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The Brief with Jim Sciutto

CNN International: Judge Declares Mistrial In Clancy Case; NC Sends Midterm Mail-In Ballots; Blockbuster U.S. Jobs Report; Trump Threatens To Halt Some Trade If Fed Doesn't Cut Rates; Two Men Pulled Alive From Nepal Hydropower Plant Tunnel; Russia Strikes Ukraine's Security Service Headquarters; Far-Right AfD Party Seeks State-Level Governance Milestone. Aired 6-7p ET

Aired September 04, 2026 - 18:00   ET

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

[18:00:00]

LYNDA KINKADE, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: Hello and welcome to our viewers joining us from all around the world. I'm Lynda Kinkade coming to you live

from Atlanta, and you're watching "The Brief."

Just ahead this hour, the judge declares a mistrial in the Lindsay Clancy case. The prosecution has not yet made a decision on whether to retry the

case. We'll discuss what might come next. North Carolina is the first state to send out mail ballots for November's midterm election. President Trump

is pushing ahead with efforts to curtail mail voting, even as Election Day draws closer. And the U.S. economy added 162,000 jobs in August, much

higher than expected. The strong numbers may complicate things for the U.S. Fed Reserve.

Well, the trial of Lindsay Clancy, the U.S. mother who faces charges of murdering her three children, has collapsed without a verdict. A

Massachusetts judge declared a mistrial after jurors remained deadlocked. It follows days of intense drama in the courtroom, with the defense saying

a lone juror held out on a unanimous verdict. Clancy's attorney says the other jurors were robbed of their time.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KEVIN REDDINGTON, LINDSAY CLANCY'S DEFENSE ATTORNEY: They know that they were robbed by one man for whatever his agenda was who stole seven weeks of

the life of these other jurors. I got a funny feeling that they would have gone on for another week if they had to. So, I hope that guy can sleep well

at night.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KINKADE: Well, Clancy was charged with three counts of first-degree murder of the deaths of her three children, aged between five months and five

years old. The defense said she should not be held criminally responsible because she was suffering from postpartum psychosis.

The district attorney expressed sympathy for those affected by the condition, but said the focus should remain on the children.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TIM CRUZ, PLYMOUTH COUNTY DISTRICT ATTORNEY: Criminals are being treated as victims, and the real victims are invisible. It is our job to make sure

that the victims are not invisible, to make sure that they're not forgotten, and to make sure that we stand for them in the way that we seek

justice. And that's what I think we've done in this case.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KINKADE: The next stages of the legal process could begin later this month. The judge has set a status hearing for September 29th. The next steps could

include a potential plea deal or a new trial.

Jean Casarez is in Plymouth, Massachusetts, where the trial has been unfolding. You have been on this story all day and throughout the

proceedings. And of course, Jean, after nearly 40 hours of deliberations, the jurors still couldn't come to a unanimous decision. So, the judge

declared a mistrial. Just give us a sense of the atmosphere inside that courtroom when the judge made that ruling and what the reaction was.

JEAN CASAREZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: As far as the jury, it was very emotional because there were 11 jurors that were on the side of the defense. I mean,

that came out in open court. And when the judge declared a mistrial, you had female jurors that were clenching their hands. They were looking down.

They were solemn. They were emotional.

You had other jurors. When the judge was telling them, I am so proud of you as jurors, what you've done, your obligation, what you've fulfilled. And

one female juror was just shaking her head like, no, there's nothing to be proud of here. You could just read the body language. The male jurors just

straight ahead. But the emotions were there.

And in the courtroom, there were emotions, too. The family of the defendant, they were very sad, extremely sad. Lindsay Clancy was wheeled

out of that courtroom very, very quickly after the mistrial was declared. So, you could say that no one won in one sense.

On the other hand, the defense, she was not convicted by this jury. And the prosecution has another chance if they choose to retry her. So, it's not a

complete loss for anyone, but it's not a total victory for one side or the other.

[18:05:00]

KINKADE: We did hear from Clancy's defense attorney, Jean, arguing that the medical system failed her, also making a case that the investigation itself

was flawed. What specifically did he point to in making those claims?

CASAREZ: Well, in the postpartum, the medical community, she went to a lot of medical providers. One, she went to a lot of doctors and she went to a

lot of nurses and she went to a lot of having anxiety and depression. She had a newborn, but the months went on and she was still having this

depression and they would prescribe her different medications.

