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What We Know with Max Foster
Netanyahu Gives Fiery Defense Of War In Gaza; Trump Blasts Comey, Calls Him "A Dirty Cop"; Trump Doubles Down On Tylenol And Vaccine Claims; Moldova Alleges Russian Interference In Key Election; ICE: Officer Seen Pushing Woman Is Relieved Of Duties; Stand-Ups Split Over Star-Studded Riyadh Comedy Festival. Aired 3-4p ET
Aired September 26, 2025 - 15:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[15:00:27]
MAX FOSTER, CNN HOST: Israel's prime minister takes center stage at the U.N.
This is WHAT WE KNOW.
Benjamin Netanyahu delivered a fiery defense of the war in Gaza today, rejecting accusations of genocide. The Israeli prime minister vowed to
finish the job against Hamas, denying Israeli responsibility for the tens of thousands of civilians killed in Gaza, as well as the worsening famine.
He called the war a stunning military comeback after October the 7th.
The speech began in dramatic fashion, with dozens of delegates leaving the hall in protest of Mr. Netanyahu's arrival.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Please, order in hall.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
FOSTER: The speech began -- delayed, delayed by more than a minute as applause and cries of bravo could be heard from the sidelines. Mr.
Netanyahu didn't mention Israel's occupation of Palestinian land or possible annexation in the speech, but he did have blistering words for
Western nations backing a Palestinian state, saying Israel will not commit national suicide by allowing what he called a terror state.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BENJAMIN NETANYAHU, ISRAELI PRIME MINISTER: You know what message the leaders who recognize the Palestinian state this week sent to the
Palestinians, it's a very clear message. Murdering Jews pays off. Well, I have a message for these leaders. When the most savage terrorists on earth
are effusively praising your decision, you didn't do something right. You did something wrong, horribly wrong, your disgraceful decision will
encourage terrorism against Jews and against innocent people everywhere. It will be a mark of shame on all of you.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
FOSTER: Israeli forces set up loudspeakers on Israel's southern border to broadcast the speech, supposedly in the hope the hostages in Gaza would
hear it.
Mr. Netanyahu spoke directly to both the hostages and Hamas.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
NETANYAHU: We have not forgotten you. Not even for a second. The people of Israel are with you. We will not falter, and we will not rest until we
bring all of you home.
So, to the remaining Hamas leaders and to the jailers of our hostages, I now say lay down your arms. Let my people go. Free the hostages. All of
them. The whole 48. Free the hostages now!
If you do, you will live. If you don't, Israel will hunt you down.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
FOSTER: Mr. Netanyahu also claimed that Israeli intelligence had ensured the speech would be streamed live to people's cell phones in Gaza, but
people there tell us they didn't receive any messages and weren't listening to the speech.
Oren Liebermann is in Jerusalem.
It was a fiery speech. I think you've said before that it was as expected, but a lot of people had some issues with some of the facts there as well.
Just take us through what you made of it.
OREN LIEBERMANN, CNN JERUSALEM BUREAU CHIEF: Well, there are a number of claims Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu made throughout the speech,
largely as he was trying to push back against the accusations Israel has faced. For example, on accusations of famine, he said that Israel has let
in more than 2 million tons of aid since the beginning of the war.
What he didn't talk about was the three month period where Israel blocked all aid from entering Gaza, and then the slow trickle that Israel somewhat
expanded, but still not up to the amount of humanitarian aid that entered before the war or the amount of humanitarian aid that human rights
organizations and all the humanitarian aid organizations say is needed to feed the population of more than 2 million Palestinians inside of Gaza.
He also, for example, said that Hamas is stealing aid, that despite the fact that there's been no evidence, we have seen of that and USAID in a
report after examining about 150 specific incidences, said there was no evidence they found in those cases of Hamas stealing aid. So, this is where
we question what Netanyahu said during the speech.
He also addressed, of course, the accusations of genocide. He pointed to Israel's warnings and evacuation orders, saying this is the opposite of
what a state that's pursuing genocide would do. And yet it is an independent inquiry from the United Nations as well as other human rights
organizations, both in and outside of Israel, that have come to the conclusion or accused Israel of committing genocide.
[15:05:07]
As we have seen, the death toll in Gaza surge past 65,000, according to the Palestinian ministry of health.
These are some of the accusations that Netanyahu tried to push back against. And I'll point out what I pointed out last hour. Max, we don't
have a chance to see these with our own eyes. We can't report independently inside of Gaza because Israel has not allowed reporters independently into
Gaza since the war began. And it's also been months since we've had a military embed to have a chance to see inside of Gaza.
And because of that, we have to rely on the U.N., on aid agencies, on human rights organizations, health officials there, as well as eyewitnesses to
get a better understanding of what's happening on the ground, as well as the humanitarian crisis that's unfolding there, as Israel's assault on Gaza
City expands.
