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Isa Soares Tonight
700 DHS Officers to Leave Minneapolis Immediately; Ryan Routh Sentenced to Life; African Men Lured into Fighting for Russia. Britain's Prime Minister Starmer Admits He Knew About Peter Mandelson's Ties to Convicted Pedophile Jeffrey Epstein Before He was Appointed to His Role as U.S. Ambassador; Ukraine's Chief Negotiator Cites Productive Trilateral Talks; Palestinians Describe Chaotic Scenes After Rafah Border Crossing Reopened. Aired 2:00-3p ET
Aired February 04, 2026 - 14:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[14:00:00]
MAX FOSTER, HOST, ISA SOARES TONIGHT: A very warm welcome to the show, everyone, I'm Max Foster in for Isa Soares. Tonight, a growing feral(ph).
Britain's Prime Minister admits he knew about Peter Mandelson's ties to convicted pedophile Jeffrey Epstein before he was appointed to his role as
U.S. ambassador.
Then trilateral talks were substantive and productive, according to Ukraine's chief negotiator. But the Kremlin is still saying it's all up to
Kyiv. So, are we really any closer to a deal? We'll go live to Moscow. And as the crucial Rafah Border Crossing between Egypt and Gaza reopens,
Palestinians describe chaotic scenes. That much more just ahead.
Starting with the dust settling on the Epstein files, one leader mentioned heavily in them is the U.S. President Donald Trump. Says it's time for the
American population to move on from this now, but there's still plenty of fallout from Epstein's vast web of connections that reached corridors of
power around the world.
Here in the U.K., the politician once seen as the savior of the Labor Party, is under criminal investigation. Today, Prime Minister Keir Starmer
said he regrets appointing Peter Mandelson as British ambassador to the U.S. He said Mandelson betrayed the country and repeatedly lied about his
relationship with Epstein.
Mandelson is accused of leaking sensitive government information to the late sex offender. Many powerful men outside government also appeared in
the files, including tech giant Bill Gates. In a new interview, he said he was foolish to spend time with Epstein and regrets even knowing him.
Gates hasn't been accused of any wrongdoing. U.S. President Trump, meanwhile, suggesting he was vindicated by the Epstein files. Friday's
release revealed newly disclosed unverified sexual assault allegations against him. It's unclear how many of these claims were investigated,
though he says the story has now run its course.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I think it's really time for the country to get on to something else. Now that nothing came out about me
other than it was a conspiracy against me, literally by Epstein and other people. But I think it's time now for the country to maybe get on to
something else.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
FOSTER: One U.S. lawmaker who helped force the release of the Epstein files responded to Mr. Trump on CNN.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REP. RO KHANNA (D-CA): You have 1,200 survivors who were raped on an island, working class girls who were raped. And you just want the country
to move on. You've got files released that show that some of the most powerful real estate names, powerful finance names, powerful technology
names were on this island.
And you want us just to forget about it and move on? What about the survivors? And then you've got your deputy Attorney General saying, well,
this is just men partying with Epstein, nothing wrong with that. I mean, it's so offensive, so callous. It just shows how immature, venal, corrupt
the elite in this country are.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
FOSTER: Let's bring in Stephen Collinson in Washington. I mean, he does have a point, doesn't he? Certainly, from the survivors point of view. How
are they supposed to move on from this when they've had no justice?
STEPHEN COLLINSON, CNN POLITICS SENIOR REPORTER: Yes, and obviously, that's an offensive comment from the President to many of them. I think the
issue now is where does this go next? At least, until -- and if Democrats win back the House in November's election.
Because unlike in the United Kingdom when you've got the institutions of accountability and investigation that are working. In the United States, we
don't have that. The Trump administration runs the Justice Department. The Republicans run Congress. So, the idea that the administration's feet are
going to be held to the fire on this, when they say they want to move on, it just doesn't seem very likely to happen.
So, then the question becomes, does there become a public accounting of people who knew Epstein were in contact with him, who socialized with him?
And I think the focus is starting to turn to that a little bit.
[14:05:00]
We saw yesterday, Melinda Gates said it was up to her former husband, Bill Gates, to address the mentions that he had in the Epstein files. And then
he came out today and was asked in Australia about that. And we can hear, I think, a little bit about what he said.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BILL GATES, CO-FOUNDER, MICROSOFT: Yes, I met Jeffrey in 2011. The focus was always he knew a lot of very rich people, and he was saying he could
get them to give money to global health. You know, in retrospect, that was a dead end. And I was foolish to spend time with him. I was one of many
people who regret ever knowing him.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COLLINSON: So, you're seeing Gates there doing what a lot of people have said, that you know, he didn't know anything about Epstein's alleged crimes
before he dealt with him. But now he regrets having spent some time with Epstein. And that's I think, very much a standard position from a lot of
the people who knew Epstein and who were mentioned in these files.
