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Trump Warns Iran Of "Last Chance" To Sign A Deal With U.S.; Expert: U.S. And Iran Feeling "Pressure" To End War; Israeli Attacks Kill Dozens In Gaza After Disarmament Deal; Thousands Of Migrants Remain In Ceuta, Including Minors; E.U. Ministers Hold Emergency Meeting On Ceuta Border Rush; Hungary's Only Nuclear Power Plant Faces Shutdown Amid Drought; High Temps, Wind & Dry Conditions Fueling Fires In Greece; Arson Arrest Made In Connection With Spokane Wildfire. Aired 4-4:30a ET

Aired August 04, 2026 - 04:00   ET

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

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[04:00:35]

POLO SANDOVAL, CNN HOST: Hey everybody, thank you so much for joining me. I'm Polo Sandoval, live in New York, and this is CNN Newsroom.

Last chance, that's how President Trump is describing talks with Iran to get the Strait of Hormuz fully open. Hear what Tehran is saying about any possible negotiations.

And the E.U. is holding an emergency conference right now to discuss the mass migrant crisis in Ceuta, Spain. Why minors are the priority on the ground.

And CNN takes on a Chinese humanoid robot on a factory floor. We'll show you how it turned out.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Live from New York, this is CNN Newsroom with Polo Sandoval.

SANDOVAL: President Trump warning Iran that it has a last chance to sign a deal with the U.S. to end the war, but says that there are no time constraints on negotiations. President Trump also going after Iran's leadership after Tehran contradicted his claim that negotiations would resume on Monday.

Iran's foreign ministry says that it's focused only on negotiations with Oman about the Strait of Hormuz. Tehran going on to say that the two countries are in talks to establish a safe and temporary route for vessels through that critical waterway.

CNN's Leila Gharagozlou joining me now from London. Leila, so is there any early indication of what this safe passage for vessels could actually look like?

LEILA GHARAGOZLOU, CNN PRODUCER: Yes, so we don't know quite yet what this safe passage could look like. It's obviously the latest effort in finding an alternative route for these vessels that have been stuck in the strait for a few months now to be able to continue on with their journeys and kind of get the global economy back on track.

But the details are scant. It's also not the first time that we've heard of a potential deal between Iran and Oman to find a new route. Now, this has been, as I said, something that has come up time and time again throughout this conflict, and it's something that the U.S. has also been trying to pursue.

Now, obviously, this has become a more sensitive issue as we're seeing potentially the Bab-el-Mandeb Strait also be closed at some point. So finding a third way or another pathway forward is going to be really key to kind of getting the global economy back on track. But as I spoke to you last hour, this is something that we keep seeing over and over again.

It is a groundhog day situation, a time loop. We're seeing the Iranians and Omanis have these same conversations. We're seeing the U.S. have the same conversations, and it's something that really has been a key element of this conflict.

Every day, we kind of hear the same things, whether it's from President Trump or the Iranians. They either escalate or walk back, and then we go in this constant loop. So we're going to have to see what comes out of these potential talks between Oman and the Iranians.

In the meantime, as you mentioned, President Trump has said that the Iranians are speaking to the U.S. The Iranians have denied this, saying that they're really only going directly to the Omanis to try to find a path forward. So we're going to have to see how things shake out if the U.S. and Iran can kind of get out of this constant loop of escalation and de-escalation and potentially find a way out of this conflict, finally. Polo?

SANDOVAL: Yes, you used the key word, potential talks between Iran and one of the major Gulf allies.

Leila, as always, thank you so much for that reporting.

Joining us now is Trita Parsi, Executive Vice President of the Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft, and also the author of the book, "Losing an Enemy: Obama, Iran, and the Triumph of Diplomacy." Trita, it's always great to have you with us.

TRITA PARSI, EXECUTIVE VICE PRESIDENT, QUINCY INSTITUTE FOR RESPONSIBLE STATECRAFT: Thank you so much.

SANDOVAL: As you know, Trita, on Monday, President Trump said that he's under no time constraints to sign a deal with Iran. But what about Iran? If this drags on, how does -- you know, what does the regime stand to lose? There's always -- there's obviously the blockade of Iran in oil, the pre-war sanctions as well. So how much pressure is the regime under to make a deal?

