Return to Transcripts main page

Connect the World

Donald Trump's Appeal to Minority Voters; Yemen's Almost Forgotten War; Syrian Kurds, Turks Clash Over Territory in Syria. Aired 11a-12p ET

Aired August 29, 2016 - 11:00   ET

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

[11:00:13] BECKY ANDERSON, HOST: Capturing weapons and territory. Rebels backed by

Turkey make gains against Kurdish fighters backed by Washington. As the war in Syria enters a new phase, we are live on the border and in

Washington for you in a moment dissecting this new development that puts NATO allies in opposing camps in Syria.

Also this hour...

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, REPUBLICAN PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: We are going to get rid of the criminals and it's going to happen within one hour after I take

office, believe me.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ANDERSON: Donald Trump promises big things as he gets ready for a major immigration policy speech this week. We look at how the race in the U.S.

is being thrust into the limelight in this campaign.

Plus, the fate of a nation crippled by ISIS, al Qaeda and a Saudi-led war. We are talking Yemen and why the world should care.

Just after 11:00 in the morning here in the States on the east coast. I'm Becky Anderson. Welcome to Connect the World live from CNN Center all this

week.

We begin with complex new developments on the ground in Syria where NATO allies, the

United States and Turkey, now find themselves at odds at least when it comes to fighting one group.

In recent days, the Turkish military has escalated its involvement in northern Syria, to target not only ISIS, but Kurdish rebels there, who it

views as terrorists.

But those Kurdish rebels are supported by none other than the United States. And Washington is sounding alarm bells.

This video shows Turkish-backed rebels showing off weapons captured from Kurdish forces.

Let's break this down for you, shall we. Nick Paton Walsh is in Gaziantep in Turkey near the Syrian border. Elise Labott today is covering U.S.

reaction from Washington.

Let's start with you, Nick. What's the strategy here from Ankara's perspective?

NICK PATON WALSH, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: In short, they say to secure their southern border, that's a potentially enormous task, though.

The issue, of course, had being that, if they're going to go after ISIS as well with the Syrian rebels predominantly being their ground force, they

were going to come into contact with those Syrian Kurds, as you said, that the Pentagon have been assisting.

Now we have seen in the past days how as those Syrian rebels and Turkish armor have moved themselves south towards a key town on the Euphrates river

called Manbij, that town having recently been liberated from ISIS by those Syrian Kurds with American support, those Syrian Kurds and the Turkish

military and the Syrian rebels the Turkish are assisting have come into clashes.

An air strike, which Turkish military claim killed 25 Kurdish militants, but activists said actually killed dozens of civilians potentially as well,

it's unclear what really happened there. One Turkish soldier killed when two tanks came under fire.

It looked for awhile very bad indeed, like we would see the Syrian Kurds, who Turkey considers terrorists coming into contact regularly with Syrian

rebels with Turkish backing who have also got American support, too, and both sides being distracted from what America wants to be the

main task, and that's fighting ISIS.

Now, in the last hours, we appear to have had some semblance maybe of calm here. The Kurdish militants who were Manbij, that town on the Euphrates,

have said they're living. They don't want to be targets any more of Turkish air strikes or attacks. And they're going back acrtoss to the

eastern side of the Euphrates river, that's significant because that's pretty what U.S. Vice President

Joe Biden said in a visit to Ankara they promised they would do and was the red line.

If that, genuinely has been adhered to, that could calm things. It could give a natural boundary to this Turkish operation. But I should point out

we just heard from Turkish state media there have been 61 artillery strikes in the area south of Jarablus, that key town, in just the last 24 hours or

so.

So there's a lot that could still go wrong here, but as it stands, Turkey is moving fast to secure a pretty big swath of that southern border out

towards a key border crossing and also maybe give those Syrian rebels a bit of a stronghold in that area, Becky.

ANDERSON: Yeah, Nick, let me bring Elise in at this point -- heroes one minute, fair game for

massacre the next, is how one expert in the region put it this week, referring to the Syrian Kurds or to

Kurds in general.

How does Washington square criticism that the west is stabbing the Kurds in the back after relying so heavily and for so long on them to do the dirty

work on the ground in Iraq?

ELISE LABOTT, CNN CORREPSONENT: Well, Becky, the U.S. was always playing with fire, wasn't it, when it started working with the Kurds knowing that

their goal -- they were willing to help the U.S. with ISIS, but their goal was really always to try and get some of this territory, and

their goal ultimately is an independent Kurdish state.

So this is a lot of the U.S. playing with fire coming home to roost.

