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Isa Soares Tonight
Bolsonaro Scores First Round Upset; Houthis Claim Attacks on Yemeni Highway, Saudi Oil Facilities; Outrage as U.K. Green Party Votes to Define Zionism as Racism; Cornell University Rape Case; Trump Rallying Republican Base in Campaign Blitz. Aired 2-3p ET
Aired October 05, 2026 - 14:00 ET
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[14:00:00]
ISA SOARES, HOST, ISA SOARES TONIGHT: A very warm welcome to the show, everyone, I'm Isa Soares. Tonight, the U.S. speaks out about an unspecified
new threat after removing its bombers from a British airbase. We'll have the very latest on that for you.
Then dozens of people are being quarantined in Russia after a researcher at a plague laboratory dies of an unknown infection. Plus, could a shake-up in
European politics be in the cards after weeks of mounting pressure? The Spanish Prime Minister calls for a snap election. That and much more for
you ahead.
But first, this evening, an abundance of caution. The words of U.S. Vice President J.D. Vance on the stunning news that Washington has removed all
long-launch -- long range bombers, pardon me, that have been stationed at a British airbase.
And it follows an unspecified new threat, and that is according to a U.S. official, removing all the bombers likely to be around several dozen at the
RAF base in Fairford is considered unusual. The base has been the focus, as you know, of an investigation following the arrest last week of five men in
connection with an alleged Iranian plot.
They were later released, as was a sixth man who was detained. U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio is suggesting the removal of the bombers is
not directly linked to the arrests. Have a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MARCO RUBIO, SECRETARY OF STATE, UNITED STATES: The Department of War is constantly reallocating resources where they need to be. There's regular
rotations that happen as well. So, I think you guys --
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's not fair --
RUBIO: Are just -- well, I mean, we've documented what happened last week. I wouldn't directly tie that to the move that was made. The only reason why
you guys are focused on how many planes are at Fairford is because of the threat that happened last week.
But it's not unusual to see rotations happen and movement of assets to different parts of the world based on exercises, deployments of people
changing out and new people coming in, new planes coming in, old planes going out. So, crews are changing all the time.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SOARES: Marco Rubio there. Well, there are growing questions about really what's behind the move. Brian Todd is on the story for us today. Brian,
good to see you. This threat, as we were mentioning there, has been described as a source -- as a real-world incident.
What more can you tell us about this decision? I mean -- and we mentioned that it is kind of unusual to move them to their home station. Speak to
that and what you're learning this hour.
BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Right, Isa, contrary to what Secretary Rubio said, he's trying to downplay it, saying this is not unusual at all.
According to our sources, and one of our CNN national security analysts, this is very unusual.
This is new reporting from our colleagues, Piper Hudspeth Blackburn and Zachary Cohen. They are citing a U.S. official as acknowledging, saying,
yes, the U.S. has moved long-range bombers back to their home stations in the United States after an unspecified threat, which the official called a,
quote, "real-world incident."
Now, the official said, quote, "we can acknowledge now that all U.S. bombers that were deployed to Royal Air Force Base Fairford have redeployed
to their home stations in the United States", end quote. Now, that official did not include details on why those planes were moved.
But you heard Isa report this, and we've been reporting this for the last several days. This does come just days after the British government
arrested a number of individuals in connection with an alleged Iranian plot to target that airbase.
Those arrests came on a week ago, Sunday, September 27th. This U.S. official said "it is unusual that the U.S. military would move the bombers
back to their home stations instead of deploying them to another U.S. base in the region.
Now, U.S. Vice President J.D. Vance did say a short time ago to reporters, this was out of an abundance of caution. Take a -- take a listen to what
the vice president had to say about that.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JAMES DAIVD VANCE, VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I think that we're going to be as careful as we possibly can be. Obviously, doing these
missions is sometimes inherently risky, even flying a training mission, as we sometimes find out unfortunately, a training mission in the United
States of America can be risky because these are very powerful, very next generation pieces of technology.
So, what you saw there is the Secretary of War, out of an abundance of caution, trying to protect our guys. We do feel with some confidence that
the Iranians are -- you know, they're trying to do what the Iranian state has done for 49 years, which is engage in acts of terrorism against the
United States and against a lot of other people as well.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
[14:05:00]
TODD: The British Ministry of Defense has not commented on the moving of those U.S. bombers. Fairford, that air force base has been used to deploy
U.S. B-1 bombers during the war with Iran. It is also used to coordinate long-range airstrikes conducted by the United States.