PARSI: So first of all, I do think that the President as well is under time pressure. I mean, it lies in the interest of both sides to claim that they're not feeling any pressure, but both sides are feeling that pressure. I think the Iranians can withstand this certainly for a couple of more months. But if this were to drag out for another nine to 12 months, I think they would face significant difficulties because this is putting a tremendous amount of pressure on their economy.

[04:05:13]

The big differences, however, they are under attack. This is an act of aggression in their view. And the country is defending itself. This gives them a higher tolerance for some of that pain. Whereas in the U.S. case, the vast majority of Americans were against this war from the outset. And the opposition to the war has only grown even greater.

So even though the U.S. may have more capacity to withstand some of this pressure, the tolerance for that pressure amongst the population is much more limited because they were not on board with this war in the first place. And on balance, that actually makes the U.S. side a little more sensitive to this than what the Iranian side is.

SANDOVAL: And of course caught in the middle of it all are just Iranian civilians, so I'm curious what you're hearing from just regular people inside Iran, what the mood is or is there -- are they exhausted? Are they fearful? Or perhaps even divided as this next supposed round of negotiations continue?

PARSI: The overwhelming sense I'm getting is that people are simply tired. They want this to be over. But there is also a view that is held by many, I don't know if it's a majority by many, which is they can't afford to go back to a situation in which there's peace for a couple of months and then there's wars for a couple of weeks and then there's peace for a couple of months and then back and forth.

They need this to end in a complete way. And that requires a final deal between the two sides rather than constantly kicking the can down the road.

SANDOVAL: Is there also -- are there any humanitarian concerns, particularly perhaps in southern Iran, which has been subjected to days of strikes in previous weeks? And if so, are there humanitarian groups that are able to get any assistance into Iran to help civilians that are impacted?

PARSI: It certainly has been a tremendous amount of impact on civilians. And we saw just the other day, CNN itself reported, I believe, that there had been this strike against a family house that had killed a father, a taxi driver, his wife, and their two-year-old toddler. And there were no military installations anywhere nearby or individuals who were related to the military. So this is profoundly impacting the civilian population.

I don't know if it has reached a level yet in which external aid is needed and that they would need, you know, aid groups coming in from the outside. I think they're managing most of it internally at this point. But again, if this continues for a long period of time, or if Trump actually exercises the threat he has issued on numerous occasions, which is that he would strike at Iranian desalination plants, power grids, oil installations, much of this clearly being war crimes, then the suffering of the population is going to skyrocket. Because then we may see situations in which, in the absence of electricity and these very hot summer months, the suffering of the population will be immense.

SANDOVAL: So at this point, it doesn't seem -- if I'm hearing you right, it doesn't seem that that profound impact that you lay out to each other, that's enough to exert some pressure on the Iranians that are participating in these supposed negotiations that the Trump administration maintains are ongoing.

PARSI: The idea that they would cave in because of that pressure, in their view, is only going to invite more pressure. That's the lesson they have drawn with the dealings that they've had with the Trump administration so far. So I don't think that is going to be what cuts it. At the end of the day, in order for this to end, there has to be a compromise.

And if the approach toward that compromise is to think that by punishing the civilian population or attacking civilian installations, the Iranians would cave. I think Trump is going to be in for a quick surprise there, because the Iranians have signaled very clearly. If their civilian infrastructure is struck, they're going to strike back at civilian infrastructure in the region. This is part of the reason why the regional states are lobbying so hard for Trump not to go down that path.

SANDOVAL: Yes, they've been directly involved in some of these negotiations.

Trita Parsi, as always, thank you so much. Always appreciate all your insight.

PARSI: Thank you so much for having me.

SANDOVAL: Palestinian health officials say that more than two dozen people have been killed by Israeli strikes in Gaza since Thursday. That's when President Trump announced what he called a historic peace deal between Israel and Hamas. Hamas has said that it will disarm only if the attacks stop and Israeli troops withdraw from territory taken from last -- after last October's ceasefire agreement.

