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U.K. Parliament in Final Session Before Five-Week Break; Speaker Bercow Says He Will Stand Down by October 31; Irish Prime Minister on Backstop: Haven't Heard Realistic Alternatives; Recovery Efforts Underway in Bahamas; Death Toll Expected to Increase Dramatically in the Bahamas; Israeli Prime Minister Speaks About Iran's Nuclear Program; Netanyahu Says Secret Nuclear Sites Found in Iran. Aired 11a-12p ET
Aired September 09, 2019 - 11:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[11:00:00]
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BORIS JOHNSON, BRITISH PRIME MINISTER: There are an abundance of proposals.
LEO VARADKAR, IRISH PRIME MINISTER: There's no such thing as a clean break.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BECKY ANDERSON, CNN HOST: Tonight, sent packing. British lawmakers are about to be sent off on a five-week forced holiday, courtesy of the Prime
Minister. And just moments ago, the Speaker of the House says farewell forever. Details on that just ahead.
Plus --
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We have to navigate around the submerged vehicles.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We're going over a car right now. There's a car underwater there.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This looked totally different. You can't describe it. I never expect nothing like this, man, honestly.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON: No one could have. CNN takes you through the Bahamas that is being described as if nuclear bombs were dropped over it.
And we'll hear from Israel's leader on Iran this hour. Plus a special CNN report for you on how and why he always journalists' terrorists. We're
live in Jerusalem this hour.
It is 11:00 a.m. in the Bahamas. It is 4:00 in the afternoon over in London. It is 7:00 at night here in Abu Dhabi. We are connecting your
world through them all this hour. Welcome to the show. I'm Becky Anderson for you.
We begin with a House divided. A kingdom far from united and a minister who might be feeling anything but in his prime. Right now Britain's
Parliament is in its final session before the longest suspension since World War II, and lawmakers want to make sure today really counts. There's
already been drama with the House Speaker saying that he will resign. Also a Bill aimed at blocking a no-deal Brexit has just been approved by the
Queen, while Prime Minister Boris Johnson is again likely to push for a snap election. However unsuccessful he might be.
Mr. Johnson was in Dublin earlier today where he said a no-deal Brexit would be a, quote, failure of state craft and he once more insisted Britain
will leave the EU by the end of next month.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOHNSON: We will come out on October the 31st, and I'm sure that as I say, parliamentarians will see the wisdom of doing that and respecting, honoring
the referendum result, the democratic referendum result. I'm absolutely undaunted by whatever may take place in Parliament.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON: All right. That's the Prime Minister just breaking this hour. The Speaker of the House, as I said, set to stand down. An awful lot going
on both in Ireland and, of course, in London. CNN's Max Foster outside Parliament for us -- Max.
MAX FOSTER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Becky. We're trying to make sense of it all because everything is happening so quickly here. No idea really
that the House Speaker was going to stand down today, although he is a divisive figure. There are those who have been plotting to get rid of him
an awful long time but he also has an awful lot of supporters. We also had this appearance by the Prime Ministers of the U.K. and Ireland in Dublin.
And, Bianca, we've got the situation, haven't we, with the bill that will effectively lead to a delay in Brexit potentially has just received Royal
ascent in the House of Lords, so it becomes law. And that's actually a big moment in this process. A lot of the rest of it is noise.
BIANCA NOBILO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It is. Noise all around us, Max. It is a huge moment for the future of the Brexit process because it takes away
Boris Johnson's key negotiating strategy. It basically means that there's no way that he can allow Britain to leave without a deal unless Parliament
approves it. And we know that this Parliament, unless there's an election and the composition of it changes wildly, will not approve that. So if he
doesn't come back to the House of Commons with the deal that's approved by the 19th of October, he'll have to ask the EU for an extension. That is
now law in the United Kingdom.
FOSTER: And Bercow, the speaker, will be gone by Brexit day, October 31st.
NOBILO: Yes, at the latest. So he said today that if an election is voted for in the House of Commons today -- and we think that's incredibly
unlikely because it would require two thirds of the house that he would step down today. If not, he'll step down by Brexit day.
