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Heavy Israeli Airstrikes Killed 16 People in Lebanon; Andy Burnham Wins U.K.'s By-Election, Possible Labor Leadership Shift Could Happen; Mexico Marches to FIFA World Cup's Round of 32 After Stunning South Korea. Aired 3-4a ET

Aired June 19, 2026 - 03:00   ET

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

[03:00:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BEN HUNTE, CNN ANCHOR: Hello, wherever you are in the world. You are now in the "CNN Newsroom" with me, Ben Hunte in Atlanta, and it is so good to have you with me. Coming up on the show.

Israel launches deadly new airstrikes in southern Lebanon, putting a critical test to the U.S.-Iran agreement.

Vice President J.D. Vance postpones his trip to Switzerland as negotiations with Iran face new uncertainty.

And Andy Burnham wins a critical U.K. by-election, setting the stage for a possible challenge to the U.K. Prime Minister's leadership.

UNKNOWN (voice-over): Live from Atlanta, this is "CNN Newsroom" with Ben Hunte.

HUNTE: Welcome.

It is 10 A.M. in Israel and Lebanon, where there is breaking news we're bringing you this hour. The Lebanese National News Agency says at least 16 people have been killed in a night of heavy Israeli airstrikes. The Israeli military says it struck Hezbollah targets in several areas in southern Lebanon, it cited repeated ceasefire violations by the militant group.

Let's get right to CNN's Paula Hancocks live for us this hour in Abu Dhabi. Paula, does this renewal of fighting put the U.S.-Iran agreement in jeopardy? What do you think?

PAULA HANCOCKS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Ben, I think there's certainly the concern of that. It's a very real consideration because this is part of the U.S.-Iran deal.

Now, looking at what we saw overnight, those strikes were heavy on Nabatea. This is an area in southern Lebanon. The Israeli military saying that Hezbollah had fired on their troops and they had a wave of strikes. State media there saying that emergency vehicles were finding it difficult to get to the dead and injured considering the severity of the strikes.

So certainly what we're seeing is an uptick in the strikes from Israel and also we saw just on Wednesday an Israeli soldier being killed by Hezbollah firing a rocket as well.

So this is a key part of the U.S.-Iran agreement. It's number one on the 14-point plan that there will be a cessation of hostilities on all fronts including Lebanon. It is named.

Iran has been very careful to make sure that it is an integral part of this deal which Israel did not want it to be. It believes that this is separate what is happening between Israel and Hezbollah. But President Trump has agreed to make it part of the memorandum of understanding.

We are seeing an increasing level of frustration from the Trump administration. From President Trump, from the Vice President J.D. Vance towards Israel and Israeli officials. We've been hearing reports of expletive laden telephone calls between President Trump and Benjamin Netanyahu as well.

In fact just on Thursday we heard from the U.S. Vice President of how frustrated Trump is when the deals appear to be close and then there is an explosion where there are many who are not affiliated to Hezbollah, he said, that are killed. So we're certainly seeing that level of frustration rise and what we're hearing from the Iranian side is that these two issues, these fronts, are very much linked.

We heard from the chief negotiator, Mohammad Ghalibaf, on social media. I want to read you part of his tweet where he says, quote, "In the event of bad faith, breach of contract and excessive demands by the opposing side, we have no hesitation in delivering a crushing response to the enemy."

Now presumably breach of contract would be exactly what we are seeing from the Israeli side and also the Hezbollah side. But it is interesting that the criticism from the Trump administration is very much leveled against Israel at this point, less so against the militant group.

At the same time though we do know that next week there are still expected to be continued peace talks between the ambassadors of Israel and Lebanon. We understand from an Israeli official that there will also be military talks within that. But of course the key point there is Hezbollah is not part of it, so clearly does not feel tied to that deal.

[03:05:00]

But there is a very real concern that this could be the spoiler in the memorandum of understanding. And I think the level of quite public frustration now we're seeing from the U.S. President and the Trump administration reflects that they know that. Ben.

