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One World with Zain Asher
Category 1 Hurricane Churns Over The Warm Water In The Gulf Of Mexico; Mourners Pay Last Respects For Wagner Leader Yevgeny Prigozhin In St. Petersburg; Spain's Football Federation Head Faces Growing Calls To Resign; FBI Investigates More Than A Dozen Uzbek Nationals Entering U.S. From The Southern Border; European Union Goes To War With The Wildfires In Greece; New Video Shows More Details On Saturday's Racist Shooting Rampage In Jacksonville; Former Footballer Melissa Ortiz Reacts To The Controversial Kiss At Women's World Cup Event. Aired 12-1p ET
Aired August 29, 2023 - 12:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[12:00:15]
LYNDA KINKADE, CNN INTERNATIONAL HOST: Hurricane Idalia, stronger vibe in minutes. Here's what's coming up.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
RON DESANTIS, FLORIDA GOVERNOR: If you are in those areas that's in line for some of the major storm surge and you're told to evacuate, you know,
you have time to do that, but you got to do that now.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KINKADE: Hurricane Idalia barreling towards Florida's west coast. The governor says the region hasn't seen a storm like this since the 19th
century. Plus, veil of secrecy. We've just learned that Yevgeny Prigozhin has been laid to rest, what we know about the private ceremony. And later -
-
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNKNOWN: We are facing the largest wildfire ever recorded.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KINKADE: The biggest fire the European Union has ever seen. Destruction already the size of New York City and the blazing griefs is still raging.
Hello, I'm Lynda Kinkade live from Atlanta. Welcome to One World. The number one killer in all these storms is water. That's the warning from the
top official of the Federal Emergency Management Agency as Hurricane Idalia barrels towards Florida.
The Category 1 hurricane is expected to rapidly intensify as it churns over the warm water in the Gulf of Mexico. Forecasters predict it will make
landfall Wednesday, north of Tampa. FEMA says the massive storm surge and torrential rain could be more lethal than the strong winds. At least 22
Florida counties have issued evacuation orders. And it appears many Floridians have heeded that warning. They're stocking up on essential
supplies, clearing out store shelves. Well, Idalia is already lashing parts of Western Cuba with heavy rain and strong winds and thousands have been
evacuated.
We are covering this from all angles for you. Our Senior Meteorologist, Brandon Miller, is standing by for us in Atlanta. But I want to start with
Patrick Oppman, who joins us live from Havana, Cuba. And Patrick, we've already seen the inundation of water in Cuba, the flooded streets. And this
was when this storm cell was just a tropical storm and tens of thousands of people had to be evacuated. Just take us through what you've been seeing.
PATRICK OPPMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: You're absolutely correct. It could have been far worse for Cuba. The storm just skirted the westernmost point of
Cuba. And even though it did not make a direct hit on Cuba and was a tropical storm in that category, one hasn't passed by this island, it still
caused a lot of heartache for people. There's flooding across much of western Cuba.
We know that tens of thousands of people are without power right now. The government is working on trying to restore their power. The cell phone
signal -- the only cellphone company there is here are government cell phone company, has been going in and out all day. So, it's really has
created a lot of disruption, even if it was not as bad as it could have been.
At this point though, we know of at least 8000 people that were evacuated. Those are the numbers we got late last night. And much of the western part
of this island is without power. So, that'll probably take several days for them to restore. And of course now, Idali is heading into the warmer waters
off of Cuba, heading towards Florida and that is of course the issue. Those warmer waters are the fuel for hurricanes and it is expected to pick up
even more power as it heads to Florida and it certainly will cause even greater damage there.
KINKADE: Yeah, that's what I want to discuss next. Patrick Oppmann in Havana, thank you. I want to go to Brandon Miller on what we can expect
when this hurricane hits Florida. Brandon there's huge concerns that this could strengthen to a similar hurricane that we saw when Hurricane Ian hit
and claimed the lives of more than a hundred people. What are we anticipating?
BRANDON MILLER, CNN SENIOR METEOROLOGIST: So, the big difference here between this one and Ian, a couple differences we'll go over, but the big
one is the area that it's hitting. So Ian, we know it's south of Tampa. It's a very populated area around Fort Myers, Cape Coral. This one's going
to go into a not so populated area, which is a good thing.
But let's start with what's already happened in western Cuba. You see a pretty strong line there that moved over Patrick, moved over Havana and
this strong band of storms will be moving into Western Florida here in the next couple of hours. But the storm, as you can see for Cuba, is
essentially over. It's very much moving away.