FOSTER: Also, no reflection there from the positivity coming from Donald Trump with his talk about us coming close to a ceasefire of some sort. Very
much, a war in action when you listen to Netanyahu.
LIEBERMANN: This was such an almost jarring disconnect from what we heard from Netanyahu. And you heard the anger in his voice, in the sound bites
that you started with. And then what we hear from President Donald Trump talking about his 21-point proposal for an end of the war, including the
release of all hostages, saying there might be a breakthrough here very soon, an imminent end of the war.
It's just so far away from what Netanyahu is talking about. Trump, I would almost say, had this what would be considered wild optimism from what we
see here on the ground in what's unfolding in Gaza, and from what we hear from Netanyahu.
And yet it's clear that as we go through the United Nations General Assembly, Gaza is back on, first of all, the international agenda with a
number of Western countries recognizing a state of Palestine. But it's also on Trump's agenda. And that perhaps is the key here. Trump and Netanyahu
are set to meet at the White House on Monday. And for all of this fiery 40- minute speech we heard from Netanyahu, it's that White House meeting that's the really important part of this trip.
Trump appears to be signaling he has run out of patience when it comes to this war, and how much pressure he puts on Netanyahu will tell us the most
about whether Trump has reason to be optimistic about its potential end.
FOSTER: Oren Liebermann in Jerusalem, thank you.
Now, it's about justice, not revenge. Those are the words of U.S. President Donald Trump as he applauds the criminal case against James Comey and hints
that others could soon face charges as well.
Comey, a former FBI director and longtime Trump adversary, faces two felony charges, both related to an alleged lie to Congress. Comey says he's
innocent. His indictment is sending shockwaves through Washington and elsewhere because its seen as a Trump administration plan to prosecute
perceived political enemies.
Democrats were clear in their response over who was to blame, and that was President Donald Trump.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REP. ERIC SWALWELL (D-CA): This is a mad king picking off each of his political enemies.
SEN. CHRIS COONS (D-DE): He is carrying through on his many, many threats on the campaign trail to wreak vengeance and to exact retribution against
the folks he perceives as his political enemies.
SEN. RICHARD BLUMENTHAL (D-CT): The ordinary norms are defined by this autocratic president. We're on the way to tyranny if we permit it to go
forward.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
FOSTER: Our crime and justice correspondent Katelyn Polantz takes a closer look now at what could be next.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
KATELYN POLANTZ, CNN CRIME AND JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT: The former FBI Director Jim Comey, now under indictment, and in the coming days, he's
going to be able to make his first appearance in court.
October 9th will be that first court date. That's when Jim Comey will be able to go before a federal judge in the Eastern District of Virginia and
plead not guilty, and that the trial proceedings will begin to kick off. What we will see, then, is a setting of a timetable. How far away would
that trial be? And we may get a window into what the defense team is thinking about, how they may want to challenge this case.
A reminder, though, of what Jim Comey here is charged with. This is not something that the Justice Department alone is alleging. They have
presented it to a grand jury who approved it, said yes, there was probable cause for these allegations.
It's two allegations. One, Comey making a false statement to the Senate Judiciary Committee. And then obstructing that congressional proceeding.
All of that would have been about his testimony in September 30th of 2020. So, five years, almost to the day of now, the window of time in which
prosecutors could bring this case. It does expire on Tuesday.
So, they got it in just under the wire. And what he's accused of lying about is denying that he had authorized someone at the FBI to leak to the
press for news stories.
Much of this is going to be tested, both on the legal side as well as the facts of this case. And we're still getting just little pieces of what may
be known about these alleged leaks.
[15:10:02]
Not much is included in this indictment. It was only two pages long, and yet there is already quite a lot of public statements from the president as
well as from Comey himself taking sides in this case.
Back to you.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
FOSTER: Now, after sparking outcry from the medical community, U.S. President Donald Trump is again taking aim at Tylenol. In a Truth Social
post, he doubled down on his calls for pregnant women to stop using the pain medication. He also posted a range of advice on various vaccines
without providing any sources for those statements.
CNN medical correspondent Meg Tirrell joins us now.
And live on that -- I mean, it's the issue, isn't it, that so much of the medical community have got with this, that he's saying things, giving
advice without, you know, the experience, but also the evidence.
MEG TIRRELL, CNN MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Right. I think a lot of people are very concerned because there was so much attention paid to what the
president said on Monday that women are confused, families are confused about what the science actually says. And so if we take these claims,
really, one by one. The president re-emphasizes that claim, quote, pregnant women, don't use Tylenol unless absolutely necessary.