CNN national security analyst Alex Plitsas has told us that it is likely that several dozen B-1 bombers were deployed, were stationed at that
Fairford base. Iran has, of course, denied any involvement in that incident at Fairford, describing the accusations as baseless. Isa.
SOARES: And Brian, just picking up on what you said there. I mean, just from the conversations that you have had, when we were describing the
threat as a real-world incident, do we have a sense from military experts of what that could mean?
TODD: We -- you know, we do not, Isa. We don't have a very good sense of what that could mean. What we can piece together, though, from our
conversations with sources and with just what the timing of all of this has been.
I mean, these arrests take place a week ago yesterday, on the 27th of September, and then just days later, these -- all these bombers, probably
several dozens of them are moved, which is really an unusual move.
It does speak to the idea, the possibility that the plot that has been unfolding, this alleged Iranian plot, according to British officials, is
much more serious than we have been led to believe in the last few days.
Now, we're going to be digging on this, of course, and hoping to get more reporting on it. But clearly, there is more there, there, than we have been
told by our sources so far and by officials in both the United States and Great Britain.
SOARES: Yes, it seems you're getting more on your side than we are getting on this side, because we're -- the only thing we've heard from the British
Prime Minister, and that was last week, Brian, was that there was a strong indication that Iran was involved in the --
TODD: Right --
SOARES: Incident. We know very little since then. I know you'll stay across it for us, Brian. Thank you very much indeed.
TODD: Thank you --
SOARES: We're going to park Washington for just a moment and turn our attention to Europe, because people in Spain took to the streets and the
government listens. Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez today calling a snap election scheduled to take place at the end of November.
Mr. Sanchez has been dealing with street protests for weeks as we've showed you in here on the show, amid calls for more affordable housing in Spain.
His minority government has tried to pass legislation to deal with the problem, but could not get his plans through parliament.
That happened on Friday. Snap election, seen as a risk, is risky, of course, for the socialist Sanchez as his right-wing and far-right parties
surge in Spain as well as throughout Europe.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
PEDRO SANCHEZ, PRIME MINISTER, SPAIN (through translator): You, the people of Spain, must decide what role you wish to play in it and also what role
you want Spain to play in it. Whether you wish to join that far-right wave that leads to regression wherever it governs, or whether you want Spain to
remain a bastion of openness, social justice and environmental responsibility.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SOARES: Our Pau Mosquera has more on what this means for Spain and what -- how we got here.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
PAU MOSQUERA, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): After two days of deliberation, the much-anticipated outcome --
SANCHEZ (through translator): I have decided to convene an extraordinary cabinet meeting this very morning to dissolve the Spanish parliament and
call a general election to be held on Sunday, November 29th.
MOSQUERA: Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez cornered, forced into the decision after right-wing parties in parliament struck down a last-ditch
effort on Friday to tackle the country's housing emergency.
The face of that crisis is Maria del Carmen Abascal, or just Maricarmen, as she is known across Spain. An investment fund, both her flat more than
quadrupled her rent and at 87, Maricarmen was kicked out from the place she called home for more than 70 years.
For many, after years of price hikes and rent rises, that was the final straw. Sanchez is hoping to capitalize on the anger and frustration over a
housing crisis, the measures he tried to pass and the economy where his party has done well.
That would shift the gaze away from the corruption scandals that have plagued some of his close allies. And migration, which exploded this Summer
when thousands streamed across the border in Spain's northern Africa exclave of Ceuta. But it's still a gamble, he trails the center-right
Popular Party in opinion polls.
ALBERTO NUNEZ FEIJOO, LEADER, PEOPLE'S PARTY (through translator): Finally, Spain will speak its mind.
[14:10:00]
MOSQUERA: And one crisis after another has left the far-right Vox Party as potential kingmakers
SANTIAGO ABASCAL, LEADER, VOX PARTY (through translator): We must reverse the migrant influx, which is having so many negative consequences for
Spaniards pockets.
MOSQUERA (on camera): But for those who have been camping here at the heart of Madrid, it's been a bit of a mixed feeling. Some, like Sanchez,
others would prefer a new leadership. But what everyone really wants is a quick solution to housing emergency. And with this election, that feels a
long way off. Pau Mosquera, CNN, Madrid.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SOARES: And our thanks to Pau and team for that report. Let's get more on the story. Joining us now is Manuel Muniz; he served in Spain's Foreign
Ministry and is currently the Rector of IE University in Madrid. Manuel, welcome to the show.
We were telling the story on Friday, the protest story, the housing story on Friday. And perhaps it shouldn't come as a surprise to see Sanchez
calling for a snap election given the defeat, of course, we saw on Friday. But it is a political gamble, right? Speak to that first of all, what this
means for Sanchez politically.