Just in the last hour, we have had the winds increase just a bit. We're up to 140 kilometers per hour. Gusts up to 165. But something I want to point
out that's very important here is the forward speed over the last 24 hours has really picked up.
[12:05:00]
And we're now going north at 23 kilometers per hour.
Just yesterday and the day before, as the tropical storm was starting to bring itself together, it was moving at a walking pace and that allowed
heavy rainfall there in Cuba. We saw over a hundred millimeters in just six hours. And we will see similar to that from this storm but it's fortunately
moving a lot faster and here is why that's very important, and it's because of the sea surface temperatures. That's going to be less time over these
record warm sea surface temperatures that we've seen here in the Gulf of Mexico.
Just this week, Lynda, Gulf of Mexico temperatures reached record levels, over 32 degrees Celsius, is what the scientists measured over the whole
Gulf of Mexico. For each degree Celsius that body of water is, that hurricane is moving over, that hurricane can intensify 10 to 20 percent.
So, as the storm moves up the coast, it's going to hit first here in Southwest Florida, where Ian did hit, and it's going to see some tropical
storm force winds beginning as soon as this afternoon. By tonight, we're looking at the Tampa area. Will be seeing its most winds and rainfall and
storm surge.
So, the track of this thing is staying pretty far out to the West, but people in Tampa may say we're not in the cone, but we say don't focus on
the cone because those southerly winds are going to push right up in the area into Tampa Bay, and that may actually cause Tampa Bay to see some of
their highest, if not highest water levels from storm surge, even though this storm is going to make landfall 100 -- 200 miles away.
So, here you can see these sea surface temperatures above 32 degrees and here we see the track. It's going to go right over them and that's why we
see this track going from one to two, to three, Category-3, all the way before landfall and as of the latest guidance from the hurricane center,
we're only about 10 kilometers away. from a Category-4.
So, we're looking at, again, the potential, like you said, for a storm near, probably not quite as strong as Ian, but in this part of the state,
this is unheard of. A major hurricane, which is anything three, Category-3 or above, we're looking at the first time that has happened in probably
over a hundred years. And that's a big problem here, because the geography of the land works like a catcher's mitt.
So, it's basically all this water that's moving up to the north is going to just catch right in this area and that builds up. Those water levels are
going to start rising here in the next couple hours. They're going to rise all the way through Wednesday morning. Up here, Cedar Key, all the way
around to Port St. Joe. This is called Apalachee Bay. This area probably seeing some of their highest water levels ever, Lynda, just, you know, in
the last 100 years at least that we have records of these.
So, again, going through the timing. This afternoon, those winds pick up all along as you go south to north along the coast of Florida. And then by
tonight, after nightfall, that's when things are really going to pick up in this big bend region of Florida. And that's where we'll start to see
rainfall, also, we didn't talk about, that's going to be a big problem, just as it was in Cuba, over a hundred millimeters. Lynda.
KINKADE: Brandon Miller, we will continue to follow this closely over the next 24 -- 48 hours. Good to have you on the story for us. Thanks so much,
Brandon Miller, and of course our Patrick Oppman in Havana. Well, I want to turn to Russia now, because there is word that a funeral for the Wagner
chief, Yevgeny Prigozhin, has happened.
Concord Management, which was owned by Prigozhin, made that announcement earlier saying it took place, quote, in a closed format. It says mourners
can pay their respects at a cemetery in St. Petersburg. It was only this past weekend that Russia confirmed that Yevgeny Prigozhin did indeed die in
that plane crash last week. CNN's Matthew Chance has more on how Russians are reacting to Prigozhin's death.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MATTHEW CHANCE, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Don't expect to see these scenes on Russian state television. When it comes to the Wagner
leader who challenged the Kremlin, then died in a plane crash, there's a virtual media blackout on public grief. And Wagner supporters like Dmitry
in Moscow are simply not being heard.
Yevgeny Prigozhin's death, he says, just confirms that there are fewer and fewer of us who really think about our country, our history and our goals.
Prigozhin really showed everyone how it should be done, he adds. Wagner did a great job, says Maria, and they are heroes of our country. But of course,
everyone makes mistakes, she explains.
But in Russia, some mistakes can be fatal. The Kremlin has slammed as absolute lies allegations Prigozhin was killed for leading this abortive
military uprising in June.