Now, this goes beyond the warning from his own FDA earlier this week, which talked about a possible link between Tylenol, acetaminophen, paracetamol
during pregnancy and autism, which, by the way, a lot of scientists dispute. And they also emphasize that it's the only over-the-counter drug
approved to treat fevers during pregnancy, and that fevers themselves high fevers in pregnant women can be dangerous to babies. So there are good
reasons to sometimes use Tylenol during pregnancy, which is shown to be safe as directed.
He also says, don't give Tylenol to your young child for virtually any reason. Now they weren't even looking at Tylenol use in children. They were
only looking at it used during pregnancy. And the American Academy of Pediatrics says that Tylenol is safe for use in children as directed, and
there's no link to autism.
Then he goes into vaccines, which is something he did Monday. We weren't even expecting to hear about them then. And again, he is emphasizing things
that science has found to have no basis.
First, he says we should break up the measles, mumps and rubella shot and give it as three totally separate shots. The CDC says on its website,
quote, no published scientific evidence shows any benefit in doing that. This has also been something that's been studied for decades.
He says take the chickenpox vaccine separately. That's something that's already recommended by the CDC for at least the first dose. For the second,
you can do either one.
Then he says, take the hepatitis B shot at 12 years old or older. This is a very contentious issue and one that the CDC is outside advisers just took
up in their most recent meeting.
Currently, the hepatitis B vaccine first dose is recommended in the U.S. close to birth to protect babies from potential transmission from their
moms. If they don't know that they have hepatitis B or from other people early in life.
Before this recommendation to give it at birth was put into place in 1991, there were an estimated 10,000 babies diagnosed with hepatitis B because of
transmission around birth per year. Now there are 10 -- 20 to 30 recorded cases per year of hepatitis B that babies get close to birth. There may be
more cases out there that aren't recorded, but orders of magnitude lower because of that recommendation.
Finally, he suggests, take vaccine in five separate medical visits. Space out the vaccines. Well, this has been intensively studied as well. Vaccines
are studied when they're given together. If they are recommended to be done. So, it's because they've shown favorable safety profiles. Babies'
immune systems can tolerate vaccines when given together.
We are also exposed to actually fewer immunological components in vaccines than we used to be, because vaccine technology has improved.
And finally, there are risks to delaying shots because you could be exposed to viruses or bacteria before you're fully protected. So, a lot of issues
here, and as the U.K.'s health secretary said after Monday, he recommends taking advice from doctors, not President Trump -- Max.
FOSTER: Yes, good advice. Meg Tirrell, thank you so much.
Now, Moldova faces a critical election on Sunday, which could decide whether the former Soviet state leans closer to Russia or towards
integration with the E.U.
But the Moldovan government says the Kremlin is already trying to influence the outcome.
CNN's Clare Sebastian explains.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CLARE SEBASTIAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Moldovan police are apparently moving in on a Russian state backed network to organize mass riots around upcoming
parliamentary elections. Dozens arrested.
The fear of violence spilling onto these politically charged streets. A new twist ahead of a crucial vote. The government here has already warned
Russia is trying to rig.
MAIA SANDU, MOLDOVAN PRESIDENT (through translator): The Kremlin is pouring hundreds of millions of euros to buy hundreds of thousands of votes. People
are intoxicated daily with lies.
SEBASTIAN: The Kremlin denies any interference --
(SPEAKER SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE).
[15:15:01]
SEBASTIAN: -- but is publicly accusing Moldova's government of persecuting political opponents and denying those who support Moscow their right to
vote.
SEBASTIAN: What would happen if pro-Russian parties gain a majority in this election?
LAURA THORNTON, MCCAIN INSTITUTE: The first step is just to push Moldova away from the EU. That's just the gateway drug to pulling them into the
Russian sphere.
SEBASTIAN: Russia's full-scale invasion of neighboring Ukraine supercharged this tiny post-Soviet state's EU ambitions. Last year it started accession
talks.
And the pro-Russian opposition is pushing back. It's main candidate and former president Igor Dodon claiming the EU is preparing Moldova for war
with Russia.
THORNTON: They still have a lot of steps they need to go through to become a member of the European Union. A pro-Russian party or pro-Russian
coalition would probably stall that if not try and reverse it.
SEBASTIAN: Natalia Zaharescu, a Moldovan investigative journalist, says she has seen Russian tactics evolve firsthand. Zaharescu has spent more than
three years infiltrating online networks linked to this man, Ilan Sor, a fugitive Moldovan businessman living in Moscow and linked to a vote-buying
scheme that threatened to undermine last year's presidential election and referendum on EU integration.
His latest effort, Zaharescu says, was to train Moldovans to become professional online trolls. Sor has not responded to a CNN request for
comment.
NATALIA ZAHARESCU, MOLDOVAN INVESTIGATIVE JOURNALIST: Hundreds of people were trained how to use social media. How to make accounts under fake
names. How to post the messages that they were given.