HUNTE: Yes, and I'm sure those frustrations are going to grow. Paula Hancocks, thanks so much. The Israeli strikes in Lebanon follow a bold new claim from U.S.

President Donald Trump that his agreement with Iran amounts to its unconditional surrender. The President has been defending his memorandum of understanding from mounting criticism. He spoke of "Axios" in his first interview since signing the document on Wednesday.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MARC CAPULO, "AXIOS" WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: What have you learned about not just the exercise of power, but the limits on your power as a result of the conflict?

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: There are no limits.

CAPULO: No limits?

TRUMP: No, not, I haven't learned that lesson yet. I know there are, but you know, there are no limits. We defeated them totally militarily.

I did a naval blockade where not one ship was able to get through. Some tried, they didn't, you know, it didn't last very long.

CAPULO: And it certainly brought Iran to the table more than before. However, beginning a conflict, you had talked about you only wanted unconditional surrender. And the MOU doesn't look like unconditional surrender.

TRUMP: Well, it really probably is unconditional surrender.

CAPULO: It is?

TRUMP: I think so.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HUNTE: Meanwhile, Vice President J.D. Vance is postponing his trip to Switzerland for an official U.S.-Iran signing ceremony. The White House cites unresolved logistics. The Swiss foreign ministry says today's planned talks have been canceled.

Let's bring in CNN's international diplomatic editor, Nic Robertson, in Switzerland for us. Nic, Trump says the agreement with Iran amounts to their unconditional surrender, but Iran appears to be coming away from this with the ability to now charge fees for ships travelling through the Strait of Hormuz. Isn't that actually a massive win for them?

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: Look, if Iran had committed an unconditional surrender, they would be here in Switzerland at the talks table because that's where the United States would want them to be. They would have, they would be in essence compelled because they decided to completely roll over and give up. Iran has not, by its own measure, been put in a position of complete surrender.

They still maintain, in their view, the ability to control the Strait of Hormuz if they so desire. The memorandum of understanding says that they will remove any blockages that they have there, allow normal traffic to progress between the Persian Gulf, Arabian Gulf if you will, and the Gulf of Oman, meaning the Strait of Hormuz.

So from an Iranian perspective, I think this feels for them as if they have achieved what they wanted. They wanted to put a block on the Strait of Hormuz to bring economic pain to President Trump. This was their strategy from the get-go and President Trump said they were effective in Geneva, when he spoke at the G7, he said he didn't want to end up like J. Edgar Hoover and bring about a Great Depression in the United States.

There, he absolutely said that Iran had been correct in its assessment, correct in its tactics, correct in bringing a quicker end to the war. So I think there's a disconnect between how President Trump views the situation and how the Iranians view it and that's what we're seeing play out in Switzerland today, or rather not play out because the talks aren't happening.

And I think the key issue behind it is absolutely what is happening in Lebanon at the moment. Iranian state media is quoting Lebanese media, which is saying that the Iranians decided not to come because of the activity of the Israeli troops inside of Lebanon.

You have a situation now where four IDF soldiers have been killed, more than a dozen Lebanese injured, killed rather, more than 30 injured. It's this sort of situation that's playing out in Lebanon right now and what President Trump does to try to tone it down, what Iran does to tell Hezbollah to stop ambushing or attacking the IDF, that's really going to test this ceasefire, which has, as you were just discussing, at its heart, Lebanon as a key point and remembering when we got into the ceasefire, when the two parties agreed the ceasefire, where Lebanon stood in that ceasefire was a contentious issue.

It was written into the first line and what we're hearing from the Iranian leadership is they will stand by what they've agreed to, the letter of what they've agreed to. That's what Speaker of Parliament has guaranteed to the Supreme Leader. They'll stand by what they've agreed to in the memorandum of understanding and that puts very much a strong focus on what's happening in Lebanon.

HUNTE: We know that this is very early days, but what will it take to keep to a lasting deal after this agreement's 60-day period is over?