But I think you have some mixed messages coming out of the administration right now. When you heard Vice President Biden go to Ankara last week, he

did kind of say to the Turks, we support you going against the Kurds. But now that these clashes are actively happening and there are a lot of

casualties, the Pentagon is speaking out. A statement last night by Press Secretary Peter Cook at the

Pentagon saying we want to make clear that we find these clashes unacceptable and they are a source of deep concern. This is an already

crowded battle space. Accordingly, we are calling on armed actors to stand down immediately and take appropriate measures to deconflict.

Uncoordinated operations and maneuvers only provide room for ISIL to find sanctuary and

continue plotting attacks against Turkey, the SDF, the United States and our partners around the world

So the U.S. really sending a message to both the Turks, I think, and the Kurds that they support to kind of stand down and not let this get out of

control. The U.S. is walking a very delicate balance between wanting to keep Turkey a close ally in their support for the fight against ISIL with

also the Kurds who they see as a valuable and really the most effective partner in the area.

[11:06:39] ANDERSON: Nick, you said it would be significant if we've seen these Syrian Kurds moving back to where they promised they would go.

Because after all, I'm just wondering how you think Ankara is prepared to respond to, for example, the quote what Elise was using, this is already a

crowded battle space, we're call on actors to stand down immediately and take appropriate measures to deconflict.

They're not going to listen to that, are they, if there is action against them on the ground.

WALSH: No. I think the confusing element here is actually what is the scope of the Turkish operation. Remember, they have now for a substantial

period of time had to deal with the notion of these Syrian Kurds controlling on the Syrian side a very long part of their mutual border.

Are they going to be willing to deal with that given they're in a full state of war with the Kurds in many different

parts of the border. Are they going to be dealing with that, or happy to deal with that for the years ahead or is the Turkish military operation

potentially going to push them further along that border?

We don't know the answer to that question. That is one potentially dangerous flash point ahead. That is the fact the animosity between these

two groups is decades old. It isn't necessarily going to stop simply because of one withdraw over a river.

It does enable the Turkish and the Syrian rebels they're backing to have a relatively sensible geographical area that consider to be a place where

they won't run into Syrian Kurds, but my god things go wrong in this war on a daily basis. So, it's simply because we have a moment of optimism here,

I'm afraid, shouldn't give way to the pessimism that normally punctuates everything that happens in this conflict, Becky.

ANDERSON: Yeah. Absolutely. All right, Nick. Nick Paton Walsh is there on the border and Elise in Washington for you today. I appreciate it guys.

Thank you.

The other stories on our radar today all showing the global reach of ISIS, I'm afraid. The terror group claiming responsibility for a suicide car

bombing that killed at least 45 people in Aden in Yemen. The bomb exploded inside a training camp for forces loyal to the country's Saudi-backed

president.

Well, in Libya, an intense firefight going on right now to drive ISIS out of Sirte. The city was overrun by the terrorist group more than a year

ago. At least 34 Libyan fighters aligned with the UN-backed government have been killed and 150 wounded in the latest fighting.

And in Iraq, ISIS has claimed a suicide bombing that killed 15 people at a Shia wedding party

in Karbala. Authorities say the attacker sprayed the crowd with gunfire and threw hand grenades before detonating his suicide vest. At least 16

people were rounded.

Let's get you to Brazil now where suspended President Dilma Rousseff is making what could be her last stand to stay in office. Right now, she is

facing questions from lawmakers at her impeachment trial. Now, this is after making a speech insisting she had committed no crime.

Mrs. Rousseff is accused of manipulating the government budget to hide a shortfall.

Shasta Darlington joining us now from Brazil's capital Brasilia where this hearing is taking place -- Shasta.

SHASTA DARLINGTON, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: That's right, Becky.

This is a dramatic finale to the long running impeachment process that as we know saw Dilma Rousseff suspended way back in May. For the first time,

she's appearing in the senate to do what she says, to look her accusers in the eye and tell them she didn't break any laws. And yet, she says, many

of the lawmakers speaheading the impeachment effort are being investigated for corruption and other crimes.

Now, she was defiant. She gave testimony for about 45 minutes. Now, she's answering questions. Each of the 81 Senators is permitted five minutes to

ask questions if they so wish. Rousseff can answer those questions again, if she so wishes, without any time limits. But for many observers, the

foregone conclusion here is that Rousseff will be permanently removed from office this week.

Now back in May when she was suspended, her vice president, Michel Temer, took over. He's one of the people she accuses of trying to orchestrate her

ouster.

If two-thirds of the senate this week votes for her impeachment, he will assume the presidency on a permanent basis until the end of the term in

2018, and, of course , inherit a lot of the headaches -- the deep recession and this political chaos that has been building over the last few months,

Becky.

