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Gaza Officials: Israeli Gunfire Kills 73 People Seeking Aid; Humanitarian Aid Crisis Worsens as Supplies, Food Dwindle in Gaza; Actor Malcolm-Jamal Warner Dies at Age 54; Government Agencies, Businesses at Risk as Microsoft Reports Cyber Attack. Aired 3:30-4p ET

Aired July 21, 2025 - 15:30   ET

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

[15:30:00]

JIM SCIUTTO, CNN HOST: Yet more civilians in Gaza have just died simply trying to get food. The Palestinian Health Ministry says at least 73 people were killed by Israeli gunfire Sunday as they waited for aid trucks just north of Gaza City. Israel claims it fired warning shots to break up an imminent threat.

The former head of Israeli intelligence says the Israeli government needs to reverse course. He told me it must end the conflict.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MAJ. GEN. AMOS YADLIN (RET.), FORMER CHIEF OF ISRAELI MILITARY INTELLIGENCE: Not ending this war is not serving Israeli interest. Not in the political arena, not in the public relation arena, and not even from a moral point of view. It's time to end the war.

And Israel should put on the table a proposal to end the war, bring back all the hostages, not let Hamas be in Gaza as a military force.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SCIUTTO: CNN Jerusalem correspondent Jeremy Diamond joins us now live with more. Jeremy, according to the Palestinian Health Ministry, this is now more than a thousand people who have died just since late May in Gaza while trying to get food, simply while trying to get to these food aid stations.

Do Israeli authorities, does the IDF, do they have an explanation for this? And are there voices inside Israel that are criticizing this aid distribution strategy?

JEREMY DIAMOND, CNN JERUSALEM CORRESPONDENT: Well, listen, there certainly are voices inside Israel that are criticizing and opposing this aid distribution strategy. We have seen growing opposition to the war in Israel, although it certainly is not a majority that is speaking out against the aid distribution that we are seeing in Gaza right now.

As for the Israeli military, you know, they have repeatedly claimed that they were reorganizing, that they were going to improve the routes to these Gaza Humanitarian Foundation sites, issuing new directives to soldiers about how to interact with these, you know, crowds of hungry Palestinian civilians.

And yet the killing has continued. It has become almost a near daily occurrence at this point, Jim, where we have seen Israeli troops opening fire on crowds of Palestinians, trying to make it mostly to these Gaza Humanitarian Foundation sites, but also in some instances, like yesterday, crowding around United Nations trucks. In yesterday's case, it was World Food Program trucks that were coming in from the northern part of the Gaza Strip.

And as a result of what we are seeing on a daily basis, we are now seeing very strong condemnation from more than two dozen Western nations, including France, the United Kingdom, Canada, countries that aren't, you know, that are traditionally allies of Israel. But their language is stark. They are talking about the suffering in Gaza reaching new depths, and they are directly blaming Israel and this aid delivery model that they have spearheaded as being dangerous, fueling instability and leading to the inhumane killing of civilians in Gaza.

Now, the only thing it seems that will actually change the way Israel truly addresses aid distribution in the Gaza Strip is if there is a ceasefire agreement, because if a ceasefire goes into effect, then you will see large quantities of humanitarian aid flowing into Gaza, as we saw during the last ceasefire.

At this stage, I'm told that over the last two weeks, the United States brought a lot of pressure to bear to get Israel to remove some of the last objections that it had to this ceasefire proposal, removing some of those final sticking points to a deal. But now, Jim, all eyes are on Hamas.

It's been nearly a week since they received the latest ceasefire proposal, and I'm told that the United States is also bringing pressure to bear on Hamas now, saying that their patience is running thin, trying to get Hamas to deliver an answer this week -- Jim.

SCIUTTO: I mean, yes, these sticking points, we've been talking about them for months. They're proving very sticky, sadly. Jeremy Diamond, thanks so much -- Brianna.

KEILAR: Let's take a closer look now at what is happening with aid in Gaza. Yesterday, at least 73 people there were killed by Israeli gunfire and around 150 people injured while they were trying to get humanitarian aid, according to the Palestinian Health Ministry. It was the same day that four-year-old Razan Abu Zaher died in Gaza of complications from malnutrition.

