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Isa Soares Tonight
Western Allies Push For Israel-Hezbollah Ceasefire; Southern U.S. Braces For Hurricane Helene; New York City Mayor Charged With Bribery And Fraud; Zelenkyy To Present "Victory Plan"; Biden And Zelenskyy Meeting At White House; Israel's Possible Lebanon Ground Invasion; U.S. Leads Ceasefire Push Between Israel And Hezbollah; New York Mayor Indicted. Aired 2-3p ET
Aired September 26, 2024 - 14:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[14:00:00]
ISA SOARES, CNN INTERNATIONAL HOST: A very warm welcome to the show, everyone, I'm Isa Soares. Tonight, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin
Netanyahu tells the military to fight with full force in Lebanon as he arrived in New York ahead of a speech at the United Nations General
Assembly.
This while the U.S. and its allies are calling for a ceasefire. We'll be live in New York, in Beirut, and in Haifa this hour. Then, a reality check
from Florida, and what has been described as an un-survivable storm. Hurricane Helene barrels towards the U.S. and it's likely to cause
catastrophic damage.
Plus, Eric Adams become the first city New York mayor to be charged with fraud and bribery. We'll have details from outside the courthouse. But
first, Israel says it has secured an $8.7 billion aid package from the United States to support its ongoing military campaigns. Yet, the U.S. is
also leading a new effort to broker a ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah.
The U.S., France, European Union and other allies are urging a 21-day pause in fighting, saying the situation between Lebanon and Israel has become
intolerable, Hezbollah has not responded. But Israel is rejecting the proposal, pressing ahead with new strikes in Beirut and beyond.
As it prepares for a possible ground invasion of Lebanon, Israel's Foreign Minister says there will be no ceasefire until residents of northern Israel
can return to their homes, and 60,000 of them or so. Well, the White House says it coordinated the ceasefire plan with Israel, it says it can't
explain the disconnect.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu meanwhile has landed in New York ahead of his speech tomorrow at the United Nations. Today, the General
Assembly heard blistering remarks by Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, and he urged members to stop what it called Israel's all-out
war of genocide against his people, saying Gaza is no longer fit for life. Have a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MAHMOUD ABBAS, PRESIDENT, PALESTINIAN AUTHORITY (through translator): Stop this crime, stop it now. Stop killing children and women. Stop the
genocide. Stop sending weapons to Israel. This madness cannot continue, the entire world is responsible for what is happening to our people in Gaza and
the West Bank.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SOARES: As Abbas spoke, more families in Gaza grieved the loss of loved ones. An Israeli strike hit a shelter in a refugee camp today, killing at
least 15 people, and that includes women as well as children. Israel says the building was a Hamas command and control center. One man whose
relatives were killed as two rockets struck the shelter, shaking it like an earthquake, sending body parts, he says, everywhere.
Well, we are covering these developments from all angles that you would expect. Jomana Karadsheh is in Beirut. Jeremy Diamond is in Haifa in
Israel, and Alex Marquardt is at the U.N. And Alex, let me start with you because roughly this time yesterday, you and I were talking about the
ceasefire proposal that U.S. and France, I remember you saying yesterday, were working feverishly on, right?
As Netanyahu prepares to address the U.N. General Assembly tomorrow, what is your sense of whether this ceasefire is looking possible at all? Because
in the last few minutes, we've heard there's a disconnect between the White House and what we're hearing from Netanyahu.
ALEX MARQUARDT, CNN CHIEF NATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Isa, it really does appear to be quite big, and we're trying to figure this out
because when the U.S. announced this proposal for a pause in the fighting, they made it sound like they were on the brink of an imminent ceasefire.
They called it an impressive breakthrough.
They talked about this as being a question, not if, but when, when the Israeli and Lebanese governments would agree to this deal? And then very
quickly, the Netanyahu government has made clear that they have no intention of ending the fighting, when Netanyahu landed here in New York to
speak at the General Assembly tomorrow, but he landed earlier today.
He said that the policy is clear. We continue to hit Hezbollah with all of our might. So, our colleague MJ Lee at the White House asked the White
House Press Secretary how to reconcile this, and they admitted that they don't really know where the differences come from.
[14:05:00]
Karine Jean-Pierre; the Press Secretary said the statement was indeed coordinated with the Israeli side. But yesterday, they were working on this
feverishly. There has been a real fear that this situation could escalate, not just in Lebanon, but in the broader region. And then last night, around
9:30, the White House very quickly announced this briefing call with reporters.
They explained what they had put together, not just in speaking with the Israelis and the Lebanese sides, but in conjunction with the French and a
number of other countries, saying that there was this plan in place for a 21-day pause in the fighting. The two sides had not yet responded, but they
had obviously been involved in the conversation.
So, there was this sense that this could happen. Now, it appears that, that may not be the case. Israel and the U.S. do agree that this will eventually
end with a diplomatic solution where there's an agreement with Hezbollah -- between Hezbollah and Israel, whereby the residents of both northern Israel
and southern Lebanon can go back to their homes and the fighting will end.