[03:10:05]

ROBERTSON: I think it'll take some more 60-day periods. It's going to take both sides to feel that they are getting what they want out of the deal. It's taken two months of Pakistani and some Qatari mediation to get to this point, so it's taken a long time to bridge the big gaps to get language that they could agree about that didn't even get into any of the hard details here we're looking at, for example, the nuclear issue, how to dilute the highly enriched uranium.

This is now, it seems to be, done inside Iran, but with inspections, the details on inspections, the future enrichment of uranium inside of Iran, all of these things yet to be talked about. How do they get talked about?

Well, they get talked about at a technical level, and then the mediators try to bridge the gaps and try to bring them closer and closer together, and it takes time, and that's what we've seen so far.

Two months to get to this point, which is where you would have expected things to begin, and here we are today on 60-1, so 59 days now left to negotiate, and the two sides can't even get together in a neutral country to come and begin the discussion. It doesn't all go well.

HUNTE: Okay, we'll leave it there for now. Nic Robertson, thank you so much.

I spoke in the last hour with Alon Pinkas, the former Israeli Consul General to New York. I asked him if he thinks Iran has emerged as the winner in its agreement with the U.S..

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ALON PINKAS, FORMER ISRAELI CONSUL GENERAL IN NEW YORK: The Iran of June 19 today is exponentially stronger geopolitically than the Iran of February 28. It was on February 28, the day the war began, Iran was isolated. It was under strict and so-called crippling sanctions, it was unable to export most of its oil.

Its economy was crumbling, it was without any major allies. Now we move 111 days to June 18 or 19, and you see an Iran that has upended the strategic equation by virtue of blocking the Strait of Hormuz and being undeterred and attacking actually the Arab Gulf states, something that Israel and the U.S. never thought they would.

They now, thanks to this agreement, they will have access to roughly $25 billion of frozen assets, their money. But also, according to the agreement, they will be able to, quote unquote, "tap in to," I don't know how they got to that figure, but it says so, $300 billion worth of an economic development fund.

On top of that, they de facto control the Strait of Hormuz. Trump could say that he controls it, that he opened it, that he closed it. He could say that all night long.

The fact of the matter is that Iran now has, wields de facto control over the Strait of Hormuz. In terms of allies, look, Iran's power projection, ability to project power has been very noticed in the Arab Gulf. They are trying to mend relations.

When I say the Arab Gulf, I mean Saudi Arabia, Qatar, the Emirates, Bahrain, Kuwait, and so on. And on top of all that, and perhaps that's the most important point, Ben, China. China was enjoying itself throughout this war, loving every moment of

seeing America failing to bring Iran on its knees, as was the expression at the time, to force what is called an unconditional surrender. And now China is much closer allied with Iran, but also because of the Arab Gulf states catering to Iran and revisiting the reliance of the U.S. and the wisdom of close ties with the U.S., China comes in. So Iran all in all has emerged stronger.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HUNTE: Social media video captured a massive explosion at a refinery in Moscow during a Ukrainian drone attack. A key oil refinery less than 10 miles from the Kremlin was damaged, with the roof of one structure blown clean off.

Thursday's attack was the largest drone offensive on the Russian capital since the war with Ukraine began. Look at that, wow.

While attending a NATO defense minister's summit in Brussels, Ukraine's President called the attacks, quote, a fully justified response to Russian strikes. That meeting also saw allies promise $1 billion in new defense assistance for Ukraine.

[03:15:00]

All right, onwards, an election victory for one of the U.K.'s most popular politicians. We'll go live to England for details, including perspective on whether Andy Burnham will go for the Labor Party's top spot. See you in a moment.

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HUNTE: Welcome back.

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer could soon face a challenge for leadership of the Labor Party. His potential rival made a first step in that direction by winning Thursday's by-election for Makerfield M.P. Andy Burnham is currently the mayor of Greater Manchester and he's also one of the U.K.'s most popular politicians.

[03:20:02]

Generally, British by-elections are just a check of public mood, but this vote was triggered to clear a path for Burnham, who wants the top spot in the Labor Party and thus the country.

