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Palestinians In Gaza Suffer Amid Severe Humanitarian Crisis. Aired 4:30-5a ET
Aired September 08, 2026 - 04:30 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[04:30:00]
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ULRICH SIEGMUND, AFD LEADING CANDIDATE (through translator): This is the best result any party has achieved in Saxony-Anhalt since 1990. You really have to stop and appreciate that fact. So this result is of course a mandate to govern. But and we emphasize this yesterday too, only on the condition that we remain true to ourselves, that we don't compromise our principles and that we don't become like those who were heavily punished by the voters in Saxony-Anhalt yesterday.
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FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: And so some of those main principles indeed are being tough on migration, also good relations with the Russian Federation and cutting both military and financial aid to Ukraine. And you know, we've been talking about the fact that this is a very small state, only about 2.1 million people live here. But certainly the top brass of the Alternative for Germany does believe that this could be a stepping stone for them to take power in the entire country in the not too distant future.
POLO SANDOVAL, CNN ANCHOR: Ohio's Democratic nominee for governor is commenting publicly for the very first time since an armed man allegedly lunged at her during a campaign event on Sunday. Authorities say that 38-year-old Patrick Havas injured multiple people as he pushed through a crowd at a fair where Amy Acton was speaking. Well, they say that he had two firearms and a set of brass knuckles on. That's according to investigators, but they are -- but they weren't used during the incident. Here's what Action had to -- I'm sorry, here's what Acton, actually, had to say about this incident.
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AMY ACTON, OHIO DEMOCRATIC GUBERNATORIAL NOMINEE: We had a rough day yesterday. I'm so thankful to our first responders and our state highway patrol and everyone who helped out the people who were injured and our prayers are with them.
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SANDOVAL: Two people standing in front of Acton were knocked to the ground during this incident. The county sheriff says that the suspect is expected to face assaults and disorderly conduct charges.
Egyptian State Media reporting a popular T.V. host is among 12 people sentenced to death for their alleged role in a drug trafficking ring. Here's Nada Bashir with more on the case.
NADA BASHIR, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Death by hanging. That is the sentence facing Egyptian T.V. presenter Sarah Khalifa along with 11 others over their alleged role in a drug trafficking network, according to state media. The T.V. host is a well-known entertainment and social media figure in Egypt with some 2.5 million followers on Instagram. She's best known for presenting the Egyptian crime show "Mission Impossible" as well as managing her own cosmetic surgery clinic.
Now the 39-year-old is among 12 defendants accused of forming an organized criminal gang said to be involved in importing substances used to manufacture drugs with the intent of then selling them. Prosecutors say 750 kilograms of synthetic narcotics and other raw materials were seized from the property where the defendants allegedly stored and made the drugs. State media also reports the gang has also been sentenced for the possession of firearms without a license.
In videos circulating on social media, Khalifa is heard weeping during her sentencing, pleading for mercy and humanity. CNN has been unable to independently verify the footage and has contacted her attorney for comment. News of the death sentence being issued has sent shockwaves across the world. In 2025 alone, Egypt issued nearly 500 death sentences, one of the highest recorded rates in the world, according to Amnesty International.
SANDOVAL: Nada Bashir, thank you for that report.
The death toll in Gaza, it is still rising. On Monday, Palestinians bid farewell to a three-year-old boy. He was killed by an Israeli tank shell. He is now one of more than 1,300 Palestinians believed to have been killed in Gaza since the U.S. backed ceasefire took effect last October. And the humanitarian crisis that is still raising some concerns among international aid organizations.
The United Nations estimating that 61 million tons of wreckage and debris still cover Gaza as a result of Israel's assault. And the U.N. says that it could take over seven years to clear all that.
Joining me now for more on this and live from London is emergency Dr. James Smith. Dr. Smith is also a lecturer of -- on humanitarian studies at the University of College in London. Also recently back from a trip to Gaza. Yes.
Doctor, thank you so much for taking the time to join us again.