The difference is, the United States wants to get to that diplomatic solution by stopping the fighting now, and Israel is saying we're going to
continue fighting. And this is something we heard from Netanyahu for quite some time, that the military pressure, whether it's on Hamas or on
Hezbollah, is going to get those parties to where they want them to be.
So, it is clear that we do not have a ceasefire. The 21-day clock has not started counting whether or not the official answers from Israel and from
Hezbollah will come. That remains to be seen. We do know that Secretary Blinken and other top national security officials continue to work on this.
And that, that will -- there will be numerous meetings today ahead of Netanyahu's speech tomorrow morning at the U.N., Isa.
SOARES: And Jeremy, I wonder whether you can make any sense of the disconnect, and I just want to bring our viewers' attention from what we've
heard from the far-right Israeli cabinet Minister Bezalel Smotrich, should have probably shed some light in some of those pressures and their
thinking.
Let me read it out for our viewers just for a second, Jeremy. It says "the campaign in the north should end in one scenario, crushing Hezbollah and
denying its ability to harm the residents of the north. The enemy must not be given time to recover from the heavy blows he received, and to
reorganize for the continuation of the war after 21 days.
Surrender of Hezbollah or war, that's the only way we return the residents and security to the north and the country." That does not suggest any sort
of willingness, Jeremy, to consider a ceasefire proposal. So, speak to the forces at play and perhaps at this -- and the disconnect that we were just
hearing about there with Alex.
JEREMY DIAMOND, CNN JERUSALEM CORRESPONDENT: Well, there's only thing that changed between when the White House gave this briefing about these ongoing
ceasefire negotiations of which the Israeli government was clearly closely involved in the crafting of this potential agreement.
And when the Israeli Prime Minister this morning landed in New York and made very clear that there is -- they are nowhere close to reaching a
ceasefire agreement. And instead, saying that the Israeli military is going to continue this fight against Hezbollah. And the one thing that changed is
that in Israel this morning, there was a severe backlash against this -- these reports of a potentially imminent ceasefire agreement.
And it's not only coming from Bezalel Smotrich and members of the far-right of the Israeli government, it is also coming from some of the more centrist
figures in Israeli politics, Benny Gantz, a former member of this war-time cabinet, who is now back in the opposition, he made clear today that he
believes that Israel has exhausted diplomatic options as it relates to Hezbollah.
Yair Lapid, another centrist member of the opposition, he said that Israel should agree to a week-long ceasefire with Hezbollah, but not this three-
week proposal that the United States and France had put on the table. And so, what is clear is that domestic politics, as it has been, so often the
case, in particular, over the course of this war, is having an influence on the decisions that the Israeli Prime Minister is making.
And clearly, he has listened to the messaging from members of the far-right who are threatening to leave this government entirely if no temporary
ceasefire is put in place, as well as to other voices across the Israeli political spectrum who believe that right now what Israel should be doing
is smashing Hezbollah up, destroying its capabilities to continue firing rockets on northern Israel and potentially even doing so by sending ground
forces into Lebanon.
It is clear, however, that the Israeli Prime Minister has yet to make that decision to send ground forces into Lebanon, even as the Israeli military
is making very clear that forces are preparing for just that.
SOARES: Yes, very important context when what's happening internally, domestically there in Israel. Let me just go to Jomana, and Jomana, well,
there is a diplomatic push, as Alex was talking about there at the United Nations.
[14:10:00]
Lebanon continues to face more strikes with Beirut, I believe seeing what the IDF is calling targeted strikes. Just bring us up-to-date with the very
latest on the ground there.
JOMANA KARADSHEH, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Isa, this afternoon, the Israeli military said it carried out a strike in Beirut.
They say that they killed a Hezbollah commander. They say that he was the head of the group's aerial command. Now, Hezbollah hasn't confirmed that
yet.
We have heard from the Lebanese authorities saying that one person had been killed in that strike and several other people were injured. This took
place in southern Beirut suburbs, one of the most densely-populated parts of the country. And this was just one of many strikes as part of this
intense aerial bombardment that we are seeing taking place, mostly concentrated in southern Lebanon and in the eastern Beqaa region.
Health authorities are reporting that 60 people were killed, more than 80 others injured in the last 24 hours. It's really been very hard to keep
track of all these airstrikes because there have been so many, and Lebanese authorities, the government is saying that this is taking its toll on the
civilian population.
A short time ago, I sat down for an interview with the country's Health Minister Dr. Firass Abiad, and I started by asking him how he would
describe the situation in Lebanon right now.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
FIRASS ABIAD, HEALTH MINISTER, LEBANON: I think we are in a full-fledged war. There's no doubt about that. And you know, irrespective of what you
want to call it, you know, we have civilians, innocent people, women, children being indiscriminately attacked, targeted.
We have, you know, residential buildings being blown to smithereens. We have, you know, hospitals, ambulances, primary healthcare centers being
targeted. But this is war. There's no doubt about that.