MANUEL MUNIZ, RECTOR, IE UNIVERSITY MADRID: Well, it is a gamble, but I think the assessment was that this is probably the most beneficial backdrop
to a general election, that a center-left political party, the Socialist Party, could have to try to bring the discussion into the realm of the
cost-of-living crisis, social policy, equity, inclusion issues.
That's a space that carries actually fairly broad majorities within the Spanish population. It's one of the biggest concerns for a very broad
majority of citizens. And it's an area where the government has been quite active over the past few years.
So, they can claim that there has been an effective agenda, not fully effective, of course. I mean, on Friday itself, we saw that they couldn't
pass that legislation as your reporting had shown. But it's the most beneficial backdrop to the election.
And that is the bet that the Prime Minister is making, trying to have that as the core axis of the campaign, that would be very beneficial for his
party and his electoral prospects.
SOARES: Right, so the timing of it is perfect because that's what he's trying to pass, that's what he wants -- he wants to stay focused on,
Manuel. But of course, we can't forget that while some may be voting on housing, you know, anything relating policies regarding vis-a-vis housing,
others will be -- will be voting.
And I -- this is me assuming here, given what we have covered over the Summer, and that is immigration and the scenes we saw in Ceuta. How much --
I mean, how much of a risk is that? Because he came under a lot of pressure over the Summer, over the handling of what we saw in Ceuta.
MUNIZ: Yes, so, there are two risks to this decision. One is that, there is an inherent tension in running almost as an outsider on a social policy,
cost of living crisis agenda when you've been in government for eight years. And a lot of these issues sort of developed while you were in
government.
And the other is that the axis of the campaign actually pivots towards issues that are much more beneficial to the Conservative Party and the far-
right party, Vox, including migration, the Ceuta crisis, which is still very much alive and something that the government is trying to manage.
And most of the migrants that crossed into Ceuta have been returned, but the ones -- minors and the ones that are refusing to leave voluntarily,
have to go through a process before they are deported. So, that's going to take a long time.
And we're speaking of thousands of people still in Ceuta, the leader of the opposition, who you also had in your clip, is trying also to make the
campaign about corruption, both political and what they're calling institutional corruption.
So, many years in power, the capturing of some of the institutions in Spain. This has been a narrative by the opposition for a long time. So,
it's a gamble. I think the PM thought this is the best window he was going to get in the next eight, ten months.
You know, the term was coming to an end. He had to call for elections before the Summer, so he might as well do it now with this backdrop. But in
my opinion, he faces two challenges. He is -- he's been in government for eight years, and the narrative can very quickly shift.
And I think the opposition is really going to try to move it to these other issues that you were raising where the government actually, you know, faces
a lot of opposition across, you know, public opinion.
SOARES: Yes, and look, and the corruption has also been front and center allegations over his wife, which he denies, I think is important to point
out. Then how then Manuel, does he -- does he strand both of those? Does he say, we acknowledge there have been errors on Ceuta, but, you know, we have
strong social policies that we can carry out, give us another term.
[14:15:00]
Because when I was in Spain, what, three weeks ago, I -- many people I spoke to weren't convinced about his government, about his answers and his
reasoning for immigration.
MUNIZ: Well, so the immigration dossier, as you know, I think there have been two very significant developments over the past few months. One has
been a very broad what we've called here (SPEAKING IN FOREIGN LANGUAGE), which is the issuance of residency permits to upwards of a million illegal
migrants that are in Spain working, I mean, under some conditions.
But this is one of the broadest processes of this nature that Spain has undergone. And the other, quite unfortunately for the government, coupled
in time with this --
(IPHONE RINGING)
MUNIZ: Has been this issue of the -- sorry, did I drop you?
SOARES: No, I've still got you. I've still got you, Manuel. Finish your thought. Yes --
MUNIZ: Sorry, I thought -- I thought -- I thought I dropped you. So, then it converged --
SOARES: No, we've still got you, yes --
MUNIZ: With the still -- yes, it converged with Ceuta(ph) crisis --
SOARES: Yes --
MUNIZ: Yes, it converged --
SOARES: Yes --
MUNIZ: With the Ceuta(ph) crisis. So, this has now become a fundamental issue in the Spanish public debate. And the biggest beneficiary of this
has, in fact, not been the Conservative Party, the People's Party in the center right.
It has been Vox on the far right. So, I think that this is going to feature in the campaign. And I think what you're going to -- what you're going to
see is the PM and the Socialist Party committed, very committed to building a frame for the campaign around the other issues, the social policy.