But I think the question becomes, for a lot of these victims and all of us who aren't in these high circles in New York and elsewhere, is how did
these sophisticated people not know more about what Jeffrey Epstein was doing? A lot of them were still in contact with him well after he emerged
from a prison sentence, after he had a sweetheart plea deal in Florida in 2009.
If you go through all of these e-mails, the mountains of these e-mails released last week, it's extraordinary. Now, this is not just a story about
you know, sex. It's a story about finance and networking and meetings. Epstein was at all of these international meetings all over the place,
talking to leaders and diplomats and politicians.
I think that is perhaps the next step in this story, as more people get called to account for their relationship with him.
FOSTER: Stephen Collinson, appreciate it, thank you. For more on the fallout here in the U.K., where much more seems to be happening really
around this case. We're joined by Ava Evans; political editor at "PoliticsJOE", thank you for joining us. I mean, you've had an interesting
day, haven't you?
Obviously, yesterday was all about lord Mandelson and how he was called out by the Epstein files. But today, actually, the debate around him continues.
But it's really the Prime Minister who is under pressure.
AVA-SANTINA EVANS, POLITICAL EDITOR, POLITICSJOE: Yes, the Prime Minister faced his weekly round of Prime Minister's questions in the House of
Commons chamber today. And to say that it was uncomfortable would probably be an understatement.
There's this very febrile atmosphere in Westminster today, and there are many backbench labor MPs who are extraordinarily uncomfortable with the
current Prime Minister and the relationship with Peter Mandelson that is being exposed in the Epstein files.
And just a little bit of context here. Peter Mandelson, if your viewers are not aware, was business secretary in this country in -- well, from 2008 to
2009 under Gordon Brown. And that was the exact time that he was in contact with the former financier Jeffrey Epstein.
And the e-mails that have come out show that there have been some -- I think it would be fair to say, de facto insider trading. There were
meetings that Peter Mandelson attended within Number 10. Immediately afterwards, he used a personal e-mail to relay that information to Epstein.
What he did with that information, we don't know. But passing on personal finance information or sensitive finance information in that way is
extremely provocative. I think, again, it's probably the least I could say about it.
FOSTER: Yes, and then we get to the point where he was, you know, he had an amazing bounce backs in his career, didn't he? One of them was getting
the job as U.S. ambassador. It was Keir Starmer that appointed him, which is where he's under pressure now because Keir Starmer admitted today that
during the vetting process, it became clear that Mandelson had an ongoing friendship with Epstein even after he was convicted.
EVANS: Yes, and that's what the opposition MPs here have laid down today. They've laid down something called a humble address, and this is an attempt
to force Keir Starmer to reveal the documents that were obtained during those security meetings before Mandelson was appointed to the position of
ambassador to Washington.
And there are many questions over why this was ever allowed to happen. Keir Starmer has said that Mandelson had played down his relationship with
Epstein. But I think that most of the public here know and are very angry because it was in the public domain at the time that he had a friendship
with the financier, and that's really what has got Keir Starmer on a -- on a sticking point at this time.
FOSTER: Yes, and he keeps talking about how Mandelson lied to him. We now know that that's pretty obvious. But that shouldn't -- you know, you
shouldn't be relying on the person you're interviewed to tell you the whole truth. You should be doing all the due diligence behind that.
You know, there are security services looking into these appointments every time, of course. But the question is, did Keir Starmer push for that or did
he just push through with this appointment because he felt that Mandelson was the right job, despite actually not being a career diplomat, which is
what many people expected of that job.
[14:10:00]
EVANS: Well, what Keir Starmer said today is that Mandelson lied about the extent of his relationship with Epstein, and to a point that it's true
because he didn't disclose to the security services. Well, from what the information we have now, it doesn't appear that he disclosed the security
investigation team that he had been offering financial advice.
And that is what the Metropolitan police over here in the U.K. are now looking into with Mandelson, is whether he breached the national security
by relaying that information. But what Keir Starmer did know is that he was friends with the former financier.
There are multiple photographs that were published before his appointment that proved that. And so, the question now really is morality question of
whether it was right to still appoint him, knowing he had that friendship, even though you might not have known the full extent of the financial
aspect of his relationship.
FOSTER: How vulnerable is Keir Starmer right now?
EVANS: Extraordinarily vulnerable. I mean, there is some real fraught anger. We're also heading into a period here of local elections which Keir
Starmer is expected to lose many seats, many footholds. He's expected to lose Wales, which is a Labor stronghold. It's held seats there for over a
100, nearly 120 years.
So, heading into those elections, there are many people around the Prime Minister who feel very frustrated. This could be the point at which someone
launches an attack on the Prime Minister and decides that there are enough MPs to corral a de-selection of his leadership.
That would take quite a long process, and I imagine that they would wait until the conclusion of the Metropolitan Police investigation before they
began that process.
