, more work is needed.

This comes as the longstanding alliance between the U.S. and Canada strains under tit for tat tariffs. President Trump also hinted that the

controversial Keystone XL pipeline might be back on the table. The project, moving oil from Alberta to the U.S. was shelved by both the Obama and Biden

Administrations due to environmental concerns.

Let's get you up to speed and some of the other stories that are on our radar right now. A huge debut on the Shanghai stock market for Chinese

robot maker Unitree. Its shares jumped more than 600 percent during the first day of trading on Shanghai's version of the NASDAQ.

Unitary has captured global attention, as you can see here with its jumping, dancing, kung fu fighting robots. The Australian mushroom murder

case is back in the spotlight as three judges hear an appeal. Three of Erin Patterson's in-laws died after eating her beef Wellington laced with death

cap mushrooms.

The defense says some of the evidence leading to her conviction should not have been introduced. The prosecution, on the other hand, is arguing for a

harsher sentence. Britain's Queen Camilla is revealing how difficult it was to keep King Charles's cancer diagnosis secret.

She says she almost said something during a visit to a cancer support center days before the diagnosis was made public in February of 2024.

Camilla says her husband remained determined to carry on with his royal duties despite his illness. OK, you're watching "Connect the World".

Still to come, after one of the deadliest years on record for aid workers, I'll be speaking to David Milliband, President of the International Rescue

Committee, about his organization's work in the world's forgotten crisis zones. Stay tuned.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[09:25:00]

MACFARLANE: Welcome back. I'm Christina Macfarlane in London, and you are watching "Connect the World". Ousted Ukrainian Defense Minister Mykhailo

Fedorov is calling for wartime elections. This marks the biggest internal challenge to President Volodymyr Zelenskyy since Russia's invasion in early

2022.

In his address on YouTube, Fedorov said Ukraine faces a quote, systemic crisis of governance. Ukrainian law currently prohibits wartime elections.

Turkey has joined the U.S. in condemning Israel's attack on a Syrian air base. Benjamin Netanyahu says Turkey was planning to deploy forces from the

base in north west Syria.

The Israeli Prime Minister has been openly critical of Turkey, accusing its president of supporting Hamas. The Israeli army is ordering a criminal

investigation into the killing of Hind Rajab in Gaza. A recording of the five-year-old Palestinian girl desperately asking paramedics for help was

broadcast around the world.

It sparked international outrage, and the IDF now admits to firing on Hind and her family in their car in Gaza in 2024. President Trump has postponed

a 50 percent tariff on some Canadian goods, sparing roughly $20 billion worth of Canadian imports just hours before the measure was set to go into

effect.

He says this is because the U.S. is finalizing a trade deal with Ottawa. Now killed while doing their jobs, delivering food, medical care, and

shelter to communities where people have nowhere left to turn. Statistics show that aid workers are being killed at record rates. 350 died last year,

mostly in Gaza and Sudan.

According to the International Rescue Committee, these death rates are no accident. Continue to operate on the front lines of the world's most

dangerous crises because the people who need them have nowhere else to turn. In Gaza, in Sudan, that choice is costing lives at a rate we've never

recorded. Protecting them is the law.

Joining me now is David Miliband, President and CEO of the International Rescue Committee. Thank you so much for giving us your time today. And I

just want to kick off with what we've been saying there, that we are seeing record numbers of aid workers being killed, almost it seems, with total

impunity.

What do you think has changed about the nature of humanitarian work that it has made it so dangerous? And why is there so little accountability, as far

as we can tell?

DAVID MILIBAND, CEO OF THE INTERNATIONAL RESCUE COMMITTEE: Well, thanks very much for having me on. What's changed is very simple. It's not the

humanitarian work that's changed. It's whether or not actors in conflict, states and non-state actors, are willing to follow the rules that have been

established in international law over the last 150 years.

So, what we've seen is a breakdown of the political consensus that targeting civilians, including aid workers, is completely beyond the pale.

I'd make two points just to add to the very helpful introduction that you've done. The first is it's really important that people understand of

the 350 deaths, 349 of them, all but one, were of local staff.

These are people from Gaza, from Sudan, who are working for the benefit of their own communities in their own communities. The second thing to say is

that for me, one of the starkest examples of what's happening is that there are 10 attacks on health facilities every day.