[11:11:08] ANDERSON: Shasta Darlington on the story out of Brasilia for you today.

In Italy, authorities now say nearly 3,000 people are in temporary housing after last week's devastating earthquake. And questions are being asked

about why some buildings were not able to withstand the quake. An investigation into potentially substandard building practices is being

launched. Almost 300 people, you'll remember, were killed when the disaster struck last Wednesday.

Well, Frederik Pleitgen joining me now from Amatrice. And echoes of 2009, Fred, in Italy

when construction on the cheap blamed for the scope of the fallout in L'Aquila (ph) in central Italy, correct?

FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yeah, absolutely. And that's one of the reasons that the Italians back then said construction

needs to meet the standards, to be earthquake proof in areas like this one prone to seismic activity.

One of the big -- I don't want to say scandals, but one of the big questions that's going on here is about the local school here in the town

of Amatrice, Becky, which is was one that was actually built in 2011 and was supposed to be earthquake-proof, but crumbled immediately when that 6.2

magnitude tremor happened, and crumbled more yesterday when there was another big aftershock. I want to show you what's going on right here

because the workers are just -- a lot of them just sort of coming out of the rubble right now, you see there, of the old town here in Amatrice. And

you're absolutely right, the Italians now looking to see -- or saying, that towns like this, if they are going to be reconstructed, need to be

reconstructed in way that is earthquake-proof, because they know this area is on the

fault line and there is a lot of seismic activity here.

Now this town, the government has said, will certainly be reconstructed. but there's a lot of villages around here, Becky, that -- where that might

not be so sure. Let's have a look.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

FREDERICK PLEITGEN, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: The grueling work continues for Italian search crews still pulling bodies from the rubble.

Whole communities have been shattered by the loss of life and infrastructure.

Massimo Parazzi (ph) was in the hardest hit town of Amatrice when the earth began to shake.

"It was my daughter's birthday, the day of the quake," he says. "We'd organized a party. Five of the girls who were invited were killed in the

quake. She had played with some of them the night before the disaster.

More than 200 people died in Amatrice alone. Italy's prime minister has vowed to rebuild this ancient town, but some of the smaller villages in

this mountainous area may not be so lucky.

This is Capricia (ph) -- just down the road from Amatrice.

Like so many villages in this area, this one's been evacuated after the earthquake. But the residents here face a much more fundamental question,

and that is, whether they'll ever be able to return to their homes, whether this village will be viable in the future.

Rosella Santorelli (ph) is one of only 12 residents of Capricia. She's been staying in this camper van since the quake struck afraid to enter any

building because of frequent aftershocks.

"I don't think there will be a future," she says, "our village is poor. There are no people and no jobs. Amatrice is five miles away, but there's

nothing left of that."

As Rosella and the others survey the damage to their houses, Italy has some tough discussions to make. Should villages like this one with a tiny

population in an area prone to earthquakes be fixed or is it better and safer to abandon them?

"There are villages that were already empty before the quake," Rosella says. "There are almost no young people anywhere. The towns are old. I

think now they will really depopulate."

For many tourists, villages like Capricia epitomized the beauty of the Italian countryside. On top of the horrible human toll this earthquake has

caused, in the long run, it may have accelerated the demise of a piece of this country's rich ancient heritage as well.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

[11:15:06] PLEITGEN: As you can imagine, Becky, many people here, of course, have more immediate concerns than what's going to happen to their

houses. Many people here have loved ones who are affected, loved ones who were killed in this earthquake and even folks from villages that are around Amatrice know folks from here. So,

certainly, this entire community spanning across this entire area very much affected by this earthquake.

And the folks there, of course, on top of the fact that they need to worry about their own houses. They need to worry about the fact that they have

loved ones that are still in hospital, now also have this long-term concern about what exactly is going to happen to this region in

the future, Becky.

ANDERSON: And just describe how people are coping. After all, there are still aftershocks, correct?

PLEITGEN: Yeah, there's major aftershocks that still happening here all the time. In fact, the Italian government has said there were more than a

thousand aftershocks since that initial quake last Wednesday -- that was, of course, 6.2 magnitude.

There have been some that are over 5 magnitude, many that have been over 4 magnitude.

We were in a house yesterday when one of these major aftershocks struck. And I can tell you., it's quite a scary situation when everybody starts

bolting for the door if they can. So, it's certainly something that the people here are very afraid of and something that's a real issue to the

folks working over there, to the rescue crews.

That's one of the reasons, Becky, why right now what they're doing, you can see a crane back there, they're starting to tear down some of these houses

that have already been badly damaged to make it more safe for the rescue crews to work, because every time there is an aftershock, the rubble starts

shifting, buildings can collapse.