I think they feel that they have very little to gain if the discussion moves into these other -- into these other areas, including, by the way,
not just the migration, but also the corruption debate. He has acknowledged that there have been serious cases of corruption in the party, not the ones
linked to his family and personal circle, but in the party.
And that those have been addressed, and that he's taken measures against the individuals that have been involved in these processes. But I think
politically, the assessment is, he has very little to gain if the discussion and the campaign moves into that space. That's why I think the
framing and the pivot will be --
SOARES: Yes --
MUNIZ: So, important, and you saw it today. You saw it today in his announcement. This is about inclusion and social policy, and in the
announcement of the opposition. Actually, no, this is about regeneration, corruption, immigration and failed policies. So, you can see the two
narratives already emerging.
SOARES: Yes, the strategy, the timing makes perfect sense. Let's see whether he's able to convince those who perhaps have had doubts where they
have been on policy regarding some of these key areas. Manuel Muniz, thank you very much, Manuel, really appreciate you coming on the show. Really
enjoyed that conversation. Live for us there from Madrid.
Now, sources tell CNN the alleged Flydubai hijacker was likely planning to target Israel's Ben Gurion Airport. Harman al-Hammami is the co-pilot, is
accused of attacking the captain in an attempted terrorist attack. It's not known why al-Hammami attacked the captain while the plane was over Saudi
airspace if the target was Israel.
A source tells CNN that Flydubai and Emirati authorities didn't reach out to al-Hammami's former employer at Oman's national airline, or Omani
officials before he was hired. Investigators believe al-Hammami most likely acted alone.
He has not been linked to any terrorist group for funding or training of the attack. The pilot survived the attack and was able to open, as you
know, the cockpit door. This allowed passengers and crews and crew there to subdue the suspected hijacker and then safely land the plane, hence why
you're listening there to the applause.
Still to come tonight on the show, a Russian researcher dies from a mystery illness. Why world health officials are keeping a close watch on the fatal
case in Siberia. We'll have that story for you. And then a presidential runoff is set for Brazil after surprise election results over the weekend.
How voters there could reshape Latin America. That's just ahead.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[14:20:00]
SOARES: Dozens of people are reportedly being quarantined in Russia after researcher who worked in a lab that studies the plague died of a mysterious
illness. Officials say the 28-year-old female lab tech died last week after being diagnosed with pneumonia of an unknown origin.
The Russian lab and hospital where people are being isolated are located in Siberia, and that's near the Mongolian border. There's been no official
comment so far from the Kremlin. The World Health Organization says it's in contact with Russian officials, and the public health risk is low.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio says he doesn't think it's cause for alarm. Fred Pleitgen joins us now from Berlin. And Fred, it might not be
cause for alarm, but I mean, it's definitely got many people worried after seeing this and then seeing the evolution of this story, right? Speak to
that.
And because that's also raising questions over transparency. Tell us what you are learning -- has evolved here, has happened here.
FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, it might not be cause for alarm for some of these big agencies, but certainly, it's
cause for alarm and concern among people living in that area in Shelekhov, which is actually down by the --
SOARES: Yes --
PLEITGEN: Mongolian border, as you put it, which has that lab in it, which is a pretty major lab, was actually founded in the 1930s to combat the
plague, but also now deals with other infectious diseases as well. It's pretty big as 95 researchers working for it.
And as far as the messaging is concerned, you're also absolutely right. That's one of the things that does have folks a little bit uneasy, as for
instance, the agency in Russia that deals with infectious diseases has come out and said that, yes, this lab worker died of pneumonia of unknown
origin, but at the same time says there's no indications that this has anything to do with the plague.
I want to read you a quick quote from this agency. They say, quote, "no microorganisms associated with the employees' professional duties were
detected in samples taken from the patient. However, the head of that same agency has since rushed to that area, and the governor of the neighboring
province, which is called Buryatia, said that patient may have died of the plague."
Again, right now, there is no indication that, that is really the case. Nevertheless, the Russians have put in place what they call anti-epidemic
measures as you mentioned, around 200 people apparently right now in quarantine, especially the people who had direct contact with this lab
worker.
But also, the hospital where she was at also essentially in lockdown with the inpatient part of that hospital, no one being allowed out, and of
course, no new patients being allowed in. We're also hearing that some other hospitals in that area, also are on lockdown as well.
And you mentioned the Kremlin. The Kremlin actually said they didn't want to speculate. They didn't want to comment because they said this agency was
dealing with all of this. But they did warn people against believing what they call rumors and speculations as far as this case is concerned, Isa.