KARADSHEH: This time, the people we've spoken to say that they are worried about seeing what is happening and has happened in Gaza repeat itself here
in Lebanon. Is that something you're concerned about?
ABIAD: Well, it's the same perpetrator, and it's using the same excuses. They're using the same weaponry. Of course, we are very much concerned.
It's -- we are concerned for our community. We are concerned. You know, we do not want to see the carnage that is -- that happened and has -- I mean,
happened in Lebanon nor did we want to see it. And that's -- and that's why I think it's imperative on the international community to take action and
to apply the required pressure on Israel to cease what it is indiscriminate attacks on civilians.
And the paper that was put forth by the U.S., by the G7, by the Saudi Arabia, Qatar, UAE, and which Lebanon accepted would have been a very good
place to start, but unfortunately, it seems that, you know, everyone is intent on finding a diplomatic solution to this conflict, except one party
that wants to continue with its indiscriminate attack on civilians.
KARADSHEH: So, do you believe Hezbollah would agree to that proposal?
ABIAD: Hezbollah has stated publicly that with a ceasefire in Gaza, all hostilities or all activities will cease. And you know, I think that even
if Hezbollah -- let's say Hezbollah was not on -- let's remove its excuse, let's remove this pretext and find out for, you know, what its true
position is.
But I think that the -- you know, the international communities' called for a ceasefire, and is the right place to start. Lebanon does not want war.
This is what they do, and this government has said, this is what the Lebanese population has said. And I believe that a diplomatic solution is
the right way out of this conflict.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KARADSHEH: And Isa, you know, we're reminded they are by the country's Health Minister saying that there is a diplomatic way out of all of this,
and that is a ceasefire in Gaza. Hezbollah has said that it will cease its attacks on Israel -- that happens -- we saw that back in November when you
had that very short week long ceasefire. They did stop their attacks.
The Minister, like many others in this region, believes that the United States can do more, that it can use its leverage to put pressure on Israel
to find a diplomatic solution out of all this.
[14:15:00]
SOARES: Yes, and we shall wait to see what comes out of this push, of course, the diplomacy push that we are seeing in New York. Jomana, thank
you very much, Jeremy Diamond as well as Alex Marquardt, appreciate it. Now, I want to go to Washington where Ukraine's President is about to meet
with President Joe Biden at the White House.
Volodymyr Zelenskyy is laying out his plan or is expected to lay out his plan for victory as we've been saying, over Russia, and pressing really for
urgent assistance from the United States. This may be his final chance to convince the receptive American President of his country's war objectives.
Mr. Zelenskyy will also be meeting separately with Vice President Kamala Harris later today. Kevin Liptak is at the White House with much more on
this. And Kevin, good to see you.
This meeting between both leaders really coming in the heels of the significant aid package for Ukraine, which I believe includes critical
weapons package, air defense, but no mention as of yet from what I saw of Ukraine using long-range missiles to strike military targets in Russia,
which we know is what -- something that President Zelenskyy was keen to get assurances from the U.S.
KEVIN LIPTAK, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Yes, and that's something that the two men will almost certainly discuss when they sit down in the Oval
Office. And I should mention, we saw Zelenskyy arriving here about 20 minutes ago, and we will see them sitting down in the Oval Office for these
very important conversations fairly shortly.
Although, we did hear from the White House just within the last hour that they aren't expecting an announcement on this long-range missile question
to come out of today's meeting.
And certainly President Biden, while he has seemed more receptive to that idea over the last couple of weeks, he hasn't given sign-off yet, and that
has caused some frustrations, not only among the Ukrainians, but also among some of the United States' European partners, with some members of the
President's own party on Capitol Hill, who are essentially saying there's no time to waste here, we need to provide every capability that we possibly
can to Ukraine in order for it to win this war.
And that at the end of the day is the big topic of conversation in this meeting at the White House, is how does this war end? What exactly is the
end game? President Zelenskyy is coming with what he calls his victory plan, essentially trying to say that yes, it is still possible for Ukraine
to win, no, it doesn't have to cede territory to Russia as part of that.
But it does need this urgent assistance and it needs it now, in order for it to battle back the Russian offensive. I think when you talk to American
officials who have seen parts of this plan, who have been briefed on parts of this plan, there is some disappointment that it doesn't necessarily
provide any kind of new strategic objective to win the war.
It contains a lot of the old requests for more weapons, for more assistance, for more capabilities, but I think there is a degree of
disappointment that it doesn't have more strategy involved in it. Now, we should say we haven't seen the precise details of this victory plan yet.
They have been fairly closely-held.
The Ukrainians wanted to wait until they presented it to President Biden before revealing it publicly. But there is certainly a sense of urgency on
all sides of this to try and get something done, at least --
SOARES: Yes --
LIPTAK: Before November's election when support for Ukraine, American support for Ukraine is very much an open question.
SOARES: Yes, and that's exactly -- given what you've just said now, that's exactly what I wanted to ask you because of course, the surge of assistance
that we are seeing comes as U.S. faces an election at home.