And the guys you see here working in the rubble are in real danger of having those houses fall on them, possibly getting buried beneath those

houses. So, it is a real problem and it's a real feel factor for those who survive the initial quake, Becky.

ANDERSON: Fred Pleitgen is reporting for you from Italy.

Still to come this hour, you're watching Connect the World with me, Becky Anderson. Where does he stand? Well, Donald Trump promises a major speech

on immigration this week. We're going to look at the key issue that has many voters here in the United States confused.

And in Syria, Turkey continues to aid in the fight against ISIS, but it's also battling Kurdish

fighters, and that could be at odds with the U.S. and Washington. Why? We'll discuss this with a former U.S. diplomat.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[11:20:42] ANDERSON: Live from the CNN Center, you're watching CNN. This is Connect the World with me, Becky Anderson. Welcome back.

In the U.S., 11:20 on the east coast.

An American football player is standing by his decision not to stand during the U.S. national

anthem. NFL quarterback Colin Kaepernick says that he'll continue to stay seated to protest racial injustice in America. Well, some have applauded

his decision, others are so angry about it, they are setting his San Francisco 49ers' jersey on fire.

Well, our Sara Sidner joins me now from CNN Los Angeles. And to our viewers who may not know anything about American football, and indeed

perhaps are confused as to why this is so divisive, just explain.

SARA SIDNER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: So, basically every single game that happens here in this country, especially during American football, the

national anthem is played, and generally people stand up and put their hand over their heart as it is being played, many people sing. That's both the

crowd and the team.

Now in this case, Colin Kaepernick, who is a quarterback for the San Francisco 49ers decided that he would sit. It was in a pregame season. We

will link it to football, right. In the rest of the world, everybody loves football. In America, American football is king and people pay quite a bit

of attention to what the players are up to.

This gentleman sat down during the national anthem. A lot of people were taken aback by it, a lot of veterans were upset by it. And basically they

were upset by what he said. He said he was doing it as a protest to protest the oppression of people in this country, and particularly talking

about black people, also alluding the the relationship between black folks and police in this country.

And you've seen the protests across this country with the killing of unarmed black males in particular. So, he talked about the reason why he

did it. And when he was asked whether or not he would continue to do this kind of a protest, here is what he said.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

COLIN KAEPERNICK, 49ERS QUARTERBACK: I mean, I've had times where one of my roommates was moving out of the house in college, and because we were

the only black people in that neighborhood, the cops got called and all of us had guns drawn on us. I mean came in the house without knocking, guns

drawn on one of my teammates and roommates.

So I have experienced this. People close to me have experienced this. This isn't something that's a one-off case here, a one-off case there.

This has become habitual. It's become a habit. So it's something that needs to be addressed.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SIDNER: And so Colin Kaepernick has decided that he is going to sit during the national anthem. That response to that has been mixed. But there have

been a lot of emotional responses. And you alluded to one of them. Across the internet on social media, you are seeing people take his jersey and

setting it on fire. There are a lot of veterans and veterans groups talking about the fact that they feel like he's disrespecting those who

have fought for America and died for America.

On the other hand you have plenty of people saying, look, as a part of America as football is, so is protesting. And the NFL has said, look, we

do not require players to stand up during the national anthem. It is their choice. If they choose to protest, that is also their choice. This is not

against any rule.

His teammates, in fact, have also come out in support of him saying he has every right to protest.

ANDERSON: Sara Sidner out of L.A. for you today. Sara, appreciate it.

Right. The latest world news headlines are just ahead. Plus, the politics of race. We're going to look at Donald Trump's appeal to minority voters

and get some reaction with a Hillary Clinton supporter.

But I know that we want to reset on Turkey at this point as well. So, I want to get you back to our top story, Syria and a war that grows more

complex by the day. Turkey's military taking on a bigger role now, targeting not only ISIS, but also Kurdish forces in Syria.

And he -- the Turkish president says there is no backing down.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RECEP TAYYIP ERDOGAN, TURKISH PRESIDENT (through translator): We will do everything necessary, whatever our share is to cleanse the terrorist

organization, we will never allow any terrorist organization to function, including the separatist organization. And our operations will continue

non-stop, Daesh, in order to clean Syria and Iraq of Daesh, we will contribue in every way to those operations. This is why we're in Jarablus.

If necessary, we will be going to different parts in order to achieve the same aim.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ANDERSON: Well, for more, I'm joined by Matthew Bryza in Bodrom (ph), Turkey. He's a former senior U.S. diplomat covering Turkey.