But an Israeli official tells CNN that Israel will not pull back and will continue to confront anything it considers a threat. Israeli encroachment means that 2 million Palestinians are crammed into an increasingly tiny fraction of Gaza's territory in this sweltering summer heat.

[04:10:14]

Our Jeremy Diamond has more now on the Gaza strikes and a warning that his report does contain some disturbing video.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) JEREMY DIAMOND, CNN JERUSALEM CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Carried in men's arms or bundled in blankets, wounded Palestinians are rushed into ambulances. Amid the mayhem, a boy cries out for his brother before yet another casualty is hauled out on a stretcher.

This is Gaza plunged back into chaos, just as hope appeared on the horizon. Israel carried out this deadly series of strikes this weekend, just hours after President Trump announced a historic agreement for the complete disarmament of Hamas. That deal called for Israel to first halt all strikes in Gaza before Hamas starts handing over its weapons.

Instead, Israel ramped up its attacks, killing at least 28 people in the wake of Trump's announcement, according to the Palestinian Health Ministry. The Israeli military said it had carried out targeted killings of Hamas commanders and militants, including some involved in the October 7th attack on Israel. For some in Gaza, the strikes were evidence that Israel cannot be trusted.

"This is the fate awaiting anyone who gives away the resistance's weapons. We will be torn apart," this man shouts. "Israel cannot be trusted. Our weapons are what protect us. It would be a disgrace for us to abandon them."

Israeli bombs also left this enormous crater next to one of Gaza's largest hospitals, striking two warehouses where medical supplies were stored. The Israeli military said Hamas had stashed weapons here, but provided no evidence. On the ground, only medical equipment, like these dialysis supplies, can be found.

"Why? What happened? What's inside it to be struck like that? What did to the people?" this woman cries. "I was optimistic yesterday and said, God willing, a new government will come to take control of Gaza, rebuild Gaza, there will be reconstruction and peace, and we will live in safety."

Instead, those who had pitched their tents alongside this hospital, in the hope of the safety it might provide, are forced to pick through the wreckage before starting over once again. The strikes prompted this rare missive from the Board of Peace's High Representative for Gaza, who wrote the strikes "killed civilians and destroyed medical supplies," before noting that "both parties carry obligations under the comprehensive plan."

Jeremy Diamond, CNN, Tel Aviv.

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SANDOVAL: And this hour, European Union interior ministers are joining an emergency meeting to address Spain's migrant crisis. And the political backlash that's also followed that. Far-right anti-immigrant politicians are stoking fears of a, quote, "invasion." And this after some 60,000 people made a chaotic and dangerous crossing from Morocco into Spain's North African territory of Ceuta.

CNN's Portugal's Helena Lins brings us an update. HELENA LINS, CNN PORTUGAL REPORTER: It's been four days since thousands of migrants entered Ceuta coming from this border with Morocco. The majority has gone back, but according to the local government, about 3,000 to 5,000 are still here. And around, or actually, more than 800 are minors.

And these are the numbers that the local government is -- has given today. But they might go up, especially the numbers of minors, because these are the ones that have been identified and taken to shelters for minors. But there -- it is very likely that some of them are still on the streets of Ceuta. They might have -- they might be hiding because they are afraid that if they are taken by authorities, they might just be dropped near the border, so they have to go back to Morocco, or they might have been taken by locals that are trying to help.

So minors are the priority. They are the most vulnerable. But also a lot of adults, young adults, are staying on the streets of Ceuta. This morning, a lot of them were on a beach, the nearest beach, to the temporary shelter for youngsters and adults.

It is completely full, so it's not taking any migrants at the moment. So these hundreds of people are just staying on the beach with the military around. This morning, they got water from the military. And we also know that this afternoon, Red Cross was also on the beach giving some help. As I said, after four days, most of them complaining. They haven't been able to find any water and any food.

[04:15:01]

SANDOVAL: All right, Helena, thank you so much for that reporting.

Now we do want to get the latest. Head over to Belen Zanzuchi, she's a policy analyst at the Migration Policy Institute Europe. She joins me from Brussels. Belen, welcome to the program. Thank you for joining us.