But the evidence showed that she, as a nurse herself, did not take a lot of the medications. She chose not to because of side effects that she knew

potentially were there. And, so the pill bottles came into evidence and a lot of the pills were still there. She did take Seroquel at one point and

she went to a hospital to wean herself off of that.

But here's what's important. The evidence showed that at the time of the commission of killing her children, there were minimal medications in her

system. The main medication at that point was actually Valium.

KINKADE: Wow. All right, Jean Casarez, good to have you following this case for us. Much appreciated. We are going to stay on this story.

CASAREZ: Thank you.

KINKADE: Because this case has gained international attention. It has, of course, provoked intense feelings from all sides. Clancy's supporters

gathered just outside and near the courtroom, saying that the case had shone a spotlight on the issues women face in a health care system.

Clancy's attorney says the intense media coverage will make it hard to find future jurors who aren't already aware of this case.

Let's get more on what will happen now. Gene Rossi is a former U.S. federal prosecutor and a former assistant U.S. attorney in the Eastern District of

Virginia. Great to have you with us.

GENE ROSSI, FORMER U.S. FEDERAL PROSECUTOR: Oh, thanks for having me.

KINKADE: So, I have to start with the fact that after seven weeks of testimony, days of deliberations, this judge has declared a mistrial. What

exactly happens now legally?

ROSSI: OK. Legally, Lynda, because it's a mistrial, there's no double jeopardy that attaches. On appeal, the defense may argue that it does. But

when you have a mistrial, you just set a new trial date, and it could be quick or it could be down the road. But they can retry all the charges,

first-degree, second degree, involuntary manslaughter, you name it, whatever is in the indictment. So, the prosecution gets a redo, if you

will.

But I have to say, I've done a fair number of trials in my day. This one, to me, is one that may go away. Because if it was 11 to 1 in favor of the

defense, Lynda, I can't see how a prosecutor in that office can make a decision to have another lengthy trial that could last five to seven weeks.

It's costly on the jurors.

And I feel for both sides. And I guess there are too many Genes on this show. But your other Jean, the correspondent, made a good point that nobody

really won today. Although I'd rather be Ms. Clancy than the prosecution. But they'll have a retrial. Maybe. If I had a bet money, Lynda, I would say

there's a fair chance these charges will go away. Or the prosecution will make an offer of some sort with Ms. Clancy that she should be, you know,

sent to a mental health facility or something like that.

KINKADE: Right. Well, Clancy's attorney thanked the jurors after the mistrial, with the exception of the one who didn't side with the other 11.

How typical is it for lawyers to address jurors after a deadlock or after mistrial and then get the opportunity to actually speak to the jurors to

get a sense of the decision-making process?

ROSSI: Well, Lynda, that's a fantastic question. And it troubles me greatly that Mr. Reddington, who did a phenomenal job, but outside the courtroom, I

think he made a rookie mistake, if you will, unforced error. What you should do after a verdict, whether it's guilty, not guilty or hung, each

side should say we respect the process. We respect the judge. We respect the system. And we may disagree with the jury's verdict, but we respect

their work.

What he had -- what he did was he attacked this soldier who may feel in his heart that he was doing the right thing voting not to acquit.

[18:10:00]

So, that's something he probably should not have done. And I don't know if there's a bar rule on this, but you should not attack the juror or jurors

who make a decision either way. That's something you should not do. It's very bad as an attorney, either way.

KINKADE: Yes, it certainly sounded quite unusual from my perspective. Of course, the major defense argument centered around Clancy's psychiatric

care and the fact that it was quite fragmented. Her lawyer argued that the medical system had failed her because she had seen multiple doctors,

multiple providers, and was given different medication. Some of those providers didn't have the records from the others. Does poor medical care

translate into a defense when comes to murder?

ROSSI: Well, I don't know if it's a defense, but it does contribute to her -- the -- what the defense argued was postpartum psychosis. So, the medical

care that she got, whether it was good or bad, and the number of pills she received and how many she took, the oversight, her reaching out to a

suicide hotline, that all goes into whether she had postpartum psychosis.

I got to say this, Lynda. I said this on another show that, you know, as a prosecutor, I did that for many moons. If you tell somebody that a

defendant murdered their three -- her three children, a mother murdered her three children, five, three, and eight months, and then after she did that,

she tried to jump out a window, a second-floor window and commit suicide, a thousand people out of a thousand would say that individual, that mother

was of sound mind. So, that's why I think there's a fair likelihood this trial will not be -- this case will not be retried.

KINKADE: And, Gene, if you were sitting in the prosecutor's chair, what's the single piece of evidence or the issue that would concern you most if it

did go to retrial?