CNN's Clare Sebastian joins us now from Ashton in Makerfield, England. Clare, it's good to see you again.

Looking at these results, it wasn't even close. Are people there surprised by this outcome?

CLARE SEBASTIAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes. Look, I think even the Burnham camp is surprised by how big his majority was. All of the polls had him ahead, don't forget, but none of them had him ahead by this much. This was a resounding victory. He took almost 55 percent of the total vote. In second place, the Reform U.K. candidate only had about 35 percent.

So that gap was much narrower than people were expecting. And Restore Britain, another extreme-right party, even further to the right of Reform, they only took 3000 or so votes. So it wasn't like their share of the vote was more together with Reform than Andy Burnham's share, which is what some people were expecting.

So Burnham is arguing now that this result increases his argument that he is the person to bring change. In his acceptance speech at around 3 a.m. here last night, he didn't specifically talk about his leadership ambitions, but he made it pretty clear that when he gets to Westminster, he intends to shake things up. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ANDY BURNHAM, WINNER OF MAKERFIELD BY-ELECTION, ENGLAND: But I do say to my own party, this is a final chance to change. This is what people said directly to me on the hundreds of doorsteps that I stood on. We must hear it, we must act upon it, and we must get it right.

There will be no second chance.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SEBASTIAN: So he was billing this as essentially the final chance. The last chance for his party to show that it can be the one to deliver change. We're at a moment now in U.K. politics where people really are looking for some kind of radical change.

And that has caused, you know, a large number of people, not just in this constituency, but beyond, to go not only towards populist right parties, but other parties outside of the two main parties, the two- party system that has governed U.K. politics for decades, Labor and the Conservatives. And this is the backdrop that any Labor leader is going to have to grapple with from now on.

But look, as for where Andy Burnham goes from now, we expect the weekend to be a bit of a lull. He will then head down to London next week to take up his position as a member of Parliament. And after that, we may see some moves on the leadership front. But when and how exactly, it's unclear.

So at this point, we're still in this moment of uncertainty and turmoil in British politics. Ben?

HUNTE: And whilst that's all occurring, Nigel Farage's Reform Party did put a massive effort in there. What does their lower-than-expected result now mean? What happens next?

SEBASTIAN: Yes, look, it was a huge effort by Reform. We could see it. There were posters out everywhere, they had a massive election bus saying, "Stop Labor," in huge letters across it.

They really threw everything at this campaign. This constituency is an opportunity for Reform.

Reform swept pretty much all the seats here in local elections just six weeks ago. But look, Farage has been out this morning with his reaction to this result and he said, look, the point about this vote was that people were voting for Andy Burnham to get Keir Starmer out of office.

So he is making the argument that does not make this a sort of bellwether for the future of Reform, that Reform is still going to continue with its work. It's still seeing rising popularity across the country. And this doesn't undo that.

But undoubtedly, and he admitted this, this was a disappointing night. And there's certainly, I think, going to be some reflection on that side of the result as well.

HUNTE: Okay, Claire Sebastian, thank you so much. I appreciate it.

Earlier, I spoke with CNN's European Affairs commentator Dominic Thomas about the latest by-election and what these results mean for Prime Minister Keir Starmer. Have a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DOMINIC THOMAS, CNN EUROPEAN AFFAIRS COMMENTATOR: Well, I think that, first of all, when it comes to Keir Starmer, he's going to have to spend some time this weekend really understanding and digesting this vote, which sends an unambiguous message that his days at the helm are over.

And it will be up to him to decide when he steps down, steps away from this before there's a flood of cabinet resignation. So I think that was there. And I think there's also a deep irony here is that the context of this by-election was the appalling results in the local elections, which really were sending a message not just to the Labor Party, but particularly to Keir Starmer.

[03:25:00]

So I think that in this particular by-election, he defeated not just Starmer, but also Farage to the second part of your question. I think that the candidate they ran in this race and the divisions over Restore, this other far-right party running in this race, broke up the electorate. But certainly Nigel Farage tried to set this race up.