JAMES SMITH, EMERGENCY DOCTOR: Thanks for having me.
SANDOVAL: Doctor, you and I spoke about a month ago actually, and you talked to me about patients in Gaza that were subjected to, as you put it, abysmal conditions there that they're subjected to. Not to mention so many who have died, you know, according to your account, waiting for to be medically evacuated. I mean, have there been -- has there been any sort of improvement in the conditions there on the ground before you left?
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SMITH: The short answer, Polo, is no. I mean, we're talking about a situation here wherein an entire population, 2.1 million people have been deprived of access to the most basic resources required simply to survive. But the conditions like simply to use (inaudible). And almost the entire population of Gaza is facing moderate or severe water insecurity. Approximately 70 percent of households have minimum volume of water drink per person per day.
You can see from the footage here, this is how certain (ph) collected and transferred in donkey carts in many cases. Approximately 3,000 children today were diagnosed with acute malnutrition last month. So again, we're being told that situation has improved, but of course, you know, with 3,000 new diagnoses of acute malnutrition and as recently as a few years ago, we know that this is rhetoric and -- that doesn't reflect the reality at all.
SANDOVAL: So, Doctor, it's your impression that still obviously the conditions there are far from sustainable. Are people largely dependent on humanitarian aid to get by?
SMITH: Absolutely, Polo. And this is, again, this is a strategy that Israel has long employed. You know, we know that the water, the food, the medication, the shelter, it's all there. It's literally on the other side of the (inaudible) or the other side of the border. (Inaudible) with legit story who is obvious (ph) the political fail with impression rectify this situation, then the situation would change overnight.
Israel has long titrated the means of survival for the Palestinian people. Food, water, essential medical care, access for health and humanitarian workers. And all of these things are being titrated to maximize the suffering inflicted upon the Palestinian people.
The thing I really want to emphasize that this -- we must not be complacent. You know what we're talking about here in Gaza is a state of parasite. We have Israeli ministers actively calling it cleansing. We're seeing the same strategy deployed in the south of Lebanon. And of course, this is a huge humanitarian catastrophe.
Things aren't peaceful. They are horrific. We just seen here different (inaudible). But that is -- that is indeed a genocide. This is a situation which is marked by genocidal violence.
Of course, what is needed is a humanitarian response. Above and beyond all of that, what is most --
SANDOVAL: Yes.
SMITH: -- important at this stage is political intervention to bring about an end to this horrific situation, and to prevent Israel from committing more atrocity crimes.
SANDOVAL: Dr. Smith, we did have a slightly hard time hearing some of that, but the message from you is loud and clear. You know, just to emphasize the need to, as you put it, not be complacent in the face of this growing humanitarian crisis.
Dr. Smith, we have to leave it there. Thank you so much for everything you did during your time in Gaza and for continuing to keep us posted. Do stay in touch.
SMITH: Thank you.
SANDOVAL: And there's still much more ahead here on CNN Newsroom. Just ahead, migrant workers win millions of dollars in a class action lawsuit against automakers. More on the bait and switch hiring tactics allegedly used to lure them to the United States.
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[04:42:27]
SANDOVAL: Well, they are now under 60 days into the U.S. midterm elections and the battle for control of Congress is about to seriously kick into overdrive. Republicans, however, they risk losing control of either House due to frustrations, mainly over President Trump's approach to the war with Iran, the cost of living and a couple of other issues. But Democrats are dealing with their own internal struggles as well. Progressive party members are finding themselves with more negotiating power after several high profile primary victories. And it's unclear whether Democrats, Democrats can all unite in their bid to take control of Congress.
Earlier I had the chance to speak with Mike Madrid. He's a co-founder of the Lincoln Project and co-founder of the Latino Working Class Project. I asked him whether Democrats have the vision to counter Republicans come mid -- come to midterms.