Nic Robertson is in Dublin for us. Nic, you were in the thick of it this morning. It seems like such a long time ago that Boris Johnson speaking in
Dublin today. What did you pick out from that key moment really in the Brexit process?
[11:05:00] Because it's Leo Varadkar who very much is central to this on the European side.
NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: You're right, Max, it does feel like a long time ago. But what was being discussed here is at
the core of what's the stumbling block over Brexit, and that is the backstop for the border between Northern Ireland and the Republic of
Ireland. And the issue is it should remain open because that will damage peace and the economy on both sides of the border. That is understood and
was articulated by Prime Minister Boris Johnson, by Taoiseach Leo Varadkar. They both said that. But at the ending of their half hour private meeting,
another half hour they had together with their advisers, significant gaps remain.
My takeaway from today listening to both the Prime Minister and the Taoiseach speaking is that they are still talking past each other. You
heard Boris Johnson earlier there speaking about it would be a failure of state craft, that it's the responsibility of not only Britain but Ireland
and the European Union to solve this issue. Whereas when you listen to the Taoiseach speaking, he frames this as, you know, essentially Britain
decided to vote for Brexit and they've got to come up now with another solution for the backstop if that's not agreeable to them. This is how he
framed it.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
VARADKAR: Avoiding return to a hard border on this island and protecting our place in the single markets are the Irish government's priorities in
all circumstances. We must protect peace and also the burgeoning island economy. And that's why for us the backstop continues to be a critical
component of the withdrawal agreement unless and until alternatives are found. But we are open to alternatives, but they must be realistic ones,
legally binding and workable. And we haven't received such proposals to date.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERTSON: Well Boris Johnson talked about the possibility of electronic controls and also an all-island agriculture agreement. Both of these ideas
have been knocked down. The agriculture part of it knocked by the Taoiseach yesterday. And I think when we look for how the Irish Prime
Minister, the Taoiseach, thinks he may have leverage in these discussions, but Boris Johnson, he said, look, if you leave with a deal then the future
negotiations, we're all going to have here about the future relationship will be your friend. You have a herculean task, we'll be your Athena, will
be your friend.
But if you have a no deal and essentially and institute a situation where you have some kind of border controls between the north and south of
Ireland, then he said, look, that's going to be a different relationship. We're not going to be such a close friend essentially. When you're
negotiating these future relationships with the European Union or the United States -- Max.
FOSTER: Nic in Dublin, thank you very much indeed. Very hard for people to keep up with all the developments today, this week, even this month.
Hadas Gold has been out speaking to people in Liverpool in England which voted largely to remain -- Hadas.
HADAS GOLD, CNN BUSINESS REPORTER: Max, that's right. Liverpool did vote largely to remain in that 2016 referendum. And I have to say, a lot of
people here have a lot of skepticism about the Prime Minister Boris Johnson, not only because of his Conservative Party and his position on
Brexit but also because of what happened when he edited the "Spectator" magazine. Which at one point published an editorial that seemed to
criticize how the people of Liverpool reacted and dealt with the tragedy that happened here at a football stadium in 1989. So there's a lot of
skepticism here towards the Prime Minister.
A lot of skepticism honestly about politicians in general. You know, Luciana Berger, the former Labour member of Parliament is from this area.
She has switched parties now twice from a more independent party, now to the Lib Dems.
So we went around into some community centers, including a cafe co-op earlier today to see how people feel about politicians switching sides and
about the possibility of a general election. Take a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: In some respects it's a good feeling. You think, oh, you know, your feeling is if you're a bit tribal, you're a traitor and
stuff like this. But it goes on all the time and in some fractious times as these.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Enough people are at risk but it's the lies and it's been going on for about three years now so it's probably time there's a
second referendum and see if people still stand by that decision.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Do you think there should be a general election? Yes, I think we need a general election. But I think that people are so
confused and there's such a turmoil at the moment a little heat needs to be taken out of the situation.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
GOLD: And, Max, what's notable is that this area has had some tough times. A recent government report from just a few months ago said one in three
children in this area are living below the poverty line. And so for a lot of people here, whether they are leave or remain, they want Brexit taken
care of because they think too much of the attention in Westminster has been on Brexit and not on the programs that could help people here.