FOSTER: It's interesting, isn't it? Looking at how the U.K. is dealing with this, do you look across the pond that America in some amazement, that
they don't -- they're not -- you know, a lot of the men named in these files aren't facing sanctions like losing titles, for example, and
certainly not being prosecuted.
EVANS: I think that there is certainly an interesting comparison. Keir Starmer has taken a lot more flack than say, President Trump has. It
doesn't seem to be dominating the news cycle in the way that it is here. I mean, here it seems extraordinarily febrile.
All we've spoken about for the last four days is Peter Mandelson, Keir Starmer and the former Prince Andrew, who of course, is throughout these e-
mails. I mean, he's sending probably the majority of them when it comes from the U.K. side. But Prince Andrew who has lost his title and he's been
now moved out of royal lodge, which is where he was living down in Windsor, which is sort of south east England.
And then Peter Mandelson has also lost his title or in the process of losing it, he's going to be expelled from the House of Lords after some
legislation is laid down. But certainly looking over the pond, I think it is rather questionable why it hasn't been as upsetting or news-dominating
as it has been here.
FOSTER: Well, there's been a lot of interest, obviously, in Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, and as you say, as we understand it from reporting
here, he left and he was -- you know, the released photographs weren't there, of him riding earlier in this week.
And he was smiling whilst his Epstein files dropped, which is seen as a very bad look. And then it appears that the king finally had enough and
said you've got to leave the royal residence now. It's interesting to see the king and the Prime Minister actually speaking with one voice almost
here, that we have to think about the survivors here and put their thoughts first and how all of this looks.
EVANS: Well, it's interesting actually, because that's the exact quotation that has been given to me by possibly nearly 15 Labor MPs today, which is
that the survivors really feel that they've been lost in this current cycle of the news about Epstein.
I mean, Prince Andrew certainly has dominated the headlines. There's also questions, actually, about why he was still living in royal lodge, why the
king hadn't moved into Sandringham. Earlier on, it was reported that he was going to be moved by the end of January, but it seems that he was still
living there.
So, it certainly feels that there was still a protection ring around him, that, you know, arguably, if you were a survivor of what has happened with
Epstein, you wouldn't be too pleased about reading.
FOSTER: OK, Ava Evans, really appreciate your time tonight, thanks for joining us --
EVANS: Thank you --
FOSTER: Poland's Prime Minister saying his government is looking into whether Russian Intelligence agencies may have been involved with Epstein's
operations. Donald Tusk; former President of the European Council says it appears it could have been a trap set to ensnare elites of the western
world. He says that could mean Russia has compromising materials.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD TUSK, PRIME MINISTER, POLAND (through translator): What could the future mean for all of us if we ignored, disregarded and pretended that
nothing is happening, when dozens, even hundreds of people at the top of government.
From the elites of the entire western world, participate in criminal activities, simply be left as it is. We in Poland certainly won't pretend
that nothing happened.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
FOSTER: Well, Mr. Tusk says Poland may ask its international allies to pursue a similar investigation as well.
[14:15:00]
Now, trilateral peace talks between Russia, Ukraine and the U.S. will resume on Thursday in the United Arab Emirates after talks began today in
Abu Dhabi. That says Ukrainian authorities say Russia launched its biggest missile and drone attack of the year, landing another devastating blow to
Ukraine's already battered energy sector and cutting heat to thousands of people during a brutal Winter.
Following the attacks, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy accused the Kremlin of not taking diplomacy seriously. He says the work of his
negotiating team will be adjusted accordingly. The Kremlin says the war will continue until Kyiv makes the appropriate decisions.
Last week, Russia agreed to suspend strikes on the energy grid and major cities for a week after what it said was a personal request from U.S.
President Donald Trump. The agreement ended on Sunday. From the White House, we're joined by CNN's Kristen Holmes. It's looking pretty delicate
this set of talks.
KRISTEN HOLMES, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Yes, certainly is. And one of the things to note is, President Trump was asked about this
increase in Russian attacks in Ukraine, and he essentially praised Putin for keeping his word for one week, and then said that after the week he
decided to go in with full force.
So, clearly making at least what seemed like some kind of excuses for the Russian President. But we know that there are two big issues that remain on
the table. And, Max, I don't know how many times we've had this conversation, but it has not changed in terms of what these sticking points
are.
They are territorial concessions by Ukraine and security guarantees. We know that the U.S. and Ukraine has come up with some kind of an agreement
or idea of an agreement on what those security guarantees would entail. But Russia has balked at anything that would include western forces in Ukraine.
And that is really important, not just for the United States and Ukraine, but also for all of our European allies. They want security guarantees for
Ukraine as well. So, where they end up, that, of course, is the big question you can see in the pictures there. President Trump's son-in-law
Jared Kushner, Steve Witkoff; the Middle Eastern envoy.