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But the fact his plane plunged to the ground two months after the day has fueled suspicions. And many doubt the official investigation would ever
reveal state involvement. Already there were concerns at how quickly and carelessly evidence has been dragged from the crash scene. And when CNN
visited Monday morning it had already been flattened and cleared, just a small memorial to mark the spot. But the memory of the Wagner leader may
not be so easily erased.
All of us are angry at what happened, says this former military officer, now running for political office in the Russian Far East. We all considered
Prigozhin our primary commander in the special military operation, he told crowds of mourners. The Kremlin may not like it. But even in death,
Russia's mercenary leader continues to strike a chord. Matthew Chance, CNN Moscow.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KINKADE: Yevgeny Prigozhin's death is raising more questions about the fate of the Russian-linked Wagner group in Africa. The U.N. on Monday said
Moscow was promising to continue providing what it called comprehensive assistance in Mali. It's currently estimated that about 1000 Wagner
mercenaries are in the West African nation, aiding the military junta there as the Kremlin seeks to amplify its influence in the world.
We're also seeing rare footage out of Russia of American detainee Paul Whelan. Take a look at this footage we got in. You can see him wearing a
Russian prison uniform. The White House says Whelan is being wrongfully detained, held on bogus espionage charges since 2018. This video is shot by
Russian state media back in May as a chance for Whelan's family to see him on video for the first time in three years.
Returning to Ukraine now, where the country's slow-moving counteroffensive appears to be picking up some much-needed momentum. Kyiv claims its forces
have gained a deeper foothold in the Zaporizhzhia region after breaking through Russia's defenses and liberating a small southern village. The
settlement lies on an important road towards the strategic hub of Tokmak. Meanwhile, one local official says the mandatory evacuation of children
from areas close to the frontline fighting is now underway.
Well, they're a growing calls for the head of Spain's Football Federation to resign. The regional heads of the Spanish Football Federation say their
organization needs new management and they want Luis Rubiales to step down. Rubiales sparked an international outcry when he kissed Jennifer Hermoso on
the lips at a ceremony celebrating Spain's victory at the Women's World Cup. Spanish prosecutors have opened a probe into whether Rubiales
committed an act of sexual aggression.
Well, Atika Shubert has been following the story for us and joins us now live. Good to have you with us, Atika. So, this kiss was really just the
tip of the iceberg in a long list of complaints. Even at the Women's World Cup final, it wasn't just the kiss. We also saw the president grabbing his
crotch while standing next to the Spanish queen and her young daughter. We saw the coach of the Spanish football team seemingly grabbing the breast of
another assistant coach. Just talk to us about the culture within the Spanish Football Federation and where things stand right now.
ATIKA SHUBERT, JOURNALIST: Well, where things stand right now is that Rubiales is still refusing to resign, despite the fact that, for example,
the prosecutor has opened this investigation into allegations of what they call sexual aggression. We have reached out to RFEF. We've tried to get in
touch with Rubiales to get a response. So far, there has not been any response.
But in terms of the culture, I think we have to remember that, you know, Spain's female footballers have been fighting for equality for years,
decades. In fact, just last year, at the end of the year, fifteen of Spain's women's team refused to play because they said that there needed to
be structural changes to the management, that they were not being treated with the same kind of respect that the men's teams were.
It varied from everything from the way they travel by bus, you know, as opposed to other forms of travel for the men. Also, that they weren't
giving the same coaching strategies, the same kind of analysis that the men's team was. And for that reason, they said, you know, they needed to
have better treatment.
[12:15:00]
So, this is the culture that they've been operating in. And then in the midst of all this, just at the peak, just when they clinched victory at the
World Cup, it appears that Rubiales has this very boorish behavior off the pitch there and this is where we are right now with the women's team, you
know, basically showing the kind of culture they've had to deal with all these years.
KINKADE: Yeah, exactly. Atika Shubert, we will stay on this story but good to have you on it with us right now. Thank you so much. Of course, moments
ago, CNN spoke to the Chief Strategy Officer for the Spanish Women's Professional Football League. He expressed anger at Rubiales for not being
respectful of the players and for ruining what been a great moment for Spain.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
PEDRO MALABIA SANCHIS, SPANISH WOMEN'S PROFESSIONAL FOOTBALL LEAGUE: It's not only a problem of Luis Rubiales himself, it's a problem of the whole
federation, of the whole system, of the whole model. So, what we expect is that we pass from words to action. It's unacceptable. It's unfair and I
could say many, many words. It's just now, the U.S. is a women's football country. You know perfectly what it means to win a World Cup. For us, it's
one of the biggest success in the story of not of women's sports, but of sport, of Spanish sport.