As a kind of general election vote in which a future P.M. leader in the guise of Burnham would be running against reform. And that failed. And as Claire Sebastian pointed out, I think that will provide further momentum to Burnham's struggle now to overtake the P.M.-ship and move forward.

And it certainly bodes well for him, should he come to power and decide to call an early general election in terms of how well he performed against reform in this particular by-election.

(END VIDEO CLIP) HUNTE: Okay, a maritime security group says the threat level has been reduced to moderate. What the new designation means for shipping traffic in the Strait of Hormuz, is coming up next on "CNN Newsroom." See you in a moment.

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[03:30:00]

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HUNTE: Welcome back. I'm Ben Hunte. Let's take a look at today's top stories.

U.S. President Donald Trump claims his newly signed agreement with Iran amounts to its unconditional surrender. Meanwhile, Vice President J.D. Vance has postponed his trip to Switzerland for a signing ceremony. And the Swiss foreign ministry says today's talks have been canceled.

Ukraine's drone offensive in Moscow on Thursday was the largest such attack since the conflict began. The city's mayor says air defenses shot down nearly 200 drones. Social media videos showed explosions across the Russian capital, including an oil refinery less than 10 miles from the Kremlin.

In U.K. politics now, Andy Burnham won a massive victory in Thursday's by-election for Makerfield M.P. He is currently the mayor of Greater Manchester and one of the U.K.'s most popular politicians too. Burnham is widely expected to challenge British Prime Minister Keir Starmer for leadership of the Labor Party.

The U.S. military has announced an end to its naval blockade on Iranian ports. But it says American ships will remain in the general area to make sure that all aspects of the U.S. agreement with Iran are obeyed. Meanwhile, a British organization run by the Royal Navy has reduced its threat level in the straits for moves too moderate.

Let's talk more about this with Julian Mathonniere. He is an energy markets economist with Energy Intelligence and is joining me from London. It's good to see you, sir.

Oil prices are fluctuating. But overall, is the market becoming too optimistic about this current agreement when things are still so murky?

JULIEN MATHONNIERE, ENERGY MARKETS ECONOMIST, ENERGY INTELLIGENCE: A very good day to you, Ben. I think the market is sort of relaxing. And, shall I say, briefing again, you know, the deal stops the bleeding, the supply bleeding.

But a reopening is not the same as a recovery. So relief is real and prices has already come up as you said. You know, we've got the benchmark Brent falling almost all of a sudden around $80 per barrel. But you know, this is a shaky interim agreement and full normalcy is a 2027 story. I think not this summer story, if I may put it that way. HUNTE: Wow. Well, you've kind of given me the answer to it. But how long do you think it will take for operations to return to some sort of normality in the straits of Hormuz?

MATHONNEIRE: Well, I think it comes in phases, Ben, not a switch. You know, most of the barrels come back within perhaps, or probably months. But the last stretch and real confidence again is a 2027 story.

And it's worth noting that, you know, this kind of scenario lines up with what the Gulf major oil companies themselves are guiding towards. You know, evidence is already emerging that output in the Gulf region is increasing again.

You've got regional refineries like Rastanura, Ruwes and Azur already producing and exporting products. Of course, they're operating at roughly 60 percent of their capacity. So, you know, it's not fully working yet, but they are running.

And that may be the first sign of, you know, a slow normalization. Risk perception is clearly changing and incentive for the Gulf producers are changing with it.

HUNTE: Let's talk about some of the challenges, because what is the biggest challenge that is now occurring? Is it clearing the backlog of vessels or rebuilding confidence among ship owners and insurers?

MATHONNEIRE: I think your question is spot on, Ben. You can reopen the strait overnight, but you can't reposition the world tankers fleets overnight. The ships waiting at the door can perhaps clear in a couple of weeks.

[03:35:03]

That fleet is being scattered in the wrong places and relocation will take much longer, you know, and again, probably until 2027.