And one -- you know, we've heard from one just this week, from one of the candidates, former President Trump basically saying just this week, we've
got to get out of Ukraine -- in fact, it might have been yesterday on the show, kind of my days are blurred into one.
Is President -- is President Biden here, Kevin, trying to get out in front of a potential Trump presidency here?
LIPTAK: Yes, and you can see that very explicitly in the package of announcements that he unveiled earlier today as part of this meeting with
Zelenskyy. He is directing the Pentagon to allocate every possible resource that it has already been passed by Congress before President Biden leaves
office in January.
Essentially, telling them to expend everything that they have available to them now before potentially a new administration comes in, when President
Biden leaves office. And you do see in that essentially trying to Trump- proof assistance from Ukraine. But at the end of the day, there's only so much that President Biden can do to make permanent the American support for
Kyiv.
President Trump has boxed actively, you know, denigrated President Zelenskyy in a much more active way just over the last several days, there
is no question that if he were elected president, support would change and certainly Zelenskyy knows that heading into this meeting.
SOARES: Indeed, and we are hoping -- waiting to see both President Zelenskyy and President Biden, of course, as soon as we see them, we'll
bring them to our viewers. And of course, Kevin, I'm sure we'll bring you into the conversation, so, don't go too far. Kevin Liptak there for us at
the White House, appreciate it, Kevin.
[14:20:00]
And still to come on the show tonight, we are tracking Hurricane Helene in the Gulf of Mexico, we're live in Florida with the latest on the storm, as
well as the millions who will be impacted. And then later, the headlines may have shifted to Lebanon, but deadly Israeli strikes are still
devastating Gaza, why some people there say they've lost all hope fearing the world will forget them. We'll bring you both those stories after this
very short break. You are watching CNN.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SOARES: Welcome back, we are following the looming threat of Hurricane Helene. The storm is quickly intensifying and forecast become one of the
largest storms in the Gulf of Mexico. Just in the last century, 86 million people across five states are under Hurricane as well as tropical storm
warnings.
Helene could bring extensive flooding as well as wind right across the Florida Peninsula up towards Georgia and even Tennessee. And just a short
time ago, FEMA urged everyone in the southeast to take Helene seriously and prepare. Have a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DEANNA CRISWELL, ADMINISTRATOR, FEMA: I just want everybody to know that this is going to be a multi-state event with the potential for significant
impacts from Florida all the way to Tennessee. We're already seeing impacts in Florida, and the forecast indicates that we could see up to 20 feet of
storm surge.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SOARES: Well, let's bring in CNN meteorologist Derek Van Dam, he's live in Apalachicola in Florida. And Derek, we are hearing Helene could bring
really, truly devastating storm surge there. Just give us a sense of what you are seeing on the ground. I can see it's incredibly wet as well as
windy.
DEREK VAN DAM, METEOROLOGIST: Isa, you can't mess around with 20 feet of storm surge, I mean, that is well over triple my height here where we're
anticipating 10 to 15 feet of storm surge potential as Helene makes her approach into this area, the big bend of Florida is what we call the Nature
Coast.
We're facing right now a litany of hazards for this area, we're currently under a flash flood warning, we have a tornado watch very near us. We have
a storm surge warning and a hurricane warning obviously, as Helene makes her approach. We do expect a landfall in hurricane just to our east later
this evening.
Now, this area has seen so much rain, and I think this is going to be such a big part of the story, is just the potential for flooding, not only from
storm surge, but the inland flooding.
[14:25:00]
You heard the FEMA director talk about how this is a multi-state impact storm, just kind of step in on some of the grounds here, very saturated,
we've had over 175 millimeters of rain over the past day and a half. So, everything is very wet, and the bulk of the storm hasn't even arrived, and
that is why residents here who are under a mandatory evacuation boarded up their homes and put up the hurricane preparations, including these sandbags
to try and prevent any amount of water to come in.
But this just might be a futile effort considering some of the projected levels of storm surge and flash flooding that we could receive here. I do
want to talk about these immediate threats, because this is a very rare event from the Weather Prediction Center, calling for a high risk of
excessive rainfall that could lead to flash flooding.
And I want to highlight this area that you see in purple, stretching from Apalachicola where I'm located through Tallahassee into the Atlanta metro,
all the way to Asheville, North Carolina. This is an area where some of the weather services are talking about an unprecedented amount of rainfall in
the modern era, never seen before in the modern era.
This is going to be a big part of this storm system, meaning the catastrophic flooding potential with this system, because what's happening
is we're getting this pre-event before the arrival of the actual hurricane there, the storm is running into a cold-front, and that cold front is
basically just drawing in all the moisture across the southeastern U.S.
So, it has been raining for 36 hours in places that haven't even gotten the brunt of the heaviest of precipitation. So, we are already under a flash
flood warning here, like I mentioned, Apalachicola northward through the Florida Panhandle, but there is certainly more rain to come, the potential
for waterspouts exists as well.