[15:35:00]

The incidents represent two troubling trends, an uptick in deaths due to malnutrition since Israel imposed restrictions on aid in March and a surge in deaths of Palestinians trying to get food. Gaza's population of more than two million is on the brink of famine, with 93 percent of residents facing a state of crisis or worse, as defined by the Global Hunger Monitoring Body, known as the IPC. Seventy-six children and 10 adults have died of malnutrition since the start of the war in October of 2023, according to the Palestinian Health Ministry. The World Health Organization says most of those deaths have happened in the last four months. Here's how one volunteer doctor in Gaza describes the situation.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DR. TAVIS MELIN, VOLUNTEER DOCTOR IN GAZA: What I hear from the people is that, you know, this is not living. We're being treated like animals. You know, some people are, you know, say things like we would rather be dead than what we're experiencing now.

I just want the people back home to realize, like, this is absolutely atrocious what's happening, that people are truly starving here, that this really, really must come to an end.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KEILAR: There have been significantly fewer aid distribution sites in Gaza as the Israeli and U.S.-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation has become the primary source, and the U.N.'s role in getting food to Palestinians has been diminished. We have repeatedly seen scores of deaths as huge and hungry crowds converge at distribution sites.

Between late May and July 7, the U.N. Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights says that 798 Palestinians were killed as they tried to get aid in Gaza, 615 of whom were killed near sites of the GHF. Many Palestinians described choosing between starving or risking death not to.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): You send the aid, but you are killing us, or you want to starve us, or you want to insult us. Explain to us what exactly do you want so we can understand. Close it and that's it, but don't call it humanitarian under the name of U.S. and Israel while you kill us.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KEILAR: According to the Palestinian Health Ministry, at least 32 Palestinians died Saturday near a GHF distribution site. Last Wednesday, at least 20 people were killed in a crowd crush at a GHF site. On July 12, the Health Ministry says 27 people died when Israeli troops opened fire on people trying to get aid at another GHF site.

Israeli and GHF officials are pushing back. In Saturday's incident, the IDF said, quote, Suspects had approached troops near the aid site when it wasn't active and they didn't comply with orders to distance themselves after Israeli forces fired warning shots.

Then in last Wednesday's incident, the GHF said individuals, quote, Armed and affiliated with Hamas instigated chaos.

And in the July 12 incident, the GHF denied there were any incidents at their sites, and the Israeli military denied anyone was injured by fire from its troops. On Sunday, the IDF told CNN it had no further comment.

When the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation launched two months ago, it was supposed to be a tightly controlled mechanism for aid deliveries to four distribution sites in southern and central Gaza.

Israel and the U.S. approved the plan, saying that it was designed to prevent Hamas from stealing aid. But the GHF was marked by controversy from the start. In May, the resignation of its executive director, U.S. Marine veteran Jake Wood, founder and former CEO of respected veteran disaster response NGO Team Rubicon, quit. And he said he did so because, quote, It is not possible to implement this plan while also strictly adhering to the humanitarian principles of humanity, neutrality, impartiality and independence, which I will not abandon.

Then in June, a scathing USAID assessment that flagged, quote, critical concerns about the group's ability to protect Palestinians and to deliver them food.

A GHF spokesperson defended the organization's work in Gaza and described that USAID assessment as normal for a funding application.

In a report out today in The Wall Street Journal, a reporter visited one of the GHF sites in Khan Younis last week, and though there were no casualties there that day, it was described as extremely chaotic. The Journal noting, quote, Last month, the military said it would change the way it operates and add signs and fencing in hopes of minimizing friction with the population. During the Journal's visit to the site outside Khan Younis, a trip organized by Israel's military, none of that was evident and troops made no effort to control crowds.

And when we come back, remembering Malcolm-Jamal Warner, the actor who starred as Theo Huxtable on The Cosby Show, has died at age 54. Stay with us.

[15:40:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KEILAR: If you were just joining us, we are following breaking news.

Actor Malcolm-Jamal Warner, who starred as the iconic character Theo Huxtable for the trailblazing Cosby Show, has died.