[11:10:00]
They just want their neighbors to be taken care of -- Max.
FOSTER: OK. Hadas, thank you very much indeed for that. Also we've got Nic in Dublin and also Bianca here all trying to make sense of it for our
audiences -- Becky.
ANDERSON: Yes, well, thank you. You're all doing a sterling job, as it were.
Talking sterling, the British pound gaining ground against the U.S. dollar. Just when you thought this couldn't get any more confusing, right? This is
how it is trading right now. Now, the pound was boosted by the decreased likelihood of a no-deal Brexit and better-than-expected GDP growth in the
U.K. in July, which came in at 0.3 of 1 percent. That is much better than analysts had been expecting. And this is how things stand at the moment.
Let's set some context for you. At 1 spot 23 round about is what it is at the minute, the pounding is still way below its levels before the
referendum in 2016. Back then more than a buck and a half. There's some context for you. At least those trading currencies are concerned and for
those buying British pounds.
Good news for Britain on the one hand there. Bad news if you booked a British Airways flight for today or tomorrow. It's almost certainly been
canceled. The strike by pilots demanding more pay has forced the airline to cancel virtually all of its flights for the next two days. Almost
200,000 passengers are affected. This is the first pilots' strike in British Airways' history. More on that, of course, as we get it.
To the devastating aftermath of the most powerful hurricane to ever hit the Bahamas. Now hundreds of people are still missing. It is virtually
certain that the official death toll of 45 will rise as rescue crews reach the hardest-hit areas. The administrator of the U.S. government aid agency
surveyed the damage and spoke of it in apocalyptic terms.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MARK GREEN, USAID ADMINISTRATOR: What I was struck by was the focused nature of the devastation. So there are parts of Abaco and the Bahamas
that don't show a great deal of damage and then there are clusters and communities that were devastated, almost as though nuclear bombs were
dropped on them. That's how great the suffering is and the devastation is.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON: Some 70,000 people were left homeless and many are desperate to get off the islands. But over the weekend, evacuees on a ferry headed from
Freeport to the U.S. state of Florida were told to get off if they didn't have a visa.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Those who don't have a U.S. visa please proceed to disembark.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON: One woman says as many as 130 people had to leave the ferry, including families with children. CNN's Patrick Oppmann is live in
Freeport with the very latest. We'll come to that in a moment, Patrick. But first, you have visited some remote areas that you say look like a war
zone. Explain.
PATRICK OPPMANN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Absolutely. Things are getting better here slowly in Freeport, Becky. There's more food and water coming in. If
you're patient, you can get gas in several hours waiting in line here. There is no power or water, but people do get the sense that help is
finally coming in. Here you go just a few hours by boat ironically to the hardest-hit areas and help is yet to arrive.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
OPPMANN: We've been traveling now for about two hours by boat. It's the only way to get here. This is our destination. The eastern most end of
Grand Bahama Island. We know that it got hit really hard, but not much else. The road is still closed here and we have not heard how the people
here are doing. We really don't know what we're going to find here.
(voice over): We head from Freeport to McLeans Town, the last settlement on the eastern tip of Grand Bahama. Dorian filled in the channel and
scattered cars throughout the small harbor. We have to navigate around the submerged vehicles.
[11:15:00]
(on camera): Yes, we're going over a car right now. There's a car under water there.
(voice-over): McLeans looks like a war zone. And there are fatalities.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Everything is gone.
OPPMANN (voice over): People like Eva Thomas' relatives, who remained and lost their lives.
(on camera): When you think about the people who stayed behind, what must they have gone through?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes. And I think about it because I had a nephew and three of his kids die in storm. And I -- my heart is broken. I say I
can't imagine the terror that they were faced with before they passed.
OPPMANN (voice over): McLeans has been wiped off the map.