A hundred and twenty mile-per-hour storm, that is just a few miles per hour shy of a Category 3, just shy of a major hurricane. And you could see it's
about 200 miles to the south of Apalachicola and it's getting its act together. It's still got a lot of warm water ahead of it, the storm is not
only strengthening, but it's amplifying, ballooning in size as well.
And this may go down, Isa, as one of the largest storms in modern record keeping for the Gulf of Mexico. So, that gives you an example of just how
far outside the center this impact of the storms will be felt. Atlanta, Asheville, this will bring tropical storm force winds, but that
catastrophic flooding we're really concerned about.
SOARES: Yes, really incredibly dangerous, 86 million people across several states, four or five states, I should say under these storm --
VAN DAM: Huge --
SOARES: Warning. Stay safe Derek, everyone heed the calls, it's really important.
VAN DAM: Thank you --
SOARES: I appreciate Derek Van Dam there for us. And still to come tonight, Israel is rejecting proposed ceasefire with Hezbollah in Lebanon, even
though the White House says it was coordinated with the Israeli side. What is going on? We'll try to get to the bottom of it.
And while the world's attention has shifted to Lebanon, Palestinians in Gaza still living under constant bombardment. The latest from the ground
just ahead for you.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[14:30:00]
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SOARES: Welcome back everyone. Let me take you to Washington because as I told you, to the last 30 minutes or so, we are expecting to see President
Biden and President Zelenskyy -- as President Zelenskyy Meets with President Biden at the White House. We have been, for the last few days,
waiting to hear from President Zelenskyy as he presents his victory plan. Very few details in terms of what's in that victory plan.
But in the last few days, in fact, we've got sound right now from the president. Let's listen.
JOE BIDEN, U.S. PRESIDENT: And that's exactly what we're going to discuss today, now that Ukraine -- how Ukraine is going to prevail in this
conflict. And I see two key pieces. First, right now we have to strengthen Ukraine's position on the battlefield.
And that's why today I'm proud to announce a new $2.4 billion package of security assistance. I've also directed the Pentagon to allocate all the
remaining security assistance funding that has been appropriated to Ukraine, period, by the end of this -- my term, which is January 20. And
this will strengthen Ukraine's position in future negotiations.
Second, we look ahead to help Ukraine succeed in long-term. As you know better than anyone, we -- as we said at the Washington Summit, we have to
support Ukraine in its path to membership to both the E.U. and the NATO, and continue to make reforms to counter corruption and strengthen
democracy, which you're working mightily on right now.
We have to ensure Ukraine has sufficient capabilities, and I mean sufficient capabilities to defend against future Russian aggression. So,
I'm proud of the steps we've taken in our partnership on these fronts. Earlier this summer, we launched the Ukraine compact with more than 20
nations committed to Ukraine's long-term security.
And yesterday, with over 30 nations and the E.U., we launched a joint declaration of support for Ukraine's recovery and reconstruction, some of
it using Russian assets as well. And so, with both these actions, we're making it clear we stand with Ukraine now and in the future.
We've got a lot to discuss. So, let me close with this. These two elements are critical to how this war ends. Let me be clear, Russia will not prevail
in war. Russia will not prevail, Ukraine will prevail, and we'll continue to stand by you every step of the way. So, thank you for being here, and
the floor is yours.
VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY, UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT: Thank you so much, Mr. President. Mr. President, thank you for your strong support, for the decision that are
helping us protect Ukraine, Ukrainians as a whole. We deeply appreciate that.
Ukraine and America have stood side by side from the very first moments of this terrible Russian invasion. Your determination is incredibly important
for us to prevail. Yesterday, we had -- as you said, we had a G7 plus meeting on Ukraine's reconstruction with more than other (ph) country's
participating and it was a truly helpful format. We must restore normal life and we greatly value your leadership, Mr. President.
We also have 26 bilateral security agreements with partners based on the G7 security declaration. We have a strong security agreement with United
States and we are grateful for it and we will fully implement it. And it's very important that we share the same vision for Ukraine's security future
in the E.U. and NATO. And Ukraine is doing unprecedented number of reforms on this path.
Today, we have a new support package, $7.9 billion. This will be a great help. And I raised with President Biden the plan of victory. Today, we are
preparing to discard the details to strengthen the plan, coordinate our positions, views, and approaches. Our teams will work together to ensure
that implementation of our future steps.
[14:35:00]
And today in the morning, I've met with both Senate and the House, and thank you for the unwavering bipartisan support and to all American people.
Together we have to win, and we will win. Thank you.
SOARES: Well, you have been hearing that President Biden and President Zelenskyy making some remarks ahead of their meeting, being peppered with
questions, but clearly, as you saw from journalists, not taking any. Let me give you a sense of what we heard, in case you just missed half of it.