SCIUTTO: Such a memorable show. A source tells CNN, Warner passed away in a drowning accident while vacationing with his family in Costa Rica. Just so sad for him and his family.

With us now to talk about his life, his legacy, entertainment journalist Andrew Freund and chief awards editor for Variety, Clayton Davis.

[15:45:00]

Clayton, you know, we've been talking a lot about this for the last couple of hours, just about what a touchstone this show was for Black Americans. We've had several guests on who described how important symbolism, right, and the model of this family was for them.

But it was also an American phenomenon that strikes me, because such a big portion of the American public sat down and watched this show every Thursday night by the tens of millions, right? Something that sadly doesn't happen that much anymore.

CLAYTON DAVIS, CHIEF AWARDS EDITOR, VARIETY: Yes. When you look at someone like Malcolm-Jamal Warner, you think to yourself, if Tom Hanks was America's dad, then Theo Huxtable was our big brother growing up. And I know I watch the Cosby show a lot growing up, and that's what he was to me in my household and meant to so many other people.

I mean, on top of that, when you look at him from an accolade standpoint, this is a man who made history. He became at the time the youngest Black man to be nominated for an Emmy. He was nominated for Supporting Comedy Actor back in 1986. He was only 16 years old, and he was still working today. He was still on multiple shows. He was an accomplished musical artist.

He was that beacon of hope that every young Black kid can look to and say, I can do that. I'm not one note. I can do it all.

And to have him kind of ripped away, especially with the Cosby show being such a, you know, now a different type of legacy that many have to reckon with. He was that one focal point that we held on to. And to lose him, it's just, it's quite devastating.

KEILAR: Yes, I am sad over this news. And I know so many people feel that way. Andrew, not the least, I'm sure his colleagues in the entertainment industry are just devastated to learn that he has passed away so young.

ANDREW FREUND, ENTERTAINMENT JOURNALIST: Yes, Brianna, it's funny because while we're waiting to go on, I was just kind of scouring Instagram and on People magazines, you know, they did a post about it. Countless celebrities were commenting. Jennifer Hudson, Ricki Lake, Rosie O'Donnell posted a thing.

And like Clayton said, he was America's brother. You know, I watched that show with my family, and that show transcended all generations, all races. And, you know, I had the privilege of interviewing him a few times.

And he was one of those people -- I always remember, because when you do these red carpets, you know, you look to see who's coming down the line. And every time I would look to see him coming down the line, he always had a smile on his face. And he had this kind of, like, kind sincerity that not many people have.

And Clayton can also attest to this, because we do a lot of these interviews. But he was one of a kind, that guy. He was just, he was really special.

SCIUTTO: Elizabeth Wagmeister, our entertainment correspondent, was saying she interviewed him recently and had exactly the same nice things to say about him.

Clayton, he had a long career following The Cosby Show. Most recently, podcast Not All Hood. He was on Malcolm & Eddie. We mentioned, I think, earlier that he won a Grammy Award. I mean, this was, you know, he didn't disappear off into the distance.

And on his podcast, he continued to talk about these issues of race and culture and family that were so important to him.

DAVIS: Yes, I mean, when you look at someone like Malcolm-Jamal Warner and, you know, the instinct when you see him, we want to yell Theo. And he didn't want to be called Theo. He would tell us -- my name is Malcolm.

And I always credit him as, like, that's a reason why we have Sterling K. Brown today, who also has, you know, grown in this industry. And people scream Randall at him when they talk about This Is Us. He's like, my name is Sterling. You know, it was the acknowledgement that he was more than just part of The Cosby Show, which is a great legacy to have. And we should appreciate that.

But he was like, I can do anything I want to do. And you can as well. So many kids watched him grow up and not go the way of child actors that can become very bitter, mean, or go through some evolution that becomes a little even weird at times.

Malcolm-Jamal Warner was down-to-earth, happy, and he looked grateful to be there.

KEILAR: Yes, I mean, Clayton, he -- there were so many things he brought to his character, right? I mean, he was, there was Black Boy Joy in Theo Huxtable before that was sort of the label. But he also, there was a seriousness also to his character in the evolution over time.