So, we've been stolen this moment of celebrating together and CNN should have called us just to realize what's behind this success, not to talk
about the behavior of the president because he's not representing, he should be representing the values of Spanish football, but indeed he showed
that he's not aligned with this. So, of course, there has been a massive impact internationally and it's a shame and it's unfair that people are
thinking that Spanish football is like this. Spanish football is not like this.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KINKADE: Well, still to come, why an incident at the U.S. southern border with Mexico may be setting off alarm bells with national security officials
seen an exclusive on the return. And the U.S. sends a powerful firefighting force to help out the Greek wildfires. A bit later, we'll look at what
they're up against.
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KINKADE: We're now to a CNN exclusive. The FBI is investigating more than a dozen Uzbek nationals who entered the U.S. from the southern border with
Mexico earlier this year seeking asylum. Only later did the FBI learn that a smuggler with ties to the ISIS terror group helped the Uzbek nationals
travel to the U.S. as part of a smuggling network.
[12:20:00]
Only later did the FBI learn that a smuggler with ties to the ISIS terror group helped the Uzbek nationals travel to the U.S. as part of a smuggling
network. Turkey has arrested the smuggler. While officials say no specific ISIS plot has been identified. There is concern that the incident shows
Washington's vulnerability to terrorists potentially sneaking in.
CNN's Katie Bo Lillis tracking this story and joins us now from Washington, D.C. Good to have you on the story. So, no specific ISIS plot, but some of
the migrants have ties to ISIS. What more can you tell us?
KATIE BO LILLIS, CNN REPORTER: So, no. At this point, U.S. officials are saying that there is no evidence that any of these migrants themselves have
any ties to ISIS. So, what happened here is that essentially this was a case of bad timing, right?
This cohort of Uzbek nationals traveled to the United States seeking asylum -- they declared themselves to U.S. authorities, they were vetted according
to standard procedures, and then they were released into the country pending a court date, as typically happens. It wasn't until later, just in
recent weeks, that the U.S. intelligence community received intelligence that allowed them to understand that this group of people, their travel to
the United States had been facilitated by a human smuggling network that included a member with some troubling ties to ISIS.
Now, this obviously rang alarm bells across the federal government. The FBI immediately jumped into action here, scrambling to try to locate,
investigate the backgrounds of, assess all of the different individuals that had traveled to the United States with the help of this particular
smuggling network.
The U.S. also worked with the government of Turkey at U.S. behest arrested members of this smuggling ring to include the facilitator with links to
ISIS. That allowed the U.S. to understand pretty quickly that this person wasn't actually a member of ISIS. He was sort of a kind of an independent
contractor who had some personal sympathies with the group.
So, that allowed the Biden administration fairly early on to get a sense that this case was more a human smuggling case than it was a terrorism
case. So, for some officials this is evidence of the system working the way it should, but for some officials' real concern that this shows a key
vulnerability along the U.S. southern border.
KINKADE: All right, Katie, good to have you on this story for us. We will continue to stay across any other developments. Thanks so much.
LILLIS: Thank you.
KINKADE: We'll soon to come, three months after a controversial anti-gay bill in Uganda goes into effect. Three people are being charged and they
could face the death penalty. We'll have a live report ahead.
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[12:26:11]
KINKADE: Hello and welcome back to One World. I'm Lynda Kinkade. Let's catch you up on the headlines this hour. A Pakistani court has suspended
the three-year sentence given to former Prime Minister Imran Khan. The court granted Khan's appeal and has allowed him to post bail, though it's
not yet clear when he might be released from prison. Khan was convicted of corruption for selling state gifts while in office. He still faces several
other charges.
There's still no internet access in Kabul days after the country held its national elections. The government claims the move is intended to avoid the
risk of violence and spread disinformation. The environment minister who was able to post this statement says he's waiting for the results to be
announced.
Zimbabwe's main opposition party is demanding a new election after disputing the legitimacy of last week's national vote. The Citizens
Coalition for Change Party led by Nelson Chamisa says a new ballot is needed to resolve the country's current political crisis. The current
President Emmerson Mngagagwa was declared the winner. But a spokesperson for the CCC says the entire process was shambolic and illegal.
Sudan's military leader has taken his first international trip since civil war erupted in his country. General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan arrived in Egypt
earlier and met with the President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi. The two discussed Mr. al-Sisi's offers to mediate the talks between the two warring factions.
