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Sean 'Diddy' Combs Appealing Bail Decision; New Explosions in Lebanon. Aired 11-11:30a ET

Aired September 18, 2024 - 11:00   ET

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

[11:00:50]

ANNOUNCER: This is CNN breaking news.

WOLF BLITZER, CNN HOST: Hello. I'm Wolf Blitzer in New York, and you're in the CNN NEWSROOM.

We begin with major breaking news once again out of the Middle East. New explosions are being reported in Lebanon right now, one day after Israel carried out a series of deadly pager attacks, all this according to Lebanese state media.

CNN's chief international security correspondent, Nick Paton Walsh, is joining us right now.

First of all, Nick, what do we know about these latest reports, about these latest explosions going on in Lebanon?

NICK PATON WALSH, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: Yes, in short, Wolf, we're talking about 30 to 40 explosions, half of which appear to have hit the southern suburbs of Beirut, Hezbollah's stronghold, and all of which appear to involve walkie-talkies, wireless devices, predominantly, according to a Lebanese security source talking to my colleague Tamara Qiblawi, used by Hezbollah in crowd events, for crowd control, security checkpoints.

Now, at this point, it's preliminary information and we're talking about 15 to 20 in the southern suburbs of Beirut and 15 to 20 elsewhere in Lebanon, explosions, that is.

But the videos we are seeing show larger blasts, I think it's fair to say, than we saw yesterday with the pagers. And it is occurring, it seems, according to one eyewitness who talked about a walkie-talkie exploding at a funeral, for somebody killed yesterday, and it blew off somebody's hands, that blast occurred just after 3:00 local time in Lebanon today.

Now, that is almost exactly 24 hours after the first wave of blasts. So just to step back here, Wolf, we are looking at a yet more LOWRY: - tech form of communication. Remember, Hezbollah appears to have reached to pagers because of concerns and warnings that Israel would use smartphones to track their members and target them.

The pagers they use, the supply chain, it seems, from Taiwan, unclear how it necessarily got to Lebanon. Having lived there for a while, all sorts of stuff turns up in the ports there from various dodgy provenances, so very easy to infiltrate.

They appear to have, according to "New York Times" reporting, infiltrated that supply chain, put explosives in the pagers. The question now is, was indeed a walkie-talkie supply chain also infiltrated? It appears that this series of explosions, can't be too much of a coincidence that indeed it happened about 24 hours after the previous one.

And so we're talking about a militant group here, a substantial one, well-trained, very proud of its operational security a significant threat to Israel. It's fair to say, if a ground conflict occurred between them with over 100,000 rockets trained at Israel, has now for the second day in a row, it seems, been hit by a series of blasts, and, indeed, the wireless devices, the walkie-talkies, they most likely turned to when their pagers have blown up around them.

So, possibly a phased operation here, but one that certainly suggests if indeed the Israelis were behind this, as CNN reporting suggests they were behind yesterday's pager attack, suggests a phased assault against Hezbollah. Is this the entirety of the operation that Hezbollah's enemies have against them or is it the prelude?

Is it a scattering of their command-and-control, their ability to communicate that is a prelude to something larger? We don't know at this stage. But what is absolutely clear from that CCTV you're seeing there of an explosion that hit somebody just standing at a fruit stall in a supermarket at a checkout as well that the panic these explosions will have causing will have been amplified by this second wave.

This second wave appears to have been mostly in areas, I think it's fair to say, where Hezbollah had a strong presence. And, indeed, the use of walkie-talkies as the device to carry these explosions will probably have meant this was less at risk of hitting civilians as yesterday's wave of thousands of pagers detonating across Lebanon, but a remarkable moment here and one that is certainly escalatory.

Still, Wolf, with the question of, what can Hezbollah, a group now working out what part of their communications network they can safely use, who of their members is unharmed, what position are Hezbollah in now to launch a significant retaliation against a foe like Israel, who have proven themselves technologically pretty sophisticated over the last 24 hours, or is there a risk of a larger, more rational response from Hezbollah to perhaps reassert their strength relevance after a devastating 24 hours on their security apparatus, Wolf?

[11:05:10]

BLITZER: As we know, Hezbollah has thousands of rockets and missiles based in Southern Lebanon, potentially could be aimed directly at Israel, hitting not only Northern Israel, but even further south beyond Haifa to towards Tel Aviv and even further south.