This, of course, is the second round of these trilateral talks, the first ones being at the end of January. President Trump has kind of vacillated on
where exactly this stands. There are moments, and of course, the most recent one was him saying that he thought things were in a good place.
But we have heard that before, only to have these parties leave empty- handed. So, of course, we're keeping a close eye on this. We'll see how this ends up playing out if there is any kind of agreement coming out of
these talks. But again, we have been in this position before, and while we are hearing that we're closer than ever, it is still unclear that either
one of these sides is going to want to get over the line on some of what they believe are things that they shouldn't have to make concessions on.
FOSTER: Can I just ask you as well, Kristen, I mean, we're seeing these reports that the U.S. President, you know, on Iran, sorry to drag you into
a different subject, but the Iranian supreme leader should be very worried, President Trump has said. How do you interpret that?
HOLMES: President Trump is going to posture until he actually does something. This is what we've seen him do, case and case again, we saw him
do this in Venezuela for months before he actually took action there. President Trump uses the weight of the U.S. military to put pressure on
various countries.
It's not just the threat of saying he should be very worried. It's also the fact that the U.S. military has moved an entire armada to be in position to
potentially strike in Iran. This is something President Trump is doing intentionally to flex that muscle. We know that every option right now
remains on the table.
These talks are supposed to happen between the U.S. and Iran on Friday. It does seem as though they are incredibly precarious, particularly since what
we saw yesterday with the drone strike and then the attempt to board one of the ships there. So, this is an escalating situation.
President Trump has still said that he wants to take a diplomatic approach, but any diplomatic approach that President Trump is going to take is going
to come with these kind of veiled threats. We have seen it since he took office in the second term. That is part of his effort or part of his
strategy when it comes to international politics.
FOSTER: OK, Kristen, appreciate it, thank you. Fred Pleitgen is with us from Moscow because we wanted to get the Russian point of view. Fred, you
know, initially, we were told we were down to one issue on these talks, which was land. You know, who keeps what land in that part of Ukraine. But
now we're seeing security guarantees coming in as an issue for Russia again.
FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, I think for the Russians, those security guarantees are also an issue as well. The
Russians, of course, have for a very long time said that they believe that the root causes of what they call their concerns around Ukraine need to be
addressed in any sort of final agreement.
And of course, those security guarantees for Ukraine are things that could be interpreted by the Russians as encroaching on their own security.
[14:20:00]
So, the Russians will certainly want to have a say in that and how that goes forward. What kind of security guarantees, for instance, the United
States could buy -- provide to Ukraine, also other allies as well? Of course, one of the things that the Russians have said they would be very
averse to would be any sort of NATO troops or European troops on Ukrainian soil.
So, those are certainly details that would have to be worked out. But definitely, one of the things that seems the most tricky in these
negotiations appears to be the territorial question, that of, what can sort of -- concessions the Ukrainians would have to make as part of any sort of
agreement, what the Russians maybe would be willing to give back to Ukraine of land that their troops currently stand on.
All of that definitely issues that could be quite difficult to reach an agreement on in these negotiations. Nevertheless, the Ukrainians are saying
that they believe that the fact that these talks have now been extended to another day are going to take place on the 5th of February as well, is
already a good sign.
Or the chief negotiator for the Ukrainians, Rustem Umerov, he came out after the negotiations and he said that they were, as he put it, quote,
substantive and productive, with a focus on specific steps and practical solutions. So, already in a stage where they're talking about practical
solutions, nevertheless, of course, both sides acknowledging there are still big hurdles to overcome.
And the Russians, of course, also saying that they are -- they're going to continue what they still call their special military operation, meaning, of
course, their war efforts in Ukraine until a final agreement is reached. Max --
FOSTER: Fred Pleitgen in Moscow, appreciate it. Thank you. Still to come tonight, Palestinians describe being searched and blindfolded as they
tried to cross back into Gaza. The details on the checks that Israel appears to be imposing in Rafah. And is the Trump administration backing
down the border czar, says he's reducing the number of immigration agents patrolling the streets of Minneapolis.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
FOSTER: Repeated Israeli attacks in Gaza are shaking. The fragile ceasefire between Israel and Hamas. Civil defense officials say more than
20 Palestinians were killed in Israeli strikes near Gaza city, and Khan Younis today. That number includes children. The youngest was just five
months old.
The IDF says the strikes were in response to a reserve soldier being severely wounded by gunfire. About 500 Palestinians have been killed since
the ceasefire came into effect in mid-October, and that's according to the U.N.
[14:25:00]
Efforts to advance the Gaza ceasefire have been grindingly slow. The U.S. announced the plan was moving to phase two last month, even though some of
the conditions of phase one hadn't been met yet. One of them was the full reopening of the Rafah Crossing.