And this point, by the way, was made very clear by Aramco CEO Amin Nasser. He says it's the biggest problem, just as you mentioned. It isn't the oil, it's the tanker fleet, it's mixed up with ships in the wrong places.

Nasser counted more than 600 tankers stuck inside the Gulf and another 240 or 250 waiting outside while this market is still losing, you know, probably 100 million barrels of supply every week, perhaps less now.

You know, once the ship owners are satisfied that transit is genuinely safe, not just permitted, then the queue of tankers waiting at the door could clear in perhaps a week or two. But remember, we've got a big binding constraint. It isn't about the, you know, the nerve to sell back for oil moose, but it's about the economy, the trade isn't profitable.

You know, back in March, you could make 30 million on just one cargo. Today, you should be happy if you make a couple million. The market needs to rebuild the financial incentives to go for those trades.

HUNTE: If viewers think that this story is effectively over, and based on what some of our world leaders have been saying, it does seem like it could potentially be over. What is the biggest risk that could still send oil prices sharply higher once again?

MATHONNEIRE: Again, the single biggest risk is that this deal is still interim, you know, it has to last for 60 days. And now we see skirmishes again in Lebanon, you know, Israel is not playing ball.

And you know, you can have an exogenous flare up or a breakdown within the 60 day clock, or before the 60 day clock runs out. And that could send flows and prices straight back the other way. So, you know, we get back to $100 per barrel, basically.

HUNTE: Okay, Julien Mathonniere in London, thank you so much.

MATHONNEIRE: Absolute pleasure. Thank you for having me.

HUNTE: Africa's sports economy is growing rapidly and basketball wants a bigger share. NBA Africa is creating Africa's version of the U.S. Pro Basketball League by launching a franchise-based business model. CNN's Eleni Giokos traveled to Rwanda to see NBA Africa's plans for the future of the game all across the continent.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ELENI GIOKOS, "CONNECTING AFRICA" HOST: As night falls over Kigali, basketball fans are descending on this vast arena. It's Basketball Africa League weekend and inside the venue is a buzz with excitement.

CLARE AKAMANZI, CEO, NBA AFRICA: The Basketball Africa League has been around for about six years. It was a proof of concept that has proven a couple of things. One, that Africa is ready, that there's demand for a sports brand, entertainment brand that we can have on the continent at a premium level.

GIOKOS (voice-over): Among the fans are investors who've been invited to take a stake in the game's future. They're being offered a franchise, the right to own and operate a team in the league. The goal is to turn the game of basketball into a long-term sports business model across Africa.

AKAMANZI: It's a more commercially relevant structure compared to what we have today. So you have, you know, recurring revenue models that teams can actually tap into, whether it's merchandising, whether it's ticketing, media and broadcasting partnerships, events, they can host events, they can have digital programming and all other avenues to really make money.

GIOKOS (voice-over): But for the league and the franchise to succeed, Africa needs state-of-the-art facilities. By day, you see the expanse of what Rwanda has built and what is possible.

A 45,000-seat sports stadium used for football, athletics, concerts and major events. Behind it, the 10,000-capacity B.K. Arena, where basketball and other games are played. And right next door is the recently opened Zaria Court, built by this man, Masai Ujiri.

MASAI UJIRI, CO-FOUNDER, GIANTS OF AFRICA AND ZARIA GROUP: Eleni, this is it.

GIOKOS (voice-over): Zaria Court is a community and hospitality hub with a multi-purpose court, hosting numerous sporting events, festivals and concerts.

UJIRI: It has to be in Nairobi, it has to be in Lagos, it has to be in Abidjan, in Accra, in Johannesburg. There's no other choice. There's no, I mean, if this works here, look at the BAL coming here, concerts.

[03:40:01]

GIOKOS (voice-over): Back in the B.K. Arena, you really see what is possible. Young Africans getting to play in a professional league and young fans being inspired to potentially become the next generation of players and possible leaders of the continent's sporting ambitions.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

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[03:45:00]

HUNTE: Welcome back. Here are your business headlines.