From President Biden, first of all, ending there, saying we stand with Ukraine now and in the future. Making the message very clear, Russia will
not prevail. And he said how -- he talked -- gave a couple of points on how he thinks -- how the U.S. thinks the U.S. -- the Ukraine can prevail. One,
strengthen the position of Ukraine, he said, on the battlefield. $2.4 billion dollars of security assistance going to Ukraine. All security
funding also aligned to Ukraine by the end -- all the way to the end of his term. That's January 20th.
And he said, and looking at ways that Ukraine can succeed in the long-term, that is NATO membership, securing NATO memberships, the E.U. membership.
But clearly, President Biden insisting again, once again, on the need for reforms from Ukraine.
And then, President Biden talked about some of the declarations and the support from nations, saying 30 nations have joined -- a joint declaration
of support for Ukraine, and that is in terms of reconstruction, in terms of the funding for that. Some of the money he said, we'll be using Russian
assets to use for that reconstruction.
And from President Zelenskyy, as you had very brief comments there ahead of their meeting, closed door meeting, thanking the United States for their
support, thanking America and President Biden, particularly for his leadership and for standing side by side with President Zelenskyy. We value
your leadership. And we share the same vision for Ukraine's future, talking about unprecedented reforms they -- that they are taking place right now in
Ukraine.
And of course, this comes on the heels of that significant package we had in the last 24 hours from the United States. And it also comes as we wait
to hear that victory plan from President Zelenskyy, that we have very little details on but we have been hearing from many guests on the show,
including military analysts, that they expect that long-range missiles -- expect long-range myths to be used deeper inside Ukraine -- inside Russia,
pardon me, and wanting that green light from the United States.
We don't know if that's part of the plan, but that is one of the assurance that President Zelenskyy is hoping to get out of President Biden, in a key
-- critical U.S. election this year. We'll continue monitoring that meeting as soon as there are any more developments, we'll -- of course, we will
bring them to you.
In the meantime, though, I want to return to our top story, and that is Israel's biggest backer, United States, is leading a new push, as we have
told you at the top of the show, for a 21-day ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah in Lebanon. But Israel is rejecting it, pressing ahead with new
strikes in Beirut and beyond as it prepares for a possible ground invasion.
Israel's foreign minister says there will be no ceasefire until residents of Northern Israel can return to their homes. Hezbollah hasn't responded to
the proposal, but Israel said dozens of rockets were fired at its territory from Lebanon on Thursday morning. And with Israel's military shift to the
north and the world's focus on Lebanon, the war in Gaza isn't getting much attention, but that hasn't stopped the deadly bombardments.
Officials there say at least 15 people were killed and dozens more injured in an Israeli airstrike in Gaza. on a shelter for displaced civilians on
Thursday. The IDF claims the building was being used as a Hamas, quote, "command control center." Our Paula Hancocks says more on the ongoing
strikes. And we must warn you, her story contains graphic material.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
PAULA HANCOCKS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Another week of hell in Gaza. A mother and her four children were killed when their home in Al
Bureij was hit by an Israeli airstrike early Monday. Their uncle said it happened at 3:00 a.m. They were killed while they slept.
Another strike at a school sheltering displaced in Nuseirat Camp killed a couple and their 5-year-old child. Israel said it was a precise strike
targeting Hamas operatives. A man staying nearby says, these are the remains of the missile. They were innocent and displaced, sleeping in this
little room.
[14:40:00]
The next day, a drone strike in Al Bureij killed two children and 20- year- old twin men. Their father says they were sitting by the front door, looking at their phones. They were born together and killed together, he
says.
Children playing in the street were rushed into hospital. We have asked the IDF what the target of this strike was.
One little boy is treated on the hospital floor next to the body of a deceased man. No dignity allowed in life or death for the residents of
Gaza.
Dozens lost their lives this week, while thousands of miles away at the United Nations headquarters in New York, world leader after world leader
called for the war in Gaza to end.
A U.S.-led proposal for a 21-day ceasefire on the Israel-Lebanon border is also intended to jolt a Gaza ceasefire if it happens, but it's a big if.
Families of hostages still held in Gaza worry the fighting between Israel and Hezbollah is overshadowing their cause. Residents of Gaza fear they're
being forgotten by a world that has failed to end their suffering.
This man says, when the war on Beirut happened, we lost all hope. There's no focus on Gaza, it's barely mentioned.
This woman adds, Lebanon is full of our brothers and sisters. We stand in solidarity with them, but at the same time, we do not want the world to
forget us.
This man says, I don't think Gaza is forgotten because of the war in Lebanon, because the two are connected. Hopefully, they'll be resolved
together.
Since Hezbollah pagers started exploding in Lebanon nine days ago, more than 300 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza, according to the ministry
of health. No breakdown of militants versus civilians, but hospitals filled with women and children tell its own story.
Israel's shift in focus to its northern border feels no different on the ground in Gaza.
Paula Hancocks, CNN, Abu Dhabi.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SOARES: Well, let's discuss all of this with Daniel Levy, who joins me here in London. He is the president of the U.S./Middle East Project. Daniel,
welcome back to the show. Let me start on, really, what we're discussing at the top of the show. And there seems to be a disconnect between what we are
hearing from the White House and what we are hearing from Netanyahu camp.