SOARES: I know you'll stay across it for us, Fred, thank you very much. Fred Pleitgen there for us in Berlin. Let's stay with the story. Doctor
Amesh Adalja is an infectious disease specialist and senior scholar at Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security, joins me -- joins us now.
[14:25:00]
Doctor Amesh, thank you very much for joining us. You heard my colleague Fred Pleitgen there, talking about 200 people also being quarantined. But
we have seen this story develop quite a bit. We've gone from plague to pneumonia to unknown infection. Just your thoughts. What do you make of
this incident first of all?
AMESH ADALJA, INFECTIOUS DISEASE SPECIALIST & SENIOR SCHOLAR, JOHNS HOPKINS CENTER FOR HEALTH SECURITY: It's something that really lacks transparency.
So, it's really hard to know exactly what's going on there. I can tell you from the very first hearing that I heard about this, when people were
talking about plague, the Russian response seemed very incongruent for plague.
Plague is something that is easily treatable in the modern era. And this is someone who presumably would have known he was exposed to plague. But an
unknown pneumonia or an unknown viral illness, or an unknown illness, that can be a lot of different things.
And what we need to know is clinical details. What did they test for? What tested negative? What tested positive? What is their hypothesis? Because
you don't usually see countries act this way in terms of 200 people having anti-epidemic measures applied to them, unless there's some reason to
believe something is communicable. And I think the Russians really need to be transparent about what's going on.
SOARES: Yes, and I mean, that's the thing, the questions that we have that we haven't had any answers to, relates to that. The origins of this. And I
also wonder then, doctor, whether W.H.O. should be given access to it, because all we have is that, you know, that the World Health Organization
says it's in contact with Russian officials, and that the public health risk is low.
Should they be given access? Just your thoughts in terms of the next steps that should be taken here?
ADALJA: I do think that the World Health Organization should deploy their send experts there to try and get a handle on understanding what happened
there, because right now, what we have is an information vacuum, and that's going to get filled with disinformation, that's going to get filled with
panic.
And this can all be handled a lot more appropriately. People should have learned from COVID that clear, concise public health communication about
what you know, what you don't know, what questions you're trying to answer, that's how it needs to be done.
But what we often see is when these outbreaks occur, there is this tendency to keep information very heavily guarded, and that just leads to more
speculation, and it doesn't help anybody. And we don't get any answers about what's actually happening.
SOARES: Yes, and look, Dr. Amesh, we're not trying of course here in my next question to try to create a sense of fear at all or panic. But I do
think it's important we get your understanding of what the pneumonic plague is. I mean, what is it first of all? How infectious is it?
ADALJA: So, pneumonic plague is an infection caused by a bacteria called Yersinia Pestis. It was responsible for the Black Death. Remember, the
Black Death occurred in the 1300s. This is the 21st century where we have antibiotics and pneumonic plague does occur in many parts of the world,
including in the United States, including in Russia.
It is transmissible from person to person, through coughing, through respiratory droplets. But it's not something that is easily transmissible.
And the thing is, it's easily treatable. Even when someone is exposed to plague, we can give them antibiotics to blunt them developing plague.
So, it's not the same thing it was. It's nowhere near what it was during the Black Death. And even though everybody talks about plague in the same
manner as they would probably in the middle-ages, but we've come a long way. But yes, there are still plague cases that occur.
But the thing is, the Russians are not acting as if this is plague. You wouldn't do all of this for plague because plague is relatively easy to
contain and control, and you usually don't see someone who works with plague dying from plague because they know they've been exposed and they
get promptly placed on antibiotics.
SOARES: Right, that is interesting. So, you don't buy this theory then. You talk -- speak to Russia's credibility. I mean, we've been talking about
a lack of transparency. What are you hinting at here, doctor?
ADALJA: That the idea that this was plague makes no sense, and that the Russians are acting as if this is something pretty significant based on the
anti-epidemic measures that they are putting in place. What the Russians need to tell us is what it isn't.
So, they can say it's not plague, it's not this, it's not this, it's not this. These are the outstanding tests that we're doing. This is our working
hypothesis. This is what we're going to know in a couple of days. That's what they need to be talking about, not just kind of referring people to
different levels of the bureaucracy.
They need to be very clear because people will get panicked and people will start to speculate. And that's not how you want to handle an infectious
disease emergency. Certainly, post COVID, when we live in a world where infectious diseases are all politicized.
SOARES: Yes, like you said, there's a -- there's an information vacuum. And that comes as we saw with COVID, with a whole host of problems. Doctor
Amesh, really appreciate you coming on the show live for us there from Chicago. Thank you doctor.