The U.S. military says it has lifted its naval blockade of Iranian ports. A British shipping group has now downgraded the threat level in the Strait of Hormuz to moderate. But it's warning ships that mines do still exist in the area and congestion could slow down traffic.

It has been 50 days since workers in Bolivia began demonstrations against the country's economic crisis, but now the two sides are actually talking. Among the workers' demands, higher wages, labor reform and the resignation of President Rodrigo Paz. Roadblocks have caused food shortages and driven up prices of basic goods in several cities.

The German Chancellor does not want new European debt. Friedrich Merz voiced opposition to common borrowing at an E.U. summit. The future financial framework of the European Union was on the agenda, and Merz wants the leaders to pursue a balanced budget.

Alright, nightlife in the world's biggest cities is still rebounding after the COVID-19 pandemic. In London, if you have the money for a night out, there are fewer places to go now. Higher-end exclusive social clubs are thriving, but they have had to make some changes to draw in younger members.

CNN business and economics reporter Anna Cooban has more for us.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ANNA COOBAN, CNN BUSINESS AND ECONOMICS REPORTER (voice-over): If rules could talk, then these would tell over a century of stories, starring London's elite.

COOBAN: I've been given a peek behind the curtain of this notoriously private industry.

COOBAN (voice-over): This game club is one of more than 130 private members clubs in the British capital. Many charge thousands a year to sign up.

COOBAN: So since the pandemic, this industry has been thriving in London and New York, and I just want to know why you think that is.

NEENA JIVRAJ STEVENSON, MANAGING DIRECTOR, SLOANE CLUB: I think since the pandemic, people have emerged back into the world, and they're living life very differently. A.I. is wonderful, but it's also terrifying, and so people are really seeking that human connection. There aren't that many social spaces where you feel like you can find like-minded people, and I think that is the sort of priority and the privilege of private members clubs.

COOBAN (voice-over): And while the top end of city social life thrives, for the rest of us, it's a more complicated story. According to the Nighttime Industries Association, there are 16 percent fewer nighttime venues in the British capital since the pandemic.

Cameron Leslie is the co-founder of Fabric, an iconic London nightclub going since 1999. He said the capital's nightlife is under pressure.

CAMERON LESLIE, CO-FOUNDER, FABRIC: I would say for the average working individual in London, it's an incredibly expensive place. There are clearly people, this is a global city, who have a fair bit of money, and perhaps this is where this divide is now coming out, in that for many Londoners, being able to go out is still a very expensive pastime.

COOBAN: So the big question is, is city socializing increasingly members only?

This is my favorite room in the whole building actually, because it's kind of like a secret.

COOBAN (voice-over): Andy joined the Sloane Club last summer.

ANDY JORDAN, SLOANE CLUB MEMBER: A friend of mine who's a member here said, you should come and look around, it will work perfectly for you and your work and your lifestyle. And I was like, oh great, came here, I was hooked instantly.

COOBAN: How much do you pay for it? Let's get to the crux of the issue.

JORDAN: Right, so let me put this into perspective first. Less than I was paying for my gym, and my gym wouldn't allow me to open a laptop.

COOBAN: And do you go to just like normal pubs and bars and--

JORDAN: Sadly, yes, I do. I love them. COOBAN (voice-over): Anna Cooban, CNN, London.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HUNTE: Well, all right, still ahead, the official start to summer is just days away, but for Western Europe, the heat has already arrived. The forecast that has Paris opening its canals for swimmers up next.

Plus, we are just over a week into the World Cup, and one team has already secured a spot in the knockout round. All of the latest results, just ahead on "CNN Newsroom." See you in a moment.

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[03:50:00]

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HUNTE: Welcome back.

Arthur is no longer a tropical storm, but is still causing havoc in the southern U.S. The storm system is dumping heavy rain across the Gulf Coast, creating a deadly flood threat. Flooding prompted at least three flash flood emergencies and the highest warning level in Louisiana and Mississippi too.