Israel has been dragging its heels, only allowing a few Palestinians through after this week's largely symbolic and partial reopening. Nic
Robertson reports.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR (voice-over): "Stop. Stop here", she shouts, emotions overflowing, Iman Rashwan(ph) desperate to
see her mother, she hopes, is on the bus. But so much excitement, U.N. workers waving the crowds back as the first war evacuees to return to Gaza
from Egypt through the newly opened Rafah Border Crossing arrive.
For Iman(ph), anxiety becomes relief. Her mother, who left for medical treatment a year ago, the first off finally in her arms. But all is not
well. The next returnee off the bus, Omar(ph) begins screaming. "No one crossed the border", she says. "The Israelis treated us terribly."
"I was handcuffed, blindfolded and interrogated by the Israelis. They told us we could only bring one bag. We had to leave a lot of clothes behind.
And they told a little girl her toy was forbidden and took it away from her." It turns out she wasn't the only one with a bad border experience.
"They searched every blouse and every pair of trousers very precisely", she says. "They left nothing unsearched, and they took many things from us."
Iman's(ph) mother also says she had a hard time crossing. "Today was a piece of hell. The Egyptians treated us very well", she says.
"But the journey became difficult when we reached the Israelis. They interrogated us for several hours." The following night, more jubilant
returnees, all with similar reports of distress during IDF checks. On both days, the numbers crossing much lower than expected.
Unclear if these are just teething troubles after 20 months of closure or a tougher version of robust security checks Palestinians routinely face at
Israel's borders. The IDF says it is acting in accordance with the ceasefire agreement and no incidents of inappropriate conduct,
mistreatment, apprehensions or confiscation of property by the Israeli security establishment are known.
For these returnees, it's an experience they don't wish to repeat. Nic Robertson, CNN, Jerusalem.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
FOSTER: The son of former Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi has been killed in an apparent assassination. Saif al-Islam Gaddafi was attacked at his
home on Tuesday night by four masked gunmen. That's according to a statement from his political adviser.
The 53-year-old was once seen as the heir apparent to his father's dictatorship. He spent almost six years in detention following the fall of
Tripoli in 2011. Gaddafi re-emerged on the political stage in 2021, registering as a candidate in Libya's presidential election before its
indefinite postponement.
Well, still to come tonight, how Donald Trump's border czar is trying to calm the anger against federal officers deployed to Minnesota.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[14:30:00]
FOSTER: The man Donald Trump put in charge of the so-called immigration crackdown in Minnesota is reducing the number of federal officers in the
state. Border Czar Tom Homan announced that he would draw down the federal deployment by 700 people effective immediately. After the drawdown, there
will still be about 2,000 agents deployed in the state. Minnesota's governor said the move is a step in the right direction, but the
Minneapolis mayor was critical, saying the federal surge needs to end immediately.
Let's bring in CNN Law Enforcement Correspondent Whitney Wild with more. So, it is a change, but I'm not sure how much difference they're going to
feel on the streets there, with 2,000 still patrolling.
WHITNEY WILD, CNN LAW ENFORCEMENT CORRESPONDENT: Max, you point out that even with 2,000, that was the high-water mark. That was the highest
immigration-level enforcement that they had ever done to begin with anyway. So, yes, it is a drawdown, but it is still a lot of agents who are on the
ground.
I think what was notable about Mr. Homan's press conference earlier today was a couple of things. He never said that they weren't going to do certain
things. Instead, he said that they were prioritizing other things. So, for example, he said that priority now is national security, it is public
safety. And I say now just because it was at the press conference, but I know DHS would argue that those have always been the priority. He made that
clearer today, saying national security is the priority, public safety is the priority.
But he also said that if you are in the state illegally, you're not off the table. They are not dismissing that, that he is still committed to the mass
deportation plan that President Trump ran on and has made clear as a core pillar of his administration.
And what was also interesting about the press conference, Max, was a couple of things. He also drew out a new chain of command, saying that Border
Patrol, which is called the Green Machine, that is the team that worked under Greg Bovino and ICE, would be working together under one chain of
command. And the strategy now is targeted operations, which is how ICE has operated for many decades. He talked a lot about this drawdown being the
result of increased cooperation.
What he said was, not in so many words, but said that they are now able to get into jails and start taking more people into custody in jails, which he
says is safer and much more efficient. That had been a point of contention in some states, certainly in Illinois, where that is not possible. The --
it's this cooperation with local leaders and sheriffs who run the jails in Minnesota that is allowing them to say, look, we can free up some of these
resources and send them back home. Here's more from Border Czar Tom Holman.
Oh, I'm sorry. I thought we had a soundbite. My mistake. So, you know, Max, just to wrap up, Mr. Holman also said that all of these agents are going to
be wearing body cameras, and that was the result of conversations he was having with agents on the ground. And he learned that some agents had body
cameras, some didn't. He said that inconsistency was unacceptable. So, he called DHS Secretary Noem to say, hey, look, we've got to get body cameras
on all the bodies here.