So, Hezbollah has potentially an enormous amount of capability right now. A Taiwanese electronics company, Nick, is facing heightened security

right now after multiple photos of the aftermath of yesterday's attacks appeared to show its pagers. What do we know about that?

WALSH: Yes, the Gold Apollo AR-924, not a device that anyone, frankly, had ever heard of until 24 hours ago, but it appears to have been the main conduit, the pager, the model that detonated across Lebanon in its thousands.

Now this is something made in Taiwan. The Taiwanese government has no records of direct export to Lebanon. Indeed, the company behind it, Gold Apollo, say that in fact that model was given to a Hungarian company, BAC, to market and sell.

I think the official beginning of how these pagers began life, who made them, who first traded them is possibly less relevant. What we need to know is exactly how they found their way into Lebanon. As I said earlier, a lot of times, devices turn up in often ports, areas that Hezbollah effectively control that seem incredibly cheap.

You're not quite sure where they have come from, having lived there for a while. So, infiltrating that supply chain not particularly tough. And maybe indeed it is these thousands of devices which CNN has learned were infiltrated and were part of an Israeli Mossad and military joint operation, according to "New York Times," had tiny amounts of explosive put in them.

Just imagine, Wolf, the painstaking nature of inserting tiny amounts of explosive in thousands of pagers, then repackaging them, putting them back in a container potentially, and being sure that they will get into the hands of the Hezbollah group you consider to be your enemy, an operation that clearly took months.

Wolf, the real question is, why did they detonate yesterday? Is there a larger operation at stake here? Is there a other reason in terms of Israeli domestic politics, where someone decided to launch an operation against Hezbollah in the last 24 hours? Is this a prelude to something bigger?

Was there an operational reason, a technical reason why these devices had to be operated sooner, rather than later? Things we don't know at this stage, but I think the second wave of attacks we're seeing today, if indeed it is proven this is part again of an Israeli operation, which, given the timing, given the nature of what we're seeing, seems to be fairly likely, whether this is, as I say, an escalatory measure leading to something else or a bid to damage the psychology, the morale of the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah -- Wolf.

BLITZER: Very quickly, Nick, did all those pagers explode yesterday roughly around exactly the same time?

WALSH: Yes. In a word, yes. I mean, nothing -- I think it appears the messages were sent. People have reported looking at the pagers, receiving a message, and then them detonating.

The question I think today will be whether the walkie-talkies, if it appears that they are the only device that detonated and how many indeed there were, quite what caused these to detonate and whether it was at the same time.

BLITZER: As we know, Hezbollah is backed strongly by Iran. The Iranian ambassador to Lebanon, I take it, was among those who was hit yesterday. Is that right?

WALSH: That's true. He also had one of these pagers, but the understanding is that his injuries were superficial.

Now, remember, these were pagers distributed to essentially the loyal, those part of Hezbollah's more important communications network, essentially to keep them off smartphones. The smartphones, the Israelis have proven very capable at using to track down targets over the past year plus.

So, some twist, frankly, in the plot here, that those low-tech devices were the initial target and now yet more low technology, walkie- talkies used for crowd control, shortwave radio designed to get people to talk to each other just a matter of blocks away, that these somehow have also potentially detonated.

Quite how they received an instruction to detonate, things we will be learning, I'm sure, in the hours and days ahead. But you can't underestimate the psychological impact of this on a group like Hezbollah, so proud of their operational security, so confident in the secrets they feel they're able to keep and in their ability to directly challenge Israel, now for two days in a row seeing their innermost sanctums violated by these explosions -- Wolf.

BLITZER: Yes, their communications clearly going downhill right now.

All right, stand by, Nick, I'm going to be getting back to you.

Jeremy Diamond is in Israel right now.

Jeremy, what's the Israeli reaction? What are we hearing from the IDF? What are we hearing from the prime minister's office?

JEREMY DIAMOND, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Absolute silence so far, Wolf, which is not unlike what we saw yesterday, as we saw those thousands of pagers exploding simultaneously in different parts of Lebanon.

[11:10:06]

Today, as we are now getting these reports of several dozen explosions in Lebanon, what appears to be mostly walkie-talkie devices exploding this time, there has been no comment from the Israelis, no claim of responsibility.