This time yesterday, we were told that there was -- they were working feverishly, the U.S. and France, on this 24 -- 21-day ceasefire deal. Now,
we're hearing that the White House is unable to explain the Netanyahu disconnect. Why -- I mean, does that -- first of all, what do you make of
those developments? And what does that tell you about the state of the relationship between both sides?
DANIEL LEVY, PRESIDENT, U.S./MIDDLE EAST PROJECT: Well, what we heard last night, and it's on the White House website, is the senior administration
officials briefed the press, and they say, we've worked really hard, we've got the breakthrough, the moment's come, and the governments, the Lebanese
and Israeli government, will announce it in their own way.
OK. Fast forward to now, as you say, what has gone on? And it's easy to go to the place which says, you know, Netanyahu just takes enjoyment in
demeaning and embarrassing this White House. But I think there's another way of looking at it, which is he feels he so has them where he wants them.
After so many months where they have failed to exert any pressure that Netanyahu could treat something, which the White House works to bring its
G7 allies, works to bring its Gulf allies, it really puts itself out there and he can treat this as a trial balloon. Because I think for Netanyahu,
it's possible that this option was a decent option.
SOARES: So, you don't believe that Netanyahu is interested at all, and the signs that we've gotten so far is that they're not behind this plan, at
least we look at some of the far-right members, Smotrich, and they want -- they don't want the 21-day ceasefire, they want to continue to plow on. You
don't believe the Netanyahu's interest at all in the ceasefire plan? Because does that bring them any closer to their goal of bringing people --
bringing the 60,000 Israelis back?
LEVY: Well, it doesn't. And so what you could say is, Netanyahu, you know, may have been leading the Americans on a merry dance. But I do want to
entertain the idea that Netanyahu looks at this, and he knows Hezbollah have been degraded, but perhaps he's not drinking his Kool Aid, maybe he
is, but perhaps he understands that degraded is not incapacitated. And the Israeli home front is going to take a serious hit and will probably
continue to do so.
And therefore, he won't be able to return the 60,000 plus who have abandoned Israel's north. And he will find himself dragged into a ground
incursion, which is what the Israelis are talking about. And perhaps he understands that that ground incursion is where the equation, the balance
begins to shift again against Israel.
SOARES: Yes.
[14:45:00]
LEVY: And that -- in that scenario, the rules of asymmetric warfare, which work against the Israeli side, we've seen that in Gaza, we've seen not only
the hit to the military, Israel, you know, doesn't have an endless reserve of troops, the hit to the economy, out flight of capital we're reading
about now. So, all of -- for those reasons, maybe he would entertain this, but if he has a whiff that it causes him too much of a domestic problem, he
walks it back.
It could pass domestically. It's just worth noting that ideologically, his government is committed to the ethnic cleansing, the displacement, the
destruction of Palestinians. That stuff doesn't have to apply to Lebanon. It can, but it didn't have to.
SOARES: And what we are seeing play out in Lebanon and really in Gaza, it's kind of a -- we've been seeing kind of a split screen, in many ways, at the
United Nations, with several leaders -- you know, many western leaders, as probably you have seen, focusing on Ukraine, not all of them, some of them
bringing in the Middle East, but mostly in Ukraine, and some of the Global South, and those from Arab countries, focusing on what is happening in the
Middle East.
I want to play some sound, because that shows the divisions. Let's listen to this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KING ABDULLAH, JORDAN: The attacks of October 7th on Israeli civilians last year were condemned by countries all over the world, including Jordan. But
the unprecedented scale of terror unleashed on Gaza since that day is beyond any justification.
RECEP TAYYIP ERDOGAN, TURKISH PRESIDENT (through translator): In Gaza, not only, but also the United Nations system, the values that the west claims
to defend are dying, the truth is dying, the hopes of humanity to live in a more just world are dying one by one.
MOHAMMED BIN ABDULRAHMAN BIN JASSIM AL THANI, QATARI PRIME MINISTER (through translator): The blatant aggression against the Palestinian people
in the Gaza Strip today is the most barbaric, heinous, and widespread aggression, and a violation of humanitarian values and international
convention to norms. This is not a war in international relations in its well-known and common concept. Rather, it is a crime of genocide using the
latest weapons against the people.
GABRIEL BORIC, CHILEAN PRESIDENT (through translator): I refuse to choose between Hamas terrorism or the massacre and genocidal behavior of
Netanyahu's Israel. We don't have to choose between barriers. I choose humanity.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SOARES: And there are plenty more even from South America and Latin America. I wonder, as we hear from some of these leaders what you -- what
that tells you about, one, the Security Council and the need for reform, but also, the failure of diplomacy, the failure of leadership right now.