(on camera): It's difficult to conceive the force that could cause this kind of damage. It's just other worldly to think the winds and the water
could bury so much of this town under broken trees, broken houses, and we really don't know what is underneath all of this rubble. It will probably
take weeks or longer to dig out and find out what is buried here.
All around us is an eerie quiet. It is the sound of a town that has died. Alex Cary is haunted by the sight of his cousin's dead body.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: She was swollen. Like, you know, when a -- when a dead dog gets hit -- swell up ready to bust -- ready to burst. That's how she
was, swollen.
OPPMANN (voice over): The Bohemian government says the death toll is officially 45. But add up the missing and dead from small towns like
McLeans and the true loss of life seems higher, much higher. What little help arrives here comes by boat from other Bahamians. These people brought
water from Abaco, also ravaged by the storm.
The rubble tells the story of lives cruelly interrupted. A shoe, a broken teapot, and award from a church.
Mervin Thomas tries to recover what's left of his town. A town he no longer recognizes.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Man, I tell you the truth, I -- I kind of feel lost. Lost it's the place, everything, you know, just look, you know, totally
different. You can't even describe it. You never expect nothing like this, man, honestly.
OPPMANN: For so many here, all they have left are the things they carry.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
OPPMANN: And, Becky, it's unclear what future, if any, these small towns have. Many of the residents we talk to say with so many bad memories now
associated with the places they are from, the trauma, a future of weeks if not months without power or water, they're thinking of going other places.
Perhaps other places in the Bahamas, perhaps the United States, and it's unclear if they would ever come back.
ANDERSON: Sure. Well, for some of those who did survive, of course, and trying to seek refuge in the United States, being told that they are not
welcome, what is going on?
OPPMANN: It's a little complicated. Let me walk you through it. Bahamians because of its proximity to the U.S. and a very close
relationship, they can leave from Nassau or arrive in Freeport and go through U.S. customs here in this airport. And all they need is their
Bahamian passport and proof that they don't have a criminal record here. Traditionally they cannot go by boat.
Here's the catch-22 of this, though, Becky. There is really no airport here right now. It is severely damaged. There are not flights going to
the U.S. so there is no way for Bahamians here -- unless they go to Nassau and it's hard to get on those flights because there are very few of them --
to get to the U.S. other than by ferry. And so for the last several days since the storm, because it is a crisis, officials in the U.S. have been
accepting people by that ferry until yesterday where they reversed course, blaming the ferry operators, and the ferry operators are blame customs and
border protection. And the people caught in the middle, caught in this catch-22 have been left behind adding insult to injury.
ANDERSON: Yes, absolutely remarkable. Patrick, your reporting has been absolutely phenomenal. Stick to it. The Bahamas needs you at this point.
OPPMANN: Thank you.
ANDERSON: Let's assure that we can get as much for those living there and help as much as possible for those who are just trying to survive. And
just because we may live far away from the Bahamas doesn't mean we can't help those in need. There's a lot we can do, folks. And it starts with
just a few clicks on your keyboard.
[11:20:00]
Impact Your World on CNN.com has a list of organizations helping Hurricane Dorian victims. Find out how you can contribute. That is at CNN.com.
Still to come this hour, Israel's Prime Minister is expected to speak on Iran in a matter of minutes. But first --
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BENJAMIN NETANYAHU, ISRAELI PRIME MINISTER (through translator): The media court-martials us, they lie, they cheat, they distort on an enormous scale.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON: Fake news isn't just Donald Trump's game. How Mr. Netanyahu is using the same rhetoric as his country heads to the polls once again.
That's next.
We'll have much more for you on Brexit as Parliament gears up for yet another election debate. We'll hear from one Conservative lawmaker on what
he thinks should be done next.