ROSSI: Numbers. I've had a few hung juries in my day. When it's 11 to one in your favor as a prosecutor, you're going forward with a retrial, you

know, 10 to two, nine to three. But when it's 11 to one for an acquittal, I pack up my bags. I go home and I just say, I fought the good fight.

I don't begrudge the prosecution, Lynda, for bringing this case. You know, you have three horrible, horrible, three beautiful children that were just

horribly murdered and killed. You can't just let that go. And you got to let the jury decide. And in my view, on 11 to one, I think the jury decided

this case weighs in the favor of Ms. Clancy, whether she's not guilty on each count or not guilty because of insanity.

KINKADE: Gene Rossi, always great to get your analysis, your expertise. We really appreciate it. Thanks so much for joining us.

ROSSI: Thank you.

KINKADE: Well, the stakes just got higher in the battle between the Trump administration and the states over the U.S. midterm election. Voting began

today in North Carolina. It's the first U.S. state to send out mail-in ballots for the election on November 3rd for congressional, state and local

offices. More states will follow suit in the coming weeks.

And of course, it comes as President Trump is again asking the U.S. Supreme Court to let him enforce his new voting rules to limit mail-in voting,

rules that critics say could potentially disenfranchise millions of Americans. A federal judge just extended a block on those rules for now.

CNN's Dianne Gallagher is in North Carolina and joins me now. Dianne, good to have you with us on the story. So, North Korea -- North Carolina, sorry,

is sending out absentee ballots today, even as the legal fight continues over the rules surrounding these ballots. What could this all mean for

voters heading to the midterms?

DIANNE GALLAGHER, CNN U.S. NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: So, Lynda, they're not just sending out ballots. They've actually had a few ballots returned

already. So voting is officially underway in the 2026 midterm elections.

Now, those ballots that were returned are through something called the electronic UOCAVA system. So, are military and overseas voters. These are

not ballots that went through the United States Postal Service, which is what is sort of at hand in this rule that was put into effect by President

Trump and has been blocked by the courts. And then he appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court.

So, right now, it's not in effect. So, voters aren't going to experience anything here when it comes to that rule at this time.

[18:15:00]

What we are seeing on the ground is confusion. Election officials, who are honestly some of the most educated people that I've ever had to deal with,

who always have the answer to a question when I ask it, don't know how to answer my questions about this right now, because there's just an

incredible amount of uncertainty.

Voters are confused because they're afraid this is going to impact their ballots. And they're afraid that vote by mail. And, of course, they don't

really know what this means for them. There's a lot included in this rule that many different election officials and attorneys general in several

states in the United States who filed a lawsuit, including the one here in North Carolina, say just simply cannot feasibly be implemented without

pushing this election into chaos. The administration disagrees and says that they believe that it can go into effect. And now, we have to see if

the U.S. Supreme Court will agree with that.

But currently right now, ballots that are being sent out, and there were about 49,000 requests that were being adhered to and sent out just in the

state of North Carolina today, that will continue as those more requests come in, as they send them out through mid-October. That's a lot of ballots

to already go out and then change the rules in the middle of the game.

KINKADE: This issue is very much divided along political lines. Just explain how both sides, Republicans versus Democrats, feel about this

issue.

GALLAGHER: So, what we're seeing -- actually, North Carolina is a very good example of that. North Carolina is sort of a split government state with

both Democrats and Republicans elected and in control of various parts of the government.

The Democratic attorney general of North Carolina is playing a large role in this lawsuit, trying to block it, arguing that while North Carolina has

some things that would adhere to this rule already, there are other aspects, like this unknown portal that things have to be submitted into

that they say hasn't been tested, that they just simply could not feasibly do without adding too much risk. And that's what so many Democrats, not

even considering why they believe that there are perhaps nefarious reasons behind this for the administration, some Democrats argue.

But these attorneys general simply say, it's not, we can't do it. We just can't adhere to this. But North Carolina also has a Republican-controlled

state elections board. And that state elections board voluntarily submitted the ballot envelopes to the USPS, the Postal Service for Approval.

Now, North Carolina is unique in the fact that this state already uses barcodes on both inbound and outbound ballot envelopes. A lot of states

don't. And if they don't, they would have to reprint and get brand-new envelopes, new designs, everything, before they could send the ballots out,

or USPS wouldn't use them. They would not deliver those ballots. And that's where some of this disparity comes into play as well.