Dozens of people have been killed since the fighting between Sudanese forces and the Rapid Support Forces began back in April.
I want to turn to Uganda now. In three months after the nation enacted a controversial law targeting the LGBTQ community, two men have been arrested
and are facing separate charges of aggravated homosexuality and they could face the death penalty. Uganda's Anti-Homosexuality Act was signed into law
in May during widespread condemnation from around the world. CNN's David McKenzie has been following the story and joins us now from Johannesburg.
Good to have you with us, David. So, this new law was enacted just in May, just a few months ago. Now we've got two people charged. Just explain this
case.
DAVID MCKENZIE, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Lynda, I think we need to tread carefully here because we don't have all that
information on these cases and the two cases could be potentially very different. Let me deal with one of the cases from the, this man was
arrested in August, a 20-year-old man according to prosecutors in the eastern part of Uganda.
Now, this individual is charged with aggravated homosexuality. According to the authorities, he was involved in a sexual act with a 41-year-old man
that they say had a disability. Now aggravated homosexuality, as was put in this draconian anti-homosexuality bill in Uganda, is specifically for acts
involving someone who might be disabled, a minor, and other aggravating circumstances.
I spoke to a human rights lawyer who is representing this man. They said that they believe this entire law is unconstitutional and they will fight
it. They did say that because of the nature of the law as it is written, it can be very broadly understood by authorities and could bring in people
that shouldn't be brought in, as they put it, those who are just having same-sex consensual encounters.
The other case also involves a young man. It could potentially be very different because it involves a minor, according to authorities, and of
course, in much of the rest of the world, that will be treated very differently in a criminal case. What it does show is that the authorities
in Uganda are moving ahead with investigating and potentially prosecuting those who they say are breaking the law when it comes to this bill.
[12:30:00]
Now, President Museveni of Uganda and the parliament there have been heavily criticized mostly by international actors for enacting this bill.
They say it is, of course, roundly homophobic and can be used to go after people who are both innocent and those who are just being targeted for
their sexual orientation. The bill, I must say, is very broad and it covers a whole host of potential crimes. That same human rights lawyer I spoke to
said there are several other people who have been charged with acts of homosexuality, a charge within the confines of that law, but that could
still -- they still could be facing the death penalty.
One more thing to mention is that pretrial detention can last very long in Uganda. So, though those individuals could face their initial hearing in
court in September, they could be in jail -- before even a trial, Lynda.
KINKADE: All right, David McKenzie, just losing a shot a little bit towards the end, but we got it loud and clear. Thank you so much. More now on our
top story. There is word that a funeral for the Wagner chief, Yevgeny Prigozhin has happened. Concord management, which was owned by Prigozhin,
made the announcement earlier, saying it took place in a closed format. It says mourners can pay their respects at a cemetery in St Petersburg, and it
was only this past weekend that Russia confirmed that Yevgeny Prigozhin had indeed died in that plane crash last week.
Matthew Chance joins us now from St. Petersburg. So, Matthew, it sounds like this funeral may have taken place. It sounds like Vladimir Putin did
not attend, not surprising given the fact that there have been accusations that he was involved in this plane crash, accusations that, of course, he
denies. What more are you learning about this funeral and the future of Wagner?
CHANCE: Well, I mean, first of all, you're right, the funeral has taken place, and it was unclear when it would take place or where it would take
place. In fact, most people had been focusing on cemeteries inside the city of St Petersburg, and that's because the authorities had gone to sudden
lengths to make out that that's or to hint that that's where the funeral was going to happen.
There'd been metal detectors placed outside the key cemeteries. There'd been security placed outside. People were being checked as they went in and
giving the impression that, you know, there was a big funeral that was going to be happening. In fact, it's an hour outside of St Petersburg here
in the Barokhov Square, cemetery where I am now, which is I say a good hour's drive also outside the center of St Petersburg.
You can see inside this wooded area where there's a sort of pretty small cemetery, the security personnel, actually members of the Russian National
Guard that are posted every five meters or so and if you walk up here Luke you can see that continues around the whole perimeter we're not permitted
to go inside, and it's a very closed location. In fact, we're told by locals that only 20 to 30 people attended the funeral.
We can catch a glimpse though, if you come over here, it's very difficult. If you look through the sort of leaves and branches over there into the
wooded cemetery, you can just perhaps make out the Russian flag, a very simple wooden cross. There's some flowers laid there, as well. That's the
grave site of Yevgeny Prigozhin. Apparently, he is lying next to his father, who's buried, as well. That may have been one of the reasons why
this cemetery was chosen.