BELEN ZANZUCHI, POLICY ANALYST, MIGRATION POLICY INSTITUTE EUROPE: Thank you very much. And, yes, I think, following up on that, what this episode in Ceuta clearly surfaces two things. The first one is really the stark need for more regular pathways to Europe. I mean, the fact that almost 60,000 people were mobilized on social media very quickly once they were told that there was falsely an opportunity to really enter Ceuta and then access mainland Europe.

It's really telling of the number of people really waiting for an opportunity to move because they cannot find opportunities back home. So I think this really speaks to, yes, the need to tackle the root causes of migration, but also to really provide like more regular pathways to Europe, as many wanting to work or even reunite with family who are already here cannot find regular ways.

And then the other thing is that it really exposed significant tensions and division across Europe. I think many -- I mean, we have like one member state, Spain, who was like really in need of support in dealing with this crisis in the past week. And then we have like 22 other members. So pretty much like everyone but for signing a letter and blaming all this on Spain for its, and I'm here I'm citing, lax migration policy, including on regularization and using this opportunity really to also call for harder measures to battle irregular migration.

SANDOVAL: Belen --

ZANZUCHI: And --

SANDOVAL: -- what is truly behind some of the -- this far-right parties that are truly surging in popularity across Europe? I mean, by -- we've heard some politicians labeling this recent movement of migrants as an invasion, but by one measure, illegal crossings into the E.U., they're down. This year, over last, some 37 percent. So why then are sort of these populist views now going mainstream and fueling this polarizing debate happening?

ZANZUCHI: I mean, I think for many seeing the images, which were like quite impressive that we saw on Friday, it really sparked like some fears that we might be facing perhaps like a crisis that many European countries saw and chaos at the border as they saw in 2015, 2016. Of course, like many other parties are like really trying to capitalize on these images.

And, yes, the language used like really to also like for political purposes and to gain support from voters saying that they're taking a more, yes, like harder stance on migration and that this will not be the case in their countries with them. We've also seen it not only in Europe, but many other countries also like saying similar things, that this is the consequence of a more open or relaxed policy.

SANDOVAL: And Belen, as you know, these interior ministers currently meeting right now, they started at the top of this hour. In your view, what do you think could be the main takeaway from this gathering among officials?

ZANZUCHI: Yes, I mean, I'm really curious to hear the output from this meeting. I think we'll see a quite isolated Spain at this meeting who has handled or pretty much handled the crisis on its own last Friday. And on the other hand, all other or most of other member states like really pushing for, again, like more -- harder measures on irregular migration.

Also, like taking these opportunities as they've done in the letter already to really advocate for, for example, innovative measures such as the return hubs that have been discussed over the past year (ph). I think this will be a nice opportunity really for, yes, to amend some of the existing divisions that we've seen over the past weekend and show a more united front and work on coordination, especially because the new pact on migration asylum that was entered in force three months ago, the whole pact is like really based on solidarity.

And I think that's the one thing that we were missing with this episode in Ceuta. So I really hope that they managed to discuss and manage future crisis in a more coordinated and solidary way. SANDOVAL: You know, there's certainly some valid concerns that people are talking about right now after some of those pictures from over the weekend and that deadly surge of people. So you have, you know, the sort of -- these far right parties that are, you know, as you put it, really capitalizing on this moment. Curious, though, what has been the response from Spain's Prime Minister, Pedro Sanchez? What is he saying?

ZANZUCHI: Yes, I mean, Pedro Sanchez also wrote a letter to the European Commission and to member states on Sunday. And I mean, really angry and yes, really angry and disappointed, saying that, yes, a few member states offer support and offer like some solidarity. But then many others, again, like use this moment to really get back at Spain for some of the policies that they perhaps like disagree.

[04:20:03]

We've seen, for example, Italy reintroduce border controls with Spain, even though Ceuta is not part of Schengen area. So there were not initial concerns about people who enter Ceuta might move to mainland Europe anytime soon. So I think, yes, like he's been calling for more solidarity and for more, yes, like coordinated response in the future and not this kind of taking this opportunity to really capitalize on it and just like take it back on -- take it on Spain.