Democratic states, many of them that use all mail-in ballots as an option for their voters say, it's just not possible for us to do. And you are

setting up not just our states, but our voters for failure. And that's kind of the argument here. The administration argues this is about security and

making sure that elections are secure and no one who isn't supposed to vote is casting a ballot. Other states and most election officials, even

Republican election officials say that this is simply not the time to be testing out these new programs and new ideas at the last minute, 60 days

before the election.

KINKADE: Exactly. And midterms just around the corner. Dianne Gallagher, good to have you with us from Charlotte, North Carolina. Thanks so much.

GALLAGHER: Thank you.

KINKADE: Well, still ahead, jobs jolt. The U.S. jobs market is showing surprising new strength this summer. What it all means for Americans

looking for work.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[18:20:00]

KINKADE: Welcome back, I'm Lynda Kinkade. In today's Business Breakout, U.S. stocks fell across the board Friday after a stronger-than-expected

U.S. jobs report rekindled Fed rate hike fears. The Dow was the hardest hit, falling more than half a percent. U.S. Treasury yields rose as well.

Matt Egan breaks down the job numbers for us.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MATT EGAN, CNN SENIOR REPORTER: This report didn't just beat expectations, it crushed them. And this is good news for job seekers. So, the consensus

forecast was for a gain of just 65,000 jobs, but look at this. It came in at 162,000 jobs. That's ahead of even the most optimistic forecaster. The

unemployment rate was expected to tick up to 4.2 percent. It didn't. It stayed at 4.1 percent.

You look at the trend for the past year or so, it's been a bumpy ride. There's been a few months of job loss, but what's encouraging is that both

June and July were revised higher. Initially, July was reported as a small decline in jobs, but this report revised that up to reflect a small

increase in jobs. And then there was this acceleration in August.

So, where are the jobs? Well, that was one of the other encouraging parts of this report, is this was not one of those times where all the job growth

came from one part of the economy. This was a lot more widespread. Leisure and hospitality adding 62,000 jobs. That was mostly bars and restaurants.

And that's a bounce back after surprise job loss in July. Government adding 35,000. That was mostly public schools. And this is also a rebound after

surprise job loss in that part of the economy in July that likely reflected some shifts in school calendars.

Health care only added 13,000 jobs. That's kind of a soft number for that part of the economy. Got to wonder whether or not some changes to

immigration policy is starting to shrink the pool of workers for health care. And then information and finance losing a combined 34,000 jobs.

That's notable because these aren't just high paying jobs, but these are two parts of the economy that have been early and aggressive adopters of

artificial intelligence.

Now, the downside to this report was wages. Wage growth slowed again to 3.1 percent. That is a fresh five-year low. And the problem is it's not even

close to the 3.4 percent projected inflation rate for August. That means that if you would just for inflation, your paycheck, it's actually getting

smaller. And that does underscore why a lot of people are frustrated with this economy and why a lot of people feel like they just can't keep up

right now.

Now, after the report came out, Wall Street started to lean a little bit more towards an interest rate hike from the Federal Reserve later this

month. Before the report came out, markets saw about a 50-50 chance of an interest rate hike. But look at this, it's gone up to 60 percent now.

And so, the bottom line is this report, it should ease concerns about the job market, and it should free up the Fed to focus on inflation, which

after this report, looks increasingly like the bigger problem in this economy. Back to you.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KINKADE: Our thanks to Matt there. Well, U.S. President Trump says the job numbers should spur the Fed Reserve to cut interest rates instead of

raising them. He's now threatening to stop trading with countries with which the U.S. has a deficit if the Fed Reserve doesn't do what he wants.

Listen to what he said in the Oval Office earlier.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, U.S. PRESIDENT: We could do tremendous good for ourselves by just not trading with countries. We lose with the European Union $200

billion a year. If I didn't trade with them, we'd lose nothing.

[18:00:00]

Just one swipe of the pen. We lose with Mexico $195 billion a year. If I don't trade with Mexico, they have nothing that we have to have.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KINKADE: CNN's Kevin Liptak joins me now from the White House. I mean, that was just extraordinary, Kevin. Is President Trump opening a new front in

the trade war? Or is that just the real target, the Fed Reserve here?

KEVIN LIPTAK, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE REPORTER: I think it's the latter. And you know, the president has made pretty clear that he will go to pretty

extreme lengths to try and influence monetary policy and specifically to try and get the Federal Reserve to lower interest rates. You've seen him go

after Fed governors legally to try and exert his influence on them. He tried to go after the last Fed chairman, Jay Powell, to try and get the

rates down. And this seems to be sort of in that vein.