ADALJA: Thanks.
SOARES: Still to come right here on the show tonight, a right-wing senator comes from behind to finish ahead of Brazil's President Lula in weekend
elections, setting up a crucial runoff later this month. That's next.
[14:30:00]
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SOARES: Welcome back, everyone. Brazil is heading for a presidential runoff that could reshape Latin America, as a right-wing ally of U.S.
President Donald Trump battles to unseat one of the continent's most prominent left-wing leaders. Senator Flavio Bolsonaro will face incumbent
President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva head-to-head after neither secured more than 50 percent of the vote in Sunday's elections.
Bolsonaro, the son of imprisoned former President Jair Bolsonaro, scored a surprise come-from-behind rally to finish ahead of Lula by several points.
Lula, as you know, is seeking a fourth, and likely last, non-consecutive term. He is expected to frame the vote as a referendum on democracy, while
Bolsonaro is expected to focus on crime and allegations of corruption.
Let's get more on this. We're joined now by Americo Martins, a senior correspondent for CNN Brazil. Americo, great to have you here on the show.
Look, the polls as we looked ahead for this first round were really close, but none, no one really predicted this first round for Flavio Bolsonaro.
Just how surprised were you?
AMERICO MARTINS, CNN BRASIL INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: It was a big surprise, Isa, because all the polls, as you said, showed that Lula would
be leading on the first round by a small margin because we knew this race would be very tight. But most polls just before elections were showing that
President Lula would be slightly ahead of Senator Flavio Bolsonaro.
But there was a major wave from the right wing in Brazil, and Flavio Bolsonaro was the leader in this first round. In three weeks, we are going
to have the second round.
[14:35:00]
SOARES: And interesting, Americo, on Friday, I was speaking to a reporter in Parana, and she told me that this isn't an issues-driven election. It's
an unpopularity contest. She basically said the person who will win will be the least loved. Speak to what each side is focusing on and just how
divided and polarized Brazil is.
MARTINS: Brazil remains very divided and very polarized. This was the election with the tightest margin since redemocratization in Brazil. The
first and the second candidates for the second round, they are divided by less than two percentage points, so it's very tight. But definitely,
Senator Flavio Bolsonaro has the lead. He managed to get this wave and to make this impression, and really, this contest, as you said, will be
decided by the voters that decided who is the least worse option for them.
None of the candidates really put out in the public their vision for the country. We didn't have a proper debate between the two major candidates
about the ideas of the future of the country. It was really decided for all the issues. Neither Lula nor Flavio Bolsonaro made a clear statement about
what they want from the future of Brazil. Now, they will have this opportunity in the second round, and we hope that they will have a proper
debate.
SOARES: Yes. And let's see what changes, how the strategy changes. But look, Flavio, interestingly enough, he outperformed his father's first
round from 2022. But I'm much more interested in what you think of what you can gauge in terms of the strength of the Bolsonaro movement, because we're
not just talking here about Flavio Bolsonaro. We're talking about the scope of the Bolsonaro, the reach. Speak to the different levels within his
family and beyond on the right.
MARTINS: OK. Within the family, he is going to run in the second round in a very good position because he's leading in the first round. His
stepmother was elected for the senate, the wife of President Jair Bolsonaro. Two of his sons were elected for Congress as well, one as a
senator, another one as a federal deputy, and a brother of President Jair Bolsonaro was also elected for the Chamber of Deputies. So, a very strong
show from the candidates within the Bolsonaro clan.
But in this right-wing wave, his party is also going to control the senate, the Chamber of Deputies. They have the two largest parties -- they are
going to be the two largest parties in both the upper and the lower house in Congress. And if Bolsonaro, Flavio Bolsonaro, is elected, he will have
the opportunity to nominate at least four members of the next Supreme Court.
So, we are going to have the right-wing and the Bolsonaro clan with the major levers of power in Brazil. That is a major development for the
Brazilian history. Despite the polarization in Brazil, they are going to be the group with the levers of power in their hands.
SOARES: Yes, that is a significant win, of course, if it continues in this trajectory for the Bolsonaro clan. It will be interesting to see what Lula
does next in terms of strategy to try and win back some of those votes. Americo, as always, great to see you. Thank you very much. Obrigada,
Americo.
We are going to leave Brazil for just one second and turn to the Middle East, because a new battle is unfolding near a choke point for global
trade. Humanitarian government forces, which are backed by Saudi Arabia, said they have retaken control of key positions near the Bab Al-Mandeb
Strait. They have launched a renewed offensive to take back recent gains made by Houthi militants, who are backed by Iran.