And I just want to show you and our viewers a tweet by Brett McGurk, the U.S. special envoy for the global anti ISIS coalition. He says, "the

Department of Defense wants to, quote, make clear that we find these clashes in areas where ISIS is not located unacceptable and a source of

deep concern."

He is clearly speaking to these Turkish-Kurdish infractions in Syria across the border. Our correspondent there today suggesting that things have

quieted down to a certain extent, but that may just be a blip.

Do you believe there will be any action from the U.S. to back up those words from Brett McGurk, should these infractions continue?

MATTHEW BRYZA, FORMER SENIOR U.S. DIPLOMAT: I don't believe there will be any action from the United States, no, because just last week when Vice

President Biden paid a visit to Ankara, the most senior visit by any foreign official since the failed coup

attempt on July 15, he gave a clear statement in which he said that the United States urges those Kurdish forces that Turkey has

attacked to leave Syria, to go back across the Euphrates River, to leave the town of Manbij where they

were and they did not leave.

So, you have some dissidents here within the White House between what the vice president said last week and what Brett McGurk said just in that

tweet. And, well, in my experience working in the White House, the vice president is senior. So I would think -- I understand why special envoy

McGurk is upset that Turkey isn't focusing only on fighting ISIS, but I think the vice president understands that making sure the Kurdish rebels

don't carve out an independent region in Syria, is also a burning concern for the Turkish government.

ANDERSON: Have we seen a change in U.S.-Turkish relations over the past 72 hours or not really?

BRYZA: Funny, I think we've seen maybe a change and a half. One change, when the Turks

launched their operation with armor in Jarablus with U.S. support, with air cover support, together supporting some non-Kurdish rebels, we did enter a

new phase in U.S.-Turkish relations, a very positive one, one in which, after two years of urging, Kurdish (sic) military forces on the ground

finally entered the fight against ISIS in Syria.

You recall Turkey had been resisting U.S. encouragement to do so. So, that was a good new story for U.S.-Turkish relations for, yes, let's say 36

hours.

Now we're in this moment of great tension with a lack of clarity within the White House. And, you know, in my own experience, I recall when I was

working in the White House during the last war in Iraq, how difficult it was to get the U.S. military to want to implement President Bush at the

time's own promises to defeat the PKK Kurdish terrorists that were based in northern Iraq.

So, this sort of dissonance is not unusual, unheard of in the White House. And I think -- well, you could see some increased tension. There clearly

is increased tension in U.S.-Turkish relations. But my sense it is going to get back on track, because I think most senior people of the White

House, again, understand that for Turkey, making sure that the Kurdish forces don't carve out an independent statelette in northern Syria

(inaudible) is very serious concern.

ANDERSON: And lest we forget, this is a Syrian conflict. Tens of thousands of Syrians wounded, killed on what feels like a daily basis at

this point still.

Are we any closer to a solution to this conflict?

BRYZA: No. I think by no means unfortunately. I mean, you still have got fundamental differences of opinion between Russia and the United States,

the two most significant players in Syria with regard to whether or not Bashar al-Assad has to be ousted. In

recent months it seems like that the U.S. position has softened a bit on that. But it's still, the two

countries are fundamentally at loggerheads.

Turkey still pushing, of course, strongly -- pushing for Assad's ouster. But within the country itself -- I mean, you know better than I, covering

this horrible tragedy every day, the criminal actions by the Assad regime, bombing innocent civilians, using chemical weapons it appears, and with

support from Russian air strikes against these same civilians, makes it hard to be optimistic that there's any good will there and that this

horrible conflict won't be resolved until these last bits of blood are spilled. It's just so depressing.

[11:30:11] ANDERSON: All right. Well, your analysis out of Turkey today. Sir, we very appreciate your thoughts.

The latest world news headlines are just ahead. You're watching CNN. I'm Becky Anderson. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(HEADLINES)

[11:34:31] ANDERSON: If you are having trouble keeping track of where Donald Trump stands on immigration, well, quite frankly, so are we. For

days he's been softening his tone on some hardl ine policies, but his campaign says nothing has changed as Sara Murray reports the speculation

could finally come to an end on Wednesday.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

TRUMP: We are going to get rid of the criminals, and it's going to happen within one hour after I take office. Believe me.

SARA MURRAY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Donald Trump announcing he'll deliver a highly anticipated immigration speech Wednesday in Arizona after all.

[11:35:03] KELLYANNE CONWAY, DONALD TRUMP CAMPAIGN MANAGER: If you want to be here legally, you have to apply to be here legally.

MURRAY: The Trump campaign insisting the proposal, it won't amount to amnesty or include a pathway to citizenship for undocumented immigrants.

CONWAY: We all learned in kindergarten to stand in line and wait our turn.