SEBASTIAN: And she, working undercover, was one of them.
ZAHARESCU: And they were telling that we are in an informational war. We have to act like a big troll farm. Everything is paid directly from Moscow.
SEBASTIAN: Moldova is, experts say, a testing ground for Russian hybrid tactics -- one whose European future now hangs in the balance.
Clare Sebastian, CNN, London.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
FOSTER: Up next, who is Lindsey Halligan?
Coming up, we'll introduce you to the aide who was handpicked by Donald Trump to oversee the case against former FBI Director James Comey.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[15:20:24]
FOSTER: Now, she's never presented a case to a grand jury. Now she's in charge of one of the biggest political indictments in years. A source tells
CNN Lindsey Halligan did a crash course with Department of Justice attorneys and FBI officials ahead of Thursday's indictment of former FBI
Director James Comey.
Halligan was picked days after President Trump fired her predecessor, who declined to be -- to bring charges against Comey. The president's longtime
adversary faces two felony charges related to lying to Congress. Comey says he's innocent and is fighting back.
So, what we want to know is will the case against James Comey hold up in court?
Joining me now is CNN legal analyst Joey Jackson. He's a criminal defense attorney and a former prosecutor.
Thank you for joining us.
I mean, how much do you know about Halligan?
JOEY JACKSON, CNN LEGAL ANALYST: Good to be with you.
Without question, Max, the answer is not much. And that's largely because she's a political appointee. I know she's a loyalist to the president. You
know, certainly, have no basis to disparage her. It's just that the manner in which things are run in the United States, if you're going to head the
United States attorney's office, generally you have significant experience as a prosecutor because that's important, Max, with respect to engendering
trust in the community at large with regard to engendering trust with fellow prosecutors and with regard to knowing that you have the dynamics in
place in order to do the job and do it in a way that's not about retribution of enemies, but that's about following justice and achieving
just outcomes.
And so, I know she's an attorney. I know that she's worked for the president. I know that she was on an agenda in terms of removing issues
relating to slavery, because in the Smithsonian, apparently, there was too much woke ideology to use the president's terms. I know she was apparently
an insurance lawyer. I know that you know, she certainly worked with the president on a classified documents case.
But with regard to having really the gumption to be a prosecutor, I don't know that to be the case.
FOSTER: Yeah. So, the key thing seems to be that she's close to the president. He trusts her. He wants her to prosecute this case, but she's
going to be really tested, isn't she? I mean, Comey's extremely experienced in law. He's going to have a strong team around him, presumably. And it
feels like he's actually up for this fight.
JACKSON: Well, I think he is, and I think that we've reached a dangerous place in American politics for a number of reasons. I mean, listen, if
anyone transgresses the law, then of course they should be indicted. And our indictment system, just to be clear, an indictment is merely an
accusation. It doesn't go to prove that you've done anything. Thats the standard in the grand jury.
Twenty-three members of the community get together, a majority, simple majority of which that would be 12, conclude that, A, there's reasonable
cause to believe that a crime was committed, and B, that the subject of that grand jury proceeding, namely Mr. Comey, committed it.
I want to hasten to add that defense lawyers are not in the grand jury. You don't get to, as a defendant in the grand jury, as we look at the two
counts there, defend yourself. And hence, Max, you've heard this before. A grand jury could indict a ham sandwich.
I should note that there were three charges presented to the grand jury. She's presenting him herself. That's unusual. Normally, you have career
prosecutors that are doing that. And they, that is the grand jury, declined to indict on one.
So, so much for the ham sandwich. They didn't eat the whole ham sandwich. They just had two bites of it. Not the third. That in and of itself is
unusual.
It's also unusual that you had career prosecutors writing a memo indicating that, hey, we don't have enough evidence to go forward. It's also unusual
that a person was fired who had the office because they didn't think it was appropriate to bring forward charges.
It's also unusual that the president of the United States tweeted, or not, tweeted social media or Truth Social and posting that, hey, I want to see
this particular enemy that is Comey. He named others indicted.
It's just really not the way the system of justice works and operates. It should be independent from the White House. Here, we have clear indications
that either you go forward with what I want you to do, otherwise you lose your job. And that's very troubling. It's also very sad. And quite frankly,
demoralizing as a person who practices law and believes in the interests of justice and only justice.
FOSTER: Yeah, it's testing all of you, isn't it?
But maybe we're getting too bogged down in the detail here. Isn't this a larger narrative that, a test case almost for Donald Trump, that he can
take out his opponents.
[15:25:00]
JACKSON: So, I think that's a great point. I think if you want to talk about test cases, I think, you know, it's incredible how the United States
has shifted even in recent months. We've been in a situation where immigrants have been rounded up largely without due process.