Yemen's government forces also say they have begun a new operation against the Houthi-controlled capital, Sanaa. The Houthis are denying reports that
Yemeni troops and Saudi-led coalition forces are advancing. The Houthis are fighting back, claiming they have taken control of a critical highway in
Yemen that links the City of Taiz to Aden, where the Yemeni government is based. They also say they have hit oil installations in Saudi Arabia. Our
Nic Robertson has more on the offensive.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: It's expected to expand and intensify. This was laid out in speeches by both the head of the
Presidency Council, leadership, if you will, of the internationally backed government in Yemen, stating very clearly that they were going to retake
all the territory from the Houthis, the Iran-backed proxy inside of Yemen, who control the capital.
[14:40:00]
And, as you say, in recent weeks, had a lightening offensive in the southwest of Yemen to take control of Bab Al-Mandeb, that vital narrow
strait of water where the Red Sea goes out into the Gulf of Oman. Vital for international maritime traffic. Vital to get oil supplies from Saudi Arabia
to the international markets, particularly in Asia.
So, this has been the Houthis' expansions recently. And current offensive in the southwest of Yemen is causing a great deal of concern. The current
offensive that the Houthis have is around the City of Taiz, the third largest city inside of Yemen.
But the real concern around that city at the moment is that the high mountains are a strategic advantage. And if the Houthis get control of
them, it will make it much harder to dislodge them from their control of all of the Red Sea coastline. So, that's sort of the background narrative.
But you also have a step up over the past weeks of offensive, Houthi offensives inside of Yemen. You have Saudi air support for those Yemeni
government, internationally recognized Yemeni government forces on the ground. The Houthis say that the capital, Sanaa, that they control was
struck by Saudi airstrikes over the weekend.
The Houthis also say that they have been striking Saudi oil infrastructure inside of Saudi Arabia over the past few days around the capital and in
other locations. So, the whole temperature around this is heating up. So, the move and announcement this weekend, just last night, by the
internationally backed Yemeni government is a very clear signal that they are going to upscale their efforts now, not just to sort of resist the
Houthi advances, but to try to take the fight to the Houthis and defeat the Houthis and retake control of the whole country. So, it's significant you
have those statements. And then sequenced within a few hours later, you have the Saudi statement saying that they will give full operational
support, as they have been, to this Yemeni force.
And at the same time today, you have the field marshal, the most powerful military figure from Pakistan, his foreign minister, his defense minister,
with him in Saudi Arabia, along with the Turkish foreign minister, defense minister, and head of the military gathering for a meeting of this Saudi-
Pakistan-Turkey military pact and alliance.
And forces have been committed to support the Saudis in whatever they do in their coalition to support the Yemenis. So, this conflict in Yemen stands
at this moment, apparently, to expand and get bigger with the aim of forcing out the Houthis completely.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SOARES: Our Nic Robertson there. Well, here in the U.K., the Green Party is facing condemnation after it voted to classify Zionism as a form of
racism. The leader of the Greens, Zack Polanski, who did not take part in the vote, has now been banned from Israel. The Israeli government says it
now views the Green Party as, quote, "A body that gives legitimacy to terrorism." The Green Party is calling for an end to British arms sales to
Israel and says it supports, quote, "a single democratic state throughout historic Palestine."
Still to come tonight on the show, audio of a phone call between Jane Doe and one of the fraternity members accused of raping her at Cornell
University. We'll have that and a number of new developments in the case. That's after this very short break. You are watching CNN.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[14:45:00]
SOARES: Well, as public outrage grows over an alleged gang rape at Cornell University, there are disturbing new details surrounding the case on a
number of new fronts. ABC News has obtained audio of a phone call between Jane Doe and the fraternity member she says invited her to the house on the
night of the alleged assault. She secretly recorded it about three weeks after the alleged incident.
In one portion of the call, Jane Doe says, there's so much damage on my body and my brain. And later says, if I wanted to take this somewhere, what
you all did would be classified as gang rape. You already knew when I came in, I was 10 shots deep.
Separately, body cam footage obtained by ABC News shows police warning one of the accused students that he's banned from campus during his suspension.
Have a look at this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Take a look at that, per the temporary suspension, he is barred from any of the ground owned, operated and maintained by Cornell
University.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SOARES: All of the accused have denied any wrongdoing in the case. Our Gloria Pazmino has much more for us from New York, I believe. Gloria, I
mean, we just speak to this new evidence, right? I mean, it's really hard to just to listen to that. We have new evidence tied to this case. We have
the body cam footage and this audio is chilling audio between Jane Doe and a fraternity member. Talk us through that and what the fraternity brothers
are saying.