But it's also likely to be because it's out of the way. And, you know, the Kremlin and the authorities have obviously been going to great pains to try
and get this under the radar, to play it down, to make sure there weren't crowds, and this didn't become a rallying point, a sort of pro-Prigozhin,
you know, kind of sentiment. And they seem to have succeeded in that. And to say the situation is very tense in the sense that you can't get any
closer than this and this is the -- as close as we can actually get at the moment to Yevgeny Prigozhin's grave site.
KINKADE: All right, Matthew Chance for us outside St Petersburg. Good to have you with us, thank you. The European Union is going to war with the
wildfires in Greece. It's one of the bloc's largest deployments of its kind. The E.U. is sending in 11 firefighting planes and a helicopter to
attack the wildfires from above. On the ground, more than 400 firefighters are on the frontlines battling the E.U.'s largest wildfire in more than two
decades.
These photos show some of the 81,000 hectares of scorched earth in the Alexandropoulos region, that's about the size of New York City or Manila.
So far, the fires have claimed 19 lives while turning homes and businesses to charred memories.
[12:35:00]
Well, time now for The Exchange and our conversation with Stella Arthur Nasaki with the Hellenic Red Cross. Good to have you with us.
STELLA ATHANAKASAKI, VOLUNTER RESCUER HELLENIC RED CROSS: Thank you very much. Good evening from Greece. Thank you for the very kind invitation.
Thank you so much.
KINKADE: Stella, this fire has been described as one of the largest ever recorded in the European Union. The amount of land that's been ravaged by
these fires is the equivalent of New York City. Just explain for us how many wildfires are burning right now, how many are out of control, and how
long has Greece been battling these fires now?
ATHANAKASAKI: Well, the last wildfire in Attica was began on 23rd of August in an area called Phili, a village in the foothills of Mount Parnitha and
had spread to the town of Menithi. Alexandroupoli also, as you have said, has very, very big fires. From the first moments of this disaster, the
president of the Hellenic Red Cross, Dr. Antonios Avgerinos, gave clear instructions to all parties concerned, volunteers, rescuers, Hellenic Red
Cross nurse team to cooperate with the Hellenic army and Hellenic firefighters to support everybody that needs help.
We saw a very, very hurtful situation with people who are trying to remade their houses. That was the most difficult thing for us, for the Hellenic
Red Cross rescuers. And we are trying to convince them to leave their houses, but you know somebody who built the house with very, very strong
possibilities to lose it. Nobody would like to leave their properties. We had many incidents such as burns, injuries, and collapses. We have also
supported people and firefighters also, and everybody who was involved in the situation with the water and food, the Hellenic fire services, the Army
and the Hellenic Red Cross.
We have worked tirelessly to support all, everybody, people, animals, land and properties. The most difficult situation was when we were in
Alexandroupoli hospital and there were newborn babies and patients and intensive care that they have be transferred. So, Hellenic Red Cross face
the very hurtful things there. But with our education, we had everything okay. So, we had no accidents. I mean, no serious incidents. We have 60
firefighters that they were injured battling with the flames.
KINKADE: And Stella, clearly you are doing -- you and your team are doing some really important work on the ground there assisting with evacuations,
assisting families, assisting firefighters. But I want to ask you about the fact that 79 people have been arrested, accused of arson. How does that
make you feel that some of these fires may have been intentionally lit?
ATHANAKASAKI: So, we have done our very best. If you are talking about the incidents, because the line, I'm sorry, it is not so good. If you are
talking about incident in Greece, in the whole Greece, we were facing very difficult, very difficult situation. If you are meaning like that,
something like that. As regards in the north of Greece, Alexandroupoli, the forests were very strong, they were stronger than Mount of Parnitha.
KINKADE: I was asking Stella if you can hear me about the fact that many people, at least 79 people, have been accused of starting some of these
wildfires. Have you heard about that and if so, is there some anger in the country that the fact that some of these fires may have been intentionally
lit?
ATHANAKASAKI: Yes, I don't think that it was ugly about all this thing. That was only because of the loss of properties mostly, not because of what
happened in general, because everybody is asking for help in order to protect their properties.
[12:40:00]
I don't think that they were aggrieved -- aggrieved, sorry, about what had, what happened because these strong winds cannot be supported by
firefighters. We saw fire -- fires, flames, I mean, from, from one moment to the other, it was, it was in a different, in a different way. So, nobody
can blame either firefighters or government.