And in English, what that means is notice and an opportunity to be heard. Maybe you're here illegally. Maybe you've done things wrong, but generally,
that's what courts are here to decide. You have to give a person the ability to have a hearing and go to court and make an assessment. Oh, not
so fast. Just get on a plane and get shipped out.
We're in a situation where we have universities who are being told who they can hire in terms of faculty, what students they can admit, it's really
astonishing. We have money that's been allocated by congress that has been impounded by this administration in terms of not being given to the actual
interest groups that they were designated for because they disagree.
So, if you want to talk about a larger narrative, I think the narrative is not only with regard to can I prosecute my political enemies? And by the
way, the statute of limitations on this prosecution, meaning the time in which you needed to do it, would have been this Tuesday. So, five days
before he gets indicted.
If you want to talk about that larger narrative, Max, I think you have to talk about the shift in American politics. We are really moving to a system
where we have a president who largely can do whatever he wants, and it seems that Congress is allowing him to do it.
So, it's scary times. We'll see how it plays out. I do think just to get back in the weeds a second on Comey, I think that this case may not even
see a courtroom. Certainly, we'll see a courtroom. But in terms of me saying that, it's possible a judge throws it out before a jury.
In the United States, there's this basis of law. It's called in the interest of justice. And judges get to decide. They are, in fact, one of
the barriers to our system, right? And the guardrails to make a check on the system. And if a judge believes that this is a political prosecution,
as we look there at the date of his arraignment on October 8th, the judge can throw out the case before it even sees the light of day.
So, we'll see what moves forward. I think his attorneys, Max, are going to have a lot to say. His being James Comey is as to whether this is a viable
prosecution that should move forward, or is it one that's being done because of -- he's a president, he's the enemy of a president. And because
of that, they're moving forward with that.
Interest of justice matters. It's going to matter here. And I think it's going to matter more broadly to your question, who else, if anyone has gone
after in this way where you're firing U.S. attorney because they're not doing exactly what you want them to do. That's troubling.
FOSTER: Extraordinary times. Joey Jackson, thank you for bringing your thoughts on it.
JACKSON: Of course.
FOSTER: Now, still to come, a senior Hamas official speaks to CNN about the October 7th attacks and whether he has any regrets, given the high price of
Israel's war in Gaza.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[15:31:08]
FOSTER: Israel's opposition leader says Benjamin Netanyahu was tired and whining in his big speech at the U.N. today. Yair Lapid criticized the
Israeli prime minister for filling his speech with what he called gimmicks, and said he didn't outline a path to end the war in Gaza.
For his part, Mr. Netanyahu is insisting that Israel will, in his words, finish the job of eliminating Hamas.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
NETANYAHU: We're not done yet. The final elements, the final remnants of Hamas are holed up in Gaza City. They vow to repeat the atrocities of
October 7th again and again and again, no matter how diminished their forces. That is why Israel must finish the job. That is why we want to do
so as fast as possible.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
FOSTER: Well, a senior Hamas official is defending the October 7th attacks on Israel, saying they created a golden moment for the Palestinian cause.
He explained why to CNN's Jeremy Diamond.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GHAZI HAMAD, SENIOR HAMAS OFFICIAL: We insisted to go to the comprehensive deal, to retain all the hostages, either alive or dead. And we said,
frankly, we can return them in 24 hours. But the Israelis refused.
JEREMY DIAMOND, CNN JERUSALEM CORRESPONDENT: Well, they have conditions for ending the war. They want Hamas to be out of power, and they want Hamas to
disarm. Are you willing to abandon power in Gaza and lay down your weapons?
HAMAD: Hamas is part of the of the Palestinian fabric. You could not execute Hamas. But as I said again and again regarding the ruling of Gaza,
we are ready to be out of the ruling of Gaza. We have no problem with this. The arm of Hamas is a legitimate and legal weapons which use all the time
against occupation. It is not a terrorist weapon.
DIAMOND: How does this war end? Because over the course of our conversation, I've seen very little that suggests any willingness on your
part to compromise.
HAMAD: I think it is easy. I think Mr. Trump and the world could ask the Netanyahu in order to stop the war, to stop the genocide in Gaza.
DIAMOND: Do you have any confidence that he will do that?
HAMAD: I don't know. I think we tested him many times, but I think it is not easy to trust Mr. Trump or to trust the American administration. All
the time, they put the glasses of Israel. They adopt the Israeli position.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
FOSTER: Now a member of the Northern Ireland rap group Kneecap has had his terror charges thrown out by a court here in London. Mo Chara had been
charged after he was filmed waving Hezbollah -- a Hezbollah flag at a concert in London last year. The U.K. lists Hezbollah as a terror
organization, but a magistrate found a technical error in the way the case was brought and threw the charges out.