You know, I don't really even know what cutting off a trade with this number of countries would even look like. It's the European Union. It's

China. It's Mexico. It's Canada. Just logistically, it doesn't really seem possible to totally eliminate trade with every country with which the U.S.

has a trade deficit.

So, how exactly that would happen? Not clear. It is clear that it would put a really heavy financial strain both on businesses in the United States,

but also on consumers. And at a moment when the president is facing some real questions about prices and the economy two months before the midterm

elections, it's clearly not something that he would be willing to do.

What does seem clear is he's looking to this month's vote by the Fed on rates and seeing a likelihood, potentially, that they could raise rates.

And the jobs report today only seems to make that more likely. You know, the Federal Reserve has this dual mandate. One is to keep unemployment low,

and the other is to keep inflation stable. If they think that the jobs numbers in the labor market have stabled out, but when they see an

inflation report that's due next week, if that comes in hot, then they could feel more leeway to raise these rates to try and tame inflation.

And so, I think the President is looking at that and seeing a potential rate hike and trying to come up with some kind of nuclear option that would

prevent the Fed from going down that road. And it does seem as if the honeymoon period that he had enjoyed with the Fed chairman, Kevin Warsh,

who he named some months ago, may be coming to an end.

Obviously, Warsh is not the only say in what the Fed does on rates. But the president, I think, making clearer and clearer that he is going to exert

enormous amount of pressure to try and get the rates down.

KINKADE: Yes, and quite unusual way to do it. Kevin Warsh -- Kevin Liptak, not Kevin Warsh. Kevin Liptak outside the White House, thanks so much.

I want to check some of today's other business headlines right now. The price of diesel rose to an all-time high on Friday. The average price has

hit $5.85 a gallon, surpassing its prior record set four years ago. Higher diesel prices could ripple through economies if businesses pass along the

higher costs of transporting goods to consumers. Diesel prices have risen more than 60 per cent this year due to the Iran war.

Drivers in the U.S. are facing a pricey holiday weekend. The average price for a gallon of regular gas has risen to more than $4.14. AAA says gas

prices have never been this high in the U.S. at this time of the year. Prices are four cents a gallon higher than they were just last week.

A new report says out-of-control A.I. agents have hit Europe. According to new research obtained by Reuters, a swarm of OpenAI agents hijacked a

German website this spring. The agents reportedly transformed the site into a bulletin board for other A.I. agents. The study says OpenAI learned about

the incident weeks ago but chose not to make it public.

Still to come on "The Brief," a dramatic rescue more than a week after catastrophic flooding hit Nepal. Two men were pulled alive from a tunnel at

a hydropower project. We'll have the details next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[18:30:00]

KINKADE: Welcome back to "The Brief." I'm Lynda Kinkade. Here are the international headlines we're watching today.

A mistrial has been declared in Massachusetts in the Lindsay Clancy trial. The jury said they could not come to a unanimous decision. The prosecution

has not yet decided if it will retry the case. Lindsay Clancy had faced charges of murdering her three young children. Her defense blamed her

actions on postpartum psychosis.

Argentine President Javier Milei escalating a long-running dispute with Britain over the Falkland Islands. He says he plans to sanction oil

companies working in the islands, claiming British and Israeli firms are moving towards oil extraction without Argentina's permission. It comes

after President Trump said the U.S. could review its long-held position of maintaining strategic ambiguity over the territory's sovereignty. Britain's

foreign secretary says the islands are British and will remain so.

The U.S. economy added 162,000 jobs last month. That's according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. It's more than double what economists had

expected. They're the strongest job gains since March. The unemployment rate was unchanged at 4.1 percent. Wage growth, however, hit a five-year

low of 3.1 percent.

A symbol of hope after devastating floods in Nepal. Two workers were pulled alive from a tunnel at a hydropower project after being trapped for nine

days following the disaster. According to the Nepali army, 58 people were rescued Friday, including those two men. Nearly 1,300 people have been

confirmed dead in the country so far. Thousands of others remain missing. Hanako Montgomery has the details.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

HANAKO MONTGOMERY, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): After days of desperation, cries of joy. This is the incredible moment two survivors were

pulled from a tunnel in Nepal after being trapped for an agonizing nine days.

The relief and exhaustion is palpable on 30-year-old Sanjay Sah's face. He was hauled out of the water-filled tunnel along with 45-year-old Kabir

Maharjan on Friday morning. Both were rushed by helicopter to a hospital in Kathmandu. From his hospital bed, Sah, a mechanical foreman, described how

he got trapped.