This is something that has been particularly highlighted by the U.N. Security Council, and the fact that their resolutions are being disobeyed

speaks to the crisis, the global political crisis that we're facing at the moment and which the greatest price is paid is the health and humanitarian

workers at the sharp end.

[09:30:00]

MACFARLANE: Yeah, and we are facing a global political crisis, as you rightly point out, at the moment. You know, the needs have grown here.

Grant aid is diminishing. I mean, you've argued that the humanitarian system itself isn't broken, but it's governments that are failing here.

What are governments getting wrong right now?

MILIBAND: Well, the way I would summarize it is that there are more shocks, there are more conflicts, there are more climate shocks, which you've

reported on, but there are fewer shock absorbers. The shock absorbers are the aid budgets that you rightly said have been slashed.

One of the countries that has actually come out of conflict, Afghanistan, finds a situation where it's got 20 percent of its recommended aid budget

being funded. In Sudan, the world's largest humanitarian crisis, only 40 percent funded. That means that there isn't the food, medicine, support

that is absolutely essential to keep people alive.

So, there's a shock absorber. Second shock absorber is that the political commitment to diplomacy is in retreat. There are so many wars going on that

Sudan is off the agenda because Iran, Gaza, understandably get the coverage. Thirdly, I think it's important to say that the gridlock in the

U.N. Security Council.

Russia and China on one side, the U.S. on the other, often but not always, UK and France are left in a kind of hiatus, that gridlock in the Security

Council finds its humanitarian expression in the neglect of crises that are completely off the agenda. So, this absence of the shock absorbers is as

important as the increasing numbers of shocks.

MACFARLANE: Yeah, and you're right to point out. You know, we know that the U.S. is sort of one of the largest contributors in that fact, with the

cutbacks we've seen to USAID in the last year alone, but I also want to pull out one other example more closer to home for you and I, and that is

UK aid, which at this point in time is actually facing a dramatic cut, which I think is symptomatic of what we're seeing elsewhere.

MILIBAND: Yeah.

MACFARLANE: I think it's 40 percent of aid cuts that we're seeing in the UK to fragile states in Africa and the Middle East. I mean, I have to mention,

as your brother Ed Miliband has just become the newly installed foreign minister. Will you be advising him to reconsider this UK policy?

Why are we seeing this even in the UK?

MILIBAND: Well, you're absolutely right to raise it, and it's completely reasonable to do so. The U.S. is obviously the largest aid donor, or was

the largest aid donor. It was the anchor of the global aid system as well as the anchor of the global political system. But the UK played an

important role as well.

It was a thought leader as well as a funding leader and an operational leader. And that retreat, which started under the previous government,

continued under the government of my party. So, it's not a matter of me recommending to my brother. It's a matter of me saying to all members of

the government that it's short-sighted to think that problems far away will stay far away if they're not addressed.

And when I think about the hunger crisis that the World Food Program is speaking to. When I think about the malnutrition crisis that its

consequence -- is its consequence. When I think about 200 million kids who are not in education. We're storing up problems for all of ourselves, and

that's the extent to which what is sometimes seen as foreign policy actually has a domestic resonance.

Because, of course, people who are in need don't stay far away. They move, and this world of disorder that we're seeing is a connected world, and

that's a point that we make over and over again.

MACFARLANE: Yes, it's a good point. But it's one that the political elite are not passing on, are they? To the members of the general public, there's

definitely a lack of empathy. I think now that has arisen as a result of, you know, the refugee crisis as asylum seekers look to move away from areas

of conflict.

Just to get back, though, you mentioned Afghanistan. I want to bring that up because we did see on Friday, of course, the anniversary of the five

years of Taliban rule since they retook Afghanistan, and we know that country is facing a triple crisis of aid cuts. You mentioned climate

crisis, and millions of Afghans are being pushed to return home from Iran, from Pakistan.

How close are Afghan public services to collapse there, as you see it?

MILIBAND: Well, that's a very important point. I spoke to our team leader in Afghanistan last Friday. We still have 150 women, 250 men working for

the International Rescue Committee across Afghanistan. It's a desperate situation, not because there's a war going on, but because the rug has been

pulled from under the economy.

[09:35:00]

The aid was an important part of that. That's been slashed. American aid has gone to zero for Afghanistan. The World Food Program leadership in

Afghanistan have got an article in the Prospect magazine, UK magazine, just today about how they are now struggling to make ends meet.