But, of course, we need to be cautious that, first of all, we don't know who is responsible for this, but, at the same time, the timing here is quite notable.The fact that it would come a day after thousands of pages exploded in what we reported yesterday was indeed a joint Israeli Mossad and Israeli military operation that detonated those pages simultaneously, to see now more explosions today to, if not the same type of devices, then at least similar wireless devices that could have also been compromised by Israeli intelligence operatives perhaps, that does, of course, point to a potential pattern here.

And what we have seen across the region, Wolf, in addition to those pages exploding yesterday, is once again the tensions in this region going sky-high once again, and not only those tensions with vows of reprisals from Hezbollah for those attacks yesterday, but also the Israeli military, the Israeli government making several moves to increase its readiness in the face of potential escalation.

We have seen the 98th Division of the Israeli military being diverted away from the Gaza Strip and instead being sent towards Israel's northern front with Lebanon. We have seen, of course, for months now as Israel has repeatedly made preparations for the potential of all- out war with Hezbollah, only for those preparations ultimately to simply be that, preparations, and no actual engagement in active land combat in terms of a ground invasion of Lebanon.

That has yet to actually materialize. But there is no question, Wolf, that the Israeli military is prepared for that scenario. And there is also no question that continued explosions like this in Lebanon, continued attacks, as it seems to be, on Hezbollah will without a doubt raise that specter of war once again.

BLITZER: Yes, there is enormous concern in Israel, I take it right now, that what is going on right now could result in Hezbollah retaliation against Israel. And, as I pointed out, they have thousands of rockets and missiles that are based in Southern Lebanon that could hit all parts of Israel right now.

And, already, what, about 100,000 Israelis have been evacuated from Northern Israel near the Lebanese border. Is that right?

DIAMOND: The latest estimate is somewhere around 60,000 Israelis who were evacuated from Northern Israel.

But there are, of course, people who remain close to that border who are at risk for additional evacuation should the situation continue to escalate. And people, including here in Tel Aviv, who have family members in the north, are constantly concerned checking on them when incidents like this do bubble up to say, is it time for us to move south? Is it time for us to get further outside of the range of those rockets?

But, ultimately, Wolf, there is a reality, which is that if there is an all-out war with Hezbollah, this will be much different than what we saw in 2006 during the last major explosion of conflict between Israel and Hezbollah. And that's because Hezbollah's rocket arsenal has significantly expanded since then.

It has grown more sophisticated. And the range of those rockets and missiles has expanded to include potentially being able to hit targets in Tel Aviv, as well as the airport very near to Tel Aviv as well -- Wolf. BLITZER: All right, Jeremy, we're going to get back to you as well. I

know there's a lot of tension, a lot of nervousness going on right now in Lebanon and in Israel.

I want to go back to Lebanon right now.

Ben Wedeman is in Beirut.

Ben, you know Beirut. You know Lebanon. You know that -- what's going on very well. How seriously should we be concerned right now that this is going to escalate and there's going to be major Hezbollah retaliation against Israel, which in turn would result potentially in an all-out war?

BEN WEDEMAN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: The danger of escalation is very much present, also given the fact that, until now, with a few exceptions, the violence, the destruction, the death, the injuries have been largely restricted to the border area.

But now, of course, even today, for instance, Lebanese security sources are saying that there were anywhere between 15 and 20 explosive devices going off in the southern part of Beirut, where Hezbollah has a strong presence, and a similar number of explosions in the southern part of the country.

In addition to the national news agency, the official news agency, reporting that three people have been killed in the Beqaa Valley to the east of here, the Lebanese Ministry of Health is saying that an initial toll of the injured so far as a result of this afternoon's series of blasts is at least 100, with, according to their numbers, one dead.

[11:15:16]

And that's after yesterday, when at least 2,800 people were injured in those pager blasts. And we had an opportunity to speak with Firass Abiad, who's the minister of health, who told us how the authorities, the medical authorities, are coping with this mass casualty event.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

WEDEMAN: How is the hospital dealing with this huge number of patients?

DR. SALAH ZEIN-EL-DINE, AMERICAN UNIVERSITY OF BEIRUT HOSPITAL: So the problem is, we received around 200 patients and we received them in a very short time. About within an hour or two, almost all of them went inside our doors.

So this stretched us pretty much too thin. But our capacity, between doctors and nurses, logistics, managed to keep up with the needs and to stabilize the life-threatening injuries and then to provide immediate care and then, of course, transfer them to the hospital, to the operating rooms to undergo the surgery and what need to be done afterwards.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WEDEMAN: Now, of course, that's actually the chief medical officer of the American University of Beirut Medical Center that dealt with at least 200 injuries yesterday from those pager blasts, Wolf.