SANJAY SAH, FLOOD SURVIVOR (through translator): My responsibility was to save everyone's life. After the accident happened, I could not run by

myself. I had to save everyone. In the process of saving everyone, I told them that there was an accident in the big dam. I asked everyone to escape

outside.

[18:35:00]

Doing so, I wasted time, and I could not get out. I got trapped.

MONTGOMERY (voice-over): When news broke of the rescue, we flew to the site.

MONTGOMERY: Right now, we're flying over Nepal towards the Trishuli 3A tunnel, where authorities believe that there might be still some survivors

inside who are alive. They were able to rescue two individuals, and they're hoping the operations can continue and that they will have more luck

getting more survivors out.

MONTGOMERY (voice-over): As we approached, a deafening sound of heavy machinery drilling grew louder, and with it, a sense of hope. Nepali Army

rescuers surrounded a hole where the two survivors were hauled out from earlier in the day. We watched as dozens of workers pulled at a piece of

rope.

MONTGOMERY: They tell me that on the other end of this rope is someone who was stuck inside the tunnel. They don't know if this person is alive or is

dead. But clearly, there are dozens of workers right now trying to get this body out. And these people have been stuck inside for nine days now since

that flash flood first hit Nepal.

We've spoken to the major general, the head of military operations in Nepal, and he told us that it was really difficult to find signs of life,

especially inside the tunnel, which was one of the worst hits.

MONTGOMERY (voice-over): The Trishuli 3A hydropower station has a conduit that's a staggering 26 meters deep, an army general told me Thursday. The

rescuers here explained that it's filled with water rather than mud, allowing them to use whitewater rafts to travel down the tunnels.

As we left the scene, oxygen tanks and body bags were being passed towards the opening. Authorities later said a body was extracted from the tunnel.

Nepali authorities have previously warned there are more than 900 workers missing at multiple energy projects in the Himalayas after catastrophic

flash floods swept through the area.

They don't know how many are dead or still alive, but the search goes on with the hope that hundreds more families will be reunited.

Hanako Montgomery, CNN, Nepal.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KINKADE: For more on this, Jed Meline joins me now. He's the Vice President of Policy and Advocacy at Project HOPE. He's also a former Deputy Mission

Director at USAID in Nepal. Thanks so much for your time.

JED MELINE, VP FOR POLICY AND ADVOCACY, PROJECT HOPE: Thank you for having me.

KINKADE: I want to start on that incredible rescue today. We saw the visuals just then of two of the people pulled from the hydropower plant.

What does that rescue tell you about the possibility that other people might still be alive?

MELINE: Well, it's certainly inspirational and, you know, gives some hope that there might be a few more we can still rescue. I think those workers

in the tunnel is somewhat of an exceptional situation, and hopefully there are more. I think the thousands that are missing that weren't part of the

hydropower construction teams, I think the odds are not nearly as good as they are, and they're pretty small even in that situation, I'm afraid.

KINKADE: I mean, we have heard, Jed, reports of people still being trapped in those or missing in those tunnels. Obviously, it's very extreme,

extremely difficult terrain there. How challenging is it for rescue teams to actually reach those locations?

MELINE: Well, the access continues to be a major challenge for, you know, health, humanitarian work, and certainly for the rescue teams. The

hydroelectric plants are in more accessible areas generally, but again, the roads and the bridges to them are generally gone. So, it remains a very

serious logistical challenge. And again, helicopters continue to be the major way for relief and rescue to get in and out of that river valley.

KINKADE: And of course, Jed, you know Nepal from your time there with USAID. When you see images coming out from Nepal, what strikes you about

the scale of this disaster?

MELINE: You know, Nepal's no stranger to natural disasters by any means, and, you know, they have great experience and great knowledge and know-how.

However, it is one of the poorest countries in the world as well. But there are very resilient people and, you know, wonderful people. And I've trekked

and hiked in this particular area even. So, I remain hopeful that the recovery will continue to go strong.

You know, with Project HOPE, we're working with local organizations on the health and water and sanitation side of the picture. But, you know, the

Nepali people are very resilient. And while this is an amazingly difficult natural disaster for any country, but especially for a country like Nepal.

You know, I remain hopeful that the Nepali people will continue to work to try and save and support those who've survived.

[18:40:00]

KINKADE: And, of course, Project HOPE is using mobile medical units to reach communities that are extremely difficult to access right now. What

are your team finding when they arrive?