They've suffered enormous cuts, and they're talking about those cuts leading to deaths from malnutrition as we speak. I think that the important

point I would make is that our teams around Afghanistan, who are made up of Afghans, are desperate for the world to remain engaged with Afghanistan.

They don't want it to become another North Korea, totally separated out from the rest of the world. They want it, the engagement, because that's

their route to building a more decent society at home, and my plea would be five years on, that we don't abandon the people of Afghanistan a second

time over.

MACFARLANE: Also, recently, just this week, we saw Jared Kushner and the border peace failing to get Benjamin Netanyahu, the prime minister, to

commit to the very first step of its 15-point roadmap to peace. What hope do you have that the badly needed humanitarian aid getting into Gaza is

going to get in, particularly when you know humanitarian aid here is being tied to peace negotiations?

MILIBAND: Well, I think I was on Becky's show, your show, when the Board of Peace's 15-point plan was published, and she said, what do you think of it?

And I said, it would be great if it happened. Now you're making the critical point that step one hasn't yet been achieved.

It's desperate that it is achieved. My own organization is working alongside others in the Gaza Strip. Obviously, the area that the 2 million

Palestinians are in has been squeezed. I think 60 percent now of the Gaza Strip is occupied by the Israeli Defense Forces.

We are desperate for the ceasefire to really mean a ceasefire, because obviously the death toll remains high on an ongoing basis, but we also want

to address the bureaucratic constraints that are getting in the way of aid flows. So, for example, some of our supplies are blocked on the grounds

that they could be used for dual use, for so-called military use as well as medical or other use.

We dispute that because we have very strong systems for ensuring that medical aid is used for medical aid. And so, the politicization of the

humanitarian aid system does have immediate human consequences, and we can speak to that from the suffering of the civilians who we are trying to

serve on a daily basis in Gaza.

MACFARLANE: And is that a point you're making to your Former Prime Minister Tony Blair, who obviously sits on that board and was part of these

negotiations this week, that it shouldn't be tied to these negotiations?

MILIBAND: Of course. Of course, we're absolutely clear that the legal right to humanitarian aid to keep people alive is absolute. It's not conditional.

It's an absolute, just as the right for civilians and for aid workers to lives and livelihood is absolute. Now we know that the ceasefire that was

achieved did lead to an increase, not just in the local economy but in aid flows.

So, there is a connection because, obviously, in situations where there's active conflict, it's much more difficult to deliver aid on an ongoing

basis. We're addressing medical aid, we're addressing malnutrition, we're also addressing the psychosocial impact of three, four years of war.

And of course, we make the point again and again that hitting the civilians through aid reductions does no good to the stability that's essential for

any kind of future for the region.

MACFARLANE: OK, well, David Miliband, it is very important to have you on today as we contend with these multiple crises happening across the globe,

many of them man-made. Thank you very much for your time and for telling us what -- effort.

MILIBAND: Thank you very much.

MACFARLANE: You are watching "Connect the World". We'll be right back. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[09:40:00]

MACFARLANE: Seven of the eight wild cards have been handed out for the U.S. Open tournament, which means one spot is remaining, and all eyes will be on

whether or not Serena Williams accepts that final place. Amanda Davies is watching this closely. Amanda, any ideas when we might hear on this?

AMANDA DAVIES, CNN WORLD SPORT: Yes -- Williams has been handed one of the wild cards, Sloane Stephens, another former champion at Flushing Meadows

has, and I mean we don't know whether Serena has been offered, but we presume she has. And if you remember in the build-up to Wimbledon, she

played it very coy, didn't she?

She left it very late, but ultimately said, if I've been offered this chance after four years away, why on earth would I not accept it? And you

have to think that will very much be the mentality heading into the U.S. Open. The question then, I guess, is, are we talking singles or are we

talking doubles?

That will very much be a fitness judgment call, you suspect. But after she announced that come back earlier this year, this is what many people has

felt it's been all about. So, we've got news on that and a suspension to perhaps one of the most colorful characters on the tennis tour, Nick

Kyrgios coming up in just a couple of minutes in "World Sport", Christy.

MACFARLANE: A lot happening in the tennis world. Thanks, Amanda. "World Sport" is up after the break. And I'm back with "Connect the World" in 15

minutes. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[09:45:00]

(WORLD SPORT)

END