BLITZER: All right, Ben Wedeman, stay safe over there.

Ben Wedeman is in Beirut for us watching all of the drama unfold right now. This is a very, very major developing story. We will stay on top of it, to be sure.

And we will be right back with more news.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[11:21:18]

BLITZER: There's more news we're following right now as well, including Sean "Diddy" Combs.

He's expected back in court soon after he spent the night behind bars in Brooklyn. Combs has been denied bail and remained in custody after pleading not guilty to charges of racketeering, conspiracy, and sex trafficking.

Those charges are part of a three-count federal indictment that was unsealed yesterday, and it lays out a framework of very serious and sprawling allegations against the music mogul, including kidnapping, arson, bribery, and obstruction of justice.

Joining us now, senior legal analyst Elie Honig.

So, Elie, what arguments do you expect to hear from both sides at this upcoming hearing today?

ELIE HONIG, CNN SENIOR LEGAL ANALYST: So, Wolf, any time a prosecutor wants to have a defendant locked up with no bail pending trial, you have to show either that that person is a danger to the community or a risk of flight.

And, here, prosecutors allege that Sean Combs is both. With respect to danger, they argue, look at the seriousness of the crimes. You just listed them off. The racketeering conspiracy charge includes almost any crime you can think of, drugs, guns, assault, robbery, obstruction of justice.

And on risk of flight expect prosecutors to say this is a person with enormous wealth. We don't know where he keeps it all and he could flee if he wanted to. Now, look for defendants, the defense lawyers, to say, first of all, the allegations are only allegations at this point, and, second of all, he has self-surrendered, to some extent, and so, therefore, he has no intention to flee.

BLITZER: He's being charged with all these crimes in the Southern District of New York, which includes, of course, New York City.

You're a former assistant U.S. attorney in the Southern District of New York. How do you expect the judge to rule?

HONIG: Well, these are inherently unpredictable, Wolf, but I think the prosecution has the upper hand here. I think the judge will keep Sean Combs behind bars pending trial.

First of all, federal law tells us that, where you have charges involving force or violence, and here we do have that, the legal presumption is in favor of detention, in favor of prosecutors. The other thing is, if you just take Sean Combs' name out of this, if this, in my experience, was some unknown defendant who was charged with forcible sex trafficking, with racketeering involving all the crimes I just listed, that person would be locked up, no questions about it.

So you don't know what's going to happen. It's tough to predict these things, but, if I had to guess, I think Sean Combs will continue to be locked up pending trial.

BLITZER: What are the stakes, though, here, Elie, if bail is denied? And how could that potentially impact trial preparation?

HONIG: So there's two big considerations with bail. First of all, nobody wants to be locked up pending trial. You haven't even been proven guilty at this point.

And I will tell you, Wolf, from having been in there, the federal facilities here in New York City, there's one in Manhattan, one in Brooklyn, are horrible places, as are all prisons. But, more importantly, it is much more difficult for a defendant to prepare for trial from prison.

It is much more inefficient and time-consuming to meet with the lawyers. It's harder for a defendant to assist with other trial preparations. So that's why bail hearings are so high-stakes, as we will see later this afternoon.

BLITZER: All right, Elie Honig helping us understand what's going on as usual, thank you very, very much.

HONIG: Thanks, Wolf.

BLITZER: Still ahead this hour, we're getting new details on what investigators found inside the Hawaii home of the suspect in Sunday's apparent assassination attempt against Donald Trump.

I will speak live with a member of the congressional task force looking into the case, that and a lot more coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[11:29:14]

BLITZER: Happening today, the U.S. Secret Service will brief a congressional task force about the second apparent assassination attempt on Donald Trump. That bipartisan group of lawmakers was already investigating the July attempt on the former president's life. We're now learning the group's chairman wants to visit Trump's Florida golf club where Sunday's incident happened.

The FBI director says the bureau is working around the clock on its investigation. Listen to this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CHRISTOPHER WRAY, FBI DIRECTOR: For the second time in just over two months, we have witnessed what appears to be an attempt to attack our democracy and our democratic process.

And I'm relieved that former President Trump is safe, and I want the American people to know that the men and women of the FBI are working tirelessly to get to the bottom of what happened.

(END VIDEO CLIP)