Kneecap have been banned from Hungary and Canada over their political comments. However, Northern Ireland's first minister has supported this new
decision, calling the charges an attempt to silence those who criticize Israel's actions in Gaza.
The U.S. immigration officer at the center of a controversial video has been relieved of his duties. It happened yesterday at a New York City
courthouse. The agent got into a confrontation with a woman whose husband was being detained. We warn you, you may find this video disturbing man.
(VIDEO CLIP PLAYS)
FOSTER: Let's get to Gloria Pazmino.
It's incredibly hard to watch, isn't it? That video. We don't know what happened before. We don't know what led up to it, but he has been
dismissed. So there's an indication there.
GLORIA PAZMINO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right, Max. It's incredibly hard to watch. You see that there are children in the frame, and those are the
children of this woman who right before this video starts rolling, is pleading with an immigration officer after officers have just taken her
husband into custody.
They both were in court that morning. They were at their hearing. They were released from that hearing. They were given another court date to appear in
the next year. And as they were walking down this hallway, officers took her husband into custody.
Now she is pleading with an officer, explaining to him that if her husband is deported, he could be killed back in their home country of Ecuador. And
at one point she says to him, take me instead. And that's when we see the officer seemingly out of nowhere, shove her to the ground.
This incident has gotten a lot of attention here in New York City. And I think one thing that's important to really highlight here is that incidents
like this are happening almost on a daily basis here in New York. This is all unfolding inside of 26 Federal Plaza, which is the immigration court in
Manhattan, where so many migrants are showing up to try and go through the legal immigration process, many of them trying to seek asylum.
They're legally required to do so. And when they come in, oftentimes they're being taken into custody. Sometimes in this violent manner.
We have heard from the Department of Homeland Security in the last few hours. We've learned that this officer has been relieved of his duties, and
that there is an investigation underway. The spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security issued the following statement, saying,
quote, the officers conduct in this video is unacceptable. And beneath the men and women of ICE. Our ICE law enforcement are held to the highest
professional standards, and this officer is being relieved of her duties as we conduct a full investigation.
I should also mention, Max, that federal representatives here in New York, including Congressman Dan Goldman, who was actually inside the building
when this incident unfolded yesterday, has referred the incident for criminal prosecution to the U.S. attorney's office.
So, he essentially is saying that this officer should face some sort of criminal consequence as a result of his actions. We've yet to hear back on
what will happen with that. But we do know that the incident is under investigation.
It's gotten a lot of criticism, a lot of attention here by local elected officials all trying to bring attention to these incidents that are
happening with migrants who are trying to go to their court appointments, in immigration court -- Max.
FOSTER: Yeah. It just shows the tension building, doesn't it?
Gloria Pazmino, thank you so much.
Still to come, some of the biggest names in comedy are heading to Saudi Arabia for a festival. Yeah, some comedians don't think it's a laughing
matter.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[15:40:50]
FOSTER: Some of the world's biggest comedians are split on whether to perform in Saudi Arabia. This is the Riyadh Comedy Festival opens today.
The lineup includes Kevin Hart, Dave Chappelle and Bill Burr. Tom -- Tim Dylan was supposed to be there, but he says he was canceled after joking
about Saudi Arabia's poor human rights record and other big names like Marc Maron are criticizing their fellow comedians for playing the show.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MARC MARON, HOST, "WTF WITH MARC MARON": Well, there's a Riyadh Comedy Festival. I don't know if you heard about that. This is true. There's a
Riyadh, Saudi Arabia Comedy festival.
I mean, how do you even promote that? You know, like from the folks that brought you 9/11? Two weeks of laughter in the desert. Don't miss it.
Full disclosure. I was not asked to perform at the Riyadh Comedy Festival. So it's kind of easy for me to take the high road on this one.
Easy to maintain your integrity when no one's offering to buy it out, you know?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
FOSTER: Well, a statement from Human Rights Watch said comedians receiving hefty sums from Saudi authorities shouldn't be silent on prohibited topics
in Saudi, like human rights or free speech. The group says the Saudi government is using the festival to whitewash its record on free speech,
and its urging comedians to call for the release of detained activists.
Pete Davidson plays the festival next month. His father was killed in the 9/11 attacks, but he says his decision to go to Riyadh is simple.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
PETE DAVIDSON, COMEDIAN: I get the routing and then I see the number and I go, I'll go.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
FOSTER: So, what we don't know is should comedians speak out in defense of free speech?
Joining me now is the comedian and author John Fugelsang.
I guess everyone agree that they should. It's just should they not go to Saudi Arabia if they don't believe in, you know, the rules there?
JOHN FUGELSANG, HOST, "TELL ME EVERYTHING": Well, here in America, we're celebrating the greatest week for free speech and jokes. And now, we're
seeing comedians go to tell jokes for dictators who punish free speech and jokes.