KINKADE: Is there anything you think could have been done to prevent the extent of these fires?
ATHANAKASAKI: Believe me, because we were inside this disaster, nobody can do it before something. I mean, somebody to help or somebody to prevent
something, because this fire was something unbelievable. Believe me, unbelievable. We couldn't see in one meter distance. I mean, nothing can be
done.
KINKADE: Talk to us, Stella, about the international effort to bring these fires under control. Are you seeing help from other countries on the ground
or is it more in the ranks of the firefighters and the air support?
ATHANAKASAKI: Mostly -- mostly, it was the help of the aircrafts, not with the people that they're trying to stop the fire in the ground because the
distance and the whole area there couldn't be reached.
KINKADE: And Stella, in terms of your vantage point where you've been on the ground, have you ever seen fires worse than this?
ATHANAKASAKI: Can you please repeat, sorry?
KINKADE: I think we're definitely having some issues with our connection. I was just asking if these are the worst fires you've ever seen.
ATHANAKASAKI: Yeah, it was the worst fire that we have seen. Really, it was.
KINKADE: All right, Stella Athanakasaki, good to have you with us. Appreciate your time. Wish you all the very best. Thank you.
ATHANAKASAKI: Thank you very much. Thank you very much for the invitation.
KINKADE: Well, still to come. Police have tracked the final moments before a racially motivated shooter killed three black victims. We'll have the
details of where he went before his attack in just a moment.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[12:45:09]
KINKADE: We have an update now on one of our top stories. The Royal Spanish Football Federation has announced new consequences for Luis Rubiales, the
suspended president of the Spanish National Football Federation. Rubiales has been stripped of his salary and official car, and he was told to hand
back his corporate phone and laptop. Rubiales sparked an international outcry when he kissed Jennifer Hermoso on the lips at a ceremony
celebrating Spain's victory at the Women's World Cup. Spanish prosecutors have opened probe into whether Rubiales committed an act of sexual
aggression.
Police have identified the shooter who killed a professor at the University of North Carolina on Monday. They say the gunman was a doctoral student at
the university, though they are unsure if the student and the professor knew each other. The shooter has been arrested and will make his first
court appearance in the coming hours. The incident caused students to scramble for safety at some 30,000 people were put into a tense lockdown.
Police in Jacksonville, Florida have released a 911 phone call from the father of the man behind this weekend's racially motivated attack. The
shooter's father tells police that his son has left the house, leaving behind a disturbing note and will. He says his son had been taking
psychiatric medicine but appears to have stopped. The phone call happened as the shooter was killing three people at a Dollar General store in
Jacksonville. CNN's Brian Todd has more.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): New information about Saturday's racist shooting rampage in Jacksonville. New video shows that
before the shooter killed three black people at a Dollar General store, he stopped at a different Dollar store, but only came out with a bag.
T.K. WATERS, JACKSONVILLE SHERIFF: When I'm looking at it, it doesn't appear to me that he wanted to face anyone that may cause him any issues.
So, it looks like he wanted to take action at the Family Dollar. That's what it looks like. And he did not because I think he got impatient and got
tired of waiting.
TODD: He then went to Edward Waters University, a historically black university. Video shows the suspect apparently parks in a lot, gets a bag
out of the hatch, then puts on a vest. Then a security officer responding to a student's tip approaches. The suspect speeds off, jumping the curb and
almost hitting a column as he was chased off.
ANTONIO BAILEY, LIEUTENANT, PROTECTIVE ENTERPRISES PUBLIC SAFETY: I did see what appeared to be a tactical vest, a mask along with a hat.
TODD: He left and went to a second Dollar store. There he got out of his car and shot and killed a woman in her car before going inside the store
where he killed two others.
UNKNOWN: I heard, pop, pop (ph). I turned around, I seen him drop.
TODD: Officers stormed the Dollar General store, looking for the suspect. You can see them visibly reacting when they hear a shot fired. Authorities
believe that is when the gunman killed himself. Authorities revealing today, the shooter previously worked at a Dollar Tree store. Writings left
behind show he wanted to kill black people, the sheriff says.
UNKNOWN: The manifesto is quite frankly, the diary of a madman.
TODD: The three victims, all black, Angela Carr, an Uber driver, Gerald Galleon, who has a four-year-old daughter, and AJ Laguerre Jr., who worked
at the store. Officials say there was nothing in the gunman's past to prevent him from legally buying these two guns, a handgun and an AR-15
style rifle emblazoned with swastikas. Even though in 2017 he was sent for a 72-hour mental health evaluation under the Baker Act and then released
according to authorities.