MURRAY: But as questions mount about whether Trump is softening his hard line position from the primaries.

TRUMP: At least 11 million people in this country that came in illegally, they will go out.

MURRAY: Even his allies appear unclear on his stands.

JAKE TAPPER, CNN ANCHOR: What about the millions in this country right now?

GOV. MIKE PENCE, (R-IN) VICE PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Well.

TAPPER: What happens to them?

PENCE: I think Donald Trump will articulate what we do with the people who are here but I promise you ...

TAPPER: But he ready has articulated.

MURRAY: The GOP chairman even saying, "Deporting all 11 million undocumented immigrants living in the U.S. is complicated.

REINHOLD RICHARD, REPUBLICAN NATIONAL COMMITTEE: He's reflecting on it, and his position is going to be known.

MURRAY: This is Trump plans on Labor Day weekend trip to a predominantly black church in Detroit, part of his ongoing effort to woo minority voters.

TRUMP: African-Americans, Hispanics vote for Donald Trump. What do you have to lose? It can't get any worse. What do you have to lose?

MURRAY: The republican nominee sparking controversy over the weekend for politicizing the death of Chicago bulls star Dwyane Wade's cousin,

tweeting,"Just what I have been saying. African-Americans will vote Trump." An hour later, Trump offered his condolences. This tweet just the latest

example of Trump facing criticism for touting his political positions in the wake of tragedies.

TRUMP: It's horrible. And it's only getting worse. I say vote for Donald Trump, I will fix it.

MURRAY: And Trump continue to blame the Democratic Party and Hillary Clinton for minority hardship and racial tension.

TRUMP: They've run the inner cities for years and look what you have. They're like war zones.

How quickly people have forgotten that Hillary Clinton called black youth super predators. Remember that? Super predators. Both Trump and Clinton's

campaigns using their opponent's own words against each other.

TRUMP: What the hell do you have to lose?

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ANDERSON: Well, Trump's focus on race and his appeal to minority voters is a change from what we saw in the primaries when he was trying to win over

conservative Republicans. Now, he has to expand his base in order to win the general election.

Hillary Clinton says don't be fooled by Trump's outreach efforts. She says he's built his campaign on prejudice and paranoia, accusing him of ignoring

and mistreating black communities for decades.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CLINTON: I hear and I read some people who are saying, well, his bluster and bigotry is just overheated campaign rhetoric, an outrageous person

saying outrageous things for attention. But look at his policies. The ones that Trump has proposed, they would put prejudice into practice. And

don't be distracted by his latest efforts to muddy the waters.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ANDERSON: Well, she would say that, wouldn't she, of course?

Let's get some perspective now from a Hillary Clinton supporter. We're joined by Tharon Johnson. He served as a regional director for President

Barack Obama's re-election campaign in 2012.

Does -- do you continue to be surprised, or as surprised, perhaps, as many others here and around the world by what Donald Trump says and does in his

campaign?

THARON JOHNSON, HILLARY CLINTON SUPPORTER: I'm not really surprised because he's running for president. And in the U.S. you've got to attract

general election voters who particularly are women, particularly minority women, but also moderate Republican women.

Now, the problem with Donald Trump is not so much his message. Listen. Any time a presidential candidate wants to expand their base and reach out

to different ethnicities and different groups, it's OK. The problem is the messenger. I mean, he has no credibility in the Hispanic community, nor

the African-American community to say I, alone, can fix your problems.

Now, what the Clinton campaign has got to be very careful about, is listen, no one thought when this guy was running a year-and-a-half ago that he

would be the GOP nominee. But if you particularly look at what he did around immigration, it's a total flip-flop. Last year at this time Donald

Trump was calling for 11.5 million people in this country to be deported. And he didn't specify the bad ones, he didn't specify anything about the

families. So, now he's switched back to a different position.

ANDERSON: So if you were running Hillary Clinton's campaign -- you're a supporter of hers, but you're not running the campaign -- with just four

weeks to go to the first debate and 71 days to go until the election, the clock is ticking. He's not over and out at this point by any stretch of

the imagination. She shouldn't be writing him off, should he? And she won't be?

JOHNSON: absolutely not. Listen, I would advise Hillary Clinton to do exactly what she's doing, which is she made a very compelling speech to the

American people to say, listen, this man who retweets white supremacy groups, who have made some very divisive comments

during the primary is no different than the guy that now we sort of -- the general election candidate.

The other thing that she's got do, listen, she has got to talk about the issues that matter most to the American people. We have got to strengthen

the middle class, we've got to continue to grow our economy. We've got to basically talk about how we're going to have a first rate education in this

country. And she's got to really tout her former policy experience.