[14:35:00]
You know, moving forward, I think there is a question about whether these roving patrols that, you know, citizens had seen and what felt like random
citizen checks, you know, from bystanders, if that would continue. And he was asked directly about that. And he did not say that what he had seen in
the past would not happen. He didn't rule out any strategy, but said instead that these were the new priorities, saying that when they go out
onto the street, they know who they're looking for, Max.
FOSTER: OK. CNN Law Enforcement Correspondent Whitney Wild, appreciate it as ever. Thank you. Now, Ryan Routh has now been sentenced to life in
prison. He's the man who set up a sniper's nest on the edge of Donald Trump's West Palm golf course in Florida. That was in September 2024. Routh
was convicted last year after a disastrous attempt to represent himself at the trial. The charges included attempted assassination of a major
presidential candidate.
Still to come tonight, broken promises and bloody combat. Our investigation into the tactics Russia is using to recruit African men into its armed
forces next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
FOSTER: A CNN investigation is revealing the strategies Russia is using to lure African men into joining its army. Many are job seekers who were given
rosy promises only to find themselves sent to the front lines with almost no training. Larry Madowo has this report.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What is your name?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Francis.
LARRY MADOWO, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): This disturbing video appears to show an African recruit in the Russian army with a land mine
strapped to his chest. He is being ordered to storm Ukrainian positions on the front lines. A Russian speaker hurl to racist insult to the man saying
he is being used as a can opener to breach an enemy bunker.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I didn't see it is so traumatizing. Francis, my is my son.
MADOWO (voice-over): CNN traced the man's mother to Kenya. She hasn't been able to reach her son since October 2025, but she recently received another
video of him from an unknown Kenyan number.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Be careful you guys, because people are being taken there, and you end up being taken to the military.
FRANCIS NDARUA, RUSSIAN RECRUIT: And you are taken in front line, frontline battle. And there are -- there is a true killing.
[14:40:00]
MADOWO (voice-over): Francis is a trained electrical engineer who was promised a civilian job in Russia, but his family says he was forced into
the Russian army and to the front lines in Ukraine.
MADOWO: How long was the training?
ANNE NJERI NDARUA, MOTHER OF FRANCIS NDARUA: Three weeks.
MADOWO: They had only three weeks of military training.
A. NDARUA: Only three weeks of military training.
MADOWO: Had he ever been in the police or in the army in Kenya?
A. NDARUA: No, no, no.
MADOWO: Do you know where Francis is.
A. NDARUA: I don't know where he is. I was told he's at -- in Ukraine, but I don't know specific whether he's there or not.
MADOWO (voice-over): Francis is among a growing number of African men currently fighting for Russia, though exact figures are unknown. Some
Africans in the Russian army glamorize their life on social media, encouraging their countrymen to join.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: For those of you in Africa, in Nigeria, they want to come and join the Russian army. It's very, very easy and very good. No
stress.
MADOWO (voice-over): This Ghanaian man posts dance videos and brags about how much money he makes.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: My salary, go feed your father, go feed your mother, go feed your family for like, two years, three years my salary.
MADOWO: Where are you now? Can you say where you are?
MADOWO (voice-over): CNN spoke to a dozen African fighters currently on the front lines in Ukraine. They described being forced into a deadly war
racism from Russian commanders and unpaid salaries, many say they were made to sign military contracts in Russian without lawyers or translation.
Nearly all told CNN they were desperate to escape, but felt trapped. Patrick Kwoba is one of the lucky few. He has made it back to Nairobi after
escaping the Russian military. He is still carrying shrapnel in his body from a Ukrainian drone ambush.
PATRICK KWOBA, KENYAN INJURED IN UKRAINE (through translator): It hit me down here, but my food backpack saved my life. I didn't get burnt in my
back because of my armor vest, but it tore my pants and burnt my buttocks and legs.
MADOWO (voice-over): Patrick is a carpenter who says he was only given basic military training.
KWOBA (through translator): I asked my Russian partner for first aid, but he turned hostile.
MADOWO: So, after you've been hit by a drone --
KWOBA: Yes.
MADOWO: -- and the grenade.
KWOBA: Yes.
MADOWO: You asked for help from your partner?
KWOBA: Yes.
MADOWO: And he sent you away.
KWOBA: Yes. He want to kill me. I'd have to run, my friend.
MADOWO (voice-over): Patrick fled to the Kenyan Embassy in Moscow while on leave to recover from his injury.
MADOWO: So, the only way to leave is to escape?
KWOBA: You need to escape or you die. It's only two ways.
MADOWO (voice-over): CNN has seen adverts, messages and recruitment documents aimed at foreign fighters. They offer African sign on bonuses of
$13,000 salaries up to $3,500 a month in Russian citizenship, after a year.