And that is to the credit of Malcolm-Jamal Warner, that we saw someone evolve over time from a, you know, a kid to a man. I think that's partial -- I don't know what you think about that and how that speaks to why people are invested in him as a person kind of evolving and then even obviously beyond the show.

[15:50:02]

DAVIS: You know, it's interesting because the Cosby Show dropped today. It's something that I feel the right would call the most woke show that they dropped. But this was exactly why we talk about, you know, representation matters.

Because when we see a show like the Cosby Show that is specific with its Black culture, it becomes universal. And as we see on this program right now, with all of us talking from different backgrounds, we found our connection to Theo Huxtable, to that family that had universal themes and qualities. And people carry that, you know, with them.

We saw that feed into other shows. We saw him appear in A Different World, which I'm thinking now that A Different World is having a sequel coming out. You know, was he going to be a part of that? When we had seen Theo growing up, how great that would have been.

There's so many questions now about what could have been. And to lose him in such a tragic way, so sudden, it makes you really start thinking about the finite fragility of life that we often get reminded of when we least expect it.

SCIUTTO: It's such a good point, too, that at the time, I remember this, that theme of showing a successful family, right? A middle class family. That was something that large parts of the country embraced, right?

It was not a subject of attack that sadly one might see today, right? In the age that we live in.

KEILAR: Andrew and Clayton, thank you so much for being with us. Really appreciate it.

FREUND: Thank you.

KEILAR: Microsoft warning about active attacks on its servers. We'll have details on the hack next.

[15:55:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KEILAR: Microsoft is urging scores of businesses and government agencies using its server software to immediately install security updates because of a huge cyber attack.

The company is calling this a spoofing attack and says that it only involves servers used to share documents within organizations and not in the cloud.

CNN business writer Clare Duffy is on this story. Clare, tell us more about the attack and also how users can protect themselves from it.

CLARE DUFFY, CNN BUSINESS WRITER: Hi Brianna. Yes, this targeted Microsoft's SharePoint servers. This is the software that many people will probably be familiar with that businesses and government agencies use to facilitate document sharing, document management among employees.

This targeted on-location servers, so not Microsoft's cloud service, as you said, but potentially tens of thousands of servers are at risk here. And this is what's called a spoofing attack, which is where bad actors essentially impersonate legitimate users or services and in that way can take documents, can take passwords. There can potentially be financial ramifications for the organizations that were targeted here.

Microsoft is encouraging any customers to download the security update immediately. But what researchers have said is that any hackers that were able to access these servers before that update was released could potentially remain inside of those networks. And so organizations need to continue to be monitoring for suspicious activity.

And we don't know who is perpetrating these attacks just yet, but the FBI says it's investigating, Microsoft surely is investigating, so that we can get a better sense of what the motive potentially is of these bad actors -- Brianna.

KEILAR: All right, Clare Duffy, thank you so much for that, really appreciate it.

Mid-July, too soon perhaps to be putting pumpkin spice lattes on the calendar? We'll discuss.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KEILAR: It is the debate brewing for years. How early is too early for a fall favorite? Well, Starbucks just revealed its 2025 pumpkin spice latte return date and fans can almost sip it.

SCIUTTO: It feels a little early, right, for a fall treat given it is July. Simmering summer, heatwave or not, Starbucks says the wildly popular hot drink will make its comeback August 26, which is actually four days later than its earliest summer release back in 2022.

[16:00:00]

KEILAR: Year after year, Starbucks enjoys a jolt in sales every time that bestseller reemerges. The beloved drink has been both celebrated and mocked for igniting a pumpkin spice revolution ever since its launch 20 years ago. Pumpkin spice yogurt, whiskey, even trash bags. I didn't know about that.

That's a thing, apparently. What do you think? Where do you land on this?

SCIUTTO: First of all, it's better warm, right? And do you want to drink a hot, you know, like a super hot?

KEILAR: In late August?

SCIUTTO: Yes, in late August. It tastes like Thanksgiving dinner.

KEILAR: But a lot of people do.

"THE ARENA" with Kasie Hunt starts now.

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