ANDERSON: He is banging on about crime like it's going out of fashion. And she's got to sort that out as well, so far as her narrative is

concerned.

His, or Trump's twitter page on fire today. He tweeted eight times in less than an hour, ratcheting up his appeal for this minority vote that you and

I have been discussing, once again painting a bleak picture of the African- American communities. Here's a couple of examples, quote, "inner city crime is reaching record levels. African-Americans will vote for Trump

because they know I will stop the slaughter going on."

And, "look how bad it is getting. How much more crime, how many more shootings will it take for African-Americans and Latinos to vote. Trump

equals safe."

Are they buying it?

JOHNSON: No. Because here is the problem. He's using a very tragic event that happened in Chicago, Nakia Aldridge (ph), who is the cousin of a very

famous basketball player, Dwyane Wade, who is now with Chicago Bulls, he's using this very tragic event to say, listen, why don't you vote

for me. And you don't do that in the U.S. We don't use tragic deaths to basically use those for political

pandering, and that's what he's doing.

Now, the issue of crime, and particularly black on black crime -- but there's also white on white crime we have in the U.S -- is a big issue.

And unfortunately these incidents occur in cities that are led by Democrats.

ANDERSON: How divisive is the race finally? And very briefly.

JOHNSON: You know, I think what Donald Trump is doing, he's really trying to play the race card. But he's not trying to help Hispanics and African-

Americans. He's talking at us. But this is an appeal for him to do better with moderate Republican women. And I think the American people are not

going to fall for it.

ANDERSON: You've been a pleasure. Thank you.

JOHNSON: Thank you, Becky.

ANDERSON: Thanks for coming in.

Well, before we leave our discussion on the race for the White House, here is another story for you. Long-time Hillary Clinton aide Huma Abedin has

just announced she is separating from her husband, former congressman Anthony Weiner, this comes amid new allegations

that he sent sexually explicit photos to a woman.

His Twitter account has since been taken down. He resigned from congress five years ago, you may remember, after he posted a lewd photo of himself

on Twitter.

Live from the CNN Center, this is Connect the World. I'm Becky Anderson for you. Coming up, IS strikes again in Yemen. As its civil war wages on,

I'm going to ask my next guest what is the hope for the future there.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[11:45:52] ANDERSON: You're back with CNN. And this is Connect the World with me, Becky Anderson. It is quarter to 12:00 here in Atlanta at CNN

Center.

Yemen's civil war is as deadly as ever. It's a battleground for regional powers, and ISIS is in the mix. The terror group says it was behind a

suicide car bombing targeting military recruits in Aden.

Now, Doctors Without Borders says at least 45 people were killed and 60 wounded. The blast struck a training camp for forces loyal to the

country's Saudi-backed president Hadi.

His government is based in Aden because the actual capital Sanaa is under the control of the Iranian-backed Houthi rebels.

Well, let's turn to London where we're joined by James spencer who is a former commander with the British army and an expert on Yemen.

We would be bereft in our duties if we didn't try to keep this conflict on the map, squarely on the map. How do you explain the timing and motivation

of this latest attack?

JAMES SPENCER, BRITISH INFRANTRY COMMANDER: The ISIS attack is probably designed just to remind all the players that they're still there, they're

still very dangerous and they shouldn't be discounted. It's probably also designed to cause a little bit of confusion within the side, which is

trying to gain security, and to create a sort of more stable environment within Aden.

Let's look at the wider picture here, because for a very long time it was clear that groups like ISIS and al Qaeda affiliated groups would take

advantage of the chaos that is this conflict.

I want to read you a quote from Peter Salisbury, who is a fellow at the Chatham House think tank in London, writing in an op-ed for CNN.com. He

said, "while the initial aerial campaign destroyed most of Yemen's stock of long-range ballistic missiles, another 15 months of air strikes away from

the front lines have had no notable effect on the course of this war."

No real military impact, nothing, then, but dead civilians. Is that the real aim here, to turn Yemen into a disseminated wasteland, useful to play

out proxy wars just like in Syria?

SPENCER: the true nature of the sort proxy war is widely debated. It's generally reckoned that

Iran is rather less committed to Yemen and the Houthis than they are in Syria. It's a useful sort of way of poking the Saudis in their back yard

rather than probably being of any great importance to the Iranians.

ANDERSON: Sorry, I was going to get to you -- in the same article, Peter Salisbury was talking about how important it was when John Kerry was in

Saudi last week, that he kept Yemen at the top of the agenda. We all know, though, that the U.S. desperate for Gulf help in the fight in Syria.

So, how likely is it that there are anything but sort of weak words from Washington at the moment when it comes to talking to Saudi about what

they're doing in Yemen?