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MIKE MADRID, COU-FOUNDER, THE LINCOLN PROJECT: The Democrats do not have a unifying message. The Democrats are going to win and they're going to win by probably very significant numbers. Not because of who they are, but because they are simply not Republicans. And so you do see this broad base, this big umbrella of people that will be moving this coalition, this return of Hispanic voters, this huge rightward shift we saw just two years ago. Younger voters are overwhelmingly say they're going to vote for Democrats.
People who've never voted before signing up as Democrats. Democratic registration is kind of exploding. None of this has anything to do with the popularity of the Democratic Party, has everything to do with how much they're troubled by what they're seeing in Washington D.C. and that absolutely spells trouble on the horizon after the November election. But of course, politics being what it is, you take what's in front of you and right now that's enough.
I wouldn't be stepping on my message and trying to articulate more than they are running an offensive attack on corruption and affordability. It's working. Stick with it. The president is helping you. And wait until the Wednesday after the first Tuesday in November to adjust your strategy and worry about that on another day.
SANDOVAL: The issue of AI data centers has certainly made itself present on the campaign trail. In many cases it's been fueling debate and, and no shortage of backlash around the country. In your view, why has it become such a focus for politicians and some of their constituents, you think?
MADRID: Boy, that is really -- this is the defining issue for this cycle, at least on the ground level. I was in Franklin County, Ohio just a few days ago and seeing over 119 data centers have been cited there and hearing the concern terms of people in those districts. I mean, look, this is one of those rare moments in politics where you can see the physical manifestation of people's anxieties and worries about the future. This isn't as much a concern about construction or traffic or electricity or water use, although those are absolutely there. This really embodies, I think, people's fear of the age that we're heading into that they feel no control over, you know, what does artificial intelligence mean for society, not just professionally, but personally?
[04:45:20]
And there's also growing angst, anger and concern about the, you know, techno economy. The billionaire class is sort of oligarchy that the Democrats are successfully framing as corrupt, using these systems to fuel that new age that a lot of people don't feel that they're going to be a part of as a distance -- distances themselves from reality. So I think it's just this crosscurrent of extraordinarily emotional tectonic plates, political tectonic plates at the moment. And 60 days is a real tough time to change the narrative. I think people are very upset with these AI data centers.
I think it's going to be determinative in a lot of congressional races throughout the country.
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SANDOVAL: A Mexican engineer says that he and hundreds of other workers were recruited for technical jobs here in the United States by automakers, but when they went through the immigration process, they were instead put to work on the factory floor on assembly lines. Well, now they've won a settlement worth $11.5 million. Here's CNN's Rafael Romo to explain.
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ISIDRO ARELLANO, ENGINEER: You are like 24, 25 years old, and you see an ad that says, hey, you can go to work in the United States. Obviously, it's going to sound like, I don't know, like a dream job, like an amazing offer.
RAFAEL ROMO, CNN U.S. NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Isidro Arellano says he was in his last year of engineering school when he saw an ad at his college in Mexico. He says the ad was for engineering jobs at car factories in the United States. The ideal candidate, young engineers or technicians from Mexico willing to work north of the border.
ROMO: Can you tell me what happened after you applied?
ARELLANO: They called me and they told me that they have a job opportunity to work in a plant that makes parts for the -- for the automotive industry.
ROMO (voice-over): Full of dreams, Arellano says he traveled to the United States in 2021 for what he describes as a quality engineering job whose duties included taking precise measurements for auto parts.
ROMO: Did you at any point feel like this was a little too good to be true?
ARELLANO: Yes, it crosses my mind like a couple of times.
ROMO (voice-over): A class action lawsuit filed in 2022 in federal court in Atlanta alleges that Arellano and about 600 other Mexican workers were induced to move to the United States with false promises of a skilled job but relegated to performing assembly line work, subjected to six 12-hour days per week with mandatory overtime while American born workers were not and paid half of what American born workers earned for the same job in the same location.
JULIA SOLORZANO, LEGAL & POLICY DIRECTOR, CENTER FOR MIGRANT RIGHTS: We're receiving calls from workers talking about issues that they were having in the auto supply industry in Georgia and Alabama.