So, it's a very normal day here in American comedy. But most of the comics I've talked to Max, they've all said that this is a moral and this is
greedy, and this is craven, and they just are furious that they weren't invited. There are many great artists on this bill.
FOSTER: Yeah.
FUGELSANG: And some of these artists, I will tell you, Max, are great comedians that I love. They have every right to perform at this direct
deposit comedy festival, and the rest of us have had every right to make fun of them for it. And they should be really ready for that.
FOSTER: Are they really endorsing? No. Are they really endorsing, you know, Saudi Arabia's view on free speech or is it just a job?
FUGELSANG: They don't seem to have any issue with it nor any issue with the financing of 9/11, nor any issue with the human rights violations. I mean,
this is not a comedy festival. This is image laundering with jokes.
I mean, nothing says funny like your host beheading people at halftime, right? This is all blood money. Some of its a bone saw attached.
And these artists need to get paid. Some of them. My god. I mean, I don't even know how some of these famous people are paying rent, so God bless
them if they need to take this money. They're allowed to do it. That's their free speech, and I'll fight for it.
The rest of us have a right to make fun of them for doing it.
FOSTER: We don't know that that's happening at half time. I have to say that. But I get your point.
FUGELSANG: No, it is not happening. That's a joke. That's a joke.
FOSTER: Yes, I know, I mean, you have to --
(CROSSTALK)
FUGELSANG: Mr. Tim Dylan -- yeah. Yes. So sorry. This. I am a jester, but Mr. Dylan, who you mentioned -- Tim was supposed to perform, he said he was
being paid $375,000, and the top comics were making $1.6 million. And Tim described that as being paid enough to look the other way.
FOSTER: On Kimmel because, you know, it comes in that backdrop, doesn't it, where the whole entertainment industry really came together to defend his
free speech as they saw it, and he got his show back.
[15:45:03]
Is that progress for you, or do you think -- are you much more worried about the bigger picture here?
FUGELSANG: I mean, I'm much more worried about the bigger picture, but undeniably its progress. And thank goodness their attempts to silence a
comedian when it was done in such a dishonest and incompetent way. Kimmel didn't say anything in that setup to that joke about Donald Trump's callous
reaction to Mr. Kirk's murder.
Kimmel said nothing that violated a contract, nothing that was cruel. This was the FCC announcing on a podcast that they were going to use an abusive
government power to coerce a private corporation into silencing a voice. I'm deeply proud of how the country came together. I'm proud of Monday
Night Football and Disney for telling these carriers that they would not get their football if they didn't support this.
It's a real victory. And we -- and it's a victory of both comedians and corporations standing up to authoritarianism. It's a great story here.
FOSTER: It's interesting. I've seen commentary around censorship here. So, you've got this Saudi example which is very clear levels of censorship. You
can't say this. You can't say that. In America, Donald Trump claiming he didn't have a role in this decision. You know, you'll have your view. But
the type of censorship is different, isn't it? It's like almost like a commercial --
FUGELSANG: Yes.
FOSTER: -- using commercial sector to censor comedians.
FUGELSANG: Correct. Correct.
And we saw in the case of Mr. Colbert, the president used leverage of approving a merger to get his show canceled. Again, it's almost stochastic
censorship. They're coercing private corporations to put Americans out of work because of a personal grievance of the chief executive.
There's a lot of smart ways that they could have tried to get Jimmy Kimmel off the air without looking like the bad guys. These are not smart men, and
they were very messy about it. And when Trump went on T -- went on his social media right away and complained that he thought Kimmel was being
fired and he was outraged, and he was going to keep on trying to have him fired, he showed that this has all been based on lies.
And again, Mr. Kimmel said nothing that was disrespectful to this murder in any way. He said nothing that was dishonest. That's why he didn't
apologize. I mean, there's a smart way to do censorship. This was not it.
I'm very proud of the country for rising up against it. And a lot of conservatives, too.
FOSTER: So, which is worse? A censorship system, which is transparent, actually, where you, you know, in Saudi Arabia, they tell you what you
can't say, or one which is, you know, all smoke and mirrors behind the scenes and taking place in the board level.
FUGELSANG: What's worse is a populist that finds either way acceptable. What's worse is a populist that doesn't know when they're being lied to and
doesn't know when these things are happening.
There's so many folks out there who believe that Jimmy Kimmel was mocking Charlie Kirk's murder. And let me tell you, I subscribed to these mailing
lists for these folks. They were fundraising off of this all for two weeks. First, I got fundraising emails saying, oh, the left killed him. And then I
got fundraising emails saying, oh, the left is laughing at this. And then fundraising emails saying, oh, they're not sad enough.