And it's one of those things you have to see to believe. Fortunately it was caught on camera. Wait until you see what happens next. You're
watching CONNECT THE WORLD. Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON: With almost all the votes counted in Israel, it appears Benjamin Netanyahu has won the toughest fight of his political life overcoming a
crowd of corruption scandals to claim victory at the polls.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON: Well, that was April. Five months on, Benjamin Netanyahu's toughest fight is still not over. Israel is heading to the polls once
again after the Prime Minister failed to form a coalition. The countdown is on. Seven days, 13 odd hours to go.
But first, just like Donald Trump, Mr. Netanyahu shares a particular disdain for the media. Taking the fake news rhetoric a step further, even
accusing journalists of a form of terrorism. CNN's Oren Liebermann explains.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
OREN LIEBERMANN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): They share a style, a billboard and now it seems a campaign strategy.
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: That is a lie of fake news back there.
LIEBERMANN: President Donald Trump has made attacking the media a central theme of his election and his presidency.
TRUMP: You look at the newscasts, I call it fake news.
LIEBERMANN: And new his friend, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is facing a tough re-election bid, is doing the same.
NETANYAHU: Fake news.
LIEBERMANN: Ignoring traditional media outlets, the longest serving leader in Israeli history has gone to Facebook live to rail against what he calls
a secret quartet of media owners planning to tilt the result of the upcoming election.
NETANYAHU (through translator): The media court-martialed us. They lie, they cheat, they distort on an enormous scale. And when we give our
reaction, they say this is terrible. This is awful. This is incitement.
[11:25:00]
LIEBERMANN: In a week where Hezbollah militants fired anti-tank missiles at Israel, Netanyahu said it was the media that was planning what he called
a terror attack.
NETANYAHU (through translator): You're carrying out a terror attack against the truth and against democracy. We will not bow down to your
hypocritical double standards. We know it's all a bluff.
LIEBERMANN: Netanyahu and his Likud party declined to comment to CNN, but political analysts here say they've never seen anything like this.
CHEMI SHALEY, HAARETZ JOURNALIST: In Israel to call a journalist a terrorist, which is like the worst moniker that you can attach to anyone,
and to declare that they are trying to undermine democracy is very dangerous. It's a new stage.
LIEBERMANN: Channel 12's Guy Peleg now has a security team for his own safety. He says he's received threats. But Netanyahu in another echo of
Trump's language called them fake security guards. As Netanyahu faces possible charges of bribery and breach of trust in ongoing corruption
investigations, he's accused the media of carrying out a witch hunt in an effort to unseat him, even though it's an Attorney General he appointed
who's in charge of the cases. Netanyahu has insisted he's innocent.
SHALEY: I think now that he truly believes that he's being persecuted, victimized by a vast left-wing cabal run by the media. I think it's very
worrying if he is indeed living in such a delusional state.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ANDERSON: Oren Liebermann reporting and he joins me now from Jerusalem. Mr. Netanyahu is due to speak at this hour about Iran's nuclear program.
What are we expecting to hear from him -- Oren?
LIEBERMANN: Well over the past few weeks and I would say even the past few months, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has promised he has more
information about Iran's nuclear program. And this goes back to last May when he made that big dramatic show of a presentation about the Iran
nuclear archives. We expect this to essentially be an extension of that. And then of course the question is why now? And there are three possible
answers to that.
The first one is quite clear. We're eight days out until an election. It's a very difficult fight for Netanyahu, perhaps even more difficult than
April when he couldn't pull out of victory. And this is a political play at its very heart trying to win voters from other right-wing parties and
perhaps some centrist parties as well. Eight days to go before this election.
The second reason, there is some speculation that President Donald Trump might try to meet the Iranian President Rouhani over the course of the next
days or weeks. And even if that incredibly unlikely, this may well be a play to stop that from happening. When asked if Netanyahu would like to
see that meeting happen, or like to stop it, his answer was he doesn't decide Trump's itinerary. Even so, that would be damaging to Netanyahu
since a whole part of his foreign policy is fighting Iran to the greatest extent possible.
And the third reason would be what we heard from the International Atomic Energy Agency that they were informed by Iran that they might be installing
and testing more advanced centrifuges in another way of splitting from the Iran nuclear deal.