GLORIA PAZMINO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Look, Isa, we're now a week out from when we first learned that Jane Doe had filed this lawsuit, when we first
saw the absolute, you know, just fallout following what was contained in her lawsuit.
We're now a week out and we're standing here on the edge of campus to Cornell University, where, as you can see, you know, life is carrying on.
Students walking back and forth, going to class. But every day we are learning new details about this alleged incident.
And the information that we have today, yet again, points to the fact that there was evidence that was being gathered, whether by the victim or by the
police department. And it is not clear to us just yet what happened to that evidence and whether it was part of what the district attorney took into
consideration when making his decision to not bring charges back in 2024, which is when this first when this case was first investigated.
Now, I first want to talk about some new reporting that we have from CNN today. We have reviewed documents which showed that Police University sent
drafted letters to mobile carriers here in the United States, Verizon and T-Mobile, letting them know that they were conducting an investigation
related to sexual assault and telling them that they had accounts, meaning phone numbers, that could contain information that the police believed
would be pertinent to the investigation that they were in the middle of conducting.
What's not clear to us is whether or not those letters actually ever were sent out. We're not sure if law enforcement officials, the police, followed
up with subpoena to make sure that they could retrieve those records. And we're not sure if the Tompkins district attorney, Matthew Van Houten, was
aware that those records were being requested. But it certainly seems to suggest that there was at least some preliminary effort by the Cornell
University police to look further into this.
[14:50:00]
And the reason I bring this up is because we have heard Jane Doe's attorney talk about his concern that evidence was lost as a result of, you know,
people who were involved in this investigation not doing the proper diligence to gather that information.
I want to play for you just another portion of those calls between Jane Doe and one of the accused students as she's trying to piece together exactly
what happened.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You did tell me you were sober, by the way. You did. You said you hadn't been anywhere.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
PAZMINO: So, again, we see Jane Doe herself appearing to try and collect information, try and understand the sequence of events. And, again, her
lawyer raising questions about how much of this information was actually preserved, questioning that any of it is actually still out there, and
whether or not investigators, who are now tasked with taking a second look at this again, now that there is a new special prosecutor that's been
appointed by the New York governor, whether or not they're going to be able to review that information as part of this new investigation.
SOARES: More questions than answers at this stage. Gloria Pazmino, thank you very much.
PAZMINO: Yes.
SOARES: Brilliant reporting live for us there in New York. Thank you. Well, U.S. President Donald Trump is on a campaign blitz as the midterm
election approaches, looking for friendly faces in deep red states as multiple polls show potential trouble ahead. He is heading to Nebraska soon
as he rallies the Republican base.
Mr. Trump is trying to make sure supporters show up to vote by making the message about himself, asking them to pretend he is the one on the ballot.
But many Americans aren't buying his economic agenda. In a new CBS poll, 70 percent said they believe his policies have led to higher grocery prices.
Another poll finds economic concerns are a big reason the Latino voters are now shifting away from President Trump and his Republican Party. The NBC
Telemundo poll finds 50 to 90 percent of Latino voters, five to nine, want to see Democrats win back control of Congress.
We're going to take a short break. We will see you on the other side. Do stay right here.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SOARES: I want to return now to one of our top stories that we brought you this hour, and that's the snap elections that have been called by Spanish
Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez.
[14:55:00]
You are looking at live pictures this hour coming to us from Barcelona. It is almost 9:00 p.m. For several days now, we've been seeing tents and
demonstrations in Madrid around Puerta del Sol. We're now seeing these demonstrations in Barcelona, too. People are wanting to address housing
emergency crisis they've seen in the country, and that is spreading across Spain.
This mostly started with Maria Carmen Abascal, 87-year-old, who has become a symbol of Spain's housing crisis when she was forcibly evicted from her
home. We'll see across these pictures, of course, what that means for Prime Minister Sanchez.
And finally, tonight, SpaceX's Crew-12 has handed over command of the International Space Station to the newly arrived Crew-13 in an emotional
ceremony. The crews are switching roles as Crew-12 prepares for a splashdown back on Earth, and Crew-13 begins its long-duration mission. If
weather and conditions are perfect, well, the returning crew could begin their trip back to Earth as soon as Wednesday. Wish them all the very best.
That does it for us, a very busy hour right here. Do stay with us. "What We Know" with Max Foster is up next. I shall see you tomorrow. Have a
wonderful evening.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[15:00:00]
END