CHARLES NJOKI, ESCAPED FROM RUSSIAN MILITARY: They are lying to people the money that they tell people they pay that is not true.
MADOWO (voice-over): Desperate for work and with a baby on the way, Photographer Charles Njoki signed up to the Russian army hoping to avoid
active combat. He believed his skills as a drone operator would keep him at a safe distance. Instead, Charles says he was pushed onto the front lines
and was wounded by Ukrainian drone. He says a rescue team refused to come, forcing him to drink his own urine to survive.
MADOWO: You feel that the Africans were being sent to the front deliberately?
NJOKI: Yes.
MADOWO: So, you didn't get the money? You didn't get the citizenship?
NJOKI: And I am here suffering. I have an issue at my spine right now. There is some water I need to go and be removed.
MADOWO (on camera): Russian recruitment networks in Africa have gone underground after recent crackdowns, but despite growing suspicion from
locals, recruits are still signing up.
Larry Madowo, CNN, Nairobi.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
FOSTER: Well, the Russian government has openly acknowledged recruiting foreign fighters, including Africans, to serve in its army to fight in
Ukraine and has publicized cases in which some were granted Russian citizenship after their service. However, Russia's defense ministry and
foreign ministry did not respond to CNN's request for comment on allegations that some African recruits were misled or coerced into
fighting.
Well, still to come tonight, Isa sits down with Sir Stephen Fry and Lee Knight as their short film, "A Friend of Dorothy," gets an Oscar
nomination.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[14:45:00]
FOSTER: Now, it's not every day that your first film as a director gets nominated for an Oscar. But that's the incredible situation Lee Knight has
found himself in. His short film, "A Friend of Dorothy" is a heartfelt story of loneliness and unexpected friendship. It follows an elderly widow
named Dorothy who befriends 17-year-old JJ after he kicks a football into her backyard. The film stars some of the giants of the British film
industry, including Sir Stephen Fry.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Well, we all know why we're here.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Do we?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Don't we?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I don't. Do you?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Well, I'm here to --
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No. Why he's here.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: OK, gentlemen, some clarification. We're all here to discuss your late grandmother, Dorothy Pamela Elizabeth Woodley's, estate.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Right. OK. So, again, why is he here?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Well, a month ago, Mrs. Woodley updated her final wishes.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
FOSTER: Earlier in the week, Isa sat down with Lee and Stephen to find out more.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ISA SOARES, CNN INTERNATIONAL HOST: Can I just first get your reaction to Lee to the moment that you heard you were nominated for an Oscar?
LEE KNIGHT, DIRECTOR, "A FRIEND OF DOROTHY": Oh, my goodness. It was just extremely overwhelming. I mean, yes, it was really overwhelming. I don't
know how you sort of come to terms with something like that after writing your own stories and being in this industry for so long and you face a lot
of rejection and then hitting a moment where your work is being seen on the global stage. You know, this little story that was based on an elderly
friend of mine is now being recognized to that degree, which is incredible.
SOARES: This little story that is huge in so many ways, so many themes in 21 minutes, 22 minutes. What was it about the story, Stephen, that hooked
you right from the beginning?
STEPHEN FRY, ACTOR, "A FRIEND OF DOROTHY": It immediately captivated me. When Lee and James, the producers, sent me the script, I thought, well,
it's a short film. Sometimes you do short films as a favor to up-and-coming filmmakers. I'm not trying to make myself sound incredibly generous, but,
you know, it's a thing you often do and you don't think twice about them and you usually forget them. But I read this and I thought, this is
absolutely beautiful.
And I knew Miriam was going to be in it. I've worked with Miriam a few times before. She's a very dear friend and I could see how perfect it was
for her. And although, you know, my part is bookending it, you know, and it's a delightful role to have played, but the central relationship between
the boy played by Alistair Nwachukwu, and the wonderful Miriam, it's just - - it was there on the page, but then after Lee had directed it as well and those two are wonderful actors, one 80 years old, the other a new boy, and
they're brilliant.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm coming, I'm coming. Yes?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Sorry to bother you, my football went into your garden, I think.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You think, or it did?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think it did.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It either did or it didn't.
[14:50:00]
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It sort of went in on an angle, so it could have gone next door.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I see. And who's to blame for this lousy shot?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That would be me.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Could you open the tin of prunes better than you can kick a ball? Well, you'd better come in.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
FRY: I mean, anyone who sees it will say, that young man is destined for greatness.
SOARES: Oh, he's a rising star.
FRY: Isn't he?
SOARES: It's just really captivated me right from the beginning.
KNIGHT: And he promised he would give me his heart and soul before we filmed. He said, I promise I will give you my heart and soul, and I just
knew he would.
FRY: He'd say.