LEVY: And unfortunately, so much of that does come back to what we've been discussing, which is the U.S. And we will probably, in the future, learn
this example of the Biden administration Secretary Blinken, McGurk, Sullivan as maybe a low point in the failure of American statecraft,
American weakness, but people legitimately, I think, questioning what is America's real interest. Is this what they wanted to happen? And --
SOARES: Is there leverage waning, you think with Israel in the world? What do you -- how do you make sense of that? Because one guest was saying to me
yesterday that they haven't applied the pressures that they could have applied with Israel. I know this is something you and I have spoken about.
How do you assess that?
LEVY: There's two things here. Absolutely they haven't. Absolutely. Today, in fact, the Israeli Defense Ministry says thanks for another $5.2 billion
in defense aid. So, what do you expect Netanyahu to do when he knows he has you exactly where he wants you?
So, A, they haven't used that pressure. But, B, the rest of the world looks at this, and not only do they say, you are selective, not normative. Don't
come to us and tell us you have to align on international law. Look at what the International Court of Justice has said, look at the arrest warrants
requested by the International Criminal Court.
But the International Community outside, the Global South and others, also look at a weak America. An America that can't control its allies. And this
ally, in particular here, Israel, has gone off a cliff. I think people legitimately would say this is a nuclear armed state that has gone rogue,
and rather than rein it in, you are continuing to encourage it up the ladder.
Israel -- sorry, the U.S. Navy has six warships in the Eastern Mediterranean. The moral hazard lesson that sends to Israel, that if you
want to do what you want to the Palestinians and remove the constraints of the Axis of Resistance, Iran and Hezbollah, then America is there, liable
to be dragged in to this war.
SOARES: Daniel, really appreciate it. I mean, I was reading analysis by Alan Pinker exactly on this, quote -- if you -- anyone wants to read,
"America's exasperation when Netanyahu came too late." And it talks a lot about this and that kind of frustration --
LEVY: And exasperation is in a policy, is it, Isa?
SOARES: No, not. Daniel, it was great to see you.
LEVY: Thank you.
SOARES: Thank you very much.
[14:50:00]
And still to come on the show tonight, the mayor of New York City is indicted on federal criminal charges. What prosecutors accuse him of, and
how he is responding. That is still ahead.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SOARES: While New York's mayors facing charges of bribery, conspiracy and illegal campaign contributions, prosecutors accused Eric Adams of taking
improper benefits from wealthy Turkish businessmen and government officials for a decade. He's alleged to have accepted money and benefits, not only
for himself, but his political campaigns as well. Adam denies the charges and is telling New Yorkers to hear his side of the story. Have a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MAYOR ERIC ADAMS (D-NY): This did not surprise us that we reached this day. And I ask New Yorkers to wait to hear our defense before making any
judgments. From here, my attorneys will take care of the case so I can take care of the city.
My day to day will not change. I will continue to do the job for 8.3 million New Yorkers that I was elected to do.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SOARES: Well, I want to bring in CNN Law Enforcement Reporter Mark Morales. He joins us now from New York. Mark, great to see you. So, I mean, it's
impressive just to hear that Mayor Eric Adams is now the first sitting New York City mayor to face federal corruption charges. Just talk us through
what those -- what prosecutors allege here.
MARK MORALES, CNN LAW ENFORCEMENT REPORTER: Well, it's a treasure trove of new details that we learned today, and these are very serious charges.
We're talking five charges that all stem from wire fraud, conspiracy, bribery, soliciting campaign contributions from foreign nationals.
Now, these are very serious charges, but what exactly did the mayor do? So, Turkish nationals were basically paying for him to travel around the world.
First-class airline tickets, lavish meals, fancy hotel rooms. They were also giving him money that he could put into his campaign, which he would
do using straw donors, which is illegal.
And what they were paying for was they wanted somebody in their pocket. They wanted somebody, a prominent political figure in New York City that
would be able to do what they wanted him to do, basically, to get stuff done. And this came to a head in 2021 when they wanted to unveil the
Turkish embassy. But it was constructed in such a poor way that it wasn't able to pass fire department regulations, but that's what they gave Eric
Adams all these trips and money for. He's the one who leaned on the fire department in order to get this red tape cleared.
[14:55:00]
Now, let's put this into some bit of context here. Investigations happen to political figures all the time, and these things are very constant. But the
thing to remember here is that the position of mayor of New York City is so prominent and so important that a lot of eyes are on this, and it's very
significant when you have this position and somebody is investigating him and executing another round of search warrants. He says that he's innocent
and he's not going anywhere. Isa.
SOARES: Yes, I appreciate. I'll you'll stay across it for us. Thanks very much, Mark. Thank you very much.
Well, Hurricane Helene has now intensified into a dangerous Category 3 storm. And we continue, of course, to track it as it barrels towards the
U.S. Gulf Coast, as you can see there. Helene is forecast to make landfall in Florida tonight and cause pretty catastrophic damage. Right now, it's
southwest of Tampa. 86 million people across five states are on high alert. Be sure to stay with us as we continue to update you as it develops. And do
stay safe, of course, more importantly.
And that does it for us for tonight. Do stay right here. Newsroom with Jim Sciutto is up next in Tel Aviv.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[15:00:00]
END