So there are reasons here. Chief among those there's an election in eight days and Netanyahu is fighting to do everything he can to make sure he wins
it.
ANDERSON: He won April's ballot, of course, but after infighting failing to form this coalition as you rightly point out, he has triggered another
election. At this point, what is the most likely outcome -- Oren?
LIEBERMANN: My best answer to that is at this point judging by the polls we've seen, the election polls from pretty much from the very beginning
until now, the likely outcome may very well simply be political chaos. According to just about every poll we've seen, just about every poll we've
seen, Netanyahu doesn't have the government he was hoping for, a right-wing religious government and that's because of his former defense minister,
Avigdor Lieberman, splitting from him.
And that means that Netanyahu has a few options. He can try to take the country to third elections. Although, that doesn't seem all that likely is
a possibility, or he could do what he didn't do last time, which was allow somebody else to form a government. Of course that is all predicated upon
him coming out next Tuesday with the biggest party. Again, it's an incredibly close race and that's what we see in poll after poll with his
rival, former chief of staff, Benny Gantz, right there with him in most of the polls.
Let's remember both of these parties, Netanyahu's Likud party, and Gantz's Blue-and-White party, came out with almost the exact same number of votes.
They almost -- they both had about a million votes each and only 14,000 votes or so separated them so it remains a very tight race. Netanyahu has
tried to guarantee he'd come out ahead. He emerged with a small party. He got a few other right-wing parties to drop out of the race hoping to take
their votes. The polls haven't reflected that yet. It hasn't reflected that gain for Netanyahu and this remains a very difficult race not only for
Netanyahu but also for his rival.
ANDERSON: Yes, and you're right to point out what is going on with those polls. What is the mood on the ground -- Oren?
LIEBERMANN: I would say the mood here is everyone is sick of elections. This election has been much quieter than the last time around.
[11:30:00]
Yes, Netanyahu has done repeated Facebook lives and repeated messages and yet it remains a quieter election. The other parties are quieter and maybe
they sense simply election fatigue coming from the general population here, coming from voters. They're sick of having to go through this again and so
there's a weariness of having to be dragged into a second election here. Of course one of the big numbers we'll keep an eye on is voter turnout.
Because just as last election was decided by a few thousand votes here and there, this may well be decided by again a few thousand votes here and
there in terms of who comes out to vote next Tuesday.
ANDERSON: All right. We are waiting on Netanyahu. As and when we see him, we will get our viewers to him. A speech on Iran expected from the
Israeli Prime Minister very shortly. CONNECT THE WORLD will be there live on the ground in Jerusalem. We'll be bringing you special coverage of the
Israeli election. Do join us September the 17th.
We're going to take a very short break. We're going to be back after this.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ANDERSON: I want to get you to Jerusalem where Benjamin Netanyahu is about to make a speech on Iran, as we understand it. Let's listen in.
I've got Oren Liebermann with me in Jerusalem standing by and without translation, Oren, I'm just going to rely on you for a little bit of help
as we get our translators in place here at CNN. Hang on, I think we're sorted. Let's listen in.
[11:35:00]
NETANYAHU (through translator): Today I announce you that the supervisors have found uranium in Iran and it's a serious violation of the agreement.
Today the CEO of IAEA announced that he didn't get any cooperation from Iran. No wonder, as Iran did everything, including everything in order to
hide her deeds in Turquzabad.
These are the nuclear before the exposure. Where Iran hide nuclear equipment. And this is after the exposure where they removed everything,
all the tanks, and they covered the site in debris.
There's no other word but cover-up. This is what Iran did there. It didn't help as they left some traces. Today I discover that we found other
secret sites in Iran's nuclear program. One of them is to develop nuclear weapons near Abadeh. Aside from the developing of nuclear weapon, just
like in Turquzabad as Iran realized we are on to her, they started to cover-up. This is the site in Abadeh before they realized it was exposed
and this is after they realized we were on to them. And they destroyed everything.