KNIGHT: Yes. Well, he just was constantly searching to just dig that bit deeper. It was just a joy, and for me as a first-time director, you know,
it was just wonderful.
SOARES: You wrote this story from your own experience. Can you tell our viewers how this all happened? Because you were inspired by a neighbor,
right?
KNIGHT: That's right. Yes, yes.
SOARES: By a neighbor. Tell us about that story, because I think that's crucial to this.
KNIGHT: Yes. So, me and my husband, who's an actor, his name's Syrus Lowe, we lived alongside -- we lived in Covent Garden for years in these kind of
little old council flats, and we bumped into this elderly lady called Shirley Woodham (ph), and her husband had passed away, her children lived
abroad, and she was lonely, and she realized we were actors, and it kind of unleashed this passion she'd had for years. She supported theatres and
opera singers, and she was a kind of friend of the Donmar Theatre. And she didn't have anyone to go with anymore. And I said, well, we'll come with
you.
And we took her to our press nights, and she used to take us to the Donmar on her arm, and she'd be like, these are my boys.
SOARES: I love her already.
KNIGHT: Oh, my goodness. And she -- I always felt like there was a life she hadn't lived. I felt like there was something she hadn't explored, you
know, in herself, maybe, as an artist. And we just had this wonderful friendship. We did care for her as well. You know, there were times where,
you know, she had a fall or something, or, you know, broke her hip, and we'd be there to rescue her. So, you know.
SOARES: Nowadays, Stephen, when -- there are so many movies out there that are a bit self-indulgent, three hours, three hours. You pack in so much in
that amount of time. It's so many themes. Loneliness, love, arts, LGBTQ. I mean, there's just so much packed in.
FRY: It's the generational --
SOARES: Relation, understanding.
FRY: -- understanding and misunderstanding. Yes.
SOARES: There is a beauty to it.
FRY: It's true, isn't it? It's one of the magic tricks that a great film pulls off, is that when you watch it, you think, that was so simple. Why
aren't all films as simple as that? You know what I mean?
SOARES: Yes.
FRY: Yes. It's extraordinary what you can fit in, and I think that's because audiences are so much more intelligent than often filmmakers
imagine them to be, in terms of picking up the gaps between dialogue and understanding what isn't said, and filling in for themselves, which is the
pleasure of a narrative, isn't it? And the simplicity of it is extraordinary.
SOARES: You also said, Stephen, that what was not said -- and we had different interpretations, Lee, too, at one moment when JJ is in the corner
shop. That moment, that silence there.
KNIGHT: Yes.
SOARES: What should we interpret? Because we all came away -- it was him, someone else and a younger boy.
KNIGHT: Yes.
SOARES: And we all had different interpretations of my team at that moment.
KNIGHT: I love the fact that you had different interpretations, because that is really the definition of art, isn't it? It's absolutely right that
you all felt something different, and I've had a lot of feedback about that. And for me, it's about him in that moment, taking on board what he's
been given, the gift of acceptance from Dorothy, and he has a moment to himself where he connects with another young guy in somewhere that would be
quite dangerous.
You know, a young boy in the closet in a local shop. I wanted people to -- the silence was for people to understand how that can be frightening, and a
big, very big thing for a young guy to be vulnerable and, again, let himself be seen by someone else. And just their smile, they see each other
in that moment.
SOARES: Just looking ahead, because as we run out of time, are you hopeful that you'll get this Oscars? What will this moment mean? Just speak to
that.
KNIGHT: I mean, you know, you can't sort of say that you wouldn't want to win. I think that would be --
FRY: To have the object in your hands.
KNIGHT: I think everyone --
SOARES: You're already an Oscar nominee, that's pretty grand.
KNIGHT: Being an Oscar nominee. And also, again, just all of this is wonderful, you know, it is amazing, but it's -- because of the story. It's
because it's -- you know, someone said to me the other day, art with heart, and I thought it was just so simple.
[14:55:00]
But I just thought, you know, when you tell a story, when you make work, when, you know, people are attracted to the script, it starts with the
script and then everyone sort of comes on board who it means something to and they believe in it. That is magical.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
FOSTER: A wonderful interview by Isa earlier in the week, worth a watch that. It's just 20 minutes. And finally, this hour, Westminster Kennel Club
has picked its best in show. What is it? It is Penny the Doberman. Doberman Pinscher, to be precise. Crowned the top dog. Penny beat 2,499 other
canines to win the coveted prize, making her handler, Andy Linton, a two- time winner of the historic competition.
This is the contest's 150th year, cementing it as America's longest-running dog show as well as the country's second-oldest sporting event. Penny's win
marks the fifth time a Doberman has taken home that prestigious prize.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: For Best in Show at the 150th Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show is the Doberman Pinscher.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
FOSTER: That is the Oscars of the dog world. Thanks for watching tonight. Stay with CNN. I'll have "What We Know" next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[15:00:00]
END