MELINE: Well, the needs continue to be very high. You know, the mobile medical units can reach the displaced people and the displacement sites and

provide and augment the health clinics that might still be standing there, but there are still thousands of people in communities that have not yet

been reached. In fact, hopefully as early as tomorrow, we're going to be using drones to transport medical equipment and health supplies across the

river to clinics that haven't yet been reached.

So, you know, the needs continue to be very great. Our teams are finding that, you know, as relief begins to come in and as people are coming to the

places where relief can be found, you know, things are beginning to move in the right direction. But it's going to be a very long recovery period. And

the needs continue to be very high for health needs, water and sanitation, shelter, even food for the tens of thousands that have been affected by

this incredibly difficult disaster.

KINKADE: Yes, exactly. I mean, for those that have survived just the contaminated water, the sanitation problems and injuries are, you know,

really, really challenging. You've seen Nepal, as you mentioned, recover from disasters before. When you look at this crisis, what worries you most

and what gives you hope?

MELINE: Well, obviously, the Nepali people always give me hope. Very resilient, very warm, very caring societies reaching out to help their

neighbors. So, that is the first and primary source of hope. I think the Nepali government has been doing a fairly strong job, given the limited

resources they have at their disposal, to organize and lead the relief efforts. They've, you know, clearly had great experience in disaster

relief.

But this is a unique situation. So, everyone is learning as they go to figure out what is the best way to get relief there, how to do so. But my

hat's off to the Nepali government and, of course, to the Nepali people who have been responding to the needs of their countrymen.

KINKADE: Exactly. Jeb Meline from Project Hope, we appreciate your time today and all the effort your team on the ground is doing as well. Thanks

so much.

MELINE: Thank you for having me.

KINKADE: Well, a Russian drone striking the headquarters of Ukraine's security service in central Kyiv. Ukrainian officials say at least 12

people were injured in that attack. It comes as Kyiv struggles with critical shortages of interceptors. Clare Sebastian reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CLARE SEBASTIAN, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, smoke billowing in Kyiv Friday from the headquarters of Ukraine's security service. This is

Ukraine's equivalent of the FBI headquarters on Pennsylvania Avenue or the MI5 building right here in central London. An iconic imposing building in

central Kyiv hit for the first time in four and a half years of full-scale war in broad daylight. This attack laying bare not only the extent of

Russian escalation in this expanding air war, but Ukraine's growing crisis when it comes to air defenses.

While the drone strike was, President Zelenskyy says, targeted at the office of the head of the security service. He is unharmed and was seen

later Friday in pictures posted on Zelenskyy's social media, delivering a report on Ukraine's planned response to this attack. Note the picture in

the background, which appears to be a mockup of the Moscow Kremlin on fire.

Well, this comes amidst more than a week of near constant Russian bombardment at the Ukrainian capital. And it's against this backdrop that a

U.S. official confirmed to CNN that Trump's envoy, Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner will head to both Moscow and, for the first time, to Kyiv in the

coming days. A renewed push to try to end this conflict, to reignite a diplomatic process that has really been on ice since the start of the war

with Iran.

Hopes, though, for real progress are limited. The timing of Moscow's latest strike, Ukraine's foreign minister said Friday, laid bare, quote, "its true

rejection of diplomacy."

Clare Sebastian, CNN, London.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KINKADE: Well, a pivotal election in Germany this weekend, a far-right party hopes to rise to power in a state election Sunday for the first time

since World War II. And it's counting on a TikTok star to pave the way.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[18:45:00]

KINKADE: Welcome back. Germany could get its first far-right state governor since World War II. The AfD party is seeking a milestone win as it calls

for stricter immigration guidelines and closer ties to Russia. CNN's Frederik Pleitgen spoke to a leading candidate about this weekend's vote in

East-Central Germany.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Despite the captivating grin, some believe this might be Germany's most

dangerous man. Ulrich Siegmund, candidate for the Right-Wing Alternative for Germany, or AfD, could soon become the first far-right state governor

in Germany since World War II.

The other parties have lost voters' trust, Siegmund tells me, at a campaign rally. For decades they did exactly the opposite of what they promised.

I caught up with Ulrich Siegmund on the sidelines of an AFD event in Dessau in the East German state Saxony-Anhalt ahead of this weekend's election

that Berlin's political establishment is watching with trepidation. The AfD is miles ahead of all other parties in pre-election polls. The top issue by

far, folks here tell me, immigration.

I ask Verena whether there's a bandwidth of issues or if immigration tops everything. I think right now with the children. For me and the children,

yes, it's immigration, she says.