ROMO (voice-over): Julia Solorzano is the legal and policy director of an organization that advocates for migrant workers.
SOLORZANO: These workers allege that they were recruited for professional jobs doing engineering and technical work in auto supply plants in Georgia. And so these are workers who had degrees and professional qualifications to do that kind of work. In fact, the terms of their visa required them to do that professional work.
ROMO: According to the class action lawsuit, the workers came to the United States with what is known as a TN visa, which according to the U.S. State Department allows eligible Canadian and Mexican professionals to work in high skilled jobs in the country under the free trade agreement between all three countries known as the USMCA.
DANIEL WERNER, CIVIL AND LABOR RIGHTS ATTORNEY: What it turned into, as is claimed in the case, was a bait and switch. The workers ended up, these engineers ended up in the United States working at these plants and were doing manual labor. They were not working as engineers.
ROMO (voice-over): Just before trial last month, the defendants, including Hyundai Mobis and Kia Georgia as well as Georgia based staffing agency SPJ Connect and Georgia recruiting firm Allswell, reached an $11.5 million settlement.
In a statement to CNN, Kia says they resolved the matter saying, "The court made no finding of liability of wrongdoing by Kia, and no fines or judgments were entered against the company. Kia denies the allegations and denies it played any role in recruiting the claimants."
CNN reached out to Hyundai Mobis and Allswell but got no response. SPJ Connect appears as dissolved in State of Georgia documents.
WERNER: The allegation is that they used the TN visa program to provide a supply of labor at their plants. And the way they use the TN visa program, according to the lawsuit, was to circumvent the immigration laws.
[04:50:15]
ROMO: What is the message that this case sends to foreign workers in general, workers who may be in the same situation, these Mexican engineers and technicians were?
WERNER: Even in this environment, we had this group of workers who stepped forward and decided that they were wrong and did something about it and achieved justice.
ROMO (voice-over): Isidro Arellano returned to the United States and is legally working as an engineer. Other workers in the class action lawsuit who left jobs and family have not been as fortunate.
Rafael Romo, CNN, Atlanta.
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SANDOVAL: And there's still much more to come here on CNN Newsroom. We'll have a fresh reminder from King Charles about where Prince Harry and Meghan stand and whether the return to the U.K. changes their royal status. Stay with us.
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[04:55:03]
SANDOVAL: Priests, monks and grieving residents are gathering across Nepal to pray for those killed in the catastrophic flash flooding that devastated the region nearly two weeks ago. Mourners are commemorating the day by performing rituals and also with some offerings as search crews continue looking for the missing. And the death toll has risen to nearly 1,400. China's state media reporting that so far none of the bodies recovered in the devastating flooding that struck its border with Nepal are foreign nationals. And Chinese officials say that 43 people have been confirmed dead with more than 500 missing on its side of the border.
And a major volcano in Indonesia erupting three more times today. Officials now saying that they don't know the severe -- how severe those eruptions were. But Anak Krakatau is still three on a four level alert system. The volcano first started erupting over the weekend, shooting lava into the air. It also sent ash drifting all the way toward Jakarta. It's one of about 130 active volcanoes in Indonesia which straddles the Pacific Ring of Fire that set highly active seismic zone. Indonesia's main airport in Jakarta and four others are back open. They were forced to close when ash from that volcano blanketed the area. The ash had caused widespread flight disruptions and impacted more than 340,000 travelers.
Four years ago today, Queen Elizabeth II died and her son ascended to the throne as King Charles III. Now as the royal family marks the anniversary, the King is confirming that Prince Harry and his wife Meghan remain non-working royals. A letter from the palace says that there is, quote, "no change to their status following the couple's return to the U.K."
Harry and Meghan step back from royal duties in 2020. The palace says that any charitable work that they do will be a private matter and they will not carry out any official engagements for the crown.
Thank you so much for watching. I'm Polo Sandoval in New York. Our live coverage continues with CNN "Headline Express" in a moment.
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