It's absolutely amazing, and every time that they cover, we are exposing it. And I say that Israel knows what you're doing and when you're doing it
and where you're doing it. We will continue to expose your lies and to do everything in order to prevent Iran from getting nuclear power and against
its aggressiveness anywhere, any time.
I call to the national community to wake up and realize that Iran is lying constantly and to join President Trump and the state of Israel to pressure
Iran. This is the policy that needs to be taken. Pressure, pressure and more pressure.
-- we expose Iran's secret nuclear archive which revealed that Iran was developing five nuclear warheads as early as 2003. Last year we exposed
Iran's secret nuclear warehouse in Turquzabad which Iran used for storing materials and equipment for its secret nuclear program. Even before that,
Iran knew we were on to them and so they cleared the site. They cleared it of these capacities. They cleared it and then they actually covered up the
site. This is an actual cover-up. They put gravel on it to try to hide their traces but they didn't.
The IAEA found traces of uranium that Iran hid in these sites. That's a direct violation of the NPT, the Nonproliferation Treaty. Earlier today
the IAEA demanded that Iran answer its questions regarding these violations and Iran refused. Today we revealed that yet another secret nuclear site
was exposed in the archives that we brought from Tehran. In this site Iran conducted experiments to develop nuclear weapons. This is the site near
Abadeh.
When Iran realized that we uncovered this site, here's what they did. They destroyed the site. They just wiped it out. They wiped out the site.
They conducted nuclear experiments or nuclear weapons. This is the site. After they found we were on to them, they destroyed the evidence or at
least tried to destroy the evidence.
[11:40:00]
This is what I have to say to the tyrants of Tehran. Israel knows what you're doing. Israel knows when you're doing it. And Israel knows where
you're doing it. We will continue to expose your lies, what we see as a consistent pattern of Iranian lies, deception and violations. I call on
the international community to wake up, to realize that Iran is systematically lying. And I call on the international community to join
President Trump's sanctions to exert more pressure on Iran. The only way to stop Iran's march to the bomb and its aggression in the region is
pressure, pressure, and more pressure. Thank you.
ANDERSON: Well to unpack what has just happened. CNN's international correspondent Oren Liebermann joining me now. We've been listening to the
Israeli Prime Minister who has just announced that U.N. inspectors found undeclared uranium in a warehouse in Tehran. That and more from the
Israeli Prime Minister. What do you make of what we've heard?
LIEBERMANN: Well, he seems to have tied a few different strings together here. First, he'd been promising for weeks and months -- as I had said
earlier -- that he had more to reveal from the nuclear archive. Why not reveal it now with an election in eight days seems a good time to put that
message out there. He's also repeatedly called in the past for the international community to follow in the footsteps of U.S. essentially
abandon the Iran nuclear deal, the JCPOA, and apply pressure in the form of sanctions to Iran.
And then in terms of what's new here. What is it that he revealed. He said they're revealing a new nuclear site where they performed nuclear
experimentation in pursuit of a nuclear weapon. Then the threat he leveled at Iran, was Israel knows what you're doing, when you're doing it and where
you're doing it. So he's keeping up that pressure on Iran. And that's not a surprise. Iran has been not only his major foreign policy objective but
one his major talking points with Trump, with European leaders, with the United Nations and others.
In terms of what's new here, it's worth to going back to what he said last May when Israel had revealed the Iranian nuclear archive and having spoken
to nonproliferation experts then. They basically said, look, there's nothing new here. There's nothing we didn't know before. The point he
keeps hammering and he did it again is saying Iran lied. Those nonproliferation experts said we've known that Iran lied. Iran has always
lied about its intents and what it was doing with his nuclear program. So not even that part is new. What he revealed was details filling in the
knowledge that the IAEA already had and the signatories of the Iran nuclear deal already had. And here he is hammering at it again revealing a new
site here. No coincidence I think that that's just eight days before an election and this is certain to score him some political points.
ANDERSON: Oren is in Jerusalem where we've been listening to the Israeli Prime Minister. Oren, thank you. I'm Becky Anderson. That was CONNECT
THE WORLD. From Abu Dhabi it is a very good evening.
[11:45:00]
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