Arthur has also produced multiple tornadoes in southeast Louisiana. The storm system is expected to continue to drop rain on parts of Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama, as well as the western Florida panhandle and western Georgia through early Saturday.

Several villages in northern Spain have been devastated by severe storms and flooding too. These were the scenes in the area of Viana Do Bolo. The mayor described the aftermath as desolating.

Landslides buried cars and garages and left residents cut off by road closures. The region of Galicia recorded nearly 6000 lightning strikes in a single 24-hour period, that is according to local media.

A sweltering heatwave has settled over France. It's sending tourists and locals to Paris' canals to cool off and escape the unusually high temperatures. Italy is also bracing for another early season round of heat, temperatures are expected to peak over the weekend.

Forecasters say parts of northern and central Italy could climb near 40 degrees Celsius. Those would be the hottest readings of the year just as summer kicks off.

All right, let's get you caught up on the very latest World Cup action. Team Canada is celebrating its first win of the tournament and it was a real thrashing. The Canadian scored six goals against a short-handed team from Qatar which received two red cards during the match.

Switzerland had a dominating performance against Bosnia and Herzegovina, 4-1 that was. They are just behind Canada on goal differential in Group B.

The Czech Republic led almost the entire match against South Africa in Atlanta, that's where we are. But a goal in the 83rd minute evened out the score. Those two teams are sitting at the bottom of Group A.

And Mexico has defeated South Korea 1-0 in a highly anticipated showdown. Mexico is the first team to book its ticket to the knockout round.

[03:55:02]

The 2026 FIFA World Cup continues this weekend with games taking place all across North America. Here in the U.S., host cities have plenty for fans to do beyond those football matches. CNN's Carolina Peguero takes us inside a fan venue in Dallas, Texas.

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CAROLINA PEGUERA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: We're here in Dallas, Texas, another host city for the FIFA World Cup. And we have fans that have been standing in long lines for hours trying to get those famous World Cup bracelets.

They've been here very excited. And a lot of people are ready to enjoy and cheer on their favorite teams. We have fans with or without tickets, family and friends, children that are all welcome to come to the fair park and enjoy the fun.

And live performances, games and pooling stations. While FIFA and city officials have been ready, making available transportation options for fans to get to and from the Dallas stadium.

MONICA PAUL, PRESIDENT, THE NORTH TEXAS FWC ORGANIZING COMMITTEE: I've been so excited about our FIFA fan festival here. Started off with a Mexico match, then to see the USA playing.

But, my gosh, we've had Argentina and English fans and Croatian fans and a Netherlands orange hour here. It's just to feel the energy in the fan festival. It's been pretty special.

ALEJANDRO MUNOZ, FAN: It's been great. We've been here twice already and it's always fun. Great people, great ambience.

Yes, we've been just having fun going through all the different stands and everything. And the games, they're pretty fun at the auditorium.

PABLO FERRER, FAN: We come from Costa Rica. We're here for the Sunday's game, Netherlands-Japan. And since we didn't get tickets for the game, so we decided to come here and we're having a good time.

There's a lot of stands, beers, soccer. Yes, what more could you wish for?

PEGUERO: So you will need to register online, get those digital tickets. And also, if you're going to be in the Dallas stadium area, there will be lots of activities at the Texas Live and Entertainment District. But one important tip, bring clear bags to make it easier to get through the security checkpoints.

Carolina Peguero, CNN, Dallas.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HUNTE: We need tickets first.

Britain's King Charles and Queen Camilla were among those attending the Royal Ascot Gold Cup race. But as is often the case at the very famous track, the clothes and not the horses competed for attention. Look at those dresses.

The event is also known as Ladies Day with high fashion, striking outfits and lots and lots of hats and fascinators. The creative director explained they chose the theme of bright tomato. That was after considering trends on fashion runways.

Well, all right. Thanks for joining me and the team. That's all I've got for you, I'm Ben Hunte in Atlanta.

There is so much more "CNN Newsroom" just ahead, and I will, of course, be back with you tomorrow. Thank you for joining us. See you tomorrow.

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