DONNA DEEGAN, JACKSONVILLE MAYOR: I don't know legally, given the way the laws are written right now in the state of Florida, that there was anything
that could have been done and therein lies the frustration for me.
TODD: Community representatives are demanding broader action to address racism and hate crimes.
JU'COBY PITTMAN, JACKSONVILLE CITY COUNCIL MEMBER: It's unjust that we can't -- we can't even walk on the sidewalks. We're not safe in any stores.
TODD: A federal hate crimes probe has already been launched.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KINKADE: And that was CNN's Brian Todd reporting. We're going to take a quick break. We'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[12:51:47]
KINKADE: Welcome back. Well, it should have been a moment of celebration, glory and national pride for Spain. The Women's World Cup team taking home
the trophy in Sydney for the first time. Instead, their victory has been overshadowed by an unwanted kiss and the controversy surrounding it.
Earlier CNN's Don Riddell spoke to former Columbia player and TNT Analyst Melissa Ortiz about the fight for respect and equality that female
footballers still face.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MELISSA ORTIZ, FORMER PROFESSIONAL FOOTBALLER: It's crazy, Don, that you just said it's been a week because it's felt like a month since Spain
lifted that Women's World Cup trophy, just given the whole circumstance of all the drama around it. And what I make of it is just it's so frustrating
as a woman, as a former footballer, that the attention has been taken away from them winning the Women's World Cup to a man just taking the attention
of doing disgusting -- what he did to Jenny Hermoso and also what he said in his press conference. And it just has taken all of the attention away
from what the women have won and have worked on for so many years to be at this point in their careers. And it's just very, very frustrating,
disappointing and also disgusting.
DON RIDDELL, CNN ANCHOR: You used to play for the Colombian national team, yourself and your peers stood up to your federation. Can you give me a
sense of what it's like to be involved in something like that and the risks that you are personally taking by going into, you know, a battle like that?
ORTIZ: The risks are -- you're risking your career. So, in 2019, my former teammate Isabella Echeverri and myself, we led a fight against our
Colombian Federation, very similarly to what the Spaniards have done with their federation. They're asking for better standards. They're asking for
even things like a nutritionist, facilities, better training, everything that goes involved into becoming a better athlete. And those are things
that we also were fighting for and more we are fighting for, getting our flights paid for, we're fighting for equality.
So, it was a very similar battle. Of course, we didn't have the same leverage as the Spanish women given that they had more success, but we did
put our careers at risks. After that, I did not play ever again for the Colombian national team. And many of these players also took the same risk.
And we've seen it with Spain of Las 15, the 15 players who spoke out against the federation in that written statement, only three featured in
the Women's World Cup.
And that's what we've seen time and time again. And, you know, it's sad to see that it took Spain winning a World Cup to get even more attention. And
it took Rubiales to make a fool out of himself to now make this a women's football Me Too movement that it has become.
So, I have lived through similar situations and I have also have seen the backlash of what a federation can do. And what I've seen Rubiales and say
the Spanish Federation do in response to what has happened over the past week, I also lived something similarly where our Colombian Federation in
their own way backlashed and called us gossippers and had their own statements against us and put on the defensive cap, instead of going to the
negotiation table and being professionals about it and wanting to work through something together.
[12:55:00]
So, I'm seeing something very similar play out and now at a more global stage, it's very unfortunate to see all this happen, but I'm rooting,
obviously, for the Spanish women and for Jenny Hermoso, that they're going to come out of this, and they have shown that they are the better people in
this scenario, and they have been for many, many years.
RIDDELL: How heartened have you been to see the support globally from football players, football teams, and not just female players, male players
also coming out in solidarity here?
ORTIZ: This has been the focus of obviously, Spain. But this is something that has happened beyond Spain in other federations. Zambia has gone
through it. Nigeria has gone through it. Colombia has gone through it. And these are federations that continue to go through it. So, I'm just hoping
that out of this, obviously, good things will come for Spain and for the players on the team, but also that this is a start of a movement that will
go beyond just Spain.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KINKADE: Our thanks to Don Riddell for that interview and thank you for watching One World. I'm Lynda Kinkade. A reminder, Christiane Amanpour
anchors her show all week from Ukraine. So, be sure to join Christiane. That starts in just a few minutes. You're watching CNN.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
END