The AfD openly calls for mass deportation of undocumented foreigners and foreigners who committed crimes, a policy AfD chairwoman, Alice Weidel,

controversially calls re-migration. Cheered on at a 2025 campaign event by the self-declared AfD supporter, Elon Musk.

The federal government in Berlin ultimately decides immigration policy, but many Germans fear electing a far-right state governor could seriously

damage the whole country's reputation. I can't imagine international investors turning up for groundbreaking ceremonies with an AfD state

governor, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz recently says.

At his rally, Siegmund tries to brush off those concerns. There are many countries where people are seeking positive change with conservative

parties that put national interests first and don't believe they have to save the world, he says.

Here in the former communist East, Siegmund portrays himself as the common man's man, often riding an old East German scooter or displaying communist-

era Trabant cars at events. But while his appeal is local, he makes no secret that the AfD's foreign policy agenda aims to change both Germany and

Europe, weakening the E.U. in its current form, seeking a return to close ties with Russia while stopping all support for Ukraine.

[18:50:00]

We hope that starting from Saxony-Anhalt, we can usher in the beginning of the end of this crazy policy for all of Germany.

Only about 2.1 million people live in all of Saxony-Anhalt, one of the least populous states in Germany, but one that's drawing global attention

ahead of Sunday's vote.

Fred Pleitgen, Dessau, Germany.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KINKADE: We're still ahead, finding connection at a time of national crisis, how Cuban social media influencers are finding creative ways to

stay online despite the rolling blackouts.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KINKADE: Welcome back, I'm Lynda Kinkade. The Trump administration is imposing new sanctions on Cuba, including on a grandson of the

revolutionary leader Raul Castro. The restrictions also target the foreign bank of Cuba and its entities, which Washington accuses of exploiting the

country's resources. It comes as Cuba grapples with a worsening energy crisis. But despite the challenges, Cuba's social media creators are still

trying to find a way to get their voices heard. Juan Carlos Lopez has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CUBAN SOCIAL MEDIA INFLUENCER (through translator): This is rich people's food and I'm going to show you why.

JUAN CARLOS LOPEZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): These are Cuban influencers.

CUBAN SOCIAL MEDIA INFLUENCER (through translator): Well, we are going to clean.

LOPEZ (voice-over): In the middle of rolling blackouts that can last up to 23 hours per day, they still post their stories on platforms like

Instagram. Not all live in Havana.

This is Carabello, a small town about an hours' drive from the capital, and where Dayan Marrero, a 22-year-old computer science major, lives and

creates content.

I was watching videos on Facebook one day, Dayan tells me. And retail groups here in Cuba, I came across someone who promoted an academy to learn

how to create content, and at first, I thought it was a scam because you had to pay a fee. And I said, This is a scam.

But Dayan says it wasn't a scam after all, and he eventually ventured out on his own cell phone and a common cause. How to survive Cuba's energy

crisis.

DAYAN MARRERO, MEDIA INFLUENCER (through translator): It's day six of 30 showing you technology-related things for Cuba.

LOPEZ (voice-over): The reel took off on Instagram. It's a DIY on how to make antennas to capture the elusive cell phone signal. Getting close to

800,000 views.

This is a handmade mobile base featured in Dayan's reel. It is becoming a common tool in rural homes in Cuba.

LOPEZ: What Dayan has done and what he's promoted on his social media platforms is the ability to build your own antenna, and then you have to go

inside and put your phone next to that base to be able to have signal, and you'll see around the rooftops here, a lot of people are installing these

antennas to be able to communicate with the outside world.

MARRERO (through translator): This is the best thing that has come out for blackouts.

LOPEZ (voice-over): As he gained more followers, Dayan started promoting products in great demand during the sweltering Cuban summer.

MARRERO (through translated): This has a massive 20,000 mAh battery, it lasts up to 60 hours.

[18:55:00]

LOPEZ (voice-over): Like these rechargeable fans, which he also uses to light himself while recording. It also allows him to receive a commission.

When you have 1,000 followers, you can apply for a sales program, Dayan says. Once you're accepted, when someone clicks and buys a product from my

video, I make a commission of 3 to 5 percent. It depends on the products price, he tells me.

Dayan's next step is graduating from college, and to make it on TikTok. And unlike many on the island, he's not trying to leave. He wants to find work

in his field and stay in Cuba.

Juan Carlos Lopez, CNN, Mayabeque Province, Cuba.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KINKADE: Well, thanks so much for your company. I'm Lynda Kinkade coming to you live from Atlanta. You have been watching "The Brief." Do stay with

CNN. Much more news ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[19:00:00]

END