SANDOVAL: We'll be watching closely, as you pointed out, to see what comes out of this emergency meeting right now among several of the leaders there in Europe.

Belen Zanzuchi, thank you so much for your analysis. Appreciate your time.

ZANZUCHI: Thank you so much.

SANDOVAL: And still to come here on CNN Newsroom, fires spreading across Greece as multiple countries battle seasonal wildfires in Europe. One of the very latest from the region in a live report.

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SANDOVAL: Hungary's only nuclear power plant on the verge of shutdown due to the drought. The plant usually generates about half of the country's electricity, but it was reportedly running at just over 10 percent of its capacity on Monday.

[04:25:10]

The plant uses water from the Danube River as its coolant, but the river's water levels hit a record low and are projected to fall even further. The expected closure of the plant risks widespread energy crisis.

High temperatures and dry conditions continue fueling wildfires throughout Europe, including in Greece. Hundreds of firefighters and more than 20 aircraft were deployed just northwest of Athens on Monday as the flames engulfed the forest there. Authorities are investigating a deadly helicopter crash, which happened during firefighting efforts over the weekend, and thousands of hectares have already burned during the seasonal fires prompting mass evacuations.

Let's get more now from Journalist Elinda Labropoulou, who joins me from Parga, Greece. So at this point, Elinda, based on what you're hearing, are these fires still prompting even more evacuations of residents?

ELINDA LABROPOULOU, JOURNALIST: Well, they have been prompting more evacuations throughout the night, Polo. It's been a very difficult night in the area. This is a megafire. It's been going now for five days. The fire (technical difficulty) people know that they have five minutes, as they told us, to evacuate without taking anything with them.

Luckily, evacuations have gone smoothly, and we understand that this morning, the situation is considerably more under control than it has been. So we've been talking to the fire service just minutes ago, and there is a good chance that these three fronts that continue to burn in this megafire will be contained later today.

The firefighters are now concentrating all their efforts in this megafire, since most other fires are out, and the news is looking a lot more promising than it has for a number of days. There's good reason for that. The winds have dropped in the area, and also this means that aircraft are able to operate.

Just on Sunday, we had a deadly collision between two helicopters taking part in the firefighting efforts. Two pilots and co-pilots died as a result, and since then, helicopters have been ground on the -- have been on the ground for another 24 hours. Now they're back, they're taking part in the operations, making things maybe a little bit easier. An investigation has also been launched as to the causes of this deadly crash.

The government has already said that it will be helping out those in need. It has announced a number of measures. The Prime Minister has also warned that we may be looking at more tough weather ahead and has asked people to be very cautious in the days ahead.

Also, a couple of people have been arrested in connection to this megafire. They will be testifying in front of the prosecutor today. They're an electrical engineer and a contractor connected to a wind farm in the area, and we'll be having more on that later as the story develops.

Now, the forecast for today is looking reasonably more promising, so winds have subsided, but temperatures are expected to hit up to 100 Fahrenheit. The fire service has just been saying that now, in a few hours, is really the crucial time of the highest temperatures in the country, and we'll see if within that window, they will be able to contain the big fire, Polo.

SANDOVAL: Yes, amid those wildfires, some potential promising developments that you bring us.

Elinda Labropoulou, thank you so much for that.

Fire units in the Netherlands are also moved swiftly to put out the flames burning through a nature reserve there. Nearby campers evacuated from the area so crews could stop the spread of the fire. Aircraft also deployed here to spread fire retardants through the treetops. The wildfires reportedly a rare occurrence in the Netherlands.

And now to the U.S. state of Washington, where a man has been arrested and accused of deliberately setting one of the three major wildfires burning in Spokane County. The sheriff's department providing this screenshot earlier showing the suspect being led away. You see his hands in handcuffs.

Those fires have been burning out of control since they broke out over the weekend, and already nearly 65,000 people have been forced to evacuate. Officials say more than 700 structures have been destroyed, many of them, like the case you're looking at here, are homes. But so far, no injuries or deaths have been reported.

And when we return on CNN Newsroom, Russia accusing Ukraine of striking a crowded beach with a drone. But Ukraine blames Moscow's air defenses for the deadly attack. We'll have the details in a moment.

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