SPENCER: Washington has a few more cards. It needs to make sure that Saudi is not angry with Washington and so refuses to help out either with

intelligence gathering or indeed with air strikes, et cetera, into Syria and various other things like that.

But it does have quite a bit of cards up its sleeves. It can be more forceful during UN debates, either on the human rights counsel or the

United Nations security council. It can also withhold weaponry. Saudis just I think asked for about $1.5 billion worth of material. That could be

held up.

It can also not replace the U.S. advisers who were in Saudi but seem to have been withdrawn during the cease-fire. So, there are a number of

things Washington can do to make life harder for the Saudis, broadly to put pressure on them to come to an agreement with the Houthis. They're not

going to get everything that they wanted, but nobody gets everything they want when they go into a war. They just need to make a deal with the

Houthis and the Salahis (ph).

[11:50:15] ANDERSON: With that, we're going to leave it there. We thank you very much indeed, keeping Yemen squarerly on the map for you.

From man-made catastrophe then in Yemen, we're going to take you to a natural disaster in Italy where a group of people, many have shunned, are

pitching in to help after that earthquake recently. The details are ahead.

First up, though, over 300 Reindeer killed in a freak accident, leaving environmental experts

with more questions than answers. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ANDERSON: CNN Center for you today. This is Connect the World with me, Becky Anderson. Welcome back.

It's eight minutes to midday here on the east coast. More than 300 reindeer have been killed by a lightning strike at a Norwegian national

park. Now, the environmental agency there says wild animals are occasionally struck by lightning, but the agency has never seen so many

killed at once.

Well, reindeer likely huddled together because of stormy weather.

Let's get you more on this. Meteorologist Chad Myers joining me in the studio.

What is going on?

CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Well, if you look at the placement of the reindeer -- and if you love animals if you are squeamish, please turn away,

because there are some slightly disturbing images here, but they were in such a small area, probably a diameter here, somewhere in the

neighborhood of 20 meters. So, there were 300 animals in 20 meters, and somewhere in that -- something was the highest and that was the lightning

strike, the lightning strike struck the highest part of land. And then we called the ground current.

So, it wasn't that they were all touching each other and they got shocked, like, you know, touching me, like rubbing your feet on the ground and

giving you a static shock. This was the ground current when the lightning hit the ground or, hit the water in the ground, the water in the ground

conducted the electricity. It got into their hooves, into their legs, and likely stopped their hearts.

Didn't kill them right away, but then the lack of blood because the hearts weren't pumping -- same thing happens to humans, but if you give them CPR,

you get them back.

There's no caribou CPR.

ANDERSON: Have you ever seen anything like this?

MYERS: There's no caribou CPR that we know of.

No. But there many, many times where animals are killed by lightning. And we just don't get the video. We don't get the story here. We don't get

the dramatic effect. And so it's one or two or five, but this being 300 large animals.

Now, there are 10,000 animals in that park. There are 10,000 reindeer, 300 were killed -- I'm not saying that's any less important, but it wasn't a

catastrophic event for that reindeer population in that park.

ANDERSON: Was that freak weather, particularly freak weather?

MYERS: No. You know, that's when you will get thunderstorms up in Norway in the late, late summer when the weather is kind of -- it's not as far

south into France anymore, it's pushed way up into Sweden and into Norway. It's a normal thing to get a thunderstorm. It's abnormal to get so many things, so many animals killed all at one time.

ANDERSON: Chad, appreciate it. Good to have you with us. Thank you.

MYERS: Welcome to Atlanta.

ANDERSON: Thank you.

Well, ancient villages now in ruins after an earthquake shook central Italy last week. It flattened entire towns turning them into tombs. There's

almost no hope of finding anyone else alive beneath the rubble, but rescuers are still looking, if not for survivors, at least for bodies.

So, for your Parting Shots this evening, among the people doing that dangerous work, migrants, people who could be kicked out of Italy at any

moment, doing all they can to help. That in a country, on a continent where many people often take a very dim view of them being there in the

first place.

Here they are, people just like us, looking for people who could be any of us.

So perhaps the next time we see pictures like this, we will remember the best of humanity.

Well, as migrants help with rescue operations in Italy, social networks are doing everything

they can, too. AirBNB, for example, has listed apartments and homes as free, providing places to stay for victims and rescue workers in regions

that were worst hit.

Now, for more details on this story and on the others that we'll have been covering for this show and other shores and what we're would being on

ahead, that's Facebook.com/CNNconnect. Facebook.com/CNNConnect.

I'm Becky Anderson. That was Connect the World. Thanks for watching.

END