A lot of people are exploiting this murder for personal profit, but folks aren't being encouraged to be mad at that. Folks are being encouraged by
right wing media to be mad at comedians.
FOSTER: Okay. John Fugelsang, really appreciate you coming on the show today. Really appreciate it. Thank you.
FUGELSANG: What a pleasure, Max. Thank you.
FOSTER: Meanwhile, one of America's biggest TV provider says it will show Jimmy Kimmel's late show -- late night show again. Sinclair has been
preempting the show for the past few nights over the comedian's comments on that investigation to Charlie Kirk's murder. But -- and that saw him
briefly taken off the air. Of course, as we've been talking about, Sinclair now says the show will return tonight after discussions with ABC, and other
TV group Nexstar yet to end its boycott.
Now still to come, CNN speaks with a teenage medical evacuee who shares his hope for recovery ahead of surgery and offers a glimpse into the horrors of
Israel's war in Gaza.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[15:51:35]
FOSTER: A teenager from Gaza is finally getting the medical attention that he needs after a after his jaw was severely damaged by an exploding Israeli
tank shell. The wounds nearly killed him, but now he's in London for surgery.
CNN's Christina Macfarlane has his story. A warning, the images you're about to see may be disturbing to you.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CHRISTINA MACFARLANE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): In 10 hours, Majd will get his smile back or think about eating or speaking normally again.
He's about to undergo radical reconstructive surgery, 19 months after an Israeli tank shell exploded near him blowing away his jaw.
MAJD ALSHAGHNOBI, PATIENT: I'm really happy to be treated here and have my operation.
MACFARLANE: Majd was collecting flour from an aid point when the Israeli tank shell hit, killing the two friends he was walking with.
His wounds so horrific he was presumed dead.
ALSHAGHNOBI: They took me to Al-Ahli Baptist Hospital. They put me in the morgue. When they saw my arm move, they moved me to the hospital kitchen
because there was no space in the operating room.
MACFARLANE: In the kitchen, his life was saved by an emergency tracheostomy, but he was caught just short of death with no chance of
ealing without further care. So his mother had to get him out.
ISLAM FEIFEL, MAJD'S MOTHER: I had been running for a month and a half between Nasser Hospital and Al-Aqsa Hospital for a month and a half to be
able to make the arrangement for him.
MACFARLANE: He did get out, thanks to the charity Project Pure Hope who privately funded Majd's evacuation and treatment.
And thanks to one of Britain's leading pediatric surgeons who had the difficult task of choosing which Gazan child they should save.
DR. OWASE JEELANI, GREAT ORMOND STREET HOSPITAL: As a surgeon, like I said, you know, I'm used to dealing with -- with -- with injuries. But this was
something that I was not used to.
But, you know, if you sort of pause and look away, you know, this by tomorrow, there'll be a dozen, a few dozen more children that are well at
the moment. But will not be well tomorrow, will not be around tomorrow.
MACFARLANE: Professor Jeelani and nine other surgeons have taken months to meticulously plan this operation. Through the use of 3D modeling, they will
take bone, soft tissue and blood vessels from Majd's leg to close the gap in his jaw.
JEELANI: Majd was the best-case scenario where we feel with our plan, we can really get him close to how things used to be for him and make the
biggest difference in his life.
MACFARLANE: The World Health Organization says hundreds of people have died waiting for medical evacuation, and more than 3,500 children are in need.
Majd is fortunate. His case has drawn attention here in the U.K., even from Prince Harry. But the trauma for his family is not over.
In escaping Gaza, his mother was forced to leave behind two of her sons, Muhammad and Yusuf.
What has life been like for your family in Gaza since you've been here in London?
FEIFEL: They're exhausted. They tell every day that you've left with your favorite child. They're in the north. You know what the north is like. And
they say they could die at any moment. If I knew the war would come back, I wouldn't have left.
MACFARLANE: It took foreign governments, doctors and NGOs working together to bring Majd's jaw back.
[15:55:04]
But Majd is past healing.
ALSHAGHNOBI: I wish Gaza could go back to what it was, that everybody could be reunited, and be together in Gaza as it once was.
MACFARLANE: Christina Macfarlane, CNN, London.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
FOSTER: Organizers of the Eurovision song contest say member countries will vote in November on which countries can take part in next year's
competition. This comes as calls mount for Israel to be excluded over the war in Gaza. Several countries, including Ireland, the Netherlands,
Slovenia and Spain have threatened to stay out of Eurovision unless Israel is banned.
The contest involves performers from mostly across Europe and is considered the Olympics of pop music, some would say, but it's also a place where
politics and regional rivalries often play out.
After its invasion of Ukraine, Russia was barred from participating.
I'm Max Foster. That's WHAT WE KNOW.
"QUEST MEANS BUSINESS" up next.
END
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